I have just had my once a year conversation with PG, no I don't mean we only converse on one occasion in the year, I mean I hold this specific conversation just one time each year, though not always with PG!
Of what am I muttering? The time! PG is at work on a night shift. He always calls me to say goodnight when he's not here and tonight's 'goodnight' conversation revolved around the fact that it is (or was then) 10.30 pm and I am already tired. For those who know me well this is strange I know, I am never heading to bed before 1 am and yet tonight, at such an early hour, my lust for being awake has waned drastically already.
Why?...... the clocks of course, they might well say 10.30 but it is in fact in my head 11.30 and it will remain that way for at least a few days! We will overlook here that I am 'getting on a bit' and had a late night last night, that of course has nothing to do with my state of near collapse! It is the clocks I tell you, it really is 11.30 and not 10.30!!
Whatever......zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
Sunday, 31 October 2004
Prestonpans pardons witches!
Thanks to Wacky Southern Housewife for bringing this piece of halloween news to my attention. Not very astute research by myself to say the least. She is in the US whilst I am not 5 miles away from Prestonpans and yet it is she who told me... Doh!!
I'm not sure I'm up for another shindig after last night but it needs investigation!
I'm not sure I'm up for another shindig after last night but it needs investigation!
I concede
It's not too many years since I could work all day, go clubbing until the wee small hours, be back at work the following morning in a reasonable state of coherence and do it all again the subsequent night, night after night after night.
Things have changed it would seem!
I was up before 6 yesterday morning and driving through rain and thick fog to work by 7, the day was a busy one with a few customers of note causing disruption and despair among the ranks and then it was home and time to drag oneself into some semblance of elegance to attend the local golf clubs annual prize giving 'do'. At this point my minute by minute plans began to unravel somewhat. I left work to find a seagull or more probably, seagulls, plural, had deposited mounds of something unpleasant on my windscreen (a common problem in these parts) in such large quantities it had to be 'dealt with' before I could move off the mark!
This entailed rapid ferreting in the boot to uncover the ice scraper that had not been unearthed since last winter, whilst attempting to hold my phone on my shoulder and converse with PG who was calling to say he had got his times incorrect and I had one hour to get home, get elegant and be out, bright eyed and bushy tailed!
Arghhhhhh. I dropped the phone, which skidded worryingly down the bonnet of the car and bounced along the tarmac and at the same time, distracted, I scraped the window with some vigor, forgetting that 'seagull' contains a proportion of sand which is of course abrasive, and annihilated my windscreen, rendering it covered in scratches and likely requiring replacement! The phone thankfully survived it's tarmac dance but I was by this time not a 'chilled and ready for partying person'!
So home I duly fled, eyes peeled through scratches for any signs of a gatzo, now was not the time I needed to be dealing with over effusive members of the local constabulary issuing SP30's with wry grins on their faces.
Journey achieved without further incident I had half an hour to fall into the shower and become decent! I made it, harassed and hungry but I made it and off we went to this function that if I am honest, the thought of which did not fill me with inspiration.
Small town golf club, blue rinse brigade and much back slapping and guffawing was what I envisaged with my city mentality, how wrong was I? Golf in Scotland is in the main not as elitist as in other parts of the UK and I should have known better. What a night! The Scots, I have to say, know how to party!
I am ever thankful, that in a small town where everyone has known everyone forever and 'incomers' are not always welcomed I have some good friends and have rarely suffered discrimination despite the slightly dubious circumstances that bought me to these parts. Yes the 'north/south jokes' are always in evidence but it is mostly in fun and on the odd occasion it isn't who cares?
The night was a memorable one, marked by the fact that the club chairman, a local dignitary and peer of the realm, forgot that he and his good lady where to preside over events and fell through the door an hour late looking marginally disheveled and causing those catering the evening some degree of stress, while they maintained the quality of the hot fare on offer as we waited!
Do peers of the realm not employ P.A's to remind them of these things?
And so..........an hour or two of good food, average speeches and presentations over with the fun began in earnest. The second memorable event of the evening was that PG was persuaded to dance, PG does not as a rule engage in this activity for anyone or anything but happily inebriated beyond normal constraints he became remarkably unstoppable! The night wore on with good conversation, much alcohol induced madness and general good feeling until at 'something past civil o'clock' people began drifting off into the foggy night.
I, as regular readers will know, am tee total and am required at such events to offer a 'taxi service', last night however everyone seemed to have made their own arrangements thankfully. I had by now, been 'up and at it' for almost 22 hours and was beginning to fade! All that remained was for me to drive home and steer PG into the flat, a task that is not assisted by the slippery metal stairway that is the only access to the property. On this point PG amazes me, he has a somewhat impressive capacity for alcohol despite only drinking a few times a year nowadays. I will not embarrass him by divulging quite how much he can consume and still remain upright but whilst progress was a little slow, it was good humored, if noisy...... sorry to our neighbour for any disturbance caused.....and we fell laughing through the door to the relief of Ditto who was ready for a late night/early morning snack!
And it is here I concede......... I can no longer party night after night after night! This morning, despite my not drinking I am most definitely not at my best and the fact that I had the forethought to take a days leave from work today is something I am extremely thankful of.
PG incidentally is still sound asleep, plans of 18 holes abandoned...... though in his defense he does have to work a night shift tonight!
The night was only incomplete in one aspect......not one single kilt clad man was in evidence, unusual at these functions and most disappointing! Tsk! :o)
Things have changed it would seem!
I was up before 6 yesterday morning and driving through rain and thick fog to work by 7, the day was a busy one with a few customers of note causing disruption and despair among the ranks and then it was home and time to drag oneself into some semblance of elegance to attend the local golf clubs annual prize giving 'do'. At this point my minute by minute plans began to unravel somewhat. I left work to find a seagull or more probably, seagulls, plural, had deposited mounds of something unpleasant on my windscreen (a common problem in these parts) in such large quantities it had to be 'dealt with' before I could move off the mark!
This entailed rapid ferreting in the boot to uncover the ice scraper that had not been unearthed since last winter, whilst attempting to hold my phone on my shoulder and converse with PG who was calling to say he had got his times incorrect and I had one hour to get home, get elegant and be out, bright eyed and bushy tailed!
Arghhhhhh. I dropped the phone, which skidded worryingly down the bonnet of the car and bounced along the tarmac and at the same time, distracted, I scraped the window with some vigor, forgetting that 'seagull' contains a proportion of sand which is of course abrasive, and annihilated my windscreen, rendering it covered in scratches and likely requiring replacement! The phone thankfully survived it's tarmac dance but I was by this time not a 'chilled and ready for partying person'!
So home I duly fled, eyes peeled through scratches for any signs of a gatzo, now was not the time I needed to be dealing with over effusive members of the local constabulary issuing SP30's with wry grins on their faces.
Journey achieved without further incident I had half an hour to fall into the shower and become decent! I made it, harassed and hungry but I made it and off we went to this function that if I am honest, the thought of which did not fill me with inspiration.
Small town golf club, blue rinse brigade and much back slapping and guffawing was what I envisaged with my city mentality, how wrong was I? Golf in Scotland is in the main not as elitist as in other parts of the UK and I should have known better. What a night! The Scots, I have to say, know how to party!
I am ever thankful, that in a small town where everyone has known everyone forever and 'incomers' are not always welcomed I have some good friends and have rarely suffered discrimination despite the slightly dubious circumstances that bought me to these parts. Yes the 'north/south jokes' are always in evidence but it is mostly in fun and on the odd occasion it isn't who cares?
The night was a memorable one, marked by the fact that the club chairman, a local dignitary and peer of the realm, forgot that he and his good lady where to preside over events and fell through the door an hour late looking marginally disheveled and causing those catering the evening some degree of stress, while they maintained the quality of the hot fare on offer as we waited!
Do peers of the realm not employ P.A's to remind them of these things?
And so..........an hour or two of good food, average speeches and presentations over with the fun began in earnest. The second memorable event of the evening was that PG was persuaded to dance, PG does not as a rule engage in this activity for anyone or anything but happily inebriated beyond normal constraints he became remarkably unstoppable! The night wore on with good conversation, much alcohol induced madness and general good feeling until at 'something past civil o'clock' people began drifting off into the foggy night.
I, as regular readers will know, am tee total and am required at such events to offer a 'taxi service', last night however everyone seemed to have made their own arrangements thankfully. I had by now, been 'up and at it' for almost 22 hours and was beginning to fade! All that remained was for me to drive home and steer PG into the flat, a task that is not assisted by the slippery metal stairway that is the only access to the property. On this point PG amazes me, he has a somewhat impressive capacity for alcohol despite only drinking a few times a year nowadays. I will not embarrass him by divulging quite how much he can consume and still remain upright but whilst progress was a little slow, it was good humored, if noisy...... sorry to our neighbour for any disturbance caused.....and we fell laughing through the door to the relief of Ditto who was ready for a late night/early morning snack!
And it is here I concede......... I can no longer party night after night after night! This morning, despite my not drinking I am most definitely not at my best and the fact that I had the forethought to take a days leave from work today is something I am extremely thankful of.
PG incidentally is still sound asleep, plans of 18 holes abandoned...... though in his defense he does have to work a night shift tonight!
The night was only incomplete in one aspect......not one single kilt clad man was in evidence, unusual at these functions and most disappointing! Tsk! :o)
Saturday, 30 October 2004
Ladies and gentlemen, your attention please
The following are apparently announcements made by London Tube train drivers to their passengers, who knows if they are genuine but they are certainly very funny.
For anyone who actually made one of these announcements, as someone who works with the public.......you have my greatest respect! I make tannoy announcements all day every day at work......oh to have the courage just once! :o)
Thanks to Retroguy for landing this in my inbox.
For anyone who actually made one of these announcements, as someone who works with the public.......you have my greatest respect! I make tannoy announcements all day every day at work......oh to have the courage just once! :o)
"Ladies and Gentlemen, I do apologise for the
delay to your service. I know you're all dying to get home, unless, of course, you happen to be married to my ex-wife, in which case you'll want to cross over to the
Westbound and go in the opposite direction".
"Your delay this evening is caused by the line controller suffering from E &B syndrome, not knowing his elbow from his backside. I'll let you know any
further information as soon as I'm given any."
"Do you want the good news first or the bad news?
The good news is that last Friday was my birthday and I hit the town and had
a great time. The bad news is that there is a points failure somewhere between Stratford and East Ham, which means we probably won't reach our destination."
"Ladies and gentlemen, we apologise for the delay, but there is a security alert at Victoria station and we are therefore stuck here for the foreseeable future, so let's take our minds off it and pass some time together. All together now....”’
‘Ten green bottles, hanging on a wall.....'
"We are now travelling through Baker Street, as you can see Baker Street is closed. It would have been nice if they had actually told me, so I could tell you earlier, but no, they don't think about things like that".
"Beggars are operating on this train, please do NOT encourage these professional beggars, if you have any spare change, please give it to a registered charity, failing that, give it to me."
During an extremely hot rush hour on the Central Line, the driver announced in a West Indian drawl:
"step right this way for the sauna, ladies and gentleman... unfortunately towels are not provided".
"Let the passengers off the train FIRST!" (Pause...) "Oh go on then, stuff yourselves in like sardines, see if I care - I'm going home...."
"Please allow the doors to close.Try not to confuse this with 'Please hold the doors open'. The two are distinct and separate instructions."
"Please note that the beeping noise coming from the doors means that the doors are about to close. It does not mean throw yourself or your bags into the doors."
"We can't move off because some idiot has their
f***ing hand stuck in the door"
"To the gentleman wearing the long grey coat
trying to get on the second carriage - what part of 'stand clear of the
doors' don't you understand?"
Please move all baggage away from the doors (Pause..) Please move
ALL belongings away from the doors (Pause...) This is a personal message to the man in the brown suit wearing glasses at the rear of the train – put the pie down, four-eyes, and move your bloody golf clubs away from the door before I come down there and shove them up your a**e sideways"
"May I remind all passengers that there is strictly no smoking allowed on any part of the Underground. However, if you are smoking a joint, it's only fair that you pass it round the rest of the carriage".
Thanks to Retroguy for landing this in my inbox.
Friday, 29 October 2004
'Queen of the sky' is suspended!
An airline flight attendant, Ellen Simonetti, has been suspended from her job for blogging! The following is a comment I left on her blog, The diary of a (grounded) flight attendant, this morning:
The BBC reported this story this morning and it is not often I am so angered by anything so early in the day. Perhaps on the scale of world events this incident is not earth shattering but it's implication are for me, extremely concerning.
Ms Simonetti did not identify her employer or her colleagues and created fictitional names for her characters but even had she not done so, do we not have a right to free speech and to pursue, within the law, interests in our free time of our choosing without the corporate machine bearing down on us.
As an employee I do not consider my self to be in any way the property of my employer, yes when I am in my place of work I have a code of conduct to adhere to and even outside of the workplace I accept that to a point I should not bring that employer's name into disrepute but (and this in my opinion is a big but), should that employer behave in what I believe as an unacceptable manner should I not also have the right to discuss it in a public forum in a reasonable manner.
Reactionary behaviour such as that displayed here by Ms Simonetti's employer only serves in my view to give me cause to question exactly what it is about her employers corporate behaviour that the company are worried we will discover!
Those of you who read this blog regularly will know that in a small way I have previously feared my own employers reaction to my blog, luckily the company who employ me are more reasonable and understanding but had they not been I would have been prepared to lose my job for the sake of what I see as a fundamentally important principle.
Ms Simonetti has not bought her employers name into disrepute and nor has her blog, the company themselves have done that by behaving in such an outrageous manner and have along the way, just lost at least one prospective customer through their own ignorance and display of corporate bullying.
I urge you to show your support for this lady and I wish her every success.
Diary of a (grounded) flight attendant can be found here.
