I still love Leamington Spa

I really do love Leamington Spa

A quick update on Leamington Spa, where it has been raining a lot recently.

Our garden

Is overflowing with goodness due to the recent rain. Mr A did mow the lawn once, and has been keeping the bird table topped up, but weeds are legion. The tulips always look beautiful as the buds mature, but the rain did what it always does: as soon as the buds open the blowsy flowers are destroyed, petals bend back and fall off and they look a mess. Mr A says they looked nice for quite some time, but I must have missed it. Bluebells are out, though the wisteria is still in bud, unlike in London last time I was there a month ago: there, the wisteria was well into flower. Weeds are flowering well, as always.

Leamington Spa

That previous blog post about the town is still pretty accurate, although there are a few amendments:

4. The skateboard ramp has been removed from the park because it was deemed unsafe. When our local Councillor came round recently to talk about expanding the bowling facility, Mr A took him to task about when skateboarding facilities might be replaced. Sports for the middle class wealthy - what about the yoof?

5. Pubs: I was going to add the Somerville Arms because it was really nice when we went there by chance one time, but the second time we went, last Sunday, it was closed. We went round the corner to the Cask and Bottle instead, which was just as nice, and more importantly, open. Although there was football on a number of screens, the commentary was in Italian (who knows why) so it wasn't too intrusive.

7. Music venues: The Assembly. Great place. Wish we went there more too, but I'm now holding back because Mr A's knees don't hold up to dancing like they used to.

11. The sushi bar came and went, and there's now a noodle restaurant there called Wofon that I have been to so many times that they have given me a 20% off loyalty card that lasts to the end of June. There's also a big banner advertising Wagamama coming soon round the corner, but the hoarding has been there for weeks and no sign of an opening date. If Wofon hadn't opened I'd be gagging for a bit of Wagamama, but I'll still be going to Wofon even when Wagamama opens.

15. The town's restaurants have changed: Wofon as above, Eleven is still the place for a treat, and Casa Valle has been replaced by Kayal which is South Indian rather than Italian but just as good. We haven't been to any of the others for ages due to austerity measures.

Our house

Not much has changed, although a significant event has been the hanging of the mirror and the installation of the light fitting in the shower room. I am somewhat ashamed to admit that I eventually asked Mr A if he would do it for me. While I am certain I could have done it alone had I been a single person, it was a much more enjoyable experience providing Lola-style assistance to Mr A. I hate DIY with a passion, except for really simple straightforward things like painting, and even that didn't go without a hitch last time.

The pub

Just as good as ever, although we don't eat there much any more because of the lack of vegetable accompaniments to the relentlessly meat-and-carbohydrate nature of the food options. I tentatively asked Smurf if he would be interested in some constructive criticism of the menu, but he wasn't really interested, after all, his way is working fine. The beer is as good as ever, though, and the atmosphere always welcoming.