Highs and lows

Sophie was taking part in a 5k Park Run this morning with her work buddy, Becky. She set off at 8:00am, bless her, after a restless night's sleep from the heavy meal of last night. I don't think any of us had slept well, to be honest!

Keith and I had a very busy morning preparing food in the kitchen. We'd asked Keith to make us a batch of sausage rolls to take with us tomorrow to eat on the Eurostar, so he concentrated on them, while I started preparing a beef bourguignon for tonight. In between preparing food, I did multiple washes and put them out on the line as it was a beautiful day.

Keith's sausage rolls looked beautiful and golden brown when they were cooked. They will go well with our Champagne tomorrow! I had wiped the mushrooms, peeled the shallots, and Keith had cubed the beef for me, so I started the dish, coating the meat in seasoned flour and shallow-frying it until it was browned all over. I then fried the lardons, mushrooms and onions, added herbs, tomato puree and a whole bottle of red wine and let it all simmer on a low heat. It smelled lovely!

Sophie arrived home on a real high after completing 7k, and having breakfast with Becky and her other work buddy, Grace, who hadn't run with them. She had enjoyed herself immensely and wanted to do another, and also make it a regular event. Keith and I were very proud of her!

We pottered about until the early afternoon, and I hoovered downstairs and nicked one of the sausage rolls for lunch. At about 2:30pm, we went to Tesco's to buy some bits we needed and then popped to see my Mum. Her door was closed when we arrived, and I thought at first she was involved in one of the activities, but she was sorting out the photographs again, taking them out of the albums and scattering them about. Her room was a complete mess. 

We made her sit down, and tried to clear up the bits of paper strewn on the floor, and I checked the bin, to find one of my wedding photos and a pic of Sophie in there. A couple of carers came in to ask about Mum's covid jab, and I said I'd rather she didn't have it, as twice now she has been ill afterwards. They confirmed that she had been throwing away photographs, and Sophie became very upset. It was awful to see her so distressed after she'd been so happy earlier on.

She said she was going back to the car and took as many photos as she could with her. Five minutes later, she was back and had met one of the carers, who told her that Mum had thrown my wedding photos out of the window. Luckily, someone had found them, but how many others had been tossed out of the window never to be seen again?

I was very upset now, and noticed that she wasn't wearing her engagement ring. Sophie and I searched everywhere and decided to take all the albums home with us, as well as a box of bits and bobs. I was hoping it would be in there. This made me really angry as I knew my Mum had wanted Sophie to have her ring when she dies. 

I'm now worrying about other items in the room, and I took a Rob Piercy landscape print out of the wardrobe to take home with me. Sadly, my Mum wasn't making any sense as to why she had suddenly decided to rip out all the photos, but I did find it unnerving that the ones she'd actually thrown away were of my wedding day... 

We left as Sophie was so upset, and she said it was because she didn't want me to become like that when I get old. I said I was very different to my Mum and that if I did start to show similar signs, I would take myself off to Switzerland! However, I could see why she was so upset, but I reminded her that both my grandmothers had lived until their early 90s and were independent right up until they died. Sadly, both my parents suffer and (suffered) from Parkinson's Disease, which has certainly hastened their demise.

We went home to sit in the garden, and this time, both cats came out with us. It was blissfully quiet; if this carries on, I'll be tempted to buy some lovely garden furniture! It was great to sit in the garden, but I couldn't help noticing that the grass needed cutting and it was, quite frankly, a mess! I only like sitting there when everything is neat and tidy, and I've been working hard on it!

We went inside, and Sophie and I played Scrabble. We opened the bottle of Pinot Noir that we'd bought in Oxford, and after the first sip, I said it needed a little chilling. We enjoyed a great game of Scrabble, and Sophie beat me. We chilled the wine a little, and it did benefit from a short spell in the fridge!

