lynn and mick's party . . .

. . . was fun!

yesterday evening: drove up with pauline and chas after a roasting day, much of it spent in the garden, to a lovely and relaxing garden party - mick had set up a 'stage' at the end of their plot and sang and played both by himself and also with jodie

it was great to see him looking so good again and to hear him blasting out all the good old 60s, 70s and 80s numbers he does so well - he really seemed in great form and after all his performing still appeared to be relatively untired!!

lots of very pleasant guests including nick and tracy with both holli and the new baby who is adorable

the rest of the week has been fairly busy:

excitement at janine's over her honeymoon plans on wednesday afternoon

reading group on wednesday evening at alison's

lunch with carol on thursday

drink in the essex thursday evening with pauline

and then fran and alex arrived friday evening to stay for the week-end

. . . and still no news of cat's and david's baby - which is 8 days overdue now - i hope that is my next posting!!

julia and nathan's wedding . . .

. . . was lovely!

julia looked drop dead gorgeous and the whole wedding party looked entirely stunning!!

the mass was beautiful and the reception venue (a magnificent edwardian hotel on newquay headland) an absolute delight

sat with a super group of people for lunch (totally delicious!! - yumm!!) and thoroughly enjoyed the speeches - they were all wonderful - and nathan's was an absolute hoot!!

the evening recption was a disco with some quite amazing solos from some of the younger (and also some of the older, braver!!) guests

such a wonderful atmosphere - it was a fabulous and truly memorable day!!

an invitation . . .

. . . arrived this morning for anna and ricky's wedding in september (the wedding where kezia will be a flower girl). this was such a lovely surprise - i am excited already!!

other news:

went to cwl 'independence day supper' yesterday evening - which was good fun though i'm not too sure we should be celebrating these colonials gaining their 'freedom'!!!

man came this morning to mend my gas fire - it has NEVER worked properly since we've had it and now it is PERFECT!!! hoorah!!

had a coffee with cat and david - cat still looking in excellent shape - though i think the baby still has at least a week to go - but what do i know? (g and i have a £1 bet on - g thinks it will be a girl so i'm going for 'boy' - watch this space folks!!)

stella has initiated a brilliant on-line calendar for the family to use - well done stelpsie!!

. . . and it's been raining - but at least the lawn is greening up nicely!!

brilliant weekend

had another fantastic week-end!
saturday:

collected cat and whizzed over to the scotsbridge and were soon joined by peter and lorna and then frankie and alex and shortly after that stella, rich and the pies arrived. we were meeting to celebrate g's 86th birthday - he and o with eric and janey fetched up not long after us. the meal and setting were lovely and afterwards we went outside to the little children's play area for kezia and jago to have a run around. it's always great when we get together - i really love my family - they are such good fun and they make me laugh so much!! everyone dispersed around mid afternoon and i took o and g home. g really enjoyed this birthday!!

arrived back in watford early evening and joined stella rich and the pies and frankie and alex at the st. ants barbecue disco - another great get-together! - met up with a number of people whom i haven't seen much of since i left there 8 years ago - good atmosphere and more tasty food!!

sunday:

would have been boog's 56th birthday so had the early mass for him - and stella and clara came too - clara very good - of course!!

mary and kevin had their engagement party in the afternoon - at jackie's house - it was a beautiful day - very hot - but nice to be able to sit out in the garden and chat and watch the little ones playing - jackie had just bought a really super sand pit for them all and it was great watching them. mary and kevin looked very smart and seemed very happy. it was a lovely party - and i stayed later than i had intended considering it was work the next day!!

today:

spent almost all morning on the counter!! but had the afternoon off as leave - too hot to do very much so mostly sat in garden reading and enjoying the sunshine while it lasts

the weather:

gad it's hot!! - hotter than the caribbean i'm sure!! if there wasn't a hose-pipe ban i'd be standing under the sprinkler right now!!

this week . . .

. . . has been good so far!!

Tuesday: our book group had been invited to an 'event' at Watford Library - a talk and reading of extracts from her latest novel, 'The Alchemist's Daughter', by local author, Katherine McMahon. I was interested to hear how she researches for her books and was intrigued by the heroine - based on a seventeenth centry French woman who, unusually for those times, was a scientist - searching for the elixor life. I thoroughly enjoyed the evening as Kate is an excellent speaker and was hugely entertaining. I didn't buy the book though - a fact I rather regret now. Back to Anne's for coffee and chat in the garden - a good evening!!

