6 November 2011

Firstly a HUGE 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY" shoutout to Uncle Dave Lawrence. Hope he had a fab day today and that the year ahead brings all things good and special!

Below is the "blog entry" that I typed up this morning before knowing how to connect to Vaughn and Andrea's Wi-Fi. So, it may make people a little confused when reading it. Just remember this was written on Sunday morning - and by the way, later this afternoon I did see some lovely birds - read the entry! :-)

Been a couple of days since I last wrote, and so much has happened.

At present I am sitting in the lounge of my wonderful South African friend, Andrea and her really stunning hubby, Vaughn. They live in Farnham, and right now I am sitting on one of the sofas, that they had in their home in South Africa, looking out onto their garden, where, at the far end, I can see a couple of bird feeders on a stand (which I think is pretty clever! Just not sure how I would get one into my bag and home again!). I am sure that I will get a chance to be able to see a couple of the birds coming down to feed.

But let me go back to Friday evening, because it really was special (and Dee, I know that you are following my blog, and so I need to tell you that what I write here is EXACTLY how I felt!).

Aunt Pam, Uncle Dave and I went around to my cousin Dee and her hubby, Dan,’s home for dinner. Dee and I were trying to work out whether we had in fact met before I came here and both of seem to recall that there was a time when the two of us had met when she was quite young, and I would have been a bit older, but both of us are fairly inconclusive on that matter – but no worries!

Dee and Dan (who seems to be getting sick, poor man) treated us to a “full on” three course meal! Needless to say, in true Johnson style, none of us were at all hungry when we left a little later! But I digress a little.

I have spent time since being here with both Dee and Dan, but it has been moments at a time, and nothing all that concentrated. On Friday evening we were able to just enjoy an evening of relaxation, laughter and chatting. What a wonderful time. We really did laugh and laugh at all sorts of things and I came away from the evening feeling just so fortunate – and once again, Rev Dan, blessed, to have these special people in my life – and more importantly, to be able to spend some wonderful time with them. All part of the cherished memories that I will carry from my time over here.

We had been chatting a while, and I must say, much of the evening was spent in laughter – just enjoying the moment! I finally got to the stage where I HAD to look at Dee’s wedding dress, and so, although I knew that it would probably be something for her to have to get it out, I asked if I could see it.

Some pics taken at the wedding to give you an idea why I wanted to see the "real thing"!



Dee with Uncle Dave and Aunt Pam:






And the whole "Johnson" clan:


Well, it was every bit as gorgeous as it looked on the pics, and within a short space of time after we had finished looking at it and getting it all “fluffed up” again, Dee decided (with a small prompt, if I recall) to try it on again. Again, much laughter, as she needed to find the layer through which she needed to get her head to ensure that she could put the dress on. Finally she got it on and it really was lovely – crazy, because it was without all the finery that went with the actual day, but lovely! Thanks Dee for indulging me!

Herewith a lovely pic of Uncle Dave and Aunt Pam taken on Friday evening with Uncle Dave holding an "authentic" Belgium beer mug - courtesy Dee and Dan after their recent trip to Belgium for Dan's birthday.


The yesterday morning it was a case of being up bright and early to pack and then shower to make sure I was ready for Dee to come and fetch me as she was driving me through to Andrea. I had been willing to catch the various trains to make my way here, but Dee was having nothing of that and insisted that she bring me through. Apart from that special act of generosity (which really is not at all surprising for Dee, as I think that she would give the shirt off her back to someone who she felt needed it more than her), it was also a wonderful hour spent just with Dee as we drove across to Andrea and Vaughn’s.

I guess many would say that we were typical women, as we nattered all the way across, about all sorts of things. It was wonderful to spend that time where we could be nowhere but travelling and chatting! Thanks so much Dee – very special!!!

When we arrived, it was just SO lovely to see Andrea and Vaughn in their own home in the UK. What I had not really thought about, and it was another of those surreal experiences! Andrea and Vaughn packed up most of their belongings (except I think most of the white goods) and they were shipped across to the UK when they made the move. So I walked through to the lounge and was welcomed by the surreal experience of being surrounded by all the furniture that had been in their home in Fourways, yet knowing that it was in the UK! It was a weird, kind of whip lash type of moment – and just a moment, but it was also something very welcoming to feel as though the furniture that was here was the self same furniture that I had enjoyed a number of afternoon and evening coffee chats with both Andrea and Vaughn back home in South Africa. I guess in a weird kind of way it was a bit like finding a long-lost teddy or other comfort toy.

I just could not believe that I was finally here, in their home in the UK. And while Dee, Vaughn, Andrea and I were chatting over tea and coffee, Trish, Andrea’s mum was just finishing up packing all her belongings to go and spend a week at Andrea’s brother, sister-in-law and niece and nephew’s home nearby, as I was “turfing” poor Trish from her room. All kept reassuring me that this was all good, but I do confess that I felt a little guilty. It didn’t help that I heard talk of an inflatable mattress, which just made me think that Trish was going to be spending the week on that! I was reassured that the mattress would be for Andrea’s niece and Trish would be sleeping in her granddaughter’s bed. So, I was a little relived at that news.

