Thursday 18th January 2024

Woke around 0800. Got up at half-past and made tea. Porridged at the computer. Worked until 1130, then broke and tried to work out some harmonies for Celia to sing before she came round for rehearsals. Ben showed up first, with violin in hand, so we managed a bit of a catch up before Celia showed up. She'd walked from Stoke Newington. We ran through Ae Fond Kiss, with Celia doing a nice harmony she'd been working on since Sunday's run through...sounded good. Aki joined in with some background oooh's. I served up the carrot soup, but Celia decided she needed to get on, as she has her hands full with sorting her 102-year old mother out...she's had a fall and is in hospital, and at the moment things seem a bit uncertain as to whether she will come out again! So we waved Celia farewell, and gae Ben some soup and had a chat at the dining table. Back to the coalface for the afternoon. Broke early to catch up with "Traitors Uncloaked" before cooking a mushroom and anchovy pasta sauce for dinner, which we had with linguine, and some vegetables. 

Walked up to No.36 for Book Club. Jane had baked a splendid blood orange bundt cake especially for the occassion. Aki and I hadn't read "Through the Looking Glass", instead listening to Miriam Margolyes reading it on our festive journey up to Newcastle and back, and though we kind of enjoyed it, large swathes of it passed me by as I concentrated on negotiating the traffic! Those who had read it seemed to have very much enjoyed it, so may give it a go on the written page after all, now that I've finished "Oliver Twist". We chose "Country Girl" by Edna O'Brien, as the next read. Got home too late to catch up with this evening's episode of "The Traitors", so will have to watch at some point tomorrow afternoon or something. Bath and bed...