instructions

i don't know why it is, but my family are absolutely useless at reading instruction manuals - ie we just never do it - eric and i seem to find it a bit of a joke to press all the buttons of any new appliance and then be astounded when they don't work - though i must admit that since losing boogs and not having him on hand to put me right, i have been forced to read them sometimes - but only as a last resort you understand

but o just about takes the biscuit!!

fran, alex and i visited yesterday and during the course of the afternoon, o was demonstrating how wonderfully clean and shiny her microwave is - and of course, despite being 86 and having no help at all in the house, hers is the most immaculately clean house i have ever known (she's a bit conceited about it though!!!). but after we had all been dazzled by the silver coloured outer casing nd lectured on how it was still in pristine condition 'after sree years', she then told us how annoyed she was at having found a 'spot' on the top which she had wiped off and then discovered that the vinyl coating had started to peel away! this is the vinyl coating which one is supposed to peel off before ever using the machine!! i pointed out the large white notice on the top which states this fact twice (!) to which she replied that she never reads manuals or instructions because she doesn't 'need to'!!!

and then . . .

she told us how 'stupid' the microwave is because she could only cook food at 180 degrees C which is 'not very good' - she then showed me how she uses it and where the display for the temp is - it was lucky i was there really beacuse i was able to point out the 2 little buttons side by side just under the temp display one of which says '-C' and the other, '+C' - which magically alters the temp by 10 degrees a time!!

and she's only had the darned thing 3 years!!

barking!!

more holidays??

june should be a good month for being away!

yesterday i booked a room for the night of helen and geoff's luncheon party - yay!! - had intended to go to the local premmy/lodgy place but after kath telling me on thurs that i was a 'manic depressive' and that i would be 'a long time dead' (cheery soul!!) i decided i would 'blow out' and book a room in the hotel along with everyone else - hoorah!!! - ivy hill here i come!!

tante edith phoned this morn - mainly to wish me a happy easter i think, though she did ask me about the austria trip!! - she's a dear old biddy but i do so hope she doesn't try to muscle in - e j and i were hoping to keep it a fairly low-key holiday but once the relatives get wind it's always possible it will turn out like last time when they either:

frogmarched us around the countryside making sure we kept to our 'schedule' (!!)

or:

invited us to their houses, manoeuvred us into corners and then attempted to kill us with cake!!

killing us with kindess really!

. . . or even be a manic depressive . . .

which is what someone at work described me as today!!
which is, i feel, is a little excessive!!

sometimes one can feel a little down . . .

. . . for really no reason at all
it hasn't been a bad couple of days since last i wrote:
had pleasant evening yesterday at liz and davids's . . .
fran and alex came round tonight . . .
. . . but feeling somewhat browned off and can't put my finger on why?
never mind! - i expect normal service will be resumed shortly . . .

fast forward to april

it has been some while now since i last blogged - mainly because i haven't been at home very much over the last couple of weeks

sheffield - spent a wonderful few days with stella, rich and the pies - didn't do an awful lot really - mainly talking (no!!!) with s and r, playing with k and j and holding c. had hoped to be able to take the bigger pies out for a walk in the park or such-like but the weather was dreadful all the time i was there so mostly we stayed in though we did manage a trip on the tram into the city to visit the children's library (very good on the whole but access is down a longish flight of stairs - with small children and buggies/prams????!!!!!)

had enjoyable mothering sunday meal with all 5 pies plus o and g, janey ,eric and peter and fran and alex brought cat up too - some day i shall write about it and everything that went hilariously wrong but i don't have the time right now

ruda - great hols with the 'usual suspects' - again didn't do much - trip out with janey and eric to lynmouth, walk up the river to watersmeet then super meal in the rising sun - visited dottie en route to collecting lizzie from taunton station after her interview at oxford (she's had an offer!! - also i went to exeter station first as arranged but an accident on the line meant i had to re-route to taunton - hahaha - it was quite a palaver!!!). the rest of the time was spent walking to billy budds and baggy point, talking, reading, drinking, eating, walking on the beach, the annual barbecue and generally relaxing - oh yes! and we had a great game of rounders - 'oldies' versus 'the young ones' in which we olds well and truly thrashed them young'uns!!! (history will be learnt from those who write the histories!)

vowley farm - called in on lorraine on the way home and had a chat, a mug of tea and a tour of the farm. saw most of the animals: cows, pigs (gloucester old spots), horses and the poultry - obviously well cared for and they are using no chemicals for their meat production. still its a hard life i think for anyone who is not sufficiently dedicated despite the idyllic surroundings and i admire them for all their hard work

lasagne - when i arrived home i found a lasagne in the oven which fran had made for my dinner - it was really tasty - much better than mine - darn!!!!!

manicure

For only the second time in my life, I have had a manicure!

I can hardly believe I have done such a 'girly' thing!

It was at Brenda's house last evening - pauline had told me about it whilst having a quiet drink in the Essex on Monday night - so i went along

It was a sort of get-together too - I knew almost everyone there which was good as the chat was very relaxed and entertaining - all the others seemed to be 'old hands' (haha) at the game as they had been to the 'indulgence evenings' which seem to be spreading like wildfire through all the schools in the area.

Well I must admit that my hands do look heaps better - yes even my stubby little paws!! - and if they don't look exactly elegant they are at least much smoother and the nails are painted a lovely browny type colour called 'vixen' - all the polishes had funny names like 'sin' and 'fickle' and 'precious' - I am mainly at home today so I just hope they don't get too chipped doing the housework - would rather like them to still look good when we go for the Mothering Sunday meal!!

the week so far . . .

. . . has been good . . .

Monday - 'new' sort of follow-up aywl group at liz and david's - this time we are looking at the previous sunday's gospel and pulling it apart to discuss it - very interesting - and the people in my group are really lovely

Tuesday - women's group - it was a 'music evening' at sue s's - i had imagined it would be rather high brow so, although i enjoy listening to music, i don't know all that much about it and thought i might be out of my depth - it wasn't like that at all - there were 10 of us - 2 teams and . . . this is difficult to describe . . . we had to 'play' a tune on a sort of plastic bag thing and then our team had to guess the tune. it was a fun evening - lots of jokes/laughs and the group is very friendly

Wednesday - day off - didn't do much really other than have a bonfire in the garden

Thursday - called in at Jackie's after work with photos of clara and to talk about camp reunion in april. eric phoned and spent aeons trying to sort our mothering sunday meal with o and g (help!!) - will update re that later

visiting . . .

arrived in sheffield soon after 8 saturday morning to spend the day with the 'reconstituted pies' - a lovely day!!

kezia and jago are very kind and patient with their new baby sister - and clara is adorable!!

stella seems very well and neither she nor rich appear anywhere near as exhausted as they were the first time we saw them after kezia's birth - strange that!! it's odd how the first baby takes over the whole house - usually both parents are run ragged trying to keep on top of things, life changes completely and it feels like things will never be calm and ordered again - i remember it well!! anyway the whole family is coping admirably and i can only repeat: clara is adorable!! - i held her virtually all the time i was there - just popped her in the moses basket whilst i had breakfast and lunch - and stella fed her a couple of times too - the rest of the time she just slept on my lap!! - marvellous!!! she is very cuddly!! she looks more like kezia - not at all like jago - but they change rapidly at this age so time will tell how she 'turns out'

jago is talking more and more - very easy to communicate with him now . . . . and kezia is a riot!!

there was a match on so i left sheffield mid afternoon to avoid traffic as much as poss and stayed overnight with janey and eric. had a lovely meal (pete/lorna were there too - but then they went into town for the night) and lots of laughs (as usual!!) but i was so tired i was practically falling asleep at the table

had a 'hearty' this morning and more laughs with all of them and then home

it was snowing in ashby - lots of lovely swirling 'white stuff' - but unfortunately it didn't settle and had stopped by the time i reached the m1 - wish we could have a decent snow fall at least once every winter!!

