Wet, wet,wet

The forecast was for showers but apart from a brief break in the rain mid-afternoon it was very soggy.

Visted Gail's sister Lyn who lives in a village a 45 minute ride away. Her husband Jack is the High Sheriff of Bedfordshire, a position that has been in existence for over a 1000 years. They are mentioned in the Magna Carta and had a key role in managing the Shires. These days it is an independent non-political Royal appointment for one year. Jack has to attend all royal visits to the shire and officiates over the judges, police and emergency services and other agencies concerned with crime prevention and law enforcement. There's no remuneration involved. The uniform includes a velvet jacket and breeches, tights and, of course, a sword. Unfortunately I forgot to take my camera, so no photos.

We went with Lyn and Jack (not in uniform!) to the Shuttleworth Visitor Centre www.shuttleworth.org to look at the collection of vintage cars, motorcycles and aeroplanes. Very impressive and a good place to go on a rainy day because it is all under cover in a series of interconnected sheds and hangers. Jack took lots of photos for me on his smartphone. I am hoping he'll be able to email some to me in which case I'll retrospectively slot some into this post.

Then we headed off to a nearby village for a pub lunch. I had one of my favourites - steak, stilton and stout pie with all the trimmings.

Gail and I Got soaked on the way back in a sudden rain and hailstorm. No opportunity to stop and put on our waterproofs because of the heavy traffic and no hard shoulder.