First, we had a piece of home made ironmongery on a bicycle parked up in Cavendish Square, a tubular steel version of the wooden contraption I had on my bicycle some forty years ago now. Very useful for carrying a full load of vegetables - cabbages and suchlike - it was too.
Second, over lunch, we were able to observe a concrete skip going up and down on a building site across the road. Which took me back to the days when I knew about concrete and skips were containers used to crane lift wet concrete from mixer lorry to mould. Tapered containers hung by a hook from the top and with a trap door at the narrow bottom end. The days when skip meant concrete, not a container to be parked on one's front drive while one's neighbours filled it up with their household rubbish.
Third, on the way back, we were able to take a look at the outside of Treasury Chambers, home to my labours for many years, mostly, I am pleased to be able to say, before it was refreshed and converted to open plan, complete with a cafeteria which did salads, quinoa and vegetarian options. There was even a happy few months during which I was able to take impressed visitors out onto the roof - a wheeze sadly rumbled and barred by the premises people.
In between, we fitted in a Wigmore Hall lunchtime concert. A very young looking Vilde Frang on the violin and a more mature Aleksandar Madžar on the piano, giving us Bartók's Violin Sonata No, 1 and Schubert's Fantasy in C, D934. Both unknown to both of us, but which turned out to be two of the most powerful and emotional pieces we had heard for a while. Helped along by Ms. Frang's excellent stage manners.
Out to lunch at the nearby ASK, an entirely satisfactory middle-of-the-road establishment, complete with the friendly and efficient young staff from continental Europe which one has come to expect. Plus entirely satisfactory Sauvignon Blanc from somewhere in Italy. Lightweight pizza good. My only down comment would be on the bread which came with the olives, bread which, while fresh enough, was rather salty and rather undercooked, at least for my taste.
Out to wander down towards Green Park, popping into Nain Carpets on the way, where we were able to find something to replace our ageing dining room carpet. We also heard tales of woe from an independent carpet seller, up against exorbitant rents, unreasonable business rates and the big stores: a hard life it seems. So hard that he had even thought of emigrating to one of the vacant premises at Epsom, near the not long opened Metro Bank. But there were some very nice carpets, some of them way out of our class.
Across the Park and into St. James Park, spotting on the way what looked to be a couple of buzzards high over the Charles residence. But they vanished before I could be very confident about the tweet - not ever having seen such over central London before. Tavistock yes, Corfe yes, but not London. Lots of coots but no pelicans.
Down the large & flashy steel & concrete hole onto the Jubilee line, from where we made it to Earlsfield for a round of the aeroplane game. Plenty of cloud, mostly above the flight path, but the best I could do was a couple of ones. A disappointing finish to a good day.
PS: a factlet from Nain Carpets: Saudis are not into carpets. They like flashy cars and flashy bathroom furniture but resent paying good money for carpets. This despite my recollection from the 'Seven Pillars of Wisdom' that the arabs from Al-Hejaz at least, now part of Saudi Arabia, were keen on rugs, not least for praying on.
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