I came here having read about your 'problem' on the BBC news, lol, your hit counter should be impressive for a few days! :o)
On a serious note: I have experienced a little of what is happening to you though thankfully my employer was more understanding. I am appalled at your situation, you do not need me to reiterate that your blog is your private business and given that you don't name your employer etc. I don't see where their problem is. Being an employee should not limit one's freedom of speech and your employer’s reaction only serves to make me for one wonder what it is that they are concerned about you divulging. It smacks of corporate paranoia.
You and I differ here in one aspect, had my employer asked me to take my blog down I, on principle would not have done, whatever the consequences.
Good luck in whatever you wish to be the outcome of your situation and my apologies for my rant here but I am incensed by this!
The BBC reported this story this morning and it is not often I am so angered by anything so early in the day. Perhaps on the scale of world events this incident is not earth shattering but it's implication are for me, extremely concerning.
Ms Simonetti did not identify her employer or her colleagues and created fictitional names for her characters but even had she not done so, do we not have a right to free speech and to pursue, within the law, interests in our free time of our choosing without the corporate machine bearing down on us.
As an employee I do not consider my self to be in any way the property of my employer, yes when I am in my place of work I have a code of conduct to adhere to and even outside of the workplace I accept that to a point I should not bring that employer's name into disrepute but (and this in my opinion is a big but), should that employer behave in what I believe as an unacceptable manner should I not also have the right to discuss it in a public forum in a reasonable manner.
Reactionary behaviour such as that displayed here by Ms Simonetti's employer only serves in my view to give me cause to question exactly what it is about her employers corporate behaviour that the company are worried we will discover!
Those of you who read this blog regularly will know that in a small way I have previously feared my own employers reaction to my blog, luckily the company who employ me are more reasonable and understanding but had they not been I would have been prepared to lose my job for the sake of what I see as a fundamentally important principle.
Ms Simonetti has not bought her employers name into disrepute and nor has her blog, the company themselves have done that by behaving in such an outrageous manner and have along the way, just lost at least one prospective customer through their own ignorance and display of corporate bullying.
I urge you to show your support for this lady and I wish her every success.
Diary of a (grounded) flight attendant can be found here.
Thursday, 28 October 2004
And then there was the moon
.....and along with it came the sudden, stark realisation that it had been a bad idea to sell the SLR, tripod, lenses and associated paraphernalia because it just doesn't matter how much you like your cybershot there are times when it just ain't gonna be up to the job!!!
Full moon
Oh and yes.....we still have overhead phone lines out here.
Full moon
Oh and yes.....we still have overhead phone lines out here.
The sun fell out of the sky.......
....in just 6 minutes this evening!
(click to enlarge)
Scottish Borders 17.20 BST ~ going........
17.22 BST ~ going.....
17.24 BST ~ going......
17.26 BST ~ gone!
(click to enlarge)
Scottish Borders 17.20 BST ~ going........
17.22 BST ~ going.....
17.24 BST ~ going......
17.26 BST ~ gone!
Wednesday, 27 October 2004
Hurrah....Winter is here!
Frosty start
Brrrrr.....winter arrived overnight in this part of Scotland, leaving no shadow of doubt that summer is long gone. Temperatures fell low enough to form the first frost of the season and the landscape has the familiar stark hue about it.
I of course enjoy the summer but in common with Yorkshire Snowman I have a passion for the winter. Weather watching is something I do avidly throughout the season, not merely the normal British obsession with bemoaning the rain and winds etc. that we here in the UK are so infamous for. I have an assortment of electronic gadgetry here measuring various aspects of the meteorological goings on and websites galore that I ponder with much interest in a somewhat obsessive fashion!
Ok...so computers? now weather? I hear you say..........no one mention anoraks please!
My particular passion is for snow and lots of it, though extremes of any winter weather will do. There is nothing like it to lift my mood and put a smile on my face, odd I know when most detest the stuff but hey....did I ever say I was not odd?!
Having lived in the South of the country for most of my life, moving to Scotland seemed a big plus from the snow point of view. I moved here in March of 2001 and just missed the most significant snowfall for years by six weeks.
Six foot of snow fell overnight, it goes without saying that disruption was severe and the locality was completely cut off for a number of days. PG was stuck at work for the majority of the time, only escaping latterly, there was no power or phone lines for over a week but damn, it was beautiful! Of course, the possibility of no power does not fill me with complete happiness but each year we prepare with a calor heater and camping stoves etc. Maintaining an internet connection without power or phone lines is somewhat more of a challenge though and the one aspect that could almost put me off...........no.........it would be worth it!!
Thus far my winters in Scotland have been bereft of impressive snowfall, last year we had a few days and one white-out but not the stuff of a snow lovers dreams, so here's hoping for this year.
Apologies in advance, for it is highly likely I will bore you further on this subject over the coming months!
Tuesday, 26 October 2004
Are we comfortable??
Ditto 26.10.04
Ditto, tender of years and still with a few of the cat fact of life to learn, has in the last few weeks discovered there is more to beds than on, there is in fact something else, called in! This, as anyone who keeps cats will know, is perhaps not the most endearing of cat tricks!
Never has she yet considered we may not wish to have her attempting to burrow through from the outside at stupid o'clock, without fail futile scratching and burrowing precedes her eventual realisation that this just isn't going to work and that another approach must be used.
The secondary approach is the 'entry from pillow' approach, where invariably one or other of us receives a rude awakening courtesy of a small paw in the face! Having found a route in and made her way foot-ward, should we be silly enough to move a muscle we become 'prey', if we are not fully awake at this stage we soon will be, as small teeth and sharp claws 'play' at catch the foot!
Any attempts at removing said cat from the area is met with a more determined effort on her part at 'foot catching' and is pointless, not to mention painful.
So on it goes, we lie there cursing her quietly, trying to ignore her antics until eventually she decides she has found an appropriate spot, why she has to go through this each time is beyond us, she always ends up in exactly the same place where she remains firmly put againt any and every effort at removal!!
Shut the door I hear you say, keep her out of the bedroom......no chance, any efforts in that direction have been met with constant caterwauls and scratching, we have persevered I promise you, we have tried ignoring her for hours on end but her resolve is stronger than ours.....she will carry on for just as long as it takes to drive us demented enough to let her in.
Dontcha just love em sometimes! :o/
Neighbours from hell
An item in the news yesterday caught my eye, it concerned measures being put in place to protect the identities of those complaining about nuisance neighbours in the hope that more would be prepared to give evidence and therefore enable more prosecutions to go ahead.
Whilst I am all in favour of anything that assists in the prevention of such anti social and inconsiderate behaviour I doubt this goes far enough. In my experience to be shielded in court from the perpetrator goes nowhere near far enough in solving the problems of fear and intimidation encountered by victims of this crime.
When I first met my ex husband, approximately 10 years, ago he had recently purchased a small flat 'on the wrong side of town'. At the time property prices in the South East had risen dramatically, affordable rented housing was non existent and so it was for him that or nothing.
On the face of it the property was pleasant, a one bed flat built over a garage to house his many motorbikes and in an area that despite it's reputation locally, in comparison to many places looked civil enough. It's reputation was to prove valid.
We lived there for three years and it soon became apparent that all that is bad about a neighbourhood was there. The majority of residents where unemployed drug users, extremely young single mothers and with a smattering of shall we say 'ladies of the night'. Nice place....not!
Our most severe problem stemmed from our next door neighbour, a guy at the time in his early thirties, a heroin user and dealer who persistently played drum and bass at an unimaginable decibel level almost 24/7.
As is my way I first attempted to deal with this but asking politely if he would mind turning it down and appealing to his better nature, he didn't have a better nature as it turned out.I tried reasoning with him, befriending him and helping him but all to no avail. Occasionally if I could catch him not 'out of his face' he would appear reasonable but within an hour the music was back. Added to this we had to tolerate a constant stream of his unsavoury 'customers' along our access balcony and intermittent fights.
Our persistence with 'reasonable requests' continued but the situation deteriorated when our requests began being met with various large knives wielded at us each time we approached him. On each occasion that we reported the incident to the police, the perpetrator had reported that we had threatened him with a weapon and in the absence of witnesses (the majority of those who ever saw all this were his customers and would never of course witness against him) the police could do nothing!
Why, you are wondering did we not get environmental health to deal properly with the noise pollution aspect of this situation. Well here is the crux for me of the problem. We of course wanted out of this property and had been advised by a lawyer that should we choose to make our situation 'official' by reporting it to authorities other than the police, when we came to sell we would be legally bound to tell any prospective purchaser of the difficulties!!!! Catch 22.
I agree in principle with this point but at the time our desperation to escape overrode our concern for anyone buying the property, something that sat badly with my conscience but in my now state of near nervous collapse having dealt with this on a daily basis for 18 months I felt I had no other option. Our lawyer advised that providing the situation was not reported to environmental health and providing we mentioned to any purchaser that we had had some noise nuisance then legally that was all we were obligated to do.
I am not one easily scared or intimidated and neither was my husband but as time went on the situation became intolerable. We couldn't sleep or hear our television or our own music, items in our flat moved and fell off surfaces with the vibration and we constantly battled each other on the question of how best to deal with the situation. My husband by this time would happily have 'taken matters into his own hands' but I, being well aware that I had to live there and be alone there when he worked night shifts was becoming increasingly intimidated by threats to 'torch' our property at night etc. Each time we ventured outside our front door we suffered abuse, when we returned home fearing what we would find, we were threatened, shouted at and pushed around and through all this I still persuaded my husband not to retaliate. Still the police could do nothing and still each time we called them it would only make the situation worse!
I am not naive, I am well aware what was going on here. The last summer we spent there, one sunny afternoon when I was off work ill a loud bang alerted me and being concerned that Mr delightful next door was attempting yet again to break into our garage I rushed onto the access balcony to be met by 8 police officers, some armed, all in the 'boots and baseball cap' version of the uniform. One shouted at me 'YOU IN'....damn, I can do in I thought, I don't need telling twice in the face of firearms and other hardware and so I sat inside while they broke in and raided the place. I was relieved as I watched them remove bag after bag of evidence including 'unidentified substances', surely now this nightmare would be over. The guy had not been in at the time of the raid but I was confident he would be picked up and that would be that.
No........it was not to be, he was arrested but he was released again without charge, returned home and immediately blamed us for his bring raided! The situation again deteriorated, he became more volatile, began cutting our phone line, always greeted us with a blade of one description or another and still the drum and base continued 24/7! Despite our protestations each time we involved the police one or other would turn up at our door, making it obvious it was us making the complaint and still they could never raise a witness and our neighbour made one counter claim after another.
Enough was enough, my husband's patience after 2 years of this had been tested beyond all reasonable limits and late one summers evening as he was threatened again as he went to get something from the garage, he snapped and beat the living daylights out of him. I detest violence but for once, whilst I still didn't agree with it I could understand it. Interestingly despite many of his friends being there at the time, no one helped him and no one would again assist the police even in his defence! From that point on all these no-hopers who had blighted our lives began showing us a strange kind of respect, greeted us with nods and muttered 'hello's and even engaged us in conversation now and again!
I have never and would never advocate violence as a solution to any problem but it is a sad indictment of our system that in the end it was the only way out for us. I had had enough by then though and despite the guy in question no longer threatening us etc. He still played his music 24/7.
We put the flat on the market and sold at a big loss we could ill afford and with great difficulty. We had attempted to keep from him that the property was up for sale but he discovered and each time someone came to view he would 'kick off'. Eventually we found a buyer and got the hell out. To the very last he was a nightmare. On the day we moved out and she moved in as I drove away he returned home and began shouting obscenities at me. We had, as our lawyer instructed, given this lady minimal information about the problem and my concience struggled with it for months.
And so.........whilst I am glad of any legislation to help the victims of this type of behaviour, there needs to be far more done in extreme cases than protecting the identity of witnesses once the perpetrator is in court. I was unable to protect my identity from the outset and getting into court in the first place was seemingly impossible!!!
As a footnote, the lady in question it appears had two rather large sons who wasted no time in taking the situation into their own hands, violence seeming to be the only language understood by some. And what became of the neighbour from hell? He was jailed for arson a year later, beyond that I have no idea.
Whilst I am all in favour of anything that assists in the prevention of such anti social and inconsiderate behaviour I doubt this goes far enough. In my experience to be shielded in court from the perpetrator goes nowhere near far enough in solving the problems of fear and intimidation encountered by victims of this crime.
When I first met my ex husband, approximately 10 years, ago he had recently purchased a small flat 'on the wrong side of town'. At the time property prices in the South East had risen dramatically, affordable rented housing was non existent and so it was for him that or nothing.
On the face of it the property was pleasant, a one bed flat built over a garage to house his many motorbikes and in an area that despite it's reputation locally, in comparison to many places looked civil enough. It's reputation was to prove valid.
We lived there for three years and it soon became apparent that all that is bad about a neighbourhood was there. The majority of residents where unemployed drug users, extremely young single mothers and with a smattering of shall we say 'ladies of the night'. Nice place....not!
Our most severe problem stemmed from our next door neighbour, a guy at the time in his early thirties, a heroin user and dealer who persistently played drum and bass at an unimaginable decibel level almost 24/7.
As is my way I first attempted to deal with this but asking politely if he would mind turning it down and appealing to his better nature, he didn't have a better nature as it turned out.I tried reasoning with him, befriending him and helping him but all to no avail. Occasionally if I could catch him not 'out of his face' he would appear reasonable but within an hour the music was back. Added to this we had to tolerate a constant stream of his unsavoury 'customers' along our access balcony and intermittent fights.
Our persistence with 'reasonable requests' continued but the situation deteriorated when our requests began being met with various large knives wielded at us each time we approached him. On each occasion that we reported the incident to the police, the perpetrator had reported that we had threatened him with a weapon and in the absence of witnesses (the majority of those who ever saw all this were his customers and would never of course witness against him) the police could do nothing!
