Monday 24th February 2025

Woke around 0700...dozed on until 0800. Got up and porridged at the computer. Worked on until lunchtime...prepared poached eggs and ham for lunch. Back at the coalface for the afternoon. Finished working around 1900. Aki had cooked dinner...a chicken traybake with beans, and broccoli. Nowt on telly, save ever more depressing news of far right gains...AfD making gains in German elections, and Trump refusing to call Putin a dictator, and siding with Russia, North Korea, and China on a UN resolution. I suspect Trump has talked to Putin about sharing Ukraine's mineral wealth...WW3 advances ever nearer! Caught up with my online diary. Early bath and bed...

Sunday 23rd February 2025

 

Woke around 0700...red sky in't morning, shepherd's warning. Eager to get away early so we can stay ahead of the forecast gales and heavy rain. Packed our stuff and ventured downstairs for porridge with mum and dad. Said our goodbyes in the porch at 0830, and headed south down the A1(M). Very little traffic about. Decided to avoid the M1 round Leeds, as we'd noticed heavy traffic through roadworks on our way up on Thursday...took the A1(M) down to the M18...and hit heavy traffic through roadworks south of Darrington! Eventually got to Tibshelf around 1130...stopped for coffee, then drove on to Watford Gap service station, where we stopped to eat our packed lunch. Managed to avoid the rain, but the wind got stronger as we headed south. Made a detour to Waitrose on Holloway Road to stock up with provisions. Aki cooked a spaghetti carbonara for dinner. Flaked out on the sofa in front of the telly before bath and bed...

Saturday 22nd February 2025

Woke around 0800. Got up and descended to the kitchens to make tea. Aki cooked porridge. Sat at table with mum and dad…Kath out working. Nice sunny day. Aki and I walked down to Darras to buy milk. Stopped for coffee at No.9. Walked back up Whinfell Road...Aki waved hello to a woman who was doing some gardening out front of No.36, and she came over for a chat...she and her husband are in the eighties, but look good on it. She used to be a county swimmer! I mentioned that my dad went swimming at the Sports Centre, and that he celebrated his 95th birthday yesterday, at which point she said, "Weren't you in The Blackbird yesterday? Turned out they were on the table behind us! As we said goodbye we found ourselves falling in step behind a couple of blokes carrying shopping from the Co-op...I thought I'd seen one of them on the phone outside Bruno Guimares' old house opposite mum and dad's, and asked them if they had moved in...turned out Newcastle United's young left back, Lewis Hall, has moved in, and the blokes were Lewis's dad, and grandad. The dad asked me what I knew of the Halliday's, who had lived in the house in the 1970s when we first moved to High View...it turned out he had been a policeman, working with William Halliday in Slough with the Thames Valley police force!!! I used to baby-sit William!!! Extraordinary stuff! Buffet style lunch. Decided to take advantage of the sunny afternoon, and drove to Northumberlandia, near Cramlington, for a walk. Took two cars, as Kath needed to head off for work in Morpeth afterward. Dad only managed it to the moat, and turned back to wait for us in the car...mum decided it was too windy for her to mount the face, and Kath took her back to the car park while Aki and I successfully climbed to the summit. Took in the views, and hurried back down out of the cold wind. Drove back to High View to cook dinner...boiled a ham, which we ate with mashed potato and greens...Aki did a mustard sauce. Cooked up a chicken tikka masala to put in the freezer. Watched a bit of telly and pottered about upstairs on the computer before taking an early night...hoping for an early getaway tomorrow morning.

Friday 21st February 2025

 

Woke around 0800. Descended to the kitchen to make tea. Mum and dad already pottering about…Kath had gone off to work. Porridged with Aki. Dad had to pop down to see his GP…returned to report that his PSA reading was zero! I nipped out in the car to buy food for this evening. Drove down to Darras to put air in my tyres, but found the machine only took cash (after I'd unscrewed all the caps!). Decided to try the garage at the Airport...the machine took contactless payment, so got that sorted, and filled the petrol tank ahead of Sunday's drive home. 

Drove on to Kingston Park and did the food shop in M&S, then headed back to mum and dad's. Jim and Emma rocked up in their van. We drove in convoy down to The Blackbird for lunch to mark dad’s 95th birthday. We were seated in the vaulted annexe...the pub was packed. The food looked great, but tasted rather ordinary...the fish and chips were good. Drove back to High View afterward for chocolate cake and prosecco. I was a bit surprised when Jim and Emma drove off in their van...had bought them a load of food for the evening meal! Prepared a buffet style evening meal, which we helped ourselves to at the dining table. Watched a bit of telly before retiring for the night...exhausted!

