Looking smart

Angus and I both sleep late. We have a light lunch and then head for Swindon, leaving mum to snooze the afternoon.

Today is the first time that Swindon feels as grim as it is normally described. We traipse around the Brunel centre and associated shopping streets. There are many vacant units and lots of chain stores and charity shops. I eventually get a couple of things for the niece and nephew, but the whole experience is unsatisfying.

We pick up Megan after work and head back to Bedwyn. Angus puts on a new shirt for dinner, looking really smart, and it’s off to the Palm. Luckily Google know where it is, because I don’t and mum is confused about which side of Froxfield it is.

The Palm is a very swanky Indian restaurant in a spacious, glazed, warm building on the A4. The staff all welcome my mother back, although she has few memories of having been before.

They’re busy and understaffed, so service is slow. But the food is good - if a bit too heavy on cream and too light on spice. The methi mutter malai was probably the outstanding dish of the meal.

Back home mum is first to bed, followed shortly by Angus. Megan and I watch Another Round, a Danish black comedy starring Mads Mikkelsen, about teachers drinking in the workplace. We’re prepared for a dark ending, but there’s a sense of redemption that pulls it back from the edge.