SIgnificant Other and myself are still at that point in our relationship where we celebrate the anniversary of the day we met every month. That may sound a bit silly - given our age - but we find it's a good excuse to do nice things together. It needn't be anything special - sometimes we go out for dinner - the choice of restaurant dictated by the financial situation of the moment, or for a night at the cinema, or even - weather permitting - a walk in a park. It could even be dinner at home - as we had planned for this one - which was going to be our last weekend together for three weeks, before Yves Saint Laurent passed away and delayed my trip to Milan by another few days, which means that I am now in London for another weekend. Merci Monsiour Saint Laurent, may your genius rest in peace for that one.
Anyway, so on the day of our anniversary, an e-mail arrived advertising a two-for-the-price-of-one offer on tickets to see Rufus Wainwright at Hampton Court on Monday (or, as you will find out in a minute, so I thought). It having been pay-day, I thought "Perfect," - since it was going to be a low-key dinner at home celebration (I made kebabs!) - we could have a second anniversary celebration watching Rufus - one of our favourite singers - in the courtyard of one of Henry VIII's homes. You couldn't get more romantic than that, really!
The weekend flew - as it does - and on Monday we woke up to a bit of a grey sky. As the day wore on, there were a few bouts of blue sky, that boded well, and by the time I left the office for Waterloo station, it had all cleared up. "Victory," I thought - until we got to Hampton Court to find out that we had come a day early. "But I'm sure the e-mail said Monday," I protested, flicking through all the e-mails on my iPhone. Of course I was wrong, the e-mail - which I found on my return home - said Tuesday - as did the ticket, which of course I never bothered to look at. We ended up having a horrible dinner in a suburban Pizza Express and going back home. Wither of us was a happy bunny at this stage.
Tuesday came, and with it a solid grey sky and a constant drizzle that was so fine that you couldn't even feel it. But it was there, believe me. I spent the whole day looking out of the window for a trace of blue, but it was all in vain. It stayed grey, and it didn't stop raining. At one point - I think it was when SO texted to tell me that according to the Hampton Court Festival's website no umbrellas were allowed during the show - we even considered cancelling, but Rufus is Rufus, and we had both always wanted to see him live - so I stopped and bought raincoats on my way to the station.
It could have been the perfect evening. The gardens of Hampton Court would have made the ideal setting for a pre-concert picnic, the courtyard was the right size for an intimate concert and Rufus gave an excellent performance - which was not an easy thing to do, given that even though the audience was loving it, we were all thinking "Please hurry up and get us out of here before we get pneumonia!" When he did finish, having given three encores (nobody gives three encores nowadays!!), people were flying off their seats, desperate to catch the train back to London. We were two of those people!
The next morning, I woke up with what felt like the beginning of a cold, so I stayed in bed all day, because the last thing I need for my two weeks in Milan is a cold. Throughout the day, and even this morning as I write this, there has been nothing but blue sky. I think whoever came up for the two-for-the-price-of-one-deal must have looked at the weather forecast. Pity I didn't. But then again, I wouldn't have missed Rufus for all the sunshine in the world.
Anyway, so on the day of our anniversary, an e-mail arrived advertising a two-for-the-price-of-one offer on tickets to see Rufus Wainwright at Hampton Court on Monday (or, as you will find out in a minute, so I thought). It having been pay-day, I thought "Perfect," - since it was going to be a low-key dinner at home celebration (I made kebabs!) - we could have a second anniversary celebration watching Rufus - one of our favourite singers - in the courtyard of one of Henry VIII's homes. You couldn't get more romantic than that, really!
The weekend flew - as it does - and on Monday we woke up to a bit of a grey sky. As the day wore on, there were a few bouts of blue sky, that boded well, and by the time I left the office for Waterloo station, it had all cleared up. "Victory," I thought - until we got to Hampton Court to find out that we had come a day early. "But I'm sure the e-mail said Monday," I protested, flicking through all the e-mails on my iPhone. Of course I was wrong, the e-mail - which I found on my return home - said Tuesday - as did the ticket, which of course I never bothered to look at. We ended up having a horrible dinner in a suburban Pizza Express and going back home. Wither of us was a happy bunny at this stage.
Tuesday came, and with it a solid grey sky and a constant drizzle that was so fine that you couldn't even feel it. But it was there, believe me. I spent the whole day looking out of the window for a trace of blue, but it was all in vain. It stayed grey, and it didn't stop raining. At one point - I think it was when SO texted to tell me that according to the Hampton Court Festival's website no umbrellas were allowed during the show - we even considered cancelling, but Rufus is Rufus, and we had both always wanted to see him live - so I stopped and bought raincoats on my way to the station.
It could have been the perfect evening. The gardens of Hampton Court would have made the ideal setting for a pre-concert picnic, the courtyard was the right size for an intimate concert and Rufus gave an excellent performance - which was not an easy thing to do, given that even though the audience was loving it, we were all thinking "Please hurry up and get us out of here before we get pneumonia!" When he did finish, having given three encores (nobody gives three encores nowadays!!), people were flying off their seats, desperate to catch the train back to London. We were two of those people!
The next morning, I woke up with what felt like the beginning of a cold, so I stayed in bed all day, because the last thing I need for my two weeks in Milan is a cold. Throughout the day, and even this morning as I write this, there has been nothing but blue sky. I think whoever came up for the two-for-the-price-of-one-deal must have looked at the weather forecast. Pity I didn't. But then again, I wouldn't have missed Rufus for all the sunshine in the world.