Cwmderi Diary 2018: 12 November 2018

"DJ, this is your father"

Dai is trying to contact DJ, but has to leave a message; “This is your father – I was just phoning to check that everything’s all right.

"The bloke from the printers called"

“The bloke from the printers called here and brought a copy of the order of service with him. I don’t know what you want to do with it – it’s up to you, but I’ll leave it in the shop for you.

"The thing to do now is to move on"

“Listen, I know you’ve been hurt, right, but it’s better for you to be hurt now than down the line – that’s what I think anyway. The thing to do now is move on, DJ – don’t lock yourself away in a dark room and dwell on your thoughts – that will only make matters worse.”

The message wakes DJ . . .

DJ is on the sofa in the shop flat when his phone sounds to announce the arrival of the message;

. . . who is not interested

when he sees who sent it, he puts the phone down again. Sioned comes in and wishes him good afternoon;

"Thanks for putting me up, Sioned"

he thanks her for the accommodation, and she replies, “It’s the least I could do – you did the same for me.”

More Aldi product placement

As she opens the packet of Aldi Harvest Morn fruit and fibre, DJ comments that it is more noisy here than at Bryntirion. She thought that when she moved from Penrhewl,

"I'll make you a black coffee"

and she offers to make him some black coffee.
He does not feel like going to work, but Sioned says that it will probably do him good;

"Sitting in front of a computer, pretending to work?"

“What? Sitting in front of a computer, pretending to work?” he replies, “That’s what I did all day on Friday. But who’s going to question a man who has made a fool of himself and had his heart broken?”

"I've never lived so close to a pub"

He realises that he has never lived so close to a pub before,

"Be proactive, DJ!"

but Sioned advises him, “Don’t let her win – don’t give up – be proactive! It would do you more good than going to the Deri, don’t you think?”

Kath is cooking up some chutney

Kath is cooking a batch of chutney at Maes-y-Deri, and Mark complains that it is like a Turkish bath in the house; Kath replies that it is imposible to rush these things,

"Auntie Margaret was famous for her chutney!'

adding, “My Auntie Margaret was famous for her beetroot and apple chutney – it’s in the genes, isn’t it?”
She invites them to taste her concoction, and Mark hopes it does not taste as bad as it smells;

"Urgh – it tastes worse than it smells!"

as Debbie says that it tastes worse, he roars, “You can’t take that to Penrhewl!”

"How can I rescue it?"

Kath wonders how she can rescue it, but Debbie concludes, “Not even the lifeguards at Cefn Sidan could rescue that!”

"What smells of cat pee?"

Dai arrives with a bag of Bethan’s stuff from Bryntirion, and enquires, “What smells of cat’s pee?” Mark does not know what is going to do with all Bethan’s belongings, and Debbie suggests that he should burn them.

"Take them to Megan's shop, Mark"

Kath says that there is no need for that, and Mark decides to take them to Megan’s shop, so perhaps someone can benefit from this mess.

"Want to try some chutney, Dai?"

“Do you want to try some of this chutney?” asks Kath, but, warned by both Debbie and Mark shaking their heads, he decides to go.

Ffion is preparing a celebration for Hywel

Ffion is supervising Arwen and Esther as they prepare a surprise party for Hywel; she tells Rhys that he must not be so negative, but he says his father may not like it. “We’re not making a huge fuss,” she says,

"He hasn't bothered about birthdays since Meilyr"

but he recalls that his father has not celebrated his birthday since Meilyr.
“I suggested it last year when he was 50, but he was not interested,” he frets; Ffion thinks he is worrying too much.

"I know Hywel and what he likes"

She assures him that she knows Hywel, and knows what he likes – that is why she has made this for him.

She has compiled a photo album

She produces a photo album of her and Hywel, when they were younger; “Memories that will cheer him up, I hope – and he won’t want to let the girls down.”

"Happy Birthday!"

Just then the door opens, and they all greet Hywel with, “Happy Birthday!”

"I thought we all needed cheering up!"

Rhys points out that it was not his idea, and Ffion will take the blame, telling Hywel that they all needed cheering up.

Hywel appreciates what they have done

He is very grateful that they have thought of him, and Ffion will go and fetch a drink.

"I'm going to cancel everything"

Sioned is surprised to see that DJ is up, and he reassures her that he is not going to the Deri, but has some work to do; “I’m going to the shop to cancel the wedding pamphlets, and then I’m going to cancel everything else!”

"It won't be that easy"

She warns him that it will not be easy, but DJ is determined.

Eifion has been working hard out in the fields

At Penrhewl, Eifion returns and informs Jim that he has done all he was required to do; “I don’t know how we’d manage without you!” Jim compliments him.

"Do you think I should move back here to live?"

“Do you think I should move back here to live?” Eifion asks, “I could do a lot more work,” but Jim is very dubious. “You know it makes sense – you just said my work is top-notch,” Eifion goes on, “There’s a good reason for that – no-one knows this farm like I do. I belong here! I’m not trying to take over – I want what’s best for the farm.”

"Your recent chequered history . . ."

Jim does not think that this is a good idea; “Look, your recent chequered history is still very raw,” he says.

"You're happy with my work, but not with me"

Eifion comes to the conclusion, “You’re happy with my work, but you’re not happy with me. At least, we understand each other.”

