Uneventful

 It has been quite uneventful. It was chilly overnight but clear and bright by the time the Gorse Fox wandered down for coffee. He went round to escort Ellie to school with the Urban-Cub and then returned home for more coffee and some porridge.

The morning was spent with some admin and a trip to the shops. This latter trip had been seen as a quick 10 minute sortie to M&S. The traffic along the Shripney Road, however, soon put paid to that idea. For some stupid reason (which the Gorse Fox never discovered), the traffic was queued back to the Bognor Regis hospital and the idea of 10 minutes went out the window. To add insult to injury (metaphorically speaking), M&S didn't have what he wanted and he ended up finding it in Sainsbury's (so could have bought it yesterday).

The weather was due to close in during the afternoon. The Silver Vixen wandered round to collect Ellie from school and was pleased to report that she had the Head Teacher's Award, a "Star of the Week" certificate for her enthusiasm for learning, and a "Good Work" sticker. The Gorse Fox is immensely proud of her.

The rest of the afternoon has ben spent reading. The rain has set in for the duration, and the heating has come on.

Butchers

It was another lovely bright but chilly start to the day. We had to be on the go a little earlier than usual to accommodate the reorganised Ocado delivery. Despite that, the Gorse Fox still went to escort Ellie to school with Urban-Cub, as usual. By the time he got home, Ocado had been and gone and the Silver Vixen had put everything away.

Lady Penelope had asked to accompany us to Sainsbury's for our top-up. (Old Bill is still several weeks from driving, and is getting very depressed at how slowly his recuperation is going.) We did the usual Sainsbury's run and then came home to unload. The Gorse Fox then went back out. The cat needed cat litter, the car needed petrol, and the Gorse Fox needed to get to a proper butcher. He won't reveal what he has purchased from the butcher, as it is something he has never cooked before. He is, however, very hopeful for a really nice Sunday lunch... as long as he doesn't cock it up. (It is remarkable how few butchers' shops still exist; they used to be a fixed trader in every high street, but now you are lucky to find one in anything smaller than large town). The Gorse Fox had to drive across to Rose Green to get his meat.

Order, order

 The day started very bright, but quite cool (about 7C). There was, however, some early excitement when a message came from Ocado to say we hadn't got an delivery tomorrow. Er, yes we have - the Gorse Fox entered the list yesterday. Well, it appears that yesterday's order was scheduled against the 2nd week in October. Panic! While drinking his early morning coffee he was re-filing an order for deliver tomorrow. It only took about 20 minutes but we don't need that sort of excitement over breakfast.

After walking Ellie to school with Urban-Cub, the Gorse Fox changed for football. We had a 5-v-6 game today with none of this tippy-tappy 3-touch nonsense. It was clear that our Orange team was going to be under the cosh and so it turned out. The Gorse Fox was trying to defend and as we had only one attacker of any pedigree, he was also trying to play as a midfielder and a forward. By halftime we were losing 3-1, but the the Gorse Fox scored that single goal. In the second half the opponents scored several more goals, but we could only muster one more ourselves. It was very good exercise, but a disappointing result. At least the Gorse Fox played better than yesterday.

After lunch the Gorse Fox took the Silver Vixen into Chichester so that she could go to the dentist. She was having the final stage of a crown fitted. It was all very quick and pretty painless, apparently. Before going home, we diverted to John Lewis as the Gorse Fox wanted a couple of new pans for the kitchen.

The central heating popped-on during the day. The Gorse Fox has adjusted it so that it only comes on when really cold at the moment. It's good to know that it is all working.

Base Layer

It was bright, dry but cool start to the day. After walking Ellie round to school with Urban-Cub, the Gorse Fox put on an extra layer under hist football shirt and headed off to Worthing for some football. It was the first time he has played on a Tuesday for quite a few weeks and it was nice to catch up with the banter. We had a good turnout so we were able to split into 4 teams. The Gorse Fox was assigned to "Green 2" and took to the pitch with the other 5 players. We played well and, though not the strongest team on paper, we passed well and defended well. We won all three of our games, only conceding one goal along the way.

The Silver Vixen had taken the opportunity to go to garden centre while the Gorse Fox was out. She got back soon after the Gorse Fox. By then it was pouring with rain. This had started just as the Gorse Fox left the sports centre but was much lighter there than it was here back home.

The afternoon was spent with our books, with a break for the Silver Vixen to collect Ellie from school. She has managed to gain another sticker today to acknowledge her good writing.

