pumpkinstrokemarrow

Most of the lunch break was, in consequence, spent pondering about whether the fee for the concert covered the bill for the dress. One theory was that as a young female performer the fashion house might do the dress gratis, by way of an advertisement, but I was not convinced that the pianist, good though she was, was eminent enough for that. Not exactly in the same league as the late Elizabeth Taylor, whom I seem to remember rather abused her freebie privileges towards the end of her career.

Then off to Whitecross Street to inspect the charity shop there, and on into the food market which looks to have displaced a vegetable market. Another of the vanishing markets of London. Food market more into hot takeaway food from around the world than farmers' market stuff, although there was a little of this last. For example, some nice looking cakes, going cheap as the market was shutting down, this being around 1500.

Interesting find from the charity shop in the form of a book by a journalist - Marc Reisner - about the water scene in the western United States. From which I learn various things. First, there is very little water in most of these western states. Not suitable for the sort of farming practised in the eastern states - and northern Europe - at all. Second, these western states were home to all kinds of gigantic land fiddles in the second half of the 19th century - pretty much on the same scale as the rip-off of national assets by the oligarchs. Third, the feds have spent and continue to spend huge amounts of money - billions and billions - on huge water projects which then go on to sell the water to farmers in those same western states at a fraction of the true cost. Farmers who think that any other kind of federal spending - perhaps on the poor or the sick - is much the same as communism. And then there are all kinds of technical problems. Water tends to evaporate if you shoot it up into the desert air in a show-off fountain. Irrigation seems to result in salination, both of the land and of the downstream water. Apparently the Mexicans got a bit cross about this a few years back. The fossil ground water which feeds these water projects is scheduled to run out in the life time of our children. Maybe those nice people up in Canada can be persuaded to ship some of theirs south? All looks to be a very hot - or perhaps a very dry - potato.

I wonder if it is much the same story in Israel?

Quick foray into the rather grand public library in the Barbican. Tempted by the selection of beautifully bound Pathfinder maps for sale at 10p a pop but failed to find one with which we could claim even a vague connection. Plus slightly damaged by that irritating public library habit of tearing out the front page of things they are getting rid of. Neighbouring conservatory shut but central ponds and gardens looking as good as ever. Good place for a central pad. Will I ever get to see inside one?

Home to a reprise of the Op. 31 sonata on my half century old loudspeakers, on which half seemed to be missing. So, more or less on a whim, off to Sevenoaks and bought some new stuff. Pro-Ject, Marantz and Bowers & Wilson, the last two of which I had never before heard of but which came out OK on a quick peek on the Internet. Affordable, up & running and most of the missing half of Op. 31 recovered. It even made a decent job on a rather scruffy disk from the USSR which must be as old as the old speakers. Oborin & Oistrakh doing Grieg's sonata No. 2 on a label called Mezhdunardnaya Kniga. And I thought that kniga was something to do with books. But the full story can be seen at http://www.mkniga.ru/.

I liked the sales staff at Sevonoaks (http://www.ssav.com). Pleasant, efficient and came up with something I like, on budget. Only problem now is to decide whether to wear the speaker grills or not. BH is very keen on them being worn, partly to tone down the high tech. appearance and partly to keep dust off.