Thursday 20th February 2025

 

Woke around 0800. Got up, made tea, and porridged. Packed the car. Set off at 1030…made for Sainsbury’s at Manor House, intending to put air in the tyres, but the machine was out of order. Popped into the store and bought lamb shanks for dinner tonight. Drove up the M1...busy south of Luton, as usual, but not bad going. Broke the journey at Tibshelf service station and ate our packed lunch in the car...bought coffee, and Aki took to the driving seat for the rest of the journey. Hit some very heavy downpours, and there was a lot of spray from lorries...Aki didn't enjoy herself very much! Wish we'd gotten the train! Arrived at 12 High View around 1700. Unloaded the car, and stuck the oven on to cook dinner...lamb shanks, mashed potatoes, and vegetables. Dad looking OK, if a little weary. Mum in fine fettle. Kath turned up later after work. She is due to quit the job next week. Watched a bit of telly before shower and bed...

Wednesday 19th February 2025

Aki up early to ready herself for Rowing Club. Got up and porridged at the computer. I worked until Aki returned for lunch. We ate the last of the mapo, with noodles. Managed another two or three hours at the coalface before an early dinner. Drove to Stoke Newington and parked up outside the theatre. Song rehearsal in RR3 this evening. Colin Guthrie MD-ing, and he introduced a couple of self-penned shanties which we had a go at singing parts to. Sound really good...am looking forward to getting them under my belt before rehearsals begin in earnest at the end of April. Still a few coughs and sneezes amongst the gathered actors...a few still missing, nursing symptoms at home. Drove home around 2100...

Tuesday 18th February 2025

Woke around 0845. Leapt out of bed to make tea. Porridged at the computer. Put a packed lunch together and headed off to Leytonstone, stopping off at Manor House for petrol and coffee. Lunched in the car in the car park of Tesco in Leytonstone. Managed to get into half-a-dozen units this afternoon, before heading back home through heavy traffic. Early dinner, then headed for Stoke Newington in the car, parking outside the theatre. Had tickets for "Hangmen", a Martin McDonagh black farce. Had it's moments, but the pacing was a bit slow, and a couple of the actors were mis-cast, which diluted the requisite menace. A bit disappointing, truth be told...

Monday 17th February 2025

Woke around 0830. Got up to make tea. Porridged. Did 30 minutes at the computer then headed for Notting Hill. Cold out. Lunched on a big breakfast at Golborne Deli, on Golborne Market, which I had never heard of before...just north of Portobello Road, and within sight of the Trellick Tower. Traipsed the streets...the Peabody stock in the vicinity is all a bit Dickensian! Very depressing! Pushed westward, to Shepherds Bush, then South Acton, where I managed to get into a lot of flats. A good haul today. Drove home via the A40. Aki warmed up the leftover chicken and orzo for dinner. Nowt on telly...listened to music and pottered about on the computer. Booked tickets for the IMAX showing of "Becoming Led Zeppelin" for next week. 

Sunday 16th February 2025

 

Woke around 0245 by violent coughing. Had to get up and make myself some tea. Sat on the sofa for an hour listening to music through my headphones. Got back into bed and eventually nodded back off. Aki up early to ready herself for Rowing Club. I got up a little after she had departed. Worked at the computer for a few hours, catching up. Made myself a tasty smoked salmon brunch. Aki returned having souped at the cafe. We walked to the Picturehouse in Finsbury Park to see “A Complete Unknown”….fabulous film dramatising the rise of Bob Dylan in early 60s New York, culminating in the famous gig at Newport in 1965 when he went electric, triggering his ejection from the folk music community that had helped create him…great performances from Chalamet as Dylan, and Ed Norton as Pete Seeger. It was all rather overwhelming. Walked home…Aki cooked mapo for dinner. Not much on the telly. watched a bit of MOTD2 before bath and bed...

