DAY 7

Well the ring of shame is no longer with us, it is back with the Hoare household, however the medal remains with the Ashworths. We raced into a strong lead, but sadly number 16 proved to be our downfall. I was again threatened with substitution for failing to take the game seriously enough, but lockdown means there are no substitutes, so I am safe for the time being. Having failed to hit a single number, I partly redeemed myself in the dying throws of the match by hitting a Bulls Eye, so we took 2nd place. Much talk about the possibility of a real darts match next week rather than a virtual one via Teams, but I think we probably need to wait and see how the Government relax the restrictions on 1st June before we move that one along.

Nick is desperate for some further easing of lockdown, so that he can return to Manchester to collect the rest of his stuff from his student house and catch up with all his Uni mates ahead of their summer break. The 1st part of that has to be done, but I cannot see how the 2nd part can be done without many and various breaches of the social distancing rules. I am not looking forward to policing that one.

DAY 8

Bank Holiday Monday – my day was supposed to start with a bike ride to Henley to meet a friend for a walk but she cancelled as she didn’t feel great. After a bit of what shall I do nowing, I decided to go to Henley anyway and to pick up the bits & pieces we need for dinner this evening – pizza night. I pottered along the Marlow – Henley road and for the first time (to my great joy) I overtook another cyclist. The joy was short lived as about 2 minutes later I was passed by a peloton of Lycra clad bikers – quite intimidating and guaranteed to make you feel ancient and slow. Barely resisted temptation to over fill the rucksack for the journey home and so wended my way carefully home laden down with supplies.

Took to my sun lounger in the afternoon and started my new book – enjoyed a glorious couple of hours in the sun, though I had to retreat at one point for a hat to hold up my hair. Having stuck largely with short hair for the past 10 years, I do not possess any of the accessories required to keep longer hair out of the way, particularly useful on a hot day. Another problem I am sure internet shopping will help me to solve.

My hair is still not irritating enough to drive me to the clippers, but Nick tidied up Robert’s hair again today, however Alex has still not recovered from the shock of his first trim and so declined the offer of round 2. Clearly disappointed Nick turned the clippers on himself, with what can only be described as dubious results. I can’t quite fathom his desire for a mullet. I lived through the 80s when they were fashionable and even then they looked pretty grim, but now… he is only a sleeveless t-shirt and a can of Stella away from disaster.

Pizza night is one of the joys of lockdown, who knew making your own pizzas would be so satisfying and something we all enjoy.

So the Bank Holiday weekend finished with drinks on the patio as the sun went down and a good weekend was had by all.

DAY 9

I seem to be thwarted on the bike riding front. I marched out of the kitchen ready to head off to meet a friend at Marlow Common, only to discover another flat tyre. Very dull. Robert was convinced he could fix it quickly enough for me to still make it on time, but I did not want to be rushed, so decided to drive and fix puncture on my return. Had a really lovely hour’s walk with Anne & Milo (such a good dog) and then headed home to deal with bike. In my absence Robert had liaised with Ken, who kindly dropped in and delivered a how to fix a puncture lesson (so know I know what to do).

Another afternoon spell on the sun lounger was interrupted by the arrival of the gardener, so I decided to return the tray & dish the Bakewell tart arrived in (Bakewell doesn’t last long in our house) to the Ashworths and them carry on for a walk through the woods home. Task completed, I was heading home when a distant herd of deer were disturbed by a naughty terrier and they ran across my path to escape it – really lovely, chance encounter.

As the sun was shining, Robert did what work he had to do in the morning and then headed for the Windrush river for an afternoon’s fishing. With Catering absent, Nick was again in charge of dinner. Another Gordon Ramsey 10 minute menu, this time beefburgers. I was a little worried, when he left the house for a run at 6pm, that we might not be eating at 7pm as planned, but my resolution not to interfere kept me quiet. He produced a very tasty burger at about 8pm, by which time he was sweating profusely and the kitchen looked like a war zone. The green salad had been canned, together with the potato wedges, but hey he tried. He learnt from the experience and it was a damn fine burger. Alex was more than a little critical about it not being a balanced meal, but frankly I am a much less demanding diner and was just happy to be fed. Kitchen clearance took a while, but as the only other source of evening entertainment was the ironing pile, it didn’t seem too bad an option.