i love weddings!

and what i really really love about them is how they are all so different and all so special in their own way

anna and ricky's wedding last saturday was no exception

it was a beautiful mass made even more beautiful, i thought, for the inclusion of 'i watch the sunrise'

the reception venue was super: converted stables surrounding a courtyard where the children could safely play, a wonderful meal (with sticky toffee pudding with butterscotch sauce - yumm!!), and as much coffee as you could drink - bliss!!

and the wedding party!!

anna looked stunning!! the most wonderful dress - i have never seen her look so lovely!

clare was as pretty as ever and the flower-girls, kezia and isabelle, as cute as could be

elizabeth was a truly elegant mother of the bride

the men were all dishy mcdish in their tails - barry gave a lovely 'father of the bride' speech and ricky and the best man were jolly good too

both stella and family and frankie and alex were guests and the other guests included heaps of my very good friends

it was a very special day!!

. . . but i wouldn't be a proper grandmother if i didn't just say how proud i was of kezia!! - she looked adorable and she behaved impeccably all day - every wedding needs a kezia!!

and i owe i owe i owe

yesterday someone at work remarked that it was exactly 3 months/13 weeks to christmas

yay!!! was my reaction

groan!! came from most of the others

followed by grumbles about the presents that 'have' to be bought. and then they went into 'moaning mode' with their lists of who has to be bought for!!! and how much they 'have' to spend on their children!!

is that all christmas is, then?

what about the good will to all men, the nativity, cards from friends and relatives, decorating the house and the tree, special food and drinks, wreaths on front doors, excited children, traditional carols and corny christmas songs, black and white films on tv, christmas parties, mistletoe and holly . . . anything i've forgotten?

oh yes!! presents are a part of it too - it's lovely to give and to receive and i'm sure i enjoy it as much as the next woman - but i don't like to think of people stressing as though presents are the most important part!

. . . and this is the answer . . .

oh well!! this is the answer:
a) there are just more in my house than anywhere else in the known universe
b) this is because i leave the windows open (but it's hot!!)
c) and the light on (but it's dark!)
d) and i haven't used a spray to kill them
e) nor have i swatted them
f) tully hasn't killed them either
g) it has been raining and they have all come inside
h) i am obviously not taking enough care
thanks frankie!! so now i know!!
any other ideas, anyone??

a plague!

For 2 summers we lived in a house miles from anywhere in the middle of fields in rural Lincolnshire and I remember that in the Septembers of both years I noticed huge numbers of daddy-long-legs. I assumed these 'swarms' arrived because there were fields and fields of crops all around us (unlike now when i live more or less in the middle of a housing estate). But it was never something that bothered me.

Well it bothers me now!! Last evening I was sitting reading at the dining room table and there seemed to be hundreds of them flying around! (It was only dozens really!!) But they really were a darned nuisance - buzzing and flapping and getting in my hair and dive-bombing my hands and shedding their legs (!!) and getting trapped in my book and flitting past my face and fluttering around the lamp - I almost began to wish Tully would come and 'seek and destroy'.

So what I would like to know is: has anyone else noticed that there are more around this year or am I only imagining it? and is there a point to their existence?

sociable!!

last few evenings have been good:

tuesday: trisha came round for coffee and chat

wednesday: reading group at nicky's - 'destiny' by tim parks - i'm still struggling with it!!

thursday: to london with the unison trip for 'the producers' - it was ok - i didn't really enjoy it as much as everyone else did - elaine took sue van d for a 'birthday treat' - so had my pre-theatre sarnie and coffee with them and caught up on the news - home very late

today: it's been so busy that i haven't really looked properly at my mail - and there's LOADS of it!! - that's what i shall be doing this evening!

'how wonderful it is to do nothing and afterwards to take one's rest'

is how i feel about last week-end!

i went camping with eric, janey, cat, david, james, imy and freddie at aston cantlow . . . and we did NOTHING!! it was WONDERFUL!! barbecue friday night, leisurely breakfast sat morning followed by a 'hike' to the pub (about 10 mins), pub lunch and then back to the tents for doze/chat/reading the newspapers, another barbie on sat evening while we listened to last night of the proms, lazy breakfast sun morning, pack up and set off for home by early afternoon. it was a hugely enjoyable week-end

sadly, today has been Stressful with a decidedly capital S! and i don't even want to think about it!! going for a relaxing bath now methinks!

it's been a fairly memorable few weeks

and that's about all i want to say on the subject right now!!

lest i forget . . .

