Weather-intensified

The foul weather arrived today, with the rain coming on just about the time I took the first of three loads of washing out of the machine - somehow the linen basket had filled itself right to the top while I wasn't looking. So the first thing to say about today - apart from a big "Thank you" to all who left kind greetings on yesterday's post - is that the house became festooned with damp garments. Not for the first time I remembered ruefully that my mother always had at least two pulleys in her kitchen, and that even in my first tiny flat the even tinier kitchen accommodated a small pulley. Mind, there was always the business of removing washing before cooking in the same space ...

And of course there was no drouth in the air at all. The heating was actually on for a short while as I was waking this morning, and came on again quite decisively at 5pm even though my watch told me the outside temperature was 16ºC - I suppose the increasing wind meant there was the same indoors, and the thermostat for teatime is set to 19ºC. So yes, it was a truly miserable day. 

Not that I didn't have plenty to do ... I was just sitting down to write a sermon when in came a request from the Synod Office: did I have any photos of our previous bishop, +Kevin, who was translated to the diocese of Glasgow and Galloway during Covid? As I've said elsewhere, he's about to retire ... anyway, the answer was "Yes" - the only trouble was finding them! So after finishing the sermon, I started delving among my photos and eventually sent off a good number - but didn't include some that I'd selected at the start and then forgot about. So I made a collage of them, which I can't resist sharing here as my extra...

And the main photo? Well, come 5pm and the end of my photo-hunt, I had a choice: some ironing? Or some fresh air? The latter won; the new waterproof went on, as well as the waterproof trousers, and the mad pair of us bashed down to the West Bay in the driving rain. The photo is the only one I took - it was hard to keep the phone dry. I like the dog-walker on the shore in his/her orange waterproof - a nice contrast and definitely the brightest thing in sight.

That was it, really - more wet clothes to drape on the hallstand. Dinner was ready by 7pm and we went to Online Compline. And once again I've slept through the news and don't remember anything. Off we go on another year's blipping!