Christmas newsletter 2020 from Anne and Alan

You are probably surprised to receive a Christmas newsletter this year, thinking that we have not much to report! However, it hasn’t all been doom and gloom and the year has not been without some activity.

Things seemed to get off to a good start with days filled to capacity. The year started off with a visit to a company called DSL, which is located in Croydon. It is responsible for making all the clothes for the stars and contestants in Strictly Come Dancing, now one of the best-known dancing competitions in the world. DSL does guided tours of its facilities, so a group of our dancing friends went along for a most enjoyable and fascinating look at how the costumes are designed and made. Each outfit is specially made for a particular individual, and we were able to see a huge range of materials, as well as the employees at work on the cutting and assembly floors. One man spent his whole working day attaching individual sequins to dresses and got through thousands for just one episode of the show. We were amazed to feel the weight of the girls’ dresses, some of which had real weights built into the skirt hems to make them ‘fly’ when spinning. So, next time you watch Strictly, spare a thought for those experts, working in a side street in Croydon, who put all the glamour and glitz that you like to see on the dancers!

We went to see a great Bee Gees tribute band in Croydon back in February and soon after that a performance by Strictly Come Dancing stars, Anton and Erin who, as well as demonstrating some superb dancing routines, chatted and joked with the audience.

Alan joined with friends Tony Stone and Steve Fosh just before lockdown, not so much a Last Supper but definitely a Last Lunch for some time.

Alan’s second presentation for the Norbury and South London Transport group also managed to scrape in before the shutters came down. The club members seem to enjoy these presentations and there is still enough material in the tank for a future Part 3!

Anne’s regular dancing and exercise groups in Croydon still keep her fit, and she is especially keen on the music that goes with them. Alan’s interests, in particular railways, kept him busy before lockdown with two highlights: the famous locomotive ‘Flying Scotsman’ coming to Hampshire for a weekend and then the final run of the equally famous streamlined Gresley locomotive ‘Union of South Africa’ making its last ever appearance on the main line before going off to Scotland to be stuffed and mounted. Two days later not only was this loco ‘stuffed’ and marooned in York, but so was the whole country as we went into lockdown, thanks to a certain virus, which shall be nameless, that had decided to give the whole world a reality check and put the kybosh on just about everything that we regarded as normal everyday life and fun.


'Flying Scotsman is ready to depart from Arlesford.

Class A4 'Union of South Africa' arrives at York for the last time.

For us, this sudden change, although presenting a challenge, did seem to be an opportunity and we quickly settled down to talking on the phone to many friends and contacts that we had not been in touch with for months. Already well stocked with toilet rolls, we turned our attention to many things that should have been done years ago, including a new filing system for Alan, destroying large amounts of paperwork that had built up during our latter years of self-employment, a repainted garden shed and a replacement garden fence that had self-destructed in the February gales and is now resplendent in its ‘Autumn Gold’ paint finish. Old bicycles have been disposed of to a charity.

Luckily, we have a small garden and, living on the southern edge of London, some lovely countryside only 15 minutes walk away so fresh air and exercise on a two-mile daily walking circuit is readily available. However, we felt that maybe we should do something for someone less able than ourselves so volunteered to walk a neighbour’s dog as the neighbour was not in very good health, not very mobile and one of her regular dog walkers was locked down and not availlable. Eight months later we are still walking the dog! Our exit strategy to ease off this task has been thwarted by the virus returning in earnest for a second bash! We have come to the conclusion that cats are generally more satisfactory than dogs – our doggie charge, named Dexter, seems to fancy himself as a bloodhound and every walk has considerably more sniffing and following scents than walking, so our excuse for extra exercise has been thwarted!

Dexter

There was some excitement in May – we saw the International Space Station passing overhead. On two very clear dark evenings we saw it pass by on one of its many circuits around the Earth. When we saw it, the ISS was not close enough to define the shape; after all it was 120 miles high. What we actually did see was a bright light caused by the metal structure reflecting the sunlight. Although it passed over Coulsdon at what appeared to be a very sedate speed and we had it in sight for about 15 minutes, it was in fact travelling at 18,000 (yes, eighteen thousand) miles per hour. We had watched it approaching England on the NASA website, crossing over the central American country of Panama, then Florida then New York only minutes before reaching Coulsdon. Thirty five minutes after leaving us, it was over Melbourne in Australia and heading for the tip of South America en route for its next journey across the UK. Amazing!


The Space Station (and , no. I didn't take this photo myself!) However, I am in this picture, somewhere on the big blue thing, but at least 200 miles away.

Alan’s elderly computer giving up the ghost in February was not helpful but within a month he was up and running again. Anne also sent her computer off to the doctor for an upgrade and we both felt bereft and rather out of touch while our machines were out of action. Mercifully, our tablet computers came into their own and proved a useful stopgap. Funny how we have come to rely on these ‘infernal machines’!