a quick update of the last couple of weeks:

week-end of 22/23 july:

fran and alex came to stay friday night, as did stella, rich and the pies - fran and alex decided to sleep in the garden but had to scuttle indoors when the heavens opened for the first time in yonks

stella, clara and i visited cat and freddie on friday evening and everyone seemed to get at least one visit in over the w/end

eric and janey were also down - planned in any case because of the battle proms - but mainly to see their first grand-pie

battle proms were very exciting with all the cannon, fireworks and horsemanship displays - but the best was the traditional bits with the flag-waving at the end - and the lovely company of course: john and denny, sheila, dave and jane, john and jude and e, j and me

week-end of 29/30 july:

david and becky's wedding on the sunday at hoole hall was very enjoyable - the wedding party looked wonderful - loved the colours!! - and it was good to meet with friends for a chat - all of us 'oldies' sat in the reception area well away from the disco and caught up on our news

i stayed in a marvellous b and b - lucky choice as it was only one i had found on the internet - but i thought it the nicest place i have ever stayed - greenlooms cottage about 6 miles from chester gets my vote for b and b of the decade!!

it's my birthday!!

and it's been . . . not too bad!
. . . working birthday . . . but not too bad!
i was on last turn at the counter - the 'graveyard shift' as they call it - and so had some time to think about birthdays i have known
and then i thought maybe this would be a good time to record all the birthdays i could remember having
so this is likely to be very very boring
it just seemed like a good place to record it so that in years to come when i really am losing my marbles, i could read this and remember
but for everyone else . . . stop reading now . . . or read it and sleep . . .

1st birthday was in austria but can't remember it
2nd birthday, 3rd birthday can't remember
4th birthday was in austria again but still can't remember
5th birthday can't remember
6th birthday the only birthday i ever had at school - we had a tradition that the child having a birthday got to wear the special sash - but it was the last day of term and the teacher was far too busy - despite my almost constant reminders and nagging - what a little pain-in-the-neck i must have been!
7th birthday in austria again and yet again i can't remember what we did that day
8th birthday my grandparents had gone on their hols so my parents took us round to their house so we could decorate their kitchen - oh joy!!!
9th birthday in austria - but this time i can remember - dad and i sittting gazing across the valley and chatting - nice!
10th birthday can't actually remember the birthday but i know we were on our hols - in the midlands!! - exciting places like mansfield, rugby and retford!! - wow!!

11th birthday on hols again - this time we went to south wales - pontypridd, usk and tintern - and we never booked anywhere - just turned up in a town and tried to find somewhere - and lord!! the peculiar, awful b and bs we did stay in!! - so although i'm not sure exactly where we were i'm sure it was somewhere truly grotty

12th birthday - back to austria again - on my birthday eric and i went swimming with some other children at a local gravel pit - i remember it being a lot of fun

13th birthday was a saturday we travelled down to bournemouth for our annual hols - bournemouth!! i ask you!!

14th birthday stayed at home reading in the garden

15th birthday clothes shopping

16th birthday shopping for last minute things for my hols in zurich - then at just before midnight setting off with o and g and eric for gatwick - this was exciting!! - my first hols travelling by myself - made even better by the fact that there was no-one to meet me and i had to find my own way to the zefferrer's apartment

17th birthday - helen's parents had taken the 3 younger sisters on holiday and had agreed that frances, leslie and i could stay in their house to keep helen company - we thought it was great to be 'independent' (lol) and on my birthday all 4 of us went to visit o and g - we had a lovely lunch and good time - and i remember leslie saying how enjoyable it was and how she wished birthdays were as much fun in her home!

18th birthday helen came to 'tea' at my house and in the evening o and g and boogs and i went to see 'the sound of music' at the carlton

19th birthday i vaguely remeber it being a sunday but all else lost in the mists of time

20th birthday the second monday in my first job - very boring - went to see 'ned kelly' in the evening with boogs

21st birthday work again - i was living in the ywca by now - dinner at mill way with o and g, eric and jane and boogs - it rained almost all day

22nd birthday eric and jane gave me a card which said 'happy birthday on the last birthday before you get married' - we married 6 weeks and 2 days later

23rd birthday hassle over getting our car fixed! - it was a honda s800 which could only be mended at a specialist garage - what a nuisance!!

24th birthday this was a nice one - o and g celebrated their silver wedding anniversary with a party at their house - it was a lovely party - everyone enjoyed themselves - and they had even had little birthday cakes made specially for me and for uncle les whose 60th birthday had been the day before

25th birthday a sunday - we were just about to move to lincolnshire and o and g came for lunch - although we were rushing around getting ready for this 'special' visit, boogs managed to completely forget that it was my birthday until o and g arrived! he never forgot it again!

26th birthday one of the best! boogs took me out on his 'round' - it was a beautiful sunny day and we seemed to be laughing all day long!

27th birthday everyone seemed to give me book tokens this birthday - great!!! went into spalding and bought loads!!

