The Distancing Diaries - Day 138 & 139

On Wednesday (day 138), after a quick check-in with the Wii Fit, I took Jon a mug of tea and a bag of presents up to bed but, birthday or not, the lads insisted we were up and downstairs by 8am. After a fruit & yogurt breakfast, Jon made sandwiches & filled the flask and we set off for another National Trust adventure.

 An hour-and-a-half drive way on the outskirts of the Herefordshire town of Leominster stands Berrington Hall, described by the National Trust as Georgian Grandeur on a Human Scale.

 Berrington was created by Thomas Harley who bought the estate in 1775. He made his fortune as a banker and a government contractor and became Lord Mayor of London in 1767 but had ancestral links to Herefordshire and, by his mid-forties was keen to retire, far away from city politics.

 Thomas commissioned Lancelot "Capability" Brown to lay out the park and Brown's son-in-law, Henry Holland, to design him a house in the French influenced Neo-Classical style, using the finest London craftsmen of the day. The garden was to be Capability Brown's final masterpiece as he died in 1783.

Along with the parkland and pleasure grounds, Brown created a distinctive curved walled kitchen garden to provide food for the household including exotic fruits such as pineapples and melons.

Created by Herefordshire-based architects Heather and Ivan Morison Look!Look!Look! is a sculptural pavilion designed to highlight the contemporary relevance of Brown's last work.

 As with all the National Trust gardens we've visited, there's a strict one-way system in place and although the car parks are often full, it's unusual to encounter more than a handful of visitors, hence the reason why we look like we've got the place to ourselves.

For a couple living at the same address, National Trust membership costs just £10 a month and includes: 

• Free entry (on pre-booking) to over 500 gardens, park lands and houses, as they reopen.
• Free parking at most car parks including those on the coast and in the countryside 
• Members' Handbook
• National Trust Magazine three times a year

I'm not being sponsored to promote the National Trust, I just think joining it was one of the best things we've done and it's been an absolute joy wandering around beautiful gardens and being inspired during these uncertain times.  Link to membership HERE.

By the time we'd thoroughly explored the parkland and walled gardens the rain, which had been threatening for most of the morning, made an unwelcome appearance so we made our way back to the van and ate our packed lunch before driving home.

Back at Stonecroft, we let the lads out and sat in the garden drinking tea. Although cloudy and overcast, at 24°C it was pleasantly warm. I spent the rest of the afternoon watering, deadheading and sweeping until the rain reappeared and had me running for cover. Jon & I were able to enjoy a birthday beer in the garden, ate haloumi with roast vegetables for tea and watched three episodes of French supernatural series, La Dernière Vague on the i-player (thanks for the recommendation, Fifitr & Trish) accompanied by a few cheeky birthday rums.

SOURCE

Despite the unusual circumstances Lord Jon said that he'd had a brilliant lockdown birthday and says thanks for all your lovely messages.

Thursday (day 139) started in the usual way with a Wii Fit session and fruit & yogurt for breakfast. We had coffee outside in the garden joined by Frank who has improved after his vet visit and eating us out of house and home.

Jon went out for a few supplies while I fired up the sewing machine and made some masks from the clothing I'd bought from the charity shop on Tuesday. We were expecting a visit from friends later who we hadn't seen since last year and a gift of handmade face masks seemed like the perfect way of marking the new normal.

Recycled fabric masks, a mix of vintage & secondhand cotton: 1970s barkcloth tablecloth backed with a cactus print duvet cover; Gents' gingham shirt backed with an Indian block-printed tunic & a 1990s child's dress backed with a 1970s souvenir tablecloth

After our noodles I raked up the lime tree leaves and Jon moved the old washing machine outside to clear space for the arrival of our new one on Saturday (and I'm sure you'll be relieved to hear that he used the Kinky Melon sack truck and wore his support belt.)

We haven't seen our lovely friends Gordon, Tina (G'n'T) and Lincoln since last year due to trips to India, global pandemics and shielding so we had a lot to catch up on this afternoon over an obligatory cider and gin and fortunately the rain managed to stay away till late afternoon so we were able to sit outside the entire time.

As always they utterly spoiled us with presents.

Mine! An amazing Frida cushion Tina had made for me by hand, a pack of 1960s hair clips, my favourite Barry M lipstick, a Frida nail fail, an Indian jacket, an Indian tin plate sign, a 1960s doll's chair and some groovy beaded earrings.

Jon had some Peaky Blinders ale, a rum tasting kit, an official Peaky Blinders cap and vintage scarf and a pair of 1950s gazelle wall plaques.

Tea was a Greek feast. We'll be watching more of La Dernière Vague later.

Stay safe & see you soon!