Friday 17 May 2024
Hooray! It's Friday!
Thursday 16 May 2024
Money matters
Wednesday 15 May 2024
Pootling about...
Tuesday 14 May 2024
Mrs Forgetful!
Monday 13 May 2024
Feeling poorly...
Sunday 12 May 2024
Catching up with jobs!
Saturday 11 May 2024
Missing a spectacle!
I woke up to the news that last night the Northern Lights were clearly visible - and spectacular - all over the UK. Neighbours had posted fantastic photos of the sky above us lit up with gorgeous colours. I, of course, had missed them... they had been seen at about 11.30pm, well after my bedtime! There was some hope they would appear again over the weekend so tonight, I'll be glued to the window!
Keith dropped me off at work and I had to change desks today due to some technical issue with our computers. Sheila was in and talking Sue through the process so at least we had some help! It was a quiet shift and I managed to get all the emails sorted and the Moan report started!
At 2pm, Keith and I returned home and I relaxed for the rest of the afternoon, doing very little. Yesterday, we had changed Sophie's bedding and I'd put it all back so that was one job done. I did hoover and tidy up and we ordered a Chinese takeaway as a treat. We had originally talked about going out for a meal, but it was nicer to stay at home, have a drink and order something to eat.
The meal was delivered far quicker than we imagined, so we were all finished by 7.30pm. We chose a film to watch called In The Land of Saints and Sinners, starring Liam Neeson, and then we caught the end of Casino Royale.
Sophie still felt poorly and texted me to say they'd landed at Heathrow at about 10pm. At about 11pm I went out into the garden to check the sky, but saw nothing apart from some hazy stars. There must have been a Eurovision party going on somewhere and I heard some cheering! We had recorded the festival to watch tomorrow.
Sophie arrived home just after midnight, and before bed, we had a long chat about the holiday. She was glad to be home and hadn't enjoyed the holiday as much as she'd anticipated. The constant hassling whenever they left their hotel, and the neglected cats, were too much for her and she said she doubted whether she'd ever feel like going back to Africa again. She was stuffed up and was grateful to be back in her own bed!
Friday 10 May 2024
A small feeling of relief!
Today has been a busy shift at work and catching up with everything that needed to be done, including making sure the swim camps and holiday activities were on the system ready for the May half-term. It felt great when they were all on!
After work, I drove over to Kettering, and within minutes, Mum and Dad were back on Netflix, much to their relief! I was also relieved and hoped that they could work out the remote control to switch back and forth between the streaming channel and normal television!
I dashed home and relaxed, watching more of the film Little Buddha while Keith was at the pub. Sophie Facetimed again and said she had a bad cold and a sore throat. This happened when she went to Istanbul last year, and she ended up with antibiotics, so that was one more worry to contend with! I'll be very glad when she's home tomorrow night!
I missed my wine buddy tonight but poured a glass for myself and prepared a very simple dinner. I felt shattered, so it was an early night. I'm working tomorrow!
Thursday 9 May 2024
I am so grumpy!
Wednesday 8 May 2024
What a busy day!
I was facing a busy day today with many errands and things to do. First up was a visit to Kingsley Beauty Salon for electrolysis on my upper lip. I DO NOT want to become one of those hairy women you see, so I had arranged an appointment to look at what needed to be done, and then do away with any rogue hairs that had surfaced.
The beautician carefully explained about hair growth and said that she could reduce any hairs significantly, but not obliterate them completely, as the little buggers have a habit of popping up in different places! She examined my upper lip area, said things were not as bad as I feared and spent fifteen minutes inserting an ultra-sharp needle into the follicles and zapping them away. It hurt, but luckily it was only momentary. However, when she zapped a couple near my nose, I nearly went through the roof! The things us wimmin have to do!
Keith had come along with me and was waiting for me in the car, so from the salon, we dropped our huge bedspread off to be cleaned at the launderette, and then went to the Weston Favell Centre. After my contact lens appointment last week, I had asked for a sample box of the new multi-focal lenses and they were ready for me to collect. I sat with one of the staff and changed my lenses over to the new ones, I was so impressed!
After the trauma (!) of the beauty appointment, I needed a coffee so we sat in Costa Coffee and relaxed for ten minutes before returning to the car. As Keith closed the passenger door of my car, the glass in the wing mirror fell out, smashing into smithereens on the ground! We had to try and collect as many bits as we could in case someone drove on them and punctured their tyre.
Next up was a visit to Jones's (I so miss Wilko for their homewares range and gardening stuff) where we spent a delightful hour buying loo brushes, laundry pegs, glue, cleaning cloths, drain cleaner and candles. What an exciting shop!
I was waiting for a text from Dunelm to tell me that the pillowcases I'd ordered at the weekend were ready to collect and it came through just as we were leaving Jones's. We went to get them and then popped into Curry's to look at fridges for the garage. We wanted one to store bottles of beer and other drinks now that the warmer weather has arrived, and we saw one that fitted the bill perfectly. It was an under-counter fridge and even had a small freezer. Luckily, it was in stock and a very helpful man carried it out to the car for us.
Our next port of call was B&Q to replace our barbecue gas but they no longer supply Calor Gas so we were told to go to Bell's instead. We popped into Aldi for bread and lager, and then drove to Bell's, somewhere we hadn't been for years as Keith had fallen out with someone there aeons ago. I was hugely impressed when we went in as I didn't realise they supply kitchens and bathrooms. I just thought they sold fireplaces!
The department selling Calor Gas and barbecues was right at the back of the shop so we moved the car around to the rear car park and exchanged our gas bottle very efficiently with another friendly man who remarked on Keith's northern accent! Keith said he was an extra in Vera, and yes he was the murderer!
By now, it was warming up and the temperature was about 24c. We headed home, more than ready for a sandwich and a cold lager. Keith emptied the car and as he shut the driver door, the glass in the wing mirror fell out, smashing into smithereens on the ground... no, I haven't repeated myself, this was now both wing mirrors out of use! I couldn't believe it!
After putting everything away, having lunch and drinking a much-needed cold glass of beer, I found a company online to order two more mirrors for £40...
The rest of the day was spent catching up with the normal Wednesday jobs and trying to write the shopping list, always such an enjoyable chore!
Tuesday 7 May 2024
More phone calls
Monday 6 May 2024
A short shift
Sunday 5 May 2024
Tackling the "To Do" list!
We gave Sophie a lift to the gym this morning and sat and waited for her while reading the Sunday papers. It was then home for hot cross buns and coffee and Wordle off! We try and set aside a few minutes for this every day and compete with one another!
I wanted to get lots of jobs done today and, as it was a sunny day and beautifully breezy, I was in the mood for cleaning and sorting things out. I tackled my "To Do" list and achieved quite a bit, which pleased me as some of the jobs were long overdue! Sophie washed her make-up brushes and did the rest of her packing ready for the off tomorrow. We indulged in a vodka and tonic in the afternoon, and pootled about feeling very relaxed. I was just a bit miffed I have to work tomorrow, but at least it's a short shift!
Keith barbecued in the evening while Sophie and I prepared the vegetables. It clouded over slightly, but it was still warmish. I think the whole of the next week is set to be dry and warm!
After dinner, we watched two episodes of Baby Reindeer, a show that everyone, and I mean everyone, is talking about! We'll have to catch up on the rest of the programmes when Sophie gets home!
Saturday 4 May 2024
Bringing home the bargains!
Note the bulging bag beside Sophie! |