A visit to Devon and other things

Back again! How time flies; it seems but a day or so since I last posted but it was a fortnight ago. It's been the usual fortnight of volunteering, swimming, walking; charity shopping, visiting family and I also went on a trip to Devon; more of which later.

Tale of a lost earring...

This was Tuesday's outfit. I went swimming at an earlier time because of half term so I wore minimal make up. Everything pre-loved; velvet skirt by Mistral via Barnardo's; shirt by Linea; jumper has no label; boots by Sainsbury's. All jewellery charity shopped except earrings from eBay.

 After my swim I went into town to run some errands and then on to Aldi to save me a trip on Wednesday. I like their Earl Grey teabags and this was the third week they hadn't any in stock; nor their Caviar night  cream. That happens frequently with the night cream but I've never known the teabags to be out of stock for so long - I'm blaming BREXIT! Tuesday was Valentine's Day and I received this:

And a big box of chocolates! Thank you, OH, you are my Valentine for sure! The chocolates only lasted 2 days; both of us love chocolate...

I'd been praying for decent weather on Wednesday as I was leading a walk from Milton Ernest/Clapham/Thurleigh/Milton Ernest. My prayers were answered; the sun shone; it was dry and what's more the awful muddy bridle ways and footpaths across the fields had dried up - mostly. There were 25 of us in total and we walked 7.5 miles. This was when we stopped for a break half way through:

If you look carefully you can see some horses in the field. On the very last leg of the journey we walked between two fields with a horse in each one. I don't know much about horses but they may have been Clydesdale's. What a pair of show-offs! As soon as they saw us coming they got very excited and then began trotting and even galloping around their respective fields; round and round they went and looked as if they expected applause. They were wonderful and I wished I'd videoed them but I was trying to be a responsible walk leader...

From the walk I drove to the farm shop trying to save myself time on Thursday; the food bank had asked if I could go in on Thursday afternoon to help make up food parcels. The farm shop is in the next village from Milton Ernest and as soon as I approached the roundabout to the farm shop I remembered they don't open on Wednesdays! I went home; caught up with blog land; hung the washing up; sorted out the fire then made dinner. Middle grandson came round to borrow a suitcase; he's off to Barcelona on Friday with two friends for a long weekend. They'll watch Barcelona play Cadiz at the stadium in Barcelona and hopefully get to see the wonderful Gaudi cathedral, too. It's his first trip abroad without his parents or grandparents and what better way to celebrate being 18 years old?

I had the usual manic Thursday. Swimming followed by a trip to the farm shop for coal and kindling (again!) Then it was off to the food bank where I made up 16 food parcels for small families; there were no other volunteers in, surprisingly. From the food bank I went to Lidl to do the weekly food shop and into Aldi to see if the tea bags were back in stock - they weren't. Home to sort out the fire, put the shopping away and cook dinner. I finally sat down around 6 pm. We had started watching a new 'Walter Presents'  international crime drama set in Geneva called 'Sacha' and  were enjoying it. I know if OH is enjoying something he doesn't fall asleep!

Jeans on Thursday; I'd forgotten I had these cropped flared jeans by Next which I found on a fairly recent rummage. The tunic is by Indulgence and was found in a Co. Galway charity shop about  4 or 5 years ago. Boots as before and I only wore earrings and beads both of which were pre-loved.

I had planned to go to London on Friday to take my sister-in-law for a trip around the West End (her choice I hasten to add; not mine) and then out for a meal, but she cancelled on Thursday as she wasn't feeling very well. Instead I went on the unofficial bus walk. We started at Colmworth Golf Course. Colmworth  is a village about 5.5 miles outside of Bedford. It was a pleasant but very windy walk; the remnants of Storm Otto making itself felt. We stopped at the golf course clubhouse for tea and cake at the end of the walk. My coffee and walnut cake was delicious. It was interesting to see they had a 'refill business' as part of the clubhouse. In an endeavour to cut plastic waste and the ensuing pollution; you take your bottles of washing up liquid; liquid detergent; fabric softener; hand wash etc and refill them with ecologically sound replacements. It was the last thing I expected to see in a golf clubhouse!

I wore the same jeans again with a different tunic; boots as before. Jewellery all pre-loved. I added walking boots and socks for the walk and my red Moto corduroy jacket. When the wind wasn't blowing it was quite warm at 14 degrees.

We passed this sweet cottage on the walk; note the Thatcher's signature on the roof; a pheasant I think or a peacock?

We visited St. Deny's Church in Colmworth which dates from around 1430. Such a plain and simple church; with the exception of a couple of beautiful stained glass windows. The walls were made of exposed brick in places; there were no elaborate carvings to be seen anywhere except the marble one to the left of the altar. It seemed really out of place compared to the rest of the church.

There was a lunch about to take place in the church but they kindly let us have a look around before the lunch began. 

Plain and simple.

 I spotted this magnificent horse sculpture in the grounds of the golf course. Apparently the golf course has a wedding venue and this is a popular spot for the wedding photographs. That's the river Great Ouse in the background. There were nine of us on the walk and we walked 6.7 miles. I'd miss next week's walk as I'd be off to see Hilary down in Devon next weekend. Yippee!

