Viva Lewes Issue #114 March 2016

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Lewes Out Loud
Plenty more Henty
A literary friend
once described a
collection of my
cryptic poems as
‘certainly mind
over doesn’t
matter’. I think
it was meant as a
compliment. Put
it this way, I didn’t
object at the time
and even today, the five carefully chosen words
continue to resonate in my zany approach to
everyday life.
Take this photograph, for example, of which
I am unduly proud. It was grabbed, at great
risk to myself, in Malling Street on a damp
Sunday morning. As frustrated motorists know
only too well, a new Puffin crossing has been
installed there and word of it soon reached our
plump feathered friend, via Twitter, of course.
Now he’d heard of Zebra, Pelican, Panda and
even Toad crossings but to have one custom
made for himself – well, that was special and
also important because living close-by the Pells,
he occasionally needs to visit relatives on the
other side of town – a hazardous journey mostly
undertaken at night.
You can understand, therefore, how disappointed
he must have been to arrive on site only
to find the crossing ‘not in use’. I just happened
to be there to witness the moving moment and
will certainly offer the resulting rare photographs
to colleague, Michael Blencowe, and
possibly David Attenborough.
From puffins to muffins now and a lovely café
menu I found at the Town Hall market last
month (yes – I’m still collecting). From the
1920s, it detailed the bill of fare for The Arcade
Café on Worthing
seafront. A special
four course lunch
would have cost
half-a-crown,
Welsh rarebit
sixpence and a
toasted muffin – a
mere threepence.
Where can you
find muffins on
offer in cafés today? Like puffins, it seems, they
are an endangered species, which is a shame. By
the way, have you noticed how many establishments
are now adding food and drink to
accompany their normal merchandise? It won’t
be long before the North Street cop shop will
have to throw in a cuppa, or coppa, for visiting
clients. Now there’s an arresting idea.
Personally, I always enjoyed the tea and repartee
that could be found in the Runaway Café at
the railway station, so it was a bonus to discover
that owner, Jackie, has now branched out and
opened what is called PJ’s@30 on Station Street.
Kath is in charge and, whilst muffins are not on
the agenda, I liked the smart look of the place.
Finally, before it slips my mind, a Lewes-related
moment to relish. Not so long ago, I found
Hannah, a student herbalist, showing interest
in a small plant growing on the bank of our
drive in Southover. She asked if she could take a
cutting of it, and I happily agreed. Apparently,
the charming Hannah seeks out such healthgiving
herbs in urban settings as well as in the
surrounding countryside. Purple Toadflax
(linaria purpurea) grows on chalk in Southern
England and is particularly good for alleviating
stress she told me. I smiled. It works!
John Henty
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