Tuesday 4th April 2023

Val managed to hem that length of silk organza I got at Southall last autumn to dress my bed.  Rainbow Fabrics. Only known to a few.

Exquisite work by Val. He was presiding on the sofa, speaking of Ottolenghi’s chicken with rosewater and hazelnuts. He had acquired the necessary ingredients but had not reached the stage of execution. Would I go up the Co-op for luncheon options?

We had a quiche with Dr Zhivago behind us on the TV. Val said he’d watched it many times but had no idea what happens.

The main purpose was to get the faded edge of my bedroom curtain removed and the hem re-assembled. Val instructed and wielded the scissors, while I did the sewing. We were like exiled German Royalties wending our way through the afternoon with light sewing duties, melancholy but somehow at last at rest.

Dr Zhivago burbled away. Revolutionary outrage seemed to be involved but quite how and with what consequences it was impossible to tell. Julie Christie’s frocks were horrid. So frumpy. Then she had a hat. The main impression was men’s clipped acting voices going on agreeably in that Saturday afternoon TV of yesteryear way and Julie Christie a little more staccato.

As it happens, it was a Saturday afternoon. But you could say every afternoon is a Saturday afternoon for Val these days.

Val’s really big news: he tried the Co-op’s own brand Camembert. It’s acceptable, indeed more than acceptable.

Speaking of food items, did I mention that the Gay Mother has hugely promoted Pentland Brigg Kale from Waitrose this winter. You must try it, even if just for the name. What is a Brigg? Pentland is in the very north of Scotland, near the Castle of Mey, summer home of Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, therefore supreme.

Val was looking at some source of information. ‘Challenge Anneka! is back,’ he exclaimed. Surprise and delight. ‘She always had lovely teeth,’ he added wistfully. But, by the sound of it, her teeth are still going strong.

‘Should we book our funerals now, to avoid disappointment later?’ Val enquired nearing tea-time. His own preference is for Pure Cremation because he has always been known for his purity.

When the time comes, this wish must be remembered. I never knew there was a range of cremation possibilities.

Well, the curtain was finished. Not perfect but a huge improvement on the frayed horror I’ve been living with for a year or more and a real advance in the restoration and conservation of my private bedroom. The private parts of the house get left behind when so much goes into the public rooms.

Frayed and Decayed: my Bedroom Curtain in my Private Bedroom

Frayed No More: New Every Morning …