Cars galore!

We had planned a weekend of staying home, with only a trip to the recycling centre to get us out of the house, but it didn't work out that way!

We spent the morning looking at cars on online selling platforms like Cinch and Carwow, and I almost bought two! One was an Audi Q3, but it was more than we wanted to pay and would have used a lot of our savings. The other was a white Peugeot 3008, and I called to see if I could arrange a test drive. It wasn't possible, but as I looked at it, it disappeared and said it was sold!

We looked at so many cars that we began to feel a bit shell-shocked, and they all began to blur into one mass! In the end, we started to be ruthless with our choices, such as discounting any without a spare wheel, but in the end I decided I wanted to see the car, drive it and make sure it's OK before I take the leap.

Sophie prepared tonight's dinner of chicken casserole while I took all the hearts down in the conservatory to do some cleaning. They were all festooned with cobwebs, and some of them were well past their best, so we decided not to put them back up. I gazed with dismay at the roof of the conservatory that needed cleaning, and submitted an enquiry to a local company.

We pottered about for another couple of hours, and went to see my Mum in the afternoon. She seemed a bit confused again, but then said as clearly as anything to one of the carers, "Did you have a good couple of days off?" We were speechless, as when speaking to us she wasn't making a lot of sense and seemed to have no idea what day it was! Hmmm! We stayed for an hour and tried to get the television working, as she had lost all of the terrestrial channels, such as BBC1, etc. 

Before heading home, we popped to the pub for a drink and a bite to eat. We hadn't eaten much at all during the day, so we ordered a bucket of chips (a very small bucket!), some tzatziki with Greek flatbread, and chicken satay. The food was delicious, and it was lovely to sit, relax and look forward to our Saturday evening.

We got home after Keith, who had been to see Sileby, told him we'd been to the pub and didn't want dinner... thankfully, he didn't mind! Sophie and I played Scrabble with a Vesper each, and almost had a bickerfest about the scores. I'd been leading, and then Sophie went way ahead! I ended up winning, but I think my daughter was annoyed with me!

We finally watched What Lies Beneath, and Sophie spent most of the time screaming. It was a good, scary film, and Harrison Ford looked very handsome in it! Swoon!

Feeling a little sad...

My heart sank when Liam arrived at 8:00am this morning, but he was very well-behaved and quiet all day! We had a chat about cars, so it was good to have some company. I do miss my former colleagues and the little chats we used to have!

At lunchtime, just as I was about to have something to eat, I had a Teams meeting with Kally, who looks after all the managers in the area. She wanted to show me about taking cash, but most of it went over my head! I learn by doing, not by looking, so I felt a bit deflated in the afternoon. I go from one day enjoying the job to the next wishing I was doing something else, which is very tiring for my family, and this impacted our Friday evening and set the tone for the weekend, unfortunately.

I realised, almost like an epiphany, that I haven't really enjoyed any job I've done, even when I was working with my parents! I was happy for the most part when I worked at the same location with my old company, but there were still days when I walked out, determined to look for something else! It's definitely me! I envy people who love their job and don't see it as work!

So, Friday evening was a bit subdued and the plan to watch What Lies Beneath, starring Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer, was put on hold. We plonked a tray of Tesco curries into the oven and drank a Picpoul de Pinet. After dinner, we caught a couple of episodes of Top of the Pops from the 80s, so that made us smile!

Annoying noises!

We decided to make do and use ingredients in the cupboard for our dinner this evening, so Keith didn't have to go shopping. I dropped Sophie at the station and carried on to work, arriving just in time. It was my turn to buy the breakfasts today, and I used the new Greggs app on my phone. I have to say it was very easy to do!

Dan left at lunchtime, and Liam came into the office with me. He spent the afternoon making an annoying noise with his pen, which drove me crazy, so I was in a foul mood when I drove home. I ranted to Keith, so he must have thought I was a madwoman! I had to agree with him!

We went to pick up Sophie again, and she was in a much better mood than yesterday, so that was good. She had the leftovers from her lasagne for dinner, while Keith had made a delicious corned beef, onion and potato stew for us, served with crusty bread. Sophie and I enjoyed a delicious French red wine to go with our meals; it was a wine from Vaison-la-Romaine, and it brought back happy memories!

Bad news...

Sophie was off to Birmingham this morning to attend her yearly trade show, so Keith and I dropped her at the station before heading home to tackle the usual Wednesday chores. I was determined to find out what was happening with the car today, as it's now been three weeks since the accident, and I've had no news from either the insurance company or the garage about the repair.

I wish now I hadn't bothered. When I finally got through to the claims department, I was told the car was a "total loss" and that the garage had been sent the information on the 7th of September, over a week ago! I was very upset, as I honestly thought we would get the VW back. I now have to look for a new car, with all the hassle that comes with it. I was going to replace the car in the new year, but now I've been forced to do it!

The man I spoke to said that the specialist department dealing with a total loss would contact me next week, but in the meantime to look at valuations myself for the car, so I was prepared. My morning was therefore taken up with dealing with this and cleaning the conservatory, as Kym was due to come and see to our feet just after lunchtime. The hoover was making a strange noise, and when I looked at the brush, I could see it was jammed with hair! I then spent half an hour cutting it all out. In the end, there was enough for a new wig for Sophie or me! What a delightful morning!

Kym arrived at about 1:30pm and showed me photos of her wedding, which had taken place the day Sophie and I drove to Bergerac. She looked stunning in the photos, and it was lovely to chat about her day.

So, Keith and I have some big decisions to make in the next few months. We need a new car, and the en-suite bathroom is still awaiting a renovation as well. I feel we're in a bit of a slump at the moment, to be honest. Sophie is still hobbling about on her swollen ankle, and although our problems are little niggles, and nothing major, it feels like there is a steady drip, drip of issues happening that we could definitely do without!

Sophie's train arrived back in Northampton at just past 6:00pm, so we drove to collect her, and she'd had an exhausting day and was not in the best of moods! We bustled about doing the dinner as soon as we got home, and she had a drink to relax! I did too!

A busy start to the week!

Monday

I drove myself to work this morning and spent a frustrating day trying to get our outstanding invoices paid. I was busy all day, but I didn't achieve much! I also had a Teams meeting with other colleagues and a woman from the Independent Cinema Office regarding the opening of the cinema soon. I'm looking forward to this!

Back home, I pottered about, and we had the beef burgers that we should have had last night for dinner. Keith was looking forward to watching Newcastle play Leeds tonight, but the outcome was disappointing. Sophie and I went upstairs to watch Help! We Bought A Village, a much more relaxing choice!