Hospital

 There was a fair bit of rain overnight but, conveniently, it had stopped soon after the Gorse Fox got up. Normally, the Gorse Fox would be entertaining or escorting Ellie in the morning. Today was different. The Silver Vixen had an appointment for a checkup at the hospital, first thing.

We set off for St Richard's, leaving plenty of time to account for any traffic delays. As it happened, we sailed through and were there with time to spare. In fact, we had to sit and wait in reception for 20 minutes before they would allow us into the clinic. The checkup didn't take too long and we now have to wait for the report and a consultation with the specialist.

The rest of the day has been fairly quiet, though the Gorse Fox did have a chat with his little sister this afternoon. It was chance to hear about their holiday and catch up on family news in general.

Another Win

It was a lovely start to the day. No cloud dared to sully the clear blue skies. It was cool, but not cold. The perfect start to an autumn day. The Gorse Fox was up soon after 7:15 and grabbed a coffee while reading the paper and check social media. The Silver Vixen drifted down just before 8:00.

Being Sunday, the Gorse Fox had football. Today was a 5-v-6 game and the Gorse Fox ensured he was on the team with 5 players. It was, actually, a very close game. The difference between the sides was goalkeepers (who did a great job) and strikers who could, or couldn't quite hit the target. The Gorse Fox, playing in yellow, was on the team of 5 and managed to score a couple of goals in the first half. At halftime, we were 4-3 ahead. We were, however, flagging as we were having to do so much more work. In the second half, we switched our goalie. The Gorse Fox score a couple more goals and we eased further ahead. In the end, we won 9-6. Very satisfying.

The afternoon has been spent in the Orangery with our books. The Gorse Fox managed to finish another and start the 12th in a series before retiring to kitchen to cook dinner.

A quiet day

 The Gorse Fox was up soon after 07:00. He snuck into to the kitchen, let Jasper out, and made a coffee, The Silver Vixen emerged a while later. A cup of tea was freshly made and waiting for her as she walked into the kitchen. It was the perfect start to the day.

The Gorse Fox had his traditional "cousins' call" at 9:00. This was fun as the Gorse Fox described some of the finer points of living with domestic staff.

Once the call was over the Gorse Fox wandered up to the mobile butcher's van. He queued and watched as the people in from of hime spent 100's of pounds on huge selections of beef, pork, and lamb. The Gorse Fox was after some beef short ribs. They didn't have any nut made a note of the request so that they would carry some for next week.

Once home, the rest of the day was fairly quiet with a few odd jobs in the garden and some reading in the Orangery.

Wet Start

As forecast, the day started with a lot of rain. After the requisite coffees and some time reviewing the news, the Gorse Fox wandered round (protected by waterproof jacket and umbrella) to meet up with Urban-Cub and take Ellie to school.

Once back home, the morning was spent with some admin while the Silver Vixen swapped her summer and winter wardrobes. The Gorse Fox only has a single wardrobe. No action required. Having said that, he did wear a brushed cotton shirt today (for the first time in ages). As soon as he walked through the door, Ellie said "Grandpa, why are you wearing a shirt?" Her fashion antennae are clearly working at full intensity.

This afternoon, the Gorse Fox had to take Old Bill and Lady Penelope round to the doctors for his latest appointment. The Gorse Fox stayed in the car and finished yet another book and started another new one while waiting. 

Little Feet

Ellie had stayed with us overnight. At 6:30 (when the light on her clock changed colour) she padded into our room and asked if she could have her iPad and where it was. The Gorse Fox got up and retrieved the iPad from its charger in the study and Ellie returned to her room while the Gorse Fox went back to bed for 30 minutes. When we did get up we had to call Cousteau-Cub to wish her a happy birthday. By doing this first thing we caught her before work, and made sure that Ellie had a chance to get involved.

Once the morning protocol was ticked off, we took Ellie to school and wandered back home. The Gorse Fox had received a phone call which cancelled his 10:00 appointment at the chiropodist. His little feet would have to wait for a cancellation or late November (whichever came first). This meant that Tuesday would follow a fairly common pattern with Ocado delivering the bulk of the weekly shopping then a top-up trip to Sainsbury's.  Lady Penelope came to Sainsbury's with us as Old Bill is still several weeks away from driving.

When we goy home we goy caught up in a chat with several neighbours outside the house. Finally, we got to put the shopping away and grab a bite to eat. The afternoon was spent with our books.

