Thursday 30th July 2026

Fitful night's sleep...plagued by roof fret! Aki brought me a mug of tea in the morning. Eventually got up and porridged. Drove over to Sainsburys at Manor House. Dropped Aki at the store, while I queued for the car wash. Picked up Aki from the front of the store, as she manhandled a large bag of compost into the boot of the car. Drove home...put some lunch together. Cleared out the shed, but discovered the local tip had been temporarily closed due to a fire on site! Ben and Gayu popped round at the behest of Aki, to show them through our flat configuration, thus giving them an idea of what their ground floor flat conversion might vaguely look like. Aki cooked teriyaki salmon for dinner. Watched a bit of telly...interesting "Fake or Fortune" episode on the trail of a painting by Fauvist, Andre Derain. 

Wednesday 29th July 2026

Aki up early to ready for Rowing Club. I brought tea back to bed with me...ate my porridge there, too! Got up around 1030. Googled best places to buy wholewheat pasta, and decided to go investigate an Italian deli in Hampstead. Walked up to Upper Holloway station and caught a train to Gospel Oak, and then changed for the Mildmay Line to Hampstead Heath. Very warm out, even in the shade. The deli was a disappointment...very tiny, and they didn't stock wholewheat pastas. Bought some artichoke stuffed tortelloni instead. Bought a coffee in Gail's and drank it on the station platform waiting for the train back east. Picked up some milk from Sainsburys on my walk back down the Holloway Road. Aki back when I got in. Gazpacho for lunch. Pottered about during a hot afternoon indoors...did some exercises, and some Italian practice. Made a creamy nutmeg and parmesan sauce for the tortelloni, and a tasty side salad. Drove to Stoke Newington to see "Anne Boleyn" at the Tower. Hooked up with Katrina in the bar. Full house...the play was interesting, up to a point, though the delivery was poor...bad diction and poor projection from many of the actors, which meant it was hard to follow the detail. Met up with Kathleen from No.49 in the bar...she'd worked on the costumes, which were great. Gave her a lift back to Sussex Way. 

Tuesday 28th July 2026

Woke around 0830. Lay in bed listening to Today, followed by an interesting piece by David Dimbleby on how the USA forced the dollar on the global financial markets to ensure they would supercede the British as the global superpower...culminating in the Bretton-Woods conference which so stressed John Maynard Keynes, who was fighting for the British corner, that he had a heart attack! Got up around 1000 and porridged. Aki departed to tai chi class. I took a look at a couple of the quotes that have come in for the butterfly roof, and drafted some queries. Looks like we're settling around the £25,000 mark! Aki back in time for lunch. Sang some songs and played some guitar...had planned to try out Sharp's folk club singaround this evening, but it may be too hot out there to contemplate...the room was sweltering when we visited a couple of weeks ago! Did some exercises. I cooked harissa chicken and butter beans for dinner. Watched a bit of telly. Enjoyed the BBC Prog Rock Prom...

Monday 27th July 2026

Woke around 0500 with roof fret...eventually nodded back off again. Aki got up around 0900 to water her tomatoes...I languished in bed until 1045. Got up and porridged. Aki tidied up the front garden, and cropped some tomatoes. I did a little more pruning above the front window. Gazpacho for lunch. Quiet afternoon...did some exercises and played some guitar. Early dinner...Aki baked some sea bass, with freekah and vegetables. Took ourselves to Finsbury Park and took a train to Blackfriars. Walked to Tate Modern for an evening viewing of the Frida Kahlo exhibition, open only to members. We'd already done the first three or four rooms, so we were able to jump ahead of the crowd. I really enjoyed some of the pop-art reinterpretations of her image. They looked good on the t-shirts in the gift shop. Did a little shop in M&S at Finsbury Park on our way home...

Sunday 26th July 2026

Woke around 0830...back giving me a bit of gip. Aki got up to water the tomatoes...I folded down the ladder and brought it inside to avoid some rain in the forecast. It didn't last long. The snap joints on the ladder are becoming increasingly stiff, though...I need to give them a bit of WD40. Porridged. Did some more wisteria pruning out front before it got too hot. Cut away a large portion where it bends around the window opening...it now looks rather eviscerated! Aki put lunch together. Bussed ourselves down to Highbury Corner, and walked from there to Angel to do a bit of shopping at Sainsburys, then caught a no. 153 bus back home. Upper Street beginning to look a bit tatty...a lot of litter lying about...it looked more like our end of Sussex Way! This city is on the decline...should have gotten out years ago! I made a chicken, mushroom and walnut pasta dish, with cream and parmesan, for dinner...very tasty! Headed off to Southwark to see the Free Association do Jane Austen..."Austentatious"...an hour or so of improvised comic mayhem. The debutantes were good, though the young heart throb had very poor vocal projection which made him difficult to hear...the two old hands were fantastic...polished, inventive, and very funny. We walked over Blackfriars Bridge, and along the new Bazalgette Embankment, hoping for a drink on the terrace at Somerset House, but they had closed for the evening. Walked up to the bus stop on The Aldwych and caught a no.91 bus home...

Saturday 25th July 2026

Woke around 0400....another bout of roof-fret ensued. Alarm at 0800. Got up and made tea ahead of Danny's arrival, from Decent Roofing, to take a gander at the butterfly roof above Lynne's flat. He took a look at the damage to the back bedroom ceiling, then flew a drone over the roof and took some footage. Quite impressive fellow. We await a quote! Could do with having him back to take a closer look at the timbers in the roof space, though...see what happens. Porridged. Lynne alerted me to the fact that she was going out, so I took the opportunity to hang out of her living-room windows and do some pruning. Put some lunch together. Pottered about all afternoon, listening to music, doing exercises (leaning out of the upstairs windows this morning did my back no good!), and reading. Wandered up the road for dinner at No.127 with Katherine and George. We admired their new timber sash windows. Ben and Gayu joined from No.38, and we sat down to a vegetarian repast, though Katherine and George confessed to being about to convert to a meat eating Keto diet! Even Gayu, who we thought a fervent vegetarian, expressed an interest in coming round for a steak! Ben was horrified, and suggested divorce would be in the air. Got home around 2300. I had a bath to try and alleviate my back pain...

Friday 24th July 2026

Fitful night's sleep worrying about the roof again! Aki up at 0730 to ready herself for Rowing Club. I got up once she'd cycled off and took a mug of tea back to bed with me. Doom-scrolled for half-an-hour or so before rising to porridge. Did an hour's work at my laptop, finishing ascribing figures to the Delta stocklist for Matthew Sale. Ambled over to Waitrose to do a little shop. Once back home, I ventured upstairs with my laptop, and Lynne and I scrolled through some Which? Trusted roofers, and made a couple of calls. Later got confirmation that Danny from Decent Roofers, based out in Theydon Bois, would come take a look tomorrow morning. Aki back for lunch. Pottered about not doing very much. Strummed through a few songs while Aki worked at her computer. Aki made a carbonara for dinner. Watched a bit of telly...episode 2 of Ann Droid was worse than the first...