Tuesday

I had another busy day at work, and I think I'm keeping my head above the water! I'm determined not to have over three hundred emails in my inbox like Sheila had, and I try to tackle them when they come in!

Keith and I went home at 4:00pm, and I hoovered and did some housework before Sophie arrived. Her ankle is a little better, but over the next two days she'll be at a trade show in Birmingham, so it'll be tough on her feet!

We enjoyed meatballs and pasta for dinner, and Keith went to see Sileby play. We watched the last episode of a documentary about a woman who pretended her son was seriously ill, and when the cats came in, Sophie went upstairs for some cuddles while I watched a programme about Britain's lost masterpieces. Keith came home at 10:00pm, happy to report that Sileby had won!

A muddy run!

We woke up to rain steadily falling out of a grey sky this morning, which wasn't good news for Sophie as she was taking part in a 10K run at Holdenby House. She set off at 8:00am while I relaxed with a coffee in the dry!

We had arranged to meet her at 10:45am at The Red Barn Café near Spratton for breakfast. I kept in touch with her throughout her run, and she said she'd twisted her ankle as the ground she was running on was uneven and slippery in places because of the rain.

She collected her medal at the end and enjoyed a free bottle of apple juice to celebrate! We drove over to Spratton to meet her, and arrived at the café a few minutes before her. We were seated by one of the pleasant staff who changed our table because of an influx of flies! I certainly didn't want them bothering us as we ate our breakfast!

Sophie arrived looking wet, muddy and sweaty, and we congratulated her on her achievement. Before long, she'll be doing the London Marathon! We had a good look at the menu, choosing sausage and bacon rolls, and a bowl of granola and compote for Sophie. She and Keith had tea while I opted for a flat white, one of the smallest I've ever had!

We enjoyed our breakfast, but I'm not sure we'll venture back. Keith said his bap was greasy, and I did feel queasy myself after eating. The café was noisy and felt just a little grubby to me. It had good reviews and it was great to try somewhere new, and I didn't even know it existed!

Back home, we pottered about, and Sophie put her trainers into the washing machine to wash. Her ankle had swelled up, so she wasn't happy about that, especially as next week she's at a trade show in Birmingham and will be on her feet for two days. I put some grass seed down on the back lawn, but it's so bald I used it all up and had to order some more! With the sunshine and rain showers today, it should do well!

Sophie had a lovely hot shower, and we went to see my Mum for an hour. We took her down to the lounge for a change and chatted to her, as well as showing her some photos on our phones. Sophie's foot began to hurt, so we returned home to relax, and after Keith had watched the football, I switched on Saturday Morning Kitchen, not really the best of programmes to watch on a Sunday evening when the weekend was over!

Surrounded by art!

Sophie and I were up early this morning and on our way to Market Harborough at 8:45am, as my daughter had a hair appointment at 10:00am. We found a parking space easily and walked to Just So Italian for a coffee and an almond croissant. This is definitely our favourite place to go to now in Market Harborough, and I'm sure we've tried everywhere! We used to hang out at Café Nero years ago, but no longer!

After we'd enjoyed our breakfast, we popped to Boots and then crossed the street to the hairdressing salon. There were no seats free, so I went to Costa and had another flat white there! Once I finished my coffee, I went back and waited for Sophie while reading my book. It was very relaxing!

We avoided the charity shops today (apart from the Oxfam bookshop) and browsed in Waterstones, where Sophie bought three books. She is such a passionate reader, and I love seeing her curled up with a book in her nook! We also popped into the new art gallery and admired some very modern, brightly coloured art!

We walked up the main street and noticed more artwork in the shop windows. The art exhibition is on again at Lamport, and they were also showing off works around town. We ventured down a small alleyway to explore a couple more shops, and met a woman with a tiny Pomeranian dog in her bag. The dog was called Pom, and she was gorgeously fluffy and friendly!

We walked further up the street and went to a new store called Neptune, which specialised in kitchens and homewares. This is now the third shop in the town selling overpriced tat, and I noticed candles for £45. We beat a hasty retreat!

By now, we were a bit peckish, so we decided to have a light lunch at The Wine Shed. We sat outside (the sky looked a bit ominous, though!), ordered a glass of wine each, and had paté and bread, and a sourdough roll filled with cheese and salami, with a hot honey dressing.

It was breezy sitting outside, and guests who were attending a wedding at the nearby church arrived in flowery dresses and ordered a bottle of wine. A couple asked for blankets to keep warm; it was that kind of day! Sophie and I chatted about our dream of buying a property in northern France, and she texted her ex-manager, who has an apartment not far from Boulogne. We wanted to pick her brains, so we arranged to take her out for lunch and ask lots of questions! We then saw a lovely flat in Deauville, which would be great to rent out in the Spring and Summer! We have to have dreams!

By the time we'd eaten our lunch and Sophie had enjoyed a Negroni, we decided to call it a day and head to Lamport to check out this year's artworks. The sky had clouded over, and we had dodged a few droplets of rain over lunch. We parked behind the hall and went for a cup of tea and cake first. Sophie chose a slice of red velvet cake, while I went for my favourite, Victoria Sponge. We sat at a wobbly table in the old stables, and I was bemused to see that the café was using packets of wooden cutlery. Why not just put out normal knives, forks and spoons and wash them?

We then spent a pleasant hour wandering about, looking at the different forms of art, from photography, painting, jewellery, textiles and sculpture. There wasn't much that caught my eye apart from a gorgeous wooden bench that had already been sold.

Inspired by Tina Turner...why?

By 4:00pm we had had enough, so it was time to head home, relax and look forward to a Chinese takeaway and a game of Scrabble. Need I say that Sophie beat me? She always does!

After enjoying our meal, we started watching Charlie Wilson's War, but it left all of us cold, so we switched on Carpe Diem instead. A much better choice!

Remembering 25 years ago...

I was looking forward to a day on my own in the office as Dan was working from home, but I was joined by Liam, who used to work for my old company as well. We worked well together and had a little reminisce every now and again!

Time flew again today, and before I knew it, it was 4:00pm and Keith was waiting. We drove home, and I relaxed before Sophie arrived. Our viewing choice tonight was A Place in the Sun, with a very chirpy couple looking for a house in Soller, on Mallorca. The woman was very annoying, and in the end, they didn't find anything they liked, which didn't surprise us! Why not rent for a few months instead of buying? Their £300,000 did not get them a lot!

We were late having dinner tonight, as Keith didn't get home until 7:45pm last week, and the dinner was waiting around for his return. Of course, he was early tonight, so he had to wait!

