Looking back...

We awoke to... yes, you guessed! Another wet and miserable day! However, I had a notification from Google Photos about this day, 17 years ago:

Mum shovelling snow

Mikey aged 9

Dad trying to clear it all away!

Back in February 2009, it had snowed over the last few days, and we were forced to go into work on Saturday morning to try and clear the snow away so customers could park! The main car park was unusable, but we had to try and do something as we had birthday parties booked! Imagine if all the rain we'd had lately had fallen as snow! It doesn't bear thinking about!

Sophie and icicle!

Back to the present day, we didn't have any plans for this weekend, so it was great to stay inside and keep warm. Sophie was determined to finish two books she was reading, and I pootled about doing some jobs. Outside was grey and overcast, and I looked at some of the flood warnings in place. I think England has over 300!

I had a very long soak in the bath in the afternoon and then lolled about on the bed reading. What a lovely way to spend a grey and dismal Saturday afternoon! When Sophie and I reconvened in the kitchen at about 5:30pm, we agreed we didn't fancy the soup that my daughter had spent most of the morning making, and fancied a Chinese takeaway instead!

Keith was in agreement, so we ordered our dishes, and Sophie and I played Scrabble. She made David McCloskey's cocktail - No3 London Gin, dry Vermouth and a twist of orange peel. It was delicious! I  beat Sophie tonight, and we played some interesting words!

Our meal tonight was particularly good, and there was enough left for lunch tomorrow. We elected to watch Casino Royale this evening, and Sophie and I indulged in a Vesper when James Bond enjoyed his!

Rain, rain rain...

Keith took me to work this morning, and I stopped off at a small Tesco on the way to buy myself lunch. We had nothing in the house as Keith didn't go shopping yesterday!

I had a busy shift, trying to deal with as many emails as I could, but as fast as I was answering them, more were coming in. Members were understandably worried about their memberships and losing three of the centres. Some of the people have been with us for decades, and I remember using Lings when I was a teenager! We dealt with them as best as we could, as we still haven't got any details about what's going to happen with the transfer to Everyone Active at the end of March.

It was a huge relief to finish at 4:00pm and join Keith in the car. I used the satnav to get us home again, and we were pulling onto the drive at 4:30pm, which was brilliant! Needless to say, we'd had rain and grey skies all day. I think this photo sums up the last few weeks:

The lovely Friday when Sophie and I drove the Normandy coast road and enjoyed a walk on the sunny beach seems an age ago!

Keith didn't go to the pub this evening, and Sophie and I opened a bottle of Porta 6 and watched the original Rebecca, starring Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine. We enjoyed pizza, quiche and salad for dinner and then watched Alan and Amanda in Corfu. The glorious blue skies and sunshine were almost too much to bear!

Winter washout

It was pouring this morning when I drove to work, and I heard on the news that some parts of the country have had continuous rain since the start of 2026. I think we are all heartily fed up with the rain, the dark, and the chill. I long to see some sun, and I bet I'm not the only one! I wouldn't mind if it were cold and frosty with blue skies!

Letters went out to our members today about what's happening with their memberships at the end of March, so we had a flurry of calls and emails. Unfortunately, many members are cancelling because they only use the sites that will be taken over by Everyone Active, so I expect to see quite a few more cancellations in the coming weeks.

I left at 2:00pm, drove home to see Keith briefly, and then went to Kettering to see my Mum. She seemed a little brighter today and had had her hair done. We sat and chatted for over an hour, and then I sloshed my way home in the gloom, as it had now turned misty as well!

At least this evening we didn't have to think about dinner as we were meeting Michael in town to have dinner at The Lamplighter. Need I say it was chucking it down when we drove into Northampton? We ran into the pub, dodging puddles and arrived wet and dishevelled!

We took our drinks up to a table and texted Mike to say we had arrived. He came through the door a few minutes later and bought himself a pint before joining us. It was great to catch up, as we hadn't seen him since my Dad's funeral in early December. 

We ordered our meals: beefy nachos to share as a starter, followed by fish and chips (Keith and me) and burgers for Soph and Mike. We sat and chatted, but the loud background music and awful choice of playlist made it uncomfortable. Keith couldn't hear anything we were saying, as directly below him (we were seated on a little raised stage) was a noisy group of people that made it difficult to hear.

Keith and I enjoyed our fish and chips, but although the batter was deliciously crispy, the fish inside was very thin. At least, Sophie and Mike scoffed their loaded burgers and pronounced them fab! It was a good night, but I don't think we will be back soon, which is a shame as it's always been a favourite of ours. The music was just too raucous for me!

We bade farewell to Michael and sloshed our way back home. The roads were covered in water, and large puddles lined the side of the A43. When we arrived home, the cats ran in as they'd been out while we were in Northampton. I think they were very glad to see us!

A tale of two firsts...

I wanted to go and get our passport photographs done today, so Keith and I decided to go to the Weston Favell Centre, post a parcel back at the Post Office and get them done in one of the special booths.

We had a frustrating journey as we discovered the road up to the A43 was closed. A driver warned me, so we turned around and went via Moulton. I followed the driver who had flashed me, and he drove like a snail the whole way! At the moment, we are suffering from potholes on all of our roads, and it's the worst I've ever experienced. Whether he was driving so slowly because of the condition of the road, I don't know, but it was very frustrating! I then managed to get behind another slow and timid driver just before we got to the shopping mall... arrgghhh!

