Today is our 47th Wedding Anniversary. Six years ago I quoted Anne Bradstreet's Poem to her 'Dear and loving husband' It is a favourite of mine. I was going to use it again - but that would be its fourth appearance in 18 years. Is that too much?
Instead I am reproducing the two "poems on the underground" which hang opposite the dining table. The first a gift from Bob to me, the second is one which I gave him.
CLOSE CLOSE ALL NIGHT
Close close all night the lovers keep.
They turn together in their sleep,
close as two papers in a book
that read each other in the dark.
Each knows all the other knows
learnt by heart from head to toes.
[by Elisabeth Bishop]
OUR MEETINGS
As in the underground there's no mistaking
the train's approach - it pushes air ahead,
whirls paper, the lines singing - a sort of dread
suffusing longing and my platform shaking
so it is before every meeting
till you arrive - hear how my heart is beating.
[by Andrew Waterman]
I am so grateful to God for this lovely bloke who brings such love, life and laughter to every day
Last month saw the end of "Grantchester" - it began back in 2014 with James Norton as Rev Sidney, then Tom Brittney [Rev Will] and finally, in series 10 & 11, Rishi Nair [Rev Alphy] and Robson Green as Detective 'Geordie' Keating throughout. It was all set in and around Cambridge in the 50's and 60's. Norton himself studied at Fitzwilliam College.
On Wednesday, Ben Miller [St Catharine's College] returned to ITV as the fastidious Professor T [ a spin off from the Belgian series] and on Thursday David Mitchell [Peterhouse College] was back as the cruciverbalist John 'Ludwig' Taylor. We watched Prof T and Ludwig, but I have a few comments...DON'T READ THIS POST IF YOU HAVE YET TO WATCH THEM
Spoiler Alert!!
We enjoyed Prof T this week, despite the absence of his eccentric mother played by Frances de la Tour.** His equally batty and quirky aunt Zelda [Zoe Wanamaker] filled the gap satisfactorily. But I missed Lisa Donckers [killed off at the end of last series] I love the Prof's smart, buttoned up [and gloved] persona. He's almost a British 'Monk'
Ludwig is back for a second series, and this time his sister in law Lucy [wonderfully clever Annas Maxwell Martin] gets a bigger share of the script. The murder was during the performance of an opera called Song of Solomon, and the cops picked up a baby doll, one of the props. I thought these were two huge pointers which nobody remarked upon. In 1 Kings chapter 3, wise King Solomon encounters two women [one lying] and a dead body. And he establishes whodunnit.
But Ludwig never mentions the Bible Story even though he has two women, one lying - and a dead body... I wait with interest to see if there are similar obvious, but unmentioned pointers in subsequent episodes.
Are you watching Prof T and/or Ludwig?
Do you enjoy them?
I came across a prayer this week, which I am sharing as I found it helpful ..
Loving God our Father, who has blessed us,
And given us a good world to live in as stewards,
We bring before you all those who are affected
by the wildfires ravaging Europe
We especially pray for those
who have been evacuated.
Give them peace and safety
as they wait for the end of this crisis.
We are so grateful for the firefighters
and other workers who are risking
their own lives to bring
the fires under control.
Protect them and strengthen them
as they serve their communities.
And bless all those in authority
who are releasing funds and resources
to provide shelter and other necessities
to those at risk.
We thank you for the outpouring of concern
and support for those in need
And we pray that this community spirit
might be seen among us all the time
not only at times of emergency.
Lord, we are conscious that the world is warming,
and that human activity is contributing
significantly
to the changing climate.
We are sorry and repent of our selfish consumerism.
Help us all to find ways to reduce
our footprint upon the earth,
And give wisdom to those in power
to find a way to reduce greenhouse gases
in the atmosphere.
We offer this prayer in the name
of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,
Amen.
With thanks to John Bavington, Chaplain of Aquitaine, CofE in Europe
Such a thoughtful Flat Gift arrived with my squares this week. K picked up on my request about improving my art work.
The blurb says "On each spread, illustrator John Bigwood has given a
colourful and quirky watercolour outline of a person/people, with humorous
suggestions of features to copy. Don't worry about wonky lines, weird features,
smudges or scribbles as every stroke of your pen adds personality and flair.
This fun and accessible exercise is great for anyone who
wants to practise their drawing."
You get a page of ideas, and opposite, a coloured splodge to decorate, like these...
I had a couple of squares 'in hand', then knitted two more, so decided to send one of each to Kirsten. She sent me two [by mistake!] 
Top row block #73 – Two Edges
What a boring name! Basically, the finished square has two
adjoining edges which include two contrasting stripes , and two edges which
don’t. The square is knitting in a ‘L’
shape – starting with 61 sts all in knit stitch, On every other row, 2 stitches
are decreased [one each side of centre , using sl1, k2tog, psso] This creates a
diagonal line. The centre stitch on row 1 is the corner between the stripe
edges. The final single stitch when all is decreased is the opposite corner. It
is the same as K’s “Allsorts” 6 weeks ago. I had a random heathery yarn for the
main part, and picked a lilac grey shade and pastel pink for my contrast
stripes. On reflection, I think I should have used a much stronger contrast
colour for the single row stripe!
Middle Row block #78 – Lattice
Grey/blue yarn left over from a jumper knitting for grandson
George when he was much younger! The pattern was easy, simple knit
and purl, stocking stitch and garter stitch. Both squares are the same. I like the way that the finished piece looks like a woven lattice. And no slipping, no cables, and no random dye yarns!! Proving you can create texture with the
easiest of patterns.
Bottom Row Block #54 – Pink Flash
This was a nice, straightforward 4 row repeat, which K knitted originally in purple with turquoise flashes, and then in turquoise with
green flashes. She says "The colours remind me of the 1960s, when all kinds of clashing colours suddenly looked fabulous together. Those of us lucky enough to have the new, brightly coloured felt tip pens would infuriate our teachers by underlining dates and titles in our school books three times, in pink and purple, orange and green, etc. I’ve still got my old log tables book from maths lessons, covered in psychedelic paper and stickers. They are no use to me now; it’s just a piece of pure nostalgia." It soon became very clear to her which square she would send me; she was close to binding off when she spotted a mistake about 16 rows back.
There were three options; rip out the rows and re-knit? Drop the stitch down to
the error and then hook it back up – but – colour work? Or decide it would pass
the galloping horse test* and send the other one? It’s hot. Kirsten says she chose option 3! [In fact it was SO hot, she sent both in error]
*Galloping horse test: would you spot the mistake from a galloping horse? If yes, then Something Has To Be Done About It. If not, then carry on and forget it.
There was a wonderful 'flat gift' in her parcel, which I will reveal tomorrow...thanks K [and I'm keeping the purple square]
Not a new kid's TV channel, this means Cornerstones Before BBQ! Bob thought it was about time we did another BBQ for all the neighbours, as so many have moved into the Close in the last couple of years. He produced an invite and I went round delivering them.
