weather – Page 5 – Mick and Liesel's Antics

Magic moments

Congratulations again to Helen and Brent! Not quite married but we had a lovely day celebrating their impending union. They are having a series of parties all around the world to accommodate friends and family in several continents. Slight exaggeration there.

Dressed in white, Helen illuminated The Ivy in Manchester where thirteen of us met for a fantastic, long lunch. It was lovely to see our former hairdresser and Helen’s friend Tracey and her family after their six-hour drive from Somerset.

The food was great, the company was marvellous, the service fantastic, all the staff were very attentive and friendly. Oh hang on, this isn’t Trip Adviser is it?

Martha and William enjoyed building their own ice cream sundaes. Well, they enjoyed gorging on the various components.

Later on, we all met up at Jenny’s for a party with more friends and family. Magician Matt and Amy were there: we’d not met since Jenny and Liam’s wedding two years ago.

It was a gorgeous day to sit around in the garden, drinking, chatting and ‘plane spotting.

The more formal part of the day was Martha and William acting as joint celebrants, conducting their own marriage ceremony, and a very good job they did too.

Despite appearances, the certificate was not signed on the desk in a mobile phone and cuddly toy shop.

Even after a huge meal at The Ivy, we still found time and space to enjoy the various snacks, thanks to Jenny, Liesel and Una. Yes, for the first time in quite a while, I felt that I’d eaten too much.

Evening entertainment was provided by Matt whose warm-up act was Martha. She managed a conjuring trick perfectly.

Matt got Helen and Brent to choose numbers from an apparently random set on a board. When added up, the total was, as predicted by Matt, 111,124. Which, by coincidence, we believe to be the chosen date for the actual wedding, 11/11/24. Spooky.

Many of us suggested questions to ask Helen and Brent. They sat back to back, each holding one shoe of their own and of of their partner’s. The questions were answered by each raising the shoe belonging to whoever they each believed satisfied the question best. And yes, we were still sitting outside well after dark.

A good night’s sleep was had by all, I’m sure.

After breakfast, Martha and William came over. We looked after them for a few hours while Jenny, Liam, Helen and Brent spent some time together. We picked some litter… no… We picked a lot of litter while walking from our place to the playground in Riverside Park. In the end, we left two full bags to be collected by the contractors. Still, it was a nice day for litter-picking, and the children had fun in the playground too.

Fun, yes, but exhausting. Poor old William!

The walk home via a coffee shop was uneventful, until it very suddenly got dark, started to spit and then, whoosh, a torrential downpour soaked us. How we laughed!

It was lovely to meet up with Helen and Brent for lunch before they continued their tour of the UK and Ireland. I took a bus to Greens, Sale, the first time I’d been there. The food as always was great, but I did have to take some excess patatas bravas home for Liesel!

Martha and William returned to school and Helen and Brent drove off to Snowdonia for a few days to complete thir British adventure.

I’m still having all but daily medical appointments, consultations, examinations, check-ups, but you know, mustn’t grumble.

Liesel and I had a night out. Laughterama in Manchester’s Castlefield Bowl. Outside. And I’m so glad I wore a long-sleeved shirt, a coat and long trousers, as it did get quite cold and windy towards the end of the evening. All five comedians were very funny. One in particular was very rude, and we learned the BSL sign for a word that we’ll never use in real life.

Jen Brister, Stephen Bailey, Janine Harouni, Rhys James and Dara Ó Briain

Dara commented that he likes Manchester because of all the theatres, especially the ones with roofs…

I went for a walk on what must have been one of the hottest days of this Summer, although I didn’t realise that when I set off. I visited a few shops. Liesel and her Mom have been out a few times with the WI ladies for coffee. And we’ve been watching far too much TV: la Vuelta, the Paralympics and the Tour of Britain (Men) started this week too. I checked, but my eyes haven’t gone square like my Mum said they would.

Allez allez allez

I don’t like spiders and snakes
And that ain’t what it takes to love me
Like I wanna be loved by you.

Well, that’s how the song goes and, actually, personally, I don’t mind spiders and snakes. And neither does William. He went away on Beaver camp and received a Certificate of Achievement in recognition of his amazing animal-handling skills. Yep: he wore a snake like a scarf.

We are very proud of our grandson!

The Tour de France continues to entertain and enthrall us, especially on the day when they had to ride on fourteen stretches of gravel. The megatonnes of dust reduced visibility, and at the end of the day, we had to give our TV set a really good wipe.

Who won that stage? I can’t remember, I’m just pleased that they all finished without feeling the need to cough their lungs up.

We were invited to babysit while Liam and Jenny socialised with friends much later than originally planned. Its still a fun challenge putting the children to bed at a reasonable time while letting them believe they’ve stayed up later than usual.

It’s that time of year again: my annual visit to the optician for a checkup. Everything’s OK, and I was able to see the wonderful mural round the corner. I don’t mean I could see round the corner, it was located round the corner from the optician’s in Didsbury and that’s where I saw it.

A family member who shall remain nameless asked if I was the ‘Man who slipped in puddle of Baileys on way to BA flight could get £4m.’ No, not this time. But I am planning such an ‘accident’ for my next visit to an airport since investing in the National Lottery seems to be a waste of time. And money.

We looked after the children again a couple of days later, picking them up from school and taking them to the nearby park. On the way, we crossed a bridge over a small stream, and William had to demonstrate just how waterproof his shoes are.

We had an ice cream and lots of fun in the playground before taking them home. William’s other achievement was running around the whole of the BMX course. If only that were an Olympic event in its own right.

The regular walks were back on this week, Wednesday’s attracting over twenty people. The drinks are now sponsored by a local firm of solicitors and I was interviewed by one of their reps, asking about the benefits of these walks. And then on Thursday, there were just the three of us. Still, nothing wrong with a bit of light exercise in what passes for fresh air around here!

Liesel joined a couple of organised walks without me, one to Alderley Edge which was much longer than anticipated and one for ‘ladies only’ to Fletcher Moss Gardens. Yes, ‘ladies only’ but they stull let Liesel in.

In local news, there is a big pothole in Gatley and a few nights ago, we managed to not avoid it. One tyre punctured so it was replaced as was a second because its tread was well worn. I don’t think we can claim back from the local council, but whenever I visit this garage, I always enjoy having a quick chat with the fishies.

Good News Week

Well, the big news this week was of course the UK General Election. No spoilers here, but I will say more about it later.

The other big event was Martha and William’s school Summer Fair. It was a typical Summer’s day, blue skies, scorching sunshine, the stench of sunblock fighting the stink of burnt offerings from the barbecue.

