Sunny Saturday

The Mayor of Redbridge, Councillor Debbie Kaur-Thiara, and Wes Streeting, MP for Ilford North, joined some forty residents in the sun on Saturday at a Garden Coffee Morning which raised some £415 in two hours for The Children's Society, the national charity that cares for vulnerable young people.

The Mayor and the MP spent time in the garden in Aldborough Hatch to enjoy the variety of flowers and shrubs, and to speak with residents.

Ready!

It is just 9.30am and the garden is ready for the Garden Coffee Morning tomorrow in aid of The Children's Society. I have worked early mornings and evenings to avoid the heat of the days - we have been advised not to go into the sun between 11am and 3pm and I always do as I am told! This morning I have cleaned the fountain and power washed the patio in front of the summerhouse (shed-the-with-the-overhang). Now I am making a few more notelets for Linda to sell as she sits inside the front door. These will have some of the photographs here. We cannot get more up to date than this can we. The jollification runs from 10am to 12noon tomorrow - after which I will probably lie in a darkened room for the next week. (Only kidding!) The raffle will have all the usual items - wine, potted plant, chocolates - but in addition small bags of home-grown Tumbling Tom Tomatoes in both red and yellow varieties - hand-picked from the garden. And as visitors wander round they will be encouraged to pick any ripe tomatoes and eat them.

Chair

Today I bought a new garden chair at Wilko. It was only £8. However, I am a bit worried about the instructions that came with it.

The weight limit is 100kg. What is that in proper weight measurements? Also pregnant women have to take care when sitting in the chair. I may not sit on the arms - not that I would in any case - nor may I use it as a step-ladder. Chlldren have to be supervised when using the chair.

It is all a bit concerning. I may have to just look at it.

Questions!

I have almost completed the brass, copper and silver half-yearly cleaning. A happy hour this morning on the silver - although unsure if it is real silver!

Some questions arise.

(1) What did I do for the Girl Guides of Cheshire that enabled them to present me with a silver spoon with their emblem?

(2) Why did Scout camp sites - such as Gilwell Park (Happy Land!) make presentation items such as ash trays and spoons?

(3) I think of Tynemouth - and Colin and Shirley and many great characters - when I clean the brass key to the 14th Tynemouth Headquarters - I opened their brand new Headquarters back in the 1970s! The Mayor at one time ran a fish and chip shop and had the Mayoral shield outside her shop for a year! Could only happen in Tynemouth. 

(4) Canadian spoons remind me of Jim and Phil - editor of the Canadian Scout magazine. 

Happy Days! Fond memories.

We do see life in the Hatch!

They say that things come in threes. They did in Aldborough Hatch this weekend.

On Friday five traveller vans broke down gates to enter Aldborough Hatch Farm. They were gone by Saturday afternoon - having taken at least one metal gate to sell!

Overnight Friday the water main burst outside Aldborough Hall Farm - the Farm, the Aldborough Hall Equestrian Centre and the Dick Turpin Restaurant were without water until about 6pm on Saturday.

And on Saturday afternoon the field next to the church was on fire. The travellers had long gone - so they did not set light to the tinder dry stubble but arson is suspected - with one witness to the start giving evidence to police - not me - I only heard about it and dashed up to take photographs.

We do see life here in the Hatch!

Brass and copper

I have spent the past hour in session number five of a possible seven - cleaning brass and copper, and washing glassware (taking great care with the Waterford). This was a task which Yvonne did for the best part of 57 years without complaint every two months or so - although she did say on some occasions that she would put bits of the brass away. In fact, I know that Yvonne did just that - for we had two trumpets once - I must search the house for them - they might be in the cupboard under the stairs, somewhere I have yet to explore. Johnny Warwicker, one of my Scouts, gave us one of the trumpets. I think his Mum got fed up with cleaning it.

Brass and copper cleaning is an exhausting business - physically. My arms ache after an hour of this! I use MASS which - unlike Brasso - lasts for six months - give of take a week or three. I have at least two more sessions to finish to job for this summer.