I'd turned the casserole off earlier, but now I turned it back on and made sure the beef was tender. We'd decided to serve the dish with tagliatelle and eat a bit earlier than normal, as we had a long day ahead of us tomorrow and we didn't want a late night.

The meal was delicious, and Sophie raved about it, which was great. There was enough left for lunches and for Keith to have when we were away. Once cleared away, we watched the last episode of Katya Adler's tour through Europe, and we learned some surprising things about France!

A Greek experience!

I drove myself to work today and arrived at 7:26am, to find no spaces again. This was seriously annoying. How early do I have to leave to get a space? I'm not leaving before 7:00am! The small car park opposite our office was also full, so I had to try the car park in front of the maternity unit. I managed to squeeze into a space, but I was worried that when I returned after work, I wouldn't be able to get back into the car.

When I arrived at the office, Sara said she had taken the last space in our usual car park and had arrived just before me. This is the first time since we moved to the new office that I've had such trouble parking, and I could understand it if it were about 9:00am, but 7:30am? 

This put me in a bad mood for the rest of the day, and I was so annoyed, I resolved to look for another job when we come back from Paris next week. I have never, in all my working life, had to look for a parking space!

In the afternoon, things were very quiet in our office, as only three of us were working. Sara had taken her usual half-day, and Nicola was on holiday. I decided to tidy up the box I'd brought with me from our other office, put some papers out for shredding, and start writing the answers for the FAQs for Bob. 

We had a late phone call asking whether the swimming lessons were on at one of our pools, and we all groaned as this school is notorious for cancelling lessons at the last minute. As it's (almost) on my way home, I said I would go and check. This was a big mistake, as the traffic going there was horrendous! I began to wish I hadn't bothered! The gates were open when I drove past, so it looked like everything was running as normal. I couldn't have done anything anyway!

The three of us were looking forward to going to our local pub this evening for a Greek Night, and our table was booked for 8:00pm, giving us a chance to relax at home before the meal. When Sophie arrived home, we sat in the garden with a small glass of wine and chatted about our days at work. It was lovely and warm in the early evening sunshine, and Mooney came out to accompany us. He amused himself by chasing bees, and then got caught on the fence when he heard some birds chirping. Just as we were about to rescue him, he jumped down, looking embarrassed.

 

7:45pm saw us at the pub, and feeling a bit shell-shocked by the loud Greek music! The bar staff couldn't hear what we were saying! Our table wasn't ready, so we stood at the bar with our drinks and tried to have a conversation... impossible!

We were eventually taken upstairs, where it was a little quieter, and we could chat! My former work colleague, Amanda, was at the next table with her partner, so I said hello and that we'd catch up later. The night's menu was on the table, and we were sharing starters of bread, hummus, tzatziki, stuffed vine leaves, and spanakopita. There was a choice of main courses; Keith and I chose the mixed (chicken and lamb) souvlaki, while Sophie opted for the chicken. 

The starters were delicious, and we fell on them as by now we were very hungry, ordering some more bread to go with the delicious dips! The main courses were good, but my salad had been sprinkled with thyme, I think, a herb I'm not that keen on!

At times, with the warm night air outside and the music, it did feel like we were in Greece! It was a hectic night, though, and we felt the atmosphere was a little lacking upstairs. Before our desserts arrived, I chatted with Amanda about what was happening with work. She had been automatically TUPEd over to Everyone Active but seemed to be enjoying her job role with them.

Our desserts were very sweet - baklava and kadaifi - but delicious. I would have loved a good dollop of vanilla ice cream to detract from the sweetness. I'd asked about a Greek wine to accompany our meal, but there was none, so Sophie and I had enjoyed a bottle of South African Chenin Blanc, which went well with the meal.

We paid the bill and returned home to watch an episode of Amanda and Alan in Sicily. It was a lovely end to a very busy day!

A busy afternoon!

