Thursday, April 8, 2021

Silence


Sophie has been on one of her midnight ' walk abouts '. This morning she's found asleep under a table at the far end of the upstairs hallway. As Angus emerges she trots briskly towards him for a start of day cuddle. Greet a dog in the morning like your long lost best friend and they'll be happy all day. For some reason rooted deep in canine psychology Sophie likes to sleep under tables. 


We delay our departure until two horses come trotting slowly down the lane and pass the near gate. Sophie is content to follow them but prudently keeps close to Angus in case the horses should try any 'unpleasantness' . The horses seem unaware of her presence which is just fine as far as the family diva is concerned. One of the abiding memories of this pandemic will be the silence. Between the curfew and the closure of schools and non-essential businesses the volume of traffic ( which was already light ) has fallen to almost nothing. Yesterday a solitary plane flew over, heading north towards Paris. I stood in the garden and watched its contrails disappear into the distance. In a pandemic you take your excitement where you can find it.


The horses go one way at the 'Y' junction. We go the other. By the stream Sophie's managed to get a good thirty yards ahead. She pauses, looks over her shoulder, and makes it quite clear that she's been waiting for me . My companion does not hide her impatience well.


The field of orchids looking rather the worse for wear. Was it the overnight cold snap ? Or could it be the fact we haven't had a drop of rain in more than a month ? The field of orchids is one of the unnoticed wonders of our little corner of paradise. A spot known only to dog owners and old farmers.


 Another of those new hotels that's opened and then closed. There is something rather magical about being on the sode of the Thames despite the proximity to London :https://www.mitrehamptoncourt.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=local

Can you get any more Scottish than this ?:https://killiehuntly.scot/stay-in-the-farmhouse



10 comments:

Taste of France said...

It is reassuring that there exist fields of wild orchids that haven't been plowed under for housing developments or shopping centers.
You mentioned the Belgian Lady recently; I hope she is OK despite being dumped by the Old Farmer. It's quite a romance novel you have in your village. I also miss the sartorial appearances of Madame Bay.

Yamini MacLean said...

Hari Om
There is no question the ROF and its occupants are in an idyll... as for Killiehuntly - there isn't that much Scottish about 'Scandinavian Sensibility' interiors. That aside, it's definitely appealing. YAM xx

Lisa in France said...

Cherry never slept under tables, but Charlie does - maybe it provides a sense of safety akin to a den? Unfortunately, it seems we won't be visiting either England or Scotland any time soon, but when I arrived at work yesterday, I found a "pop-up" by these "progressive Hebridean distillers" - https://rcjkk.com/blpopup_2021/ I was planning to make this the destination for one of our weekend walks, as my husband has just gamely finished off his highly recommended but very disappointing Japanese whiskey, but we may need to move more quickly, as it seems Tokyo is about to impose "priority measures such as prevention of spread," which appear to be identical to our prior state of emergency but presumably sound better. The southern area around Osaka has been overtaken by the UK variant, and it seems it is our turn next. One of my daughter's Japanese drumming classes is just restarting this afternoon after shutting down for the prior emergency but now it looks as though they may get shut right down again. So tough for small business people like the drum teacher, both mentally and financially.

Angus said...

The Belgian lady is well and seems to have adjusted well to the absence of romantic trips in the Old Farmers motorhome. Madame Bay , the turban and the faux Kohinoor diamond continue to visit. She is remarkably sprightly although approaching the same birthday as the Old Farmer.

Angus said...

Thank you for the link which took me to The Long Bar and a variety of special cocktails.

Lisa in France said...

Well, that doesn't sound right. Here's an article instead. I'm quite curious to see how they are "recreating the nature and barley fields from the Scottish Island into the middle of bustling Roppongi Hills". https://www.tokyoweekender.com/events/bruichladdich-the-pop-up/

Angus said...

Thank you but the virtual bar crawl on the original link - https://rcjkk.com/blpopup_2021/special_cocktail.html - will keep me happily busy for another half an hour !

Coppa's girl said...

I too, was entranced by a lone contrail a couple of days ago. Usually the sky hereabouts is criss-crossed with them, but so few since lockdown last year. If they continue to be missing, their lack will spell the death of the tourist industry along the coast.
I didn't realise that the Old Farmer had actually dumped the Belgian lady - don't tell me he's found a younger "model"!!
Have also realised how much I miss your descriptions of Madame Bay's fashion statements too....

Poppy Q said...

I always get an afternoon greeting as miss pops rushes to the door to greet me. I get a morning greeting sometimes.

Your hall looks lovely.

Pamela Terry and Edward said...

Killehuntly. Would be a divine place to write. x