Why, you are wondering did we not get environmental health to deal properly with the noise pollution aspect of this situation. Well here is the crux for me of the problem. We of course wanted out of this property and had been advised by a lawyer that should we choose to make our situation 'official' by reporting it to authorities other than the police, when we came to sell we would be legally bound to tell any prospective purchaser of the difficulties!!!! Catch 22.
I agree in principle with this point but at the time our desperation to escape overrode our concern for anyone buying the property, something that sat badly with my conscience but in my now state of near nervous collapse having dealt with this on a daily basis for 18 months I felt I had no other option. Our lawyer advised that providing the situation was not reported to environmental health and providing we mentioned to any purchaser that we had had some noise nuisance then legally that was all we were obligated to do.
I am not one easily scared or intimidated and neither was my husband but as time went on the situation became intolerable. We couldn't sleep or hear our television or our own music, items in our flat moved and fell off surfaces with the vibration and we constantly battled each other on the question of how best to deal with the situation. My husband by this time would happily have 'taken matters into his own hands' but I, being well aware that I had to live there and be alone there when he worked night shifts was becoming increasingly intimidated by threats to 'torch' our property at night etc. Each time we ventured outside our front door we suffered abuse, when we returned home fearing what we would find, we were threatened, shouted at and pushed around and through all this I still persuaded my husband not to retaliate. Still the police could do nothing and still each time we called them it would only make the situation worse!
I am not naive, I am well aware what was going on here. The last summer we spent there, one sunny afternoon when I was off work ill a loud bang alerted me and being concerned that Mr delightful next door was attempting yet again to break into our garage I rushed onto the access balcony to be met by 8 police officers, some armed, all in the 'boots and baseball cap' version of the uniform. One shouted at me 'YOU IN'....damn, I can do in I thought, I don't need telling twice in the face of firearms and other hardware and so I sat inside while they broke in and raided the place. I was relieved as I watched them remove bag after bag of evidence including 'unidentified substances', surely now this nightmare would be over. The guy had not been in at the time of the raid but I was confident he would be picked up and that would be that.
No........it was not to be, he was arrested but he was released again without charge, returned home and immediately blamed us for his bring raided! The situation again deteriorated, he became more volatile, began cutting our phone line, always greeted us with a blade of one description or another and still the drum and base continued 24/7! Despite our protestations each time we involved the police one or other would turn up at our door, making it obvious it was us making the complaint and still they could never raise a witness and our neighbour made one counter claim after another.
Enough was enough, my husband's patience after 2 years of this had been tested beyond all reasonable limits and late one summers evening as he was threatened again as he went to get something from the garage, he snapped and beat the living daylights out of him. I detest violence but for once, whilst I still didn't agree with it I could understand it. Interestingly despite many of his friends being there at the time, no one helped him and no one would again assist the police even in his defence! From that point on all these no-hopers who had blighted our lives began showing us a strange kind of respect, greeted us with nods and muttered 'hello's and even engaged us in conversation now and again!
I have never and would never advocate violence as a solution to any problem but it is a sad indictment of our system that in the end it was the only way out for us. I had had enough by then though and despite the guy in question no longer threatening us etc. He still played his music 24/7.
We put the flat on the market and sold at a big loss we could ill afford and with great difficulty. We had attempted to keep from him that the property was up for sale but he discovered and each time someone came to view he would 'kick off'. Eventually we found a buyer and got the hell out. To the very last he was a nightmare. On the day we moved out and she moved in as I drove away he returned home and began shouting obscenities at me. We had, as our lawyer instructed, given this lady minimal information about the problem and my concience struggled with it for months.
And so.........whilst I am glad of any legislation to help the victims of this type of behaviour, there needs to be far more done in extreme cases than protecting the identity of witnesses once the perpetrator is in court. I was unable to protect my identity from the outset and getting into court in the first place was seemingly impossible!!!
As a footnote, the lady in question it appears had two rather large sons who wasted no time in taking the situation into their own hands, violence seeming to be the only language understood by some. And what became of the neighbour from hell? He was jailed for arson a year later, beyond that I have no idea.
Monday, 25 October 2004
Un-confuse me
One of my favorite new blogs is 'QuickQuack' who's author, Jack the blogger, has the kind of wit that has me giggling out loud each time I read......that was until today!!
Today he left me in utter confusion, damn him, more proof I'm getting old methinks!
Would anyone care to go read this post and translate it for me, Greek seems a possiblitly, thus far I remian almost completely confounded, he had me lost beyond the words 'rap music'!
Today he left me in utter confusion, damn him, more proof I'm getting old methinks!
Would anyone care to go read this post and translate it for me, Greek seems a possiblitly, thus far I remian almost completely confounded, he had me lost beyond the words 'rap music'!
Today
Today I have done nothing.....well nothing of note. Having worked the last four days I got out of bed this morning ready to 'play', only to find some noxious little bug is endeavoring to invade my body. How inconsiderate, my day off, could it not have waited until a work day? I have something akin to a tennis ball in one side of my throat and razor blades in the other happily doing their worst along with some little guy with a darn big hammer in my head! My nose has recently joined in the party and is doing something I will not mention in detail for fear of putting you off your breakfast, lunch, dinner, depending on where you are reading this from!
As is evident I spent a little time tampering with my template again, I promise, no more changes....well not this week at any rate, I chatted with a friend for a while, did the domestic goddess stuff, made some bread (don't be impressed I have a machine) which I'm sure would smell delightful if only I had a sense of smell right now and then wasted my afternoon in bed asleep, or at least trying to be asleep while Ditto attempted the fandango around and under the duvet! Now I am up she is sound asleep at the foot of the bed!
I had a plethora of things to blog about this morning but they seem to have deserted me, not one can I drag from my infected little head right now. I'm feeling grumpy and churlish and pathetic...... I hate being poorly....... does it show?
As is evident I spent a little time tampering with my template again, I promise, no more changes....well not this week at any rate, I chatted with a friend for a while, did the domestic goddess stuff, made some bread (don't be impressed I have a machine) which I'm sure would smell delightful if only I had a sense of smell right now and then wasted my afternoon in bed asleep, or at least trying to be asleep while Ditto attempted the fandango around and under the duvet! Now I am up she is sound asleep at the foot of the bed!
I had a plethora of things to blog about this morning but they seem to have deserted me, not one can I drag from my infected little head right now. I'm feeling grumpy and churlish and pathetic...... I hate being poorly....... does it show?
I like this.....
I'm not sure it works very well on here but you get the idea! It's kinda everything that I love all in one little gif.......cats, birds, peace, black, white....blah blah blah! :o)
Sunday, 24 October 2004
What a sight!
Coming into land
I read recently about an increasing problem with birds flying into windows and dying as a result, so much so that the problem has recently been addressed by such organisations as the RSPB, with the introduction of 'scarers' that are that are available to buy and attached to the inside of offending windows!!
Last night I had a kind of 'non event' experience in this vein, although thankfully not a catastrophic one. PG and I were watching tv, we live in a first floor flat and have windows the size and shape of the average door, at night we never close the blinds, there are no properties overlooking us so there is no need.
Late in the evening a movement at the window caught my eye, and against the black night sky I turned to see a barn owl flying directly at me....these things are big, it was over in a few seconds but for those seconds I held my breath, there was nothing I could do and no time to do anything in, save for move quickly in an attempt to scare it. It worked, or the bird suddenly saw sense and at the very last moment veered almost completely vertically and flew over the building!
What an amazing sight, this massive, beautiful white bird, flying directly at us, wings outstretched and in stark relief against the blackness of the sky. Over in a few seconds but in my minds eye forever.
You know what they say......
......about pride coming before a fall, well I have just experienced that fall!
I was about to blog about how many results the word 'gemmak' returns when it is 'googled'. I have never truly understood the business of spiders picking up one's site, in fact I have never understood it at all to be honest but when I first started this website/blogging malarky I googled myself and of course there were only 7 results....... all for an engineering company. A few weeks later I repeated the exercise and found me, I was most pleased, ok so 15 results is not impressive but at least I felt I existed!! Last night I googled me again and in no time at all was presented with 2270 results, I smiled quietly to myself. Ok, again not anything on the scale of let's say 'Marks and Spencer' but for me a marked improvement.
And then came the fall!
There can be few bloggers who can honestly say, hand on heart, that they don't watch their hit counter rise with some interest and over the months mine has climbed slowly but steadily. It is never gonna be 'beFrank',with over 40000 hits since May, if I make 100 hits a day I'm happy and of late I have had a number of 'happy days' with only a few occasions dropping below 75-ish.
So my fall??? Today, upon checking my hits, I found just 22, yes I said 22 as in just twenty two .............disgraceful! lol. I know I didn't have time to post this morning before work but the vast majority, in fact all but maybe 3 web users where not aware of that small point.
Is there something wonderful and weekendy going on somewhere that I have missed or has life just decided to kick my ass because I was feeling slightly pleased with the results of my Googling?? :o)
I was about to blog about how many results the word 'gemmak' returns when it is 'googled'. I have never truly understood the business of spiders picking up one's site, in fact I have never understood it at all to be honest but when I first started this website/blogging malarky I googled myself and of course there were only 7 results....... all for an engineering company. A few weeks later I repeated the exercise and found me, I was most pleased, ok so 15 results is not impressive but at least I felt I existed!! Last night I googled me again and in no time at all was presented with 2270 results, I smiled quietly to myself. Ok, again not anything on the scale of let's say 'Marks and Spencer' but for me a marked improvement.
And then came the fall!
There can be few bloggers who can honestly say, hand on heart, that they don't watch their hit counter rise with some interest and over the months mine has climbed slowly but steadily. It is never gonna be 'beFrank',with over 40000 hits since May, if I make 100 hits a day I'm happy and of late I have had a number of 'happy days' with only a few occasions dropping below 75-ish.
So my fall??? Today, upon checking my hits, I found just 22, yes I said 22 as in just twenty two .............disgraceful! lol. I know I didn't have time to post this morning before work but the vast majority, in fact all but maybe 3 web users where not aware of that small point.
Is there something wonderful and weekendy going on somewhere that I have missed or has life just decided to kick my ass because I was feeling slightly pleased with the results of my Googling?? :o)
Saturday, 23 October 2004
This is just not good enough!
I am feeling decidedly old and decrepit this morning and rather disgruntled with life and myself in general!
Having completed two of my four days at work I am already dead on my feet despite dragging my self off here and into bed at a half reasonable hour......and I still have two days to go, with today's shift not finishing until 9pm. I admire individuals who can work shifts comfortably, even a 9pm finish messes with my internal clock! once I get home somehow despite being tired for the best part of the day I just can't sleep unless I have a few hours relaxing first which inevitably leads to yet another late night.
So why the general state of malaise. Something flu like seems to be endeavoring to invade my being, I slept badly last night, I dreamt profusely, was hot and bothered and apparently was snoring!!!! Who me??? I think not!! This 'pleasant' revelation caused PG to prod me in the ribs, so to speak, on a number of occasions in an apparently vain attempt to get some sleep himself and thus causing my night to be even further disturbed. Wouldn't you think that a caring partner would look lovingly at a snoring partner and not prod? Ok maybe an unrealistic thought there!
Prior to my night of nocturnal mutterings two other rather aggravating events took place. Firstly I weighed myself. As someone who has spent most of her life underweight this is not something I do more than perhaps bi-annually but having noticed that my tummy seemed not to be entirely flat any longer I saw fit to land myself on the scales........grrrrrr, for the first time in my adult life I seem to have put on weight!!! Ok, it is only a few pounds..... I still don't struggle over 8 stone and it's something my doctor would be pleased with but I am most certainly not. PG of course, having waged the weight battle for all of his adult life couldn't resist tormenting me about 'middle aged spread' etc.
My other alarming incident was also bodily. I bent down to pick something up off the floor and in doing so my right knee made a rather alarming cracking sound and hurt like hell, rendering me 'stuck' in a somewhat uncomfortable position. Even more aggravating was finding that my attempt to lever myself back to an upright position with my left leg, found it wanting, one leg alone struggled to propel me vertical again......what on earth happened to the strong gymnast I used to be!!!!
A sedentary, parked rear end down infront of the computer lifestyle, is what happened I think, perhaps not designed to keep ones body completely trim and fit. It is just not good enough something has to be done! Don't anyone dare mention age at this point please, I will not accept that age has anything what so ever to do with this decline in mobility. I have never done the 'keeping fit' thing, for years as a gymnast it was just part of my life now maybe I will have to consider a gym (oh hell), running, cycling or some other form of 'anti decline' activity.......grrrrrr, the thought of patronising a gym full of lycra clad individuals obsessed with their abs does nothing for me.....nothing at all!
Maybe I will just settle for a few exercises, a bit of walking and a staple diet of something other than chocolate! I recall my mother telling me my lifestyle would catch up with me as I got older.....I refuse to admit just yet that she had a point!
Having completed two of my four days at work I am already dead on my feet despite dragging my self off here and into bed at a half reasonable hour......and I still have two days to go, with today's shift not finishing until 9pm. I admire individuals who can work shifts comfortably, even a 9pm finish messes with my internal clock! once I get home somehow despite being tired for the best part of the day I just can't sleep unless I have a few hours relaxing first which inevitably leads to yet another late night.
So why the general state of malaise. Something flu like seems to be endeavoring to invade my being, I slept badly last night, I dreamt profusely, was hot and bothered and apparently was snoring!!!! Who me??? I think not!! This 'pleasant' revelation caused PG to prod me in the ribs, so to speak, on a number of occasions in an apparently vain attempt to get some sleep himself and thus causing my night to be even further disturbed. Wouldn't you think that a caring partner would look lovingly at a snoring partner and not prod? Ok maybe an unrealistic thought there!
