Little treasures

We had a relaxed start to the last weekend of summer, pootling about, drinking coffee, eating toast, and doing Wordle. Keith prepared Pan Haggerty (corned beef, potatoes, and onions) for tonight's dinner and made himself a Stilton and celery soup. The kitchen took on a feety smell, so we lit a couple of incense sticks.

After leftover pizza and quiche, Sophie and I drove to Weedon Bec, taking the country route via Brixworth, Spratton, Ravensthorpe, and Long Buckby. The earlier blue sky gave way to menacing grey clouds, and I felt sorry for my colleague Angela, whose son was getting married this afternoon. 

At Weedon Bec, we had a cup of tea and a slice of gorgeous chocolate cake before having a good look at the books. There were so many that they had been stacked on the floor and it was all a bit overwhelming!

Neither of us bought anything, and we went downstairs to the similarly crammed antique emporium where I spotted a Chinese-style vase that took my fancy. I have this theory that hidden away in the mass of tat is something valuable, and although I didn't for one minute think I had stumbled upon a rare piece of pottery, I quite liked it, and it didn't have "Made in China" stamped on it!

It didn't have a price tag on it, so I went over to the cash desk and asked how much. The woman on the till asked me where I had taken it from, and I realised that each section is run by a different person. I initially told the woman the wrong section, so she called the wrong person! When she finally located the right dealer, the price was £28, so I bought it. While I was standing there, the world and his wife had arrived to pay for their purchases, and I managed to get in everyone's way!

We then went next door to the vintage emporium, and Sophie found a pair of Levi's for £25 and a tee-shirt, so she had success as well! What a bargain the jeans were! I spotted a small oil painting, in the style of Bob Ross, by an A.Dakin for £30. I Googled the name and discovered that, if it was the same man, he was American, and the painting did look like a log cabin in the mountains. Maybe next time, if it's still there, I'll buy it.

We returned home and relaxed until it was time for a game of Scrabble. Keith watched Newcastle play Leeds, and there was a lot of swearing and shouting at the television screen. I thrashed Sophie tonight, both at Scrabble and at cards, so she was grumpy! It's not often I do that!

Tonight's dinner was enjoyable and perfect for the Autumnal feel that was in the air today. The leaves seem to have been falling much earlier than usual, probably due to the drought conditions. After dinner, the rain started and came down heavily, along with a strong wind.

We watched a disturbing documentary about the 7/7 bombings in July 2005, and I said I remembered where I was when the news came through. I was standing at our reception desk in our soft play business with Polly when she said there'd been a terrorist attack in London. Maybe this wasn't the best thing to watch when we're off to London next Thursday! Now I know why I hate travelling on the London Underground!