Monday, January 18, 2021

Let them entertain us


 Our wonderful new Swimming and Sport centre, The Littlehampton Wave, closed right now.

Littlehampton is a simple seaside resort and makes no pretences at being anything more than that. I spent my school years and a bit in Worthing, just eight miles run/stroll along the coast to the east. Most of my life has been spent by the seaside apart from the war years that immediately followed my birth in Brighton, another seaside resort. My father was called up to serve into the army, my mother packed one suitcase, and walked to the Station with her two children; my older brother Peter aged four and me, a babe in arms but a week old. She took us to Yorkshire where we stayed until the war ended when we moved back to Worthing in time for me to start school.

 

 Living close to the sea is such a blessing and my husband feels the same coming from his home and Business in Kingston-upon-Thames with a family who visited Littlehampton at weekends and for summer holidays before eventually moving down to the coast. Steve loves the sea so much he takes the sea front route to Rustington that is but two miles away making it four miles just to look at the sea.


 Actually as I see things Littlehampton is not at all bad, it has some good things going for it apart from a choice of two lovely beaches, West Beach with its sand dunes and the old fort  and the East Beach where there is a pebble beach and at low tide plenty of room for sand castles and rock pools for visitors children to play in. The two beaches are separated by the second fasted river in the UK, the River Arun meeting the sea. Right at that point, there is Harbour Park, with its enclosed fun fair and the Oyster pond just behind with summer boat rides and just the swans in winter. The river winds its way up to Arundel Castle a couple of miles away. I usually go into the castle and ground several times during the summer at least because I just love it but not this year of course.

Right next door to Harbour Park is one of my favourite places; the Windmill Cinema. The windmill is a small art house cinema/theatre these days, though it has worn a number of hats in years gone by when my parents remember it being an ice rink.  These days, when it is not closed due to the pandemic, it is staffed by volunteers and has fairly new nice comfy seats. The two of us and our group of friends quite often go there because they do have all the ‘Live From’ theatre shows that are seen worldwide on as well in our tiny place of movie and show worship.

The latest thing to occur during the time it is closed, is that they are starting a set of virtual screenings in conjunction with a company called Dogwoof film distributors. The first of these is to be MLK/FBI. There is a ticket scheme and there will be some of the money going toward supporting our darling little cinema. The ticket price per household still works out cheaper than two tickets at the box office, so we will be getting our tickets whilst this service is in place. I have looked at the list of films rolling along and they are all most suitable for an art house like this one. Some people might not want to see the ones with subtitles but that has never put me off at all and I am particularly looking forward to The Painter and the Thief, that is a Norwegian film, and another titled, Sing me a Song, where the subtitles are from a language listed as Dzongkha! I have watched a few trailers and they all look like just the job for Stephen and I during the latest lockdown that may go on forever…. who knows?

 


I have had a letter from my surgery through the post some days ago, including a consent form for my vaccine jab. This had to be returned to the surgery, which it was, by hand on the same day, though the letter told me that the vaccine would not be administered there. It did not say where I would have to go for the jab. On TV today it said that the next group 70- 79 would be starting soon. I have heard nothing since.


 

 

 

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