We met up with the other grandparents, Alan and Una, and we all enjoyed the perfomance of Matilda indoors, starring the one and only Martha. As she and the others sang, sometimes you have to be a little bit naughty.

I mentioned the barbecue, and the best thing on offer there were the homemade samosas: I think we all indulged. Plenty of fun at all the stalls, although I did forget to buy a raffle ticket before we left.

Liesel needs a new computer so on the way home, we visited John Lewis where we had a look at the current generation of laptops. Lots of info from a very helpful sales assistant but as usual, almost too much information to process. So, for now, Liesel continues to work on a laptop that is the same age as Martha, and that sounds like it’s about to take flight with its Rolls Royce aero engine.

This was also the weekend of the Glastonbury Festival. We didn’t go, but we watched some of the performances on TV, such as Coldplay and Idles, Shania Twain, Cyndi Lauper, Dua Lipa, Avril Lavigne and Paloma Faith. Guess whch two of these artistes Liesel and I have seen performing on stage? No prizes, just for fun. I was disappointed that Frankie Archer’s set on the Acoustic Stage wasn’t shown in full, not even online. I should demand a refund on my TV licence.

This was also the weekend that the Tour de France started, so we’ve been watching that on TV this week. We didn’t expect to see Sir Mark Cavendish at the Tour again, yet here he is, hoping to win a 35th TdF stage and beat the 34 stage wins of Eddie Merckx, a record held since 1977. And he did, at the end of a very exciting, fast day’s racing.

We joined the family for a meal at Gusto late in the afternoon: I think William wanted to be home in time to watch England’s football team play in their next game in the Euros.

Fletcher Moss was the destination for our only organised walk this week. It was a big group, nearly 30 people, and amongst all the Himalayan balsam was some delightful bindweed, with pink rather than white flowers. As rare as a four-leaf clover, apparently.

Afterwards I continued walking into Didsbury where I had some errands to run, while Liesel went to the pub with some of the others. A fair distribution of labour, I feel.

A visit to Quarry Bank resulted in another very enjoyable jaunt through the woods. We were blown away by the number of hydrangeas in bloom here.

In fact, there was a lot of colour, thanks to the poppies, dandelions, marigolds and there was plenty of produce in the kitchen garden. We took the volunteers up on their offer and took home some rhubarb.

The regular Thrive Manchester walks were cancelled this week due to illness (get well soon!) so Liesel, Leslie and I went for a walk along the river instead.

It wasn’t that warm, there was hardly any wind, so ideal conditions for insects to be flying about, but we encountered hardly any at all, which is very sad.

And so we come to July 4th, Election Day, the day we’ve been waiting for for over four years. For the first time, I had to take ID so that I’d be allowed to cast my vote. I took three forms of ID, just to be on the safe side. But the clerk hardly looked at mine. Probably because of my totally honest looking physiognomy.

I was accompanied by Liesel and her Mom, who I think appreciated the short stroll. I came back the long way, via Rose Hill Woods, where I’ve not been for a long time. I’d forgotten that when you emerge from these woods on the other side, there’s a golf course. I wasn’t wearing a hard hat, but I wasn’t bothered by low-flying golf balls.

Liesel and Leslie went to bed and I set myself up for a long night in front of the TV. I don’t think I’ve stayed up all night to watch election results since 1997. But I thought history might be made tonight.

The exit polls at 10pm looked good, and as the night progressed and the results came in, I cheered silently. Those of you who know me personally will know that I’m not the biggest drinker in the world. In fact, until tonight, I’d only consumed one beer since I returned home from Anchorage. But tonight, well, I marked the occasion in style.

By the time I retired to bed at 6.50am, I had collected plenty of glassware for the recycling bin. We have a Labour majority in the House of Commons, some prominent Tories have lost their seats, and things are looking up again. While watching so much politicking on TV, mostly Channel 4, but also dipping into BBC, ITV and Sky, I realised just how many dinosaurs there are still in positions of influence, and relatively few young, inspiring politicians there are. The best couple of minutes was watching Carol Vorderman not holding back her opinion on the last fourteen years of “corruption and lies and gaslighting.” And now, a couple of days later, our new Prime Minister Keir Starmer has dared to appoint actual experts to his Cabinet, people who know about the ministries and departments that they’re now responsible for. What a novel idea! So, let’s hope to see some real changes soon.

Whinges of the week: (1) When you’re wasting time on Instagram watching loads of stoopid little videos, and then you click on the option that says ‘I’m not interested in this crap’, why does it then give you the option of watching it again? (2) When I have occasion to put a plaster on my fingertip, my phone can no longer recognise my fingerprint. The phone’s not that smart, after all.

Did you guess? Liesel and I saw Shania Twain perform one year in Hyde Park as part of Radio 2’s Festival in a Day. She’s just recovered from Lyme Disease. And we saw Paloma Faith in 2010, one of the guests in Rob Brydon’s TV chat show. It was the first show to be recorded, but not broadcast for a few weeks. Other guests on the show were Ronnie Corbett and Lucy Porter. It seems a long time ago now.

Gooses and Mooses

The family have been having a wonderful time at Disney World, enjoying the rides, the food and the exciting weather, thunder and lightning in between all the glorious sunshine. So here are a couple of final pictures from their trip.

Oh hang on, no, that’s not Disneyworld. That was Didsbury Festival. I’m sure there are no copyright issues here, and I am aware that Disney do have a team of very good, very expensive lawyers.

I should have walked over but in the end, I drove to Didsbury Festival and had a good look around. Apart from fairground rides, there were very many food and drink stalls. Several national organisations such as Greenpeace were represented, but I was more fascinated by the local groups. I said hello to Liesel’s WI mates. And I did think this group might have more calls on their time in Anchorage:

Liesel visited Talkeetna for a couple of days: it’s a long drive north of Anchorage. When we married, eighteen years ago, we had a party at Talkeetna Roadhouse. It’s tradition to leave a bottle top there on a door frame, and I’m pleased to say our Freixenet bottle top is still there, although our hand-written legend is faded.

Last year, there was no Women’s Tour of Britain Bicycle Race, but I’m glad to say it’s back, and I’ve been following it this week on ITV4 and via a podcast called On Yer Bike, hosted by my old friend Sanny Rudravajhala. The fourth and final stage took place in Manchester so I had to go along and support the riders.

I went by public transport, hoping to see the start and the end of the race, even if I didn’t witness the more challenging terrain along the 99 km route.

This picture shows how we dress for Summer in Manchester this year. Very few people in shorts and t-shirts, which would be my default dress code in June, which is supposed to be warm, after all.