Prior to my night of nocturnal mutterings two other rather aggravating events took place. Firstly I weighed myself. As someone who has spent most of her life underweight this is not something I do more than perhaps bi-annually but having noticed that my tummy seemed not to be entirely flat any longer I saw fit to land myself on the scales........grrrrrr, for the first time in my adult life I seem to have put on weight!!! Ok, it is only a few pounds..... I still don't struggle over 8 stone and it's something my doctor would be pleased with but I am most certainly not. PG of course, having waged the weight battle for all of his adult life couldn't resist tormenting me about 'middle aged spread' etc.
My other alarming incident was also bodily. I bent down to pick something up off the floor and in doing so my right knee made a rather alarming cracking sound and hurt like hell, rendering me 'stuck' in a somewhat uncomfortable position. Even more aggravating was finding that my attempt to lever myself back to an upright position with my left leg, found it wanting, one leg alone struggled to propel me vertical again......what on earth happened to the strong gymnast I used to be!!!!
A sedentary, parked rear end down infront of the computer lifestyle, is what happened I think, perhaps not designed to keep ones body completely trim and fit. It is just not good enough something has to be done! Don't anyone dare mention age at this point please, I will not accept that age has anything what so ever to do with this decline in mobility. I have never done the 'keeping fit' thing, for years as a gymnast it was just part of my life now maybe I will have to consider a gym (oh hell), running, cycling or some other form of 'anti decline' activity.......grrrrrr, the thought of patronising a gym full of lycra clad individuals obsessed with their abs does nothing for me.....nothing at all!
Maybe I will just settle for a few exercises, a bit of walking and a staple diet of something other than chocolate! I recall my mother telling me my lifestyle would catch up with me as I got older.....I refuse to admit just yet that she had a point!
Friday, 22 October 2004
Oatso expensive!
As one who considers herself hard to be swayed by the endeavors of advertisers I have a sad admission to make.
I know full well that those in the advertising business play on our weakness. They hit us where it hurts and do their damnedest to sell us products we neither want nor need in all manner of nefarious ways. One only has to look at the sales figures the following day, for a product that has been nationally advertised on TV the the previous evening to see the success advertising has, or consider the vast sums spent on promoting an item to realise just how well it works. Despite all that I thought myself somewhat immune.........until yesterday!
There is currently an advertising campaign on UK television for a product called 'Oatso simple', this, as it's name suggests is a breakfast cereal made of oats, in fact it is hailed as a microwave version of porridge but available in a myriad of exciting flavours.
Ever lazy in the kitchen, when presented with this item in my supermarket I weakened and purchased a pack!
What did I find on opening said pack yesterday morning? Seven little packets of something very akin to porridge oats is what I found. Not to be offput I followed the instruction. This was even for me, with my limited interest in things culinary, not a challenge...... empty contents of small paper bag into bowl, add 180ml of semi-skimmed milk and microwave for two and a half minutes. Bingo!
What was the end result? A bowl of porridge, incidentally a very small bowl of porridge,...........nothing too strange about that perhaps but somehow I had expected something maybe a little different for the price.
What sat sadly in the bottom of my bowl was exactly the same stuff as I would have enjoyed had I bought an ordinary, run of the mill packet of porridge oats, added some milk and microwaved it, as I have on numerous occasions. There was one big difference, the price!! I would hate to consider the cost per kg for Oatso simple but I think it would be bordering on that of prime beef!
I was had, the advertisers did their bit and got me, they well and truly got me!
I know full well that those in the advertising business play on our weakness. They hit us where it hurts and do their damnedest to sell us products we neither want nor need in all manner of nefarious ways. One only has to look at the sales figures the following day, for a product that has been nationally advertised on TV the the previous evening to see the success advertising has, or consider the vast sums spent on promoting an item to realise just how well it works. Despite all that I thought myself somewhat immune.........until yesterday!
There is currently an advertising campaign on UK television for a product called 'Oatso simple', this, as it's name suggests is a breakfast cereal made of oats, in fact it is hailed as a microwave version of porridge but available in a myriad of exciting flavours.
Ever lazy in the kitchen, when presented with this item in my supermarket I weakened and purchased a pack!
What did I find on opening said pack yesterday morning? Seven little packets of something very akin to porridge oats is what I found. Not to be offput I followed the instruction. This was even for me, with my limited interest in things culinary, not a challenge...... empty contents of small paper bag into bowl, add 180ml of semi-skimmed milk and microwave for two and a half minutes. Bingo!
What was the end result? A bowl of porridge, incidentally a very small bowl of porridge,...........nothing too strange about that perhaps but somehow I had expected something maybe a little different for the price.
What sat sadly in the bottom of my bowl was exactly the same stuff as I would have enjoyed had I bought an ordinary, run of the mill packet of porridge oats, added some milk and microwaved it, as I have on numerous occasions. There was one big difference, the price!! I would hate to consider the cost per kg for Oatso simple but I think it would be bordering on that of prime beef!
I was had, the advertisers did their bit and got me, they well and truly got me!
Thursday, 21 October 2004
Bah!
Threatening
Bah! it's back to work for me today and tomorrow and Saturday and Sunday, bah! bah! bah!........I get so used to my not working routine that to have to go to work is most disruptive! I mean hey, I have emails to type, a blog to fiddle with and friends to talk to, oh for a job with internet access!
I'm not complaining of course, (would I?) and the financial remuneration will certainly not go amiss this side of Christmas, or any side of Christmas in fact, I just have my little life all plotted and sorted here at home! :o)
Hey ho, off I go. The weather this morning is somewhat 'inclement' a howling wind and yet more stair rods of rain. PG is most disgruntled, it is his day off and the golf course is flooded, well not just the one he belongs too, all those in the vicinity so it looks like it's Tiger Woods and virtual golf for him today! At least there won't be issues about who utilises the pc with me out of the way! Apparently the laptop, which as a rule I don't use because all my 'stuff' is on here and I never get to update it there, doesn't have enough ram for old Tiger! Make note to self to sort that.....what's the going rate for 256 these days Jenny?
The only other news in the gemmak household is Poppy, who appears to be in the process of losing another tooth, she only has three remaining as it is poor thing but is none the less making a good improvement otherwise and eating like a horse again thank fully :o))
Back with you this evening, likely slightly tattered around the edges, post 8 hours with 'Joe Public'.....Heavens! 8 hours! Bah! I think this is where we came in................
Wednesday, 20 October 2004
Spiders and me......
....just don't 'do it' for each other, they terrify me and I kill them! Well rather I get PG or any other available brave soul to kill them or at the very least dispatch them to some far off place.
Despite my love of things living, I just cannot tolerate the eight legged species. Snakes, cockroaches, in fact anything else that lives and breathes I have no problem with but spiders.............sorry, no way!
My life is dictated by this irrational fear, I have tried and tried to overcome it but to no avail. I never get into bed without checking that something untoward is not lurking, I check the shower curtain, the bath, I don't venture into the dark recesses of cupboards etc. without some trepidation and normally i don't consider using a towel without careful inspection.
And thereby hangs the tale. Last night, relaxed, fed and almost ready for sleep I decided a shower was in order, I duly showered and began drying myself off. I didn't check the towel for inhabitants, I was feeling quite chilled. At one point in the drying process I thought I saw 'something' but as is my way I told myself not to be silly!
Big mistake...........seconds later the most enormous, ekkkkk, I can't say the word but you know the creature I mean, jumped out of my nice warm, soft towel and into the bath!!!!!! This thing was like a bloody saucer, I kid you not.
Now despite my normal predilection for behaving in at least a reasonably 'seemly manner' my reaction was swift and very unseemly. I screamed, somewhat alarmingly and fled the wet bath naked, at such speed that enroute I of course slipped. I righted myself almost instantly, caring not for a now sore knee, my only goal to escape this monster!
So there I was, dripping, naked and shaking in the hallway with PG desperately trying to discover my woe.......probably not the most aesthetic of sights!!
He duly 'dealt with' my tormenter and proffered for my use a clean, well checked towel, I most certainly could not have used the one that had so recently been home to the you know what!
Don't tell me this is irrational, that they don't hurt etc.etc.etc.......I know that but it doesn't help. Don't recommend to me hypnosis or some form of aversion therapy, it has been considered and found wanting in my case! I can't even kill or deal with them myself, I can't look at one long enough without becoming incoherent!
The psychology of this fear is interesting I suppose, any other situation in life I am presented with I deal with at least with an appearance of calm.....but spiders, no way, no chance, no rational thought, just instantaneous panic that appears before I am able to get a grip of my wits!!!! Arghhhhhhhh.
Despite my love of things living, I just cannot tolerate the eight legged species. Snakes, cockroaches, in fact anything else that lives and breathes I have no problem with but spiders.............sorry, no way!
My life is dictated by this irrational fear, I have tried and tried to overcome it but to no avail. I never get into bed without checking that something untoward is not lurking, I check the shower curtain, the bath, I don't venture into the dark recesses of cupboards etc. without some trepidation and normally i don't consider using a towel without careful inspection.
And thereby hangs the tale. Last night, relaxed, fed and almost ready for sleep I decided a shower was in order, I duly showered and began drying myself off. I didn't check the towel for inhabitants, I was feeling quite chilled. At one point in the drying process I thought I saw 'something' but as is my way I told myself not to be silly!
Big mistake...........seconds later the most enormous, ekkkkk, I can't say the word but you know the creature I mean, jumped out of my nice warm, soft towel and into the bath!!!!!! This thing was like a bloody saucer, I kid you not.
Now despite my normal predilection for behaving in at least a reasonably 'seemly manner' my reaction was swift and very unseemly. I screamed, somewhat alarmingly and fled the wet bath naked, at such speed that enroute I of course slipped. I righted myself almost instantly, caring not for a now sore knee, my only goal to escape this monster!
So there I was, dripping, naked and shaking in the hallway with PG desperately trying to discover my woe.......probably not the most aesthetic of sights!!
He duly 'dealt with' my tormenter and proffered for my use a clean, well checked towel, I most certainly could not have used the one that had so recently been home to the you know what!
Don't tell me this is irrational, that they don't hurt etc.etc.etc.......I know that but it doesn't help. Don't recommend to me hypnosis or some form of aversion therapy, it has been considered and found wanting in my case! I can't even kill or deal with them myself, I can't look at one long enough without becoming incoherent!
The psychology of this fear is interesting I suppose, any other situation in life I am presented with I deal with at least with an appearance of calm.....but spiders, no way, no chance, no rational thought, just instantaneous panic that appears before I am able to get a grip of my wits!!!! Arghhhhhhhh.
Tuesday, 19 October 2004
*Guest contributor* ~ Blogging Debut ~ 'Retroguy'
I've been asked to make a guest appearance in the wonderful world of blogging. Given that if you ask my 11 year old daughter she will say I often make a fool of myself I'm sure I'm going to just that in some shape or form now, so be prepared.
My experience of blogging stems from my friendship with gemmak. We have been friends for a long time now, have never met, but I certainly list her in a select few people in my life I share personal things with and who's opinions and friendship I value. I'm sorry to say we don't share the love of cats. I have a particular dislike for the ones that crap in my garden. I admit to admiring the fact that they recognise that if I appear they are likely receiving a soaking via a cup of water or be converted over the fence via my right foot...(the common England problem of having no left foot!)
The diversity of the blogs are incredible and shows that the wonderful world of cyberspace isn't just filled with individuals wishing to discover what one is wearing! A read through daily blogs will furnish one with a more accurate view of the world and what's happening than relying on the Super Soaraway Sun. Although I would say that you do need to read the Sun in order to keep up with the latest goings on with "George and Lynne" alas Striker is sadly missed,who knows someday Nick Jarvis may have a cameo role in George and Lynne! Having got into the habit of reading blogs most days ( I do actually get some work done here ) I must admit to being a fan of "My Boyfriends a Twat"
Nothing really rattling my cage right now apart from trivial issues regarding my daughters football team that I manage...so i'll comment on gemmak's blog "Channel 4 rebuked". I have been a great fan of BB but have to say it was became obvious from before the last series had begun it had been manufactured to be a staged punch up / shag fest. Late night television is an animal in it's own right and let's be fair most people who are up at these hours are fully aware that there's likely to be a tadge more flesh and blood and an increased frequency of graphic language than is likely to be heard around the time of Emmerdale. I really get sick and tired of reading about how many calls BBC/ITV/Channel 4/ Channel 5 has received complaining about content. There is such a simple and complete solution to this..the off button. I can't remember there being any thing that makes it mandatory to have the TV on at all.....unless something has been slid through Parliament while the Men in Tights were tackling the invaders! There are programmes that if I miss means I have the large hump but how many people get down the library these days and read about something they know nothing about. How about learning to cook, grow some vegetables, or get fit or fitter. The last sentence will give you a clue about as gemmak would say the things that "Do it for Me"
I think I'll leave it there for now, I'm struggling to get into flow due to the fact that my employers, here in the City of London, actually expect me to do some work when I turn up here.
Hopefully I may be invited back.
~Posted by 'Retroguy'~ (Yes I was there!)
My experience of blogging stems from my friendship with gemmak. We have been friends for a long time now, have never met, but I certainly list her in a select few people in my life I share personal things with and who's opinions and friendship I value. I'm sorry to say we don't share the love of cats. I have a particular dislike for the ones that crap in my garden. I admit to admiring the fact that they recognise that if I appear they are likely receiving a soaking via a cup of water or be converted over the fence via my right foot...(the common England problem of having no left foot!)