The Gorse Fox prepared a Tuscan Chicken recipe for dinner this evening. This is is a Mary Berry recipe that he had seen featured on the TV last week. He can confirm that not only was it easy to make, it was absolutely delicious to eat. 

Normality

 There was a degree of normality today as Urban-Cub dropped off Ellie before 7:30. We went through the pre-school protocol - breakfast, wash, teeth, dress, gather stuff together, then walk off to school.

Once back, we did the car dance and the Gorse Fox headed off to football. Meanwhile the Silver Vixen was meeting Pauline in Arundel for coffee and a snack.

Football was good fun. The Gorse Fox played for the yellow team and, though a man short, we played well and passed well. At halftime we were 3-2 down. The second half was hard, but we clawed our way back and the game finished with a creditable 5-5.

Once home, showered and hiding a bacon sandwich in his tummy, the Gorse Fox walked round to the village to get his hair cut. He has a loyalty card... it was full, so today's cut was free of charge. Once home, the Gorse Fox received a phone call from his old school. The Over-65s lunch has been cancelled. The Gorse Fox suggested they needed to let everyone, on the Newsletter distribution list, know. One gets the feeling that the new regime is having trouble bedding in!

We collected Ellie from school and stopped off at the park so that she could let off steam. She's now finished her her reading, had her dinner, and is having her evening wash before bed.

Ooops

 The Gorse Fox was conscious that there is meant to be an Over-65s lunch at his old school. This is scheduled for 5th October. The problem is that there is nothing appearing on the Alumni calendar and there has been no announcement regarding booking attendance. The Gorse Fox took it on himself to phone the Alumni Office. The young lady who answered the phone has only been in post for a couple of weeks. Her boss is off sick. She knew nothing about this and there's nothing in her book. A tone of panic crept in to her voice. "I'll have to speak to Headmaster" she said. The Gorse Fox considered this. The Headmaster is also new in post - chances are he knows nothing about it either! The Gorse Fox sent her the last Newsletter where the event had been advertised.

We will wait and see what happens... but he suspects the 5th October is a non-starter (and as there is a train strike that day, he isn't too concerned).

Out

 It was another bright morning. Cool, but bright and it promised to warm up. The Gorse Fox wandered round the corner to escort Ellie to school with Urban-Cub. She was still a little overwhelmed by the State Funeral, yesterday but was processing it.

Back home the Gorse Fox loaded himself with caffeine and then went into Chichester with the Silver Vixen. We didn't have a lot to get but it was turning into a lovely day and it was nice to get out and about. 

After the shopping was done we strolled along to the Bishop's Palace gardens, by the Cathedral. We found a bench in the sun and just sat there together, in peace, watching the world go by. It is moments like this that fill the heart and enrich the soul.

Eventually, we had to leave. It was time for lunch. We had booked a table at Cote Brasserie, just across the road from the entrance to the gardens.

We were, just about, the first customers for the lunch sitting. We settled down with a coffee and examined what was on offer. The Silver Vixen started with some smoked salmon and the Gorse Fox started with a crab terrine. Both were served with crusty bread and were delicious. For the main course, we had both chosen Beef Cheeks Bourguignon. This proved to be an inspired choice as it was rich and unctuous and full of wonderful flavour.

We lingered over lunch then made our way back to car and home. We spent the early part of the afternoon with our books, then the Silver Vixen went to collect Ellie with Urban-Cub. The rest of the afternoon has been focussed on the weekly shopping list!

Twitter

 The Gorse Fox made the mistake of dipping his toe into the sewer that is Twitter today. Whilst there were many patriotic entries, there too were entries that made you embarrassed to be part of the same species as the authors. The vitriol and hate from the far left was a lesson that should keep the socialists out of power for several more generations. 

The Gorse Fox actually feels desperately sorry for people like these who harbour so much hatred, envy, ignorance, and negativity in their lives. What a miserable existence it must be, existing on the left wing of politics. Today's experience has taught the Gorse Fox (yet again) that it is nothing about helping the poor and deprived. It all about hate and destruction of the well off.

Elizabeth the Great

Today was a sombre day. After the death of our Sovereign, Elizabeth II we, as a Country, would finally be laying her to rest. It was public holiday so that people could pay their respects.

It was noticeable that, as the Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen watched the proceedings on the TV, no cars passed by the house, nobody walked by, and at the back of the house there was absolute silence. Our neighbourhood was clearly paying respects to the passing of our Queen.