Mark has not yet been to the charity shop

Mark has not yet taken the stuff to the charity shop, and his mother is still trying to make some edible chutney.

He indicates chutney batch IV is in progress

He tells Debbie that she is now on batch number four; “There’s so much steam in here, you could peel the wallpaper,” he complains.

"You've just sat there, taking the mick!"

Kath exclaims, “You haven’t helped at all – you’ve just sat there, taking the mick! I’ve wasted a lot of money, and a lot of food today.” Mark reminds her that it is her fault for making promises to Jim.

"Let's taste batch number four"

Debbie propose that they taste batch number four, to see what it is like, but Kath initially refuses; Debbie persuades her,

"Hey, that's very nice!"

and is quite astonished, as it tastes very nice.

"Practice makes perfect, Mam!"

Mark agrees with this assessment, and comments, “Practice makes perfect!”

"That's a very nice birthday cake

Hywel is enjoying his birthday cake, and maintains that he can tell that the two girls helped to make it; “Little hands make a better birthday cake than big hands.”

"I don't know if you deserve your present!"

Ffion does not know if he deserves his present, now.

"I thought you'd like to see some old faces"

“I thought you would like to see some old faces,” she tells him,

The faces of Hywel and Siôn . . .

and he looks through the album,

. . . Denzil and Dai . . .

where there are many faces from the past.

. . . and a much younger Ffion

He remarks upon Ffion’s hairstyle in one of the pictures, and then asks where one of them was taken;

"That was our honeymoon"

“That was our honeymoon – don’t tell me you’ve forgotten!” she replies.

Hywel is indeed greatly cheered

As she had hoped, the album has cheered up Hywel considerably, and Rhys is glad that he is enjoying his party.

DJ is cancelling wedding arrangements

As DJ comes out of the shop, he is on the phone, cancelling the arrangements; “Don’t apologise – these things happen, don’t they?” he says,

Mark is on the way to Apêl Maenan

and then meets Mark, who tells him he is taking Bethan’s stuff to Megan’s shop. He does not think that anyone will know it is hers.

"I'm just cancelling the wedding!"

“I’m great!” DJ informs him, “I’m just cancelling the wedding!” and Mark maintains that it is best to keep busy. “If Megan refuses anything, make sure you burn it!” DJ growls,

Mark is concerned

and this concerns Mark.

Jim joins Eifion at the bar

Jim comes into the Deri, and approaches Eifion in a subdued mood; “I’ve done everything you asked me to do – and done it well!” Eifion insists,

"No-one's questioning the standard of your work"

and Jim replies that no-one is questioning the standard of his work. “No, just questioning my ‘chequered past’,” Eifion goes on, and walks to a table.

"I think it makes perfect sense"

Jim follows him; “Just so you know, I think it makes perfect sense that you are back at Penrhewl – I thought you’d be grateful.”

"You've changed your mind, then"

Eifion cannot understand why he has changed his mind, but Jim says that he thought it a good idea from the start.

"I'm worried about what Eileen would say"

“I was worried about what Eileen would say,” he adds, and thinks he had better go back home.

"Eileen is all right about it, isn't she?"

“Eileen is all right about it, isn’t she?” Eifion asks,

"I wouldn't be so foolish!"

and Jim assures him that he would not be so foolish as to suggest it, without discussing it with Eileen first. “No, even you wouldn’t be that foolish, would you?” Eifion laughs.

"I don't want another chutney episode!"

Mark returns home and tells Debbie that he does not want to go through the chutney episode again; “I saw DJ on the way to Megan’s,” he tells her,

"DJ was cancelling the wedding arrangements"

“He was busy cancelling the wedding arrangements.” She says that keeping busy will be helpful to him,

"It doesn't look as if DJ agrees with you"

but Mark does not think that DJ agrees.

"He'll feel better after it's all cancelled"

“It’s only natural that doing something like that will help him move on – just as you took Bethan’s stuff to Apêl Maenan. He will feel better after it’s all been cancelled.”

Mark is definitely not convinced . . .

Mark is far from convinced,

. . . and looks at the postcards DJ sent to Non

and takes from his pocket the postcards which DJ had sent from his cruise.

Jim samples the chutney

At Penrhewl, Jim is very impressed with the chutney, and tries several of them;

"Beetroot and apple, that one"

it appears that the beetroot and apple has quite a kick to it. He is very grateful to Kath,

She is rewatrded with a Christmas pudding . . .

and gives her a Christmas pudding to thank her for her hard work.

. . . which is not what she expected

“Where’s my money?” she demands, “For making the chutneys? Didn’t you employ me full-time?”

"I thought you were doing us a favour "

but Jim was under the impression she was doing them a favour. “Do you know how much time and money I’ve spent on this?” she roars,

"You've got your wires crossed here!"

“A Christmas pudding! Do you know what? You’ve got your wires crossed here – perhaps we can sort something out by next time.”
Jim informs her that there will be no next time,

She makes sure she seizes the Christmas pudding

so she tells him, “You can stuff your job, Jim Probert!” and walks out, but not before grabbing the Christmas pudding.

"I hear that DJ is on your sofa"

Sioned is drinking in the Deri when Dai comes in; “I hear that DJ is on your sofa – how is he?”

"He's been keeping busy – cancelling the wedding"

She reports that he is keeping busy, as his father told him to do, and has been cancelling the wedding. Then she sees DJ coming in, and makes herself scarce.