a new baby!!!

stella and rich's third baby was born at half past midnight this morning!

a little girl - clara

kezia is delighted to have a baby sister and jago has tried to give her his much loved penguin, bupp

the labour (at home but too fast for the midwife to arrive!!) was a triumph . . . but it's stella's and rich's story and i shall leave the telling to them

i am very proud of all of them!!!

johnny the razor

it's difficult to know who, if anyone, ever reads these ramblings. so when i wrote about my friend mick recently i didn't feel happy about revealing too much detail about his 'illness'. i wrote about his website and his bravery in setting it up but didn't give any more facts than that.

it was ridiculous to say so little! this is the very brave stance of a man who has been confronted with the news that he has cancer, has undergone chemo and is cheerfully and humourously continuing with his life. my admiration of him knows no bounds and the fact that he has set up a website at all testifies to his sincerity in wishing to help and encourage others in the same situation.

mick is likeable, intelligent and kind. he is immensely talented, good company and a thoroughly good friend. and his advice is just what anyone (and their friends and family) need if they suddenly find themselves battling with this horrible illness

mick's website is: www.johnnytherazor.co.uk

the 'well done' posting

liz came along to the end of the 6.30 mass so there could be 2 of us to 'man' the book swap table. quite a number of children's books had arrived at the 11.00 family mass which was just as well as we had very few children's or non-fiction. we think we have made almost £250 - and for very liitle effort too. there were 3 boxes of books left over at the end - but even those will be useful as they will be donated to the scouts for sale at their forthcoming jumble sale. plans are afoot to make this a regular event.

well done juliette !! - whose idea it was in the first place!!

had mail from stella this morning - no baby yet!! stella has been saying all along that the scan date was too early.

well done stella !! - for knowing what's what!!

busiest weekend in aeons!

and it isn't even over yet!

friday night was 'sainsbury's shop night' - so bought most of the ingredients for my 'dinner'

saturday morning - did 'remainder' shop and then buzzed along to church to help set up the book swap table - that hardly took any time at all so liz, katrina, cathy, juliette and i had a quick coffee and chat in the pc, then went home

saturday afternoon - did all my prep with lots of time to spare - just in case i had news of the baby and then spent yonks on the phone telling everyone else - (no news even yet!!) - which was just as well because as i was finishing the phone rang - stella???!!! - no it was kathy to say that she and tony were at asda and could they call in for an hour or so before they met up with friends at the harvester? it was lovely to see them and hear their news and soon after they left, lynn and mick arrived (mick sporting the most stylish of hats) and pauline and chas arrived not long after

saturday evening was great! it was lovely to get together - mick looks really well - better than he has for a long while - and is dealing with his illness most positively. he has set up an excellent website for people in the same situation which is a very brave thing to do i think. we all seemed to laugh a lot and to reminisce on times gone by

liz popped round briefly with the 'float' for me for tonight's mass and fran and alex came round when we were at the cheese and biscuits stage

fran and cooking

fran had phoned while kathy and tony were here and had asked me how i had cooked the lasagne - after i explained my method she had then said it was the 'wrong' way - although kathy assured me it was the 'right' way after i got off the phone - everyone else kindly said it was good - i thought it was jolly tasty! - but then she and alex polished off all the left-overs (so it couldn't have been that bad!!) and she still had the nerve to say she would have done it better!! - it was all very humourous however so no hard feelings!!

i had decided on toffee topped peaches as one of the puds - imagine my surprize on pulling it out from under the grill to find it positively on fire - blue flames leaping up - and all blackened on top!! pauline sprang to the rescue and together we scraped off the burnt bits and served it as a 'flambee' - we didn't tell fran needless to say!!

i would like to point out at this juncture that it's not that i can't cook it's just that i don't particularly want to - is that clear??

today - haven't done much so far - just read the papers and check for mails etc (did all the tidying last night before bed - phew!!)

i am on the last book swap at the 6.30 mass tonight - it will be interesting to assess how it has gone - we have had a good response so far it seems

first wednesday off!! (hoorah!!)

ash wednesday yesterday.

my 'lent attempt' is to get out of bed as soon as the alarm goes off - which was jolly hard when i had a day off!

went to mass at school - which was lovely but very l-o-n-g - so i didn't get up to daventry until almost 12.30 and o and g were somewhat worried. i would have phoned but thought that since mum was having her eye op and dad would be there alone it would be pointless - he wouldn't be able to understand what i was saying due to his deafness. mum's op had been cancelled after all - postponed really - but no clue yet as to when it will be

i had a great time with them - lovely lunch and then i went to visit someone they regularly take to mass and whom i had met before. we had got along really well that time and she had expressed a hope to meet up with me again. jean has a wonderful collection of old girls' story books - many of them the authentic article from the 1930s and looking at them and talking made the time pass all too quickly. we could have chatted much longer but i felt i should get back to o and g really.

i had another couple of hours with o and g - i have rarely laughed with them so much!! - we were all in high spirits - home about 8.30

stella and the pies

had a couple of emails from stella today so obviously no new baby yet!

peggy is moving out tomorrow to a bungalow in berkhamsted - i popped round with a bottle of wine and a wish for happiness in her new home - she is sad to leave - and i am sad to see her go - but it will be much better for her to nearer to more of her relatives - hope the 'new' people are as nice!!

lunch with elaine!

had a lovely relaxing lunch with elaine today at pizza et pizza.

we have been meaning to do this more or less since she came to work in the town hall - and today it turns out she has been there 4 years! anyway, it was well worth the wait!

we had lots of catching up to do, including photos of the children and g children and dara's wedding last summer - it was a great way to spend lunch time and i returned replete!

. . . and then had cakes to celebrate bev's last day today before going off on maternity leave

haven't needed any dinner!!!

quietest weekend in aeons!!

this weekend was 'collecting books and £1s' for the book swap after all masses next weekend

i did the sat evening slot with david but came to sun evening mass as well because fran had asked me to go with her as moral support for the confirmation inscription promise

we seem to be receiving far more money than books - people have been very generous and were donating pounds and taking tickets - but hardly any books arrived!!! am a little bothered that next weekend we won't have enough books to swap!! and we had been concerned that we would get loads of books people were glad to get rid of and not enough in the donation department!!

next sat/sun should be interesting to say the least!!

there were 9 candidates for the inscription promise - one of them was james - and david was there to

apart from a very quick trip to tesco's this afternoon (ugh!! nasty!!) i've only been out of the house for mass - it's been a very quiet weekend

it's a l-o-n-g story . . . .

. . . . and i can't be bothered to write it all down here . . . suffice it to say, i am very happy to report that i am going back to working a 4-day week again!! - slightly longer hours each day - but a whole extra day off - hoorah!!!!

maybe i shall get that attic sorted out at long last?

smiles . . . .

governors' meeting last night and i went straight from work which was good as i saw both fran and cat - and a fair number of the other teachers too because there was a junior disco on at the same time. fran and i stood in the dining room where they have been held since time immemorial (well . . . 1987 anyway!!) and reminisced! fran was amazed that it was exactly the same! it was still going at the end of the govs' meeting so i popped along to watch them all bopping - and yes!! it is exactly the same! nice!!

stella sent me a funny link in a mail to work today - this is it:

www.pictueresofwalls.com - didn't have time to look at all of it at work but sent it home and have laughed at it here - my favourite is:

fight apathy . . . . or don't

closely followed by:

BEWARE OF THE DOG

he is very sarcastic

hahaha!

apprehensive . . .