We spent the whole day glued to the proceedings on the TV. It was a spectacle like no other in our lifetime. With Heads of State and Dignitaries from all over the World it was clear that Her Majesty, though our Queen, was respected and loved across the planet. She was not Our Queen, she was THE Queen, or as Boris Johnson said, she was "Elizabeth the Great".

WiFi

It was another lovely Autumn day. The sun shone, clouds scudded across the firmament and all was well in Sussex. The Gorse Fox had to choose the teams for this morning's football, but with the help of some code he cam up with a fairly balanced squad.

The Silver Vixen spent a chink of the morning on the phone with Cousteau-Cub, which was lovely. She has a birthday coming up this week and is in throws of leaving one job and starting another.

The Gorse Fox went to football. This was a 5-v-6 game where he played for the yellow team of 5. By halftime we were 4-2 down, but the Gorse Fox had scored both of our goals. In the second half the balance changed as we swapped goalies and our other "premier" player was now on the pitch rather than standing between the sticks.  We soon caught up and went into the lead. The problem was that we were still outnumbered and began to tire. The Gorse Fox scored a couple more goals (making it four for the match) but we ended up with a score of 10-10.

Once back home the Gorse Fox contacted the Urban-Cub. We had to finish sorting out the new printer. After some thought overnight he concluded the printer was not correctly connected to the WiFi network. He started again. This time the arcane spell and sacrifice of several bats and a fatted calf seemed to do the trick. When he left the the printer was working on all required devices.

(Talking of overnight, the Gorse Fox dreamed for some obscure reason that he was running from Oakwood to Cockfosters with Rita Chakrabati, the Newsreader, and explaining that he used to do this a lot as a teenager - Bizarre!!!)

Printers

 The day started without major incident. The night had been cool but sun was up and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Usually, the Gorse Fox has a call with his cousins on Saturday mornings, but this week he had an appointment at the Doctors' Surgery. It is Flu Jab time. He hand the Silver Vixen drove round to the surgery and were shown in to be jabbed. The Gorse Fox pointed out that he was no eligible (on the basis of age) to receive his shingles jab. They decided to handle it there and then. Some 5 minute later he left with punctures in each arm and an assurance that he he done what was necessary in terms of flu and shingles protection.

Soon after we got back, Urban-Cub sent a message to request help in accessing the printer from Ellie's laptop. The Gorse Fox wandered round and after fiddling about for ages, decided this was a case of replacement (after all the printer was a relic from our days in Kingston Gorse and we left there 9 or 10 years ago). Urban-Cub ordered a replacement for delivery later today.

The Gorse Fox wandered home and spent a few hours finishing the latest book by Richard Osman (very good, by the way). Just as he finished and poured a beer the phone rang. It was Urban-Cub announcing that the new printer had arrived... and could he help set it up. He, and the Silver Vixen, strolled round. An hour later the printer was still sitting there blinking but not connecting to the various tablets and printers. The Gorse Fox gave up. He was out of ideas. He would return tomorrow with a proper laptop (as opposed to tablet) in hand and have another go.

Why is it that the most useful feature of computing - printers - is the most problematic, and always has been. 

Queues

It is both humbling and heartening to see the vast queues of our countrymen and women queueing to file past the catafalque bearing the coffin of Her Majesty the Queen.  It is good to know that there is still such love and appreciation for our Monarchy in this cynical time. 

The day started bright but a little cool. The Gorse Fox went round to Urban-Cub and found that Cousteau-Cub had stopped in, on her way to work. It was nice to catch up and it gave the Gorse Fox a chance to ask what she wanted for her imminent Birthday. She had to get off to work and soon after the Gorse Fox (and Urban-Cub) escorted Ellie to school then returned home for coffee and breakfast. The morning was spent with chores and admin. The Gorse Fox does have some debugging to complete on a program, but couldn't switch into the correct frame of mind to deal with that.

At lunchtime he took Old Bill back to surgery, then sat and waited in the car and finished another book (book 8 in a series of 26). He downloaded the lates Richard Osman book and started that... he's hooked already. Old Bill had a slight infection so some antibiotics were needed. He took Lady Penelope back to the pharmacy later in the afternoon to collect the pills.

All Clear

 The day started much as usual. The Gorse Fox was up and about soon after 7:00 and the Silver Vixen came down a bit later. It was dry and mild. The Gorse Fox wandered round to escort Ellie and Urban-Cub to school. It was interesting to hear that she is starting to look for a new job. The stress of working with the staff he has inherited at Lidl is beginning to get to her. We''l see how things progress.