Anyway, Manchester public transport. I left in very good time, but I still missed the start of the race at the National Cycle Centre. I heard the announcements from way over there, but I didn’t see anything. The bus got held up as a direct result of the roads being closed for the race, and the driver was reluctant to open the door and let us off. Jobsworth.

I did enjoy the musical entertainment though, provided by a group of drummers.

In fact, I recorded their rhythms and beats and I think this might become my new ringtone.

Oh well, I had plenty of time to get to Leigh to witness the end of today’s race. In fact, I had so much time, I thought I’d spend some of it in the Central Library. I wasn’t allowed in because it was closed, due to ‘an event’ which you had to book. What event? I have no idea. But, every cloud… I visited the café in the Art Gallery instead where I enjoyed one of their Cheese and Marmite scones.

As time went on, the rain worsened and I felt bad for the riders. The bus ride to Leigh was interesting. Part of the route takes the bus along a Guided Busway. What’s to stop cars driving along this former railway line? There are car traps, big holes, at road junctions.

I’ve never been to Leigh before, but I don’t suppose it’s always this cold and wet and miserable. Hooray, it was good to take shelter inside Spinning Gate shopping centre, but in a very British move, on a day when a big event is taking place in town, I noticed the public toilets were closed, as they always are, on a Sunday.

After the long, wet walk from the bus station to the sports centre, Leigh Sports Village, it was good to see so many spectators here. I found a spot 125 metres before the finishing line. I watched the race on the big TV screen but I was ready for the riders. Again, yes, I should have had a real camera.

The leading group were racing right up to the line, and in the end, it was quite a while before we discovered who’d won the stage. I think the announcer was building up excitement and expectations, but it worked, many of us, despite the downpour, stayed to watch the presentation ceremony. Ruby Roseman-Gannon won the stage and World Champion Lotte Kopecky won the overall Tour. Lizzie Deignan was Queen of the Mountains. I’m sure we’ll see all of them again at the Olympics.

Officials from British Cycling presented some of the awards, and they received a modicum of applause from the audience. Dame Sarah Storey takes the prize for the most support from the crowd, very loud cheers and lots of applause as she presented the prize to the Best Young Rider, Eline Jansen. Representatives from the sponsor, Lloyds Bank, well, they probably only expected half a dozen claps each from the crowd anyway.

Later on, I watched highlights of the race on TV and I was surprised and delighted to see my hat onscreen. Another small contribution to my fifteen minutes of fame.

News from abroad now. Jenny, Liam, Martha and William enjoyed their final day in Florida before returning home for work (boo) and for school (hmmm).

Meanwhile, in Alaska, Liesel was spotting some wildlife. By the lake in Talkeetna, a Mommy moose was looking after her twin calves.

I’ve known my friend Ruth for just about fifty years now, and it was lovely to meet up with her for the first time in at least a decade over at Quarry Bank. We had a good catch-up and a very pleasant walk. It was tempting, but neither of us were brave enough to pick the strawberry.

There were a few other visitors here today, but I think most of the other people we saw were gardeners, loads of them, all very busy. Lots of foxgloves too, but they weren’t doing much other than looking pretty.

Ruth went off to RHS Bridgewater and I returned home. I hope we can meet up again before another decade passes!

I scored a hattrick this week, attending all three of the regular Thrive Manchester walks. It was nice to see the old faces again, and some new ones.

Oops, I did it again. I left home in very good time with a view to catching a bus to one of the walks. A funeral procession held up traffic, including my bus. So I arrived late. But then so did Chantel, the leader, so I didn’t feel too bad!

In Painswick Park, it was hard to avoid all the goose guano on the path, and nobody can walk on tiptoes for that long. On the other side of the pond, we were approached by a herd, a swarm, a veritable gaggle of goslings.

If that wasn’t exciting enough, I set off on an adventure. I took a tram from Wythenshawe to the airport and then caught the bus back home. Why? Well, I’ve never done that before and I wanted to see how convenient the public transport option is at the airport. Will we travel by bus or tram with luggage? Very unlikely.

A schedule of Wythenshawe Radio shows is posted at the Forum. My show now goes out on Wednesday morning and I am described as ‘inimitable’.

I’ll take it as a compliment but… why the quotes? And no, I didn’t mention it at the volunteers’ meeting where it was nice to see some old faces and some new ones.

The theme of my show this week was Red Things. You can listen to over two hours of fabulous music right here on Mixcloud.

Arthur and Sheila

Flaming June, or as my Dad often referred to it, flamin’ ‘orrible June. The start of meteorological Summer but looking out of the window, walking the streets and taking on board all the weather forecasts, it’s not looking good. I don’t think this will be one of our best, warmest Summers. Maybe one of the coolest and wettest. Being British, I’m always going to whinge about the weather, I suppose.

While we were away, we missed seeing Count Arthur Strong at the Lowry. The tickets were passed on to some lucky listeners of Wythenshawe Radio. So you can imagine my delight when I found out that Count Arthur was appearing at the Plaza in Stockport. I bought myself a ticket and enjoyed a night out.

The venue is an old cinema, and rather than playing records before the start of the show, we enjoyed music played on the organ.

The show was very funny of course, and the second half educational too. If you ever get the chance to see the Count’s presentation on the history of The Beatles, grab it with both hands. I only remembered to take a picture right at the end of the performance, it was that engaging.

Afterwards, I walked back to the car park through the dark, brooding streets of Stockport. There were a few other people around, but it’s certainly not the hustling, bustling, vibrant town that Manchester is late on a Saturday evening.

Call me a sad old git, but I decided not to go to a gig that I’d been looking foward to. Local band Hann (who very nearly appeared on my show a while ago, but that’s another story) have a new record out. They were in concert quite locally. But then I saw that there were three or four other bands on beforehand, and that they, Hann, wouldn’t take to the stage until about ten o’clock. So, yes, I didn’t go: instead, I went to bed instead.

The car returned to the garage for some more work. Last week, it got a new battery, so it could start and go. This week, it received new brakes, so it can also stop, now. It’s a wonderful, ethically run garage, and reasonably priced too.

I paid a visit to Dunham Massey, and so did everyone else on the same day. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the place so busy, but I had a nice walk, thanks for asking. My day was ruined though because they no longer allow me to ride the deer.

These birch trees always look magificent, and I waited a long time until there were no humans in sight. The rose garden was very colourful, and I’m sure some of the flowers were scented, but my schnozz didn’t seem to be working fully.

It was good to see some busy bees going about their buzziness too.

I’m sure they know what they’re doing, but to me, it seemed more like a drunkard’s walk than a carefully thought out, methodical route, as they flew from bloom to bloom.

Although the place was heaving with people, the deer were very accessible. You had to be careful where you walked, and I’m sure they had to careful where they ate too.

