Good Friday is for...

A trip to Oxfordshire, to see Irene.

I never know who is happier, the dogs to see Irene or Irene to see the dogs. Both have grown up with her and she was a daily part of their life. Maera used to run up the stairs everyday to say good morning. Since the day I took Irene to her new home, the dog has refused to go up the stairs. It's strange how she seemed to understand the finality of Irene's departure.

The road was a nightmare and I found Irene, having eaten her main course, looking very sad and thinking I wasn't going to go. Her face lit up when she saw me and she insisted we went to a table of our own. I felt so bad for turning up half way through the meal but every idiot was out with a car today.

I cannot for the life of me understand why people think they have to drive as close as possible to the centre line on an A road or hog the two outside lanes on a four lane motorway! What is wrong with using the lanes correctly so faster vehicles can overtake, rather than watch them zigzag perilously passing to the left and right of cars until they inevitably crash. I am far from a slow driver but find it absurd that I passed hundreds of cars by keeping in the inside lane. The road hogs, in their thousands, had brought the outside lanes to a standstill. There were crashes on the M25 and the M40. I honestly didn't think there would be such chaos, or I'd have said I'd go tomorrow.

I did have a lovely day with Irene. Although her mobility is visibly deteriorating, she's looking well and we spent some time looking through amazing old photographs of her parents and grandparents. Memory is a strange thing. Irene remembers things from 90 years ago as if they were yesterday yet doesn't remember what she spoke to you about 20 minutes earlier. It's a shame it was too cold to go outside into the garden but I'll be back again soon. I'd like to take her down to the banks of the Thames to watch the boats sail by.

Hopefully this cold spell won't last long. The frost was sharp last night. There was ice on the water inside the polytunnel. The courgette plants aren't looking bright but may just make it!