We have a leak

 Ann, walking with bare feet, noted a wet patch on the hall carpet. I apologised and said I must have spilt the coffee when I carried it through. Next morning, I felt a drip on my head. A crack had appeared in the ceiling, with a spreading stain. Investigation tracked it to the airing cupboard, and the valve to open the hot water system when the timer called it on. Water was jetting out, but only when the hot water went on so I wedged a baking tray to catch the leak.

We managed to get a plumber quickly, who made the diagnosis and phoned his supplier about a replacement valve. They had one in stock but said it had been reserved for another plumber; but when our man bent their ear with a plea about "this is an emergency", they agreed to order another valve in for the other guy. Our man returned quickly with the part, and then performed a miracle of plumbing engineering. He wrapped a sleeve round the pipe above and below the valve, and pumped freon through it. The pipe quickly froze solid, so he could replace the valve without having to drain the system. Amazing.

Following this, Ann noticed a new stain and crack appearing on her bedroom ceiling. Because of my severe itching, we have slept separately but for some time she had been disturbed by loud nightly noises in the attic above her rather than in the bed beside her. We worried that it might be rats or bats, or birds nesting, but the attic was clear of debris or droppings. Finally, we tracked it down to a pair of starlings nesting under the roof tile where the cement had broken away. We waited a few weeks until they had fledged, then found a local guy called Josh. The valley troughs were replaced a few years ago to fix other leaks, but Josh said they must have been cowboys because all the pointing to seal them under the tiles had worked loose and needed replacing. The birds had got in, and now the rain too. 

The Widower

I am continuing painting, turning to the neighbours for subjects. The first is David, who was widowed two years ago (see Stories and funeral). He is the affable organiser of our little Hundon men's group, but has the saddest eyes as though reflecting on all the might-have-beens in his life. My next neighbour must be selected to bring more cheer to the painting.

Happy Birthday Ann!

It is Ann's birthday, so last week we went to the opera to celebrate. The The De Vere Horsley Estate where we stayed is a large mansion set in 300 acres of Surrey with a fascinating history. Built in 1820 by Sir Charles Barry; the architect of the Houses of Parliament, it was bought by the Lovelace family. Ada Lovelace, the daughter of Lord Byron, was a close friend of Charles Babbage and helped him by writing the first computer program for his mechanical computer, and a modern computer language has been named in her memory. Another famous owner was Sir Thomas Sopwith, inventor of the Sopwith Camel First War fighter plane.

Normally busy with conferences and weddings, it was eerily quiet with few guests, several of whom, like us, were staying for the opera. There is still only a skeleton staff working. All large weddings are on hold, and the manager (who was doubling as a bar waiter in the evening and breakfast waiter in the morning) told us that there are hundreds of weddings, delayed for up to 18 months, booked in solidly every day from the moment the hotel reopens for normal business. He is Irish but had been back to Dublin only once during the emergency, for the funeral of his brother who had died suddenly from Covid.

Ann returns from her trip below

Ann and I were roomed in the tower. Although a romantic situation, the room was inevitably a little cramped being built into the thick curved wall. The toilet, as large as the bedroom, was in the room below accessed by a steep spiral staircase. Paying a nighttime visit required great care with a steady grip of the handrail. 

We dressed in our finery ready to drive the short distance to the venue at Grange Park, but there was a minor hold up when I tried to do up my dress trousers. They appeared to have shrunk, so I could not make the tab meet the button on the other side. No matter how tightly I pulled, there remained a stubborn gap of a couple of inches. In the end, I was pulling so hard the tag tore through the cloth, so I ended up wearing a dress jacket, fancy shirt, bow tie, and my ordinary dark trousers. Luckily, I had not driven down in jeans! Finally we arrived to see Falstaff, with Bryn Terfel as the glutenous and lecherous fat Shakespearean knight. At 79, Verdi was even older than me when he composed this wonderful piece. 

We had seats at the front of the stalls, and with the orchestra tucked away under the stage, we were but a few feet away from the great man and could appreciate every nuance of gesture, and every tone of Bryn's superb voice. It was a truly magical night, with a hamper picnic in the park. Unfortunately, because of staff shortages, the hotel bar had closed at 10p.m. so we enjoyed a nightcap in our room instead.

Happy Birthday Ann 

Dr Edwin Marr, PhD

 

Celebrating wth Dr. Eds

Edwin has worked hard these last three-and-a-half years towards his doctorate in English Literature. He has combined this with working as a temporary lecturer at ARU and UEA, which inevitably took a lot of time in preparation and marking. He finally submitted his thesis on space in the railways earlier this year and had his viva on Monday. The work covered the mid-Victorian period when railways were growing in their reach, and many writers of the period were responding to this in both negative and positive ways through literature and poetry. The viva was conducted by two people who are experts in the field. Despite some nervousness, he remained cool and analytical in his answer, and received glowing reports from both examiners. The independent chair commented that it was "the best and most interesting viva" he had ever chaired. He passed with flying colours, and their only recommendation was to change a few minor typos. 

Happily, Ann and I could arrange for our friends Rae and Malcolm to come over to dog sit, and we could go straight over to celebrate with him and his partner Andre. We took what we thought was a good bottle of bubbly which was quickly downed, but then Edwin broke out a bottle of vintage 2010 Bollinger he had bought specially for the celebration. This was so smooth and gentle on the pallet, we sank it rapidly with much toasting and congratulations. It too went down all too rapidly. Edwin and Andre had booked a smart Greek bistro near the centre of Cambridge for a meal. This was Andre's treat, and more toasts were raised over a fine Greek white wine. Then we walked down the road to the University Arms hotel where we could enjoy cocktails in their oak-panelled library, then over the road to a lively night club, open until 02:00, for more cocktails before getting a Uber taxi back to the apartment. 

Eds had made up a bed for the night (I certainly could not have driven home) and we crashed out, but managed to get up at 06:30 and leave without disturbing the boys. We were back home for 08:00 to let the dogs out, and for me to start work again. Every one of our seven children has done well, but this was definitely a night to remember and cherish. Congratulations Edwin. We are so proud of you.