While we’re thinking about wild animals, here’s one that Liesel saw over there in Alaska.

I was quite impressed that Liesel had encountered a black bear while on on a hike somewhere in or near Anchorage. But no. She said it had been at a wildlife reserve visited a few weeks ago.

And if a bear isn’t scary enough, what do you think of this beastie?

What else might be a bit scary is being stranded on an island. That is the premise of the play Sheila’s Island. I saw a performance of this, just up the road at Northenden Players Theatre Company, the amateur theatre group. It was very entertaining, funny and the set was really well done for such a small space. I arrived in a bit of a state though. I thought the performance started at 8pm. But when I checked my phone to confirm I had the ticket, I saw that it was in fact 7.30. I had ten minutes to leg it up the road and I arrived, puffed yes, but in good time.

We have a General Election on July 4th so to mark the occasion, the theme of the show this week was Elections. You can listen to it right here on Mixcloud. Really looking forward to having a new government.

First World Problems

While it’s great to be home, it’s always an anticlimax after being away in exotic locations for a while. Being tired and/or jet-lagged doesn’t help of course, so I was very sensitive to anything slightly amiss. I was definitely discombobulated after watching the carousel go round and round, delivering luggage to fellow passengers, and then, suddenly, the conveyor belt stopped. About eight of us looked at each other in disbelief, wondering where our bags were. Nothing for it but to report the missing items. This we did on awkward, vertically mounted, touch screens. Yes, it’s great that we can report missing bags at all, but in the heat of the moment, when you’re feeling tired and a bit fed up, having to try two or three times to enter every single response was so dispiriting. Anyway, I’ll never know where my case spent three days before it was delivered to my home address. The good news is, there was nothing missing, the bottles of wine were in tact. The Jumpy’s and crackers, for William and for Jenny respectively were slightly crushed, that’s all. Still, first world problems, eh?

The flat seemed to be in good nick, I just opened the windows to let in some fresh air. The two shrivelled black things in the kitchen? Well, I think we just forgot to pack the last two bananas before we set off. Oh well. At least the place wasn’t full of fruit flies, I think we were quite lucky there.

The bad news is that one of our pictures fell off the wall. Command Tape by 3M isn’t as strong and reliable as we would like. The good news is that, this time, neither the frame nor the glass were damaged. How annoying, though. It’s bad enough pictures falling off the wall, but then you can see just how dusty the wall itself is. First world problems, eh?

My first few days at home I spent trying to stay awake and adapt to the new timezone. I nodded off several times in front of the TV or while listening to the radio or a podcast or even attempting a puzzle.

After two months away, Northenden is now much more green and lush, some say overgrown. Some folks were having fun, messing about in the river.

I think those two were trying to shift an object from the weir. Very brave, considering what United Utilities have been dumping in our natural waterways recently.

After a couple of days, I thought I’d drive to the shops. Car said ‘no’. The battery was totally dead. I called on Liam who has a gadget, a gizmo, a device that would jump start the car. It got going, but I never managed to drive far enough to charge the battery enough to start the car next time. It may be the case that the battery needs replacing, of course. After a couple of jump starts, thanks to Liam, I bought my own jump start box, which we’ll keep in the boot of the car, just in case. Still, first world problems, eh?

I’ve been watching the old, classic Doctor Who series on BBC iPlayer for a while. I’ve just reached the Tom Baker era. I enjoyed the show at the time, but binge-watching it now just highlights how repetitive the storylines are. And compared with today’s modern, glossy incarnation with Ncuti Gatwa, the special effects are just laughable. ‘It is of its time, of course.’ But while the iPlayer is a great resource, it’s not perfect. There is no option to tell it, for instance, that you are not and will never be interested in a certain show so please stop suggesting it. Plus, every two or three days it apologises because the ‘Continue to watch…’ option is not available. Well, that’s no good is it? Why? This is the cue for me to eat more biscuits while searching for what I want. Still, first world problems, eh?

During my first week back, I didn’t make it to any of the regular Thrive Manchester walks, I was either asleep or just waking up. And then it was half-term, so these walks were cancelled. I’ll catch up with them soon.

Because the car wasn’t cooperating, my plans to go for more interesting walks further afield at National Trust properties were shelved. I tried not to wear the pavements out in Northenden but I wandered round and round, never meeting anyone I know. While we were away, Boxx2Boxx café has moved along the road to bigger premises, and I paid my first visit. It’s now over the road from Tesco, so I went shopping there. I usually go to the Co-op which is a bit further away from home, but on this occasion, well, I couldn’t be bothered. I needed a nap. I was beginning to think I was suffering from narcolepsy, not just jet-lag. First world problems, eh?

In other local news, some of those empty shops on Palatine Road are now occupied, hooray! One is a barber (because there aren’t enough barbers and hairdressers in Northenden) and one is a charity shop (because there aren’t enough… you get the picture).

There I was one afternoon doing a puzzle when I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. The flat has been invaded by a spider. He’s a lovely specimen and I hope he survives outside. Our very own Boris.

In another attempt to get the car started, I went over to Jenny and Liam’s. I was thrown in the deep end. Did I want to take the children swimming? Well, yes of course, as long as they can show me where to go. We walked to the pool where they both have lessons every week, and as always, I am amazed at their skills in the water, both so much more competent and confident than I am.

Yes, after swimming, William did dry and brush his own hair. He has style.

The car limped to Sainsbury’s in Cheadle Hulme and I really enjoyed walking up and down the aisles of the very large supermarket. Honest, yes, I increased my step count a lot that day. Here’s a conundrum. I probably should go for a really long drive to charge the battery. But if I do that, I’ll need to stop somewhere to re-fuel. But if I do that, the car might not start again and then I’ll be stuck in a service station, blocking the way for other customers. Yes, I did have Liam’s jump starting device on board, but I’d be worried about sparks if I try to jump start at a petrol station, I don’t want to blow the place up. First world problems, huh!

Anyway, I was pleased to see that this shop, Sainsbury’s, will accept my old, used batteries for recycling, as well as gold and silver (!), currency, electronics and stamps. Well, I have a bag of stamps to donate but I suspect if I had any spare precious metals, I’d probably be selling them.

So, as I write, the car is at the garage for its MOT and they’ll check the battery too. Fingers crossed, after today, I’ll be able to go out, start the car and be on my way.

Jenny and Liam invited me over for a barbecue, and we had a very pleasant, fun afternoon in the garden. Martha and William had helped skewer the kebabs, all veggies, no meat.

Liam brought out his juggling clubs, and yes, he’ll be running away to the circus any day now. You’ll see. I had a go myself, but my juggling skills are very rusty. Maybe I should have been practising more during the last twenty or thirty years!

