Hardwick Hall day

My usual wake up checks, early morning pills and then a bit of a lay in. Thinking. If I’ve got less time than I thought, can I slow it down? This thought is not quite as random as it may first appear.

In Robert Colville’s book The Great Acceleration he demonstrates that people are actually speeding up. Americans are walking faster over the same measured ground than they did. In Asia people used to walk slower than Americans over the same distant, but now they are walking even faster than the modern day Americans. Stock brokers will fight to be closer to the terminals of their offices because of the differential in the speed of the fiber optics and every where consumers are demanding ever faster delivery. In the midst of all this speeding up is it possible to slow things down? That of course depends on your view of time. Having read Carlo Rovelli I know that time is not the stable, static thing it is conventionally thought to be, in fact it seems that the really clever people haven’t got a clue what it is only that it is not what it apears to be. If in fact it exists at all. If you don’t believe me read the three below.

• 

• 

• 

So slowing time seems to be a bit tricky even though time seems to fly when I need more to do whatever I need to do quickly. My all time favourite book that goes with me everywhere is Zen Mind, Begginers Mind. In effect it is a series of short discourses and observations on being able to sit. It appears that being able to just “sit” time becomes less pressing and loses its urgency.

Anyway all this thinking about time has meant that my coffee has gone cold (not much paying attention there), and its time to get under way for Hardwick Hall.

A quick zip up the mortorway and we are soon at Hardwick Hall. Its Monday and as everyone except me and my partner know that nothing fully opens on a Monday, not even the village barber. So we arrive all enthusiastic at this National Trust beauty to find the house is not open, only the gardens, and the below stairs display is open. Of course the shop full of must have crafted goods and the restaurant is open. Getting into view the limited open areas is a test of nerve and sales resistance. The young enthusiastic entry receptionist did her best to join us up to the national trust. In the end we were lucky to get away with paying the restricted facilities price but with an added on gift aid premium. It felt very uncomfortable and I was begining to consider making a Safeguarding complaint.

Past the owl and straight into the restaurant for a fortifying scone and hot chocolate. A preemptive visit to the facilities and we are then onto the gardens and the kitchen display. An enthusiastic volunteer was there to tell us all about the kitchens and the life below stairs aspects of the hall. Fascinating stuff. We wander the gardens and admire them untill we emerge at the rear of the house where there is a mirror sided box. On closer inspection it claims to show the future of energy usage. There is a woman chatting to other people waiting to enter the mirror box, I catch her asking a couple about smart meters. Our turn to sit in the mirror box. Its a video about energy conservation and how Hardwick Hall now has biomass boilers and of course smart meters. Three minutes of subtle “we are all stuffed energy wise” and of course “you need a smart meter” and we get released. We wander bemused around the gardens and try to regain our composure over a snack. More wandering around the dhalias and an abortive attempt to walk the sculpture path past the closed stonemasons yard and we have had enough. Its back to the car and home.

Tomorrow is plumber day and if he gets on with it we might make it to the zoo.