Friday 6th September 2024

Woke around 0930. Exhausted after last night's rehearsal. Rolled out of bed...Aki already at the computer working. Porridged. Rehearsed a couple of "Witch" tunes in the back bedroom. Lunch. Took myself off to Waterloo...walked to Finsbury Park, and hopped on a tube train. Wandered through Waterloo station...it now boasts an upper deck of shops and eateries. My InHealth appointment was on the first floor of an 80s era tower opposite Waterloo station's eastern exit. I alerted reception to my presence, and didn't have to wait long before called in for my ultra-sound scan. Unusually, the scanner was a female practitioner...thought it a bit odd, since the scan was on my left testicle, but all went without a hitch, and she suggested the results would be with my GP early next week. Walked along The Cut, and from thence to Borough, stopping for a decaf and a chocolate brownie at Audrey's, which I'd visited a few months ago when carrying out inspections in the vicinity. Then wandered through Borough Market, picking up a tasty looking rustic loaf on my way. Caught a No.43 bus back to Holloway from London Bridge. We warmed up the pasta bake I'd made a couple of days ago for dinner, then set off on foot for Newington Green...by the time we got to Highbury Barn, it was threatening rain, so we jumped on a No.236 bus. The Mildmay Club is a late Victorian edifice fronting the north side of the Green...it was originally named the Mildmay Radical Club. The band, King Toadfish and the All Weather Riders were still setting up in the concert hall, so we descended to the basement bar for a swift half. Nice atmosphere...very convivial. There were games of pool and darts being played, and various groups sat around tables chatting away...we liked the vibe. We took our drinks upstairs to bag a table near the dance floor...Aki's rowing mate, Kate, turned up, with a couple of her lady friends. The band were an odd mix of West Coast Americana, rock-steady, ska, and trad jazz...we all got up and had a jig about to a lengthy ska number. They took a break at about 2215, so we decided to make a run for it before they struck up again, walking up Green Lanes, and hopping on a bus to manor House, where we caught a No.29 to Hornsey Road, bath and bed...