Saturday was a miserable grey day with lots of rain. Not allowing the weather to put us off we went to Kettering for a rummage; to see my brothers and go out for a meal together.  Before we did that I walked into town to the library to pick up two reserved books. I didn't find much in Kettering except some accessories; 2 necklaces; a belt and a pair of earrings. I also found 2 more Elly Griffiths books so now have a collection of 5. I wore this Next dress picked up on Tuesday when I popped into town for some errands. The 3:16 charity shop were having a sale; I also bought something else but cannot remember what it was other than it was summer wear and I put it away for the summer. I wore OTK boots which hadn't been worn this year. The coat, also pre-loved, was a Facebook Marketplace find and by Dept 19.  You can't see it in the photo but the coat is navy with a light coloured stripe. Gloves, scarf, and bag all pre-loved. OH and I spent the what was left of the evening watching a BBC 4 drama set in Galway on the west coast of Ireland:

Sunday was a lovely day. Bright sunshine throughout the day. I can cope with the cold if the sun shines but the last few days the weather had been surprisingly mild; reaching 14 degrees at times. Apart from walking to the big Sainsbury's I didn't go out at all. OH and I did the usual house cleaning and I made dinner. Only youngest grandson came for dinner and I dropped him home afterwards. 

I wanted to give this dress one last chance but off to the donations bag it goes. I bought it from Vinted during the first lock down but it's difficult to style as the neckline is too low and has to have something underneath. I wore this retail buy TU polo neck as it has some splashes of purple in it. I do love the colour of the dress but the sleeves, although nice, are not fitted enough at the wrist. More negatives than positives, so goodbye purple dress! Boots pre-loved and striped tights were a gift. All jewellery pre-loved; including the square earrings bought on yesterday's trip to Kettering.

As we had missed last Sunday's episode of the Pottery Throwdown we caught up with it and watched Sunday evening's episode as well. I also finished one of my reserved library books; staying awake until the wee small hours to finish it. It was the first book I'd read that was set during the pandemic in 2020; in this case in the USA; and what memories it brought back of those incredibly strange times. I have read everything by Elizabeth Strout and love her pared back and elegant prose - and her acute observations and wisdom about humankind.

I volunteered at the Kempston branch of Barnardo's on Monday. There seemed to be a lot of people away or on holiday and I was asked if would go to Kempston. I spent the morning cleaning the bric a brac shelves; of which there were loads and re-organising them. When I'd finished my shift I went to the Multiple Sclerosis centre where they were having an everything 1.00 sale. I bought a suede Damart coat with fur lining (I'll be well prepared for the next big chill!) a short denim waistcoat; a smart Betty Jackson jacket and a very warm nightgown, to take to the caravan with me. I also picked up a couple of books for Hilary.

This was what I wore. Everything pre-loved except the boots from New Look. Skirt by Betty Jackson; top by Monki. All jewellery pre-loved. It was a warm day with the car temperature gauge saying 15 degrees. Once I was home I hung up the wash I'd left on in the morning; sorted out the fire and made chicken soup for dinner with yesterday's left over chicken. After that I caught up with blogging and chilled out. I'd go out again later that evening to collect middle grandson and his friends from Luton Airport. Updated to stay I collected him and a friend and was home after 11 pm. They had a great time in Barcelona and seemed to have packed a lot in the short time they had.

Tuesday was not such a good day. First of all it was cold and grey. When I went to bed on Monday night and got up in the wee small hours to go to the loo (which I do at least twice in the night; another of the joys of getting old) I had vertigo. I suffer from BPPV (Benign Paroxymal Postural Vertigo) from time to time. It feels as if inside of your head is spinning and sometime when you open your eyes the external world is spinning as well. You can also feel nauseous and the dizziness affects your balance. It's not a life threatening or serious condition and is caused by the displacement of calcium carbonate crystals in the inner ear; which in turn is triggered by specific changes in the movements of your head. It's more common in the over 60s. I almost always have a bout of it when in the caravan in Donegal and I think that's because compared to our bed at home, the bed in the caravan is low. Anyhow, that was a long winded way of saying I wasn't feeling myself on Tuesday and consequently didn't go to the food bank or go swimming.

 

I did get dressed and made up with minimal make up expecting to go swimming as usual in the afternoon; but decided it was better not to as the dizzy spells and nausea hadn't worn off. By dinner time they had. I wore this knitted Max Studio dress with pre-loved leggings underneath both from my Barnardo's. The pre-loved boots were Sainsbury's children's boots and the scarf is an infinity one I've had for ages; also pre-loved as were the earrings.


I had a lazy sort of day spent mostly reading. I did do a  towels wash and dry it; sorted out the fire but no cooking. We had fish and chips for dinner. By Wednesday I was fully recovered and that was just as well as I was off to spend the day with my son who had moved to Norfolk some months ago. As a practising Muslim he won't allow any photos to be taken. We had a lovely day together but the weather was grey and miserable. I wore my knitted Zara dress again for warmth.

