MUNCH, MUNCH, OUCH, OUCH!

I was due to meet Margaret, a friend I have known since I was 17, so quite a long time - and who was one of our bridesmaids along with my sister, Karen, when we married almost 52 years ago.  Although she doesn’t live that far away, she doesn’t come to Swindon that often, so I was pleased that we would be meeting up today.  

I have put three photographs in as extras (as I have so many left for this year) so you can see Margaret, the big bridesmaid, Karen, my sister, the other bridesmaid and my brother, Paul, who was the pageboy.  You can see how windy it was on our wedding day, 6th March 1968, by the way Karen’s dress is blowing and the way her shoulders are hunched!  Most of our wedding photographs are black and white, there wasn't much colour photography back in the day!

I caught a bus to the Designer Outlet and then as I wandered along outside the Heelis building, the National Trust Headquarters in Swindon, in the rain again, I might add - I noticed that most of the lavender and other plants had been cut down, but there were a few flowers left on the echinacea plants.  

Looking more closely, I spotted this little caterpillar, which I believe is a small white or more commonly known as cabbage white.  Mr. HCB has been picking these off his brassicas for sometime now, so I was quite surprised to see one on an echinacea.  This one was in the middle of the bed, so I just stepped onto it and took a few photographs - thankfully, the bed was covered with slate, so I didn’t get my feet mucky.  A man walking along looked at me, so I said, “I’m not really mad” but I’m not sure he believed me, although he did say, “I’m sure you’re not,” but I daresay he was surprised, because there can’t be many older ladies who take photographs of almost dead flowers in the pouring rain!

Margaret and I had arranged to meet in the National Trust café, so as I was there early, I sent her a text to say I was inside - but unfortunately, she didn’t receive it, so was waiting outside.  In the meantime, I had seen Dave and Olive, two other friends inside and had been chatting to them since I arrived, so by the time they left at 10.35, I said to them, “If you see a lady with white hair hanging around outside, just say I’m inside” to which Olive quickly responded, “Nearly all the ladies in here have white hair, Maureen”  which was very true!  They did speak to Margaret though, as she was obviously “loitering with intent" outside the building.

Anyway, eventually Margaret arrived and we had a lovely time catching up with the news of our families and left each other with a promise to meet up in the New Year.  This little caterpillar now gets its 15 minutes of fame on Blip and I must admit that I was thinking that it must have felt quite prickly on its tummy, because the seedheads of an echinacea are quite sharp.  Although I had a wander round the shops later, I found nothing that caught my eye, so I saved my money, but it was rather busy anyway, so I didn’t hang around for long and doubt I will be going there again before Christmas.

“Well, I must endure the presence 
     of a few caterpillars 
          if I wish to become acquainted 
               with the butterflies.” 
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry : The Little Prince