After dinner, we watched a sobering account of the 9/11 terrorist attack, with moving accounts from people affected, including one woman who had over 80% burns on her body. It was a very sad and tragic documentary and also included footage of the plane which hit the Pentagon and the one which crashed in a field. I can remember exactly where I was on the 11th of September, 2001, and I was on my way to pick up Sophie from school when I turned on the radio and heard the terrible news. It seems incredible that it was 25 years ago. Where have the years gone?

Something different!

I was back at work this morning, and my workday flew by! I am now enjoying working on my own and organising things my way. Kally, one of the managers, came in again, and we had a great chat before we walked to the nursery, who rent space from us, and spoke with the woman who runs it. I wanted to introduce myself, and I have to admit that both of us were surprised she was there!

We then had a tour of the new gym, I showed Kally where I used to sit (our old office is now a beautiful, new gym with air-conditioning) and went downstairs to the Reformer Pilates room, where the equipment looked like instruments of torture!

After work, Keith and I sped over to Kettering to take Mum a bag of toiletries, and she was sitting in the dining room, so I didn't stay. I said I would pop back over the weekend to see her and bring Sophie with me.

Sophie was going running with Becky after work this evening, and they ran around Brackmills, doing a 5k run in preparation for a 10k event on Sunday. She became embroiled in traffic on the way home, caused by two separate incidents on the awful A45. 

Dinner tonight was simple: fish fillets, wedges and mushy peas served with a curry sauce! Definitely different for us, and the curry sauce was delicious! 

We are noticing how early it now gets dark. Autumn is well and truly here now!

Garden toil!

Sophie was working from home today, and it was lovely to have her in the house while I was off. We sat and had a coffee in the kitchen before I started work in the garden. I wanted to rake up all the leaves that had fallen, clear the small area by the fence in preparation for putting some gravel down and a bench, and just tidy up everything.

Keith came out to join me, and together we worked hard. I raked up loads of leaves, took some more ivy down from the fence and asked Keith to cut down a bush that had clearly suffered in the drought we had. He managed to cut it all away, and we put all the prunings into our big sack and made an appointment for the tip.

While we were sitting having a coffee that Sophie had made for us, we were joined by a young robin who certainly knew that we were clearing the soil so he could find worms! When Mooney came out, he eyed the bird with lots of interest and kept "chirruping". I warned him not to touch the bird! He had already caught one earlier today that had got into the living room!

Ready for gravel and a bench to enjoy the sunshine!

Toiling away!

Some plants never made it over our hot and dry summer

Remarkably, the grass has sprung back after the lack of rain, but I will need to put the grass seed down next week after we've had more showers.

Crouching jaguar watching the birdies!

Keith and I went to the tip, heaved the huge bag into the garden waste skip and returned home to have sandwiches for lunch. We then hoovered out Sophie's car, I hoovered downstairs and peeled some more vegetables for dinner. It had been a busy morning and early afternoon!

I called the care home to let them know I'd go and see my Mum tomorrow, as I had run out of time this afternoon. I wanted to get the garden tidied, and we were pleased it looked so much better!

Eureka!

I felt a little depressed this morning on the way to work, and felt that there was surely more to life than this. It was raining and grey, so that didn't help! I had another busy day, and I'll certainly never be bored in this job! On the way home, Keith and I called into Waitrose to ask if a ring had been handed in, but it hadn't. I even scoured the car park!

When I got home, I watched an episode of the new series of Help! We Bought a Village and felt a slight pang of envy for those who had bought derelict or rundown properties abroad and were doing them up. One couple had bought a hamlet of buildings in France and were facing a mammoth task to clear away all the overgrown bushes and trees, so they had called in help. I would as well!

As I was watching, my phone rang, and it was Sophie to say she'd found her ring. She had gone out to her car to drive home, and the ring was sitting in the middle of the passenger seat. Now, this was very weird, as she had checked several times, and I had even knelt on the seat last night to check under the driver's seat! Surely I would have felt it or seen it? She was ecstatic, and so was I! I hated seeing her so unhappy.

I cooked dinner tonight, and we had loads of vegetables as we hadn't been eating too well over the last few days (yesterday was leftover chilli from Friday with nachos). We enjoyed meaty sausages, mashed potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and green beans! It was good not having them for a while, as we all appreciated them more!

Our evening viewing was Carpe Diem, a series we're enjoying very much. It was a lovely feeling that I'm not at work tomorrow and was planning a day in the garden! 

The lost ring

Today was my first day at work without Sheila, so I was a little nervous. Our Fitness Manager, Charlie, came into the office to do some printing, and she looked a little fed up, saying she used to work at another leisure centre and it was totally different to how it was with us. She said, like me, she felt overwhelmed with the workload. I think the problem is that the staff are still getting the hang of things and have either been moved over from my old company or are brand new, like me. We are all in the same boat!

I was very busy all day but felt like I'd done OK without Sheila. I have to say that I do miss my old colleagues, though, and the chats we used to have!

When Sophie came home, she went up to get changed, and I heard her exclaim loudly that she'd lost the ring on her little finger. It was the one she'd bought in L'Escala, and she was devastated. We looked everywhere: in her bedroom, throughout the house, in her car and on the driveway, but her ring was nowhere to be found. She'd had a bad day at work, and this was the final straw. She was worried she'd lost it in Waitrose when she popped in on her way home.

It made for a despondent evening. After dinner, we watched a Panorama documentary on 9/11 (surely I don't need to remind anyone it's the 25th Anniversary of the atrocity this Friday) and the connection between Saudi Arabia and the attack. How can it have been 25 years ago? I remember exactly where I was when it happened - on my way to collect Sophie from school - and we all watched with horror the events that unfolded.

Before going to bed, I reassured Sophie that the ring would turn up... watch this space!

An evening of silliness!

Sophie was running around Pitsford Reservoir this morning and met her friend, Becky, there at 10:00am. I tackled the housework and laundry, and when she got home, she brought goodies again! I enjoyed a matcha and shared a decadent croissant with Keith.

It's been another gorgeous day today, with warm sunshine and a gentle breeze, so perfect for getting the laundry dry outside. Sophie and I sat outside for a while, and I despaired at the state of the garden. There is so much to do in the house at the moment that I don't know where to start! When I'm off next Wednesday, I will try to get everything tidied up! At least the grass has perked up after the drought!

We had tickets for a show tonight: Sam Campbell's Kid Giblet Tour at Milton Keynes Theatre. We set off at 6:00pm and took Olive on the M1, as it was the fastest route. We parked easily near the theatre and went up to the Circle Bar for a drink and a tub of popcorn. I hadn't eaten much today, so I was hungry, but I wasn't sure that popcorn was the best thing to eat, as it was full of air! 

