Fog again.

We woke this morning to thick fog which really didn't shift all day. Driving to work was not pleasant!

I really can't say an awful lot about today, I'm afraid! Work was fine and the phones have quietened down considerably now. We have nice long gaps between calls when we can get other jobs completed.

I returned home at 4pm and pootled about until Sophie came home from work. She was amazed that the fog was still about, and it was damp and chilly. It was lovely to sit in the kitchen with a drink and relax.

Sophie cooked a delicious meal for dinner tonight - her own concoction of fried rice with chicken and vegetables. I chopped up peppers, an onion, baby sweetcorn and courgette, and the meal was really lovely!

 

Foggy Sunday.

Today has been enjoyable, and we've pootled about doing housework (loads of laundry again) and catching up with things that needed doing. It was very foggy in the morning, a real November day when it never really got light, although the sun made a watery appearance in the early afternoon.

We discovered this morning that we needed an onion for the second week running, so Sophie and I went to Mawsley, then the garage at Tesco in Kettering to get diesel, and finally to Broughton to send back some Tassimo pods. Once these jobs were done it was home to have leftovers from last night's meal for lunch.

After we'd eaten, Sophie set about making a soup for tonight's meal - a very oniony and tomatoey concoction! The onions had to be chopped and cooked right down and it took a good couple of hours to get it right.

I reluctantly put all my summer clothes away into big drawers in our divan bed, a job I'd been meaning to do for a few weeks. At the rate that time flies by, it won't be long before I'll be taking them out again! I also found some boxes of Christmas decorations and it won't be long before they're coming out, either!

I saw some activity next door in the late afternoon - the people buying the house arrived and spent a long time in the utility room... I also saw the man upstairs with a torch and that looked very creepy indeed! It was a good job I'd recognised him from when I was spying on them in the summer, otherwise, I would have been a bit worried!

We played Scrabble in the evening and Sophie beat me, as I knew she would. I think she was pretty determined to not have a repeat of yesterday! We opened a bottle of wine and after one game, Sophie put the finishing touches to the soup and made garlic bread. Keith and I thought the soup was delicious but Sophie felt it was a bit salty, which it wasn't!

 

Saturday working.

Sophie gave me a lift to work this morning and then carried on to the gym where she'd booked two yoga classes. My shift passed very pleasantly, except for one very frustrating phone call where a man was trying to book a simple swim session! In the end, I advised him to just go to the pool and pay at the door!

At 2pm Sophie picked me up, and after a quick stop at the new Waitrose outlet at the Shell garage to get some salad, we returned home. Keith left shortly afterwards to see Sileby play and he was bundled up as if he was heading for the Arctic! It was a balmy and sunny 16c outdoors, very unusual for this time of the year. I knew, though, that when the sun went down, it would get a lot chillier!

Sophie and I had salad and sandwiches for lunch and then it was time to relax. The afternoon went alarmingly quickly, to be honest, and at 5pm we played Scrabble with a Manhattan. Sophie had threatened to thrash me,  but I won the first game with the highest score I'd ever achieved! Over 500 points! I also won the second game, so Sophie had to eat her words!

Sophie getting desperate and using words not allowed! It's titty!

Dinner tonight was a chicken tagine and we had to massage spices into the bird, and then brown it before cooking it slowly in the oven on top of onions, peppers, new potatoes and courgettes. Seven weeks ago we were eating the same dish in Auxerre, which made me feel very wistful!

The meal was delicious and the meat fell off the bone. We served it with couscous which soaked up all the lovely juices. After we'd eaten we watched a good film called Red Eye starring Rachel McAdams and a nasty Cillian Murphy. The end was nail-biting!

Feeling bleary!

Because Sophie was out last night and didn't get home until about 10.30pm, and wanted to chat about her evening, I felt extra bleary this morning. I actually went back to bed for almost an hour after she left, which is unheard of for me when it's a work day!

I didn't even have a coffee at home and had two at work in an effort to stay awake! I can't even say I was glad it was Friday, as I'm at work tomorrow for an extra shift to cover Tracie who's taken a day's leave. I tackled more of the moan report today, and it was indeed a litany of woe, with most of the complaints about our swim school. I try not to let the complaints get me down, but it is quite difficult to stay cheerful when all the moans are condensed into one report!

I was extremely glad when it was 4pm and I could head home. My fuel light came on but I ignored it as I just wanted to get home. Sophie is giving me a lift tomorrow and Keith will use my Dad's car so it can wait until Sunday!

At home, I did very little and when Sophie came home we opened a bottle of the white Chateauneuf-du-Pape and watched episode two of The White Lotus, which was really quite rude (but very funny). We are enjoying it tremendously!

I decided to have an early night tonight and was in bed by 9pm... yes, 9pm!

The birds and the wasps...

Work sped by today and I managed to clear all the customer service emails for Sara, who had taken today off. It was lovely to leave at 2pm and go home, where I swept up all the leaves by the back door and chatted to Sue who was walking Bailey and Archie. While we were talking, she saw a starling fly up into the eaves at the front of the house and disappear so I suspect that along with our wasps' nest, we also have a starling home there as well. The wasps are still a nuisance in the morning when they fly into the kitchen if Sophie puts the outside light on but because it's so mild they are probably surviving. With the first real cold snap, they will perish, so we decided not to call out a pest control company to deal with them.

