23 April 2025 (Wednesday)

Up early before the alarm went off at 6am; it was to be a Vanessa day as she had eye surgery yesterday to correct vision, so I said I’d go down today, basically just to be a helping hand and a bit of support.

As I was driving, I decided to take the M25 towards the A3 and come off at Wisely junction…I hadn't bargained on the schools being back and the traffic being quite so terrible, so for the first time for a while it took me over two hours to get to the Great Green Barn and For Earth's Sake... 

I did various jobs in the shop in the morning, and some ordering trying to get ahead for next week as Vanessa has another appointment somewhere on Monday. As often happens at For Earth's Sake, two people came into the shop and we got chatting.  It turned out that they have a small theatrical company called Lynchpin Theatre. We got chatting about the shows they do and also we were talking about the Can’t Stop Carrying On which we have coming up next week… and another person who was in the shop at the same time then chirped up that one of her friends was in a Carry On film at some point and she does one man shows too, though in her case one woman shows. What a small world! 

I suggested the Lynchpin couple went off to see the Great Green Barn and also meet Vanessa who was already showing two people around the venue - they were from a quintet called Quintessentially Wind (clever name!). We’d been in touch with them late last year about doing some type of concert with us, and due to various reasons it'd taken some time for them to come back to us. However, we're now planning either an afternoon tea with classical music or another event, possibly a concert of music from the movies. Both Lynchpin and Quintessentially Wind are going to be coming back to us with thoughts on what type of program they could do for us.

In the afternoon, Vanessa and I went to a local garden centre to have a bite to eat… and her sister and brother-in-law were there, so we sat with them and had a nice time. Then it was off into Cranleigh to pay money into the Post Office, and then Vanessa needed to go to the chemist, then to the dentist, then back to the chemist and then by the time we got back to her home Vanessa needed to get back on to her computer to do some ordering, and I went to the shop to put all the satellite orders through. At about half past five, we were finally able to start thinking about the autumn and spring programme, and tomorrow I'll have some work to do at my desk just typing up thoughts. 

Surprisingly, despite leaving just after 6pm the drive home was quite chaotic in terms of other drivers, and it took longer than usual… BUT it was wonderful to get home to find that Richard was cooking a veggie sauce with peppers and using Linda McCartney meatballs to have with pasta.  Delish!!

After eating, and various bits of TV, Richard was asleep and I finished off Bosch Legacy on Prime, which I really enjoyed. I think they're definitely ending it at the right time, though I have to say it is one of my favourite series, and I particularly like Honey Chandler. 

Off to bed, with a chapter or two of The Beautiful Mystery, which I'm really enjoying.


Weather:  Wet start, with rain overnight.  The rain cleared around midday, though the day remained grey and slightly chilly.

Breakfast:  Bran sticks, yogurt and banana
Lunch:  Cheese and Spring Onion Coleslaw sandwich with a few chips 
Supper: Linda McCartney meatballs in a delicious homemade pasta sauce with spaghetti and grated cheese