Thursday...

Whilst away I have not always had a suitable computer to blog on or even internet access so I bought myself a journal and a pen and recorded by days the old fashioned way - by hand!  I have realised as the days go on that I am becoming more and more at home with writing things down - it has been easy to have my little notebook with me ready to jot things down as and when they have occurred.  Even better there has been no bloody predictive text to hamper my thought processes hence the blog posts have become longer and longer.  The only trouble is in manual form I am unable to share them to a wider audience and so in the end I have had to transcribe my musings onto the laptop and packed away my little book - it is a bit sad really!

No supply teaching for Hazel today but she was still up at the crack of sparrows to do her school run accompanying children with special needs.  I am up when she returns, earlier than anticipated so we have a leisurely breakfast together and argue over how much money she wants to give us in anticipation of her stay.  We finally agree on a figure which we will match and the money will go into a kitty to pay for food, drink, petrol and entertainment whilst she is with us.  I am so looking forward to it.

I had arranged to meet Sally-Anne in town with Hazel.  Sally-Anne is briefly back in Yeovil from the States where her husband Scott has been posted.  Sally-Anne's dad and my dad came up to Yeovil as young 15 year olds to take up apprenticeships at Westland.  Her dad Sam was the mysterious Mr West to whom my Dad would always send a Christmas Card and Sally-Anne's husband Scott and my husband John joined the Navy together around 30 years ago.  We did not realise then that our lives had been connected since 1946 and on her first visit to our house in Hill View Sally-Anne was astounded to see a photograph of my dad, her dad, Minnie Conduit (their landlady) and her son in a picture taken in The Avenue all those years ago.

Conscious that she too was on a tight schedule we grabbed a coffee and a chat before heading our separate ways.  Sally-Anne says that when they return to the UK they plan on organising a visit across the Med to see us.

Hazel and I return home for lunch - we recall a comment Hazel had made last night which made us chuckle and makes us chuckle again.  She had started a sentence with "Last year when I was taken out by a big black dog..."  This had conjured up a rather odd picture of Haze and a Labrador walking  hand in paw into the sunset but what she meant was she had been knocked over when out walking her own dog.  Haze you have had some poor taste in men in the past but that really would have taken the biscuit (dog biscuit??)

After lunch we went to Palmers Garden Centre so that I could get her something for the garden before nipping to Asda to pick up something for tea where I was thrilled to bump into Sarah Dickinson - she and her husband Matthew have visited us on a couple of occasions - this was totally unplanned so all the more special as a result.

I left Hazel to go off to her pulmonary clinic and took the opportunity to grab an hour with Frank and Cheryl, friends and neighbours from our Glenthorne Avenue days plus Frank was a jolly jack tar with John.  I realise it has been a long time since we saw them when I am introduced to their son Alfie who is now 8 and was a babe in arms the last time I saw him.

Cheryl looks exactly the same but Frank has now joined the salt and pepper brigade!  On leaving them I managed to get caught up in Yeovil's rush hour - I suspect this was exacerbated by an accident as I had to make way for an ambulance at some point.  It took me an hour to cross town - a journey which would normally take about fifteen minutes max!

Great news - this evening Joani and Roger text to say they had arrived safely at the Masons Arms complete with Daisy Dog.  I shall so look forward to seeing them tomorrow.