London

27 Feb

Posted at 23:16h in London by

I walked to Richmond Park this morning.   Frost in the air as I closed the front door behind me; residue of grit on the bridge over the lock thawing the hint of ice. It’s winter still, at least overnight, and early enough when I set out that the chill of the night still rinsed the air. Gloves forgotten, hands in pockets. A winter’s dawn soon made way for spring this morning, its mellow details filled in with buds, bulbs and forthright camellias. Gardens full of promise basked in sunshine. When I returned two hours later, spring had been ousted and summer...

22 Jun

Posted at 12:19h in Life, London by

Such a ticklish word. Sounds like it wears a smile – if words wear anything? In any case, perfectly describes the last couple of weeks since coming back from that big hike the length of Wales. Just one of those periods. Stuff to sort out. Bits and pieces. This and that. Disruption in the kitchen. A smallish alteration turned, inevitably, into something more major. Contents of cupboards disgorged. Dust everywhere. Drilling. Cups of tea. No running water unless from the outside tap. Chaos. All at sixes and sevens – as my mother would have said. I never thought about that phrase before. Why...

22 Mar

Posted at 16:35h in London by

Just back from meeting Cath for a coffee and a catchup. We do this quite often – an hour of digging into the big issues of our lives sets us up for the next few days, helps us brace for the fray of life. We flit around with no real loyalty to any one establishment. Carluccio’s in the High Street today. I had tea, which I regretted as it arrived in a glass. There are 14 coffee shops in Teddington - a fact I find so unbelievable I have to keep adding them up in my head. And that’s not counting...

06 Mar

Posted at 13:55h in London by

As I embarked on this piece I looked up the words ‘rant’ and diatribe’ to see which of them I should use. Behold – a better one popped up: fulmination. A little of which is sometimes necessary. I forgot about the inescapable nature of the news back here in London. It’s partly that we’ve resumed old habits, having happily shed them during the weeks of absence. Yes, we could have logged onto Radio 4 via the magic of Wifi and iPlayer from deep in south-east Spain. But the notion of Nick Robinson waging a war of words with an earnest MP...