Easy As Falling Off A Bike pt 1335.

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The Daily Dormouse.
(aka Bike)
Part 1335
by Angharad

Copyright © 2011 Angharad
All Rights Reserved.
  
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Easter day arrived and along with a bouquet of flowers which mysteriously appeared in the kitchen sink–all I usually find are dirty dishes that the users are too lazy to rinse and stick in the dishwasher–so this made a nice surprise.

The choccies were lovely too, apparently on behalf of all the children–it was a large box, but I knew I’d have to hide them or they simply evaporate. I put them in the fridge, in the salad box covering them with spring greens.

Julie was really pleased with her hair brush–to me it resembled something between a bottle brush and–um–a lavatory brush? The important thing was that she was pleased with it. A client had given her an Easter egg, so she was quite content to have non-chocolate prezzies.

The youngsters grumbled–they liked their presents but wanted an egg as well. So after breakfast, I told them I’d secreted half a dozen Easter eggs in the garden, but no matter how many they found, they were only allowed to keep one, they had to pass any further ones to one of the others.

Meems found the first one–I reckon Simon told her where to go–he helped me hide them. Next was Danny, who got one from the hole in the wall by the shed. Livvie had one from the apple tree which had decked Trish, and she found a second one for Trish, under my car. At one point Simon had to intervene because Trish said she didn’t see any of the eggs, and Livvie said she must be blind, or words to that effect.

Trish slapped Livvie, who pulled her hair in retaliation–in some ways, I was glad I was dealing with the dinner. I was doing a whole leg of lamb which I basted in lemon, honey with fresh rosemary and mint. I popped it in the low oven of the Aga at eight o’clock and was intending to eat it about one pm.

I microwaved a pile of potatoes and got them ready to make roasties, then began washing carrots and slicing them into sticks to cook in butter in the oven. For greenstuff we had spring greens as recently used for camouflaging a certain box of chocolates–and while no one was looking–I ate a couple of chocs.

Once the dinner was underway, I made myself a cuppa and had just sat down to eat it when Jenny came in with the two little ones and poured herself a cup, and next was Simon who was extolling the weather, in particular the sunshine. It was rather nice-presumably nobody had told the weather it was a bank holiday, so all the rain was queuing up to happen on the next weekend when the Royal Wedding was in progress.

While I was too busy to watch it, I felt sorry for Catherine Middleton, if it does rain and I looked forward to seeing pictures of the dress–she wears some nice outfits at times, and I particularly liked the red suit or coat with the black belt that she wore to church a few weeks ago.

I suddenly thought of church, and called Trish. “Did you want to go to church?”

“Dunno,” she said. She was covered in chocolate and assorted garden muck–she looked like a chocolate flavoured compost heap.

“Well if you’re going, you need to get showered because Gramps will be going in half an hour.”

“I wanted you to take me.”

“I can’t sweetheart, I’m doing the dinner.”

“I could look after that for an hour,” offered Jenny dropping me right in it.

“C’mon, Mummy, we gotta shower.” Trish practically dragged me up the stairs. I surrendered and we both showered together to save time.

“I look like you now, Mummy,” she waggled her groin at me in a very suggestive manner–at least to me it seemed that way–I suppose to a seven year old she was just flaunting what she had, the alopecic form of mine, in miniature.

We hurriedly dried and dressed and I dried and plaited her hair into a French plait with a ribbon to match her dress–in royal blue. I was going to wear trousers until Trish grumbled and I threw on a Laura Ashley dress I’d bought last summer, plus a neutral cardigan and some red court shoes–yes the ones that had got Trish walking when she first came to stay. She called them my magic shoes.

By the time we got to the church, we had two minutes to find a seat and compose ourselves before the service began. It wasn’t a communion, that had been earlier, this was the family service and Trish spotted someone she knew from school who was sat across the aisle from us and they both played peek-a-boo during the interminable sermon, which was on resurrection, oh one in particular but I expect you’d know that anyway.

