Today we travel two hours north from London to Bury St Edmunds, to stay with my cousin Sally. We'll also be visiting my 91 year old Auntie Beth, my mother's sole surviving sibling, who lives in a nursing home near Sally. We're being driven by another of my cousins, Barbie, who's Sally's sister. It's a sunny day, so Barbie says we should take the scenic route through some of East Anglia's small villages. Apart from being very attractive, they're also notable for their quaint names, Great Dunmow and Steeple Bumpstead amongst them. Many of the older houses have thatched rooves, which despite appearances to the contrary are apparently very waterproof and provide good thermal insulation. The downside is that they need to be replaced every now and then, which Barbie says is becoming increasingly difficult as
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