Clock winding

Moira needs someone to wind the church clock for her. We climb up the street, slippery, stone steps outside the church, ending up in the belfry. There are two weights to wind up - the heavy one is for the bell, the light one for the clock. It’s good cardio exercise.

Next up, I cook a carrot scotch broth for lunch. Mum likes it, which is lucky, because there’s plenty left.

After lunch, I drive to Burnham (Slough) to visit Ek and Kathy. The M4 is really mobbed. They’re in between visitors, and we sit in the kitchen chatting. Above my head there’s a TV showing a sports channel (volume down) that they glance at regularly. Kathy works through cigarettes at a decent rate.

Their plan is to move to Monifieth early next year. Their offer on a house has been accepted and the next door neighbour wants their house in Burnham. No contracts exchanged, and anything could happen, but it’s looking good.

It’s dark and very wet when I get back on the motorway. I stick to the speed limit and get back in little over an hour, in time to bake chicken breast and tomato for tea. Green beans and boiled potatoes complement the meat. A dash of cream finished the tomato sauce.

We try to watch Bringing Up Baby, but neither of us have the patience to watch the nonsense unfold. Mum goes to bed. I drink whisky.