We sat and watched the theatre fill up with people and enjoyed a spot of people-watching. Just before 7:30pm, we went back down to the stalls entrance and found our seats right in the middle of a row. We had a good view, though, and there were various props on the stage, some of which made no sense and weren't even used in the show!

Sophie and I had enjoyed the last show we saw in Leicester, but unfortunately, tonight was not so enjoyable and was very silly. Some bits were funny, and we laughed, but we didn't find Sam Campbell as hilarious as last time. He had a bearded man on stage with him, who was supposed to be his IT support, but he wasn't funny, either. In the interval, we were able to order a bottle of water and ice creams and have them delivered to our seats! How decadent!

In the second half, a woman who had pretended to be an usher appeared and was on stage for a while telling jokes. When Sam Campbell reappeared, he asked everyone to add up their phone number, and anyone who scored over 59 had to go onto the stage! I didn't add mine up, but even if it had been over that number, there was no way I would have appeared on the stage! He spoke to everyone, and there were lots of people, with two winners who scored the highest. I'm not really sure what the point of it was, to be honest. Then they all threw yellow rubber gloves at the audience. Yes, it was that kind of show...

At the end, when we all thought the show was over, he came back on with two of the people who had appeared with him, and they wore weird hats with what looked like sausages sticking out of them, and pranced about the stage. It was a relief when it was actually over, and we could go home!

Celebrity sightings!

Sophie and I were back in London again today, but as the event we were going to see wasn't on until 4:00pm, we had a relaxed morning at home and didn't get a train until midday. The timing of this had to coincide with a Newcastle game, which started at 12:30pm, so we asked Keith to drop us off at about 11:45am. 

It was a gorgeous day with balmy temperatures and a blue sky studded with white fluffy clouds. Our train was a fast one, with no stops until St Pancras, and we had a lovely journey. We'd treated ourselves to canned cocktails for the ride to London and, on the way, booked our tickets for Kettering to St Pancras in November. The tickets were extremely reasonable considering it was a commuter train!

At St Pancras, we went outside and hailed a taxi in a very busy taxi rank. Ahead of us in the queue was a weirdly dressed man, and I wished I were able to take a photo of him. He had some sort of black headdress on, a shirt that was open at the back and the weirdest clothes I've ever seen. How brave to go out in public like that, knowing you were going to draw stares from everyone!

Sophie looking very becoming, unlike some in the queue!

We had a very pleasant taxi journey to the South Bank Centre, where we were going to The Rest is Fest, twenty-two shows featuring The Rest is... podcasts. Ours, of course, was The Rest is Classified versus Scaramucci. Other shows were The Rest is History, The Rest is Football (with Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer), and The Rest is Science.

The South Bank Centre was busy when we arrived, and we went inside to explore. There was a shop, merchandise stalls selling books and tee-shirts, and a couple of bars. Outside, there were glorious views of the river, and people were enjoying the beautiful weather, which was so different to the rain and grey skies we had last week!

We decided to have something to eat and drink and explored an open-air food market, but it was hectically busy, and the choice of food was overwhelming! There was nowhere to sit, so we walked to a  nearby Pizza Express instead. We chose peach cocktails, a big bottle of water, chicken goujons to start, and we shared a pizza. The food and service were great, and it was lovely to sit and chat and look forward to seeing David McCloskey and Gordon Corera again!

We managed to find room for puds - a cheesecake for me and a white chocolate blondie for Sophie. We had a table booked at The Booking Office for 6:00pm, but we were planning on having nibbles with a drink.

Once we'd paid the bill, we walked over the road and went back into The South Bank Centre, this time going up to the second floor for a drink before the show. I ordered a medium glass of white wine, while Sophie chose an Aperol Spritz. £22 for the two!

We sat with our drinks and did some great people-watching. There were groups of teenagers acting very excitedly, and I did wonder if they had come to see the show we had booked. They didn't seem to be the demographic for fans of The Rest is Classified!

Just before 4:00pm, we walked over to the entrance of the auditorium, but we weren't allowed in, so we took two seats at a table. Here, there were even more groups of teenagers all gabbling excitedly and carrying bags with Sherlock & Co on them... We then realised there was another event taking place in another hall, so that made sense! I had never heard of the podcast Sherlock & Co!

Imagine our delight when we saw Gary Lineker walk past! The woman who was sitting at our table was also excited, and even more so when she saw a woman walk past who does a podcast with Anthony Scaramucci, Katty Kay.

When the doors opened, we took our seats in the front row and had a fantastic view of the stage. It was great to see David McCloskey and Gordon Corera again, but this was a much different event than Bletchley Park, which was far more intimate. I then did a double-take when I saw Tracey Ullman walk down to the front and look about for a friend she was joining. She had long grey hair, but it was unquestionably her!

The three men came onto the stage, and it was to be a debate between David McCloskey and Anthony Scaramucci, mediated by Gordon Corera. The question was: Was the CIA a force for good in protecting the US?

The first topic was about Watergate, and it moved on to Trump and Venezuela. They lightly touched on the subject of 9/11, and David McCloskey became a little agitated with Scaramucci! The last part was a question-and-answer session, and we were asked to vote about the CIA.

The show was only on for an hour, and there was no chance of meeting the three men afterwards, so it was very different from Bletchley Park, where we were able to mingle with them and chat. We left, managed to grab a taxi parked outside, and were whisked off to The Booking Office. It was a gorgeous late afternoon, and the sun sparkled on the River Thames, with the London Eye and the Houses of Parliament in the distance. On the way, we came across a filming unit, but we didn't recognise anyone!

Scenes from a black cab

Although we were early for our table, we were able to take our seats and have a look at the menu. We chose a bottle of sparkling water and a carafe of Balfour English rosé. We sat and relaxed for a short time before ordering from the nibbles menu: a charcuterie plate, hummus and crackers, chicken goujons, and French fries.

Lots of other tables were occupied, and the bar was full of people sitting and drinking, although the bar stools didn't look very comfortable! We could see the manager working really hard, and when he came over to us to top up our glasses, we had a chat. He said that three staff members had called in sick, and he sounded very fed up. We chatted for a while, and I said I sympathised!

We had a delightful meal and treated ourselves to a White Russian cocktail instead of a pud. When we ordered, we made the manager laugh; he said he hadn't heard anyone ask for this cocktail for ages! The drinks were so good, we ordered another and then paid the bill, which nearly made us fall off our seats. It was worth it, though!

