Wither Poor Bill and Planking Pine

Crikes what a lovely day,

and wither poor Bill.

During my time plodding about this planet, Bill Withers, live at Carnegie Hall, must be up there in the top ten albums that I have most listened to.

Ok the standards referencing sunshine and leaning on people,



and Yes the voice, Bernard on guitar and Mr James Gadson on drums (the coolest couple of hammers ever to knock a nail in),

but some of the lyrics are sublime. "I can't write left handed" is up there as one of the best anti war songs ever written (and Bill went to war) and the much sampled "Grandma's hands" will always leave a warm glow, and then there's the melancholy of "Hope she'll be happier" and the bounce of Harlem/ Cold Baloney.

Watch "Still Bill" online and you get a measure of the man, top bloke and super talented. Just wish he'd written more songs.

Bill Withers was something else.



Anyway the river.

Continues to clear, weed grows and flies hatch. This collection of short films sought to demonstrate fish rising to a fly. While I did my bit, the trout didn't comply. During the filming of each of these epics, fish rose off camera to a trickle of olives.

Which brings to mind a short piece I wrote for some magazine many years back. Sub editors are clever people who can put all the words the right way round for which we give great thanks, but the question "do trout prefer green or black olives, and will they mind if they are stuffed" demonstrated a degree of disconnect for the subject under discussion.

Been planking pine for a raised bed order the past few days. There's chalk to shovel tomorrow and a bridge to build next week. It's a shame we won't be opening on Easter Monday. I may put up a rod and flick a fly towards the water sometime next week by way of succour for all those who can't touch base with the river bank in the coming weeks.

Should be in Porto today. Punishing the Iberian beef and delicious Duoro at a much vaunted restaurant called Mu.

The sirloin and Duoro from Aldi provided a thin veneer of balm, for which we give thanks,

Well done everybody working in shops still open, we couldn't do without you,

Although BA are being a tad tardy regarding a refund for flights.