Tuesday 30 March 2010
Well, I guess we're not doing that then
I thought it would be neat if we could do some of the stuff in DC that we never got round to doing...like getting tickets for the Washington Monument. I've just been online and the next available bookable tour tickets are for 1st June!!!!! That is a whole 2 months away and definitely not in our time frame. I thought that tickets sold out a couple of weeks in advance, but 2 months in advance - wow! I'm blaming Dan Brown for this unprecedented upsurge...
Monday 29 March 2010
A flying visit to East Kilbride
We did a bit of a flying visit to see Stephen's mum in East Kilbride this weekend. She's not been feeling too well for the past couple of weeks so Sister Mary-Kerry and Dr Spark did a housecall.
We drove up on Saturday morning and back down again on Sunday afternoon, so we're feeling a little bit knackered today. Especially with the clocks going forward which has really screwed with my body clock. It seems to hit me quite hard. Its like having jet lag without the benefit of actually going anywhere!
His Mum was in hospital when we arrived on Saturday, waiting to hear if she was going to be allowed out. It took about an hour before she got the news and we were able to bust her out. We did a bit of running about getting groceries, magazines and flowers etc and when we got back she was snoozing on the sofa. She slept through that night too (the first time in a while) and it seemed to do her a lot of good as she was quite perky in the morning. Definitely an improvement on how she had been recently.
We drove up on Saturday morning and back down again on Sunday afternoon, so we're feeling a little bit knackered today. Especially with the clocks going forward which has really screwed with my body clock. It seems to hit me quite hard. Its like having jet lag without the benefit of actually going anywhere!
His Mum was in hospital when we arrived on Saturday, waiting to hear if she was going to be allowed out. It took about an hour before she got the news and we were able to bust her out. We did a bit of running about getting groceries, magazines and flowers etc and when we got back she was snoozing on the sofa. She slept through that night too (the first time in a while) and it seemed to do her a lot of good as she was quite perky in the morning. Definitely an improvement on how she had been recently.
You know its going to be "a day" when....
You know its going to be a day when the Chairman's EA calls first thing in the morning...
Em: Morning. How are you?
Me: Great. How are you?
Em: Got your coffee?
Me: Yup. Its in my hand.
Em: Drink it...!!
Me: Smmnwahhh (which was the sound of me snorting with laughter)
Its good that we can laugh in the face of (possible) adversity!! You can't keep us down! We laugh in the face of the BA strike and the potential change to all the meetings lined up.
Em: Morning. How are you?
Me: Great. How are you?
Em: Got your coffee?
Me: Yup. Its in my hand.
Em: Drink it...!!
Me: Smmnwahhh (which was the sound of me snorting with laughter)
Its good that we can laugh in the face of (possible) adversity!! You can't keep us down! We laugh in the face of the BA strike and the potential change to all the meetings lined up.
Photos of Ludlow
Ludlow has some beautiful buildings
Me! In Ludlow castle
The coffee called! It was warm enough to sit outside - yay!
Taken from the top of the tower
Is Stephen moonlighting??
Sunday 21 March 2010
Lovely Ludlow
Its officially the first day of Spring today, and Spring has definitely Sprung! It was a gorgeous day, so after the gardening session we grabbed the cameras, put the roof down on the car and headed off to Ludlow for the afternoon.
There is nothing finer than to be in a car, whooshing through the English countryside with the top down, savouring the lovely freshness of the Spring air. Unfortunately there were times when the air became less fresh and I truly wished that we weren't whooshing along with the top down. In fact I was was wishing we were whooshing along with the top up, the windows sealed tight and the air con on "circulate". You appreciate these things when you pass the fields where the farmers have been out muck spreading! There is nothing quite like the smell of freshly spread poo to make you wish for breathing apparatus! Ah...the smell of the country!!
Ludlow was as picturesque as ever! There was an antique fair and flea market going on in Market Square, so we had a little wander round before walking over the road to the castle. We had a good wander about and took loads of photos. Its an impressive place with plenty of history. Parts of it date back to Norman times, and it became a Royal palace in the 15th Century (it was where Prince Arthur (the elder brother of Henry VIII) died whilst on his honeymoon with Catherine of Aragon), before being abandoned in the late 17th century and falling into disrepair. We had a good wander about, although Stephen was more adventurous than me in climbing all the staircases. Some were better than others, but several hundreds of years of use had worn the stone steps quite badly in some cases and I wasn't too keen on landing at the bottom of them in a heap!!