The photograph here shows just some of the brass and copper. The kettles are the most difficult to clean. The brass kettle belonged to Yvonne's mother who took it onto the common opposite their Suffolk home on picnics to boil water for tea. The large one foot high shell case was found by Yvonne'e father on the common during the war. I bought the brass plate on the mantlepiece in about 1958 for ten bob in an antique shop in the City. My salary at that time was about a fiver! So every piece has a story for the family.

Hence I will continue cleaning as long as I am able. Yvonne would not want it any other way. But one hour at a time is as much as I can cope with.

Enjoy!

It is high summer in my rear garden with the Non-stop Begonia in full glorious flower and the Africa Sky Salvia shimmering against the bricks below. Let's forget Trump and all that stuff for a minute or two and rejoice in the beauty that is all around us to enjoy. I am sad that I have upset a few folk who think Trump is the cat's whiskers, but wr are all entitled to our opinions. And the garden is a joy for us all.

The Best!

I was invited to be the Unofficial Photographer at Danielle and Mark's wedding last Saturday - and I believer that the very best shot I took was this one! I doubt anyone else did so. Revd Kate Lovesey and Lee Hawkes, Priest-in-Charge and Churchwarden await the arrival of the Bride

Unofficial photographer

What could well be described as "The Wedding of The Year" took place at St. Peter's Aldborough Hatch on Saturday 14th July when Danielle and Mark were married by the Revd Kate Lovesey, Priest-in-Charge. The last time a Vicar of St. Peter's daughter was married in St. Peter's was in the last 1940s when Favell married David. The Revd Joseph Byng gave his daughter away and the ceremony was conducted by another Priest - I know this because I was head choirboy and sang 'Count your blessings' at the wedding (for which I earned ten bob!). This time the Revd Lovesey conducted the Service and married her daughter to Mark.

I was the unofficial photographer - as agreed by Danielle prior to the day. There were two real photographers, one of whom had a tripod, so she most have been very professional. I have a tripod but did not bring it this day. So the photographs here are all unofficial. I am in the process of making up a folder of these plus more unofficial photographs.

Enjoy!

Dump Trump!

Just home after eleven hours ! First to Parliament Square to see the Trump Balloon launched, then lunch with Paul and on to Trafalgar Square where the crowds were estimated at 250,000 plus. I left at 5.30pm as I was a bit tired - and they were still coming into the square. I have put some shots on here - not sorted them properly - which I will do later - but they give a flavour of a wonderful day for freedom of speech. I did not see one single incident of bad behaviour - I heard there was a problem at a pub in Whitehall but I saw great happy and determined crowd of folk who are disgusted at Trump being here as he is a racist bigot - I am ashamed that our Government allowed Trump to meet the Queen. The atmosphere was terrific and lots of folk spoke to me. A very good day for the UK. The second from last shot shows Jeremy Corbyn addressing the crowd.

With Richard

Richard, my youngest, home from Norway for a long weekend, walked with me to Fairlop Waters this afternoon - and now understands why I need the mobility scooter. I can walk - but if I walked to Fairlop Waters I would not be able to walk back again! We had a great hour or so together - enjoying the peace, the wildlife, the wild flowers. I left the photography to Richard today.

First afternoon on The Milk Float

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This afternoon I journeyed on The Milk Float to go Scouting (the new name for my mobility scooter) on Fairlop Waters. The heatwave was at its height but a cooling breeze across the lake made it very pleasant to be out and about. I might have been able to walk here - just - but would not have been able to walk back - so it is the opening of a new era for me. The shots speak for themselves - but unless we have some rain soon the blackberry crop will be poor - plenty of berries but so small. I had to tell some children to stop chasing the Canada Geese near the boat house - their parents got angry with me until a man came along and said he would deal with them. As he was of the same culture I left it to him. This was the only sad moment of the afternoon. Folk both walking and cycling called out to me and were smiling. But I must get an 'L' Plate from a garage tomorrow! That will make 'em laugh. . .