retiredmartin

October 2024. Boston (UK).

I stopped in Boston after lunch at Anton’s Gowt,

somehow convinced that 200 steps up one of our steepest church tower was a great idea straight after 1,955 calories of stodge.

But climbing St. Botolph’s Stump is the best way possible to confirm that, indeed, Lincolnshire is still very flat,

and if you ever thought that graffiti only started in 1963 you’ll soon be disabused.

Graffiti was so much nicer in the eighteenth century.

The views from Boston to the Wash aren’t quite on a par with those from the cathedrals of Cologne or Ulm,

but you can pick out the town’s Wetherspoons, which is a joy.

A fiver for a ticket, numbered “1”, which you return on your return 20 minutes later. I think I did it in 21 minutes in 2018, so expect a 19 minute PB in 2030.

“And if I don’t come down within two hours you come up and fetch me, yeah ?” I’d said to a man who shakes his head.

St Botolph’s is a gem of a parish church,

its library of ancient books a testament to centuries of religious ferment.

Which makes it entirely appropriate I leave you noting the Christian values of the owner of Locks and Leather, who repaired my dad’s watch strap (bracelet) for free asking only for a small donation in the charity box,

and asked that I wished him all the best when I visited his care home later. What a lovely man.