Wednesday: my 'day off' but had to go in to work to attend a Health and Safety meeting (never mind - bumps up the 'flexi-time!!). Called in on Cat and David afterwards for tea and cakes. Cat seems very happy and relaxed and she showed me the baby's room and all the 'bits'. It's beautiful!! Aaahhh!!

Today: has been REALLY good. Can't put my finger on WHY exactly. Received confirmation of my room booking for Julia's and Nathan's wedding and sent e-mail to book a place to stay for David and Becky's. All these weddings!! And then I heard that Kezia is to be a flower girl for Anna and Ricky's wedding in September. How lovely!!!

fabulous!!!

. . . is the only way to describe this week-end!
from:
picking lizzie up at the junction
to
coffee and croissants in the kitchen
and . . .
the drive to chelmsford
and . . .
getting lost! (thanks lizzie but no surprise there)
and . . .
the fantastic luncheon to celebrate helen and geoff's pearl wedding anniverary
along with . . .
a marvellous get-together with lovely friends
and . . .
speeches, laughs, drinks, tea and cakes and relaxing at the ivy hill
and . . .
erics amazing weskit
and . . .
nipping round to helen and geoff's this morning for coffee, juice and crossaints
and . . .
popping round to cat and david's on arrival back in watford
and then finally:
dropping lizzie off for the train to falmouth
. . . it doesn't get much better than that!

i have been to austria . . .

. . . with o and g and janey and eric . . .

we all had a wonderful time . . .

we stayed in the best gasthoff in the world

we drove to berg to visit anni and lois - and had a meal and a walk round the village

went up klippitzturl in a chair lift - nippy round the knees!

revisited st paul - and looked lovingly and nostalgically at the 'swim bad' and walked round the monastery and the little chapel at josefsberg

went to mass in st margarethen

visited with lots and lots of relatives including 5 out of 6 of the cousins, 2 of whom i hadn't seen since 1962!!

. . . and we ate cake . . .

busy!!

no blogging for almost a week - been so busy!

tuesday - women's group at monica's. mainly chatting and looking at photos: liz brought the ones of michael's passing out parade and ball and monica had ones of her visit to margaret and jim in washington - lovely jolly evening

wednesday - reading group at karen's. we had read 'atomised' by michel houellebecque. i had read this on hols in devon and almost gave up several times - it was DIRE!!! - but in the end (at the 'epilogue') realised why it had needed to be so dreadful - it was all a sort of propaganda. i was the only one who thought so, however, so maybe i got the wrong end of the stick after all!! I gave it 1 out of 10, Tassa gave it 2 and everyone else gave it 0!! not a popular choice then!!

catherine - went into school to do some govs work. saw cat who is v large now - looking very well and eager for the start of her maternity leave so she can have a rest for a few weeks

saturday - svp quiz night at church - jackie invited me on thursday to be part of their team and then liz phoned on friday also trying to get a team together. svp quizes are always great fun and this was no exception - and liz's team won!! - drat!!

gardening - apart from cutting the grass a few times, i had done nothing in the garden so far this year. inspired by a trip to homebase on saturday (only went to get some sturdy bags for the grass clippings) have been weeding, edging, digging and planting for a couple of hours every day - and have not only enjoyed myself but the garden really does looks a lot better. perhaps it isn't as difficult as i always thought it was!!

nothing better to do?

last week at work, tracey asked us all if we knew the answer to a puzzle she had found in the paper:

if a farmer has 11 sheep, 10 cows and 20 chickens, how many goats does he have?

the answer was 11

based on: 3 animals for every consonant and 1 animal for every vowel

as the granddaughter of a very successful farmer, i would ask what agriculturalist worth his salt would employ a method of animal husbandry like that?

and what would happen if you had a platypus and wanted some more?

or a hippopotamus??

the mind boggles!!

boring and uneventful!

strange week, really: because it was so boring and uneventful!

work was truly tedious, despite the fact that there were only 3 days of it!

no evening outings - though that did mean i could spend time on the computer and managed to add a number of people to our family tree

frankie has not been well - though i think it is only due to extreme tiredness - but it meant she didn't pop over at all and i missed her! shall be glad when she and alex find a flat together as it will be much easier to visit with them then!

yesterday (week-end! - yay!!) i went up to o and g's arriving early and staying until almost dark. they were both very well - g sporting a slight tan from having sat out in the garden for much of the previous afternoon. we spent ages looking at the print-out of our family tree - he was so delighted to learn of his grt- and grt-grt grandfather and families - it's very exciting putting all the pieces of the jig-saw together - and interesting to note that the family have lived in watford for generations (i always thought we were gypsies!!)

we went to evening mass, picking up a friend on the way (and another one on the way back), got back and had tea and a chat. and then dad got his 'box' out and we looked at old photos and documents of family for a while and then i came home.

today - have a fair bit to do housework-wise and bits of paperwork that needs sorting - and then this evening eric is coming and we're going out for a meal at the southern cross - hoorah!!!

not boring or uneventful at all!!

sausages but NO pies!