The diversity of the blogs are incredible and shows that the wonderful world of cyberspace isn't just filled with individuals wishing to discover what one is wearing! A read through daily blogs will furnish one with a more accurate view of the world and what's happening than relying on the Super Soaraway Sun. Although I would say that you do need to read the Sun in order to keep up with the latest goings on with "George and Lynne" alas Striker is sadly missed,who knows someday Nick Jarvis may have a cameo role in George and Lynne! Having got into the habit of reading blogs most days ( I do actually get some work done here ) I must admit to being a fan of "My Boyfriends a Twat"
Nothing really rattling my cage right now apart from trivial issues regarding my daughters football team that I manage...so i'll comment on gemmak's blog "Channel 4 rebuked". I have been a great fan of BB but have to say it was became obvious from before the last series had begun it had been manufactured to be a staged punch up / shag fest. Late night television is an animal in it's own right and let's be fair most people who are up at these hours are fully aware that there's likely to be a tadge more flesh and blood and an increased frequency of graphic language than is likely to be heard around the time of Emmerdale. I really get sick and tired of reading about how many calls BBC/ITV/Channel 4/ Channel 5 has received complaining about content. There is such a simple and complete solution to this..the off button. I can't remember there being any thing that makes it mandatory to have the TV on at all.....unless something has been slid through Parliament while the Men in Tights were tackling the invaders! There are programmes that if I miss means I have the large hump but how many people get down the library these days and read about something they know nothing about. How about learning to cook, grow some vegetables, or get fit or fitter. The last sentence will give you a clue about as gemmak would say the things that "Do it for Me"
I think I'll leave it there for now, I'm struggling to get into flow due to the fact that my employers, here in the City of London, actually expect me to do some work when I turn up here.
Hopefully I may be invited back.
~Posted by 'Retroguy'~ (Yes I was there!)
Channel 4 is 'rebuked'
Emma
Big brother 5 is in the news again. This time because it's makers and broadcasters Channel 4 have been 'rebuked' by Ofcom for allowing the live screening of a fight that occurred in the house to continue to be broadcast.
Apparently Ofcom received a number of complaints that the broadcast should have been cut and that security should have intervened sooner....... some viewers even went so far as to call the police!
I am not entirely sure if I am amused or annoyed by the decision to take to task Channel 4 for their handling of the situation, a little of both I think.
My greatest feeling is of disbelief that viewers should react in this way in the first place. Come on, this incident was broadcast well after the watershed and I cannot believe that anyone who watched Big brother wasn't either expecting or hoping for some confrontation. It was not rocket science to see that it was coming well before it happened and on the scale of Television and film violence it was but a mere spat. It was the behaviour of drunken fools maybe but not the stuff of serious complaint.
Yes it was live and I don't necessarily say I approve whole heartedly of the behavior of the housemates but did those viewers who complained really think that a company the size of this would have no security in place to deal with such circumstances or that Channel 4 would miss out on what, from a viewing statistics point of view, was going to be a winner. Get real.
Some may not agree with the format of the programme or violence on television in general but it never ceases to amaze me how others want to censor our viewing or complain about it's content when after all there is an off button. If you don't like the content of something on TV, turn the damn thing off!! Again, it does not require genius to make this happen.
No one, certainly in the UK, can not be aware that there is a watershed at 21.00 hrs in place or that Channel 4, as one of the forerunners of 'pushing the boundaries' in British broadcasting, may indeed show content that 'some viewers may find offensive'.
I agree with the watershed principle, I agree that some items broadcast are in poor taste, maybe even damaging,I agree that our children should be protected in a responsible way from overt sex and violence on our screens what I do not agree with is small minded people with nothing better to do wasting the time of the police and other authorities over something that by comparison to many, many movies and other broadcasts was insignificant.
Come on guys, you of the Mary Whitehouse brigade, live and let live and if you don't like it don't damn well watch something that by it's very nature is likely to be confrontational.
Monday, 18 October 2004
An amazing thing has happened
How many teeth?
You may recall on Saturday I made mention in my post that as I fell asleep a thought struck me that I would blog about later. This is later! I didn't want to blog it until I had confirmation that what had happened was correct.....and now I have!
Firstly I must apologise, I feel somewhat of a fraud, you will understand as you read.
Late on Saturday night as I fell asleep thinking of Poppy's predicament and how I could help her, a memory almost lost, of something Maggie had said to me suddenly returned to my conscious thoughts and things started to fall into place. She had said to me earlier in the day that I should check in Poppy's mouth for obstructions but having spoken to the vet and got his sad prognosis I forgot in my state of upset.
So in the middle of the night we got back up, propelled a rather confused cat into a suitable examination position and against her protestations managed to open her little mouth. It is not easy for the un-practiced to know quite what to look for in the mouth of a cat who is struggling madly but I noticed a kind of 'hole' on her gum. I first thought it was, as the vet had suggested, an ulcer, caused as a result of her failing kidneys but it was not angry looking like an ulcer, then it struck me.............she had lost a canine tooth! I was still unsure but as luck would have it I had taken the above photograph a few weeks earlier so we quickly checked the picture and sure enough there had been a tooth where there was now not one. This set off a chain of thought.......I recalled a few days previously that she had been 'fussing' with that side of her mouth but satisfied at the time that she was not choking I had forgotten it. Now it made sense.
And so this was what had lifted my spirits on Saturday night, the possibility that Poppy's symptoms of slavering and drinking may not be her advancing kidney failure but rather a dental problem.
This evening we made our way to keep an appointment with our favorite vet, still not really allowing ourselves to hope too much.
She was duly inspected, listened too and gently prodded, she had a little basic dental care (she has very few teeth anyway, having had some extracted a few years ago) and a shot of antibiotic.
And the prognosis?.....she lost a tooth, she has a sore slightly infected gum and that is the cause of her symptoms. Yes, she does still have kidney problems but not as as advanced as was first thought, in fact the vet finished by saying she is in the general health of a ten year old cat, not bad for a cat who is 16 tomorrow!!
Yes, we could lose her at any time at her age but if nothing changes it will not be as soon as we had feared....she may even have a year or two left if we are lucky!!
Some birthday present :o)
I feel like someone has taken something very heavy from my mind. You will understand now why I feel somewhat of a fraud, all the kind thoughts and comments at the sad news and now it seems thankfully that my sadness was unwarranted. I did, I know take the advice of the professionals and they made the best judgement with the information available.... but still I feel a fraud!
And Maggie, well I have thanked her personally of course but now I will do it publicly, without her special gift I would never have known..... and how long Poppy might have suffered I don't know. She said to me in a mail this evening "I looked closely at her face in yer picture, she told me she was irritated, NOT dying". Where animals are concerned there is something Maggie has that most of us don't.
Thank you Magz, the biggest most chocolate covered thank you ever...... and thank you also to all of you who left me so many caring comments or mailed me. The time will come when I lose Poppy but hopefully and with a little luck her demise will not be quite so soon!!!
I am happy tonight......and Poppy has tuna :o)
Guest blogger?
I have invited a long time friend to guest blog here, who knows...... there might be a temporary respite from my constant ramblings before too long! Let's see if he takes up the challenge! :o)
A little Blogger trick
Those of you who use Blogger will be only too familiar with the annoyance of losing a post. We all know the situation, it's one of Bloggers little reminders that we are not actually in charge of our destiny. You spend precious time typing a post only to hit 'publish' and find the Blogger gremlins kill it before your very eyes!! Well just maybe all is not lost, I discovered a possible rescue plan on Saturday night.
Having suffered this aggravation a few times in the past I normally type up my post in notepad and paste it into Blogger. On Saturday evening, feeling tired and with lack of concentration I typed directly into Blogger, hit publish and..... horror, the publish status gave up and 'stuck' at 18%. Grrrrrr, thought I, as I uttered some rather unpleasant expletives. I sat for a moment and considered, there must be a way to rescue my post. I sure as hell wasn't gonna re-type it!
There was it transpired a way and you might like to try it next time the gremlins get your hard work.
We all know that at this point if one hits the 'back' button there will only be a blank 'new post' page, the original post will have gone to the big blog in the sky. I left the 'stuck' page open and opened the 'edit posts' page in a new window. I had noticed before that providing the publish status gets past 1% and providing one doesn't hit 'back' the post is often still 'saved as draft' or on occasion even published.......and there it was, safe and sound in the new page!! I hurriedly pasted it into notepad,( I was NOT going to risk losing it again) closed the original window and published from the new window.
It worked! My post was rescued.
So, next time this annoying Blogger foible presents itself, you might like to attempt this trick. I can't promise it will always work, I have thus far only tried it this once but it's worth a bash. Anything is better than having to re-think and re-type a whole damn post!
Having suffered this aggravation a few times in the past I normally type up my post in notepad and paste it into Blogger. On Saturday evening, feeling tired and with lack of concentration I typed directly into Blogger, hit publish and..... horror, the publish status gave up and 'stuck' at 18%. Grrrrrr, thought I, as I uttered some rather unpleasant expletives. I sat for a moment and considered, there must be a way to rescue my post. I sure as hell wasn't gonna re-type it!
There was it transpired a way and you might like to try it next time the gremlins get your hard work.
We all know that at this point if one hits the 'back' button there will only be a blank 'new post' page, the original post will have gone to the big blog in the sky. I left the 'stuck' page open and opened the 'edit posts' page in a new window. I had noticed before that providing the publish status gets past 1% and providing one doesn't hit 'back' the post is often still 'saved as draft' or on occasion even published.......and there it was, safe and sound in the new page!! I hurriedly pasted it into notepad,( I was NOT going to risk losing it again) closed the original window and published from the new window.
It worked! My post was rescued.
So, next time this annoying Blogger foible presents itself, you might like to attempt this trick. I can't promise it will always work, I have thus far only tried it this once but it's worth a bash. Anything is better than having to re-think and re-type a whole damn post!
Saturday, 16 October 2004
A rainy day
It was back to work for me today after my almost two weeks off.
I went to bed last night with the sound of heavy rain beating against the window, seeming somehow to echo my mood, I woke again this morning to the rather inelegant screech of the alarm accompanying the sound of more heavy rain fall. My mood was different though from yesterday, lighter. Something struck me late last night as I fell asleep, a memory of something someone had said to me. I will blog on that at a later date, now is not the time.
So I hit the road at 6.30 am, the first time this Autumn that is has been dark for my journey. Still torrential rain fell, leaves blew all around and I saw no other vehicle for my entire journey. I saw a fox, a few rabbits scuttling around in a hurry to get back into their burrows and a slightly bedraggled looking pheasant. but no cars.....no people.
Sometimes I love living here and this morning was one of those times. I felt lucky to be in the middle of nowhere, to see foxes and rabbits on my drive, not buildings and traffic jams, to see the rain and hear the sound of the wind. I stopped in a lay-by to call PG to make sure he had got up for work and just sat there for a few minutes, ahead of me a horizon filled with a black sea, the warning light of the lighthouse flashing slowly, a few tiny lights from fishing boats twinkling and the sound of the rain hitting the roof.
I am lucky.
I went to bed last night with the sound of heavy rain beating against the window, seeming somehow to echo my mood, I woke again this morning to the rather inelegant screech of the alarm accompanying the sound of more heavy rain fall. My mood was different though from yesterday, lighter. Something struck me late last night as I fell asleep, a memory of something someone had said to me. I will blog on that at a later date, now is not the time.
So I hit the road at 6.30 am, the first time this Autumn that is has been dark for my journey. Still torrential rain fell, leaves blew all around and I saw no other vehicle for my entire journey. I saw a fox, a few rabbits scuttling around in a hurry to get back into their burrows and a slightly bedraggled looking pheasant. but no cars.....no people.
Sometimes I love living here and this morning was one of those times. I felt lucky to be in the middle of nowhere, to see foxes and rabbits on my drive, not buildings and traffic jams, to see the rain and hear the sound of the wind. I stopped in a lay-by to call PG to make sure he had got up for work and just sat there for a few minutes, ahead of me a horizon filled with a black sea, the warning light of the lighthouse flashing slowly, a few tiny lights from fishing boats twinkling and the sound of the rain hitting the roof.
I am lucky.
Friday, 15 October 2004
Talking of cats.
Poppy
Well ok we weren't but it seemed to follow on nicely from the very amusing picture I posted this morning......... and so talking of cats, I had some bad news today.
My old cat Poppy, who is 16 in four days time had for a while apparently been suffering the standard, old age cat complaint, of failing kidneys. She had visited the vet in July and was pronounced 'remarkable' for her age and holding her own on the kidney front. Sadly it seems no longer to be the case.
Having noticed some decline in her general state of health and the tell tale sign of a gradually increasing thirst I consulted the oracle in matter of cat, Maggie, she who knows almost all there is to know about animals and then subsequently the vet.
The outcome is a sad one and something anyone who is owned by a cat dreads, Poppy is unlikely to be for this world for too much longer, in fact if she is still gracing our bed and harassing us for food by Christmas we will be fortunate.
The decision has been made, I watched gemmak die of the same thing, fought the medical battles and subjected her to all that science had to offer. In the end it prolonged her life only a few weeks and in no way made those few weeks any easier for her. This time, and thankfully with the support and agreement of the vet, nature will be allowed to take it's course. Little is to be gained from putting her through the trauma of blood tests, medication and a special diet she will doubtless hate. She will have all that a cat could wish for, for as long as she lasts, and when the signs are that she has had enough, we will do the sad deed knowing she had a lovely cat life to the end.
My hope is that if it has to happen I will wake to find she has died in her sleep one night..... though I think that as is the way of things, it is unlikely to be the case.
Having lost gemmak I thought I was more prepared this time, I'm not so sure now. To some it may sound like a small trauma and on a world scale I know it is. Maybe it's the 'woman with no children thing' who knows, but Poppy has been with me and been my friend though thick and thin for 16 years and the prospect of not having her grace my life for much longer is something I have dreaded.
So it's off to get tins of tuna and fresh chicken, give her lots of attention and allow her permanent access to the human bed, this cat is gonna have fun to the end. Perhaps she will get a 'second wind', but I'm realistic.
I am sad today...... but happy that she chose to own me all those years ago.
Thursday, 14 October 2004
A massive thankyou....
....to everyone who left a comment on my 'Another predicament' posting of yesterday.