yesterday

stella's 26th birthday! - it's at times like this one wonders where the years have gone!! up until university days, all but her 5th and 18th birthdays fell during the spring half-term holidays so we always seeemed to be doing something to celebrate on the day - i was a little sad not being able to see her today

went to jackie's for dinner and had a truly wonderful evening - there were over a dozen of us round the table - all good friends i have known for yonks and the chat and laughter was a real treat! nearly everyone there will be going to taransay in the summer and it was time for me to tell them that i will not be able to go after all - i am disappointed but the cost of getting there is quite exhorbitant - £90 to get from skye to harris on the ferry (!!!!) let alone the cost of the petrol driving there and back - and train and plane isn't any cheaper!! - jackie did kindly offer to let me go up in their van but the 'freedom of the open road' - just me and the car - was a good part of the attraction - never mind! - another year maybe?

today

mary m had arranged a special mass for her parents - and all but 2 of her 9 brothers and sisters were there - the mass was beautiful, mary gave a lovely eulogy and then we went to the p centre for 'eats'. frances and mo and pauline came and kate was there too so we had a good ole 'natter' . . . and then i came home

fran and alex popped round for a cup of tea and then i had to dash out again for 6.30 mass as i had volunteered to explain about the book swap - i was very nervous but it was ok

p.s. i don't really know why i get so worried and apprehensive - this weekend it was about

a) the dinner at jackie's

b) the mass for mr and mrs m and

c) talking at mass

. . . and they were all fine - and my new year resolution was to try not to worry so much!!

there and back again again

zipped quickly up to sheffield yesterday afternoon to collect fran

poor kezia had been quite ill in scotland so they decided to cut their hols short and arrived back in sheff on wednesday night

i stopped at donington park on the way up for a coffee-in-the-car and stupidly sent a text to f to tell her where i was - cue the request for me to 'nip' into m & s and collect some lunch!! - so we had soup and bread with blueberry muffins for pud - or 'caaaaake' as jago called it

fran, kezia and jago were all peering out of the window when i arrived - cheery little faces smiling at me - aaahh!! - k is heaps better and none of the others appear to affected so all seems well - stella blooming - baby is due in just over a fortnight though she says she was much bigger by this stage with both others - hope it isn't born 2 days before i go away on my hols like jago was!! - i am looking forward to seeing him/her!!

fran and i left before 8 and had a good journey back down - dropped f off at her home and was home here before 11

work today not too bad but looking forward to the weekend - and a flexi day off on monday - hoorah!!!

book aid international

at one of the aywl meetings last autumn, juliette was telling us that across the developing world there are still millions of children not receiving an education. Book Aid International is an organisation working in partnership with these countries to create learning opportunites for people of all ages to help reduce poverty.

our group is now organising a 'book swap'

we will be asking as many people as possible to bring a favourite book to church and to exchange it for a £1 ticket

the following week all the books will be on display and tickets can be swapped for someone else's good book

all monies raised from the tickets will be sent to Book Aid International and used to help disadvantaged people.

liz, katrina, cathy and i were at a meeting at juliette's home this evening to iron out all the practicalities - we shall be giving a little 'spiel' at all masses this sat/sunday - not sure how successful it will be but we all feel it's worth giving it a go - will report back later

p.s. valentine's day today! - and ne'ery a one!!!

there and back again

picked frankie up soon after 11 and with only a short stop for 'breakfast' at toddington we made good time, arriving in stella's road around 2.30

mistake!!!

the house is only minutes away from hillsborough stadium and the place was heaving - i have never seen quite so many foottie supporters in one place - all converging on the 'ground' - it was like some sort of pagan ritual . . . and indeed perhaps it is! - next week when i collect fran it will be even worse though as it will be a local derby - stella says to get there early when there should be space to park outside their house before the mayhem begins

seeing the pies was lovely!! they have a tiny ikea table and 2 chairs that stella painted in bright colours and which they have in the bay window of the sitting room so they can do their 'work' and watch the people going by - they look so cute!! - and fran sat there too to do her lesson preps - really must get to grips with this digital camera lark so i can get some photos on the blog!

i stayed for dinner and then drove home - stella made the most scrumptious pudd - chocolate sauce and cream for which she gave me the recipe so i can impress p and c and m and l when they come for dinner in march

today has been quiet - phoned o and g - poor g's gout has come back and he has vowed to drink no more wine or beer - disaster!!!

working hard . . .

good week on the whole!

i have been really busy at work with heaps to do this week - which is very satisfying - had wednesday off and still managed to work more than my standard hours!!

tuesday evening: governors' meeting - went straight from work and was famished by the time i arrived home - tully looked fairly hungry too!

wednesday evening: reading group at jenny's - fran phoned just before i went out and said she and alex were coming to visit so left group earlier than usual - nice to see them both!

thursday: fran phoned just as i was leaving work to say her car won't be mended by the weekend as promised, so bothered about getting up to sheffield from whence she, stella and the pies were travelling on to scotland for a 5 day break - connections to sheffield not good from here so i said i would drive her up - jolly excuse for me to see the pies - hoorah hoorah and thrice hoorah!!! (and the car will be mended next week)

today: called in on cat, david and chillun to drop imy's bday card - 12 on monday!! - crikey!! - and i won't see them as they are all going down to rosings with janey, eric and pete/lorna - and lizzie and andy joining them for the weekend - jealous?? me??? - stopped for coffee and chat - cat looking very well and i even felt the baby move!!

so . . . quiet night in for me with 'me knittin' and an early start for sheffield in the morning

scooter

ha!!

it does sound like me - always the one chivying the others to meetings - "punctuality is the politeness of princes"

i was wondering as i did the quiz who i would turn out to be and i had forgotten all about scooter - yup!! says it all really!!

po et familiares

***You Are Scooter***
Brainy and knowledgable, you are the perfect sidekick.You're always willing to lend a helping hand.In any big event or party, you're the one who keeps things going."15 seconds to showtime!"
The Muppet Personality Testhttp://www.blogthings.com/themuppetpersonalitytest/

grand parents!

one of the few tv progs which can make me laugh out loud is 'one foot in the grave'; mostly, i think, because i could see boogs heading that way but now i can see myself hurtling in the same direction!!

and what has annoyed me this time is a sort of 'ageist' view of grandparenthood!

chatting at the annual school reunion yesterday (in the pub! - nothing changes!!) the subject of grandchildren came up. now only 2 of us actually are grandmothers so far and i heard one woman ask another if she had grandchildren? she hasn't and said so but this was then followed by a sort of general shaking of heads and mutterings about not wanting to be a grandmother 'yet' due to the fact that they are all 'too young'!!!!!

I DON'T BELIEVE IT!!!!!

but what really makes me laugh is the fact that of all the ones there, i am, in fact, the youngest by over 6 months!! and even i am well into my 50s!!

memory v well read . . . .

list-making: is the only way i can remember anything! i have lists of 'to do in the house' - and 'in the garden', lists of people to phone, lists of 'to do at work', lists of 'to read', lists of knitting projects, lists of 'to do this week', lists of 'to do this year', lists for when i shop, lists of things other people shoud do, lists of lists and even lists of lists of lists (well that one is a bit of exaggeration).

and today i had a list of things i had to do in my lunch break

and i suddenly remembered a book i had once read in which the maid servant (it was set in victorian times) was unable to read but managed to buy everything on the shopping list her 'mistress' gave her because she committed it to memory (fortunately the lady of the house always read it out to her before she went)

and i began to wonder if it was a little like when people are blind and they use their other senses more which then become more acute

and then i thought that perhaps having a poor memory is actually because i read so much and has nothing whatever to do with old age

so perhaps having a good memory is in inverse proportion to being well read - although of course it does make it difficult to remember the plot and the characters!!

so now what should i do? stop reading so much and improve the memory? or carry on reading and use that as my excuse?