My shorter shift passed quickly today, and I dealt with virtually all the emails. Macy, Nicola's daughter, was a bit upset when she arrived for work, as she had a small bump in the car park and her little Polo was quite badly damaged. Nicola had to rush off to help her, but she soon recovered and was ready for work at 10:00am.

At 2pm, Keith collected me, and we drove home via Screwfix on Moulton Park, where we collected our light fittings. Back at home, when we opened the box, we knew they were the right ones, so I ordered a single one from the Screwfix outlet near Kingsthorpe. We decided to go and pick it up this afternoon after I'd visited my Mum.

It's been a glorious day today, with warm temperatures and plentiful sunshine. Keith sat in the car while I saw Mum, who seemed a bit confused today, and was surrounded by photographs and one of her albums. Anna, one of the senior carers, came in and explained that she'd been a bit erratic with her belongings and to take home anything that was of value, sentimental or otherwise. I took home the photos, a picture, and my Dad's blood donor records, delighted to see that he'd donated fifty pints in 1987, and just before he was in a bad car accident and was therefore no longer allowed to donate. He also had quite a rare blood group, O negative, which meant his blood could be given to almost anyone and was especially useful as a donation in emergencies, when the blood type of the person needing it isn't known. It made me feel very proud, and I hope to donate my fiftieth pint later this year or early next.

Once back with Keith in the car, we drove over to Screwfix in very heavy traffic. The light fitting was ready to be collected, and before going home, we called into a small Morrison's shop in Kingsthorpe, where Keith treated us to a bottle of Aperol and a tub of hummus with breadsticks. We were then caught up in traffic on the way home via Brixworth due to roadworks, which held us up even more! By now, I was heartily fed up with being in the car!

 

We arrived home just before Sophie, and there was a mad scramble to do the usual evening chores before we could relax at 6:00pm. Sophie made Aperol spritzes, and we scoffed all the breadsticks and hummus, leaving no room for our planned supper of soup and crusty bread!

We decided to have cheese on toast instead (light cheddar, which doesn't melt, and looked like skin according to Sophie!). The snack was delicious with brown sauce, though, and a side helping of Masterchef!

A lunchtime treat!

Keith and I had two appointments at the surgery this morning; me for a follow-up blood test, and Keith for his spring covid jab. Mine was first, and the receptionist denied Keith's request to get his jab earlier, so he had to wait. The nurse had difficulty getting blood out of my right arm this morning, so she had to use my left arm. I still, after a fall in 1999 while eight months pregnant, can't fully straighten my left arm, and never use it for my blood donor sessions, but she managed to get a vial of blood for the test.

As we had an hour to wait, we popped to The Workhouse in Brixworth for a coffee. I also indulged in a pain au chocolat for breakfast. It was pleasantly busy, and we took our seats while the waitress served our drinks.

After enjoying our drinks, we drove back to the surgery, and I sat in the car and read the paper while Keith was being jabbed. From the surgery, we drove home, and I had a mad hour of changing the bed and putting together a box of donations ready for a collection tomorrow morning. We have been using Anglo Collections for unwanted clothes, books, CDs and DVDs, and some of the money raised goes to charity.

At midday, we set off down to Brackmills to pick up Sophie and went for a sandwich at the Costa outlet in Next. It was lovely to sit and enjoy lunch in the busy café, and afterwards we went down to the lighting department, and I picked out two lampshades for the living room, in a neutral colour. We had a look at the sofas and furniture and then returned Sophie to her office.

Before going home, we called back to Riverside and visited the new Wickes to look for the kitchen light fittings we need. They didn't have any, so I suggested we go to Screwfix and order them. We have managed to get an electrician to come out to install them at last... It's been a bit of a chore, to be honest! Similarly with our planned oven clean that desperately needs doing!

We managed to order a box of three (we need four), but they wouldn't be ready for collection until Thursday. We paid and drove home, glad that we had made some progress!