I was flabbergasted this morning to log in and see so many of you caring about my wellbeing to such an extent..rarely do I smile so broadly or get a lump in my throat at such an early point in the day. I was genuinely, extremely touched and felt that I couldn't just thank you all at the bottom of the comments, rather that I must blog my thanks where anyone dropping in will see them.
Along with all the kindness and concern there was much common sense and good advice and for that too I thank you. When I lived in a city I was more than aware of my personal safety, since I moved to 'the back of beyond' I kinda listened to the locals who said 'nothing ever happens here', silly really considering we had a murder in the village a few months back!
Suffice to say, I will take heed of the advice and put my 'personal security head' back on, I cannot avoid this guy, he lives so close he can see my every move from his home should he be inclined and I'm not sure mace is available in the UK let alone legal for a 'Jane Doe' such as me to carry but I will take reasonable precautions and begin by telling the owner of the dog where to get off....tho hopefully in more polite terms than that!
All that remains to be said is another MASSIVE THANK YOU for the concern and care shown to me by you all
I was flabbergasted this morning to log in and see so many of you caring about my wellbeing to such an extent..rarely do I smile so broadly or get a lump in my throat at such an early point in the day. I was genuinely, extremely touched and felt that I couldn't just thank you all at the bottom of the comments, rather that I must blog my thanks where anyone dropping in will see them.
Along with all the kindness and concern there was much common sense and good advice and for that too I thank you. When I lived in a city I was more than aware of my personal safety, since I moved to 'the back of beyond' I kinda listened to the locals who said 'nothing ever happens here', silly really considering we had a murder in the village a few months back!
Suffice to say, I will take heed of the advice and put my 'personal security head' back on, I cannot avoid this guy, he lives so close he can see my every move from his home should he be inclined and I'm not sure mace is available in the UK let alone legal for a 'Jane Doe' such as me to carry but I will take reasonable precautions and begin by telling the owner of the dog where to get off....tho hopefully in more polite terms than that!
All that remains to be said is another MASSIVE THANK YOU for the concern and care shown to me by you all
A dictionary of terms
For those of you, like myself, in the U.K. who have ventured across the blogging pond frequently and found yourself bemused by some of the terms regularly used, we now have our own 'dictionary of terms' thanks to an hilarious favorite of mine, Wacky Southern Housewife :o)
Wednesday, 13 October 2004
Another predicament
I have an uncanny ability to find my way too frequently into somewhat difficult situations, my mother has long said that trouble and disaster seem to somehow find me with more frequency than is usual. I have blogged on this subject before and so won't repeat myself, suffice to say I have involved in more than my fair share of unpleasantness in my 40 something years.
My current predicament is not on the same scale as some of those I have previously found myself in but none the less a solution evades me for now.
This afternoon my neighbour visited me, the German lady who's disobedient dog I unwittingly inherited when she was taken ill during the summer. That is where the problem begins. Having made a good recovery I found myself still walking her dog four times a day, she seemed reticent to take back the task and so a protracted spell of my gradually excusing myself from the duty began. It met with some degree of protestation and various excuses as to why she couldn't now walk him herself but I dug my heels in despite having a tendency to saying 'yes' when I mean 'NO'. Hell.....why do I do that, and by a few weeks ago was only responsible for some of the evening walks.
And then something happened one night and I stopped altogether.
Despite arriving at my door apparently on different errand it was patently obvious that the reason for this visitation was to try and illicit from me a reason as to why I had abandoned all dog walking duties so suddenly.
That is where my predicament lies. I can't tell her the truth, if I tell her the truth, within hours it will be at four corners of the village and beyond and yet I can't think of a valid excuse to give her.....she is nobody's fool and I'm a crap liar!
So this 'something that happened'? The dog has to walked at 9.30 pm, it is not negotiable, that was fine in the summer, albeit it frequently messed up my evening and once the nights became dark by that hour I still had no worries. That changed on one of the regular 'dog drags' a few weeks ago when it became apparent that someone was hiding in a disused garage that it is unavoidable for me to go past. We have no street lights here, it is pitch black at night, I should have had a torch but I kept forgetting to buy one. The garage in question has no door and no light and as we approached it I heard the shuffling of feet, heavy feet, this was not a cat or a fox! The dog went instantly on red alert, I stopped and listened, I heard breathing, the shuffling stopped and for the first time I recall in my adult life I had to resist my natural fight or flight response and force myself to remain calm.
We walked on, I told myself not to be so silly, we got to the end of our route and turned back, on approaching the garage again, more shuffling, more breathing and dog on red alert again. I stood stock still for a moment, I could hear my own heart in my chest...that's it I thought and ran like hell!
It was PG who from then on forbade me to walk the dog at night. I'm not one generally given to allowing myself to be forbidden from anything but you may understand a little more and forgive our paranoia when I tell you we have a relocated sex offender living not 20 yards away who a while back took to calling at my door for no apparent reason, pulls his car infront of our flat looks and leaves and calls at my place of work with some frequency despite never buying a damn thing!
So my predicament is this, I have always believed in giving people a second chance and if I tell my neighbour my real reasons for quitting the dog rota she will doubtless broadcast the information. If I am wrong about this man his second chance will be gone. In my heart I know I am not wrong but I have no proof. My information regarding his past is of course not official but it comes from a reliable source and whether it was he in the garage that night I will never be able to prove.
Either way, I don't want to be the one to begin such terrible gossip, if I am wrong and it became common knowledge it would be terrible for him, if I am right should i not be warning my neighbour?
I just don't know.............
My current predicament is not on the same scale as some of those I have previously found myself in but none the less a solution evades me for now.
This afternoon my neighbour visited me, the German lady who's disobedient dog I unwittingly inherited when she was taken ill during the summer. That is where the problem begins. Having made a good recovery I found myself still walking her dog four times a day, she seemed reticent to take back the task and so a protracted spell of my gradually excusing myself from the duty began. It met with some degree of protestation and various excuses as to why she couldn't now walk him herself but I dug my heels in despite having a tendency to saying 'yes' when I mean 'NO'. Hell.....why do I do that, and by a few weeks ago was only responsible for some of the evening walks.
And then something happened one night and I stopped altogether.
Despite arriving at my door apparently on different errand it was patently obvious that the reason for this visitation was to try and illicit from me a reason as to why I had abandoned all dog walking duties so suddenly.
That is where my predicament lies. I can't tell her the truth, if I tell her the truth, within hours it will be at four corners of the village and beyond and yet I can't think of a valid excuse to give her.....she is nobody's fool and I'm a crap liar!
So this 'something that happened'? The dog has to walked at 9.30 pm, it is not negotiable, that was fine in the summer, albeit it frequently messed up my evening and once the nights became dark by that hour I still had no worries. That changed on one of the regular 'dog drags' a few weeks ago when it became apparent that someone was hiding in a disused garage that it is unavoidable for me to go past. We have no street lights here, it is pitch black at night, I should have had a torch but I kept forgetting to buy one. The garage in question has no door and no light and as we approached it I heard the shuffling of feet, heavy feet, this was not a cat or a fox! The dog went instantly on red alert, I stopped and listened, I heard breathing, the shuffling stopped and for the first time I recall in my adult life I had to resist my natural fight or flight response and force myself to remain calm.
We walked on, I told myself not to be so silly, we got to the end of our route and turned back, on approaching the garage again, more shuffling, more breathing and dog on red alert again. I stood stock still for a moment, I could hear my own heart in my chest...that's it I thought and ran like hell!
It was PG who from then on forbade me to walk the dog at night. I'm not one generally given to allowing myself to be forbidden from anything but you may understand a little more and forgive our paranoia when I tell you we have a relocated sex offender living not 20 yards away who a while back took to calling at my door for no apparent reason, pulls his car infront of our flat looks and leaves and calls at my place of work with some frequency despite never buying a damn thing!
So my predicament is this, I have always believed in giving people a second chance and if I tell my neighbour my real reasons for quitting the dog rota she will doubtless broadcast the information. If I am wrong about this man his second chance will be gone. In my heart I know I am not wrong but I have no proof. My information regarding his past is of course not official but it comes from a reliable source and whether it was he in the garage that night I will never be able to prove.
Either way, I don't want to be the one to begin such terrible gossip, if I am wrong and it became common knowledge it would be terrible for him, if I am right should i not be warning my neighbour?
I just don't know.............
Tuesday, 12 October 2004
A day to forget
I've had one of those days today, you know the ones, where nothing seems right and everything seems wrong and annoyingly I have no idea why!
I usually jump out of bed in the morning full of beans, well ok, maybe stagger a little, but this morning my beans seemed to have sauntered off overnight..... they certainly were not residing any place in me.
I dislike with intensity days like today, it was dull, overcast and intermittently pouring with rain and my mood was only marginally better. Nothing I turned my hand too seemed like it's usual fun and my motivation level was somewhere on a scale between minus ten and zero.
Mostly I feel lucky to live where I do and not to have to go to work on a daily basis but on days like today it's not good. There is no real structure, only that which is self imposed and the options of distractions available are very limited, unless of course one feels inclined to drive a 150 mile round trip. There is of course the countryside but wet and misty it does not inspire walking or visiting the beach!
Hell.........I must have had the hump, I didn't log onto my blog until gone midday and as you know that is most unlike me!
Some small amusement was afforded me mid morning, when PG and his friend set off for a game of golf. Bear in mind PG regularly claims golfing is good exercise, he always walks the course and carries his bag, no trolley for him. This reasoning is frequently proffered as an apparently valid arguement for his playing so often! So off they went, full of excitement ready for their exercise..........towing a two man buggy, yes a buggy, one of those small milk float type contraptions that most definitely do not provide anything remotely aerobic! I couldn't help but giggle.
The day progressed with me feeling like a spoilt, bored child, oh how I would have loved to have a tantrum......sadly at 40 something tantrums are not an option so I pottered on with my day and got precious little of what I had planned done.
This evening, as if by magic I feel better... life looks more like fun again. We all have these days I know but don't you just hate them...........Don't anyone dare make mention of anything remotely hormonally related!
I usually jump out of bed in the morning full of beans, well ok, maybe stagger a little, but this morning my beans seemed to have sauntered off overnight..... they certainly were not residing any place in me.
I dislike with intensity days like today, it was dull, overcast and intermittently pouring with rain and my mood was only marginally better. Nothing I turned my hand too seemed like it's usual fun and my motivation level was somewhere on a scale between minus ten and zero.
Mostly I feel lucky to live where I do and not to have to go to work on a daily basis but on days like today it's not good. There is no real structure, only that which is self imposed and the options of distractions available are very limited, unless of course one feels inclined to drive a 150 mile round trip. There is of course the countryside but wet and misty it does not inspire walking or visiting the beach!
Hell.........I must have had the hump, I didn't log onto my blog until gone midday and as you know that is most unlike me!
Some small amusement was afforded me mid morning, when PG and his friend set off for a game of golf. Bear in mind PG regularly claims golfing is good exercise, he always walks the course and carries his bag, no trolley for him. This reasoning is frequently proffered as an apparently valid arguement for his playing so often! So off they went, full of excitement ready for their exercise..........towing a two man buggy, yes a buggy, one of those small milk float type contraptions that most definitely do not provide anything remotely aerobic! I couldn't help but giggle.
The day progressed with me feeling like a spoilt, bored child, oh how I would have loved to have a tantrum......sadly at 40 something tantrums are not an option so I pottered on with my day and got precious little of what I had planned done.
This evening, as if by magic I feel better... life looks more like fun again. We all have these days I know but don't you just hate them...........Don't anyone dare make mention of anything remotely hormonally related!
The final meme picture....
......at Dale's request, my very grubby, post recent 800 mile journey, little car!
Saxo
Anyone who recognises the model will now know why I would so desperately like something a little bigger to chase up and down to London in!
Saxo
Anyone who recognises the model will now know why I would so desperately like something a little bigger to chase up and down to London in!
Ohhhh!!!
Apparently this is my 'magic pick up line', I think perhaps I will stick to something slightly more home grown should I ever find myself requiring one!! :o/
....er...courtesy of 'and now for something completely different'!
| If I could rearrange the alphabet... I'd put you between F and CK |
....er...courtesy of 'and now for something completely different'!
Monday, 11 October 2004
Knickers!
Yes, I said knickers........what is it with men and knickers, don't all shout at once please, I know what it is as do all we women. Perhaps my question should be why do we pander to the man/knicker thing instead of allowing common to sense prevail and standing our ground!
I made one of life's small but fatal mistakes whilst in London and I should at my age know better. Having access to a Marks and Spencer is rare for me and always promotes a feeling that while it's handy I ought to stock up on the aforementioned item. There is damn all else there these days to cause a migration of cash from my bank account but knickers? yes, knickers are still worth purchasing.
So with PG looking crestfallen at the suggestion he browse elsewhere, whilst I picked up a few essentials, I gave in and he accompanied me into lingerie. Of course his reasoning was valid, he likes to take an interest in my attire, how then, is he somewhat less keen when I purchase any other article of clothing?? Hmmmm.
We venture intrepidly among all manner of beautiful lacy bits and pieces, most of which I doubt would withstand more than one wash without disintegrating. Purposefully I head for the multi pack knickers.... with PG trailing in my wake hovering around anything but multi packs! How predictable.
Having reached my destination and ferreting among the thousands of packages in an endeavor to track down what I have come here to buy, I am constantly presented with 'alternatives' courtesy of my man. Withering looks are not putting him off here, bear in mind I do not wear anything Bridget Jones would favour, rather items that my mother chastises me for, with gems of advice such as "those won't keep your back warm". Er.... if I want a warm back I will wear a jumper!
However, she perhaps has a point, nothing PG presented me with would keep anything warm!
