Round up

Well, I haven’t yet shifted this gastro virus which has left me a little useless. I did manage to get away for my smallholding course, which was absolutely fantastic.

I thoroughly recommend Bicton Rural Academy (part of Plymouth University) – it’s a beautiful campus and the course was extremely well run. I got to handle sheep, cattle and pigs, drive a tractor and a quad bike and learn some really, really useful stuff about growing fruit and veg. I’m planning to do other courses in the new year.

The B&B farm (Quentance Farm) I was staying in was nice but I wouldn’t stay again – they got my booking so wrong that I was in a different room each of the three nights I stayed! It was just too much hassle in the end. Although to be fair they did reduce my bill and it was convenient for the college, but the breakfast was fairly standard as were the rooms (and there was only one that was en-suite).

I stayed with some friends in Plymouth on the Monday night which was very cool. Except we got some take-out and even though I only ate half, it made me feel really sick all over again. (I’ve since seen a doctor and they’re running some tests, but finally after two and a half weeks I am starting to feel better.)

The idea was to house-hunt during the day on Monday but it didn’t really work out. I did view a house but it was completely unsuitable and left me feeling a bit down about the whole long distance house hunting malarkey…

On the Tuesday I decided I wanted to go back to Cornwall and just have a nice hassle-free morning. So I went for breakfast at Route 38 an American style diner and then headed to Looe (about 8 miles away). I ended up having a fantastic time – did some shopping (got chatting to a woman in a surf shop that gave me some great advice about moving down to Cornwall and being patient about finding our new house!), picked up a pasty for later and then sat on the harbour enjoying the blue sky and hot sun before finally heading home.

Wednesday I took the car in for a service and left £325 poorer. The service was £251 and I had the two front tyres replaced. I actually really like the garage, Premier Autocentres near Sidcup in Kent, a Hyundai dealership – although they deal with all cars. (We need to get the car serviced at an authorised dealership otherwise the warranty is invalid.) Premier is genuinely friendly and helpful and they do a great job. Considering how many dodgy garages there are out there, it gives you peace of mind to find a good one.

And today was notable for getting into a stand-up fight with some fuckwad in a Tesco carpark. He parked in a motorcycle only space then hit my car door with his, really hard, and then he smirked at me! So I leapt out of the car and asked him what the hell he thought he was doing. He thought it was cool to call me a faker (is that an insult and if yes, what does it actually mean? Seriously I have no idea.) Then he told me to fuck off and tried to act the big gangsta (pretty hard to do in a Ford KA especially as he was also too scared to get out of said car). I called him a fucking idiot and got back into my car because my temper was well and truly lost and I didn't want the situation to escalate any more than it already had. My fairly new, fairly expensive car is my pride and joy. I also really can’t stand selfish people that don’t give a shit about other people’s property because they happen to drive around in a shitty rust bucket, so this was never going to end well!

I was only in the bloody carpark because it turned out my phone wasn’t working and when I finally figured this out and fixed the problem, I got 8 texts one after the other; one telling me a friend was ill another telling me a friend’s grandmother had died and as they had been sent to me the previous day I wanted to respond straight away.

Anyway, to end on a more positive note, my partner and I are going away for a few days before Christmas (to watch the winter solstice in Dorset) and I’ve just booked the hotel. Then we’re coming back to spend Christmas on our own – something we’ve always wanted to do but never have. We normally host Christmas at ours and go all out. This time, it’s going to be just her and me and the dogs! There will still be a fancy dinner and decorations but it will be peaceful and low-key. Bliss!

(Photos: SUNSET OVER EXMOUTH, LOOE HARBOUR)

Good mood

Really looking forward to heading down to Devon tonight and Cornwall tomorrow. And maybe it's because of my very, very good mood, but I was just thinking how lovely it was that the sun was shining and our garden is filled with birdsong and the gentle clucking of contented chickens... bliss...

All three have settled in really well and now the pecking order has been sorted out, the bullying seems to have stopped and I've now found a use for old dog bowls as well. Oh, and we have another egg!

Have a lovely weekend!

One foot in Sydenham, one foot in Cornwall and the world in between

So much to blog about that I’ll have to keep it brief… as I said, our broadband no longer works (major disaster for all sorts of reasons, not least I work from home every week), so I haven’t been able to blog about some of the lovely things that have been happening.

We spent a long weekend in Devon at my partner’s aunt and uncle’s fabulous house overlooking Plymouth Sands. We went sailing on the Saturday and I proved not only to have a sturdy pair of sea legs (it’s the rugby player thighs!) but an aptitude for sailing generally. I steered all the way over to Cornwall! But as if that wasn’t enough. The most magical thing happened. A school of wild dolphins played around the boat for about 15 minutes. It was such a privilege to be so close and my partner’s uncle (who sails a lot) said he had never seen so many. We dropped anchor and had a lovely lunch before clambering aboard the dinghy (with all the dignity of a baby elephant) and heading into Caulsands. Now I like ice cream and it’s true that in my time, I have eaten quite a lot of it – some bad, some good, some gorgeous. But truly I have found the best icecream in the world and it is Cornish and comes in a sugar cone. We all had a double scoop and I had strawberry and honey comb. It was massive but if I could have hired a second and third stomach I’d still be there now…

The next day we caught up with my partner’s cousin and her partner and went for a few drinks and a drive through some beautiful Cornish countryside. We headed home on the Monday and then spent the rest of our week off pottering around the house and garden, enjoying each other’s company, eating well and throwing out all the jetsom and flotsam that sneaks in when we’re not looking to fill up drawers, cupboards, storage boxes and book shelves.

I feel much more rested now, but I can’t deny that I’m a little sad to be back at work. We have plans for our future that I want to happen now! Being stuck in an office questioning whether what you do is really all that important is not how I want to be spending my days. I want fresh air and a new direction! But you know what, plans are afoot and it may just happen sooner rather than later ;0)

Same old same old

Desperately trying to catch up on some photo editing for work. It’s OK to start with but after a while it becomes a little samey. I’ve also just taken next week off so I need to make sure I’m on – if not ahead of – schedule.

My colleague is moving back upstairs (for a little while he sat down here and it was good fun), he’s not happy about having to relocate because it means he is nearer his boss who is a bit of a tool, and sitting with a team whose work is completely different to his. I’ve bought doughnuts to make it a happier occasion but I think he’s still pissed off. He was also a good foil for misery guts colleague. I didn’t seem to notice her bad moods and rudeness quite so often when he was around.

Next week, after going sailing in Devon, we’re spending the whole week at home. I have loads of things I want to sort out and we could do with a spring clean to be blunt… tiredness and busy lives have meant things have gotten a little untidy at no. 88!

Still a little peeved about yesterday and the silly antics of some at the meeting. Seems equally childish of me to be harping on about it, but it’s always the little things that bug me. Character flaw # 84… maybe I should take my own advice “build a bridge and get over it!”

Yep, that’s done it :0)

PS. Anyone having trouble with this new blogger? I keep having problems signing in, and there's all these big gaps in my links bar...