Saturday 15th February 2025

Woke around 0800. Run out of tea! Made extra large lattes instead. We drank them in bed. Got up and cooked brunch. We walked down to Angel stopping at the occasional shop on Upper Street for a browse. Aki wandered off toward Essex Road to visit the fishmonger, while I sauntered on down to Muji to buy sox. Walked back up toward Belle Epoche, bumping into Aki on the way...bought quiche from Belle Epoche, then took a No.43 bus up the Holloway Road. Aki headed for Boots, while I ventured into Waitrose to buy milk before walking home. Lunched on quiche and salad. Pottered about on the laptop. Aki pan fried some hake for dinner. Watched the final episode of the first season of Twin Peaks...Aki hoping to borrow the DVD of the second series from a rowing chum...

Friday 14th February 2025

Woke around 0800. Aki found her Valentines gifts…I’d left a card, chocolate almonds, a potted plant, and a half bottle of champagne out on the dining table before bed last night. She had to shoot off to Harringay for a site visit. I worked at the computer until lunchtime. Aki back for lunch. My new trainers arrived via DPD. I drove over to Leytonstone to knock on doors…managed to get into nine units. Still way off the requisite 100 in total. Cold out, traipsing the streets. Got home around 1730. Aki cooked a chicken, lemon and orzo one pot, and we drank champagne. Cheese and biscuits for afters. Watched David Lynch’s “Blue Velvet”…saw it at the cinema when it was released about 40 years ago…still stunning…Dennis Hopper is terrific in it.

Thursday 13th February 2025

Woke around 0800. Got up and made tea. Porridged. Drove north to Bushey for inspections...knocking on doors again. From thence it was on to Oxhey. I parked up at a big Tesco superstore in south Watford to eat my packed lunch, and did a little shop in store, before heading on to Markyate, and ending my working day in Dunstable. The last flat I saw was tenanted by a nice Indian couple, who pointed out that water was collecting on the bathroom, and second bedroom ceilings...I've never seen anything quite like it...there seemed to be too much water to suggest a simple condensation problem...the unit is single storey at this point, and I assumed a flat roof...but on inspecting externally it proved to be a pitched tiled roof...I can only surmise that the roof tiles have failed and that water is puddling in the eaves. I promised to send her an email with my thoughts on the matter...her English wasn't great...but she really needs to make contact with Peabody as a matter of urgency! Drove home down the M1. Got in around 1815. Aki cooked a carbonara for dinner. Watched a great hour-long interview with David Lynch that had been conducted back in the mid-90's...he came over as deeply interesting, funny, unassuming, and gently eccentric...a delight. 

Wednesday 12th February 2025

Aki up with alarm at 0730 to ready herself for Rowing Club. She cycled off just before I got up. Porridged at the computer...wrote up yesterday's notes and uploaded the photos. Colin G has been taken ill, so no singing rehearsal tonight...several other cast members have also gone under. Made myself some lunch. Aki lunched at the cafe next the Rowing Club. She returned early afternoon with a loaf of bread from the Dusty Knuckle on Harringay Green Lanes. Read Angharad's "Moby Dick" script, which she'd sent over last night. It's a bit of a slow burner, but the last quarter of the piece is dramatic and oddly moving. It's going to be very interesting to see how Angharad stages this...there's a lot of chorus work to be created out of nothingness...intriguing. Tonight's re-jigged rehearsal cancelled as most of the crew appear to be suffering from an outbreak of influenza! Baked salmon fillet for dinner, with lemon, and a creme fraiche and parsley sauce, with sauteed potatoes and vegetables. Aki went off to the South Bank Centre for a choir concert involving several members of the Rowing Club...I stayed home nursing my cough. Did an hour’s work at the computer. Watched “Amandaland”, and “Am I Being Unreasonable”. 

Tuesday 11th February 2025

 

Woke to alarm at 0730. Got up and porridged. Headed off at 0930 to drive Aki to West Reading for her appointment at the Biobank. She signed up for tests about 25 years ago, so today is another session to update her records...it's all about logging the ageing process for research purposes. I had work in the vicinity, so drove on to Newbury, then back to Tilehurst. Broke for a meatball lunch at IKEA, then headed for Caversham. Gave Lawrence a wave as I drove swiftly past 254 Gosbrook Road. Spent a couple of hours knocking on doors on a large modern infill development owned by Peabody...the usual low quality kitchens and bathrooms. Finished around 1600 and drove back to IKEA to find Aki, who had wandered through the marketplace to get some odds and ends after finishing at Biobank. Drove back down the M4. Aki cooked an improvised chicken, egg and rice dish for dinner, with miso soup and pickled mouli on the side. Watched Exeter City put up a good fight against Forest in the Cup, but they went out on penalties. Bath and bed...