. . . . and i will be back with a more sensible post another day . . . . if i remember

number plates

pootling along getting ready for work this morning, when the phone rang and it was fran - waiting for the police!

her car number plates had been stolen during the night and she was thus unable to drive and had to wait for the police to arrive so she could make a statement. i had been wondering all day why someone would bother to steal the plates - after all they would be pretty easy to spot!! - and thought perhaps it was just one of those things people stole these days - well i have to admit to 'nicking' the odd beer glass or striking tube poster in my youth! but then someone told me that the plates are stolen, put on a same-model, same-colour car, driven into the congestion charge part of london, filmed on cctv and then the unfortunate car-owner gets the bill! so it was just as well fran had phoned the police since at least she would be exonerated from any possible blame over mis-doings caught on camera - but it is still a darned nuisance for her having to sort out and pay for new plates - what a pain!!

sunday morning . . .

it's been a busy week!

monday and tuesday - spent most of both evenings on the phone but did manage to book our hols in austria in june - hoorah!!! - feel mildly euphoric as i managed to book the hotel in german - and they appeared to understand me!! - hope i haven't booked a week for 6 in july rather than 5 nights for 5 in june hahaha

wednesday - reading group at my house - had been reading 'the river' by tricia wastvedt for which everyone bar me gave very high scores - i had been annoyed by the loose ends and the way in which the story hopped around from past to present (well 1987/1990 at the end) although i did think it was very well written and certainly atmospheric. it was a good evening with 100% turn-out - a first for the group! wish my sitting room weren't so small!!

thursday - to london after work to see 'we will rock you' which i enjoyed so much - it was a great evening - lovely meal in good company at garfunkel's before the show and the show was tremendous. i had been expecting a queen tribute band so was surprized to find it was in fact a musical. it was hugely enjoyable - very funny - and the girl who played scaramouche (hannah jane fox) was outstanding! boogs would have loved it!!

friday - oh dear can't remember!

saturday - to o and g's for lunch - they are both in good spirits and looking forward to our hols (o phoned the hotel and - oh joy! - i had booked what we wanted!) - then eric and janey fetched up mid-afternoon and we sorted a few more details - then i had to leave as i was going to a quiz night at sacred heart, bushey. we won!!! - it was an excellent quiz (it would still have been good if we hadn't won!) with wonderful food and had a lot of fun and laughs on our table. we all won a bottle of wine (which was nice) but - even better - we won the catenian trophy to take back and keep until next year!!

p.s. dr.(!!)rich graduated this week!! i am very proud to have such a clever s-i-l! he looks wonderful in the photo on the family blog . . . . congratulations!!!

a fantastic week-end . . .

. . . started on friday at just after 8.00 p.m. when stella rich and the pies arrived - much earlier than i had been expecting them - hoorah!!! - it was lovely to see them again and the pies seemed so happy to be back. we had a little snackette with them, took them up to bed and then chatted for while before turning in ourselves

saturday . . . was brilliant!!

janey, eric and catherine arrived soon after breakfast - which meant more coffee, 'breakfast pastries' and general admiration of and cooing over the pies. then e,j c and i zoomed off to the junction, caught the train to london and met frances and steve for even more 'snacks' at the stage door coffee shop. the matthew bourne production of 'edward scissorhands' was superbe!!! - many of the others finding it even better than 'swan lake' which we had seen last year (i still prefer 'swan lake' however!). the dancing was exceptional, there was lots of humour - so much in fact that we all felt we had 'missed' a fair amount since there was always some little piece of 'business' somewhere on stage to raise a smile - and the overall quality of the production and staging was breath-taking. we met fran's friend aeron and her friends in the foyer afterwards and had a quick chat with them before heading off for 'the fish shop' on st john's street. wonderful fish and chips and great chats and laughs among the 6 of us, then we all set off home-ward. home soon after 9. rich and kezia had gone to the pantomime, jago was asleep so i had nice long chat with stella before r and k arrived home. they had had a terrific time at 'cinderella' with much shouting of 'he's behind you' in good old panto tradition. k had thoroughly enjoyed it - her first visit to 'the theatre' - but was exhausted and soon went off to bed.

sunday . . . was 'recovery' day - we were all shattered!!

s r and the pies packed up and went off to jackie's soon after 2 and i followed for the cwl 'afternoon tea' around 3. the cwl ladies are always so lovely - i don't know why i don't go to the events/meetings more often - too little time i suppose??

nothing good on tv this evening - as per usual!! - so i'm off to make a hot chocolate and continue with my book

quandary!

i am feeling really guilty today!
i did most of my christmas shopping in st albans this year - on a saturday, when the street market is also on. the market is 'buzzy' and fun and i even managed to find some presents there. one of the stalls sold various 'accessory' bits and i bought myself 4 differently coloured scarves for £10 - a bargain as i thought! i have had compliments every time i have worn one - which is nice. today, however, i noticed the label and realised that it was produced in a country where is it quite possible that the workers are poorly paid and being expolited. and now i could kick myself!! particularly as i had already turned down some remarkably cheap ear-rings on another stall since the stall-holder was unable to tell me where they were from and i feared that they had been produced in some far-eastern 'sweat shop'.
so how would i know if it would be better to buy and at least keep the workers in work, or boycott and possibly eliminate the exploitation? i am not sure if anyone reads this, but if you can help i would surely like to hear from you!!

trisha and company

had an enjoyable 'girly' supper at trisha's yesterday with danuta, jackie and ruth - it was lovely to chill out with them - ALL my friends are such fabulous cooks!!! had to leave early-ish as i was the only one having to go in to work today - boo hoo!!
work dragged! went out lunch-time though and collected my new specs - its been 2 years since my last presciption and i hadn't realised quite how much my eyes had deteriorated in that time - ah me!! tempus fugit!!

you say you wanna a res-o-o-lution . . .

2006 already and no time for resolution-making!
so here's mine - hastily decided upon as the clock struck 3 this morning: no more time wasting, no more procrastinating and as little worrying as i can reasonably get away with . . . and now it's public i suppose i had better at least start . . .
but before i do . . . just a quick update on yesterday and so-far today:
fabulous evening at jane and dave's: super meal, great company and plentiful laughs; a grand a-singing of auld lang syne as the clock struck 12 to welcome 2006; back to den and jon's where i stayed over along with janey and eric - lovely time and d and j so very hospitable; lunch at the clarendon and then home to find frankie and a cup of tea, a message from o and g and catch up with on frankie's news.
so now for my resolution: i'm off to read '365 ways to change the world'.
see ya! . . . .

to 2006 and beyond

another christmas . . . another new year . . .
looking back on 2005 , well it hasn't really been too bad
my extension is still not built, my garden is still a wilderness and i am still several stones overweight
on the plus side however . . . stella rich and the pies continue to thrive rather splendidly and pie no 3 is expected in the spring, fran finished her degree, started as an NQT and graduated with aplomb in November and i am finding life sans boogs is getting easier
christmas with kezia and jago in the house was certainly different from anything i have experienced before - it was the best and most relaxing yule i have spent in YEARS!!! i had some great times with them and laughed more than i have in ages - they are just so amusing at that age. Yes, it did get very (VERY!!) untidy but it was that sort of untidyness that takes about 5 mins to sort out after they went to bed so totally negligible. crikey! i miss them now they've gone back home!!
we managed to nip up to o and g and had a lovely time with them. they love to see the great-grandchildren especially as they are so very well behaved and charming
had dinner with danuta, john and nusia last evening (good to catch up on all their news) and just as i was leaving had a text message from rich to say they were safely back in sheffield - just as well as the weather is truly nasty today
today i am catching up on jobs and then having a cosy night in in front of the tv
all in all, i am actually looking forward to the new year!!!!! can't remember EVER having done that before - oh dear almost bound to be a 'counting your chickens' situation!!

