Trains and bridges

Trying to make sense of the notes I took during the meeting for the records took me most of the morning. Then I went for a lovely walk in the woods with Husband, Elder Son, and Theo. Walking itself isn't too bad; it's going up steps or coming down steps, or sitting down, or standing up, that pains me.

Now I've made a lamb and spinach curry for dinner to have before we go to the theatre. Hopefully there won't be a recurrence of what happened yesterday, on first night, when the call had to be put out: "Is there a doctor in the house?"

I've shown you before some examples around the village of green Post Office boxes that have been painted with local highlights. Here are a few more I spotted recently.

The Mumbles Mile was a famous pub crawl, where drinkers could go from pub to pub all along the sea front. People used to come from miles around to do it, and they even made t-shirts saying, "I've done the Mumbles Mile". Mumbles used to be a big drinking location but the focus has changed a bit these days or maybe people aren't drinking as much.

The Mumbles train was the world's first fare-paying passenger railway. (Just don't get into an argument with Husband about whether it was a tram or a train!) It was closed in 1960 because of competition from the buses.

Every so often someone says, "We should bring back the Mumbles train," but it's not going to happen. Sadly.

Note to self

Do not put yourself on the bible study leading rota on the second Tuesday of the month when you also lead writing group.

I also went back to exercise class yesterday morning for the first time since before Christmas. People said, "Take it easy first week back," and later, "Well, you didn't take it easy, did you?"

What was I supposed to do when paired up with a woman thirty years younger than me? I had to try and keep up. Although I did let her take the heavier weights.

Today I can't walk upstairs without groaning and moaning. I can't even get up from the toilet without an "Oarh."

Nobody cried in writing group, and the only person who walked out of bible study did so before I started so that was an improvement on last time. One man did put his head on the desk in exasperation but that was probably good.

I asked, "Why did Jesus have to die?"
He said, "Blah blah scripture verses."
I said, "Yes, but why?"
He said, "Blah blah scripture verses." (Louder.)
I said, "WHY?"

That's when he sank his head into his hands.

In the middle of the night it struck me: some people just don't question, or doubt, or wonder. They just spew out verses. Or don't think. That explains why, when I say, "Does anyone else have a problem with this verse?", they all look blankly at me.

Life must be a lot easier that way. 

Anyway, that was my manic Tuesday. 

Currently planning an art workshop in the church hall in aid of Zac's. It's going to be a paint-along, so should be fun for us non-artists.

We also had a lunch in Zac's for volunteers to catch up on how the new food provision is going. It's a great success with numbers going up every month. And the fact that we have staff and volunteers there on Thursday and Friday to provide breakfast means the members of the Rough Sleepers Intervention Team can spend all their time talking to and helping guests with questions, accommodation, and form-filling. Plus the various nurses pop in to give advice or treat.

And this afternoon I've started a new jigsaw! At last!

Tomorrow I have to resist the urge to go to Rough Edges to 'see how they're doing' having said I'm stopping and handing it over to the new managers. So it should be a reasonably peaceful day. We're going to the theatre in the evening to see Daughter-in-law, amongst others, in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time.

And I'll try and catch up on washing etc! (Not me; I'm clean. Clothes.) And try and finish pruning the front garden roses. And here's Bring Me Sunshine to remind me of what I have to look forward to.

And another birthday

Out for lunch today with Daughter, Husband, Elder Son, and Daughter-in-law to celebrate Daughter's birthday. We'd planned to go to Gin and Juice only to find it doesn't open on Mondays so we ended up in Bistrot Pierre, which was fine.

Daughter is vegetarian but Husband likes his meat so trying to find somewhere suitable, that has more than one veggie option, easy parking, and is open on a Monday, is quite a task. I had a very nice brie and caramelised onion tart with a yummy pear and lettuce salad.

Lunchtime enjoyment added to by getting a Seasalt dress from the charity shop for £15 - normally would be around £60 at least.

The rest of the day I've been prepping to lead bible study tomorrow night, in between firing off emails to people listing my brilliant ideas. I say brilliant; I think they're good. Whether anyone else will remains to be seen.

It's fascinating where prepping for a study takes me. I've been down the child sacrifice route this weekend, as well as trying to get clear in my head the difference between penal substitution and its alternative, which doesn't seem to have a name.