Monday 10th February 2025

Coughing woke me around 0700...got up and made tea. Put a packed lunch together. Rather grey outside...looks like rain. Porridged, then set off in the car for Colchester, stopping at Manor House for petrol and coffee. Got to Old Heath for the first visit, but couldn't find the property...asked a passing postman who directed me to an unmade, puddled track. Wandered down it to eventually find a detached bungalow and annexe...felt like the middle of nowhere. Luckily, no-one was in. Took some photos and hightailed it back to civilisation. Remainder of the inspections were all in Layer Road. I parked up in the car park for a large kitchen and bathroom showroom...it started to drizzle, so I sat in the car and ate my packed lunch. Had to walk up a shared driveway to photograph half the units...again, nobody about, thankfully. Drove home via Leytonstone, where I stopped for a hot drink. Aki cooked prawns and pasta for dinner. Watched a bit of telly before bath and bed...

Sunday 9th February 2025

Woke around 0730 with a bit of a cough, so got up and made tea. Aki cooked omelette for breakfast. Read some Dickens. Aki departed for lunch at the Riwing Club. I headed for rehearsal in Stoke Newington. Walked to Finsbury Park and jumped a No.106 bus. Decided on fish and chips for lunch at Sutton’s…nice bit of cod…but £20 for fish, chips and mushy peas! First couple of hours saw us crammed in to RR3…not ideal. Enjoyed the foley workshop which culminated in us creating a squall at sea utilising copious materials. After a break, we convened in the Smith Studio for movement workshops…exhausting! Not sure my knees enjoyed it much...I ain't cut out for scrubbing the decks!  Finished at 1800 and headed for home…shared a bus ride back to Finsbury Park in the company of Feiyang…she’s hoping her mom will be coming over to see the show in Cornwall…should be quite a culture shock! Warmed up chicken and red lentil stew for dinner. Watched a bit of telly…but needed an early night after the day’s exertions!

Saturday 8th February 2025

Woke around 0800. Languished in bed for an hour or so. Got up and cooked a generous brunch. Read some Dickens. Headed for Stoke Newington around 1300. Walked to Finsbury Park in the drizzle and caught a 106 bus. Got to Stokey with enough time to spare to grab a coffee and a sandwich in Pret. There were about 30 of us for the first Moby cast get together. Intro games etc…all good fun. Shared our research on the 19thC whaling industry…I crept away early to hook up with Aki and Tokiko at the ICA to watch Japanese film In The Wake…nice performances, but it all ended up with a silly plot twist. Came out around 2000 and headed for summat to eat in Chinatown…

Friday 7th February 2025

Aki up early to ready herself for a site visit to the Harringay Ladder. I got up and porridged. Sat at the computer for most of the morning, writing up yesterday's inspection notes. Aki back in time to make lunch. A bit more work this afternoon. Aki worked the computer, so I sat at the dining table on my laptop. Damp, grey day...outbursts of rain and sleet. Warmed up the last of the chicken and ham pie for dinner, with mashed potato and vegetables. Watched Man Utd get lucky in dumping Leicester City out of the FA Cup...four Reds clearly offside for Harry McGuire's winner...unbelievable! Trust the linesman has been demoted back to the Sunday League! 

Thursday 6th February 2025

Woke around 0800. Got up and made tea. Porridged. Put a packed lunch together. Set off for west London, via Manor House to pick up some petrol, and a coffee. Cold but bright day. Parked up near Ladbroke Grove tube station and walked the streets, knocking on doors. All the stock is flat conversions in 4-storey Victorian terraced houses or villas on the Notting Hill border. Not in great condition internally...usual Peabody quality...not good! Broke for lunch...sat in the car and ate my lunch, then warmed up with a tea in The Knight, a pub across the road. More foot slogging after lunch, but broke a little early, as I'd had enough...got home around 1700. Warmed up some puttanesca sauce, which we had with linguine. Aki went out for the Book Club meet. I watched Liverpool knock Spurs out of the League Cup...they meet Newcastle in the final next month. Aki came back...they'd chosen "Prophet Song" by Paul Lynch as their next read. I might dip into that one myself, once I've finished "The Old Curiosity Shop".

