How much worse can it all get?

Of course, it could be much worse… we could be flooded out of our home, with everything ruined, no insurance and no hope of selling our house. We could be in Syria. We could be quarantined on a cruise ship, in an inside cabin. I could be Carrie Symonds (oh vomit, imagine…), or a hapless civil servant working for Pritti Patel. I could be a US Democrat voter, wondering which of the two ancient white geezers on offer had a hope in hell of defeating Trump…

But Battleaxe finds dwelling on those worse off does not help one’s present situation. It was like parents telling you to eat up and remember the starving millions. So, here we are, in this stupid corona virus panic (we went out and panic-bought some bars of chocolate. It has to be done…). The rain poured down non-stop all day yesterday, everywhere is sodden, the roads are full of pot holes. We will likely to be heading for a no-deal Brexit after all, the government is running riot and can now give itself whatever draconian powers it fancies because of the ’emergency’ virus situation. Meanwhile, the boring, interminable Labour leadership election drags on, and on, and on. What can they be doing? For goodness sake, just declare Starmer the winner, kick that Corbyn out onto the muddy wastes of his allotment, and get some decent opposition up and running.

Talking of the ancient white geezers in the US, who on earth would want to be leader of the free world at nearly 80? I’m much younger than that and I forget what I’ve gone upstairs for, never mind people’s names… In that huge country, couldn’t they find anyone better? Mind you, look at us, we can talk, with our truly dreadful government.

So, let’s focus on the positives.

It is a lovely sunny day today. The garden is full of daffodils, everything is coming up and coming out…

In a brief window of better weather we went to Eastbourne last Sunday.

Viewed two exhibitions at the Towner. One was curated by Caroline Lucas, the other was early works of David Hockney and Alan Davie. I have never liked Alan Davie anyway, but I do like Hockney. However, these paintings were his very early work – I am glad he changed his style…

 

But it was all interesting, and we had a coffee in the gallery cafe. Note to the Hastings Contemporary. This is the menu from the Towner cafe. Sensible.

The HasCon Restaurant seems to have gone totally daft. Their Sunday morning offering is now a ‘Bottomless Brunch’ with prosecco for £20 a head. So much for visiting the gallery for a quiet coffee and a homemade biscuit… To compare and contrast menus, here is the link to the menu from the Boatyard at HasCon.

After the Towner we had lunch in the very nice little Rosetto Italian restaurant, just across the road from the Congress. Battleaxe recommends. It is right by some of the very few real elm trees still standing… I have posted about these before… Ah yes – here, in a general post about Eastbourne.

I also like this row of roof gables opposite.

What else? Earlier in the week I went out to lunch with friends at the Star Inn at Normans Bay. I had never been there before – it is totally miles from anywhere along a lane which runs along the sea edge from Cooden Beach, but they do the most incredible lunches. We had three big courses for £8. Battleaxe would totally recommmend.

Also, I finished my WI Furniture Restoration course. Eight of us had been every week for four weeks with Ron, a tutor from the local Hastings Furniture Service. We all had a great time, sanding and waxing while nattering busily – very relaxing. I did up an old Ercol Chair – it looks lovely now.

Of course, that’s not all – pub quiz on Monday, poetry group last night, roast chicken… Battleaxe should shut up moaning and count her blessings.