In the absence of a library snapshot …

Today I usually invite you to look into the library; but it has been closed and I rather foolishly didn’t go to work and have the opportunity to grab a snapshot in my lunch break …

but I have a good excuse!

Yesterday; proved to be wonderful day in more ways than one.  Although it did seem for while things were going awry. Wednesday , we  made plans for the next day, forgetting that it was in fact a ‘school’ day for me.  After a day or two of appalling weather we decided to just ‘go out!’ As it happened the weather was kind; the sun shone all day in a cloudless blue sky.  We decided to visit a tea shop in Bristol a 100 or so miles away.  It didn’t seem too far away just for a cup tea, After all it was our holiday wasn’t it and we had all the time in the world?  It was a perfect journey; this part Berkshire and Wiltshire are particularly beautiful and I made some Ravilious style prints in my head.  Even attempting to recognise and name the trees as we drove past; bit of a fruitless exercise as none of us had a clue which was which.  However, it did make me aware that even a tree without leaves has a distinct shape and even the evergreens had stark differences against the wintry backdrop.

When we arrived in Bristol a big city, we had no idea where the tea shop was so we bought a map and carefully found our way around one-way system that doesn’t ever make map reading in a city easy. However during this time, I discovered  via a kindly twitter message that I had been missed work. My colleague thinking as I had not booked leave, had forgotten to come to work.  Not sure if forget is the correct word; certainly I had misjudged the days,’what with the previous joys and rain’  

Unable to correct this rather embarrassing mistake I made the necessary reply and we carried on the journey happily.  It would have been churlish to my guests to do otherwise.  

Sadly, when we found the the address of the cafe; it was no longer there. I gave them a ring to question this, to find they had in fact it closed a few months before and were now only a online outlet in another part of town.  They had not updated the online information for potential ‘off line’ visitors.  After a minor tantrum (mine)  we found a nice art gallery and a flower shop and I smoothed my battered equilibrium  with some retail therapy.  Soon with our new map we found our way to Clifton and its famous suspension Bridge and eateries for lunch.   All was not lost!

Later we ventured back into visit the Arnolfini Art centre … although the exhibition showing was not the finest; the area in the old docks and in the view of the cathedral is very lovely and even more special as the the sun still shone. So, while we had not met up with on-line friends we had a good day.