We were able to catch the 8:05pm train, which should have got us to Kettering at about 8:55pm. We called Keith to let him know and settled back in our seats for the journey. However, minutes after leaving St Pancras, the train slowed because of a slower engine in front of us, and we were about twenty-five minutes late.

Keith had been waiting patiently and whisked us back home, where we were able to relax and chat about our day!

What day is it?

It felt weird having today off, but lovely at the same time! After an early blood test at the GP surgery, I pootled about while Keith went to Tesco to do our weekly shopping. When he got back and had eaten some lunch, we drove to Northampton to visit Homesense. We needed a new container for the wine corks we keep, and I knew they would have a good choice.

We were, indeed, spoiled for choice, and we picked out a huge wine/sundae glass that should accommodate them, with room for more! I also bought some new white cotton pillowcases, two pillow protectors, a candle and some white bowls, as we are badly in need of them!

We drove home; I left Keith there and went over to see my Mum for an hour. The carers were glad to see me, as apparently, my  Mum had been asking and asking where I was and had refused to get out of bed this morning. She seemed fine when I sat with her and chatted, but I was still worried about how thin she was. Jessica, one of her carers, said she only wanted to eat sweet things, which, nutritionally, weren't that good for her.

I showed her a picture I'd taken of her on her 80th birthday, and I was shocked at the change in her, to be honest. I'm honestly not sure how much more weight she can lose.

Back at home, I looked forward to a relaxing evening; perhaps I should have Friday off instead of Wednesday! Keith went to the pub while Sophie and I opened a bottle of red Sablet and watched a Netflix documentary called The Pastor's Wife. Sophie had said one of her friends had enjoyed it, but it left me cold. We started to watch episode two, but I lost interest!

Keith had prepared a spicy chilli for dinner, and afterwards we watched Top of the Pops from 1985. I swooned over Morten Harket, as he was then. He was definitely my teen pin-up! He is now 66! Sophie went outside to try to get the cats in and bumped into Lynn and Daphne the dog. She had been in the garden eating the cocktail sausages that Sophie had put down for Barry the badger! Daphne is the sweetest dog! She came over for lots of cuddles and strokes, and we chatted to Lynn until the chill of the evening air drove us back inside. It's definitely Autumn now!

A better day!

I woke up at 5:00am and was thinking about work, which was silly. I left early to get Sheila some flowers, chocolates and a card, as today was my last official day working with her.

Thankfully, I had a much better day, made even nicer by the scones, cream and jam that Sheila had made. There was a steady stream of people wishing her good luck in her retirement (even though she's working one day a week on a Wednesday) and tucking into the cakes!

We submitted the payroll sheets, and I tackled some of my emails and input a few contracts. I am going to have to get tough with the staff who continually make mistakes, as I won't have time to keep correcting them. They will soon learn! It was lovely to drive home and look forward to another three-day weekend. I am lucky, although I don't realise it at times!

We sat in the kitchen this evening, chatted, and enjoyed a very simple supper of pizza/quiche and roasted vegetables. The cats have been very good this week, as the weather has been changeable and there's been a lot more rain, so it's been easy to get them in! This makes Sophie's life so much better, and she loves getting them in early and taking them upstairs for a furry love-in!

Feeling overwhelmed!

Today has been another crazy day, and our regional manager came in to talk to us about the prospect of accepting cash payments at our sites in a couple of weeks. I'm not sure that today was the best day to talk about it, as both Sheila and I felt a little overwhelmed. One of the things that our manager hinted to me when Sheila was out of the office was that my colleague tends to overcomplicate things, and I agreed. Some of the processes can be more streamlined, and I was reminded that we were there to record the data, not investigate!

Keith came to pick me up, and I said that I wasn't sure if I'd made the right decision, as there was so much to do and Dan, our manager, had asked Sheila to do a last-minute job at 4:00pm. I don't mind staying later, but I will need to have notice, as I can't have Keith sitting and waiting for me for half an hour.

Keith was out tonight watching Sileby play, so Sophie and I had planned jerk chicken pasta for dinner. The chicken had been marinating since yesterday, and I prepared the rest of the ingredients when I got home from work.

We enjoyed a bottle of Chardonnay with the meal, which was a lovely balance of heat and creaminess. It was delicious! We watched two episodes of A Place in the Sun, followed by a deeply moving and saddening documentary about babies that were forcibly given away for adoption in the 60s and 70s.

Keith came home from the match, all bundled up in a coat and a scarf. Is summer finally over?

Back to reality!

After a lovely three-day Bank Holiday weekend, it was back down to earth with a bump today and payroll week! Sheila let me do everything by myself today, and I managed to get two lots of timesheets onto the system before we finished at 4:00pm. It had been very busy indeed, and the time had whizzed past!

It was lovely to go home and relax, but unusually, I'm back in tomorrow and having Friday off instead. 

As is the tradition, here are the 2026 storm names:

Austen

Boelo

Chloe

Dano

Evelyn

Finn

Gwendolyn

Heather

Ivy

Jade

Kilian

Laoise

Miriam

Nicola

Olaf

Phelim

Ruban

Shaun

Theo

Vesna

Wende

Apparently, according to the news, we're in for a stormy winter because of the Super El Niño. We shall see!

Bank Holiday freedom!

It felt lovely to not have to work today, as normally I used to go in on most of the Bank Holidays! We had talked about going on a mooch today, but in the end, Sophie and I decided to go over to Weedon, with Keith preferring to stay at home and watch the cricket.

Over a coffee, we booked our Eurostar to Brussels and Antwerp for November, and a ferry for Christmas in France. It's wonderful to have something to look forward to, and I just hope we'll be taking the VW with us! No doubt, I will hear about the repairs next week, and I'm praying the car won't be written off.

Sophie and I set off in Olive at about 11am, and Jeeves took us on a tortuous route to get to Weedon as one of the roads was closed. We ended up on a narrow road, full of potholes, and I was dreading damaging one of Olive's tyres. The accident last week has really shaken me up, and although I know it won't knock my confidence, I am driving a little more nervously, which isn't a good idea!

When we arrived at Weedon Bec, we were surprised to see so many cars parked. This hub of independent retail outlets has obviously become more popular! We parked a little distance from the antique and vintage shop and made for the bookshop and café on the first floor.

The place was busy, and there were stacks and piles of books everywhere! Sophie ordered us two teas, and we shared a Biscoff brownie. Even our table had a pile of books on it, and we could hardly move for the tomes everywhere!