I spent the rest of the afternoon pootling about and doing all the jobs that need doing on a Wednesday. Dinner tonight was a chicken stir-fry, and I didn't realise that Sophie wanted to add loads more vegetables to the dish. I don't think she was too happy when she came home and discovered I hadn't cut up the asparagus, courgette or long-stem broccoli! 

Dinner was delicious, and after we'd eaten, we saw another episode of Masterchef. One contestant made a chocolate fondant, and Sophie and I screamed when she said what she was going to do! We both think she cheated a little because the inside was peanut butter, which did ooze, luckily for her!

Back to normal

Things were back to normal this morning; Sophie went to the gym, and Keith took me to work so I didn't have to worry about parking!

I walked into far fewer emails than we've been receiving recently, and by 4pm, the hundred cancellation ones were done (by Jaden and me), and we were down to just a handful in the normal inbox. The phone calls have also dried up, so that's a bit worrying... I'm thankful I still have jobs to do, but I think Sara will stop looking for cover on a Monday, and it will be just Kathy and me on the phones. Nicola asked if I wanted to take the minutes at a meeting in July when Sara is off, and I jumped at the chance. We're all hoping that our new gym on Brackmills will be up and running in early June and provide more work!

Keith and I pootled home via Overstone; anything to avoid the dreaded A43, which now bears a patchwork of repairs after it was closed at night over the weekend. It was my turn to cook tonight, and Keith had prepared the vegetables and the mince for me. I made a savoury crumble topping, and then it was time to relax for half an hour before cooking dinner.

Masterchef started tonight with Anna Haugh and Grace Dent, and Sophie and I were looking forward to it. We watched it on iPlayer before our dinner, and already we have a contestant crying, two saying their food is inspired by parents and grandparents, a couple of crumbs, a tuile and a gel!

An early morning shock!

As we hadn't eaten dinner last night, Keith didn't go shopping, so I took myself to work. I called into a Tesco store on the way to buy myself some lunch and didn't get to the car park until 7:30am. There was not a space to be had! I was shocked! Luckily, directly opposite our office is a small car park and I was able to leave the car there! Phew! That was a close call!

The rest of my working day passed uneventfully, and I took a different route home, via Kingsthorpe and Brixworth, for a change. It didn't take too much longer, and it was far more pleasant!

We had used up our eggs yesterday, and I needed one for tonight's meal, so I asked Sophie to get some on her way home from work. The small Waitrose in the fuel station didn't have any, so she bought three packs of chicken fillets in a sauce instead (for a small mortgage), and we decided to scrap the meal we were going to have altogether. Another day!

 

The chicken fillets were delicious (in some kind of barbecue sauce) and lovely served with new potatoes, asparagus and peas. By now, I was back to my old self, but Sophie still felt a little queasy.

After dinner, Keith and I watched the last episode of The Capture, and we were suitably satisfied with the ending. I think there may be a series four!

Feeling a little fragile!

We went to bed very late last night, but I had a terrible night's sleep, and felt nauseous for some reason. It definitely wasn't alcohol, as we'd stuck to wine, but I was wondering whether it was the heavy meal of lasagne, followed by the creamy dessert?

I woke up feeling out of sorts, so all plans to get a lot done today went out of the window! Sophie felt the same, so we drifted about the house, feeling a bit yukky and guilty for not doing anything! I ate beans on toast for breakfast, and the nausea came back, so we decided to skip dinner tonight and keep it light on our tummies. Keith said he also felt a bit fragile, and he didn't go to the evening, so perhaps we had had a bit of a run-in with a bug?

I spent the afternoon transcribing more of my Nepal diary and created a separate blog for it, so I can share it with the Encounter Overland Facebook page. I'm hoping that the people in the group will find it interesting! I also did several loads of laundry, so the day wasn't completely wasted.

Sophie had a lovely afternoon reading in the sunny conservatory with Mooney, and I felt a lot better after I'd had a nap and caught up on some of my lost sleep!

We had a very light supper - egg on toast - and had an early night. It's back to the routine tomorrow!