A couple of days later, I celebrated Jenny’s birthday by going to the blood shop, as she called it when she was little, for another blood donation session. And not just for the tea and biscuits. Earlier in the day, I’d witnessed Martha roller-skating around the house. I found that a little scary.

And so far, I haven’t mentioned the weather since I got home. Well, we’ve had a bit of sunshine and a lot of rain. I can’t wait until proper Summer kicks in and I can go out without a raincoat. I don’t mind getting a bit wet, but I don’t need my shirt to be so waterlogged, I can wring it out. I know, first world problems, right?

I mentioned the circus a little earlier. Well, they might not be going there, but the family are all off to Disneyworld for a little holiday. Yes, of course I offered to carry their bags or something, but no. In order to facilitate uninterrupted packing, I took Martha and Wiliam to the nearby playground where I heard ‘Grandad, look at this’ and ‘Grandad, watch me’ about four and a half thousand times. Great fun! So much energy. William said, after a while, that we should go home because it felt like rain. It did indeed try, but there were only about six raindrops on this occasion.

I’m not saying my grandchildren are noisy or antisocial or anything, but soon after we arrived, the only other family there left. Maybe it was is something I said?!

Well, Spring has worked wonders for Northenden, bring out the good and the bad. Firstly, in some hedges, the bindweed really is taking over. I lost a thirty year battle with this indestructible weed in our garden in Chessington, and it still brings back nasty memories of time I’ll never get back. First world problems, yep.

Of course, not all weeds are nasty. They’re just things growing in the wrong place. I’m not a fan of footpaths that are overgrown, but I can’t really complain about these poppies.

This week, I prepared and recorded a radio show for Wythenshawe Radio, WFM 97.2, online and now on DAB! I marked the occasion of my return home, plus there’s a track from a newly released album. You don’t want to miss this one, it’s here on Mixcloud. My show is now broadcast at the exciting brand new time of 10 o’clock on Wednesday morning, with a repeat on Saturday at 6pm.

Meanwhile, Liesel and Mom are still in Anchorage, still going for walks, still watching the snow slowly disappear from the mountains.

Oh, just before I publish, news just in: Angie from the garage called: yes, the car battery is dead, D E D, dead, it’s not holding charge at all.

Soil and oil

It’s always a joy to be invited out for coffee almost as soon as you make an appearance early in the morning. Or even late in the morning. And so it was that Liesel, Leslie and I walked across the road to meet up with Jyoti and her youngest, Gita, in the New Sagaya branch of Kaladi Bros Coffee. Breakfast for me was a bagel, though sadly not a jalapeño bagel, something I’d been looking forward to. Maybe they don’t bake them any more.

Liesel took her Mom for a medical procedure so Jyoti and I went for a walk alongside the lagoon.

Gita sent a mesage from the garden centre, our cue to drive over and join her. As it was such a beautiful day, Gita gave us fifteen minutes to arrive, otherwise she’d leave and go sunbathing…

Jyoti and Gita bought some houseplants, while my job was to find some hooks and a chain with which to hang the hanging basket that Aaron had given Mom for Mothers’ Day. Mothers’ Day in America doesn’t coincide with Mothering Sunday at home.

Jyoti also purchased a bag of Alaska Organic Soil and I had nothing better to do for a minute, so I read the ingredients.

Yes, this soil contains bits of fish, thanks to bears who have enjoyed salmon from the rivers and dropped scraps in the woods.

Back at home, I made myself quite busy while Liesel and Mom were still out. I didn’t find a chain, but I managed to hang the basket on the balcony using a couple of hooks and some bendy wire.

In the living room, there is a large jar of M&Ms. We’ve all dipped into it from time to time. Liesel thought she might be over-indulging and asked me to hide the jar. Well, I thought that seemed a bit harsh on her Mom, so, instead, I put a note inside the jar saying ‘No, Liesel’ illustrated with an angry cartoon face. I hoped this would be deterrent enough.

Sod’s law: it was Mom who came across the note first and, sadly, it made her lose her appetite for M&Ms. For a while, anyway.

Leslie’s surgery had gone well, and I was surprised to see that she had much less dressing on her eye than I did after my own cataract surgery. But, she has to apply eye drops for several days, something I don’t remember having to do.

In the evening, Una took me out for dinner, thank you very much, and we had a lovely chat. We chose Mexican and the portion size on this occasion was only slightly too big for me.

Leslie’s other eye was operated on the following day, again, fully successfully. While she was out, I went for a solo walk. Westmark Anchorage Hotel and Conference Center is nothing special from an architectural point of view but it was nice to see the flags of many nations flying outside. Pedantic old me couldn’t help but notice the Union Flag was flying upside down, popularly thought to be a sign of distress.

I didn’t expect to bump into an old friend, but I did. Star the reindeer has been here for many years, but I don’t know whether or not he’s the original Star.

Rubbish picture, because of the thick layer of dirty glass between us. Still, always good to see some wildlife, sort of.

In Leslie’s apartment block, we all attended the May Spring Fling Happy Hour. This was an opportunity to meet some of the other people who live here. Wine and nibbles were supplied. At first, Leslie wasn’t that keen, so Liesel went by herself to the community area on the top floor of the other block. I must have nodded off, but when I came to, Leslie said whe would attend after all, so we wandered over, through the courtyard.

And it was an even later night than usual when we all went to the airport to welcome Leslie’s Aunt Buzz, who is visiting for a week from her home in Albuquerque. As Liesel remarked, Buzz could be Leslie’s twin, so easy to recognise as she emerged from the secure area. And here was another chance to see some wildlife, sort of.

In fact, there are very many stuffed animals at Anchorage Airport, but I am too intimidated by American Airport rules and officials to risk taking too many pictures.

The other night, we couldn’t see any sand hill cranes. But they are here, and of all places, I was surprised to see them on the front page of the daily newspaper.

That’s today’s Anchorage Daily News, the paper that also prints the challenging New York Times crossword every day. Point Woronzof, that’s where we enjoyed a stroll just a few days ago.

So, in an effort to see some actual, living animals, in the flesh, the now four of us went for a walk on the boardwalk at Potter Marsh. It was cloudy, but otherwise, another ideal day for a walk. The only disappointment here was seeing so much oil on the surface of the water.

But this doesn’t seem to deter plenty of migratory birds from enjoying everything on offer here. We saw many swallows, for example. Most exciting, maybe, was seeing an eagle on his nest, a long way over there. I tried to get a photo by holding up my phone to the binoculars.