I had the feeling that the shop had become very popular and the staff were unable to cope. Our cups of tea were almost forgotten, and the two young girls behind the counter looked a bit stressed! As we sat and enjoyed our drinks and the brownie, we suddenly smelt a horrible odour. I only hope it was the dog opposite and not the man sitting behind us, but it was awful. It then happened again, so we hurriedly finished our drinks and went to look at the books. 

Sophie and I are definitely in the minority at the moment in that we don't take a dog with us. Virtually everyone had some sort of mutt in tow, whether they were just browsing or having a drink and snack in the café. Can't these dogs be left alone for a couple of hours? I'm really not keen on having them everywhere we go!

We had a look at the books, but they were just piled up everywhere, haphazardly and without any organisation. I itched to put them in order!

I think maybe it's time to stop accepting donations and sell the books you have before taking on any more!

We felt so overwhelmed by the books that we left and went downstairs to look at the antiques. However, even here it was chaotic, and there was a horrible, suffocating smell in the shop. We've never experienced this before during our visits, and we've always had an enjoyable time. I don't think the vibes were right, and apologies for the moaning! It may be a while before we venture back!

From Weedon Bec, we drove to the Heart of the Shires shopping village and had a look around before our lunch booking at 1:30pm. We noticed a new garden centre, another little courtyard of shops and some changes to the existing retail outlets. Neither of us was tempted by anything, even though I was on the lookout for a new Gin class.

What had once been Darlington's and then The 1867 was now simply The Tea Room, and we were shown to a table off the main rooms. We chose a chicken, bacon and cheese toastie (me) and a Club Sandwich (Sophie) with a glass of white wine. At first, we didn't think we'd be served quickly, but that proved wrong, and we were soon tucking into our sandwiches and wine. Even the two tables in the small ante-room had dogs with them!

Outside, the previously good weather turned, and rain began to pelt down! We paid the bill (our wine was on the house as it had arrived after we started eating... we didn't argue!) and ran to the car, getting soaked in the process!

Before heading home, we called into an Asda Express shop to buy some wine for tonight. We have lots of bottles of red but none of white (well, ones that are suitable for weekday drinking!), so I bought a bottle of white Burgundy and my lunch for tomorrow.

Back home, it was time to relax and read before Sophie put the finishing touches to a Mulligatawny soup she'd made. I enjoyed a Russian film called Compartment No. 6, which was lovely and was a collaboration between Russia, Finland, Estonia and Europe. It was a moving and wonderful film, and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Trying something new

Sophie drove to Daventry this morning to do a run with her work buddy, Becky, while I did some housework. On her way home, she called at The Workhouse in Brixworth to get a matcha and a pastry for us. We sat and chatted at the kitchen island and enjoyed our impromptu lunch!

First thing this morning, I had covered almost a pound of cherries with caster sugar and cherry liqueur as the first stage of making a cherry clafoutis. Once Sophie came home, we did the rest of the preparations together, making the batter and a buerre noisette (a brown butter). I was frightened it would burn, but it didn't, thank goodness! We added the cherries and juice to the batter mixture and popped the dessert into the oven to cook for about forty minutes.

Once it had cooked, we let it cool down a little before serving it with cream. I didn't want to have it after our curry tonight as we rarely eat dessert late in the evening, so it was an afternoon treat!

The afternoon was spent relaxing, and Sophie and I watched an episode of Escape to the Sun about a couple wanting to move to Costa Rica to live, even though they had never visited before. Predictably, they didn't buy anything, and when we Googled them, they're still living in the UK!

Before our dinner of Keith's curry, we played Scrabble and Sophie beat me. This is becoming the norm! Our meal was delicious, and we followed this up with an episode of Carpe Diem, which is rapidly becoming one of our favourites!

Art and music

Sophie and I caught a train to St Pancras this morning as we had tickets for a Frida Kahlo exhibition at Tate Modern. I was a little worried about getting a seat on the train as there is a rail workers' strike planned for tomorrow and Monday, but the train was almost empty, and we had a choice of seats.

Once at St Pancras, we went in search of a matcha, but the coffee outlet Sophie wanted to go to was busy with no seats available. We decided to get a taxi to Tate Modern and have something to drink there. Our spell of hot, dry weather had come to an end and today was cool and showery. We had a pleasant taxi ride to Tate Modern, and made straight for the Corner Café where we enjoyed a matcha latte and a free glass of water.

The bar in the Corner Café

Our booking was for 12pm, so we had plenty of time to explore the permanent exhibitions. It was lovely to pick a hall and have a wander around. I'm not a huge fan of modern art; most of it I don't get and think a lot is pretentious, and today my views remained unchanged. I was surprised to see a lot of very young children visiting with their parents and thought that some of the artwork was definitely not suited to them!

One exhibit featured a Guatemalan artist, Naufus Ramírez-Figueroa, whose work was in response to his life in Guatemala at a time when the country was undergoing a civil war. Three videos made up his work, all of them quite disturbing:

He made people lie down on paint-covered metal netted beds so the colour was then transported to their bodies... I thought it was ominous and sinister. In another, he was painting a model with blue paint, and in the third, he was standing in a part of Guatemala that housed the dead, and carrying a block of ice that slowly melted.

Tate Modern

There were other, more traditional pieces of art, and we were delighted to see a painting by Magritte:

And other works by Mark Rothko, Ben Nicholson, Piet Mondrian and Andy Warhol.

Piet Mondrian

Andy Warhol

Mark Rothko

We did our best to understand some of them (the Piet Mondrian squares represented the different sections of society...) and also tried to interpret some very strange art installations:

Apparently, this was about refugees fleeing their country

Large, weird installation where a big animal had defecated

One exhibit was sobering:

This was about the persecution, rape and murder of women in Indonesia. The artist appeared on a video banging a drum and chanting. This was definitely not suitable for children.

Another one not suitable for children

Henri Matisse The Snail

We tried to get into the Frida Kahlo exhibition a little early, but we were told it was busy, so we relaxed on a couple of chairs for ten minutes and watched the comings and goings of people visiting. Sophie had paid £25 each for the tickets, and we hoped it wouldn't be rammed with people.

At 12pm, we headed up the escalator to level 3, and we were admitted into the exhibition. Our fears about it being busy were realised, and there was a veritable scrum around the original Frida Kahlo paintings. I was hoping to see lots of her artwork, but it seemed to be more of a homage to the Mexican painter, with other artists represented as well. Her traditional Tehuana dresses were on display, as well as photographs, videos and personal effects.

Not sure how Mooney managed to appear in this self-portrait when she died in 1954...

One section warned of exhibits concerned with sexual violence and miscarriage, and I saw a little girl in the queue waiting to go in...