After a while we became aware of ‘Zoom’ – a computer programme designed for virtual meetings, now that most face-to-face ones are taboo. This has been a godsend: Anne now does line dancing in the kitchen, pilates and paracise in the lounge and attends Richard the Third Society meetings and presentations beamed from all over the country, while Alan is enjoying a variety of presentations from his railway society in the comfort of the dining room, all without having to turn out on a cold night to the meeting venue and saving money as the presentations are free! Our badminton club members seemed desperate to keep in touch as we have not played or seen them for many months so we now have a Zoom meeting with them once a month, where we all get to see each other and are now having fun with quizzes and other discussions.

At the beginning of the virus, some of our regular meals became harder to find as there were shortages in the shops and this forced us to buy whatever we could get. We have been enjoying a much wider diet since then with items that we would originally never have purchased. We even treated ourselves to ‘Nights Out at the Pictures’ courtesy of DVDs bought at charity shops for a pound of so.

As the lockdown eased we took the opportunity to catch up with some friends and thoroughly enjoyed socially distanced afternoon tea or evening drinks with Jeremy, David and Glenn, Pat and Tony and Roger in either our or their gardens. It was great having a change of scene and seeing friends face to face rather than chatting over the phone.

More recently, and still somewhat wary of leaving Coulsdon, we have ventured further afield to a few favourite restaurants and have been glad to give them some much needed income. Three trips to London’s South Bank for lunch have demonstrated just how quiet the city has become, notably because there are few tourists and that residents have been reluctant to stray far from home. One summer’s day we felt much in need of a change of air so ventured south to the seaside town of Seaford in Sussex. We were rewarded by a beautiful day with blustery winds and rough sea, and fresh air a-plenty. Such a treat!

Holidays – both cancelled! Anne’s trip to the Loire Valley in September was finally cancelled late in August. This was quite a relief as she didn’t fancy spending six plus hours wearing a mask going by train to Stanstead airport, then on the plane, then on a coach at the other end, not to mention two weeks of isolation when she got home. Alan was due to visit the Isle of Man in July with his friend John, who lives in Australia. In the first place John wasn’t permitted to leave Sydney and, even if he had got to the UK, the good folk on the IOM wouldn’t let us in! So, Anne and I have been content to explore more of our own area and it is surprising to see the new things we have discovered around Coulsdon, considering that we have lived here since 1988!

Alan’s and Anne’s birthdays were both quieter than usual but at the same time relaxing. Pat and Tony invited us to an afternoon garden celebration for Anne and this was a super affair, worthy of a top London hotel, with cucumber sandwiches and lots of cake - delicious!

Weddings were a bit different. We had been invited to three and were lucky to get to the first one, just two days before lockdown. The other two were postponed and, as time went on, the numbers of guests at both were gradually reduced to the extent that we were eventually at the back of the queue, then finally knocked off! Pauline and Roger’s son David and Annika were lucky as their wedding scraped in just before the March lockdown but, unfortunately, Annika’s relations and friends who are resident in the Faroe Islands and Denmark didn’t make it, as flights to the UK were already being disrupted. Nevertheless, it was a great and happy day. Katherine, Alan’s niece’s daughter, planned to marry Lewis in March and, as restrictions regarding numbers of people able to attend were gradually imposed, the number of guests was reduced until, two days before lockdown, the government finally said ‘No’! The wedding eventually took place in October but we, like many other friends and relations, were not allowed to attend. And the same process also affected Lesley and Tony’s granddaughter Rosie-Jane and Sam’s event. They had originally booked their wedding at a beautiful location in Kent for May, subsequently postponed it to October, when it finally took place, minus most of the guests! However, those disappointed guests will have another opportunity to see the bride and groom in their wedding regalia next May when they are planning a wedding celebration at the same venue.

David with his mum, Pauline.

David with Annika

Katherine, Alan’s niece’s daughter, planned to marry Lewis in March and, as restrictions regarding numbers of people able to attend were gradually imposed, the number of guests was reduced until, two days before lockdown, the government finally said ‘No’! The wedding eventually took place in October but we, like many other friends and relations, were not allowed to attend.

Katherine and Lewis

And the same process also affected Lesley and Tony’s granddaughter Rosie-Jane and Sam’s event. They had originally booked their wedding at a beautiful location in Kent for May, subsequently postponed it to October, when it finally took place, minus most of the guests! However, those disappointed guests will have another opportunity to see the bride and groom in their wedding regalia next May when they are planning a wedding celebration at the same venue.

Sam and Rosie-Jane

Our cat Coco has enjoyed us spending a lot more time at home but one night she seemed to go potty! She suddenly meowed loudly and went racing around the house back and forth, to and fro, at very high speed and would not stop. She was eventually cornered and we found that she had been poking around in an empty carrier bag, got her head trapped in one of the handles, got frightened and dashed off with the bag still attached, seemingly chasing her in hot pursuit. It didn’t matter how fast she ran, that bag ran just as fast. We don’t think she will play with carrier bags again and we now keep them well out of her reach!

