According to the Met Office, the temperature out in the street is around 6°C but I have to say it feels a lot colder. As soon as we stepped outside, I was looking forward to returning home!

St John Street at the Angel crossroads

On the positive side, it’s sunny, as you can see, though there are slowly drifting clouds that sometimes hide the sun.

We came this way round so as to see whether Jusaka was open. We were pretty sure it wouldn’t be, so sure in fact that we didn’t even bring our reusable cups with us. We were right: they were closed.

A familiar corner

We turned up Chadwell Street into Myddelton Square, familiar territory, yes, but I enjoyed the sunlight on these elegant Georgian-style houses, seeming to make them smile back at me.

Arboreal lacework

With the arrival of autumn this year, I have learned to admire the shapes of these old trees, revealed by the fall of the leaves. For how many long years have they stood where they are, absorbing rain and sunshine, stretching their limbs and branching out to take advantage of the available light? To them, we must seen to dart about like frenetic and short-lived insects, while they measure their hours on the slow clock of the seasons.

Church and trees

St Mark’s Church has been here since the 1820s and, while I am not religious, I appreciate the symbiosis, both actual and poetic, that exists between it and the trees. As the church and its gravestones have aged, the trees have grown and extended their canopies, weathering stonework and spreading branches measuring time together.

Chairs and tables at the deli

On the way to the deli, I remarked to Tigger that it was so cold that the coffee we bought there would have cooled by the time we reached home. When we arrived there, we saw that they had put out their tables and chairs. Tigger suggested we take our coffee here. At first I wasn’t keen because of the cold but here, on this corner in the direct sunlight, it was not too bad. So we had coffee and cake outside in the sun.

A view from the deli

The sun was quite low and from where we sat was reflecting off the windows, dazzling the view in some directions. Even so, it was quite pleasant sitting out like this, despite the cold.

Red bows

On the way home (not carrying rapidly cooling coffee!), we kept a lookout for new Christmas decorations. This first-floor window is embellished with red bows.

At least, I assume they are decorations for Christmas though they might have some other purpose.

Wreath with white roses

I also added to my “collection” of wreaths. Last time, I remarked that pine and fir cones seemed to be a standard ingredient of wreaths. Apparently not always: this one has green leaves and white roses. No cones.

And, yes, I was glad to be home and in the warm again, even though I had enjoyed my coffee on the pavement!