Wednesday 5th February 2025

Aki up early to ready herself for Rowing Club. She brought me a tea. I got up and porridged once she had cycled off. Worked at the laptop for a bit, and then on the computer, before preparing some lunch. Aki got back a bit late, having wheeled her bike in to the bike shop on Seven Sisters Road for some badly needed maintenance. Kath sent us some photos of her birthday lunch, with ma, pa, and Jim, at The Blackbird...looked good. I popped out after lunch...managed, after a good ten minute wrestling match, to get the car door rubber seal back in position, though how much longer it will last is anybody's guess. I walked down to the car parts shop near Highbury Corner, but he recommended I contact VW Parts. I walked back up to Waitrose to do a bit of shopping. Cooked the frozen chicken and leek pie I'd bought from the Farm Shop last week, with mashed potato, carrot, and steamed greens. Tasty. Watched "Amandaland", and the new series of "Am I Being Unreasonable"...the former was a bit pat, but had it's moments...good cast...the latter very dark. But not as dark as footage of Trump on The Ten suggesting the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from Gaza, so that he could turn it into one of his playgrounds! 

Tuesday 4th February 2025

Aki up early to prepare for a site visit on the Harringay Ladder. She brought me a mug of tea. Worked at the computer for half the morning, breaking for lunch...Aki turned up just in time! Worked at the computer all afternoon. Aki warmed up the fish curry for dinner, which we ate with rice, vegetables, and chapatis. Watched a bit of telly while Aki worked at the computer, tweaking her drawings post site visit.

Monday 3rd February 2025

Woke around 0830. Got up to make tea…had to field a call from Andy Garrett about the Peabody stock list. Porridged at the computer. Worked through until lunchtime, and managed another three hours after lunch. Kath and Jim rang…it seems the Talktalk mystery continues, and Jim reckons there’s some kind of scam going on…someone really needs to phone Talktalk…baffled as to why this seems such a problem. Aki cooked dinner…chicken, leek and mushroom. Watched a bit of telly...

Sunday 2nd February 2025

 

Woke a little before 1000. Got up to make tea. Brunched on pastrami and salad. Called ma and pa. Surprised to find dad still offline and getting messages from Talktalk asking for £25. Dad reckoned Octopus Energy had taken over Shell…Aki googled it and discovered that was the case, but that Octopus had sold the broadband business to, you guessed it, Talktalk!!! We took a No.91 bus into KX…walked along the canal and popped into the Nike outlet store…Aki wanted to try on a shoe, but they didn’t stock it. Walked up to Uniqlo at Coal Drops Yard to return the tee I’d bought yesterday…swapped it for a black tee with a floral design in the hope of encouraging Spring to come along. Had coffee and lemon tart at an Italian joint on the new build estate, then headed for Holloway by bus. Got some odds and ends in Waitrose, and made our way home through the throng of Gooners heading for the stadium…Man City visit this afternoon. 

Saturday 1st February 2025

 

Woke around 0800…lower back giving me hip…dunno why. Put a smoked trout brunch together with poached eggs. Aki still feeling a little under the weather so didn’t join me for a trip into town. Took a bus down to Angel and had a look at the running shoes in Cotswolds. Nothing caught my eye, so headed for Tottenham Court Road. Got off the bus on Oxford Street and found myself in a branch of Ecco…bought some walking shoes, and walked round to Denmark Street to buy guitar strings. Walked on toward Covent Garden. Found another Cotswold outlet, where I happened upon a North Face puffa jacket going for £120 in the half price sale…snapped it up. Aki rang to ask me to buy some goods at the Japanese shop in Brewer Street, so I walked westward through Leicester Square and Piccadilly. Stopped for tea at a little Italian cafe, then walked up Carnaby Street. Popped into at the Stones store…they were flogging Ronnie Wood’s dreadful paintings of the Stones in various guises for half price! Still too much in my opinion! Took a couple of buses home. We warmed up the prawn curry for dinner, with rice, and roti. Sticky toffee pudding and custard for afters. Watched a documentary on Bob Marley and his relationship with London, marking 45 years since his death. MOTD, bath, and bed…

Friday 31st January 2025

Woke around 0800. Got up and porridged. Spent the morning at the computer writing up yesterday's inspection notes. Aki made marmalade...and smoked the flat out...it all resulted in ignominious failure. She made soup for lunch. More work stuff during the afternoon...Aki popped out for a cuppa tea with Helen in Fairbridge Road...and brought back a couple of jars of...marmalade!!! I cooked pasta with chicken, mushrooms and walnuts in a creamy Parmesan sauce…yum! Watched a bit of telly before bath and bed…