Stella Rich and the pies were going to come down for the holiday week-end but then they all caught a flu-type bug and were unable to make it - happily they are all on the mend now and are planning to visit for James's confirmation later this month

Prior to this, though, I had invited Jackie and Ruth for a family barbecue on Sunday afternoon. We missed S and co but had a good time anyway. It was rather too chilly to cook and eat outside, so we weedily stayed inside and had our sausos, beans and burgers in the warm. Tsk! Can just imagine what Boogs would have said to that!!!

Haven't done an awful lot today - couldn't seem to get started on anything - what a waste of a bank holiday - drrrr!!

family tree

Last Wednesday in a moment of boredom, i logged onto the genes reunited site. I had been half-heartedly meaning to do this for aeons but felt defeated before even starting, thinking it would be a mammoth, impossible task. I had previously been to the registry place in London and also Bushey Museum and found some info there but didn't really know where to go next, and had more-or-less given up at that stage.

Imagine my surprize! I found some names which seemed to tie up with the dates I had and, alongside them, names of people who had them in their tree already. All I had to do was mail these people! So I did and they really were most helpful, mailing me back with info and then allowing me to look at their trees. One of them (the daughter of a third cousin never even dreamed of before!) has info on my grt-grandfather: where born, siblings, where lived, his ancestors etc; and all I had known previously was his name and date of death. So many 'gaps' are being filled - its like a jig-saw puzzle.

I am only hoping that I will be able to to return the favour and help fill some of their gaps.

I am now busily filling in our tree and can hardly wait to print it all out and show g!!

and speaking of 'worlds' . . .

g used to have an autograph book from his army days and one of the entries read:

the world is like a mirror
relecting what you do
and if your face is smiling
it smiles right back at you

someone ought to tell m!!

stupid expressions - ii

what is all this business with 'worlds'?
i've seen 'office world', 'pc world', 'world of fish' (!!) and the never-to-be-forgotten
'OLDE PINE WORLDE' which stella and i once spotted in ashton-under-lyne!
but on sunday in sheffield . . .
i saw . . .
'fireplace world' !!!
isn't that hell?

sausages and pies

saturday was 'annual parish camp reunion' in lees wood. we were lucky and had beautiful weather: warm and sunny. not too many people came but those who did thoroughly enjoyed themselves and it was good to chat and relax amongst the trees in the sun. about 10 of us remained for late afternoon sausages, burgers and beans on the barbie. home soon after 7 and an early night for an early start tomorrow.

sunday - seemed to spend almost all of it driving: to sheffield, then derby, then asbhy, back to derby, on to sheffield and then home - almost 500 miles all told. whilst stella, rich and clara were at motorpoint, i took kezia and jago to visit with janey and eric where they had lunch and then fed the fish. as we drove away, kezia said, 'thank you very much, avie. i had a good time' - what a polite child!!

was exhausted and almost falling asleep driving back down the m1 so decided to stop for a coffee at watford gap - place was heaving with football supporters from the west ham game - it always seems slightly ludicrous: and the mock footie kits are so hideous - and they never seem to fit!!! don't know why these people don't save their money for something that looks good on them!! and why don't they just stay at home and wait to hear the result after its happened? impatience i call it!!

stupid expressions - i

"mustn't grumble"
i should think not indeed!!
a full blown rant is much better - good for the body and the soul, a good rant is!!

robin hood, prince of thieves

i taped this the other night when it was on and have watched it over a couple of evenings

it's very funny - which i hadn't expected - so am glad i did tape it so i can look at it again

and of course it has the wonderful Alan Rickman playing the part of the evil sherriff of Nottingham - what a gem!!

also i couldn't help recalling the story of the bride who had asked for the 'theme tune from robin hood' for her walk down the aisle . . . . and instead of 'i will always love you', the organist played 'robin hood, robin hood, riding through the glen'!!!

hee hee!!

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!!!