28th birthday can't remember

29th birthday another good one! i was just pregnant with stella, it was late night opening at the library and whilst we were having the special birthday dinner boogs had made, frances phoned to wish me a happy birthday and also to tell me she was expecting their first baby (christopher) in november!!

30th birthday a sunday - stella was 5 months old and a delightful baby - o and g came for lunch - we were house hunting and went to look at a school house somewhere north of holbeach

31st birthday we had recently moved into rose cottage and i had even more recently sent off my specimen to confirm that i was expecting another baby - it took ages in those days - and even longer because i had to wait an extra day as everywhere was closed to celebrate the charles and diana wedding - i was exhausted and went to bed early on my birthday that year and missed the pre-nuptial fireworks

32nd birthday boogs was working in rickmansworth and i was living miles from anywhere with stella (2 and a bit) and frankie (4 months) - we were trying to sell the house so i suppose i was looking after the children and packing - can't remember the actual day

33rd birthday all four of us went for a picnic in the country - beautiful day and very enjoyable

34th birthday can't remember

35th birthday a saturday - boogs and i went to odi and brian's house for dinner - this was to celebrate odi and i having the same birthday - odi was 28 though!

36th birthday sunday - odi and brian came the night before for dinner - eric and jane were staying with us - a wonderful and hilarious night!

37th birthday monday - another one lost in the mists of time - i do know that eric jane odi and brian all came for dinner around that time to clebrate together

38th birthday no recollection at all of the actual day - but we celebrated on the saturday - a fantastic 'australian barbie' at our house - everybody came in some form of fancy dress - boogs had constructed a shelter under the apple tree and that's where we all sat during a torrential rainstorm - marvellous party!!

39th birthday no idea!!

40th birthday a friday - joanne came over with francesca (about 4 months) - had a good day - frankie having a lovely time playing with francesca - stella returned from guide camp in the late afternoon and chas and pauline came round in the evening

41st birthday a saturday - not sure about the day itself - the following day boogs and fran set off for winchelsea for their hols and on monday 29th stella and i flew out to zurich with o in order to celebrate switzerland's 700th birthday on 1 august

42nd birthday ??

43rd birthday i think we were on our hols in winchelsea

44th birthday on our hols in winchelsea - we spent my birthday at sissinghurst - lovely day!!l

45th birthday everyone was out bar me - boogs at work, frankie with a friend and stella was in basle - kathy phoned in the afternoon - to talk about staying at our house over camp i think it was!

46th birthday another one i can't remember

47th birthday we were having the kitchen alterations done so it was all fairly chaotic

48th birthday boogs had recently had an op for his throat cancer and i think he was still in hospital at this point

49th birthday took the day off work - stella and rich were home from uni, boogs just about recovered and looking for work again - fran and i went to battlers green for afternoon tea

50th birthday at work - i found the cash office all decorated with ribbons etc when i arrived and i had to wear a badge all day to let the customers know i was 50 - boogs and i had had a joint party a couple of weeks before

51st birthday had the day off work and relaxed at home - went for a drink in croxley in the evening with boogs, stella and fran

52nd birthday a saturday stella and rich came to stay - had a barbecue in the evening with celia, noel, rachael, brian and the haywards

53rd birthday sunday - boogs was in watford hospital determined to live life to the full while he could - he had organised one of the staff to go out and get me a card and then got all the ward to sign it

54th birthday fran arrived home from hols in ibiza at 6.00 a.m., trisha popped round at 6.45 a.m. and eric arrived at 7.00!! coffee in the kitchen!! work - but it could have been worse

55th birthday at work - quite a good day considering

56th birthday today!! work again! i don't know why i go to work on my birthday - i must be mad - next year will be different!!

13.29 today!!!

. . . is the time cat's and david's baby finally made his appearance!!!

a 9lb 6 oz little boy whom they are calling freddy (or freddie??)

we are all thrilled!! including everyone in the P & T team!! we were in a meeting when eric phoned me and they were all just as excited as i was!!

after eric called i found it difficult to concentrate, so left a little early and nipped round to jackie's to congratulate/shout hoorah/jump about etc

both james and imy were there - and we all (with ruth) sat in the garden and drank a celebratory mug of tea!!!

i am looking forward to seeing him!!! (my first-ever great-nephew!!)

what is 'success'?

a question prompted by a co-worker who quoted jeremy clarkson as saying that all those who have dreadful school reports tend to be 'very successful' in later life

she then enlarged on this thought and i find that i disagree with her apparent definition of 'successful'

it would seem that for many, success is quantified by measurable achievements, high earnings and by material possessions

i would say it is being able to do a job (paid or unpaid) that one is happy doing and realising a sense of satisfaction in what ever one has done to make the world a better place for others

and a p.s. : we are all still waiting for cat's baby to be born!!

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