Day 2709
Sunday June 28th 2026
Winchester
The heat wave now over (it lasted from last Monday through to Friday…well, it was a couple of degrees cooler yesterday but still 27-29), I’m back at the traditional Sunday spot in The Square.
As I’m setting up, a little boy asks ‘What are you doing?’
‘Well, I’m going to play my guitar.’
‘Why?’
‘That’s a good question which I often ask myself. Well, to get some money, hopefully.’ He soon disappears and my captive audience for the first hour are three girls, aged 8 to 10, I’m guessing. They sit in front of me and chalk away on the pavement. One does her two hands in purple! They draw the guitar – a six string one – ‘That’s very good but see my guitar? It’s got twelve strings.’The drawing remains unaltered. No matter! They occasionally ask a question –
‘What’s that?’
‘Oh, this thing on my finger? It’s a plastic thumbpick.’
They are certainly sweet – when they get bored with drawing they dance, one does a cartwheel, which looks so easy but then of course it does – she’s 8 years old!
And they’re all very appreciative, clapping at the end of loads of songs, which is more than anyone else does.
That’s all very nice but after an hour the coinage is £1.50 and I’m thinking of packing it in, especially after the girls are reined in and go off towards the cathedral. Then I get a pound and decide to do another half hour and get around a fiver for that.
I eventually managed the usual two hours and got a last minute £8 QR donation from a young guy sitting outside Three Joes, which jacked the total up to £23.92.