Good morning on what we hope is a wonderfully wonderful Fourth of July (for those of you who celebrate such events) and a delightfully delightful July 4th for those of you who don\u2019t.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been a pretty decent week; tolerably good weather apart from a bit of overcast skies and a smattering of drizzle on Thursday. Taken with the fantastic weather we had last week, this fortnight has provided some outstandingly fine weather overall. This morning is glorious again \u2013 bright, bright clear blue sky with a moderate breeze. Indeed, I was talking with a teacher at one of the schools I was working in the other day and we realised that there had not been a single rain delay at Wimbledon so far this year. Normally, the arrival of Wimbledon fortnight is the cue for torrential rain and blustery gales (along with the national pastime of watching Britain\u2019s latest hope for a title fall at the first, second or third hurdle). In contrast, this year the weather has been glorious and Andy Murray got all the way to the semi-finals before dashing the hopes of the nation. (Poor Andy Murray \u2013 he did say he was hoping to win this year partly to counter the depression and despair felt across the country at England\u2019s ignominious departure from the World Cup. Maybe next year.)<\/p>\n
A couple of more photos of Penelope\u2019s garden (just to break up the monotony): Napoleon, a lovely pink rose with amazing \u201cfrilly\u201d leaves around the buds and a most wonderful scent, Rosa Rugosa, Lavender Hidcote and Million Bells along with a courgette flower and, just to make up the numbers, French Beans. Prizes for those who can identify each one (as I can now, much to Ms Playchute\u2019s consternation after hours and hours of studying).<\/p>\n
[portfolio_slideshow id=1872]<\/p>\n
Penelope was doing a touch of house cleaning during the week and was rummaging through some old books and magazines, the objective being, I think, to prune some of the unnecessary clutter which one accumulates. A whole stack of Bon App\u00e9tite magazines were destined for the recycling bin but, surprisingly, they haven\u2019t yet quite got there. Even though all this stuff is online, there is something about leafing through a magazine making a note of all the recipes one would like to try. So, it looks like the magazines will hang about for a bit longer. Mind you, in the meantime, we\u2019ve been having the occasional fairly fantastic meals.<\/p>\n
The other piece of literature which found the light of day was a book which Dad passed on to me some years ago \u2013 the Lure of the Limerick. I don\u2019t quite know why it was buried away somewhere; Penelope placed it in the downstairs loo which is, of course, its natural repository. As you might guess, much of the content is decidedly risqu\u00e9 \u2013 it\u2019s amazing how many delicate, debonair or delightful derri\u00e8res feature. There are a few, however, which I found tolerably amusing and which, at great risk, I reproduce below:<\/p>\n