Double paella

A fortnight ago to the Wigmore Hall to hear, for the second time, the Trio Shaham Erez Wallfisch, with the first time being noticed back in October at reference 1. A short piece by Paul Ben-Haim - 'Variations on a Hebrew melody', 1939 - and Beethoven's Archduke trio, Op.97.

All a bit of a rush in the morning, as Waterloo trains were off and we have to leave home 15 minutes early. Must be getting old for that to make as much difference as it did! 

Lots of small trees with lots of white flowers. Maybe the sun was missing for this snap to be so dark.

A solicitors' van which often seems to be irregularly parked on Station Approach. A solicitors which I learn from reference 2 was rescued from bankruptcy by its current owner, the national chain Taylor Rose, in 2020. Was this van sold on at that point? Why does a solicitor need a van anyway? Furthermore, bankruptcy and debts of £15m notwithstanding, it seems that a couple of big cheeses in the old company still have a few millions spare to invest in the new one. I suppose that's life in the fast lane for you.

And then, having got onto our train we had to move seats on account of a noisy child whose parents didn't seem to want to do anything to quieten him down.

From Victoria, a No.2 bus to Olle & Steen in Wigmore Street, where I took orange juice and bun. Orange juice very good, and bun a Kløben bun, much better than whatever I had from them last time. Their ham and cheese rolls looked pretty good too. BH settled for her usual latte, just sampling a corner of my bun.

Out to notice that the Cock & Lion, not visited for a while now, was a bit of a left-over from the past. According to Bartlett of UCL: 'No. 62, which incorporates the entrance to Easley’s Mews, has been licensed premises, known on and off as the Cock & Lion, since 1772. The present building, designed by Frederick Warburton Stent, dates from 1879', this last despite the area as a whole having been subject to a lot of development since 1800 or so. With Bartlett having first been noticed in these pages, back in 2017, at reference 3.

Into the hall, which was full. Flowers, green yellow and white, well up to their usual standard. Some gentlemen wearing hats indoors, unusual these days.

The variations were rather good, while the main course was not as familiar as I was expecting. And the encore was Beethoven's Allegretto, WoO.39, which number I believe means that it is not a full member of the canon. Audience in general and BH in particular very enthusiastic. 

All-Bar-One for lunch, where I took the plunge and went for a double paella - on the last occasion having found one good, but not really enough. The second of the two snapped above. BH settled for a Maki bowl, with some Earl Grey to follow. A waitress who knew her business, which always adds value to a meal out. The place was busy by the time we left, say around 14:00.

Some discussion about whether or not this plant was a fake. Hard to tell from the top, but my take was that if it was a fake you would not bother with roots, not even very dry ones.

Next stop, our first ever visit to a Muji outlet, this one between Oxford Circus and M&S, No.187. I fell for a yak-flavoured pullover, while BH was pleased to buy the socks that she had been unable to buy in John Lewis at Kingston.

Next stop, the flashy looking Microsoft shop on the corner of Oxford Circus. Some expensive looking toys - too expensive for my modest needs - and some pleasant and talkative young staff, but the place seemed oddly quiet. But arty: they had clearly had some serious interior designer in.

Some fairly flashy stairs - from where I associate to the stairs at Bourne Hall, noticed at reference 5.

Not exactly art, but tendencies in that direction. I associate to the good quality - mainly black and white as I recall - photographs of mountains and such which used to decorate the meeting rooms at the Microsoft Campus by the river at Reading. A place called Sonning.

Seemingly having to leave the tube at Cardinal Place, we took a time out in the Cathedral, after which we just missed a train to Epsom, so half an hour to wait.

Home to a waxing, gibbous moon at 75%, ESE, altitude 50°. Heading for 67° at zenith, say two thirds of the way up - although it looks rather more than that.

PS 1: on the way we had puzzled about the wrinkled black patch on the end of a Southwestern unit. It seemed to be some sort of plastic covering, present in one form or another on most it not all of their older units, but not on the ones that they are rolling out now. A puzzle I have noticed before, but I have yet to track it down.

PS 2: I can't find out much about Stent, beyond his being RA, but he does turn up in Ottawa at reference 6. Was he the inventor of the medical devices of the same name in his spare time?

References

Reference 1: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2023/10/trios.html.

Reference 2: McMillan Williams saviour handed £5m by founder for fresh acquisitions - John Hyde, Law Society Gazette - 2021.

Reference 3: https://psmv3.blogspot.com/2017/10/three-shops.html.

Reference 4: https://youtu.be/5mfuHj-vWjE. Sounded better live - assuming I have go the right piece. Come across a bit loud on the laptop.

Reference 5: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2024/02/in-margins.html.

Reference 6: https://heritageottawa.org/sites/default/files/newsletter-pdfs/HerOttNews_2003_06.pdf.