good-bye

this all seems remarkably pointless now

boogs

everything that has happened since last time seems to be about boogs!! . . .
friday
looked at s's blog . . . boogs missing all this
saturday
t and r wedding reception - a barn dance!!
sunday
quiet
monday
anniversary - say no more - mass for boogs - kind message from e and j, card from trisha and co and long phone call from frances - very kind very much appreciated
tuesday and wed
not at work
friday
e and j arrive for week-end . . . did loads of jobs - lovely meal with p and c . . . no boogs!!!
hope next week is better

long time . . . no sea either!

such a long time since i wrote anything on here that i couldn't even remember my password!
far too much has happened to update in one post . . . so guess what? . . . yup! just have to start again . . . tomorrow (well it IS another day)
ok! . . . here's hoping i can remember how to publish . . .

sunbathing

sunday

this sunday was apparently the hottest june day on record so i am pleased to report that i had enough spare time to sit under the apple trees in the garden reading and also enough time to do a spot of sunbathing!

mass in the evening with edna.

it was so hot at night that i considered sleeping downstairs in the dining room with the french doors open but then couldnt be bothered to blow up the air-bed - i think i may invest in one of those full length chair things for the garden and could then use the cushions to sleep on at night - and it would be handy for sunbathing as the blanket did get very warm after a while!!!

monday

dreadful rains in north yorkshire where the rivers flooded their banks and many homes completely wrecked - stella and co had heavy storms but of course being so high up were not troubled by floods

walked along the colne valley walk and through the munden estate with jan, tassa and 'bob' - had a coke at the old fox and then back home - probably about 4/5 miles - i have a pedometer - must remember to take it next time.

frankie phoned to let me know she has passed her on-line english test - yay!! - now she is completely finished and ready to start teaching in september.

today

very hot again - cut the hedges when i came home this evening - frankie came to visit - but only to use the computer really - despite heavy flooding further north it is very dry here and i have put the sprinkler on the lawn tonight - before we get the inevitable 'hose-pipe ban' - i would not use the hose if i thought it would make any difference but truly believe the water company make the ban every year as a matter of course.

must try harder!

was what was always written on my school reports - along with 'erratic worker'!!
Years and year and YEARS later . . . and not much has changed!
I have been ignoring this blog to such an extent it becomes difficult to catch up - so once again!!! - I shall just concentrate on the last few days . . .
friday
Had a day's annual leave and managed to turf out a load of things from the garage, took it all to the dump along with the old mattress from Frankie's room - having just had a new single bed delivered with a great big drawer in the base
Went to the haircutters and left my car to be valetted in the Harlequin car park - fantastic job!! - will do that again - highly recommended!!
Stella and the pies and Frankie came over in the pm and we sat on the lawn and had tea while K♥ ran about gathering pine cones and J♣ crawled after her to join in the 'game'. They are lots of fun at this age. K♥ is very funny and makes us laugh - she is a little comedian!! and Jago is just the cutest cuddliest babe in the world. Rich had gone to the funeral of his Great Aunt Ivy - she of the blunt remarks!! Lovely lady who 'spoke her mind' - telling us that she thought J♣ was a strange name and and he 'should have been called Michael or Stephen or something sensible'. Then she compounded her out-spokeness by asking 'oh isn't he the one with the sister with a funny name'! Ha haha !
saturday
Very warm!
Drove up to Daventry in pm in order to stay the night and then take aged ones to bus station to catch their holiday coach to Germany. We went to mass and then gave lift home to one of the neighbours, Jean, who was very pleasant - she and I had very animated chat about books and reading. Quiet evening and early to bed. Couldn't sleep but fortunately Dad has blocked out the glass panel at the top of the bedroom door so at least I could read until I was tired enough for sleep. Last time I stayed, they told me I had to turn the light off as it was keeping them awake and I had to stand at the window and read by the street light!!!
today
Up early - breakfast - set off for Northampton bus station
I had to set them down in the taxi rank which was a shame as I had wanted to park and then wave them off - but I couldnt find a car park open nearby - so had to leave them trundling off in anticipation - hope they have a good time. They are going to the Rhine but also going on a couple of trips to towns which I stayed in when I went with the German class in 2000 and 2001.
Home just after 8 - sat and read paper in garden, cut grass - hope to do lots of 'jobs' today

catching up

It has been so long since i have blogged that it is now quite difficult to catch up so i shall start with this holiday week-end and skip the last month

Friday

Well the best news is that Frankie got the job she applied for!! So starts as an NQT in September. Hoorah!! She has worked hard and deserves her success and we all wish her well.

Went to a concert at St. Michael's in the evening - a trio of horn, oboe and piano players who had come from our twin town in USA. I had heard of none of the composers (apart from one section where they played a medley of songs from Britain) which I found most refreshing. Thoroughly enjoyed the experience - the trio were excellent musicians who gave interesting insights into the music and composers, the church has quite wonderful accoustics and I met a couple of people whom I know, which was nice.

Saturday

Bought a bed for Frankie's old room in a sale - very much reduced and has a large and very useful drawer in the base.

Spent much of the rest of the day clearing out cupboards which is always satisfying if a little scary - so much stuff in the kitchen was well past its sell-by date!!!

Sunday

More clearing out cupboards and then Mass with Edna in the evening.

Celia was there selling the white armbands for 'make poverty history' and encouraging people to sign the white sashes which will be presented at the G8 conference in Edinburgh on 2 July.

Monday(today)

Was still awake when the birds began their dawn chorus this morning - if I'd had enough brain about me I would have gone out to see the sunsrise!! Cut the hedges and the grass which took ages but it always looks so good afterwards. Whilst I was cutting the hedge, my neighbour popped out to tell me she has her house on the market. I shall be very sorry to see her go as, quite apart from her being a super lady, it will be the end of an era. She and her family were the first people to move onto the estate (but in another, smaller house) and after the birth of her 2nd son, they moved into the house next door and she's been there ever since (52 years!!). Tempus Fugit indeed!!

And finally . . . . .

Oh dear! It's that time again . . . BB has returned. and well may I say oh dear! I had, in fact, forgotten all about it until I returned from the concert on Friday evening and then thought I would just turn the tv on so that at least I would know what everyone was talking about. It is, sadly, the programme I love to hate and as such find it addictive. It becomes more sleazy and sordid every year and the 'house mates' seemingly more degenerate year-on-year. But I expect I shall be turning on from time to time - it is my secret vice. Oh dear oh dear oh dear!!!

testing testing!

it has been so long since I "blogged", that I thought I might not be able to find myself, so to speak - so this is a test and if it works I shall be back tonight with some updates - ciao!

flash ari(ston)

i am now on my fourth washing machine - seem to need a new one every 10 years or so - although this one has lasted a little longer, largely due to the fact that i had been so tardy about shopping for a replacement long, long after i needed to!

anyway the new one has arrived and been plumbed in and it works!! and, lord!! what a flashy litle number it is!!! i am still coming to grips with it, having to consult the manual each time i use it. well in fact it's a washer/dryer and has all manner of flashing lights, 'personalisation'(!!) options, rapid functions, super washes, delay timers etc. etc. and when it starts up, honestly it looks like a space rocket with all lights blazing! still it is very quiet - even when it spins - so i expect we shall settle down together very well by-and-by.

pies pies!!

it has been wonderful having the pies and stella and rich around for the last few days - it has been a good week with many a laugh and i have been lucky to see them almost every day

k♥ is becoming a very kind and caring little girl - and very very funny!!- with an astonishing memory and j♣ is just a little dear!! - he always seems to be smiling and is the most cuddly baby one can imagine

stella lent me another home ed book - this one is heaps better than the last - which i am zippping through fairly rapidly and even agreeing with most of it - although i am still not convinced that school is really so bad - although i didn't like my primary schooling too much, my secondary school was pretty good. one of the points the home ed people seem to be at pains to demonstrate is that it is not such a good place to learn to socialise but actually that was the best bit about my secondary school - great girls, very supportive, friendly and heaps of fun - we still meet up every year and i value their friendship as much now as i did when i was a teenager

a good week

the high-lights:

saturday:

pauline and chas came round and we drove up to bozeat for dinner with mick and lynn - jane and eric drove down too - so that was a good evening

sunday:

cut the grass - always a satisfying sight once it is finished

monday:

met the 'knitting ladies' in the pennsylvanian - discovered i had been at school with one of them so had a fine time reminiscing! then popped round to see p and c and had a stir fry with them - yumm!

