Day 2655
Saturday February 7th 2026
Winchester
Another dash for a hopefully rain free session…like father like son, Gareth Junior is wowing the masses at the top spot. There’s a stall at the crossroads spot and I don’t fancy Nando’s today, which leaves The Square and quite a late start-up time just after 4. I notice Graham having a browse around the Rodd & Gunn shop just up from The Eclipse and wonder if he’ll come over to me…and he does – ‘You alright? Ben here long?’ he says.
‘No, a few minutes…just waiting for it to start up.’ “It” being the rain, obviously.
‘I know. Thirty seven days in a row.’
‘Yeah, I saw that on the news, as well.’
‘Must be hard for you, trying to play and it’s raining all the time.’
‘Yeah, it is but I’m off to Florence next week so I won’t worry about it for a few days.’
‘Ooh, very nice. A cultural exchange?’
‘Well, it’d be a one-sided cultural exchange as I won’t have a guitar!’
‘Well, you COULD take your guitar. Do some Verdi or Bellini?’
‘I’m not THAT good! I’m competent! It’d be just me be doing the usual stuff, 60’s pop.’
Anyway, for once the coinage is decent – I even had a “two CDS for £15, only today in Winchester” sale, which had become quite rare and a nice compliment to boot – ‘Keep making everyone happy’ the bloke said as he walked away. “Everyone”? – that might be an ever-so slight exaggeration but I wasn’t going to complain. That sale was early on so that cheered me up no end and I could relax a bit. I had a bloke drop in $11 – a $1 and a $10 note. The $10 note was something I don’t think I’ve ever seen before. It’s worth around £8 but that’s before the bank takes off whatever it is, something like £4, so I reckon I’ll get £4 out of it for my trouble but £4 is £4. So the takings were £38.25 plus whatever I get out of the yank dosh*.
Oh, I almost forgot, I revised something I haven’t done for a while – Winchester Cathedral. I was playing standing up around half the time and occasionally I’d turn and face the revered building, so I thought I’d pay due homage.
*On Monday I took the week’s coinage to the bank, along with the $11 and was surprised and delighted to get £7.28 for it with no processing fee. So the revised takings are £45.53.
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