Despite all my anti-God-botherer stuff, I didn’t spontaneously combust when the shadow of the cross fell on me as they processed around the church. Nor was I struck by lightning, though if the preacher had been it would have livened it up for the rest of us. I don’t know how many elderly people fell asleep but I was fighting hard to stay awake throughout. It must take a real talent to send so many to sleep and this guy seemed to have it in spades–as well as all the other suits. He spoke for twenty minutes–nineteen of which I felt I was losing the will to live. Trish was still playing peek-a-boo with Sascha Freebody, at least that’s who I think she said it was.

Finally, the old buzzard in the pulpit ran out of gibberish to throw at us and we sang a hymn and the prayers finished it off. Once things were over, Trish dragged me over to meet Sascha and her mother, Carol–no not one of the Christmas carols–pay attention, this is Easter.

While the two girls were chatting, Carol Freebody said to me, I know you from somewhere, don’t I?”

“Do you?”

“Yes, now where was it?”

“I did a talk to the school a couple of months ago.”

“That’s it; it’s Lady Catherine, isn’t it?”

“Officially yes, but most people call me Cathy.”

“Okay, Cathy it is, we only live round the corner, would you like to come for a coffee.”

I looked at Trish and she was urging me to say yes. “I can’t stay long, I’ve got a leg of lamb in the oven.”

“I’ve got to go over the mother-in-law’s, a real joy, if you know what I mean?”

I smirked. I was fortunate that I actually liked Monica, even if she did frighten me to death that first time–and still made me uneasy, even though Simon assures me she won’t pester me now we’re married.

The Freebody’s house was a nice detached Victorian pile literally a hundred yards from the church. It was very comfortably appointed and expensively furnished–it transpired her husband worked for Barclays, as in bank. It obviously paid well judging by the furnishings. She made me a coffee while her husband, Gordon, talked to me–the two girls were upstairs playing in Sascha’s bedroom.

“So what d’you do or are you a stay at home wife and mother?”

“I work part time when I can fit it in.”

“Oh yes, doing what?”

“Coordinating the mammal survey of the UK.”

“Oh yes, who’s that with?”

“The government, the Mammal Society, the RSPB, Woodlands Trust and quite a few other bodies and about thirty different university departments up and down the country.”

“So you actually coordinate it?”

“Most of it, yes. I do have a couple of folk helping me on a semi-regular basis.”

“So are you a scientist?”

“I’m an ecologist or field biologist.”

“Not one of these types who stops building developments because they got the wrong sort of newt?”

“Um–sometimes, why, d’you have a problem with that?”

“Not personally,” he said backing down, “but my bank does, we occasionally lose a packet when the builder or developer goes bust, because of dormice in the attic or something.”

“Cathy’s into dormice, aren’t you?”

I nodded.

“She made a film last year about them–it was on the BBC.”

“That was you?” he practically exploded. “Goodness, yes that was a nice bit of filming.”

“Her husband works for a bank too, dear.”

“Oh? Which one? I’m in banking myself.”

“Yes, Carol said. He works for High Street.”

“Oh the family owned one? Must be nice to own your own bank.”

“It has its limitations,” I said finishing my coffee.

“Eh?” he looked puzzled.

“Yes, dear, Cathy is Lady Cameron, her husband is Simon Cameron, Henry’s son.”

“I know who he is,” said Gordon rather sharply.

“I must get back–have to feed the five thousand, though Delia Smith has a recipe with two loaves and five fishes or is it the other way round? C’mon, Trish, let’s go home and sort out the others.”

We left and drove home, I wasn’t sorry to leave her husband–as company he was rather boorish.

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Comments

Nicely written

Our Easter service is usually a bit more lively than that, but the sermons can DRAG on a hit. I can't remember if I commented on an earlier chapter. I remember they went to the Hotel to meet her co-star in the school play and the wife was feeling poorly and stayed in the room so Cathy went up to see her. I wondered then and now, if Cathy prevented her from having a miscarriage the way she was feeling.

