Trivial pursuits and rooftop capers

Saturday -- and a gorgeous sunny day here in Brighton. Lorraine and I got up fairly late, not having to open the door to anyone today. I popped around the corner to collect my sliced chewy brown, and bumped into Rick. The glassmates had gone to the pub yesterday lunchtime. 

In other news Prince Phillip was buried today. I am not a royalist, but the sight of the Queen on alone on a pew was rather touching and sad. 

After I'd made breakfast, Lorraine and I then went outside. I took advantage of the scaffolding for a few rooftop capers, washing my study window from the outside, and climbing onto my flat roof. I scooped out a third of a bucketload of gravel and dusty soil, rusty screws and bits of peanut shells from the gutter.

Meanwhile Lorraine busy planting and potting. I scooped earth out of the bottom of the composter. There is something quietly miraculous about the rich dark soil that emerges from all the peelings and bits and pieces you sling in. Teabags leave frail ghost bags.  

Celebrated Lorraine's birthday a few days before her actual birthday with a Shahi curry delivery. Betty and James came and we played Trivial Pursuit in teams. Lorraine and I won both games. Beth had brought fixings for an ice cream dessert, with all kinds of hundreds of thousands, and sauce, and bits of marshmallow and chocolates of various kinds. It was diabetes on a plate but it was also amazing, with all kinds of textures and crunches and surprising yieldings. 

A vigorous singing of Happy Birthday. 

After Betty and James left  Lorraine went to bed, I stayed up chatting with Jade and Sam late into the night about ghosts and philosophy and the meaning of the word 'hang'. 

The only photo I remembered to take today was this pot of pansies. Lovely things aren't they.