The train, and other events

- August 16, 2021

Dinner, Wednesday, August 11th

On release day we broadcast a message that we were free but car-less (accidentally add an "e" and that would be careless, really), so people should come and visit. Damien and Rosie, bless them, got a baby sitter and came for dinner. We had a proper little outdoor dinner party for four, foraged from the shops within walking distance.

Mmmm.... potatoes

Train, Thursday, August 12th

I used to take the train to work from my Mum's house everyday. There was no novelty and very little pleasure. The focus was on getting from A to B as quickly as possible, rushing to the station to make the train; trying to find that precious spot on the platform that may mean a seat; avoiding too much physical contact with the other commuters; dashing from the train to the underground. Almost all of that boyhood enthusiasm for train travel squashed. Fast forward fifteen years, and I get to see it all again through the kids' eyes, only multiplied because they live in a place without trains. We walked 40 minutes to Basingstoke station, caught the fast train, next stop Woking, and 15 minutes later it was all over. But they loved it, the anticipation, the tickets, the platform, the train, the seat, all of it. Perhaps the highlight of the trip so far!

The day before, teaser

We're walking to the train!

We're on the train

Home

It is a strange thing to be a visitor in the place where I did the first thirty years of my growing. My home now is in Ottawa - that is where my wife and my children are, and it is where I work and play. But there is such a deep familiarity with England and it starts when I step off the plane. The air feels different, often cool, damp, and unwelcoming, but so comfortable, like putting on a favourite jacket. The roads familiar, the way the shoulder of the road meets the verge, the road signs, the size and shape of the number plates, and the letters and numbers on them. The doors into peoples' houses, the floors and the walls: the houses are built differently here and they feel different. The shops, the food, and of course the pubs and the beer. The countryside, the wind and the rain, the way the clouds cover the sun at regular intervals. It's as if the hard-wiring in my brain was laid down in this environment, my senses developing amidst these subtle signals - it was, they were.

Moving out, Saturday, August 14th

Not us this time. The Paynes are doing a huge renovation to their house which is situated gloriously in the Surrey Hills AONB (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty). They have two kids, age 1 and 3. We helped them pack up and move out. It was great to be part of their lives for a day, especially as we moved them to Ed's Mum's, where I spent a not inconsiderable amount of my teenage years and beyond. We had a nice bbq. It was an exhausting day but rewarding and nourishing in every sense.

That pole will cost 21,000 Great British Pounds to move

It's a fridge and freezer

Ice cream in Shere

Sam, 3 (and don't you forget the three-quarters)

Day's work, done

Kid's table, al fresco

Lunch, Sunday, August 15th

Two more boys, this time 9 months and two years. My goodness, having a seven year old and nine year old is really, really easy, and our kids are really, really great. No work today, just eating, drinking, socialising, walking. We haven't seen any of these people for three years. But when you've known someone for 30 years, 3 years is only 10% of that time, so a short time, relatively. It's so nice to feel so familiar, just like how that cool, damp air feels familiar, but warmer.