I know it’s not a prize-winning photo, but he is a long way off and the binoculars’ lenses showed signs of having been outdoors in harsh conditions for a long time. This little chap was a lot closer.

The green-winged teals were playing chase in the stream: whether the male caught up with and ‘became friends with’ the female, I don’t know.

On a white board near the entrance to the boardwalk, there was a list of birds spotted by other visitors during today. Our list of sightings is very modest in comparison.

I’m particularly sorry that none of us saw a moose on the wing.

In the afternoon, we started packing.

In the evening, we attended Alexa’s graduation party at her home. We were happy to meet Asa’s girlfriend’s parents and grandmother, who prepared loads of food for us and many other guests.

It was time for me to come home. The original plan was for Liesel to come as well, with Mom, but after the latter’s surgery, she’s not allowed to fly for a month. They’ll both join me at the end of June.

Liesel took me to the airport early. In fact, an hour earlier than necessary due to us misremembering the flight schedule. So I had plenty of time to eat breakfast, have a coffee, admire the dead, stuffed animals again, and read my book. The flight to rainy Seattle was uneventful. No dead animals at Seattle Airport, but there were a couple of buskers entertaining us. I found the vegetarian restaurant that Liesel had told me about, Floret, and I enjoyed my salad and chips. The flight to Reykjavic was uneventful. Well, apart from the fuselage rattling, sounding like industrial strength tinnitus. Plus, the overhead locker was very difficult to open. I think that plane might be due some repairs. I finished one book and started another. And when I tried to, I just could not get to sleep. The flight to Manchester was uneventful, and still, no sleep. All three flights were full so I could not spread ouit, nor have a good, proper stretch.

Jenny was kind enough to pick me up and take me home where I was pleased, after being in transit for about 21 hours, to be able to lie down again.

My luggage arrived just three long, nap-filled, worried days later.

While I was airborne, Liesel managed to get out for a nice hike with Jyoti, Una and Phil.

I’m sorry I missed Asa’s graduation party but by all accounts, it was very enjoyable.

Now, to sleep, to unpack and to start addressing the ‘To do’ list that was compiled while I was away.

Aurora furore

I never thought I’d spend a good half hour watching a woman making a basket, but that’s the way the dice roll these days.

As usual on this fine morning, Leslie went to the local school to play with the Kindergartners. She loves it but isn’t so keen on coming home with green paint on her fingers. ‘But I did wash my hands’, she insists.

Someone had a lovely birthday present.

You have to admire whoever drove this car to the car park while it was wrapped in clingfilm. For a start, how did they get in? Anyway, Happy Birthday, stranger!

After working in the morning (Liesel) and writing (moi), we were now walking to Originale, a delightful Italian restaurant, in beautiful downtown Anchorage. Not only was the food great, they offered small and large portions. Small was big enough for Liesel and me. Best of all, Monica joined us for her lunch break.

Afterwards, we all went to the Museum where, by coincidence, Monica usually spends her working day.

Monica returned to work, while Liesel and I walked around Anchorage Museum.

Trailing by Alia Shahab and Michel Gignac

Inspired by otherworldly light phenomena found in nature, such as bioluminescent plankton and the aurora borealis, Trailing is activated by motion.

Artists Alia Shahab and Michel Gignac created Trailing from thousands of fiberoptic cables affixed to a canopy of wooden hexagons – a shape chosen for its strength and spatial efficiency, as well as its abundance In nature.

As visitors move through the installation, activated strands glow an aqua-green, illuminating a path of motion. Trailing uses over a thousand tiny microcontrollers, which are triggered mechanically by physical movement of the fiberoptic cables. Like many bioluminescent animals that glow blue-green when agitated, the tendrils glow with a rich green light when someone brushes up against the cables. As the swaying slows, the cables fade to dark. For Shahab and Gignac, the flickering and fading light references the ephemeral effects of light found in our oceans and skies and encourages reflection and play between humans and the environment.

The accompanying exhibition of bioluminescent fish was interesting too. Just a couple of weeks ago, our William drew a picture of an angler fish, so it was nice to be able to send him a photo of a real one.

We saw a large container full of plastic baling straps, or strapex, as we used to call it. I remember walking around on that stuff at work, most of the magazines and brochures were bound together with that stuff. One use only before being chucked out. But one lovely lady decided to do something about it.

Hawai’i-based artist Gaye Chan develops projects that create opportunities for exchange outside of market and state control, such as free stores, guerilla gardens, and community meals. Carrying Capacity is a durational project Chan began in 2012, stemming from a chance encounter at a produce distribution company. Chan had gone with the intention of getting a case of overripe tomatoes for pasta sauce when she noticed heaps of baling straps in the loading area. As commodities move across the globe, baling straps like these are found binding box to box, paper to paper, and everything to pallets, which are tucked into containers for shipping. They are used once and then discarded into the waste stream. Unable to simply walk away, Chan gave herself the task of figuring out how to reuse the mountains of plastic straps. After watching countless YouTube videos on basket-making methods from around the world, she developed a basic weaving technique.

Eleven years and over a thousand baskets later, Chan continues to extend the life of this waste’ material through making and skill-sharing. She says, “I think I’m coming at this material not only to get it out of the waste stream, but to ask why we end up with all this junk in the first place. The obvious answer is the dysfunctional global capitalist system of moving goods around, and the residue that gets left in the wake of commerce. I use this material in a very tangible way, but each strap embodies the broader systems of violence and exploitation.”

Today, an estimated 90 percent of the world’s goods are transported by sea. In 2020, about 1.85 billion metric tons of cargo were shipped globally, up from some 0.1 billion metric tons just 40 years earlier in 1980. It follows that baling straps are found in abundance almost anywhere in the world, including remote Alaska villages as well as in Chan’s home in Hawaii. The Alaska iteration of Carrying Capacity partners Chan and her students over Zoom with basket makers and novices in the Anchorage area to learn, experiment, and create baskets together.

And it was Gaye Chan who engaged me for half hour, making a basket from the waste material.

As usual, we left the Museum having seen some good stuff, but a bit stiff from the slow walking. We said we’d visit again next week.

On the walk home, we happened to pass JC Penney, one of America’s largest department store chains. ‘Ooh, let’s get our hair cut’, suggested Liesel. I pointed out that I still had barely any hair since my last haircut. But, yes I had a trim and a nice chat with the Korean hairdresser. Liesel had a more significant cut, maybe two inches off.

In the evening, we went over to Jyoti’s and met up with Jim and Diana, visiting from Talkeetna. It was good to see them, and I even remembered to do this:

Yes, an actual photo of people we’ve spent time with!