The Gorse Fox had to take the Skoda in to the dealer. It is approaching its first MOT and the end of its Warranty period. The dealer had offered a free pre-MOT inspection and and any Warranty work. The Gorse Fox didn't have any concerns regarding the MOT but he was mightily frustrated by the keyless-entry system which seemed to randomly lock the car when not wanted and failed to identify the key fob on hundreds of occasions. There was no escape for the dealer, the Gorse Fox had found a TPI (technical instruction) that identified the problem. 

The Gorse Fox also had an appointment with one the salesman at the Dealer. "If we were to change you car early, what would be the 'must haves'?" he asked. The Gorse Fox went through the list. The dealer started to configure the new car. Then he came to the interior spec. The Gorse Fox said that a cream interior was mandatory. A buzzer seemed to go off in the salesman's mind. Panic set in. Skoda no longer offer a cream interior. The Gorse Fox said it was mandatory. The Gorse Fox was told that his best bet was to stick with the current car... which he had already concluded. Having said that, there is still a year to run on the current deal so things may change.

At lunchtime the dealer called. The pre-MOT check was all clear (as expected). In addition, the dealer replaced the whole sensor unit for the keyless entry... and hopefully all will now be well! The Gorse Fox headed for the bus to go and collect the car. As is the nature of things, he saw a bus sail past just as he was getting to end of the road. Then he checked the time table for the next bus (because they run every 10 minutes) and found that he had a 20 minute wait. Well, that was all very fine until he found his expected bus had been cancelled. In the end, he had a 35 minutes to wait before he could head into Chichester Bus Station and then walk to Skoda dealer.

The afternoon was spent with a book in the Orangery.

Car Sharing

 It was a very wet morning. The Gorse Fox, Urban-Cub and Ellie all had to shelter beneath our umbrellas on the way to school. There was no sign of it letting up during the morning. We were in for lot more rain.

The Silver Vixen had Pilates and the Gorse Fox had his usual football. We decided to car-share. as a rule we go separately as we start at slightly different times and the Silver Vixen likes to stay on for coffee and a chat at the end. The start time isn't a problem for the Gorse Fox as he can drop her and still get to the game in time. We tried it last week, quite successfully - and decided to stick with it.

Football was pretty good, despite the incessant rain. The Gorse Fox managed to score the opening goal, then later score a penalty. We enjoyed a "proper" game today. There was none of this 3-touch nonsense. The Gorse Fox doubled his caloric burn rate and covered significantly more ground than usual. We did, however, have a serial moaner return after injury and that rather took the edge off the game. The Gorse Fox thinks the final score was 8-6 to the other team... 

The Gorse Fox picked the Silver Vixen up on his way back and we had a quiet lunch. The Silver Vixen watched the procession of the Queen's coffin to Westminster Hall while the Gorse Fox read. Then she, (the Silver Vixen, not the Queen) went to collect Ellie from school and the Gorse Fox went to take Old Bill to the local surgery to have his staples removed. He is still looking very frail, and the discomfort of the procedure kept him very quiet on the way home.

Gnashers

It was a wet start to the morning, but it was very mild. An umbrella was needed when walking Ellie to school, but no jacket was required.

We had to head in to Chichester. The Silver Vixen had an appointment at the dentist and a 50 minute slot had been allocated. The Gorse Fox sat and waited in the car and was pleasantly surprised when the appointment only took 20 minutes. The Silver Vixen's mouth was a bit numb, but other than that she was fine. Let's just hope that there is no discomfort when the anaesthetic wears off.

We spent a quiet afternoon reading (except when the Silver Vixen went to collect Ellie). The Gorse Fox used the time to install the latest IOS 16 on his phone a IOS 15.7 on his iPad. 

Before and after

The Gorse Fox wandered round to Urban-Cub's to escort Ellie to school.

Once home, and re-caffeinated, the Gorse Fox steam-cleaned the floors and sent a further copy of his software to another requestor. The phone rang. It was the body shop. The Skoda was ready for collection. The Gorse Fox called Urban-Cub and she gave him a lift round to the premises. The car looked superb - as good as new and no sign of any variation in the paint. They had done a superb job. They did, however, have a few problems reconnecting the parking sensors and then, once they were working, were stumped by a further persistent chime. This turned out to be the DashCam (again). Since getting home, the Gorse Fox has installed a brand new micro-SD card in the unit, and hopefully that will solve the problem.

