Thursday 6 April 2023

I Am Only Making One Other Post Today,

as I have to go into work!


back to Wednesday and I was off,

on to the late number 54 to visit Duncan,

past Peter Pan's Pool,

not many birds here today as it happens,

someone's day getting off to a bad start,

past the Catford cat,

the building whose refurbishment never seems to be finished, having some more work started,

with scaffolding in the street reaching up to the roof,

Lewisham market,

getting under way,

past the florist,

I knew I had missed the 09.31 to Gravesend, but I would be in time for the 10.31, but, arriving on the platform all trains stopped at Dartford as they did last year, no trains continuing to Gravesend! there were no staff to ask on either platform, so I walked back upstairs to the ticket office, 

which of course was closed!

back to the platform to watch commuters, 

take the London bound train,

off of the train at Dartford, only 22 minutes for the Dartford to Gravesend train to appear, I asked two staff on the platform about why the trains did not continue to Gravesend, they had no idea, but said to ask at the office further up the platform, 

before that a couple of photographs of the fountain,

and willow in the pond next to the station, I found someone who appeared to be the station manager, who assured me that after looking at his computer screen the 09.31 from Blackheath never continues to Gravesend, I mentioned that since January they had, the computer said no, a pity he did not look at all of the previous blogs, but then I guess he would have said I faked the trains destination!

the bad news was I was back to the schedule of last year, the train from Dartford arriving just late enough for me to miss the half hourly service to Duncan's nursing home, a 25 minute wait for the next one,

still it gave me plenty of time to look at the sky,

arriving at the nursing home a walk up the hill,

and I was there, Duncan was having his daily shave as I arrived, we were both told "not to many chocolates before lunch" I waited until both nurses had left, before I gave Duncan the three Easter eggs that Diana had bought for him! we chatted away about a club that we used to go to after Duncan finished work in London, occasionally I would travel up from Beckenham to meet him, for a evening in London, the club was in White Bear Yard, back in the 1980s nothing like it is now, what fun we had in there! 

Duncan's lunch arrived so we said our farewells as I made a move for home, arriving at the bus stop I had just missed one, so 25 minuets or so to the next one, but time passed quickly, as I had a chat with a fellow traveller, who as it happens had a German and Polish connection to her family, the same or very similar to myself, we chatted about Christmas lunches and the 11 or so courses that they consisted of in Poland, and I fondly remembered when with Mum and Dad we had Christmas with Grzegorz, (George) and Chrstina, both from Poland and then in England,

I was soon in Gravesend station where the train for Blackheath arrived after 20 minutes or so, at least on the way home I did not have to wait for a train at Dartford,

passing Lewisham market, not many buses or people,

before the hospital a bit of a delay due to road works,

past the scaffolding on the left,

the bee hotel roof on this building,

starting to wake up from its winter slumber,

as was this one on top of a bus stop,

it was even starting to over grow the top of the shelter,

but it has to be said the one at Beckenham Hill was looking a tad unkempt,

off of the bus and a walk through the park home,

such a pity the magnolias are already past their best,

Diana was already at home, so a sherry and a read it was then,

for our starters a smoked salmon salad,

which was really nice, Diana had used avocados, spring onions, radishes, lettuce and yellow sliced peppers,

'Cheers!',

on to our main course, roast filet of pork with lashings of mushrooms, baby potatoes, carrots and broccoli,

we rounded off the meal with a Blonde Belgian chocolate ganache,

all of which was delicious, for our evenings entertainment it was a Outback Opal Hunters followed by a Lewis before we were off to bed.


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