Coco doing her 'Corkscrew' pose with front legs facing one way and back legs the other.

Each night we put the remains of any cat and human food out for the foxes and badgers who regularly come to dine. A few weeks ago a black cat was discovered eating the food and since then we have been trying to track down its owners putting ‘Is this you cat?’ notices through lots of front doors. With no response, we are still putting out food but he/she keeps coming here so we think it is a stray. The foxes are put out – although they are two or three times the size of the cat, it chases them off!

One animal highlight was the appearance of a herd of African elephants at Marble Arch in central London. Not real, of course, but very lifelike bronze sculptures of one adult and around twenty youngsters all in different poses This display was to draw attention to the plight of elephants which are still hunted and killed for their ivory tusks, by an organisation that saves the orphans.

To round off the Summer, Jacky and Peter invited us with Geoff to a superb garden barbecue and in wonderful weather we had great food, wine and fun. Our friend Julia had a special birthday this year so we celebrated this at The Fox pub in Old Coulsdon. Luckily this event came between the first and second lockdowns. Alan was pleased to spend the afternoon in the company of two lovely girls!

Farewells: Gone but not Forgotten. A great friend and one of our best badminton players, Alan Barley, died suddenly at the beginning of the year and how we all miss him. Such a friendly and pleasant person, it was always a pleasure to see him each week and marvel at his energy and skills as he played. Our 90-year-old neighbour Margaret, who had sadly been touched with Alzheimer’s disease, had a fall and died in hospital shortly afterwards. Cathy’s Auntie Joyce, always a very lively person when we met her, sadly passed away this year.

Casualties of the virus, were Roger’s regular ‘Jazz in the Bar’ lunchtime sessions at a well-known and historic pub in Leatherhead. Hopefully, he and his fellow musicians will return soon and customers will be able to listen to some great performances while enjoying the superb Sunday lunches for which the pub is well known.

As this missive is being written, we are now into December and the news broadcasts are highlighting how we should spend Christmas and who will be the first to get anti-virus vaccinations so, if we behave ourselves, good news. Equally good is that the replacement of our car driveway, for which we have waited nearly two years, is now underway and should be finished by the time you read this. Furthermore, Alan is due to have an operation next week to correct his vision problems. Hooray!

We hope to be in touch again before too long. In the meantime, whether you are ‘on your tod’ or with family and friends, we send Season’s Greetings and bid you to take care and stay safe.

With love and best wishes,

Anne and Alan 2^nd December 2020

PS Now writing this on the 14^th December to tie up a couple of loose ends. Our car driveway is now complete and once it stops raining we will be able to admire it properly. The company we choose to do the job was excellent and it looks very smart.

Alan has had his eye operation and the result is looking hopeful – which is more than can be said for his face, which is bruised and swollen. No more beauty contests for him for a while, but he is thinking of taking up boxing as a hobby, as he now looks the part!

Have just enjoyed a socially distanced exchange of Christmas gifts with Pat and Tony in our garden. This was a novel and highly amusing event, as we had tea and mince pies under umbrellas while the rain poured down!

And, finally, we have gone up in the world – to Tier four! Tier four is a lockdown by any other name, and most of the south of England is now in it. Our Christmas arrangements have been ‘amended’ twice in line with new restrictions and then our sole ‘bubble’ friend, who was going to have Christmas lunch with us, had to eat alone, his meal being delivered by us to his back door.

It’s now 25^th December. So, the scene was set for a busy Christmas morning until something, not food, hit the fan. On the afternoon of Christmas Eve, Alan’s face started aching and his jaw partially froze and would painfully only open half way. Fearing this was something to do with his recent operation, he phoned the clinic, and was advised to visit the hospital the next day if it was no better. Therefore, Christmas morning was spent at the hospital having the full range of eye checks and examination of the operation site; even the surgeon was contacted for advice. After four hours at the hospital, I was allowed to return home, having been assured that the operation was not to blame but with advice to visit my dentist to see it the problem can be traced to the teeth. ‘What about the lunch?’ I hear you ask. Well, I was able to eat it, with some difficulty (I always find that ‘difficulty’ is one of the tastiest bits!) and am now waiting for the dentist to re-open. So how was that for a Christmas day treat? You will have to wait until 2021 for the sequel. Bye for now.

Transport enthusiasts please continue:

Not much for the transport enthusiasts this year but here goes…

Didcot Railway Centre had some ‘Farewell to the Blue King days’, the loco now out of service for its ten-year boiler ticket. A well-run event and the only time masks were required was on the train or indoors.

The Kings were the largest Great Western Railway's engines.

The Mid-Hants Railway’s autumn gala was fabulous. Again, masks were required only when on a train or anywhere indoors and, due to unusual operating needs requiring running each coach set with every locomotive, loco changes were undertaken at Ropley. What with loco changes, freight trains, locos running round their trains and local shunting in the loco depot yard, Ropley has never been so busy. On top of that there were two new locos in operation: guest 'Bahamas' and new resident Somerset and Dorset 7F.