After enjoying Jyoti’s Indian food, Liesel and I went off to watch another fooball game featuring Asa and Gideon. It was a one-sided match, their team, West Anchorage High School, leading 8-0 at halftime. I think the second eleven played in the second half. The good news is, the snow has all gone now from the stands. But there is still plenty of snow on the mountains in the distance.

And even though the clouds here look menacing, they caused us no problems. Except that the sky was 100% cloud covered all night. Plus, the Sun doesn’t set until 10.30. So while Alaska would normally be a fantastic, far north place from which to view the Aurora Borealis, the viewing conditions here and now were less than optimal.

So you can imagine how miffed I was after we returned home from the game, only to be bombarded, inundated and showered with pictures of the Northern Lights taken everywhere else. Especially from England. Even from Northenden.

I’m sorry to say I don’t know who took this picture of the Northenden Heron with its unusual backdrop, but if it was you, please let me know and I’ll add an acknowledgement.

Photos from Kent, West Sussex, Surrey are all just as spectacular. The Sun was very active, and responsible for the Aurora, but I wish it could have waited a few more days.

Yep, ‘Miffed’ is the word!

I tried not to mope over brunch the following morning, nobody needs to hear that much whingeing, not Liesel, Jyoti, Jim, Diana nor Una, no need to ruin their appetites. Ooh, I took another picture of people.

But my presence of mind didn’t last long. Liesel and I met up with Catherine and Hans at Point Woronzof Park, for a walk overlooking the Knik Arm, a narrow branch of the Cook Inlet, and, basically ‘behind’ the airport. We heard a few jets but otherwise, it was pleasantly quiet. We shared the path with many cyclists and a few runners. But did I take a picture of our friends? Nope.

Again, we noticed how many branches, boughs and limbs had fallen off trees this Winter, unable to bear the weight of so much snow and ice, that’s the theory.

As we were leaving the park, we noticed a few cars parked up ahead, and then we realised why. There were a couple of moose by the fence. Liesel wasn’t bothered, but I still think it’s exciting to see wildlife in the wild. And, apparently, so do some other locals.

Liesel has been telling me for a long time how good the TV series Ted Lasso is. I should watch it. Highly recommended. Except, it’s on the Apple+ TV service, which we haven’t subscribed to. Until now. We have three months free on the platform, thanks to Leslie buying a new Apple iPhone recently. So, Liesel set it up at home, and the first thing we did was to start watching Ted Lasso. I quite enjoyed it. Another episode? Oh, go on then. And so it went. All day. I think we watched 6 episodes that first day. I checked in the mirror, but my eyes hadn’t yet gone square.

It’s High School Graduation season, that’s the main reason we’re here at this particular time. Neha is graduating, and she and her family invited us to join them to celebrate at Sushi Ya, a popular Japanese restaurant. Limited vegetarian options, but what I had was very nice. And it was great to see Neha again after all these years.

It was good to meet her grandparents again too, who, I discovered, have been married for 57 years.

The Graduation ceremony took place on the first really warm and sunny Spring afternoon of the year, not at their school, but in the University of Alaska basketball stadium. Also known as the Alaska Airlines Center.

The place was heaving with graduates, their families and friends.

We had a few speeches, and the stars of the whole show came in while the orchestra played Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance March number 1, on repeat.

I wanted to video Asa’s part in the ceremony, and I practiced with his girlfriend Alexa, whose surname falls earlier in the alphabet. But, too far away with my phone camera.

So out of 360 graduates, we were interested in just three, Asa, Alexa and Neha.

It was a bit of a scramble to leave the building and outside, everyone wanted photos, and bouquets and leis galore were given out.

The clouds opver the mountains looked menacing once more, but we were bathed in warm sunshine.

After dining at Bear Tooth, Liesel and I drove over to Jyoti’s where we went for a walk close to Sand Lake. Nice blue skies and fluffy clouds. No moose nor bears. In fact, not many birds either.

I thought maybe we’d see the sand hill cranes out on the mud flats, but again, no. We heard some, but couldn’t see them. Too well camouflaged, I reckon. A pair of binoculars would have helped, of course.

Back home, let’s watch one episode of Ted Lasso before bed. Oh alright then. Halfway through, we realised we must have missed something. We checked. Yep. For some reason, it had jumped to episode 9, we’d missed episodes 7 and 8. This is Apple+ TV. Why did it miss out two episodes? I hope their mobile telephones are a bit more robust than that…

And yes, it’s nearly midnight and still light, so even if the Sun were still active, and interacting with the Earth’s magnetic field, I don’t think we would have seen the Aurora from here. Oh well, good night.

Flowers and bones

In the evening, we returned to Asa’s High School for Seniors Night. The first thing we saw was a large poster depicting the all-American soccer hero Asa.

A few of the other players were similarly celebrated, but we are very proud of our nephew’s achievements on the field.

After ceremoniously walking under the arch of balloons with his family, Asa and Gideon’s team played another game, another 1-0 victory.

The daughter of a friend of a friend was playing cello in a musical recital at a venue not too far away from home so Liesel and I decided to walk there. St Nicholas of Myra Byzantine Catholic Church is a very pretty building, the sight of which is only spoiled by the power lines in front.

But wait, no, that wasn’t the venue for the concert. That was another building, a former church, now known as The Nave. We passed by a rock band on the way, but not as we normally understand a rock band.

Now you know what to do with your scrap metal, horse shoes and that pile of boulders you’ve been meaning to get rid of.

There are two things always guaranteed to make me smile to myself. The name of a shop being a pun is one, and the other is a well-made, decent, fun mural. Named after the Mexican revolutionary, Pancho’s Villa is, of course, a Mexican restaurant here in Anchorage. On the wall, there is this lovely mural of Jean Jilwan, affectionately known as “John the Flower Guy”.

This is what can happen when a community comes together to commemorate a much loved local personality.

We arrived at The Nave in good time, bumping into Jyoti’s friend Dave on the way in. Later, we were joined by Jyoti herself and by Dave’s wife Ellie. The Spring Chamber Music Concert featured young musicians from the Anchorage Youth Symphony and AYO’s Symphony School ensembles. An afternoon of chamber music, or what we would today just call background music. So lots of tunes by Handel, Bach, Schubert and some lesser known composers. All the participants performed very well, including the cello-player, Lavinia, Dave and Ellie’s daughter. I think I only nodded off once, and I did have to leave on one occasion for a coughing fit, trying hard not to do the English thing of saying ‘sorry’, ‘so sorry’ to each and every other member of the audience.

Later in the afternoon, we met up with Jyoti again, this time way over at Una and Phil’s house, where we were joined by Monica and Gregg, and of course, this was the first time I’d seen them this trip.

