Saturday 20th January 2018

The weekend has arrived, and so we must how best to use it. But this weekend after days of cold but with unbroken sunshine, Mr weatherman tells us there were be heavy continuous rain for both Saturday and Sunday. Chances to get out will be limited, but for Mr Jelltex who has a mild case of cabin fever, he is itching to get out and take some photographs.

As ever there are the weekend chores to do: washing, shopping and cleaning. As Jools has been so tired when she gets home from work, she has not done much phys, I say I will go to Tesco whilst she does a session on the cross trainer, in what we still call Tony's bedroom.

I go round Tesco filling the trolley up; as I am in charge, there is room for wine, cider and beer. Three of the main food groups there. THere are easter eggs in stock already, in fact there have been Creme Eggs in since before Christmas. Not that I buy them, but there is a storm this week as the number of biscuits in a pack of digestives has been reduced by 5, due to Brexit. Wait until it hits to price or supply of tea which all comes through Rotterdam..... That's all I'm saying.

Back home with croissants, Jools has just finished, and ready for breakfast and another coffee. Shopping is put away, but then I have to go and do my session, then we can have breakfast. Yes, you read that right, I also did a session before coffee and breakfast, meaning that by the time we had eaten, showered and dressed it was ten and Huey time on the wireless.

Outside the rain poured down still, there was a chance it would ease up in the afternoon, in which case..... But before then, Jools went into town to have a hair cut, so I stay and do "stuff".

Jools comes back home, and after lunch I decide that whatever, I will go out to do something. I thought that two of the churches I visited early in the project needed a revist, but as it turned out, I had took four at one and never visited the other! Just as well I snapped them good then.

As the A2 leaves Dover, to the south there is a series of valley, created by seldom flowing rivers that only are seen in wet winters; these are called Winterbournes. One of the largest is the Nailbourne, that flows from Lyminge before eventually turning into the Little Stour at Littlebourne. It flows through the Elham Valley, to Bridge, all the villages thereabouts ending in bourne. It also flows through Barham, and here it overflowed a few years back, but this winter it is a dried bed again.

Just up the hill and a little further east from Barham is Kingston, and St Giles set up the valley side among some grand and gated houses. The area is plagued with do not park here signs, but outside the church that had been knocked down, so I parked there and checked the door, found the door to be unlocked.

Inside I saw a depiction of the Virgin Mary I had snapped before, but that was it, I had failed to photograph the whole church. So I got to work snapping away, and in time noticed two roof angels in the chancel beside the east window, common in East Anglia, but I don't believe I have seen them in Kent before. Anyway, I had done some snapping, but less than a mile away was another church; Bishopbourne.

Looking at my pictures of the village later, I see we never went to the church at all! Which then explains why I stood looking at St Mary not recognising it at all. Best of all were the snowdrops; there were a few at Kingston, but not out, but here there were two lush groups, just wanting to be snapped. And then there was the church.

Sadly, inside I could not get the lights to work, so it was dark and gloomy in there, but even in the semi-darkness, I saw the wonder of the mosaic tiles covering the lower third of the Chancel. It is a fine and large church, set overlooking the old village green, but these days the centre of the village is along the narrow high street around the Mermaid.

The rain hadn't really stopped, but I had snapped two new churches so near home, and on the way back to the car I snapped the snowdrops too, getting back in the car at three just as the main batch of matches were kicking off. I drove back home, one ear on the radio, getting home just as the light was really beginning to fade. Coffee and cake was the order of the day, and on the radio, Norwich slumped to a 2-1 defeat, seems like they ran out of legs, worked out from the cup game. Oh well.

At seven we go to pick up John for another evening of cards. We had ordered pizza to be delivered, so it was going to be a good night. We play for pennies, just for fun, just as well. Mind you I did scoop the jackpot last week, though was a little down last night. The pizza came at nine, and we ate them, our appetite fired by cheap red wine.

As ever it was an evening filled with joy and laughter, and Johns stories. Same time next week?