Unfortunately, we were both a little disappointed with the exhibition, and I had expected to see more of her artwork. Photography was allowed with some paintings, others not, but I think to see her famous artwork you would need to go to Mexico.

At the end of the exhibition, there was a shop, and Sophie bought a pack of playing cards, a postcard, and a coaster. We tried to get a table at the rooftop restaurant for a drink, but after waiting about twenty minutes, we gave up. The views here were fantastic, with St Paul's Cathedral directly opposite.

We decided to try the ground-floor café for a drink, but it was rammed, so we headed straight to Shake Shack, our choice for lunch. Outside, it was raining, but it wasn't cold.

We strolled over the Millennium Bridge, turned right and walked the short distance to the burger restaurant. Both of us were hungry, and I think our bellies ruled our heads as we ordered a triple Smoke burger each, with fries. Sophie's were covered in cheese and bacon. I was delighted to choose a glass of red with my meal, while Sophie opted for her favourite, a 50/50, which was iced tea and lemonade.

We sat at a table near the open kitchen, and I was fascinated by the amount of food being prepared and served!

The burgers were delicious, but they were huge! I ended up deconstructing mine just to be able to get it in my mouth! I dread to think how many calories there were, but it was a rare treat, and we hadn't planned on eating again today!

We had no plans to go anywhere else today, so we finished our meals, went outside and hailed a black cab to take us to The Renaissance Hotel. Our plan was to have a drink in The Booking Office and then catch an earlier train home.

Our taxi whisked us back, and we were able to bag a table in the gorgeous bar. It's definitely one of our truly favourite places to visit! Sophie ordered a Negroni, while I chose a Campari served with Fevertree Blood Orange Soda. The drink was scrumptious!

It was heaven to sit and sip our drinks and do some people watching. On a table to the right of us was a man and a woman who we thought were on a date. The man truly loved the sound of his own voice and droned on and on, hardly letting the woman speak! I would have made my excuses and left!

While we sat and relaxed, we chatted about next Saturday when we're back in London to see a podcast festival at the South Bank Centre with David McCloskey and Gordon Corera. We decided to go to London later in the day, see the show and then have dinner at The Booking Office before catching a train home.

We had another round of drinks (this time Sophie had a sparkling English wine) and then caught the next train, which left just before 4pm. It was a fast train stopping at Kettering and a couple of other stations before hurtling off to Nottingham. It was great, but the only thing that spoilt the journey was a family group who were very loud!

Keith picked us up, and we headed home to watch Newcastle, and then our much-anticipated Bond Night at The Proms, shown on BBC2. We had a couple of cocktails and enjoyed the fantastic music! It had been a brilliant, very arty day!

Frustrations!

I took the courtesy car to work, and it was fine to drive, if a little too responsive when I braked! Today has been quite frustrating because the contracts I uploaded to our payroll system the other day had been rejected. One document had been rejected twice! It was a little disheartening, especially as we all had no clue why!

We've had rain again today, but I didn't hear any thunder. Keith went to the pub as usual, and Sophie and I opened a delicious bottle of Italian Pinot Gris while watching a BBC documentary about the 9/11 terrorist attack. It was about the President's immediate response to the events and was very interesting. I didn't realise that George Bush was so handsome back in 2001!

Dinner tonight was a very easy meal of fish finger sandwiches, rather than the curry we had planned! An easy end to a difficult week!

My head is spinning!

Unsurprisingly, I didn't have a good night's sleep and kept thinking about the accident. It hasn't been a good week for cars: I forgot to mention that on Saturday, when Sophie drove over to Daventry, she hit a rabbit. At first, she thought that she had hit it and it had run off, but when we left to go out in the afternoon, she had the shock of her life when she saw the rabbit's legs sticking out of the front grille of her car. It was a horrible sight, and because she had parked close to a wall at Becky's house, she hadn't noticed. The force of being hit had driven the rabbit right through the plastic grille at the front of her car, and it had snapped.

We had to get Keith to try and pull it out, and neither of us could look. Thankfully, he was able to get it out in one piece, but when Sophie said she wanted to bury it, we told he we couldn't as the ground was so hard.

Because Keith and I had to take Olive today, Sophie wasn't able to go to the gym. Between 6:00am and 7:00am, we sat and watched A Place in the Sun and witnessed a thunderstorm going on with some much-needed heavy rain. At work I chose a vegan sausage roll for my breakfast and kept in touch with Sophie, who said that a Seat Ibiza had been delivered as my courtesy car and the VW had been carried away on a low-loader. 

The day passed quickly, and Keith came to collect me at 4:00pm. We headed down to Riverside to see Jamie, the bathroom designer, and he kept us waiting again! We both thought he would have done the design and was going to show us how he envisioned the en-suite to look, but he hadn't even started and wanted us to choose all the fittings this evening! My head was still spinning from the events of yesterday and my job, so I said I wasn't in a position to do anything this evening and couldn't make important choices just like that! We made another appointment and fled home!

It was great having Sophie at home as she'd hoovered, made my porridge for tomorrow and was cooking chicken stroganoff for dinner. We sat and chatted over a glass of wine, and I said that I hadn't expected the courtesy car to be emblazoned with the name of the company that specialised in crash repairs. There was no hiding! I will take it to work tomorrow, but I want to use it as little as possible!

I grind to a halt...

Tuesday was a quiet, uneventful day with very little to write about! I am slowly learning the processes at work, but it can be frustrating at times as the company I now work for is a lot bigger than my previous one! I'm sure I will get used to it soon, although I do suspect that a lot of my colleagues feel the same way, and we're all groping our way in the dark!

Keith and I watched the last episode of Best Medicine after eating this evening, and it will certainly be a series I'll miss! I'm 99% sure there is a second series, so we'll watch out for it!

Wednesday

I said goodbye to Sophie this morning when she went to the gym, and went back to bed for a little lie-in until 8:00am. Michelle, my friend and neighbour, was coming around for coffee mid-morning, and I quickly tidied up and hoovered before she arrived.

We had a good chat sitting in the conservatory, but she had to leave at midday as I had an appointment with Gabriel at 1:00pm. Every minute of today has been taken care of! I'm determined to have one Wednesday without any appointments!

Gabriel and I chatted, and he gave my left calf a deep massage. I told him I'd knocked my heel on Sunday and had aggravated the pain in my heel, so he didn't make me do any exercises. I drove home, had a quick bite to eat and went to see my Mum. She was surprised to see me, and I suggested we go out for a drive, something I heartily wish I hadn't said!

