Thursday 28th November 2024

Woken at 0415 by noise of police helicopter hovering overhead. Turned out to be due to a fire at a takeaway on Seven Sisters Road. Got up at 0830 and brought tea to bed…Aki still snoring. Porridged. Headed out to get some ingredients for making fridge cake. Seven Sisters Road still blocked off by fire engines…they were dousing the smouldering loft space in the flat above the kebab shop, the latter being completely gutted. 

Back home, I started mashing chocolate orange cookies and mixing the resultant crumb with melted chocolate and butter…stuck it in the fridge to chill. Made lunch. Struck out for Colindale to pick my car up from the service centre. Walked from Burnt Oak station, which took me through Silkstream Park, and Montrose Playing Fields. Spotted a heron in the stream, and stood on the little yellow bridge watching him for a few minutes. 

Picked the car up…amber warning on my windscreen wipers, but otherwise given a clean bill of health. Drove home. We had readymade biryani and dal for dinner, with spinach and pitta bread. I then cooked the sticky shallots tart ahead of our guests arriving. Aki hosted this evening’s Book Club session…full quota of attendees, save for Jane from No.36 who, being American, was celebrating Thanksgiving. I hadn’t read the book, so pottered about getting teas for people, and washing up. They chose a novel set in wartime Holland, and centring around a competitive rower, for their next read.

Wednesday 27th November 2024

Woke to alarm at 0830. Hauled myself out of bed for tea and porridging. Drove northward to Colindale to take the car in for service. Mrs Small was on hand to book me in when I got there, then I walked back toward the A5, popping in to Starbucks for a coffee…read some Dickens. Did a little shopping in ASDA, and in the the Loon Yung oriental food market. Walked up to Burnt Oak to take a tube train back to Camden, then a bus home. Colindale station still closed for major works. Aki working at the computer when I got in. I made lunch. Headed back for Colindale at around 1600…taking bus to Camden, and train back to Burnt Oak. Walked down the A5 and did a bit more shopping in Morrison's. Walked round to the VW service centre, and as I passed the workshop, I saw my car being driven on to the ramp...no chance of that being ready by 1800...and so it proved. Mrs Small offered me a cab, but I declined, happy to walk back to Burnt Oak and get a train to Camden. Got home around 1915...Aki cooking mackerel for dinner, which we had with rice and stir fried vegetables. 

Tuesday 26th November 2024

Woke around 0900. Got up and brought a mug of tea back to bed, and read the first chapter of The Old Curiosity Shop. Aki left to go meet Tammy at Tate Modern. I rehearsed some mandolin, and harmonica, for Gig Night. Cooked a pasta sauce ahead of tonight's dinner. Walked to Finsbury Park station in the winter sunshine, and caught a tube train to Oxford Circus. Popped in to John Lewis's to try on their merino lined leather gloves...but they didn't have black. Aki called to say she was making her way toward Holborn for some lunch...so I hopped on a bus to Holborn and walked round to the ramen noodle house near the Garden Cinema, where I found Aki already seated and surveying the menu. We shared a large bowl of tasty soup with pork, and a couple of bao buns with pork and sauce...very good! Will definitely go there again! Walked round to the Garden Cinema, where I'd secured two £5 tickets to see Steve McQueen's new movie, "Blitz". It was OK...6/10. The script and plotting got a bit clunky here and there, but the effects were great...it looked like they had destroyed half the east end to make the movie! Paul Weller had a nice little cameo as Grandad, plonking away on the Joanna in the front parlour. Took a Piccadilly Line train to Holloway Road, and walked home via Boots, where Aki collected a new electric toothbrush she had ordered. Warmed up the pasta sauce, with papardelle and peas  for dinner. Aki had a zoom meeting with JCUK. I sat and read some Dickens. 

Monday 25th November 2024

Woke around 0830. Aki got up and brought me a tea. My left ear is blocked! Got up and porridged. Took a late morning constitutional up to Archway Library and dropped off a couple of borrowed items. Did a little shopping in M&S and walked back down the Holloway Road. Soup for lunch. Bee came round this afternoon for a rehearsal. Aki listened from her post at the computer. Bee still working out some harmonies for She Moved Through the Fair, so we didn't quite click into gear. She left around 1730 and I began cooking...made a chicken and peanut stew with sweet potatoes, served up with some pitta bread, and a few vegetables. Watched the first episode of The Mirror and the Light...everyone looks a bit older than they were...it's been 10 years since the making of Wolf Hall...the make-up artists are evidently up against it...and Bernard Hill has sadly died, so his fantastic Duke of Norfolk only features off-screen. 

Sunday 24th November 2024

Got up around 1000. Windy outside...the tarpaulin was being slowly ripped from its' moorings on the scaffolding surrounding the block of flats going up behind us...not sure that will last the day! Aki cooked brunch. We rehearsed our Xmas ukulele repertoire. Ventured out into Storm Bert...wasn't so bad. Hopped on a No.91 bus to Charing Cross. Finished Beloved on the ride...an American masterpiece! We walked over Hungerford footbridge to the Southbank to go listen to Joli Blon play their Cajun tunes to an enthusiastic audience in the Clore Ballroom...good, free entertainment...we splashed out on coffee and pastel de nata. Enjoyed watching the kids and mums dancing away in front of the band. Walked back across the river, and up to Seven Dials to do a bit of browsing in Carhaart, then jumped on a No.29 bus home. Aki fried some hake for dinner, with savoury lentils. Watched an episode of David Attenborough's "Asia".

Saturday 23rd November 2024

 

Woke around 0800. Got up and made tea. Feeling better this morning…though still got the sinusitis. We walked up to Yerbury Farmer’s Market in the drizzle…wind starting to get up as the eastern fringe of Storm Bert hits London. Bought a loaf and walked home via Nags Head Market. Cooked a hearty brunch. Worked on some Dylan harmonica. Aki nipped out to Boots to take a look at their stock of electric toothbrushes. Phoned ma and pa...they seemed in fine fettle, though were hunkered down out of the snow. Warmed up the last of the chicken curry with dal, and some pitta bread, followed by a Waitrose apple tarte tatin with cream. Caught a bus to Finsbury Park, and a train to Moorgate. Weather inclement, but the wind wasn't too bad, and it was relatively warm. Walked from Moorgate to the Barbican. Did some browsing in the gift shop before taking our seats in the main Hall for this evening's concert with the Take Me To The River All-Stars, a number of musicians and songsters who had come over from New Orleans to give London a taste of their exuberant music. Aki's old pal, Jon Cleary, got things underway on the piano, with a couple of Dr John numbers, before the band came on. The band was fronted by Cyrille Neville, now getting on a bit, but still fantastic...his son on drums, and a nephew on guitar. I was expecting more of a show...the poster inferred colourfully dressed Mardis Gras dancers, but it was just the band, and to be honest they struggled to create the Louisiana swamp vibe among the Saturday night London crowd in the big hall. But we got up and had a bit of a jig about in front of our seats...especially enjoyed the encore, a rendition of Take Me To the River, an old favourite. Caught a No.153 bus from Moorgate afterward, which dropped us a few yards from home...

Friday 22nd November 2024

Got up and porridged. Read some Toni Morrison. Still feeling under the weather, so didn’t get up to much this morning. Aki working at the computer. Lunch. Wandered over to Waitrose to get some shopping done. Oty and her dad popped round at 1800…Aki and I took Oty through our Xmas party repertoire. Also suggested she sing a song from her repertoire…she does Sia’s version of Snowman, so Aki and I can hopefully accompany her on that. They left and we put together a simple pasta dinner with prawns and pesto sauce. Nowt on telly. Early bath and bed…