Yesterday was National Snowdrop Day so here are some from our garden.

Could have been worse

It could have been 50-0 instead of 50-7.

Yes, the Welsh team was well and truly beaten by England. In what seems like an ever-deepening ridge of lows over the last few years, yesterday's performance ranks up there with the worst of them. In the autumn internationals there were at least tiny glimmers of hope; yesterday none.

Husband said they were passionate and didn't give up, kept trying to the end, and blamed their mistakes and penalties on determination/desperation, but he's English. He can look at it from a non-Welsh viewpoint; he doesn't feel the . . . ache.

Rugby has long been the primary sport in Wales, and we have a history of success, of incredible teams and world class individuals. Yes, we 've had our down periods before but not like this. This is more funereal, like death throes. Ah well.

* * * * *

Youngest GrandDaughter3's 7th birthday today in Italy. Wish we could have been there with her although they went ice skating, which is definitely not my thing.

I did babysit (!) for them yesterday for a couple of hours. Younger Son was working and Nuora had lots to do to finish making birthday presents, so I tried to keep them amused via facetime. It was fun.

Troll or Assassin

One thing I noticed on our Icelandic trip was that there were lots of isolated homes in the middle of nowhere. As any fan of Scandi Noir will tell you, this is a sure setting for a murder. While Daughter sought out trolls and elves I was picking out the assassins. 

Even the cathedral wasn't immune although that's rather more the fault of Morse than the Norse. Choir master found dead in the vestry after very public argument with leading soprano.

I decided, on the plane over, that the girl sitting next to me - not Daughter obviously, the one on the other side - was working as a detective in the south of England but was returning home to Iceland for the first time in a decade because her estranged mother is dying. 

* * * * *

As a charity Zac's has to submit an annual report and accounts to the Charity Commission, and yesterday was the last date to submit for 24-25. The accountant/auditor kept our accounts until the last minute so there's been a final dash to get them in. 

It sounds simple but the CC asked lots of questions about the accounts. If they read the accounts they'd have seen the answers for themselves but, no, as secretary to the Trust I had to do that for them. So they wanted things like total income, then separate sub-categories relating to source. I added up all the relevant figures, with paper and pencil because that's how I do things, and then totalled them, and they came to £1 less than the figure in the accounts - from which I'd taken all the numbers.

I tried using a calculator, same result.

Husband, who was helping me but mostly grumbling about why the accounts weren't in a spreadsheet ("Because they're not and we've got to live with it." "But why not? They should be." "Well, they're not!") finally put the numbers into a spreadsheet and having done complicated things with them came to the same conclusion. 

He suggested it was probably because of rounding up and down. 

I gave up and submitted my answer as it was, £1 less than the accounts. If they want to fight me about it they can. Oh, yes, so my plan had been to do it before going to Rough Edges, but there was information I needed to find out in order to answer the questions, so emailed people, and resolved to finish it off after Rough Edges.

Tea-time I got to the point of submission - of the documents not me personally although it came close - and . . . "Our online services will be unavailable from 5pm on Thursday 5th February 2026."

I might have started twitching at that point.

Tried again later and success! But I haven't recovered from it yet.

* * * * *

Speaking of websites causing problems, I have an account on Substack, where I write about my 'pilgrimage'. Yesterday I received an email from them saying they'd been hacked and my address was one of those taken. So if I have your email address and if you get any dodgy-looking emails from me, please delete.

* * * * *

My mum died fifty-four years ago yesterday. What a very long time.

* * * * *

I decided yesterday would be my last full, regular day at Rough Edges. As with other things I need to prioritise what's important, like seeing my family!

The shop and work room are looking pretty good now, at least compared with what they were. Three of us have worked there for about twelve days altogether over the last three months to clear it, and we've filled three skips. We could probably fill another but we can't afford another one.

At our trustee meeting today we agreed that the team of four volunteers who were committed could have a go at managing the shop for a trial four-month period to see how it goes. If it's a success, great; if not, it will have to close.

After the meeting today I had to go to the charity shop to drop off some things that were more likely to sell in a 'normal' charity shop, like a typewriter, and a dvd player. I'd forgotten it was the shop that sells five books of £1 . . .