Again, no photos of the main characters nor the extras. But it was a fun evening.

In medical news: I finally managed to extract the last bit of the splinter I’d acquired nearly two weeks ago, the lump of paint that burrowed deep inside my finger nail. I’m so relieved I didn’t have to resort to major surgery at a hospital. In other medical news, I didn’t come all this way to Anchorage just to be knocked for six by a niggly, tickley, sore throat, and a cough, with numerous other symptoms over the next few days such as fatigue, various aches and, for a few minutes, a sensation of dizziness and loss of sense of balance. Sadly, plans to go for walks were curtailed or cancelled. No, two Covid tests came back negative, so who knows what the nature of the ailment was?

On the other hand, I did complete the LA Times crossword, printed in the Sunday edition of the Anchorage Daily News.

Asa came by with his girlfriend Alexa: it was nice to meet her, and they both talked about their plans for next year after leaving school. Asa plans to spend time in Peru wrestling caymans or something, and Alexa is off to Colorado for a long, hard and intense nursing course.

After a short walk, we had dinner at Leslie’s with the family: Aaron, Jodi, Asa and Gideon, and again, I took no photos.

Mom had a dental appointment. Liesel dropped her off then went for a quick walk with Jyoti. I was still in bed, feeling a bit sorry for myself. Liesel knows that I would definitely have taken pictures in this neighbourhood if I were here, so she did the honours. For some reason, many of the residents have decorated their homes with skeletons. This may be Halloween paraphernalia that hasn’t been taken in yet, but it’s certainly an unusual way to bring the community together.

The next day, when I’d dragged my own bag of bones out of bed, we went for a walk and I was delighted to see these colourful flowers outside a neighbour’s house.

Then Liesel popped the bubble, ruined the illusion, ruined everything quite frankly, by telling me that they were fake, plastic flowers. Well, plastic, schmastic, as Americans say, they’re still very colourful!

There is plenty of evidence of earthquake damage around the city, but I’m not sure this crack in the pavement counts.

On the other hand, when I first arrived, this blue house was as high as its neighbour, but it seems to be sinking into the ground very slowly. Did you also notice the snowflakes? Yes, I couldn’t believe it either when I looked out and saw that it was snowing. Liesel had assured me that it wouldn’t snow in Anchorage during the merry, merry month of May. Huh.

Any more bad news? No, I think that’ll do for now. My coughing fits are fewer and less violent than a few days ago, so there’s some good news.

Snow and ice

When my neighbour passenger woke up (yes, grrr, he managed several hours sleep), he opened the window shutter and the first thing I saw was a range of snow-capped mountains. Liesel looked sheepish when I reminded her that she’d said that all the snow had gone, melted, thawed, disappeared.

We collected our bags and then Jyoti collected us. It was about 6am, light and cold. A mere 2° here in Anchorage, but I thought it was quite refreshing after being cooped up in a packed jetliner for that sleepless five hours.

Thanks, Jyoti, for driving us home, which is, for us, Leslie’s new apartment that she moved into just on five months ago. We soon got into the swing of things, having a coffee from Kaladi Bros just over the road plus a pastry. The view from our room, of course, features snow. Not pristine, freshly fallen snow, but dirty sludge that’s been festering outside since last October.

Despite my best intentions, I couldn’t stay awake for the rest of the day, and indeed, we all had a nap. Followed by a refreshing shower.

I proudly wore a borrowed Harvard sweatshirt for our quick perambulation down to Westchester Lagoon. I didn’t know how to respond when a stranger just said ‘Harvard!’ as he passed by us. I hope I didn’t miss out on something special by not knowing the secret response/password.

There are still patches of ice on the lake, icebergs even.

In the depths of Winter, the ice is so solid, it is a great venue for ice skaters. They even use a Zamboni every few days to provide a clean, smooth surface. Would I skate here? I like the idea, but from experience, the only way I know to stop in a timely manner is to head for the wall of the ice rink. There is no such barrier here, so I guess I’d just keep going until I hit the mountains.

But it’s not all cold stuff here. We saw some signs of Spring.

Fire Island is a great, rustic bakehouse. We paid our first visit here, bought some bread and enjoyed coffee and pastries.

Back at home, I completed the crossword in the local paper, Anchorage Daily News, messed up the Soduko, but I did complete the New York Times crossword for the first time.

This will take some getting used to, I think: the Sun is setting at 10pm right now, that’s three hours later than it did in Honolulu. Plus, the twilight period is much longer. When it’s so light, so late, it’s quite hard getting to sleep.

Our nephews Asa and Gideon played in a football game at West Anchorage High School.

The backdrop of mountains occasionally detracted from the action on the pitch, but what a great setting. Another distraction was the markings for an American Football pitch, which were much more prominent than the yellow lines for soccer. Spoiler alert: I’m not a big football (soccer) fan, but even though West Anchorage (our team) won the match 1-0, given the run of play, I think they should have won by a much higher score.

Unfortunately, the bleachers are still mostly covered in snow, but we did find a dry spot to sit. For the first time, I wore long trousers and I’m glad I did, because after sitting outside in a slight breeze, even I was beinning to feel a little chilly.

Yay, we went shopping at Carrs. Liesel’s shopping list was as long as your arm, and in the end, the trolley (cart) was groaning under the weight of the purchases.

In the evening, Liesel and I visited Jyoti’s son Suvan and his wife Kayla at their place. Six years ago, we just missed attending their wedding because the bureaucracy pertaining to moving house in the UK is a ridiculously long-winded business. It was good to see them, not to mention Suvan’s musical instruments and other technology with which he is composing music and sound effects for a video game. I look forward to playing some on my radio show one day (hint, hint). Who else was there? Jyoti and other pets, Shanti, 16 years old and Basil, much younger. And a cat.

Is there a photograph of Suvan and Kayla? Of course not, that would require me to remember to take pictures of people, not just of things.

When Liesel and Leslie went out to run errands, my mission, which I chose to accept, was to go to Fire Island to buy a baguette. Liesel wasn’t surprised that I had a coffee there, but she was surprised that I didn’t partake of a delicious sweet treat too. Well, I had only just had breakfast. On the way, I did encounter some wildlife.

Yep, the old captions are the best.

And more small signs of Spring.

It had rained overnight, and it was still trying to precipitate now, very half-heartedly. I didn’t want the newly purchased baguette to get too soggy, so I went straight home. Otherwise, I might have enjoyed a longer walk.

The other thing that’s different here in AK is the atmosphere. It’s so dry compared with Hawaii’s humidity, Liesel and I are both experiencing nosebleeds and chapped lips. I’m sure we’ll adapt in the fullness of time, but it’s a bit of a challenge right now.