We haven't seen the hedgehogs for a while so maybe they've started their winter hibernation? Because we now rarely go into the conservatory, we don't see the birds or the wildlife and I have to make a conscious decision to feed the poor things! We still have our noisy family of sparrows living in the bushes and also the starlings hoover up everything we put down, so I must get back into the habit of leaving food out.

Back inside the house, I caught up with some jobs and discussed with Keith what to do about dinner this evening... Sophie was out with Laura and Daisy and I just didn't fancy fish pie for the two of us. I managed to coax him into ordering a Chinese takeaway much to Sophie's envy who wanted one, too!

Birthday celebrations.

I spent the morning catching up with jobs and went over to collect Mum and Dad to take them out for lunch at midday. Before we went, Mum opened her cards and presents and tried on some shoes I'd ordered for her. Two pairs were a great fit but one, a slightly higher-heeled pair, were a little small so they'll go back. I remember my Mum was always a fan of strappy, high-heeled shoes, but now she prefers flats!

We went downstairs and I was delighted to find that the Moonpig gifts had arrived. What brilliant timing! We left them in reception to collect later and I managed to get my Dad into the car without too much difficulty. I was in my car today because I needed the bigger boot, but the seats are a lot lower and Keith is right when he moans he can't get in easily. My Dad's VW is much better and has far more room. Another reason for wanting to keep this car when mine finally conks out!

I'd booked a table for 1pm at Glebe Farm and when we arrived the place was bustling so I was glad I'd called ahead. We sat in the cosy restaurant which has stunning views over the countryside. Dad was a bit miffed they had no curries available and eventually settled on a Philly steak ciabatta. To his amazement, a couple of his old buddies from the flying club were also eating and they came over to say hello. My Dad, ever gracious, moaned that nobody had bothered to visit him, which was embarrassing! They said they didn't know where he was living, which I think was a bit of a porky pie as I'm certain I'd let the club know where Mum and Dad were...

I took down the mobile phone number of one of them and promised to text the address to him. It's a shame that Dad never sees these old friends anymore, as the flying club was a great place for him to go and meet up with his mates. 

We enjoyed lunch - Mum and I both chose the quiche served with new potatoes and salad - and Dad and I even had a glass of wine with our meal. For dessert, we chose to go to McDonald's for a McFlurry which went down very well with my Mum who'd wanted a gooey pudding!

Birthday girl! 78 today!

Back at the care home Mum opened her Moonpig card and was delighted with the chocolates and wine. I think she'd had a good day, and I heard later that she received a chocolate cake and a card from the staff.

I drove home looking forward to sitting and reading the newspaper when I noticed my Mum's phone on the seat next to me. I said a few choice swear words as I knew she needed it in case someone called her to wish her happy birthday. I had no choice but to drive all the way back with it, but I took my Dad's car and Keith came with me to keep me company!

On the way back we were treated to a stunning sunset sky and it looked like the clouds were on fire. The only problem was how low the sun was, and at one point I was driving blind as it started to rain at the same time! If someone had been jogging, cycling or walking on my side of the road I would never have seen them!

As I had eaten lunch I didn't want dinner which was supposed to have been fish pie. Sophie and Keith weren't keen either so it was shelved for another evening! I had some cheese and biscuits later in the evening while Keith and Sophie made themselves sandwiches. Not really what we'd planned, but the fish pie can wait!

New toys.

Work has been interesting today as we had some new toys to play with. Our old photocopier/printer was due to be replaced and we were given brand new credit card terminals. They looked like iPhones and were very smart indeed, and a lot faster than the old ones which, compared with the new ones, looked like relics from an ancient era!

The new printer/photocopier arrived mid-morning and there was a flurry of activity as it was manoeuvred into place. Before long it was working away and it will be kept very busy indeed in our office! However, after a couple of hours of work, it decided to go on strike! Hopefully, when I return to work on Thursday it will be working again!

The office was full of people again today, and this seems to be the theme for a Tuesday. We had a new member of staff in yesterday and it's obvious she doesn't have an office of her own as she comes in and uses one of our desks. Yesterday, she was taking part in a loud Zoom meeting for over an hour and it was very distracting indeed! I think people forget that we're almost constantly on the phone and need a quiet background to hear the customers! Sara had a word with her boss today so let's hope the next time she has a meeting she goes somewhere else!

I had no choice but to go to the Weston Favell Centre after work as I realised I needed Sophie to sign a birthday card for my Mum. This morning, when I woke up I realised I hadn't bought anything from my Dad to Mum so I spent half an hour on the Moonpig website ordering a card, sparkling wine and chocolates!

I drove over to the centre and went to Tesco where I bought lovely cards, flowers, chocolates and an M&S gift card. I can then take Mum to Rushden Lakes where she can choose what she wants. I then hot-footed it back to the car for the awful drive home in horrendous traffic. I phoned Keith to explain where I'd been, and he told me Liam had come over with some post that had been delivered to his old house. It was a real shame I'd missed him, as it would have been lovely to catch up and have a chat. Liam had suggested a night out at the pub so hopefully, that will be a chance to have a good natter!

Back home, Keith and I chatted in the kitchen and I opened a letter from work saying they were giving us a "Cost of Living" bonus in our next pay. It's not a huge amount but every little counts!