Friends

19 October 2011

Lunch Date

Yesterday was booked as a lunch date with a friend so regardless of the drainage problem I decided to keep the appointment. Lunch consisted of a starter of mushrooms covered in cheese and served with peppercorn sauce and garlic bread, followed by a trio of fish (sea bass, salmon and cod) neatly arranged on one of their wooden serving boards, with bowls of delicious chips and mushy peas. In other words, we had fish and chips! Sorry there's no picture. I did take one but it didn't pick up the yummy look of the meal.

On the journey to my friend's house I stopped driving to make way for a funeral procession. It was similar to the above but not quite the same. The lead car, accommodating the funeral directors, was followed by a team of four black horses drawing a Cinderella style black carriage. They trotted in unison, lifting their legs with each step, just like those that perform in a show ring. Bringing up the rear were four limousines with, I would say, about ten people in each.

Inside the carriage was a pure white coffin adorned by a single stem red rose. Other flowers were on the top of the carriage. It was wonderful to see and I did so wish I had a camera handy. I don't usually go gooey-eyed at passing funeral processions but this one was so moving.

Since I was the one holding up all the traffic to enable to procession to have a trouble free journey up the narrow road (lined, of course, with cars) the driver of every funeral car saluted me as they passed. I assumed, since the coffin was pure white, that the deceased was a lady. Whoever she was, she had a splendid send-off.

Now, you're not going to believe this but the man from UK DRAINAGE came while I was out. Various tests were made and ............ he said .......... he couldn't find any evidence of a blockage.
He thought maybe whatever caused it might have gone away all by itself. That's not the end of the matter, he is going to come back with a specialist plumber to make further tests and maybe divert one of the pipes. Apparently three bath loads of water were sent down to see what happened ... but nothing did.

As for reliability .... the man from UK DRAINAGE kept my guy informed by phone of all appointments. Not a bit like SEVERN TRENT who spun cock and bull stories such as blocked phone line and didn't come back to us (several times) when they said they would.

As I speak the washing machine is ON. Fingers crossed......

13 comments:

  1. Your lunch sounded wonderful...
    the mushrooms would have been my
    favorite... and the chips..

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  2. Is that common for a funeral procession in your area?? I've never heard or seen such a thing. Wow!!

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  3. Oh, Valerie, your lunch sounded absolutely yummy - Fish and Chips!

    And as you were describing the funeral you witnessed, I couldn't help but be reminded of the movie "Immitation of Life" where, at the end of the film, there was also a funeral procession involving a horse-drawn carriage in which the coffin was adorned by roses. It was both touching and beautiful.

    So glad to hear you've got your washing machine back on!!!

    *fingers crossed*

    Have a lovely day, dear lady!

    X

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  4. woo hoo on the drainage problem...glad you are getting reliable help now. smiles.

    the carriage for the funeral is pretty cool actually...def dont see something like that here...

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  5. Posh fish and chips that Valerie. :)

    What an amazing funeral, I bet that cost a packet!

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  6. over here any cars in a funeral procession have signs on them and they are follow in a line and people make sure that no one cuts in and lets them pass.

    That is a beautiful way to be transported to your final resting place.

    Gill in Canada

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  7. Thanks everyone. It's interesting to read about the differences in our traditions. One tends to think because 'we' do things one way everyone else does.

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  8. Alan Burnett said...
    Sorry to read about your drainage drama - let us hope that the fish and chips made life a little better - they always have that effect with me. I must confess to being attracted by such visual funeral processions. My daily walk with Amy the Dog takes us through the Crematorium : and we have been known to join in with a procession when it is led by a Funeral Director dressed in black and carrying a mace.

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  9. It sounded like a beautiful funeral procession; I wonder if it was someone famous who died?

    I'm keeping my fingers crossed that your water issues are solved.

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  10. Wow.....that must have been a sight. I got misty eyed reading about it.

    We don't have horse drawn processions--but we do stop for cars marked for the funerals. And I always say a prayer--it's just what I do.

    I'm going to hope since there wasn't a follow up with all sorts of expletives that the wash machine worked! Now, I must admit that I don't have a whole lot of faith in sewer problems suddenly 'correcting themselves'--but maybe they do?
    If that's the case I'm really, really cranky that mine DIDN'T.

    :-/

    Rawr!!!!

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  11. Wow. For a funeral that sounds like a lovely send-off! For me it'll either be that or a New Orleans-like marching band! :-)

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  12. Interesting mix, Val. Fish and chips, a horse drawn carriage and bungling utility services. Tradition is alive and well.

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  13. Yes, Mr V, it was all there...grins.

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