Sunday opening hours really caught us out today! We headed back to the car at just after 4pm and had planned on calling in at the grocery store we had passed earlier. We were doing the whole "give me the camera, the keys, the bag...no take the camera back I can't carry it all" thing in preparation for Stephen ducking into the store...when we realised that the store wasn't actually open!! D'oh! Of course, we had NO FOOD in the fridge at home!! Thankfully we were able to scrabble together a meal from the freezer, but I think that was the last of the proper food that was in there! Its all ice cream now!!
There is nothing finer than to be in a car, whooshing through the English countryside with the top down, savouring the lovely freshness of the Spring air. Unfortunately there were times when the air became less fresh and I truly wished that we weren't whooshing along with the top down. In fact I was was wishing we were whooshing along with the top up, the windows sealed tight and the air con on "circulate". You appreciate these things when you pass the fields where the farmers have been out muck spreading! There is nothing quite like the smell of freshly spread poo to make you wish for breathing apparatus! Ah...the smell of the country!!
Ludlow was as picturesque as ever! There was an antique fair and flea market going on in Market Square, so we had a little wander round before walking over the road to the castle. We had a good wander about and took loads of photos. Its an impressive place with plenty of history. Parts of it date back to Norman times, and it became a Royal palace in the 15th Century (it was where Prince Arthur (the elder brother of Henry VIII) died whilst on his honeymoon with Catherine of Aragon), before being abandoned in the late 17th century and falling into disrepair. We had a good wander about, although Stephen was more adventurous than me in climbing all the staircases. Some were better than others, but several hundreds of years of use had worn the stone steps quite badly in some cases and I wasn't too keen on landing at the bottom of them in a heap!!
Sunday opening hours really caught us out today! We headed back to the car at just after 4pm and had planned on calling in at the grocery store we had passed earlier. We were doing the whole "give me the camera, the keys, the bag...no take the camera back I can't carry it all" thing in preparation for Stephen ducking into the store...when we realised that the store wasn't actually open!! D'oh! Of course, we had NO FOOD in the fridge at home!! Thankfully we were able to scrabble together a meal from the freezer, but I think that was the last of the proper food that was in there! Its all ice cream now!!
Ring a ring a Roses
I ventured out into the garden this morning for a quick burst of pruning. It was pretty much the first time I'd done anything in the garden since we got back last April! It is definitely time to rediscover my gardening genes, if not my gardening jeans!
I pruned the roses, and not in a delicate way. Mum's not a pruner, preferring to let nature do its thing, so the roses were about 8ft tall in some cases. The stems were pretty thick, so I had to use loppers to hack them back! We'll see how they react to my hard treatment. Some were pretty woody, so may need to be replaced anyway. They were also pretty goddamn thorny! There was a rich chorus of "Oww", "F&%$# hell" and "S&%$ that HURT" when I was working my way round. I was wearing thick gloves so my hands were okay - it was the rest of me that was being viciously assaulted!
Its looking better, but I really need to spend a whole day out there getting it into shape. I need to get my gardening muscles into shape first though!
I pruned the roses, and not in a delicate way. Mum's not a pruner, preferring to let nature do its thing, so the roses were about 8ft tall in some cases. The stems were pretty thick, so I had to use loppers to hack them back! We'll see how they react to my hard treatment. Some were pretty woody, so may need to be replaced anyway. They were also pretty goddamn thorny! There was a rich chorus of "Oww", "F&%$# hell" and "S&%$ that HURT" when I was working my way round. I was wearing thick gloves so my hands were okay - it was the rest of me that was being viciously assaulted!
Its looking better, but I really need to spend a whole day out there getting it into shape. I need to get my gardening muscles into shape first though!
