Lockdown Mooring 4

Checking into our weekly Geraghty Zoom slightly late this morning we had to quickly join in with singing Happy Birthday to Tilly (Mick’s great niece) who was turning five today, we also got chance to wish Kath (Mick’s little sister) a belated Happy Birthday for yesterday. Everyone was in high spirits as we got to see all of Tilly’s unicorns in turn, our Tilly returned in time to wave a muddy paw to everyone too.

Discussions on the latest two National Theatre productions were held. We’d not watched Jane Eyre which others had but we’d seen Treasure Island last night. A lot of money had been spent on that set. When I was at college 30 years ago my final project (only designed and never realised) was Sweeney Todd set on the Olivier Stage. A visiting Production Manager told me that the budgets for such a show at that time were around £100,000 and I’d spent all that on my set only! We all suspect that when the National Theatre reopens the budgets will be far smaller for some time.

A grey day with showers. Mick decided to get a bike out and head to the garage for a newspaper as we’d missed out last weekend. He donned waterproofs as it was a touch wet and set off only to return a few minutes later once he’d noticed a puncture!

As he set to mending it the heavens opened, he sought refuge under the pram cover and continued mending the hole. The position must have been easy to find as no bowl of water was required. Then he was off down the towpath.

I continued with virtual poses for my illustrations. Then moved onto sizing them ready to be used as guides for my drawings. By the end of the day I was happy with how the second drawing was turning out with the addition of an oak tree into what would have been my set design. The opening drawing can wait as it should be quick to do with nobody in it.

Mick returned with our Saturday newspaper and left it for tomorrow. As we sat and half listened to the news conference from Downing Street an aroma of Camembert wafted through the boat!? Strange as we don’t have soft smelly cheese on board at the moment!

It reminded me of when I went on an exchange trip to Dijon in my early teens. My host family kept a very ripe Camembert in a cupboard in the kitchen, whenever the cupboard door was opened you fought to stay upright. The poor York lad who had ended up in the same house as me really couldn’t cope with it and Monsieur Boulot made the most of the situation.

At least the aroma on Oleanna meant one thing, neither of us had lost our sense of smell, a new symptom of Covid -19. But just where had this aroma come from?!!

0 locks, 0 miles, 2 toasted cheese scones, 2 birthdays, 10 hours shore leave, 9 pheasants, 6 more poses, 1 new neighbour, 1st sketch, 1 puncture, 1 wet day, 1 soggy cat, 1 oak tree, 0 yellow ribbons, 0 veg boxes available this month, 1 cheesy smell, 1 look to my left … Mick!!!