Pox, Pistols & Powdered Wigs (What I've Been Up To This Week)

 

I signed off my last blog post by wishing you a good weekend and here we are, on the cusp of the next one. Thank you so much for those of you who left a comment especially with advice regarding my diagnosis. For those of you not in the UK, our NHS is fantastic & we are incredibly lucky to have it but I will not be having a new hip in the next few weeks! 

Although the target is 18 weeks, from diagnosis to clinical intervention a hip replacement typically takes between 20 - 36 weeks and, in some cases, 50. I haven't even got an appointment with the consultant yet. If you know my story, you'll remember that my first hip, which through a undetected birth defect, had been causing me problems since the age of 11, wasn't taken seriously for over 27 years so anything's an improvement on that! 

On Saturday we went for a walk around the block. I wore a vintage Anokhi maxi skirt and this 1970s embroidered blouse bought from a junk shop in Corfu town. I finished reading My Husband, a great book with a surprising ending. With Trump seemingly determined to sabotage this year's World Cup I'm not as excited as I usually am but after we watched the England vs New Zealand friendly I started getting into the mood, ordering a new Three Lions flag to replace our old one. 

On Sunday I wore this India Imports of Rhode Island maxi skirt with a gauzy cotton All About Audrey blouse for my now-daily Project keep the hip moving walk around the block. In need of a World Cup Wallchart we were forced to buy the Sun as it was the only paper with one. What a disgusting, salacious, rancid rag it is (it went straight into the recycling bin). If that's the UK's most popular newspaper no wonder there's so many ill-educated, bigoted morons roaming our streets. 

 

I started (and finished) reading No Small Thing by Orlaine McDonald, an deeply emotional read exploring the impact of trauma and poverty on the lives of three generations of women on a South London housing estate. If, like me, you adored Bernardine Evaristo's Girl, Woman, Other, you'll love this.

In the evening, after we'd caught up with Criminal Record, we continued with season 2 of For All Mankind which, despite mixed reviews, we're finding just as thrilling as the first series. 

Monday was our first swimming day of the week and with the weather so miserable, it was pretty quiet at the pool. Rather than look around the charity shops we decided to straight home after our Spoons breakfast, getting in just as the heavens opened. 

I wore my beloved Anokhi maxi dress with one of my many All About Audrey wrap tops (this was a Vinted find), the ideal way of wearing your strappy dresses all year round. I started reading Creation Lake by Rachel Kuchner, a Booker Prize shortlisted thriller about an American spy infiltrating a network of eco-activists in Western France. Espionage is probably my favourite genre and it's a great read so far. 

Taking advantage of a rare dry day, Jon put the festival trading tent up in the garden on Tuesday morning, rejecting my offer of help so I vacuumed and dusted upstairs instead.  

If I stare at my wardrobe for long enough, a new combination of clothing invariably slaps me around the chops...like this Naked Generation (via Vinted) blouse and this vintage '70s block printed wraparound skirt by Papillion. I was having a good foot day and was able to wear my Lottas for walking down to the parcel shop although I kicked them off when I got home and spent a couple of hours tackling the weeds. 

Currently empty but at least it's up! 

It was the turn of England's mighty Lionesses to play on Tuesday night and although they beat Ukraine, their place in the 2027 World Cup isn't guaranteed. I shall keep everything crossed for the play-offs later in the year. 

In hindsight, I should have worn a jacket rather than my quilted vintage Anokhi waistcoat over my wafty All About Audrey kaftan when I walked down to the pool at 7am on Wednesday, it was so cold! 

It was another quiet day at the pool. After breakfast we had a wander around the chazzas where, to my delight, I spotted a brand new pair of "Universal" Tevas in my size for £6 in the British Heart Foundation (they retail for £50). Tevas are a game changer, the best sandals I've ever worn - waterproof, supportive, lightweight and comfy even when I'm having a hellish foot day I can wear these without wanting to saw my toes off! They are the only footwear I pack when I travel in the Summer.  

After we'd picked up some essentials in the newly opened OneBeyond (a UK discount chain with a surprisingly good array of stock) we went to the matinee performance of Savage House at Walsall Light. I hadn't read any reviews, I saw this poster and just knew we needed to see it. I love a powdered wig! 

Set in the 18th Century amidst an outbreak of the pox and a Jacobite uprising, Sir Chauncey (Richard E Grant) and his wife, Lady Savage (Claire Foy), dream of an aristocratic lifestyle, believing their opportunity has finally arrived when the celebrated Duke & Duchess of Devonshire invite themselves for dinner but their preparations soon descend into ironic decadence and bloodshed. A marvellous satirical observation on class and power and wickedly funny. We both loved it - Withnail and I with Wigs! -  although the elderly lady in the seat in front of us loudly whispered to her friend, I didn't expect sex and swearing! 

I popped around to my friend Vicki's for a couple of hours, drinking wine, chatting about Greece (she's just back from the island we're off to soon) and, as she's a chiropractor, getting some helpful advice & tips on all things hip. Back at home I continued with the drinking...it was England's last friendly before the World Cup and the rum was flowing. The crazy weather in Florida caused the match to kick off an hour late so it was past midnight by the time we'd thrashed Costa Rica 3 - 0. 

A wood mouse (not Algernon)

The evening took on a rather surreal feel when a cute wood mouse sauntered past us on his hind legs and vanished behind the tv. He looked so haughty that we decided to call him Algernon. As fast as lightning William chased after him, reappearing with Algernon dangling from his mouth. Jon managed to capture him and release him in the garden unharmed, if a little dazed. 

As I went to bed so late I was going to forfeit my Wii Fit session but, as usual, I was awake before 6am this morning and it seemed daft to lie in bed for the sake of it. I ended up really enjoying every minute of my half-hour yoga session. 

In honour of tonight's opening ceremony in Mexico I was tempted to wear one of my Mexican dresses but it was another horribly cold and wet day so I wore a vintage knitted maxi skirt by Samuel Sherman, an All About Audrey top (via Vinted) and my trusty 1970s denim waistcoat although my Corral cowboy boots were made in Mexico. The weather was so horrible that I didn't even bother with my daily walk and Jon drove to the lockers to drop off my Vinted sales.  

Our lads aren't playing till next week which is just as well as my new flag hasn't turned up yet! 

I'm off to catch up with Blogland before The World Cup takes over my life.