tuesday and wednesday:

eric came to stay so we went out to the southern cross on tuesday, resplendent in our gaudy caribbean shirts and had chinese take-away on wednesday whilst watching 'fargo' - hahaha!

thursday and friday :

were quiet - well i can't remember what i did so i suppose they must have been

today:

the long-awaited camp reunion at lees wood!! - the place is magic!! - no sooner had i arrived but the familiar sights and sounds brought back memories of all the happy, exhausting, fun-filled times we have had with our friends over the years - this year it will be the 20th parish camp!! - hard to believe boogs and i were only 36 when we first went, the girls were 6 and 4 and rich was 7 - now stella and rich will, hopefully, be bringing their own 2 little ones to join in the fun

have to admit to finding it a smidgionette more tiring these days - energy levels depleting somewhat now i have reached the dreaded 50s - but hopefully, since i will be sharing celia's trailer tent, we might just be able to get up to some decent 'mischief' - have to keep up with the old traditions!!

this year's theme is 'pirates' - hmmm??!!!!!?

Tall Ships Top Ten

Tall Ships Top Ten: (in no particular order)
1.Red Watch (of course)
2.Stars at night
3.Watching dolphins playing under the bowsprit
4.Barbecue Night
5.Kind and helpful people (that means everyone!)
6.The Last Evening's Outing in Antigua
7.Easing Team (YAY!!)
8.Anchor Watch
9.Gangplank Watch
10.Trip to Montserrat

Things I didn't like:
1.Not making it to the top of the mast
2.Cleaning under the bunks
3.Chain locker (phew!)
4.Only having 15 minutes in total at the helm
5.Feeling useless (I WAS useless!!)

The things I did like far outnumber the ones I didn't - and I still keep thinking of other good bits - like swimming off the side of the ship, mooring up at Antigua on the return trip, Bret's 'confession' Ha ha!!, mess man duty, Lizzie's track chart, all the laughs, rum punch and Carib, Iles des Saintes (wouldn't mind going back there), sitting on the fo'csle while Lizzie did her chart, people appearing from nowhere for a chat, smiles, zipping into shore at high speed in the rib and getting soaked, sailing and boating instruction in the ward room, getting to the upper topsail (well it was better than nothing!), eating huge quantities and not putting on any weight, red shirts, the return flight from Barbados and most special of all - Lizzie's company - what fun!!

x rated

well lizzie and i did manage to return from our tall ships adventure all in one piece - though bruised and drained!

it was jolly hard work, we met some lovely people and saw some amazing places - the trip round montserrat was one of the highlights of the voyage for me - but who on earth would want to go to st. maarten's???

on the whole it was exacting, exasperating, expensive (!!), exhausting, extraoardinary, excruciating but, ultimately, exhilerating

and i rate it x out of x

back home

hello!

i am home!

really i need to get my thoughts properly in order before i say too much - there is much to do before i can simply sit and relax

will be back with thoughts another day

pampered chefs

tonight i went to a pc party at carol's house (it's a bit like tupperware - but not plastic and the gadgets are to help with cooking rather than storing)

it was the first one i have been to - think it may well become quite 'big' over here (it's american!)

i thought it was very expensive - so you'd have to go to a lot of parties and buy things gradually - but the stuff did seem of excellent quality

stella has been to a few of them and likes the goods - which was handy as i was able to get her a belated birthday present that i know she will really like

sadly, i had to miss my reading group - this month's choice had been 'star of the sea' - joseph o'connor - this has been on the bestseller list for ages but when i looked at it briefly in borders i thought it looked a bit of a hard read - i couldn't have been more wrong! - fairly whipped through it - very well written, excellent 'story' and full of interesting detail of life in ireland, england and life on an emigration ship in the 1840s - it was the sort of book that could be reread a number of times and find something you hadn't considered before (i'm sure i've missed heaps of clever references!) - only sorry i wasn't at the meeting to find out what everyone else had to say

mothering sunday

had a really good day!
fran arrived soon after 9 with a lovely card and beautiful gifts (including a super pair of jim-jams from marks and sparks - just what i need for my hols!!) - and while i'm on the subject i must mention the beautiful card kpie made and the dodo travel log which stella sent yesterday - all these holiday requisites!! how lucky am i to have such super daughters!!
then fran and i collected cat and zoomed up to o and g's - eric jane and peter had already arrived - and we all went out for a special mothering sunday lunch for oma at the romer arms - splendid!!
we were a jolly crew - making more than enough noise for 80 let alone 8! - then quickly back to o and g's for a coffee and then home
fran had to go home to do preparation for tomorrow and i had minutes to type up so have been on the computer for the rest of the evening
but here's the funny thing . . . stella came on messenger and i was 'chatting' to her - and she was telling me about a forum she is part of in which the women tonight were complaining because their husbands - that's right their HUSBANDS!! - hadn't bought them anything for mothering sunday!!!! - if boogs had ever given me a present on mothering sunday i would have been INSULTED - i was his WIFE not his MOTHER for goodness sake!!!
no!! - it's an attitude i can't even bgin to understand!!

a bit about work

i have been in my 'new' job for a few months now - 3 and a half months mornings only and helping out in the 'old' office in the afternoons - but since tuesday it has been full time in the new place

it's very different but i am beginning to feel more 'at home' - the other staff are friendly and lively - and the old place is just round the corner so have popped in every day to see them - and help finish off the munchies from the 'close down' party on monday evening!!

the entire service is in a state of change - many offices are moving location - its a bit like musical chairs - well!! quite a good simile actually because each section seems to be convinced that if they don't grab a room somewhere - anywhere!! - they will find themselves camping in the corridor!! - am not too sure where our little team of 8 will end up but i hope we get it sorted soon - will keep you posted!

busy busy busy

this last week has been soooo busy that it has addled my brain!
some good things have happened - like trisha coming round for a chat last friday evening and staying till almost 12 - trish and i haven't done that for ages!
and aywl at liz and david's was interesting - lovely people!and certainly lots of thoughful insights!!
but having arrived home from l and d's at gone 10 i then had to help fran write her essay on maths (i think it was maths - like i say my brain addled now) and then last night it was help her write an assessment on science! - so some of my 'busyness' has not been a bundle of laughs!! - and anything else i can remember doing has been home or housework related - ah me!
it has been very cold too - snow every day but mostly not settling - i managed to cut the grass sunday afternoon though it was FREEZING - then just as i had finished and went back indoors it started to snow - what happened there? - not usually so fortunate!!!
i went to the bushey wool shop (having been inspired by some jolly good knitting blogs - though all in canada and the states - come on english women get yer needles out!!!) and was impressed by the really interesting new types of wool which is being produced nowadays - didn't buy anything as i had other business to conduct but i will be going back so watch this space
that's it for now - i'm sure other things have happened too but like i say my brain somewhat poorly at the moment!!!

well i'm cross!!

would you believe it!?

i went to look at those croci - and you know what? - they had done absolutley NOTHING!!

unco-operative little beggars!! - i had kindly placed them in a nice warm dark 'place' - filled their little vases up with water to the 'required amount' - wished them well and left them in peace

and when i go and look at them, what do i find?

the lazy ungrateful creatures were in EXACTLY the same state as that in which i had left them!!!

i suppose i shall have to go and 'talk' to them!

huh!! a stern lecture would be more to the point!!

the weather

given that i'm british (and proud of it!!) it's surprising that i have written so little about the weather - after all it is what british people are supposed to talk about all the time! - lol!!