As it turns out the work that Dee and Dan do, is similar to the work that Vaughn and Andrea’s brother (who have their own IT contacting company), and so soon Dee and Vaughn were chatting about various work related things and there is even the chance that there might be a time when they are able to work something out where Vaughn and Shaun will be able to work with Dee on some of the projects that she is either working with, or alongside some of those projects. So, as the saying goes, everything happens for a reason, and I guess this was no different.

That gave me a chance to catch up a little with Andrea, and then with Trish when she came down to the lounge. Again, that feeling came over me of familiar in a different place being just so special, and again, me being blessed!

Trish has just finished up a temp job at one company here and so, until she gets the next phone call to go and help out somewhere else, she is in a kind of limbo. She has offered, jobs coming up permitting, me the chance to go and be shown some of the sights around here and even a trip into London, which is really so very kind of her. I have also said that I cannot do the whole touristy thing all the time, and so will need at least a day off, which they are quite happy about. It really is most generous of them.

We went into Farnham to go and fetch a rug that Andrea had sent in to have cleaned, and what a quaint town in so many respects. I had to smile as we passed a row of houses and Andrea commented – see the “Hobbit houses, Wendy?” and there were homes where they had doors I think more fitting for my dear Granny Johnson who was 5 foot 1 inches tall (and we were not allowed to forget the one inch!). Andrea is at least 6 feet tall, so I could imagine that she and Vaughn would have quite a time trying to fit in many of those homes. Vaughn actually commented that when they had been “house hunting”, he had been to one place where he was not able to stand up straight at all. I guess in the old days the armour worn ensured that all kept short!

While Vaughn waited to collect the rug, Andrea took me on quite “walking in a square circle” that brought us back to the dry cleaners. The whole inner town just shouted “I’ve been here for a long time!!!”. The buildings are all very beautiful and many very quaint. They have closed off some of the streets and converted them into public pathways, and so much of the walk was on cobbled streets where there were different kinds of surface coverings – mainly various stones – I will have to take a pic of some of the roads so that you can get a sense of that!

We then brought said rug home and went up to a local pub where we had a lovely relaxed lunch. It reminds me that the one thing I cannot get used to here is how to dress. Being someone who does not feel the cold all that much, I am constantly taking off and putting on layers – but I really have not got the art of that “down” as yet! We enjoyed lunch near a log fire, and then that evening were going to be going to friends of Vaughn and Andrea’s where they were having people around for “bonfire night” – as Guy Fawkes is called here.

Again, such a lovely evening and such lovely people to chat to! The evening was hosted by one of Andrea and Vaughn’s friend's Mum, and she was so welcoming. It was funny the way I kept being asked whether I was here to stay – and in fact the first time, and I cannot recall how the question was phrased, I was rather taken aback as it kind of seemed to imply that I would not be going home to South Africa, so I ended up saying that of course I would. Then I realised, once the poor person who had asked the question explained, that it was a perfectly sensible question about whether I was staying on for a while and then travelling home, or whether I had decided to move over here. I guess it was something that I ought to have understood a little more as a couple of the people there were not from the UK at all, and with me accompanying Vaughn and Andrea, people could well have put two and two together and thought that I was now here to start a new life in the UK. People were both interesting to talk to and interested in things about South Africa, so all in all a lovely evening. The only down side of the whole evening was the fact that all us came home smelling of fire, but that was nothing that a shower couldn’t rectify.

I am not all that sure what I am going to do here. Trish has offered to take me all over the place and fill my days with sightseeing – which is really kind of her. I have got into a rather lazy – and I think, when I think about it now, unhelpful – state of mind as I have not been planning anything per se. Part of it is due to the fact that I am so used to my own independence and being able to jump into a car and go off where and when I wish, and partly because I have not really planned all that much in terms of prepping myself for what is on offer – I guess because I am conscious that for all people concerned this is a slight imposition – one that all have been quite happy to accept, but none the less it is something that the independent me is struggling to accept things and just be more “forthcoming”. Not too sure, and this is becoming far too philosophical for a Sunday morning that is a lovely morning.

It is funny, so many people have made the comment that I have come at the wrong time of the year to enjoy the UK, and I have to say, for me this is great. The weather is mild to chilly – and that suits me perfectly. The people with whom I am staying and spending time have all been so warm in their welcomes – and of course their homes are all heated in one way or another, so I am not complaining at all. What is making this trip wonderful is meeting up with old friends, meeting some relatives for the first (?) time, and catching up with others, and with me being me, that is special above all else.

Well, I can hear noises coming from Andrea and Vaughn’s room, and I can feel another cup of coffee calling, so I think it is time to close this off. I will be posting it later than it has been written, as I am not at all sure of the Internet access at present and so the whole thing has been written in Word and I will copy and paste with pics a little later once that has been sorted out.

And the birds? Sorry – haven’t seen a single one, but then I have been watching the keyboard more than looking outside. Time to carry on with Lukie’s jacket/jersey after making a cup of coffee.

All my love
Wendy