When I got to the till I realised I had six books but the woman said, "Oh, that's okay." As a would-be rich author I should probably disapprove; as a reader I love it.

Plus two jigsaws.

So it was back from Iceland to a bit of sickness followed by a flurry of busy-ness. This weekend I will definitely sort out the washing and do a jigsaw and chill. Oh, and watch, on the television, Wales play England at rugby. The WRU who run rugby in Wales is in a state of chaos, players are uncertain about their futures, and even our local club, Ospreys, is under threat. Which is just a way of building up to saying, "I am not expecting Wales to win anything in this Six Nations Championship."

An Icelandic Adventure (V)

Saturday began with a long lie in, easy to do as it didn't get light until about 10. Then we pondered how to spend the day and decided we'd just wander around Reykjavik.

I'd found a description of a suggested walking tour but when I tried to translate that to the city map we had I failed miserably as the tour talked about areas and the map showed streets. Incidentally I am still convinced the map was wrong.

So we just went. Daughter was more successful but, then again, she was in search of good coffee and pastries, which is an incentive for anyone. We made our way along the old harbour side to Hygge.

The Sun Voyager 

The very impressive concert hall

Outside the concert hall there was running warm water - you can't see the steam coming up off it in this photo.

Looking across the bay

One house built1902, the other still under construction. There's a lot of construction work going on alongside the old harbour.

These scooters are a feature of the city. They can be hired via an app to take you to your destination and then just left anywhere for the next person who wants a ride. They're quite powerful and speedy. 

Then we reached Hygge. I had a deliciously sticky cinnamon bun and Daughter had "the best pistachio croissant ever!" And notice my glass teapot and handle-less mug. Pretty but it burns your hands!

The observant amongst you will notice a third cake on the table. Well this was a traditional Icelandic bolla, and we hadn't had any breakfast so decided to share one. The trouble was there was a lot of creamy filling that can upset Daughter's stomach, so I had to eat some of her half too.

Bolludagur, Cream Bun Day, is celebrated on the Monday before Ash Wednesday at the start of Lent, but the baker in this particular shop was practising some new recipes, hence their early appearance

Then it was time to walk it off. We headed for Hallgrimskirkja, the magnificent church in the heart of Reykjavik. Building of the Lutheran church began in 1945 but the church wasn't consecrated until 1986.

The statue outside is of Leif Erikson who is thought to have been the first European to land in North America in Vinland, thought to be Newfoundland. It was a gift from the United States in 1930, commemorating the 1,000th anniversary of Iceland's parliament, Alþingi.

We were very fortunate to find a choir rehearsing in the church when we got there.

From there it was down the shopping street calling in all the souvenir shops. Have I mentioned how expensive Iceland is? This led us to Rainbow Street.

In one shop Daughter nudged me. "Spot the intruder," she said. I stared at the shelf she was indicating and it took me a good few seconds to realise what she meant. Meet Ofelia.

I honestly thought she was a very good pretend cat until I stroked her and she moved.

A brief stop at the hotel - mainly so I could go to the toilet - and we were off again. (Oh yes, remember the hotel boasted the oldest bones in Iceland? Well, they were there but in the museum next door and you had to pay for that so we didn't bother.)

This time we were looking for the old cemetery but we couldn't find it: maps lie! So we just wandered around the lake/pond. Icelanders seem very fond of statues - I'm doing a separate post all about those and one on graffiti - so I'll just show you one.

As you can see, the weather was beautiful.

Hundreds of geese, swans, seagulls, and ducks, skated their way towards the tourists who were feeding them. In the case of one swan it was skid and fall rather than gracefully skate!

And, finally, as the sun was getting lower in the sky, we headed back to the hotel to pack before returning to Mama Reykjavik for dinner.

Mine at the front is west African stew with sweet potatoes and peanut butter, and Daughter's is red dahl. Again all delicious.

Oh, yes, and we also spent a lot of time in bookshops. Now just three final pics.

An Icelandic redwing

I had to have an ice cream in Iceland

Speaks for itself.

I'm a tosser

I struggled from my sick bed this morning to spend the day at Rough Edges, filling a skip. No, I didn't really struggle; I was fine apart from aching ribs from all the retching.