Thongs? who the bloody hell invented the thong? it must surely have been a man. Do we ever see guys sporting such an uncomfortable item of garb, no, not often I notice with little surprise. Wonderful things PG rationalises hopefully, no more VPL to worry about, they dry on the line quickly (well yes but so would a shoe lace) and he likes them! I think that is the bit that is supposed to sway me here. Pity, he can like all he wants but nothing will persuade me that they will ever be remotely comfortable nor as he assures me, never having had to wear them, will I get used to them! Tsk.
But as ever, and here is my frustration, I give in, or at least compromise and accept something bearing resemblance to one and a half shoe laces that I just know will result in my hiding in corners, rapidly trying to extracate aggravating slivers of fabric from places slivers of fabric have no right to be!
So guys, there maybe a place for minimalist underwear but it is not shopping in Tesco's, cleaning the house or any other daily routine. We may have dispensed with the VPL but is the sight of one such as me, fiddling with my rear to rescue an item of clothing any more attractive, for believe me, try as we ladies might to resist the aggravation and behave in a seemly manner in the end we will submit to comfort and fiddle in an undignified fashion. We will indeed endeavor to perform this little trick in private but we just know that someone will catch us.....just the same as we sympathetically catch others dealing with the same frustration!
As a final offer, should any one of you wish to 'try out' such an item of clothing strictly of course in an effort to see our point, I will turn a blind eye and not question your motives! :o)
I made one of life's small but fatal mistakes whilst in London and I should at my age know better. Having access to a Marks and Spencer is rare for me and always promotes a feeling that while it's handy I ought to stock up on the aforementioned item. There is damn all else there these days to cause a migration of cash from my bank account but knickers? yes, knickers are still worth purchasing.
So with PG looking crestfallen at the suggestion he browse elsewhere, whilst I picked up a few essentials, I gave in and he accompanied me into lingerie. Of course his reasoning was valid, he likes to take an interest in my attire, how then, is he somewhat less keen when I purchase any other article of clothing?? Hmmmm.
We venture intrepidly among all manner of beautiful lacy bits and pieces, most of which I doubt would withstand more than one wash without disintegrating. Purposefully I head for the multi pack knickers.... with PG trailing in my wake hovering around anything but multi packs! How predictable.
Having reached my destination and ferreting among the thousands of packages in an endeavor to track down what I have come here to buy, I am constantly presented with 'alternatives' courtesy of my man. Withering looks are not putting him off here, bear in mind I do not wear anything Bridget Jones would favour, rather items that my mother chastises me for, with gems of advice such as "those won't keep your back warm". Er.... if I want a warm back I will wear a jumper!
However, she perhaps has a point, nothing PG presented me with would keep anything warm!
Thongs? who the bloody hell invented the thong? it must surely have been a man. Do we ever see guys sporting such an uncomfortable item of garb, no, not often I notice with little surprise. Wonderful things PG rationalises hopefully, no more VPL to worry about, they dry on the line quickly (well yes but so would a shoe lace) and he likes them! I think that is the bit that is supposed to sway me here. Pity, he can like all he wants but nothing will persuade me that they will ever be remotely comfortable nor as he assures me, never having had to wear them, will I get used to them! Tsk.
But as ever, and here is my frustration, I give in, or at least compromise and accept something bearing resemblance to one and a half shoe laces that I just know will result in my hiding in corners, rapidly trying to extracate aggravating slivers of fabric from places slivers of fabric have no right to be!
So guys, there maybe a place for minimalist underwear but it is not shopping in Tesco's, cleaning the house or any other daily routine. We may have dispensed with the VPL but is the sight of one such as me, fiddling with my rear to rescue an item of clothing any more attractive, for believe me, try as we ladies might to resist the aggravation and behave in a seemly manner in the end we will submit to comfort and fiddle in an undignified fashion. We will indeed endeavor to perform this little trick in private but we just know that someone will catch us.....just the same as we sympathetically catch others dealing with the same frustration!
As a final offer, should any one of you wish to 'try out' such an item of clothing strictly of course in an effort to see our point, I will turn a blind eye and not question your motives! :o)
As requested
For Jenny, the building we live in.....ours is the 3rd and 4th windows from top left, not the whole building!...........
'Flat F'
.........and for Magz, PG having just come off a 12 hour night shift was not responsive to having his photo taken watching TV.......Ditto however was and obliged somewhat inelegantly for the litter box shot too!
Watching golf!
Quick entry
'Flat F'
.........and for Magz, PG having just come off a 12 hour night shift was not responsive to having his photo taken watching TV.......Ditto however was and obliged somewhat inelegantly for the litter box shot too!
Watching golf!
Quick entry
Your wish is my command....
......so here are the first of the meme pictures!
Shoes was hard a hard one........I normally wear boots. I have size 2 feet and girly shoes just don't exist in that size but those in the pic are my favorite.... Timberland, children's :o)
The pic of PG watching TV and me at my pc will have to wait until tomorrow, PG is on a night shift so for now it's impossible!
The rest need no further explanation:
My blogging spot
Sofa....with cat in situ
Meagre post holiday rations
Under the bed :o/
Fave shoes
Shoes was hard a hard one........I normally wear boots. I have size 2 feet and girly shoes just don't exist in that size but those in the pic are my favorite.... Timberland, children's :o)
The pic of PG watching TV and me at my pc will have to wait until tomorrow, PG is on a night shift so for now it's impossible!
The rest need no further explanation:
My blogging spot
Sofa....with cat in situ
Meagre post holiday rations
Under the bed :o/
Fave shoes
Sunday, 10 October 2004
Photo meme
Demob happy Teacher did this just before I went on holiday, seems like it might be amusing so I thieved the idea and here goes.
So if there are any requests that won't attract the attention of the blog police I will endeavor to oblige!
I started trying to track down the origins of this idea but then I realized that my sweater was completely unraveled. Still, a bunch of bloggers with cameras are having fun with it so here goes: Ask your readers to think of three photos they'd like to see posted to your blog. (Things around your house or whatever.) When you have enough requests, post them! Have fun! – Biz [10/1/2004 11:23:20 AM]
So if there are any requests that won't attract the attention of the blog police I will endeavor to oblige!
Six days or six hours?
Why do holidays just go so fast?, no 'age' comments please!
It feels like I was packing bags and driving South with anticipation about 6 hours ago not 6 days! I hate that, each time I visit my parents I tell myself that somehow I will take better notice of every moment, savor every minute of every day I am there and that it will in some magical way make it last longer....... that I will come home feeling I have been away much longer, despite my efforts I always feel I am back almost before I left.
We arrived early evening of Monday and spent the evening 'catching up'. On Tuesday all four of us spent the day in the pursuit of retail therapy and remarkably spent relatively little, relative to what?, I think PG would ask but you know what I mean!
Wednesday we hit town. The purpose was a personalised tour of some of the 'high spots', PG despite having worked in London for 2 years when he was younger spent most of it inebriated with friends, as one does at 20ish and saw little of the city itself. This is his second 'home grown' tour and by now most of the main places of interest have been on one itinerary or another.
We made it into town by 10, just late enough to avoid the worst of the rush hour and alighted at Marylebone at our 'starting point'
From there we got a bus (yes a big red one) to Marble arch (the place PG and I first set eyes on each other 3 years ago) and walked down Oxford Street past Selfridges to New Bond Street. I remembered Bond street as being full of designer clothes stores but it seems to have changed a little. The majority is now incredible jewelry shops, Graff, Tiffany, Asprey etc etc. Graff seemed to be a sticking point for me, how exactly does anyone afford a flawless 23.4 carat diamond I wonder? I have a definite passion for diamonds and this one was something else, I virtually had to be dragged kicking and screaming from the window!
On then down to Piccadilly, through Burlington Arcade, past the Ritz and through Green Park, past the new memorial to the Canadian troops that fell in the war to Buckingham Palace. There is a whole city here and what did PG find fascinating??......the squirrels in the park! ...and yes, to you who it concerns, I remembered to post the postcards!
Having meandered among the crowds and armed cops (they where un armed last time I was there)at the palace for a while we walked down The Mall and to St James' Palace and then to Trafalgar Square where we ate lunch with two ladies from Kansas who were on holiday and then on to the National Gallery. Sorry but I just can't go past without going in! To see for real Monet's 'Waterlillies', 'The Gare St Lazare', Van Gochs 'Chair' and 'Sunflowers' and Seurats 'Bathers' etc, never ceases to leave me in wonder. Yeah, I know they are perhaps much publicised works we all know well but to see the real thing, the one those guys actually painted is just amazing!
On then down Whitehall past Downing Street to Parliament Square and to The Houses of Parliament, Big Ben (webcam) and the Millennium wheel. Added interest here, a 'big wig' of some description was leaving the Foreign Office with the full protection furore, cops carrying sidearms stopping traffic and the motorcade of perhaps 10 vehicles enjoying a hasty and clear path thought the traffic, heavily escorted. For me armed cops are still quite a rare sight although sadly more common by the day it seems. I have to admit though to finding a guy armed and in uniform rather 'interesting'!
By now, sore feet prevailing we climbed onto a bus again and made for Knightsbridge and Harrods, circumnavigated that which is Al-Fayeds emporium, purchased a few items, drank coffee in Starbucks ....hell, Starbucks in Harrods, what is the world coming too..... and then another bus to Baker Street and among rush hour had the pleasure of standing on the tube all the way home! There are aspects of working in London I most definitely do not miss and that is one of them!
We ate dinner, gossiped more and fell into bed, a good day was had but our feet perhaps would tell another tale.
Pictures as promised, if I missed anything sorry but another day.....these took two hours to upload,grrrr. Get your scrolling finger ready.........
(again, click for big.)
Oxford Street
Bond Street
Burlington Arcade
Tiffany & Co.
Buckingham Palace
PG & Me, Buckingham Palace
Irony, Buckingham Palace
National gallery
St. Martins.
Cop
Stop the traffic
Downing Street
Downing street
Tis me! Trafalgar Square
Harrods
Big ben and The Houses of Parliament
It feels like I was packing bags and driving South with anticipation about 6 hours ago not 6 days! I hate that, each time I visit my parents I tell myself that somehow I will take better notice of every moment, savor every minute of every day I am there and that it will in some magical way make it last longer....... that I will come home feeling I have been away much longer, despite my efforts I always feel I am back almost before I left.
We arrived early evening of Monday and spent the evening 'catching up'. On Tuesday all four of us spent the day in the pursuit of retail therapy and remarkably spent relatively little, relative to what?, I think PG would ask but you know what I mean!
Wednesday we hit town. The purpose was a personalised tour of some of the 'high spots', PG despite having worked in London for 2 years when he was younger spent most of it inebriated with friends, as one does at 20ish and saw little of the city itself. This is his second 'home grown' tour and by now most of the main places of interest have been on one itinerary or another.
We made it into town by 10, just late enough to avoid the worst of the rush hour and alighted at Marylebone at our 'starting point'
From there we got a bus (yes a big red one) to Marble arch (the place PG and I first set eyes on each other 3 years ago) and walked down Oxford Street past Selfridges to New Bond Street. I remembered Bond street as being full of designer clothes stores but it seems to have changed a little. The majority is now incredible jewelry shops, Graff, Tiffany, Asprey etc etc. Graff seemed to be a sticking point for me, how exactly does anyone afford a flawless 23.4 carat diamond I wonder? I have a definite passion for diamonds and this one was something else, I virtually had to be dragged kicking and screaming from the window!
On then down to Piccadilly, through Burlington Arcade, past the Ritz and through Green Park, past the new memorial to the Canadian troops that fell in the war to Buckingham Palace. There is a whole city here and what did PG find fascinating??......the squirrels in the park! ...and yes, to you who it concerns, I remembered to post the postcards!
Having meandered among the crowds and armed cops (they where un armed last time I was there)at the palace for a while we walked down The Mall and to St James' Palace and then to Trafalgar Square where we ate lunch with two ladies from Kansas who were on holiday and then on to the National Gallery. Sorry but I just can't go past without going in! To see for real Monet's 'Waterlillies', 'The Gare St Lazare', Van Gochs 'Chair' and 'Sunflowers' and Seurats 'Bathers' etc, never ceases to leave me in wonder. Yeah, I know they are perhaps much publicised works we all know well but to see the real thing, the one those guys actually painted is just amazing!
On then down Whitehall past Downing Street to Parliament Square and to The Houses of Parliament, Big Ben (webcam) and the Millennium wheel. Added interest here, a 'big wig' of some description was leaving the Foreign Office with the full protection furore, cops carrying sidearms stopping traffic and the motorcade of perhaps 10 vehicles enjoying a hasty and clear path thought the traffic, heavily escorted. For me armed cops are still quite a rare sight although sadly more common by the day it seems. I have to admit though to finding a guy armed and in uniform rather 'interesting'!
By now, sore feet prevailing we climbed onto a bus again and made for Knightsbridge and Harrods, circumnavigated that which is Al-Fayeds emporium, purchased a few items, drank coffee in Starbucks ....hell, Starbucks in Harrods, what is the world coming too..... and then another bus to Baker Street and among rush hour had the pleasure of standing on the tube all the way home! There are aspects of working in London I most definitely do not miss and that is one of them!
We ate dinner, gossiped more and fell into bed, a good day was had but our feet perhaps would tell another tale.
Pictures as promised, if I missed anything sorry but another day.....these took two hours to upload,grrrr. Get your scrolling finger ready.........
(again, click for big.)
Oxford Street
Bond Street
Burlington Arcade
Tiffany & Co.
Buckingham Palace
PG & Me, Buckingham Palace
Irony, Buckingham Palace
National gallery
St. Martins.
Cop
Stop the traffic
Downing Street
Downing street
Tis me! Trafalgar Square
Harrods
Big ben and The Houses of Parliament
Saturday, 9 October 2004
Back in Scotland
(as ever, click for the big one.)