british spring really does seen to have sprung this week - ie it has snowed, hailed and rained, we have had bitterly cold gale force winds, days of brilliant sunshine and days where it was simply 'grey'

Still - 'Better than nothing' !!

my garden is beginning to respond to the sunshine and the rain with numbers of daffodils starting to open and the crocus (or is it croci?) in the lawn are just about to open up - and the grass is growing far too rapidly for my liking!!

i gave pots of amaryllis to several people as presents last christmas and it has been lovely that some have reported back on how they were getting along - s and r's fought its way out of the wrapping before they even had a chance to get it out and put it on the window sill and apparently its now blooming beautifully, o and g's is not far behind and has started to open and now mine (a christmas indulgence to buy myself a present - umm!!) seems to grow an inch every time i turn my back

in the post-christmas sale at homebase i bought a set with 3 tiny vases and a crocus to grow in each one - i set them up in a box and shoved them at the back of the cupboard under the stairs and its only because i am writing this that i remembered about them - am going now to check them out and will report later

happiness is a warm cat

this has been another busy week - and exciting too what with ellen macarthur arriving back into falmouth after her record-breaking round the world trip - l managed to be there on a floating pontoon down by the docks with 'the best view in cornwall' and saw it all - and had her photo in the times the next day!!
its been a week of evening outings for me - aywl on monday at l and d's (i'm so pleased tk persuaded me to join!), a meeting at school on tuesday, reading group on wednesday and f visited last night
i always enjoy reading group but this one was particularly good - we had read 'haweswater' by sarah hall - we were all pretty much in agreement for a change and the voting ranged from 3 to 6 - and i for one won't bother to read anything else she has written!
but the main point of this post is in order that i can sing a hymn of praise for my lovely cat, catullus (tully for short)
when ever i arrive home he comes to greet me and runs up the first 6 steps of the stairs where he is in just the right position for me to stroke him as i hang up my coat and keys - when i went out on wednesday night i didnt bother to take my handbag and had left it on one of the bottom steps - as tully ran up to be stroked he poked his head through the handles of the bag and then, because he was hampered, couldnt get any further - he turned tail and tried to run back down but, poor thing, he just slipped and staggered about and was unable to free himself - he looked so funny - like a sort of substitute st bernard with a handbag instead of a barrel!! - i had to laugh - i just hope his dignity wasn't dented too badly
he is great company - he is very affectionate - is always there when i come home - and there's nothing like a warm cat on your lap when you're watching tv in the evenings - bless!!

first saturday in february

oops!

not sure what happened there!

anyway . . .

first sat in feb is always the day for the 'old girls' reunion at school - though we meet at the pub first (in character or what?) for lunch

this year 7 of us made it to lunch - ann(t)m, veronica(f), pauline(w)w, sue w, margaret w, myself and anne(r)s who had come all the way from vancouver! and whom we hadn't seen since feb 2000!! and frances(n)w and mary m came later to school only - it's always great to see people and catch up on the news - and some of us had news of other ogs who were unable to make this time

school celebrated its centenary last year but in typical fashion (!!!) has only managed to get itself organised for a decent 'bash' this coming summer - 101 years!!! - it will be in july when, hopefully, the weather will be kind to us and we can wander about in the grounds - it would be a goodly thing if as many of our year as poss could make it

met carlene d at school whose brother, n, had been in my class right through primary school - so was even able to catch up on a few hrs

popped round to anne and roland's after the reunion as they only live just round the corner and had cup of tea - they are both well and telling me it is likely that andrew will marry next year - at least that is what everyone else thinks is happening - but he hasn't actually asked benta yet!!!

tonight is the first session of 'at your word lord' at liz and david's house so sign off now and have some food before i go

good times

these last few days have been pretty good!

eric came to stay on tues night - sadly, i had an evening meeting i really couldn't get out of but frankie phoned before i went out to ask if she could come and visit - so she arrived soon after i had left and she and eric kept each other good company - very good company as it turned out! by the time i arrived home at 9.15 they had already polished off one bottle of vino (i had to struggle to keep up!!), had watched 'the cd rom' and eric had managed to persuade fran that here was the holiday she had always dreamed of - in fact eric and i are sponsoring her to the tune of £100 each!! spent what remained of the evening guzzling another bottle of wine, eating tasty morsels gleaned from the freezer and anticipating (or in eric's case reminising) on 'hols of a lifetime'

have paid for holiday and flight

have booked taxi to the airport

and yesterday our tickets arrived!!! yay!!! not long to go now!!!

old age is not an illness!

i visited o and g on saturday and found that they had been decorating the dining room - not bad for 85 and 84 respectively! avoiding, rather than refusing, help from a neighbour, g was determined to complete the job himself because 'other people always want to take over rather than help' - a truism if ever i heard one!

my parents have, without a doubt, been fortunate in their health but their continuing vigour owes much to the fact that they are determined not to let their age diminish their 'joie de vivre'

they are possessed of amazing vitality, their energy is a by-word amongst their family and friends and the word 'laziness' has never been a part of their vocabulary - they are indeed parents to be proud of!!

anti climax

since spotting the magic 999 last saturday, my car journeys have lacked a 'certain something' - i found i was still looking out for numbers on plates! - but oh! the disappointment when i realised i had actually seen them all - what goal could i possibly set myself now?
well worry not, readers!
today i remembered about my other great number game - the one where you see if the number on the plate can be divided by 3 - or, even better - by 9!
this game is really even better than the last one because you can include telephone numbers (as on commercial vehichles) too!
and if there is anyone out there who can help me 'get a life', please write in

i did it!!!

or perhaps i should say 'i did THEM'
yes!! 2 life-time achievements today!!
firstly, i bought my TILLEY HAT!! - in readiness for my 'BIG ADVENTURE' = coming to this life soon!
and secondly, i saw a number plate with 999 on it!! - it has taken me 5 years 6 months and 22 days to see every number from 1 to 999 on a car reg. plate in sequence - and if that isn't a sad comment on my life i don't know what is!!

wet wet wet

yesterday evening i noticed that the radiator in the bathroom was not getting hot - so decided to 'bleed' it
now i'm new to central heating - i only had it installed here last november and apart from college hall and one winter in 'rose cottage' in 1981/82, i have never lived with central heat before - and i can't really even count rose cottage because the previous owner (who had put it in) was such a bodger that the solid fuel fire, which was supposed to produce the heat, would only keep going for about 5 hours at a time and then had to be 'riddled' - something about the draughts so i believe - and you can imagine how we loved doing that in the middle of the night!!
anyway i did my best with this 'bleeding' business, although it never got to the point where water seeped out of the top - and then went to bed
imagine my surprize when, on waking this morning, i heard the heating system pumping away for all it was worth - 'strange' i thought and zoomed off to investigate - yes!! the bathroom radiator was leaking away like a good'un - the carpet was saturated and the floorboards underneath too!! - and it was so bad i had to deal with it immediately - no time to make coffee first - disaster!!!!!
and it's been raining nearly all day!!

traffic on the ring road

why is it that some people seem to lack logical thought processes as soon as they get behind the wheel of a car?
i mean, what do they think the hatched areas on the road are for?
why do they think its ok for them to enter them when there are HUNDREDS of signs telling them not to unless their exit is clear?
they rarely get any substantial distance forward and generally it just means that those who could have driven straight across and out the other side are merely at the head of an ever increasing tail-back?
ok! i'm getting vertigo now so it must be time to get off the soap box

pause for breath!

well that was a busy week!!! and its pointless trying to fit it all in so i'll just concentrate on last weekend - which was the best part of the week anyway

friday:managed to reach sheffield early enough to see the pies before they went to bed - then sat around talking until bedtime - stella had given me 'one to one' (by g lewis) to read but i was so tired i only read a little bit and that was making me cross so put light out and was asleep immediately!

