A new way...

After yesterday's worry about parking, I decided to leave five minutes earlier and take a different route. Sophie had a horrible headache, so she didn't go to the gym this morning. She heated up my porridge for me and made my flask of coffee, bless her! That helped considerably!

I drove through Holcot and then Moulton, and picked up the Kettering Road into town, which seems a far more direct route. It meant I arrived just after 7.30am and parked easily. No snow on the ground this morning!

When Nicola arrived, she took Sara and me into the boardroom to discuss my formal request to work from home two days a week. As expected, the answer was no, but I was asked to be patient until the 1st of April, when things should be more settled. I was fully expecting this response, even though Sara's daughter works from home three days a week. Nepotism is alive and well! I have two stark choices: carry on and hope for a change or look for another job.

 

The parking issues were brought sharply into focus when Angela called Sara to say she hadn't been able to find a space anywhere. In the end, she was forced to park in our customer car park and arrived in our office crying her eyes out, as it was two minutes to 10am, and she'd left home at 9.15am (she lives about fifteen minutes away). She was angry and fed up. Jo had parked on a side street as she was determined not to pay for parking, on principle! She certainly made her feelings known!

The rest of the day passed uneventfully, and I helped out on the phones several times. Next week, we're short on Monday, and I can't see anyone volunteering to come in now!

At 4pm, I hung back to talk to Jo and Angela, so I was a little later leaving than normal. It took me a good twenty minutes to exit the hospital grounds, as the queue to get out was horrendous. Oh joy!

At home, the house felt cold, and I realised that Keith had turned the heating off earlier this afternoon! Brrr! I turned it on and lit the fire in the living room! Sophie and I sat on the sofa, and I watched a lovely documentary about the Bernina train in Switzerland, which travels from the town of Chur to Tirano in Italy. The scenery was staggeringly beautiful!

After Keith's delicious curry, we watched three episodes of the Christmas University Challenge and did quite well! The questions are easier than the regular series!

Snow!

I really, really didn't want to get up this morning when Sophie woke me at 6am! Outside, there was a covering of snow on the ground, and it felt freezing! My theories (and old-fashioned ones at that) about the trees and bushes bearing a lot of fruit in harsh winters seem to be proved, as I've seen hedgerows laden down with fruit and crab apples hanging heavily on branches.

I said goodbye to Sophie and warned her to take it easy. When she got to the gym, she said that most roads seemed to be fine, except "cut-throat" alley in Holcot. I set off at 7.15am after making myself two coffees to take with me, and noticed that the main road through the town was the worst! 

I had trouble parking this morning, and it didn't help that the spaces were covered in snow. I parked in one space but asked the man next to me, who had just parked, if it was a disabled space, which it was. I was able to find another one, but I did worry a bit if it was a legitimate one. The last thing I need is a parking ticket!

Our parking issues carried on when Nicola had real trouble finding a space, and Angela had to park in the main car park, a fair walk away. Kathy's daughter brought her in, but this is proving to be a significant problem for us, especially those who start later in the morning.

The phones went mad this morning, and I helped out several times. I was glad that we didn't have too many emails, and I managed to get the moan report finished! Hooray! Our MD was in our office several times today and helped himself multiple times to our chocolates. It was a shame he didn't bring any in for Christmas for us...

Getting out of the hospital grounds wasn't too bad this evening, and I arrived home at about 4.45pm. When Sophie got home from work, we all sat in the kitchen and chatted, and I tried some more of my whiskies from the advent calendar. This has been sorely neglected, but I will manage to finish them all before my birthday next week! 

Dinner tonight was an easy supper of tomato soup and crusty bread, followed by chocolate trifle. Delicious!

A new year cull!

It has been a busy day today, and Keith went shopping first thing, so he doesn't have to take me to work tomorrow. This change of workplace is having far-reaching consequences for both of us.

While he was gone, Sophie and I took down all of the Christmas decorations. While Sopihe stripped the trees and bundled the branches into boxes, I carefully placed all the decorations into pretty containers to be safely stored in the space above our wardrobes. It was lovely seeing them all spread out, especially the ones from our Scandinavian tree!

I then hoovered and dusted the living room and put one of the armchairs back in its rightful place. Mooney wandered in while we were doing this and didn't bat an eyelid. Both of them have been very good with the trees and have barely taken any notice of them.

Sophie made our breakfasts for tomorrow (back to the grind), and we were all finished by the time Keith returned from shopping. After having something to eat, I tidied two of the cupboards in the kitchen and did a ruthless cull of items that we'd been keeping for some unknown reason! A new year cull always feels great!

Sophie hoovered upstairs, as well as the kitchen and then mopped the floor. It was then time for a face pack and A Place in the Sun! Bliss! I managed to have a very long soak in the bath afterwards, and we turned the heating up as it has been another bitterly cold day with snow forecast tonight. That'll be good tomorrow morning!

Sophie and I played two games of Scrabble with a cocktail, and then it was time for the dinner we should have had last night, which Sophie cooked! After eating, Keith and I watched Crocodile Dundee II. I had a heavy heart when it ended. It's back to work properly tomorrow!

A cold, cold day!

After a lie-in (bliss!) and a coffee, we all went to Northampton this morning to Benchmarx, the company that supplied our cupboards in the kitchen. One of the integrated lights has stopped working and probably needs a new bulb, and we were hoping they would be able to advise. 

This morning was beautiful but cold, and the countryside looked stunning. We were able to use the new relief road for the first time, and we managed to cut out the villages of Chapel and Church Brampton, and Harlestone, so it certainly saved time. We were astonished, though, at the number of new houses being built so close to Harlestone Firs, a lovely forested area with walking trails, which is very popular. Let's hope that no more trees are cut down.