This afternoon we managed to see and have a fe words with Old Bill, now that he has escaped from the clutches of the hospital. He was looking a little frail, but was evidently feeling a bit better. The Gorse Fox has volunteered to take hime to get his stitches removed on Wednesday. It's nice to see him up and about again. 

Roasted

 There was no football. Out of respect for Her Majesty, the Centre was closed. As it happens, the Gorse Fox would not have played anyway as Ellie had asked to go to Church... and then changed her mind at the last minute.

W~e had a quiet morning but then went round to Urban-Cub's for a rest dinner. We had a lovely lunch and and afternoon with them before heading home for a quiet evening.

A programmer had asked on the REXX Forum about some software to cross-reference his programme. The Gorse Fox dropped him a note to say he had just such a routine. He was asked for a copy by a couple of readers. One wrote back within the hour with a bug report... then wrote again 2 minutes later to say "Oops, I should have read your documentation first".... RTFM as we used to say.

Climbing to Space

 It has been a quiet day. The Gorse Fox had his morning call with the cousins. He was surprised by the vitriol for the Monarchy that was exposed by one of them... at least the other anti-Royal had the good grace to say that this was not the time to discuss such matters. All of the rest were, like the Gorse Fox, deeply saddened by the events of the week and wished the new King a long and fruitful reign.

After the call the Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen watched the formal Accession of the King as televised from St James's Palace. It was an incredible event whose protocol stretches back over the centuries. The Gorse Fox was particularly impressed by the way in which Penny Mordaunt conducted the ceremony. She was the Gorse Fox's preferred candidate for Prime Minister in the recent elections.

The Silver Vixen spent much of the day pottering in the garden. The Gorse Fox helped out, where he could, by trimming the climbing roses as they stitched towards the International Space Station.

The balance of the afternoon was spent with our books.

Band of Brothers

 The Gorse Fox had an appointment. After walking Ellie round to school, he got the bust to Bognor Regis and the train up to London. He was due to have lunch with several of the chaps with whom he studied as a teenager.

The train pulled in to Victoria and the Gorse Fox set off, on foot, to walk to the venue. The planned route would have passed the front of Buckingham Palace. The Police were having none of it. People in their thousands were surging towards the Palace, so the Police were directing them round the back of the Palace and up via Constitution Hill. This added to the planned walk, but the Gorse Fox had plenty of time, so it wasn't an issue.

Peter was already at the restaurant when the Gorse Fox arrived and the others, "Sir", Charlie, and Brian soon turned up. The wine started to flow and with it the reminiscences. Eventually, we got round to ordering some food. 

As usual at "Vasco & Pierro's", the food was superb. The Gorse Fox started with a carpaccio of yellowfin tuna, and followed that with a chicken Milanese. Absolutely delicious. Every plate was cleared. Paul, the owner and ex-St Columba's College Alumnus, stood and chatted with us and if the Gorse Fox understood correctly was taught chemistry by Charlie and was a contemporary of some the Gorse Fox's cousins.

We eventually paid the bill and wandered round to a pub in Argyll Street for a quick one before heading for our respective trains. It had been a superb day.

The Gorse Fox was lucky with trains and didn't have to wait about. He arranged for taxi to collect him at the station and was home by eight o'clock.

God Save the King

 The Gorse Fox has just heard that Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II has died at Balmoral. May she Rest in Peace and may we all give thanks for her 70 years of total service to the UK and its Commonwealth.

Showers

 Throughout the night and the the day we have been beset by heavy showers. Despite this, it has been warm enough that between the showers we have had sunshine and the roads have dried up. The Gorse Fox, in an interimbres between showers went to walk Ellie to school with Urban-Cub.

Back home it was time for coffee and porridge before Ocado turned up. Then we headed off to Sainsbury's with our list, Urban-Cub's list, and Lady Penelope's request. Despite the multiple lists we were in and out in about 45 minutes. Once home, the Silver Vixen got on with some ironing while the Gorse Fox caught up with the accounts and administrative chores.

After lunch we had a quiet afternoon with our books before dinner.

Concern

It has been immensely concerning today regarding the health of Her Majesty the Queen. She has been our Queen since just after the Gorse Fox was born and has been a stabilising force in our country. We have to face up to the fact that she won't last forever but even still, we wish her the very best. God Save the Queen. 

