Friends, Southend and unexpected visitors!!!!!

I am grateful to God that throughout my ministry I have made some good friends.

One of those friends entered my life about 4 years ago when she arrived in Stanford le Hope as the new curate.

So it was good to be able to spend some time with Jokey on Friday 12 August.

We had a beautiful summer day in which we could spend some time together.

We decided that we would visit Thorpe Bay, we had a lovely walk along the prom and rewarded ourselves with fish and chips followed by an ice cream.

On returning to the car at about 4pm, Jokey decided that she would like to show me a part of Shoeburyness that she had found, it was once a military base, I have to say it was a good job that the army wasn't relying on Jokey's navigational skills!!! BUT after about 45 minutes we finally found the place she was looking for.

We also managed to find our way to the beach! It certainly was a beautiful part of Shoeburyness.

In fact for that afternoon it was our little part of paradise!!!

It also gave me an opportunity to learn a little about my new camera, and practice taking some different shots, and even use the zoom to its full potential.

We returned to Stanford le Hope by about 8pm, I then journeyed onto Waltham Abbey, after a cuppa  with my neighbour, I went in home to open my post and unpack.

Imagine my horror when I discovered some unwelcome guests, an infestation of flies in the lounge. I hoovered up what I could of the dead flies, and then spent Saturday morning on my knees moving all the furniture and sweeping every inch of carpet with a dustpan and brush, and hopefully they have now been eradicated!!!!!

If they have any sense they will have moved out, because if they are still there on my return home on Thursday 18 August from my mums then the next option will be a pest control company!!!!

UPDATE

I am please to announce that there was so sign of any flies on my return!!!!!