We went to the Post Office first, and then I treated myself to a coffee and a BLT sandwich in Costa. Keith didn't want anything, even a cup of tea! We used the escalator to get to the ground floor, and I was astonished to see a new climbing facility where Wilko's used to be! The place was called Pinnacle Climbing and they had a separate area for children called Clip 'n' Climb. It was very colourful with two levels that I didn't know existed! The place was empty, but it's probably hectic at the weekends.

 We found the passport photo booth, and I took my photo, but I couldn't pay. Inserting my card didn't work, and using contactless wouldn't work either! It was £10 for just one photo, so I decided we'd do it at home instead!

We drove to HomeSense next, and I was on the lookout for a little table for Sophie's chair where she can put a lamp and her drink when she sits and reads. HomeSense had loads of tables, but none of them were suitable or were way too expensive! I did buy a new jar for storing our dishwasher tablets, a new holder for the kitchen towel and a pretty box to store all my Dad's paperwork.

Next door was The Range, a store I'd never been in before. We spotted a white table with an alcove for books and a drawer, but there was no price on it. In fact, hardly any of the items seemed to have prices displayed, so in the end I had to ask a staff member to help. It was £40 and was ideal for what we wanted, so I asked the man helping if he could take it down to the tills for me. I also treated myself to a new lunch bag as my previous one had been put in the tumble dryer and had shrunk!

Our last stop was to Starbucks to buy Sophie and her friend, Becky, an iced matcha latte each. We delivered the drinks to their office and headed home. However, on the way, I said to Keith I'd love a cold beer, so we went to The Royal Oak, and we had a drink. For the first time ever, I ordered a pint of Guinness! The sandwich I'd had earlier had made me thirsty, so the beer was delicious! We spent a very pleasant half hour enjoying our drinks and chatting in a deserted pub. 

Back at home, we pootled about, caught up with the usual Wednesday jobs, and I arranged Sophie's "nook". When she arrived home, she was overjoyed!

A little snow...

I took myself off to work this morning and arrived in good time, with my pick of spaces. We had another busy day answering loads of emails, and I was mightily glad when it was 4:00pm, and I could pootle off home!

I used Google Maps again, and this time she took me off the dual carriageway at the next junction. I then headed towards Ecton on the old A4500, and into Sywell, before crossing the A43 and missing all the long queues. I got home at 4:45pm, but ten minutes of that were spent waiting to get off the hospital grounds.

Keith went to watch Sileby play this evening, and Sophie cooked us both jerk chicken pasta and doughballs. The meal was delicious! We drank a lovely white Italian Gavi with the meal and watched a BBC documentary about Steve Rosenberg, the Russia correspondent based in Moscow. It was fascinating, but I didn't envy him his job! He regularly gets followed! It was a bit like Russia here as we had light snow throughout the evening, and at one point I thought it was going to settle! Brrrr!

We ended the evening with another documentary about four women who had been abused by the same man over two decades. He was a thoroughly nasty man, and I hope he stays in prison for a long time!

A little chat

Keith took me to work today, and as soon as I arrived, I asked to have a chat with Sara about losing my hours on a Thursday. Although she didn't really have any answers for me (and the meeting actually raised more questions!), at least I made my feelings known. She asked if I wanted to meet with Nicola, but I said no; she always has an answer for everything! It was good for both of us to have a chat and a bit of a rant!

The rest of the day was hectic, and we had loads of emails to deal with. Letters are supposed to be going out this week to customers to let them know what's happening, so I can only see it getting worse!

We used Google Maps to get home, as I'm fed up with choosing a route that's busy. We were directed the normal way (along the dual carriageway and the A43), but I think I'm going to get into the habit of doing this every time I go home, to find the best, least congested journey.

Dinner was simple again, and after we'd eaten, Keith and I watched Shetland and we're enjoying the series. I have to wonder why we didn't watch it when it was on the first time around!

Another rainy Sunday...

It was the Australian Open Tennis Final this morning and Sophie and I settled down to watch Alcaraz play Djokovic. We wanted the Serb to win, but although he took the first set, he eventually lost. But not bad for a player in his late 30s! His compatriots - Nadal, Federer and Murray have all retired!

We didn't watch the whole match, and we pootled about the rest of the morning and sorted some jobs that needed doing. We booked a timeslot for the tip this afternoon to take our old television and all the packaging, as well as some old clothes and small electrical items. Outside,  yet again, it was another wet and horrible day, so not really the best day to go to the tip, but needs must! Roll on the warmer, drier weather!

We also ordered a new DVD player from Amazon, so I'll be able to watch my Ever Decreasing Circles DVDs!  They always cheer me up and make me laugh!

Keith and I went to the tip in the afternoon, and we both had to manhandle the old television; it was so heavy! I flung the old DVD player and the annoying speakers into the electrical skip. The tangle of wires behind the television stand has now gone, and it's much tidier.

Back home, we relaxed, and I had a short nap while sitting with Keith as he watched football. We had a very simple supper tonight of cheese, biscuits, grapes, celery and apple, so that didn't require any preparation at all. The DVD player arrived, and we set it up easily! While Sophie set everything out for dinner, I watched a couple of episodes of my favourite comedy! Bliss!

Supper was delicious, and we even had a glass of Port with the meal. There was enough left for tomorrow's dinner as well!