The photos weren't very good as the light was poor.  Dress from my Barnardo's; tights and boots both gifts from my daughter. All jewellery pre-loved.

Don't know why I'm looking so serious!

Thursday was frantically busy as usual. I went for a swim in the morning managing 46 laps which surprised me as I hadn't been for almost week. After a shower and washing my hair I went straight to the hairdresser's for my monthly appointment. Then it was home to have something to eat and to finish getting ready. Off to the farm shop and Lidl; by the time I finished that it was time to pick up youngest grandson from school. Home again; dinner cooked and off to basket ball practice. After recuperating on the sofa for a while I sorted out what I was taking to Hilary's on Friday whilst OH took my car to the garage to sort out tyre pressure; oil; water etc. I always ask him to do this when I go to Devon. It's a good 3.5 to 4 hour drive depending on the traffic.

Everything I wore on Thursday was pre-loved except the boots which were an online buy. Jacket by Peacocks; polo neck by H&M; cropped wide leg trousers by Phase Eight and all jewellery also pre-loved.

The journey to Devon was mostly uneventful on Friday morning. There was an accident on the M4 motorway and we were at a standstill for 40 minutes but once we moved it was fine. It was so good to see Hilary again and we went out for a 5 mile walk to Knightshayes and then out for a curry in the evening.

This poor photo shows what I wore on Saturday. Jeans by M&Co; top by Masai; polo neck all pre-loved. All jewellery pre-loved.  

We set off for a day of rummaging starting in Brixham and then in Totnes. I found a vintage striped top; several books and 3 pairs of earrings. And talking of earrings; the last time I visited Devon, you may remember, I lost my beautiful Art Deco Butler and Wilson earrings which were a birthday present. I'm wearing them in the first photo at the top of the post. I lost one of my earrings this time also; an enamelled triangular pair that I'd had for about 25 years. Luckily, I found it in my coat pocket as I set out for home!

Spotted in Brixham.

A view of Brixham from street level.

Some lovely pavement tiles from Brixham High Street.

Brixham Harbour where we stopped for tea and a snack.

Totnes

A very quirky Fair Trade town...

View down the High Street from the bottom...

16th century Guildhall; Totnes.

Totnes had a Fashion and Textiles Museum which we would loved to have visited but it was closed for refurbishment. 

Seen on our canal walk on Sunday morning in Tiverton; Blundells School 1604. After a 4 mile walk and a hearty breakfast I drove back Bedford in record time; 3.5 hours. OH made dinner and we began a new series of Walter Presents 'Helsinki Files' but watched the 'Pottery Throwdown' first which had now reached the quarter final stage...

Back to Barnardo's on Monday where I spent most of my time decoding. We take off the rails clothing that has been there too long and either reduce it or send it off to other shops. It's a good way to have a detailed look of what is on the rails. I found a dress for me for the summer and a full slip that is shorter than my current vintage ones. Slips are always useful under shorter length dresses. The weather was chilly so I dressed for warmth; everything except the boots pre-loved. The hand knitted tabard was a rag bag rescue a couple of weeks ago from Barnardo's. Green plaid top by F&F also from Barnardo's; green trousers by Next 1.00 rail somewhere. All jewellery also pre-loved

In the afternoon I had several errands to run in town including picking up a library reservation; picking up a prescription and buying some toiletries. Home to clean out the fire; sweep and wash the kitchen floor and make OH a casserole for dinner. My library reservation was this book which is the first in a long series...lots more to look forward to.

On Monday evening we started watching the new series of 'Unforgotten'; the first without the wonderful Nicola Walker. It was quite gripping and then we discovered the remaining episodes were being streamed on the ITVX channel. Guess what we'll watching for the rest of the week? 

Did any of you get to see the Aurora Borealis? I kept looking out all Monday evening but no sign of them in Bedfordshire. Apparently on Sunday evening and again on Monday evening they were visible from various parts of the UK. Cousin Martina in Ireland put up amazing photos of the Aurora Borealis seen over Co. Sligo and Donegal. One day I'll get to see them...

Sorry, the photos are not very good; the light I think. I tried them in 'Portrait' and they were just as poor...

Minimal  make up Tuesday and the food bank. We are back up to the full complement of volunteers - there was even a new volunteer! I was back to making up crates of toiletries for 3 of our distribution centres and I put away a 6 crate stack of toiletries that had not been processed.

Everything has been seen on the blog before and all; including the jewellery was pre-loved. The earrings I found at Barnardo's yesterday. I thought it was going to be a much colder day than it was and wore my 1.00 Damart faux suede and faux fur lined hooded coat that I found at the Multiple Sclerosis centre last week. I swapped it for one of the food bank fleeces when I got in as the coat was too bulky to work in. In the afternoon I went swimming and swam 46 laps; there weren't many people in the pool which is always great but I worry, if there are fewer people swimming, whether the local council will close down the pool - energy costs etc. I sincerely hope not but I've read that several councils have talked about closing down their leisure facilities if their energy costs increase even further. On that somewhat depressing thought I'll leave you and hope to see you again in a fortnight...