Tuesday, March 22, 2005

A la recherche du temps perdu

Or words to that effect. But before I set off on that particular trail....

I am sitting at the computer with the door to this room firmly shut. On the other side of the door, or to be more accurate, in the bedroom, under the bed, is a cat. The cat is not alone. There may, in fact, be two cats, but there is definitely one, and....something else. Something that was brought upstairs in a rush, squeaking or twittering. And cats having now discovered that under the bed is a very useful place to hide from irate or agitated human beings who want to stop them having fun or make them do something they don't want to do....well, you get the picture. I may just stay in here until the DSM gets home, and let him deal with Whatever It Is. Or is that too plain dam' mean of me? (Need for a cup of tea may drive me out. But perhaps cat and prey will have vanished - can happen. With luck.)

Yes, life is back to normal, routine madness.

Little of a fibre, yarn or whatever nature has passed through my hands for the last couple of days. Lots of time in the car - the south is very definitely another country and a long way away. It did seem very strange to be back. But we had a good time.

Seeing my family was great, and we enjoyed catching up on all the news. My aunt, sole survivor of my father's generation was looking and sounding wonderfully well - she is around eighty five now. None of my globe-trotting cousins were able to be present, but I got news of all of them, and spent time with most of the rest. The givers of the party seemed to like their rather strange gift, and it gave Janet the opportunity to get out some quilts she has made - this when we went back with them for tea. I wish we could get together more often!

The lunch party being where it was, we had the opportunity to revisit another fragment of the past. It is way too long a story to recount here, in all its gory detail, but it seemed like a good chance to lay the odd ghost. It worked out very well, it was rather like watching a play, something familiar but apart. We drove down a street where we had often been before, and as we did so, looked through a window, illuminated like a stage set, and saw - nothing. Nothing much at all, and absolutely nothing of any consequence. I do really feel as though we have brought down a curtain, which we should have done long since but somehow couldn't. A little bit more of me has grown up....

Yesterday morning, we dithered about where to go, what to do - and ended up going to the Royal Horticultural Society gardens at Wisley. So glad we did - gorgeous! Have a quick peek....

This is the walled garden:

wisley1

And just outside same:

wisley

And I loved this:

wisley:fishingbear

My conscience is pricking me - I need to go see what that 'orrible cat is doing!

gw

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