SomersTownLisa

London Life
2020-10-30 00:02:53 (UTC)

Catch-Up: 19th to 22nd October

We went to Ellie’s on Monday lunchtime, sitting indoors this time, then we both ran to Thornhill, where it was very dark. Jack wanted to go a long way round so I missed chatting time with Caz (Cheltenham) and Sam. There were 16 of us altogether, including James and Claire, Kike, Hanri, Sarah and even Caroline who I haven’t spoken to since the Zoom calls during the lockdown.. I was mainly clearing leaves.

On Tuesday we took a lot of stuff to the recycling centre, awkwardly using Jack’s trolleys, and went to E Mono on the way back, who does the best of the many falafel wrap offerings in the area. I cycled up to Finchley in the evening – I’ve got used to the bike routes up that way by now. We met Vicky, Kat, and new girls Patricia and Ivana at the big house where we did some of Paul’s arm-achy yoga exercises.

As we set off to the park, Claire turned up on her bike. I do love her – sexy, bubbly, very pretty and she always wants to talk to me, in her gorgeous Irish accent. I promised to give her a brunch recommendation for her friend who’s coming up to London at the weekend. The task was litter-picking where there was hardly any litter, at a park which is hardly a park, more a path with a few trees and bushes next to it. I suspect it was sliced in two by the terrible North Circular Road when it was built in the 1960s. I also spoke to the Doctor, who prescribed drops for my dodgy ear.

On Wednesday we went to the Box Park as usual, but the man didn’t understand me with my mask on, and at first made one chicken katsu curry instead of two vegan ones. In the evening I went to the cemetery in Stoke Newington, where we were supposed to be shovelling mulch. I realised I could go most of the way along my lovely Canonbury route. Liz was there – first time I’ve seen her for ages, and I didn‘t recognise her with her hair hidden in a hood. I spent the time talking to newbies, though Clair was there as well.

On Thursday I left work at 16:00 and hurried to Highbury Grange where Sarah and Simon were helping uproot some prickly growth. I had a good chat with Sarah about David Hare and whether actors should speak realistically, or clearly. As Jack’s bike’s still in the repair shop, we got buses up to the Arthouse. I made the mistake of letting Jack work out the buses. We got off the 29 bus, Jack went up to the main road, crossed it, crossed back, went along it a bit, and then realised the bus stop we needed for the 91 bus, was just behind where we’d got off the 29.

We were surprised to find "Miranda’s" open so late – we went there at the start of last year when we had a day off work, but didn’t notice it when we were here a couple of weeks ago. We had comfy seats upstairs at the Arthouse. It was a recording of a previous live transmission of Cyrano de Bergerac from the National Theatre. It was only loosely based on the original. Some of the rhyming couplets were good, but there was no scenery, and because it was the National Theatre, they had to be ponsey and try to be clever. They can’t just put on a play, they have to have the characters sitting in a row for no reason, or facing the wall when they weren’t speaking, or rhythmically walking when someone else is talking, like you wouldn’t.




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