Car Sharing

 The Gorse Fox tootled round to Urban-Cub's to walk Ellie to school. She was clearly 'up for it' and charged ahead as we walked up the road.

Back home the Silver Vixen got ready for Pilates and the Gorse Fox got ready for football. With the Skoda in the body shop, the Gorse Fox was taking the Silver Vixen to Pilates first, then going off to football before collecting her on the ay back. Despite some new roadworks en route, the traffic was kind and we arrived in plenty of time.

Football was the usual mix of players (when selected by Jack). This meant that the Gorse Fox was on a team with only only one attacker and two players of limited mobility. We did, however, have a fairly strong defence. It was a hard fought game and was thoroughly enjoyable to play. The Gorse Fox was pleased with his performance even if we did lose 3-2.

This afternoon, the Silver Vixen joined Tinkerbell and went round for afternoon tea with Lady Penelope. This left the Gorse Fox with his book. We had an absolute cloud burst just before 15:00 and the Gorse Fox was concerned about collecting Ellie. He dug out her umbrella and managed to find his own. At 15:10 he left to meet Urban-Cub and walk to the school. The rain had stopped. The sun was out. The umbrellas were superfluous. Ellie had enjoyed another day at school. 

Over Secure

It was a busy start. The Gorse Fox went round to Urban-Cub so that he could escort Ellie to school. She was full of the joys of Spring and could hardly wait to get into class.

As soon as the Gorse Fox was home, he and the Silver Vixen took our cars round to the body shop. The Skoda is scheduled to spend the next few days there getting the front wing repaired. Then we headed home for a quick coffee before the Gorse Fox had to take her across to the hairdresser... and pick her up again a couple of hours later.

At home, the Gorse Fox had the simple task of buying some Premium Bonds for Ellie. Well, it should have been simple. The NS&I security system seemed to be on the blink and wouldn't allow him to log in, telling him to try again later. Looking online, DownDetector revealed this was a problem affecting many people and  has been ongoing for a little while.

Much of the rest of the day has been spent reading.

Back to school

 Today was the first day of the new school year. Ellie moves up to Year 1. She was excited, going to bed last night, but when she came into our room just after 7:00 she was complaining about how loud Nana's alarm was. The Gorse Fox can sympathise. 

We re-introduced the morning protocol. Breakfast followed by ablutions, then dressing in the school uniform  so that we would be ready when it was time to leave for school. Ellie was very quick off the mark today and we had 20 minutes to kill before it was time to go.

As we left the house, Urban-Cub turned up. She was on her way from work to the doctor's... but just had time to see Ellie before school.

We had no problems getting her into class. She couldn't get there quickly enough and as soon as she had all of her stuff (water bottle, coat, school bag) the Silver Vixen and Gorse Fox were dismissed and she charged to the classroom door.

Back home, we had a quiet breakfast and reflected on the huge change over the past year.

The morning was filled with various domestic and administrative chores. Once these were complete, the Gorse Fox managed to spend the afternoon with a book and the Silver Vixen buried herself in the sewing room.

Urban-Cub has been signed off work for a week (and possibly two). As a result, whereas we had expected Ellie to stay here all week, she is now home.

Term

 There was a gentle start to the day. The Gorse Fox got himself ready for football and the Silver Vixen settled down to read the papers.

The Coventry Hobbit joined us for football. He and the Gorse Fox were on the same side - playing 5 against 6. The Gorse Fox had expected that the team of 5 would tire and start to concede after the break. That was exactly what happened. At half-time the yellow team (with the Coventry Hobbit and Gorse Fox) were 7-1 up with 4 goals from the Coventry Hobbit and 2 from the Gorse Fox. In the second half everything started to even up. The game finished 8-8. It was great fun, but hard work on the depleted team,

The afternoon was spent reading until dinner was ready. Soon after dinner, Urban-Cub turned up with Ellie - she will be staying with us overnight as Urban-Cub has a 5 a.m. start tomorrow. We will need to get Ellie to her first day in Year One, at school - though Urban-Cub will collect her at the end of the day.

Not Much

There is very little that is worthy or comment today. The Gorse Fox had the usual cousins' call at 9:00 and then got on with a few chores. Much of the rest of the day has been spent buried in books.

One brief interlude was the distraction of finding a suitable Birthday present for the Coventry Hobbit. Cousteau-Cub had given one suggestion, but investigation showed this to be a non-starter. The Gorse Fox offered and alternative. This, however, wouldn't work. In the end, there was the suggestion of some football batch tickets. Ah ha! The Gorse Fox might be able to manage this.

