Saturday 1st August 2009 – Four Fishes and a Wedding

I went to visit the Lutheran Church to make some phone calls.  I picked a nice quiet spot just along the road, nicely mowed lawns, big tree for shade, and parked.  I decided it wasn't hot enough to leave the engine running (for the aircon, you see).  The beautifully kept white, clapboard church was the only building for miles (apart from the phone mast), and there wasn't a soul in sight.  So I got out, opened the sliding back door and sat in the shade; wandered about a bit, made my calls, enjoyed the peace and quiet; inspected a clover field full of (to me) exotic butterflies: in no particular order.

Then I got back in, and went to start the engine: no keys: not in my pockets, not on the floor, not anywhere in the neighbourhood.

Have you ever been on your own in the middle of nowhere, in a foreign country, and lost your car keys?

I persuaded myself to calm down.  There was nobody about; I hadn't gone far; it was bright sunlight.  And, if the worst came to the worst, there was the emergency key in its magnetic box under the car. 

It took me some time to look around, working out slowly that what I was looking for simply couldn't have happened.  Then I got to the Sherlock Holmes bit, and eliminated the impossible.  And there they were, squeezed down between the squabs of the back seat.

I must pay more attention.

 

Last week we caught four fish out on the Missouri.  This week one of the fishermen was getting married.   I was invited along.  It was only a short walk away, and a beautiful evening.

I asked if it was black tie (having come over on the Queen Mary, I was fully equipped).  No, no, they said, quite informal.  The boys (to a man) looked as though they might be going fishing.  The girls (to a man) did not.  The bride was in a lovely bridal gown and veil.  Her friends in the wedding party were all most becoming in their posh frocks.  I have a lot to learn about American dress codes.

There was enough beer to ensure easy acceptance of a stranger like me.  Everyone took turns to be hospitable and chat to me.  I hope they had as good a time as I did.

Towards the end of the evening, talking about what I'd been doing, someone said "If you've been fishing on the Missouri, played a round of golf, and been to a wedding, you've done everything there is to do in Glasgow."

Now, is that another hint, or isn't it?