... the other day. A few miles from work in Norfolk, I noticed in front of me a car identical in every respect to mine. A mile or two further on, I noticed another car, this time behind, that for some reason I felt was following me. I thought no more about it and eventually pulled into the car park at work (as, it transpired, did my tail) and was about to get out when I noticed a gentleman standing next to my car looking a bit forlorn. I opened my door and asked if I could help.  "Oh, it's not you" was his reply. "Oh dear" he went on, "My friend, who I thought I was following, has a car identical to yours and I appear to have lost him. D'you know the way to the dog show?" I didn't.

On the pretext of seeing if Learned Counsel had any 'P' clips, I slipped next door to see what progress had been made with the paintwork for the Jowett Jelly Bean. With all the rubbing down that's been going on, I expected to see a bit more than just a door with a bit of green on it. Ok, the quarter light and the window winding mechanism took most of an afternoon to fit but, that's no excuse. I think he must have the sound of a sanding machine on a loop and he's sitting there reading a magazine.

Anyway, I've been busy even if Learned Counsel's been a bit slack. The new face for the water temperature gauge is much nicer than the first one I did  (I still can't understand quite what I was thinking of the first time round). I've added the words 'Water Temp" and "Cooper Stewart" to give it a bit of authenticity and to match the other instruments.

The aircraft mag switches look nice and, continuing the theme, the Kigass pump is also an interesting addition. The mag switches will work the fuel pump and the starter relay - a master switch in effect. The Kigass pump will operate the choke.

The rear floor is taking shape; the bulkhead which forms the back of the luggage compartment is roughed out only. I got the measurements a bit wrong for the cutouts that accommodate the longerons so I'll need to glue in a couple of bits to fill the gaps. All the washer plates and, whilst I had the pot of black to hand, the friction damper brackets, are finished and assembled. The body framework has firmed up considerably since everything was tightened up.

You may recall that I grumbled about a tin of French Onion Soup that I'd bought in a supermarket. Well, on reading that particular entry, Cook rustled up a batch of her own recipe and, in exchange for some Norfolk bacon, gave me a portion to try out. I added pieces of my homemade walnut bread toasted with cheese as croutons and it was all every bit as good as I remember having in the restaurant in Charlotte Street; probably better.

After a suitable interlude, I might cast a few aspersions on Poulet à l'Ail..... Mmmmmm