Of wind & water

The gales are back. They whistle down the chimney. Gates rattle. The rain slashes against the windows when it falls. The door gets whipped out of my hand as I go to the laundry room. By all accounts Storm Gertrude is going to be nasty. Much of Scotland has already lost power. Whether we go out later on – we often join friends for lunch at the golf club on a Friday - will depend how the wind blows. If it gets much worse I suspect we might well stay in rather than risk being blown over or damage to the car trying to get in & out of it. As it is, the golf course has been closed most of the week due to flooding. Our heart goes out once more to the people of Glenridding flooded for a fourth time this winter.

We’ve had some good news this week. Our coach trip to the Netherlands is definitely on. That’s something to look forward to. Also I’ve heard from the hospital. My tongue is finally going to be examined next week. Needless to say it looks perfectly normal at the moment!

Yesterday, while I was preparing a lamb pie for dinner, I half-listened to Melvyn Bragg’s “In Our Time” on BBC Radio 4. The subject this week was Eleanor of Aquitaine. This brought back memories.

My first association with Eleanor is the feisty portrayal by Katherine Hepburn in “The Lion in Winter”. It’s a film I always find amusing as the family spars amongst itself, al vying for power, & survival.

The other was mention of Fontevraud & its abbey. We visited it many years ago, in 1994. I was instantly transported there by the radio programme. It was founded in 1101. It was richly endowed by Henry II & Eleanor of Aquitaine. And it is there they are buried along with their son Richard the Lionheart & their daughter-in-law, Isabella of Angoulême, the wife of King John. The abbey was largely destroyed firstly by the Protestant Huguenots in 1561 & latter during the French Revolution in 1792. However, the four polychrome recumbent figures of these Plantagenets remain, as do some of the main buildings, even though they are largely empty these days. These days the abbey has become a place for concerts.

The cloisters

Another view of the cloisters

The abbey kitchens

In many ways it’s difficult to imagine why this abbey in an out-of-the-way sleepy village should house these tombs. However, Fontevraud is just the other side of River Vienne from Chinon where Henry II held his court most of the time. It is also at the point the river Vienne joins the mighty river Loire, the main highway to get to the rest of France or out to sea to England. Water ways were the main roads in those days.

Smiling all the way

The jigsaw I’m doing at the moment is filling me with joy. I keep smiling.

The subject matter of the jigsaw is a party for various Disney characters. As I complete the jigsaw If find myself remembering the films, the characters, & the pleasure I had watching the films.

Inevitably Minnie & Mickey Mouse are there, along with Donald Duck, Goofy & Pluto. But there, too, is Cruella de Ville, along with Perdita & Pongo & some of their rather large brood. In the foreground are the Aristocats. There’s Captain Hook & Tinkerbell, purring over a treasure map. And there’s Belle & her Beast, along with Lumière, Mrs Potts & Chip. And look, there’s Baloo the Bear with young Mowgli & the Indian girl who enticed him away from the jungle. The apes swing from the lights & Kaa, the hypnotic snake, curls around the column. Pinoochio is managing to keep his nose under control. Winnie the Poo is sharing a table with Piglet & the irrepressible Tigger. Alice is having another tea party with the Mad Hatter, March Hare & the Dormouse on the other side of the room from the demonic Queen of Hearts. Snow White pours the tea. Jasmine’s there. One of the monkeys has whipped away the magic lamp. Oh & there in the background are the Lady, looking coyly, & the Tramp.

I supposed I must of watched hours of Disney films over the years. Some I still enjoy. I still feel the urge to rub my back on a comforting rock or tree as Baloo sings “Bare Necessities”. I watch enchanted as Belle feeds the birds & the Beast is transformed as he endeavours to do the same, or the dining table becomes the stage for a Folies Bergere extravaganza to tempt Belle to eat. I still laugh over Cogsworth’s joke about not mending what’s not Ba-roque (broke) or Lumière chases after his French duster maid.

I feel a great debt of thanks to Walt & his successors at the studio for all the laughs, the music, the good clean fun.

Very different days

What a contrast in days!

On Wednesday we went over to the golf club. As it was busy, & rather noisy in the main room we sat in a small side room. Instead of overlooking the golf course & the feeding station for the birds, we overlooked the Bay & the Lakeland fells beyond.

It was a brilliant day, bright blue skies & freezing temperatures. The Bay was filled with bright blue pockets of dampness. At one point I thought the bore, the great tidal wave that goes upstream as the tide starts to come in, was somehow going the wrong way. The Bay was virtually dry yet there seemed to be a great wave going out. Then I realised it was a whole flock of small birds taking off & flying near to ground. We sat & watched as the light dimmed & the sky became suffused with pink. Beautiful!

Yesterday, Thursday we went again to the golf club. This time we sat in the main room. The day was wet & grey. The temperature may have been milder but it permeated into your bones far more. There was a rawness to it. It was getting everyone down a bit. So different from the day before.

All this returned rain has meant we once more have a soaking wet kitchen carpet. Clearly the new bottom door hasn’t solved the problem. This morning I got onto the company once more & they will be ringing soon to arrange a return inspection. Today’s rain isn’t going to improve the situation. The rags will be coming out again.

The irony of it is that, on the drive home yesterday, I was just thinking that maybe we should post a comment on the double glazing firm’s site to say how good they were in dealing with our problem. I was actually beginning to think the problem was cured & I could relax. So much for that!