saturday:slept until almost 9 when s and k woke me and we all had coffee and/or breakfast - it was an awful day weather-wise so we just stayed in and played with the pies and chatted - and s and r and i played mah jongg in the evening - hadn't played it since aug 2002 when b and i visited s and r in their cornish place flat - so it was good to 'pick up the pieces' so to speak

sunday:we all went to the 10 a.m. mass - i thought the pies were remarkably well behaved - but s didn't - which just goes to prove that parents obviously have higher expectations than grandparents - or maybe grandparents wear rose coloured specs! - anyway it was a lovely mass and i was pleased to be able to be part of it - we loaded the car with some stuff to take to j's as s and r have very little storage space and i made it home by 7 - good going!

home education:s and i spent a lot of time talking round this subject - and i skimmed the one to one book whilst i was there - found many of the views expressed quite objectionable - his descriptions of nursery/primary schools, teachers and pupils were grossly unfair - which is a shame as many of the activities in the book are inspirational and would be very helpful for any parents considering he for their children

more ballet

i was surprised (and a little disappointed) when s told me on saturday (and we were in the foyer of sadlers wells at the time!!) that she didn't want the pies to do ballet but they could do 'dance'.

today, however, i remembered her saying that she had read that all (or possibly most) girls who do ballet have eating disorders when they are older. at the time, i thought this was rather far-fetched but thinking about it since i have to concede that it does seem to be true.

i hope they do learn to dance though. dance is good discipline, promotes healthy growth, it exercises both the mind and the whole body (except irish dancing of course!!), teaches rhythm and musicality, is aesthetically pleasing (well . . . except for irish dancing) and is generally a sociable activity.

i'm off now for a relaxing bath and then to watch 'child of our time' - wonder what robert winston would have to say about dance?

p.s. oh . . . and s if you are reading this . . . i looked at the rudof steiner site and was impressed!! - go for it!!!!!

cygnets

couldn't get the tune for the cygnets dance out of my head all day!!- must have driven everyone mad with it - i was even doing the 'shoulder shrugging' bit when i was alone in the office - it seems there is a dvd out - think i will invest
pleasant evening at the essex with p catching up with the news - must remember to suggest monday next time - it was very quiet

swan lake

only just over 24 hours and e's back again! hoorah!! and accompanied by j!!! even more hurrahs!!!!
had a great friday evening - e and j made very good time on the journey down so we were sitting supping and sipping by soon after 8 - then to sleep in mellow mood and up with the larks in the morn (well if the larks get up at 9 that is!)
saturday was amazing - one of those wonderful days you enjoy in retrospect for aeons - lazy morning then met s r c and d at the junc to travel to london for the matinee of matthew bourne's swan lake at sadlers wells - we all enjoyed it tremendously - even d who has never been to the ballet before - i was a little worried about him! - i don't intend writing a crit of it here as it would take far too long and not sure who would actually be interested!! - the dancing, costumes and set were superb, it was very very funny and the acting/miming a delight - i can give no higher praise than to say i would happily sit through it all again tomorrow if the chance arose. after the performance s and r went home to k and j but the rest of us plus f and s who were also in the audience went for a quick coffee and chat then all headed home. had been intending to make spags bol for e j and me but invited c and d too and had great evening sitting round the table chez moi
today was quiet: e and j went soon after breakfast so i visited s k and j at j and p's house - hoping for a quiet evening now reading and watching midsommer murders

2 days in one posting

wednesday:
spotted s and r's car as i went past j's on way to work but also noticed front door ajar so nipped in pronto for quick peek at k - ahh!
and stopped again on way home and saw everyone - but only very briefly as e was coming and i had to get home
had a great evening with chinese take-away and watching 'oh brother where are you?' - very very funny and inspired me to really get down to it and read the odyssey - e and i have made pact to watch again in a year's time when i should, hopefully, get even more out of it
thursday:
s r k and j came to visit me at work - lord! how i love showing off the pies - i am so o o proud of them!!
called in on j after work for a 'quick cup of tea' and was having such a good chat i stayed ages! - and also for some of m's soup - mm!!
home and found letter from Helen and e-mail from fran - hoorah!! i love correspondence!

the tree goes forth

well it was back to work with a BANG today after a wonderful 10 days off for christmas - and we were SO busy!
hoping for a quiet(ish) evening taking down most of the decorations but leaving the tree until tomorrow (i hate having to take it all back down again so soon after it went up) when er rang asking if he could come and stay tomorrow evening. needless to say i was delighted even though it did mean extra stuff to do tonight. still must admit tis a good job sorted and all the decs are back up in the attic until next year.
fr came round and we watched 'child of our time' together - which i find fascinating - taped it too as i thought st and ri and the pies might be on their way down and would miss it - checked my mobile later and discovered that ri had left a message to 'witchy' (hahaha) letting me know they arrived at j and p's earlier this evening - hoorah!!! - though sadly, with er here tomorrow night, i shan't see them until thursday - maybe they will come into the t h so i can show off the pies!
. . . and so to bed.

me and my computer

My computer and I have what can only be called a 'love-hate relationship' - that's because one of us is stupid - AND IT'S NOT ME!!!

a busy sunday

i had imagined that this would be quite long blog as it has been a fairly busy day - have just arrived home from 6.30 mass, however, and find frankie ensconced in the kitchen making cookies - so since i would like to chat to her (and then sample cookies!!) this will have to briefer than anticipated:
spent a good couple of hours in boog's shed sorting and slinging - poor boogs would have hated the slinging bit as he could hardly bear to throw away even a rusty broken screw - but it has to be done and the sooner the better - i could use the space! - also found some things i am unable to identify so have kept them in the hope that eric or stella will know what they can be used for! - then zoomed down to the dump with a car load of 'rubbish' and then on to the car wash. I love the car wash - such an improvement for so little effort!
went to jackies for the cwl meeting this pm - nice to see everyone - had a lovely 'tea' and then a secret santa where i was lucky enough to receive a tea-light holder which is actually china but looks like ivory - just as well since i disapprove of ivory!!
then rushed home, collected edna and hurtled off to mass - appeals for the tidal wave disaster as expected - this is such a terrible tragedy and of course we all want to help - is it only me who is so cynical and suspicious of where all the money goes? - i'm not saying we shouldn't give - of course not! - but have you noticed that after every 'fund' we always hear how much of the money has been siphoned off for dubious 'other funds'? - i'm sorry if i offend anyone but honestly that is what seems to happen!!
well now i'm back home and want to catch up on the news from my family and eat the cookies!

po et familiares

well there we are - it worked after all so now i guess i had better start thinking what i should put on here
our christmas:
this was probably the worst Christmas i have experienced! - family get-togethers just don't seem right without Boogy - missing him was what made the time so hard - but apart from that it was ok - stella rich and the pies came after mass on Christmas day and we unwrapped the presents with o and g and frankie - had a break for smoked salmon and scrambled egg in brioche loaf (yumm!) - then stella rich and pies went back to jackie and pete's and we had late christ lunch at 4-ish just as it was getting dark. This is a big change for us as it is usually held at 1.30 on the dot but I had decided it was better all round to do it this way and it did seem to work well so think this may the pattern for Christmas from now on.
I took o and g home on Monday and have had a quiet time since - went over to jackie and pete's and saw stella rich and co on Wednesday and stayed for dinner - that was good as Frankie fetched up late afternoon so I was with both daughters, both grandchildren and some of my dearest friends too
last evening (new years eve) spent with friends celebrating the start of 2005 in jolly mood - i ate too much of denny's fabulous food and laughed greatly too so tum in fragile state today!
this pm visited danuta john and daughter nusia who is home on hols after first term at lancaster - we all had much news on which to catch up - and very pleasant it was too
this has not been easy - perhaps the next time i blog in will only have one day to report and may be more lucid - reading through this it does seem awfully boring!!