He tried Portsmouth FC but no tickets were available for home matches in the next couple of months. He then tried Brighton. He had to register with the club, but managed to get a pair of tickets for their home match against Notts Forest in October. Hopefully, this will suit the Coventry Hobbit and Cousteau-Cub.

Registering for the Brighton tickets meant that the Gorse Fox, a member at Tottenham Hotspur, is also registered with Coventry City (a previous present for the Coventry Hobbit),  Southampton (a previous present for Pistol Pete), and now Brighton. He keeps wondering about getting a season ticket but isn't sure he would really use it... for any of the clubs.

Rock on

 We were up early for Ellie to be dropped off. Urban-Cub had a meeting in Southampton today (now that she has got the right day). Despite Ellie being quite hyper, it was a relatively quiet morning. The Silver Vixen took her up for a bath and hair wash after which she styled her hair (following Ellie's instructions) and then helped and monitored her as she put on her makeup. She was very cute when it was all done.

As the Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen were going out later, we had a good lunch at the same time as Ellie. Despite her saying she didn't want any cooked lunch, she ended up eating chicken, triple-cooked chips, and carrot.

After lunch the Gorse Fox took her to park. We had the place to ourselves and Ellie charged about on the slide and the obstacles. She insisted on having races. First she would run round the park using the various bits of apparatus, the the Gorse Fox would have to do the same (without using the apparatus). Finally, she began to tire and we started to head home. Then she remembered the other park, so we trotted off there for another session. Again, we had the place to ourselves. She spent the whole time on a swing while instructing the Gorse Fox to push her imaginary friend on another swing.

Pistol Pete arrived soon after 16:00 to collect Ellie for the weekend.

By 17:00 the Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen were on the road, heading for Southampton. We had tickets to see David Essex in concert. These tickets were originally booked pre-Covid. Despite roadworks on the road into Southampton and the SatNav trying to direct us down a "No Entry", we were parked up just after 18:00. We strolled towards the theatre and stopped at nearby pub for a drink while we waited for the doors to open. There was already a massive queue forming outside the theatre, but as we had tickets we ignored it.

Refreshed, we wandered across and walked straight in. We had fairly good seats near the back of the stalls. There was a real buzz about the place as hundreds of women of a certain age traipsed in to find their seats. The odd chap was scattered among the throng and there was an overwhelming sense that the UK's stock of HRT was all in this one place.

The concert started with a support act from a chap who identified as the Principal of Brighton College of the Perfoming Arts (or some such organisation). He was very good, but the sound quality was poor. As usual the sound engineers had gone for volume over clarity and it was quite difficult to understand what he was singing. As his set was drawing to a close, two or three large women plonked themselves in the seats behind us. Talking at full volume over, and then shouting "Boring" at the performer. It was about to get raucous.

After the interval, David Essex came on. Old Big Mouth, behind us, started to shout, then to sing along at full volume. She stood and started to wave her arms about. It was getting silly. The lady next to the Silver Vixen went to the manager to complain. Old Big Mouth was told to sit down and quieten down. Well, that didn't work. In the end, she was ejected from the theatre and eventually, so was her friend. The rest of the concert was more relaxed! The audience clearly enjoyed the show, though the Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen wouldn't bother going to see him again. Having said that, the Silver Vixen is glad she got the chance to see him.

The show finished just before 22:00 and we headed to the car. We had a good run and were home by 23:00.

Slo Cook

 Ellie was being dropped off at 7:20 so the Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen were up and about in plenty of time. Urban-Cub was due at a training session in Southampton... or at least she through she was. It dawned on her several miles up the road that she had the date wrong, and the course is tomorrow. It made little difference to us. Ellie would still be with us for most of the day, but Urban-Cub had to change he plans and go into the store.

Other than the usual shopping delivery and top-ups the day has been focussed on Ellie. Having said that, she has been no trouble at all and got on with various activities to keep herself amused, only requiring our intervention or participation occasionally.

The Gorse Fox was determined to use the Instant Pot as a Slo-Cooker. This was the first time he had attempted to use this feature. Lamb was seared and the onions, carrots, red peppers, tomatoes, and kidney beans added along with some park, chilli powder, and lamb stock. It was then switched to the medium setting and left for 8 hours, Though the carrots were still a bit crunchy, everything else was delicious.