Sunshine and Good Company

It sounds like the title of a song, doesn't it? This weekend my friends The Green Witch (TGW for short) and her husband, who we shall abbreviate to MGW, for Mr Green Witch, came to stay with Kim and I. Often, when people are coming to stay for the weekend, I get all stressed and want to run around (even though running is not something I can do these days), polish the house into sparkling wonderfulness and out-cook the world's best chefs. This weekend was such a lovely exception.

When the new sitting room wasn't finished in time for the visit, it somehow didn't seem to matter too much; the place was reasonably respectable, but I didn't have the time or energy to vacuum the carpets into eternal submission and though I had all the ingredients for a reasonable dinner and industrial breakfast on Sunday, I was too exhausted from getting the little house finished on Friday to pre-prep anything. Did it matter? Not a jot. These are friends who visit to talk, enjoy our company and have fun.

After they arrived on Saturday we had a relaxing walk along the village while I went and did the spot of work I was supposed to do over the weekend, and they had a chance to look about and come down after a long and taxing week. We retreated back to the house and spent time around the kitchen table, drinking tea, making a tiramisu and preparing the beef wellington. TGW, in inimitable and energetic style grabbed the garden fork and weeded a patch of my flower bed, for which I was so incredibly grateful - I only wish I had a picture of her with a garden fork in one hand, champagne in the other and a big grin on her face. Meanwhile, MGW and Kim were in the kitchen talking geek to each other and looking suitably hungry in anticipation of dinner.

Just before dinner, our neighbour knocked to let us know she was lighting her chiminea, and she told TGW and MGW all about the properties for sale in the village, as we had been trying to encourage them to move to our balmy, green corner of Somerset. Out came the laptop and Rightmove.co.uk was duly scoured for the postcode and positive mumblings were heard for the Green Witch clan!

Though not my best beef welly, dinner was decent enough and TGW has done a wonderful dish with courgettes and cheese, which we had with steamed rainbow chard, carrots and roasties. I had been a bit worried that the beef fillet was a shade on the small side when Kim brought it back from the butcher and there wasn't anything left over at all, so I hope they got enough to eat! Next was the tiramisu, which TGW had assembled with consummate skill and it certainly flew off the plates. The thing I loved most was the gentle pace of conversation, where a lull was comfortable and the topics entertaining and amusing - this is my idea of wonderful company.

After several bottles of wine, the urge to have a go at belly dancing swept TGW and I, and out came the hip scarves and on went the music - oh what a giggle! Suitably numbed by wine, I managed to shimmy and wiggle about like I haven't for ages - the anaesthetic properties of alcohol never cease to amaze me! Some time later, and thoroughly exhausted, we collapsed into our respective rooms for a night's sleep. Silly old me forgot that more than one glass of wine will totally overheat the body and I spent the night up and down, trying to get cool enough to get back to sleep, as well as trying to drink enough water to rehydrate the banging headache that threatened to keep me awake all night - I am such a lightweight when it comes to a few glasses of wine!

Sunday dawned hot and sunny, despite dire predictions of rain and cloud and, true to form, our old cat had made the kitchen a most unpleasant place to go, by being sick everywhere - not a great thing to have to deal with when feeling a tad bilious! That sorted, out came the bacon, sausages, local bread (I had tried making some the night before and my Kenwood died on me, oh woe!), home made butter and buckets of tea and espresso coffee, along with the chocolate croissants that TGW had kindly got from our local shop.

We went for a drive about, looking at various villages, visiting the cider mill at Dowlish Wake and enjoying the lovely countryside before they had to head off, back to pick up their little boy and get ready for the forthcoming week. I'm sitting here, rather the worse for the punishment I inflicted on my liver and kidneys, but feeling very contented for having spent time with such delightful, lovely people. I think we shall have to do this (perhaps without the wine for me) again very soon!