I had to be there early because the skip was being delivered between 9.30 and 12. It arrived at about 10 and after it had been deposited I asked the delivery man if he was picking it up this evening: I was under the impression we only had it for one day. He shrugged. "Nothing to do with me. I'm just the deliverer."

"I know what you mean: I'm just the tosser. No! I don't mean I'm a tosser . . . I'm just the one . . ." but he was already climbing back into his cab.

It turns out we have the skip for a fortnight but it's nearly already full.

An Icelandic Adventure (IV)

"It's cloudy everywhere. The reading is low for solar activity. I'm not getting any reports of sightings. I don't know. We can try I suppose. Drive north a bit." Followed by big sigh and a shrug from our driver guide for the night tour.

Daughter and I were in hysterics. He was so unbelievably pessimistic. "Maybe he's trying to lower our expectations," Daughter giggled.

"You know if we don't see any tonight you can try again tomorrow or another night for free." He really knew how to make our evening that little bit brighter.

We drove north for about half an hour then there was a sudden screeching of tyres as he drove off-road onto a bit of rough land at the side. "It's showing activity!" he exclaimed, waving his phone to show us. He got out of the bus, looked around, then got back in, and moved the bus a little. "You can see them behind the bus," he said. Did he sound a bit disappointed?

We clambered out and peered in the direction he'd said. There was a very faint blueish streak over the hill. "Well, that's underwhelming," I said. But Daughter had her camera out and using that could see brighter lights. I opened my phone camera and all I could see was darkness. "Why can't I see anything?!"

On the bus the driver had not only explained how the northern lights worked but also given us camera instructions. Samsung cameras, he'd said, were better than iphones. My phone was a Samsung while Daughter's was an iphone. "Why can't I see anything?!"

Daughter suggested I try taking a photo and waiting while it 'developed' 

"Oh look! I've got it! It is there!"

After taking lots of photos I, along with others, got back in the bus. It wasn't clear whether we were going anywhere else or whether this was it. Time passed and I got off the bus again. Daughter dragged me in front of a camera on a tripod. "Will you take our photo, please?"

Our lugubrious guide hadn't announced it but was doing a proper photo shoot of all the tourists - or those that noticed him anyway. 

Similarly he later began offering cups of hot chocolate and chocolate snacks in a 'I'm here if you want some' manner. The warm drink and a snack were very welcome, and as the lights began to fade everyone got back on the bus.

"Activity level is getting lower but we can go on a bit further if you want to," our guide again, "or we can just go back. Whatever you want to do."

We went back. 

Twice on the way back the driver screeched to halt, leapt out with his camera, before getting back in again, shaking his head and saying, "No, nothing there."

Now from what I've written you might get the impression he was a dreadful guide but he made us laugh a lot. We also saw the Northern lights, perhaps not the most impressive ever, but we saw them. And it was late and it had been a long day so we were happy to go back to the hotel, with a tale to tell of our own Marvin. (For those who remember Marvin, the depressed android in Hitchhiker's Guide.)

I've been delaying posting this waiting for the photo of Daughter and me in front of the northern lights but it still hasn't made an appearance on their website so I'll tell you about the other exciting thing.

There were four or five of us loitering at the side of the bus when a 'thing' flew through the sky. It was greeted by gasps from all of us. We think it was a comet but it might have been an alien spacecraft burning up as it entered the earth's atmosphere.

It was very close and clear - and remarkable. It had a long tail and was red around the edges. Like this.

On this day

It's National Golden Retriever Day today so I can't let it pass without photos of our much-missed George, and our new young granddog, Theo.

An unexpected interloo

Having spent half the night with my head over the toilet, retching, I've only just got up (11.30) and I'm still feeling queasy.

I can't think what has caused it. Husband is fine and we ate the same things. There is only one possible suspect.

Before I went away I bought some sleep aid pills. The company rated highly on Trustpilot and all the reviews were good. I took two last night for the first time. It seems unlikely because they're only magnesium and natural substances but I can't think what else it could be. Maye a bug picked up on the plane but I would have thought it would have happened sooner if that were the source.

Anyway, moving now to sofa to feel sorry for self - again!