Trafalgar Square with Big Ben
millennium Wheel 06.10.04
Horse Guard
We crawled wearily through our front door at somewhere in the region of 1.00 am this morning to be greeted by a freezing cold flat and two huffed cats after a 9 hour drive, courtesy of the M1 being 'closed for works' for a significant distance and a diversion, seemingly involving a tour of Yorkshire in it's entirety, having been cleverly put in place doubtless by some bureaucrat sat in a warm office at a reasonable hour.
Coming home is a strange mix of emotions, part of me looks forward to getting back to my own 'patch', seeing the cat's and having my own space whilst the other part of me is always very sad to leave my parents behind again, particularly on occasions like this one when I don't know when I will next see them but I do know it will not now be until next year.
So a good time was had, time spent with my parents, my sister and nieces and we managed to make it to my brothers home for an evening too. We ate copious amounts of good food, my parents are heavily 'into' fine cuisine, so much so that a trip to a good restaurant is generally a disappointment by comparison, we talked until we were hoarse, we did London, walked in the countryside collecting conkers and partook of some retail therapy courtesy of Mr Al-Fayed (no comment) etc.
I have posted a few pictures to be 'going on with' but I have over 300 to sort through and there is a mountain of post holiday washing to attend too before I can fiddle here endlessly without guilt. Please bear in mind the pictures are purely a photographic record of my trip, it was never my intention to knock David Bailey from his position so forgive me for having Big Ben at a strange angle or other similar errors! Hell....I'm a woman, I can't eat, talk, stare in wonder at sights before me and take a technically correct photograph! :o)
I'll be back with more later once I have dug myself free of the pile of laundry!
Trafalgar Square with Big Ben
millennium Wheel 06.10.04
Horse Guard
We crawled wearily through our front door at somewhere in the region of 1.00 am this morning to be greeted by a freezing cold flat and two huffed cats after a 9 hour drive, courtesy of the M1 being 'closed for works' for a significant distance and a diversion, seemingly involving a tour of Yorkshire in it's entirety, having been cleverly put in place doubtless by some bureaucrat sat in a warm office at a reasonable hour.
Coming home is a strange mix of emotions, part of me looks forward to getting back to my own 'patch', seeing the cat's and having my own space whilst the other part of me is always very sad to leave my parents behind again, particularly on occasions like this one when I don't know when I will next see them but I do know it will not now be until next year.
So a good time was had, time spent with my parents, my sister and nieces and we managed to make it to my brothers home for an evening too. We ate copious amounts of good food, my parents are heavily 'into' fine cuisine, so much so that a trip to a good restaurant is generally a disappointment by comparison, we talked until we were hoarse, we did London, walked in the countryside collecting conkers and partook of some retail therapy courtesy of Mr Al-Fayed (no comment) etc.
I have posted a few pictures to be 'going on with' but I have over 300 to sort through and there is a mountain of post holiday washing to attend too before I can fiddle here endlessly without guilt. Please bear in mind the pictures are purely a photographic record of my trip, it was never my intention to knock David Bailey from his position so forgive me for having Big Ben at a strange angle or other similar errors! Hell....I'm a woman, I can't eat, talk, stare in wonder at sights before me and take a technically correct photograph! :o)
I'll be back with more later once I have dug myself free of the pile of laundry!
Thursday, 7 October 2004
Just popping in
I have managed to sneak online at last for a few minutes, somehow on holiday there just doesn't seem to be the time and now I have finally made it I'm too tired to blog anything of any real interest, so I will ramble incoherrently for a few minutes to salve the blog withdrawals and then get the hell out of your hair!
The day has been spent wandering the streets of London and a great day was had by all, I think barely a tourist attraction has been missed and my feet know it! We normally don't 'do' the tourist things much but today decided it might be fun to have a look and hence we pottered from one thing to another giving many a brief once over and then moving onto the next.
Unfortunately today alone I took over 150 photographs so be prepared to be terminally bored once we return home, you are spared for now, I can't post pictures from this computer but the reprieve will not last for long!
Tomorrow in theory it's Kew Gardens for the day but there is a distinct possibility we won't make it, choosing instead to collapse on the sofa and gossip, in the evening we are off to visit my brother who we haven't seen for an absolute age.
I notice I have only been gone for two days and changes are afoot, one of my original 'blog friends', Demob happy teacher has upped sticks and moved .....good luck in your 'new home' Jenny.
That's me done for today, I need to sleep and prepare myself for the possibility of another entire day on my feet.....I love Kew, I have to make the effort and get up early! :o)
Again no spell check so I ask forgivness for gross errors in advance!
The day has been spent wandering the streets of London and a great day was had by all, I think barely a tourist attraction has been missed and my feet know it! We normally don't 'do' the tourist things much but today decided it might be fun to have a look and hence we pottered from one thing to another giving many a brief once over and then moving onto the next.
Unfortunately today alone I took over 150 photographs so be prepared to be terminally bored once we return home, you are spared for now, I can't post pictures from this computer but the reprieve will not last for long!
Tomorrow in theory it's Kew Gardens for the day but there is a distinct possibility we won't make it, choosing instead to collapse on the sofa and gossip, in the evening we are off to visit my brother who we haven't seen for an absolute age.
I notice I have only been gone for two days and changes are afoot, one of my original 'blog friends', Demob happy teacher has upped sticks and moved .....good luck in your 'new home' Jenny.
That's me done for today, I need to sleep and prepare myself for the possibility of another entire day on my feet.....I love Kew, I have to make the effort and get up early! :o)
Again no spell check so I ask forgivness for gross errors in advance!
Tuesday, 5 October 2004
We made it
Well, at last we are here at my parents. It's kind of strangely unnerving posting from someone else's computer, like driving a different car, everything is in the same place but somehow just doesn't feel quite the same! Blogger seemed not to want to let me log in first second of even tenth attempt but eventually it gave up the fight in the certain knowledge that I was going to win, and here I am.
The journey was somewhat less than fun, eight hours of mostly torrential rain and strong winds but eventually somewhere South of Leicester the sun came out and things improved. I had one of those nights last night where the moment my head hit the pillow it became filled with thoughts of things remaining to be done before our departure etc. and consequently I was still looking at the clock, in sleep deprived frustration, at 3 am. As a result PG, always a trooper in these situations, did the majority of the driving while I read and slept!
Strangely and conversely the first thing I noticed on hitting the South is that autumn is a week or two further advanced. In Scotland we still have all the leaves on the trees, here the ground is carpeted in fallen golden leaves already and unusually it is markedly colder than it is in Scotland.
We have been suitably 'fed and watered', gossiped, consumed copious amounts of wine and good coffee and now PG has fallen asleep on the sofa behind me and my parents have given up for the day.
Tomorrow has already been designated for some serious retail therapy :o) and Wednesday for something a little more cultural, the specifics of which are yet to be decided.
Ok...I'm done for now, I have to sleep, well perhaps a little tour of the blogosphere first and then I'm done. Oh, and my apologies for any errors, the pop up blocker on this pc seems a little over zealous and not keen to be disabled, consequently I can't spell check!
Dale: the badgers were somewhat reticent this evening, in fact less than reticent, completely absent, maybe tomorrow ......I'll keep trying :o)
The journey was somewhat less than fun, eight hours of mostly torrential rain and strong winds but eventually somewhere South of Leicester the sun came out and things improved. I had one of those nights last night where the moment my head hit the pillow it became filled with thoughts of things remaining to be done before our departure etc. and consequently I was still looking at the clock, in sleep deprived frustration, at 3 am. As a result PG, always a trooper in these situations, did the majority of the driving while I read and slept!
Strangely and conversely the first thing I noticed on hitting the South is that autumn is a week or two further advanced. In Scotland we still have all the leaves on the trees, here the ground is carpeted in fallen golden leaves already and unusually it is markedly colder than it is in Scotland.
We have been suitably 'fed and watered', gossiped, consumed copious amounts of wine and good coffee and now PG has fallen asleep on the sofa behind me and my parents have given up for the day.
Tomorrow has already been designated for some serious retail therapy :o) and Wednesday for something a little more cultural, the specifics of which are yet to be decided.
Ok...I'm done for now, I have to sleep, well perhaps a little tour of the blogosphere first and then I'm done. Oh, and my apologies for any errors, the pop up blocker on this pc seems a little over zealous and not keen to be disabled, consequently I can't spell check!
Dale: the badgers were somewhat reticent this evening, in fact less than reticent, completely absent, maybe tomorrow ......I'll keep trying :o)
Sunday, 3 October 2004
I'm outta here
Well that's it, I'm done. The packing is complete and only remains to be put in the car. Laptop,check camera,check, multitude of leads, check, chargers, memory cards and memory sticks, check.... oh and the odd change of clothes.
All that remains now between us and London is to take two rather disgruntled looking cats to the 'cat hotel', struggle to eject them from their baskets and bid them a temporary farewell. Lock up the flat and hit the road for 6-8 hours of A1, M1 hell and we will have made it.
I'm outta here for now, I'll do my best to pop in a few times in the week but you know how it is...no promises.
Catch you all soon.
tara for now........
All that remains now between us and London is to take two rather disgruntled looking cats to the 'cat hotel', struggle to eject them from their baskets and bid them a temporary farewell. Lock up the flat and hit the road for 6-8 hours of A1, M1 hell and we will have made it.
I'm outta here for now, I'll do my best to pop in a few times in the week but you know how it is...no promises.
Catch you all soon.
tara for now........
Saturday, 2 October 2004
Amazing technology
I'm sure it's not 'cool' to still be amazed at times by technology but I have to admit in that case, to being uncool.
Despite spending a large proportion of my life these days sat at, or fiddling with,a computer and having an avid interest in things generally referred to as 'boys toys', technology still fascinates me and I still find it hard to believe at times.
So what has prompted this current bout of amazement?
A while back and for no other reason than it was there, I set up mobile messaging on MSN messenger, I was never entirely sure if it would function but I did it and forgot about it. Once or twice over the subsequent months I received a message on my phone via this system but that was it.
Today, sitting in the canteen at work attempting to poke as much chocolate into my face as I could in the reminder of my lunch time my phone 'beeped'. Tsk I thought, this will be PG reminding me I need to fetch some beers home with me or some other domestic requirement he considered I needed reminding of!
No...........I was wrong, the message was my very first transatlantic text, courtesy of a blog friend........... amazing, truly amazing. We text back and forth intermittently through out the day, it worked, it really worked and I might add the messages got through quicker than many do at times, to someone just around the corner!
This seems like a fun new game....our only slight concern, or mine at least, is that both MSN and Cellnet seen to be rather reticent on charging information where this technological wizardry is concerned. I must investigate further!
So, if you happen hear simultaneous screaming from both sides of the pond later this month..... you will know we both got our bills!!!
Despite spending a large proportion of my life these days sat at, or fiddling with,a computer and having an avid interest in things generally referred to as 'boys toys', technology still fascinates me and I still find it hard to believe at times.
So what has prompted this current bout of amazement?
A while back and for no other reason than it was there, I set up mobile messaging on MSN messenger, I was never entirely sure if it would function but I did it and forgot about it. Once or twice over the subsequent months I received a message on my phone via this system but that was it.
Today, sitting in the canteen at work attempting to poke as much chocolate into my face as I could in the reminder of my lunch time my phone 'beeped'. Tsk I thought, this will be PG reminding me I need to fetch some beers home with me or some other domestic requirement he considered I needed reminding of!
No...........I was wrong, the message was my very first transatlantic text, courtesy of a blog friend........... amazing, truly amazing. We text back and forth intermittently through out the day, it worked, it really worked and I might add the messages got through quicker than many do at times, to someone just around the corner!
This seems like a fun new game....our only slight concern, or mine at least, is that both MSN and Cellnet seen to be rather reticent on charging information where this technological wizardry is concerned. I must investigate further!
So, if you happen hear simultaneous screaming from both sides of the pond later this month..... you will know we both got our bills!!!
Friday, 1 October 2004
Off to London again
I'm almost there, the countdown to my next visit South to see my parents began again in earnest a month ago, as is my habit and I'm almost at the starting line at last!
I have Saturday and Sunday at work and then it's off 'darn sarf' until Friday for PG and myself.........I'm like a kid, I can't wait.
As always it seems an age since I last saw my mum and dad, I'm used to living away, I have done so most of my adult life, though previously not as far and consequently visits were more frequent than is the case now.
The up side of course is that the promise of five whole days of gossip,the company of my parents, home cooking and entertainment 'London style' is extra special........ohhhh let it be Monday!
So, as mentioned before (in a post I now can't find), online time is scarce on these merry jaunts and as ever internet withdrawal symptoms are a distinct threat! Normal service will continue until Monday and then some disruption will likely occur. I'll do my best to post here and there but don't count on my normal level of verbosity! I hope of course to return armed with various new pictures to bore you rigid with. They will at least make a change from the same old Scottish skyline I have subjected you too obsessively of late! :o)
I'm off now to pack though the list is short...........do I need anything other than my laptop I wonder?...........
I have Saturday and Sunday at work and then it's off 'darn sarf' until Friday for PG and myself.........I'm like a kid, I can't wait.
As always it seems an age since I last saw my mum and dad, I'm used to living away, I have done so most of my adult life, though previously not as far and consequently visits were more frequent than is the case now.
The up side of course is that the promise of five whole days of gossip,the company of my parents, home cooking and entertainment 'London style' is extra special........ohhhh let it be Monday!
So, as mentioned before (in a post I now can't find), online time is scarce on these merry jaunts and as ever internet withdrawal symptoms are a distinct threat! Normal service will continue until Monday and then some disruption will likely occur. I'll do my best to post here and there but don't count on my normal level of verbosity! I hope of course to return armed with various new pictures to bore you rigid with. They will at least make a change from the same old Scottish skyline I have subjected you too obsessively of late! :o)
I'm off now to pack though the list is short...........do I need anything other than my laptop I wonder?...........
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