Sibling rivalry

Nothing like an Easter egg hunt to stoke up sibling rivalry - particularly between Trish and Livvie. So Meems found the first egg, Danny the second, Livvie numbers three and four... did anyone discover five and six or was the hunt abandoned after the scrap?

Meanwhile, church. As I was staying with mum and my sister (both Catholic) over Easter, I got dragged to a service. Mercifully, the priest kept the homily to about ten minutes long, so the service was over in just over an hour (he has apparently been known to ramble, causing the service to last nearly 1½ hrs on occasion). As for content, once he'd droned on about the unusual nature of Jesus' resurrection (definitely a bodily resurrection, but also surrounded by divine glory or something which enabled him to appear in locked rooms later on) I tuned out. Needless to say, apparently next Friday's service will be offered for a certain pair of non-locals and will be held an hour earlier to enable parishioners to get home in time to watch the pair participate in an Anglican service...

 

Bike Resources

There are 10 kinds of people in the world - those who understand binary and those who don't...

As the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, then only left-handers are in their right mind!

I Get The Impression That Gordon

jengrl's picture

PICT0013_1_0.jpg has a very clear dislike for Henry and Simon. I am willing to bet that Simon and Henry won't have a very high opinion of him either. I'm thinking that he really puts profits ahead of the environment and really wouldn't care if a habitat would be destroyed in the name of profit. I sympathized with Cathy about the long winded sermon. I have sat through a few where you wish something would happen to liven things up. My grandfather told me about this man he knew that kept falling asleep during the sermon and his wife would give him a dig in the ribs. Every time she did so,he let out a loud fart and set everyone off laughing hysterically.

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A Thank You

Angharad,

I was re-, re-, reading the opening chapters and I want to thank you for not making this a blog and for not closing out in Chapter LII.

Did you realize then that there were going to be a few more chapters?
- - - - -
Bear

TGNear-Avatar_0.png

Bear

"A Nice Bit Of Filming"

I think that wanker has just met his fantasy woman, in the flesh.

Oh, wait, let me rephase that. "Ewwwwwww!"

___________________
"Cathy should thank her lucky stars she's not married to that pompous slimeball."

Oh yes I bet Cathy was wiping herself down

mentally after being exposed to this tosser. He has a layer of grease meters thick on him. Cathy may have to watch her back.

Never go to Church services, you never know what kind of cooties you might pickup.

I, mean, really, church attracts people who think they are sinners and need to make nice nice with God.

Or similarly, even though people are nice, who go to Alcohol Anonymous, would you want to bring home any of those folks back home with you?

Kim

AA

I am one of those AA people. I remember a few chapters back a lesson about not judging a book by its cover. I would also rather go to an AA meeting than sit through a sermon like the one described. And to think, I used to plan those services. On Easter we instructed the priest to keep it short because that is one of the longest services of the year. Some actually listened.

So did my ex-partner

... and I went with her to them too for over two years to provide support though I myself can count the amount of alcohol consumed over my lifetime at about 1 beer and 2 glasses of wine. People bring their issues with them to the meeting and the need for alcohol may be due to being genetically prone or an acquired dependency. Thing is in both cases both organizations are for people who can't cope with certain things one way or another.

Consequently, when you bring those people home with you, their problems tag along with them. It just is. So for a church if you have spiritual issues, then you bring them home and then come back again to get a booster.

People who have to constantly go to some kind of group means that they need constant reinforcement of group think. If they did not have those issues, then why go there?

Kim

Regarding AA

Andrea Lena's picture

...one of the things that I learned from counseling substance abuse folks (myself included) is that it's really important apart from support groups like these to find new friends who don't share the same problem. Starting up a relationship with someone who is in recovery is bad for both; you find yourself supporting them more than their recovery, and they lose focus as it shifts from their recovery to the relationship. Anyone who is in recovery is like the parent on the plane who must grab the oxygen mask for herself before her child; her recovery has to be the first thing she does since everything else depends upon her success. Thank you for your insight.