At Benchmarx, we spoke to a rather gormless member of staff who asked when the kitchen was fitted, and then told me to email over the photos I'd taken. To be honest, I don't hold out much hope, but we need to get the bulb replaced! 

We left Benchmarx and called in at Lidl to buy something for dinner tonight. We decided on chicken burgers with salad, and we picked out some goodies to go in the trolley! We then retraced our route home, managing to avoid calling in at the pub for a drink! We had bought pastries, and I was looking forward to a late breakfast!

Shortly after midday, Sophie and I went to see Mum, but she was sitting having lunch when we arrived. We sat in her new room, which is much closer to the lounge and is exactly the same as the one she left. She was in a wheelchair because the carers said she was a bit unsteady on her feet, and when she'd finished lunch, we sat in the library with her and chatted. She seemed a lot better today, and we reminisced about when she worked for the shoe manufacturer, R.E. Tricker, in Northampton. We wondered what her old work colleagues were now doing. I even had a look online at their shoes and boots... they were charging about £600 for a pair of women's boots! I know that King Charles used to wear their slippers and they have maintained their Royal Warrant. They also used to make beautiful riding boots, and I have very happy memories of going to work with my Mum when I was a child.

We stayed for over an hour and then popped to Mawsley for milk, even though we'd been in Lidl earlier. We are dimwits! It was an excuse to buy some nibbles, and we both bought a Dairylea snack box with cheese, ham and crackers and a bag of Monster Munch! Talk about processed foods! Well, it was a naughty treat, and we pulled into a layby along our favourite stretch of country road to eat our impromptu snack in the car with the heated seats on! I told Sophie that I'd once confessed to a man I had a bit of a crush on that I liked Monster Munch. The look he gave me said it all, and I can't remember the last time I indulged in a packet. They were deliciously vinegary!

Back home, we made mugs of tea and tried to warm up. It has been so cold today! We sat in the early evening with a Negroni cocktail and decided that we didn't really want the dinner we'd planned, so Sophie and I had cheese on toast, while Keith had a turkey sandwich! The turkey is lingering on!

Back to work...

In the end, Keith didn't go shopping today, so I drove myself to work and parked easily. It was bitterly cold, and the roads were frosty, so I took it easy when walking the short distance to the building's entrance. I could see Sheila's car already parked, but the office lights weren't on.

She was in the kitchen when I arrived and unlocked the office door for me. Sara was working from home today, so it was just Sheila and me until Kathy came in at 9am. There weren't masses of emails, but I had to send off the box office returns, which took me a fair while to do.

Sharon arrived at 9.30am and had parked easily as well. Today hasn't really been a typical day, though, as a lot of people are still off for Christmas. The phones were busy, and I had to pitch in and help several times.

The day did fly by, though, and 4pm came quickly, thank goodness. Getting out of the car park was easy, and I was home by 4.30pm. Sophie had been out with Laura and Daisy all afternoon and had eaten lunch at The Telegraph in Moulton, so she didn't want dinner. Keith went to the pub, we opened a bottle of white wine and watched an excellent documentary on Netflix about the Australian woman who poisoned four members of her family by serving them Deathcap mushrooms. Three of them died, and it was a miracle that the fourth member survived. It was riveting viewing, and I remembered the case being in the news. 

Keith came home looking frozen, and we enjoyed cold slices of turkey and the trimmings from yesterday for dinner. We watched the last episode of the documentary after eating, and then Sophie and I caught the first episode of Amanda and Alan's show about renovating a house in Corfu. It was a great end to a busy Friday!

A new year beckons

We weren't late to bed last night, and didn't have loads to drink, so we all woke up with clear heads this morning! Keith was worried about one of his credit cards that he had tried to use in Berlin, but had used the wrong pin number, so I suggested we drive into Northampton and visit a cashpoint machine where he could reset the number.

The roads were quiet when we drove in, and the town was deserted, with just a handful of people walking about. I remember one New Year's Day going into the town, and it was a depressing experience! This morning, we drove up Bridge Street, and it wasn't a cheerful sight! The whole street was rundown and tatty! Keith managed to sort his card out, and I drove to my new place of work to show him where he needed to pick me up tomorrow, as he was going shopping. 

Back home, we decided to eat at about 5pm, and I prepared the red cabbage well in advance. We'd asked Keith to buy it already cooked, but he wasn't able to find any, so we had to do it ourselves. Sophie had shredded the cabbage and sliced an onion for me while we were out, which helped. Keith had also prepared the vegetables and the pigs in blankets.

I sweated the onion, before adding the cabbage, a teaspoon of cinnamon, cranberry sauce and white wine vinegar (the recipe had called for red wine vinegar, but it had to do!). While this was simmering away, I diced two apples and added them. The aroma smelled delicious, and I let it simmer away all afternoon.

Sophie and I started on the Champagne while relaxing this afternoon, and my daughter hoovered and tidied up. Once the turkey was in the oven, we were on countdown, and we all pitched in to help with the meal. We sat down at 5pm and enjoyed our turkey, roast potatoes, Brussels sprouts cooked with bacon, honey roasted carrots and parsnips, stuffing, Yorkshire puddings, cauliflower cheese and red cabbage. Phew!

While we were eating, we discussed this Christmas and toyed with the idea of going out on Christmas Day for lunch. I used to go out with my parents when I was growing up, and a favourite restaurant was The Falcon in Castle Ashby. It was a real treat to get dressed up and go for a sumptuous meal!

After eating, we cleared away and collapsed on the sofa with the remnants of a bottle of the Biddenden white wine, Ortega. Our viewing choice for tonight was Crocodile Dundee, and then it was early to bed for me as I am back at work tomorrow. Groan!

Happy New Year!

 

Wishing everyone a fantastic 2026!!!