We drove out towards Harrington and then Arthingworth, retracing the route Sophie and I took on Saturday. In the distance, I could see several huge wind turbines and decided to see if I could drive near them and photograph them with the cloudy sky behind. I love seeing ranks of them in France!

We drove near, but the road I was on brought me out onto the busy A508. Over the Bank Holiday weekend, there is a music and arts festival, Shambala, going on and a lot of people were arriving for that. I indicated to turn right and saw a Jeep approaching. He slowed down and indicated left, so I went for it as there was a queue of traffic behind him.

However, instead of turning left, he carried on, and as I went to go, we collided with the most awful crunch and bang, and my Mum and I were thrown about. It was horrible. I couldn't believe it had happened, and the passenger got out of the car, shouting at me as to why I had pulled out! Because the driver had indicated, although, in hindsight, this wasn't a good idea!

The car belonged to the woman passenger, and her friend was driving. He was a complete wally and just sat in the car bleating about me pulling out. The woman got into the driver's seat and moved the car as it was holding up a long line of cars.

We exchanged details and took photos of each other's cars, and then they drove the short distance to the entrance to the festival. The woman shouted and harangued her friend and wouldn't calm down, although I said we would get it sorted out. She was furious!

I was just glad that nobody had been hurt, but my Mum was a little shaken up. I drove carefully home after calling Keith to let him know. When we got home, he said I wasn't to drive it any more as the indicator wasn't working and he was worried about any unseen damage.

I phoned the care home to collect Mum, made her a cup of tea, and we started on the claim with my insurance. I felt angry with myself after almost 40 years of accident-free driving. Within half an hour, Mum had been collected by Anna and Alice, and Keith and I finished the claim form. The VW would be collected and repaired, and I could have a courtesy car while the car was being fixed. We then called Sophie, who was a little shocked but said she would work from home tomorrow to help out. We could then use Olive.

The rest of the afternoon and evening were a little subdued, and none of us fancied dinner, so we had leftovers from Monday night. I remained annoyed with myself for making such a stupid mistake, but I was just glad it hadn't been more serious. Lessons will be learnt!

Barry the badger!

Our next-door neighbours have been acting a little strangely recently: leaving their food bin out even though it was at risk of being turned over by a marauding badger who has been visiting our garden. Last night, they wedged open their garden gate and left a bowl of fruit on top of the food bin. Whether they were testing our theory that it was the badger doing it, or maybe the local cats, I don't know.

Anyway, this morning, Vince sent me video footage of the badger from midnight last night:

Let's hope they now shut their bin away so it doesn't get turned over and a mess left everywhere!

My day at work passed quickly, so that's another Monday dealt with! It's not my favourite day of the week, but next Monday is a Bank Holiday, and I'm off! Hooray for that!

Another day, another pub!

Our Sunday morning has been taken up with housework, but there was no dinner to prepare as we had a table booked at the pub! 

Sophie treated me to a real pamper this morning as well, cutting my hair and painting my toenails, bless her. She is very good to me, and I ordered a bottle of Tanqueray No. Ten Gin from Amazon as a thank you (Last night, I had finished the bottle we bought on the ferry, so it had lasted well!). Next Saturday, we're looking forward to seeing music from the Bond films at The Proms on BBC2, and I know Sophie will want to make Vespers while we watch!

We drove to the pub for our 2:00pm booking and took our seats. As we were perusing the menu, a couple came in with a small dog who was panting loudly, and asked me to move as they couldn't get past... Quite where they expected me to go, I have no idea!

The couple sat down, and I received a whiff of smelly dog and could hear the mutt constantly panting. Not really what I wanted while eating my Sunday lunch! Keith asked one of the staff if we could move, so we sat at a better table by the window and out of earshot of the panting dog!

The rest of our lunch passed very pleasantly. Keith and I ordered roast beef, while Sophie chose the chicken. We enjoyed halloumi fries and calamari to start and extra portions of pigs in blankets and cauliflower cheese. The meal was delicious and our beef moist and tender, and it went well with the bottle of Spanish Garnacha I'd ordered.

Sophie and I found room for puds: we each chose the peach and raspberry crumble served with custard. We're both looking forward to cooler days and more hearty meals! Keith paid the bill, and we returned home to do very little, although Sophie screamed at the television a couple of times when Newcastle scored and when Liverpool equalised!

Sophie and her after-lunch cocktail!

A tale of two pubs

Sophie was taking part in a 5K run in Rugby today and left at the very early hour of 7:30am. No lie-in for her today! I was awake at 6:30am and waved her off before having another coffee! 

My morning was spent doing some necessary but boring tasks, mainly related to money. I also looked at new flooring for our kitchen and living room and printed off the invoice for when we had our kitchen renovated in 2021. I am extremely disappointed with the floor we have and have noticed that it's Luxury Vinyl Tile, which is supposed to last 15-20 years. The area around our bar stools is scratched, and we have two cuts in the floor where we dropped cast iron lids onto it. I suppose this didn't help! The stone tile we had when we bought our house seemed to fare much better, and I'm determined to get it right with our next floor!

Sophie and I went to see Mum in the afternoon, and it wasn't the best of visits. She was having a "low" day and cried a bit when we were there, despite one of the lovely carers coming in and bringing her drinks and sweet treats. I do understand how she feels, and I hate it when she says she misses her home and all the lovely things she used to have.

After we visited, we decided to drive to Braybrooke and visit The White Swan, which has just been taken over by new management. We took our drinks through to the garden where several other people were already enjoying the afternoon sunshine. Sophie tried a half pint of  Everards Tiger Copper Ale, and didn't think much of it! I stuck with my Guinness Zero after insisting on having a half pint glass! 

We sat in the garden, chatted and munched on prawn cocktail crisps. Sophie had eaten a big breakfast and felt a little queasy again. She thinks that a meal after a run (they'd completed 9K in the end!) wasn't a good idea!

From Braybrooke, we drove through rural countryside to Arthingworth and The Bull Inn, a pub I'd been visiting for decades, but only every now and again. The man serving was very chatty and told us all about his side hustle of being ground crew for Virgin Hot Air Balloons. 

We sat all alone in the garden again and enjoyed the peace and quiet. It was bliss! A little boy kept coming near us every so often, and I could tell he wanted to speak to us, but was very shy, bless him!

Reluctantly, we finished our drinks and drove home, where Keith was watching football. The new season has definitely started, and my husband and daughter are looking forward to seeing Newcastle play Liverpool live tomorrow afternoon. 

Dinner tonight was chicken wraps with assorted salads, and our film choice for the evening was Insomnia, starring Al Pacino, Hilary Swank and Robin Williams, playing an uncharacteristically evil role!