Dio vi benedica tutti
Con grande amore e di affetto
Andrea Lena

  

To be alive is to be vulnerable. Madeleine L'Engle
Love, Andrea Lena

Waiting for the diagnosis

Thanks A+B+I (roast lamb and veg): a very enjoyable Bikesode.

As I was reading through today's installment, I have to confess that I was waiting for Cathy to make a pronouncement about Gordon Freebody's health problems (his peptic ulcer, tennis elbow or sciatica). Maybe she's saving that for what seems like an imminent scrap over species threatened by his bank's plans.

Personal Symptoms


Bike Resources

Even I went to Church on Easter.

Now that is a hoot. Wore my full Muslim dress too, though I exposed my face for them this time. It was a rather odd match, but I have friends that wanted me there.

Khadihah

Interminable Sunday sermons.

Don't really know what they are.
Apparently my mother used to drag us along on Easter Sunday and Christmas day but my father never went cos he didn't belive in all that nodding and bobbing stuff.
I don't remember much cos it happened before I was six though my brother tells me it was so.
I went to a couple of Easter Sunday services with my wife in her Baptist Chapel in Wales but the sermons were mercifully short and the singing's good (Well it is Wales after all.)
Cant say I know much about all that Jesus stuff, his representative when I was a kid was one of my worst abusers.

I liked Trish's nelsonian excuse about the egg hunt. Sunday roast sounds as though it'll be nice. Lamb, mmmm-mmm!

Nice chapter Angie.

Hugs.

XXX

Bev.

Growing old disgracefully.

bev_1.jpg

Droning Priests

Are a real pain in the butt. I, fortunately don't have that problem where I go to church. As for the Royal Wedding, I fully understand why it is a big deal on the far side of the American Pond. However, on my side of the pond I am getting very sick of all the attention it is getting over here. Then, again, I try to avoid any and all celebrity gossip since I have no intrest in it.

When it comes to Easter Egg hunts I actually prefer hunting for actual colored eggs intead of chocolate eggs. Then I can later turn them into one of my favorite sandwiches (Egg salad.) And, yes, I do love chocolate, I have the fillings in my teeth to prove it(actually, the fillings are because I had Scarlite Fever when I was two and a half.)

I also hope that Simon explained firmly to Livvie that calling her sister blind was NOT a very wise thing to say after what happened to her. In a couple of months it should be a non-issue, but so soon after coming back from the hospital it could still be quite hurtful.

As Mother-in-Laws go...

As Mother-in-Laws go, I appear to have lucked out. I mean, how many of us discover their Mother-in-Law has known what a transsexual was longer than we've been alive? Not only that, who's first reaction when told their son-in-law is really their daughter-in-law is "oh, the poor dear"....

But, back to Cathy and company. Quite a few in the Banking industry take Mr. Freebody's position - that anything that gets in the way of the folks they loan money to repaying the loan (with lots of interest, of course) is bad... But then, it seems that quite a number of folks in our country seem to feel this way... You hear about the "beading heart tree huggers" and such.

Thanks for another interesting installment of "As the Wheel Turns".

Anne

Easy As Falling Off A Bike pt 1335

Glad that Cathy went to Church with Trish, although she may have a new enemy in that other banker.

    Stanman
May Your Light Forever Shine
    Stanman
May Your Light Forever Shine

sermons & seating

as I havent set foot inside a church in some time. I can not compare with modern seating some have now. But I do believe there was reason those old pews in the past were designed as they were & that was to keep the audiance awake & uncomfortable as possible in case they were stuck with the person whom had abilities to put people to sleep. and yet a few still were able to saw logs. rofl

I'm not sure where I stand exactly on religion, i believe in something past human existance when we pass on. there's just too much about lifeforce in a frail body to think it doesnt go someplace. my physical body, now, that another can O worms , pun intended. and worm food it is
(smiles). Where i get into trouble, and i'm not so unsure i'm not right is homo-sapien isnt of earth, least of it's natural evolution basics. but I'll leave it alone here. what others want to believe and I'll stick to my own conclusions.