Bravery
It was a bit of a pampering day yesterday. I had a 9am appointment to get my hair cut and coloured, then an appointment for a facial (damn those zits!) after which we headed into Worcester and I got my eye brows waxed. Which was where the act of bravery came in... After the cut and colour I had a brown forehead where they'd glooped on the hair dye. After the facial I had no make up on and a high shine from the lotions I'd been slathered in. And on top of all that - after the eyebrow wax I had bright pink skin above and below my eyebrows. I looked like I was wearing Geisha eye make up! How brave was I to venture into a public place without a scrap of make-up, shiny skin with brown patches and luminous pink brow bones? How brave were the people of Worcester not to run away screaming from the scary looking lady?
Monday 15 March 2010
Worcester piccies
We had beautiful Spring weather this weekend, so we took the opportunity to pop into Worcester with our cameras.
Worcester Cathedral, sitting on the banks of the River Severn
Worcester Cathedral, sitting on the banks of the River Severn
C'mon...bake a cake
I was stopped short the other day as I was zooming about the house cleaning. The TV was on and I was stopped in my tracks by someone singing "If I knew you were coming I'd have baked a cake". I hadn't heard that song for about 33 years, and it make me laugh at the memory it stirred....
It was during the summer holidays when I was about 7 years old and I was staying with my Gran and Grandad. Grandad was out for the day - perhaps in Edinburgh visiting his relatives. Gran and I were doing whatever we did - creating board games, baking, dancing the Gay Gordons - when there was a knock at the door. It must have been about the time that we were expecting Grandad home as Gran immediately burst into song and danced her way across the hallway singing (with gusto and volume) "If I knew you were coming I'd have baked a cake, baked a cake, baked a cake. If I knew you were coming I'd have baked a cake, Howdya do, Howdya do, Howdya do". She flung open the front door and....instead of Grandad standing there it was the "Man from the Pru" come to collect their premium!!!!!!! I'm not sure who was most surprised! That last "Howdya do" certainly faded from her lips pretty fast!
Mind you, we've all been there haven't we? I remember having to go into work at the advertising agency one Sunday in the early 90's. I wasn't expecting anyone else in, so I locked the front door, switched on my Mac and turned the radio on loud. I was waiting on something finishing sending to the big linotype printer when Vogue came on the radio. Who can resist Vogue? I was there, waving my arms around in a Madonna-ish way when one of the account execs popped his head round the door.... What do you do? Pretend to be stretching? Doing yoga? Or do you do what we did and explode with laughter. I was totally caught!
It was during the summer holidays when I was about 7 years old and I was staying with my Gran and Grandad. Grandad was out for the day - perhaps in Edinburgh visiting his relatives. Gran and I were doing whatever we did - creating board games, baking, dancing the Gay Gordons - when there was a knock at the door. It must have been about the time that we were expecting Grandad home as Gran immediately burst into song and danced her way across the hallway singing (with gusto and volume) "If I knew you were coming I'd have baked a cake, baked a cake, baked a cake. If I knew you were coming I'd have baked a cake, Howdya do, Howdya do, Howdya do". She flung open the front door and....instead of Grandad standing there it was the "Man from the Pru" come to collect their premium!!!!!!! I'm not sure who was most surprised! That last "Howdya do" certainly faded from her lips pretty fast!
Mind you, we've all been there haven't we? I remember having to go into work at the advertising agency one Sunday in the early 90's. I wasn't expecting anyone else in, so I locked the front door, switched on my Mac and turned the radio on loud. I was waiting on something finishing sending to the big linotype printer when Vogue came on the radio. Who can resist Vogue? I was there, waving my arms around in a Madonna-ish way when one of the account execs popped his head round the door.... What do you do? Pretend to be stretching? Doing yoga? Or do you do what we did and explode with laughter. I was totally caught!
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Why are our bodies so cruel to us? During the day my cold has abated enough that the only symptoms are an occasional tickly cough and a sneeze once in a while. At night however, its is a different story....
As soon as I lay my head down to sleep my nasal passages fill with snot the consistency of UHU glue which makes it damn near impossible to blow. It also makes it impossible to breath through my nose, which means I'm breathing through my mouth. God only knows how Stephen is managing to sleep through what must be deafening snoring! This also means that I'm waking up with a raging thirst, dry throat and a cough. And I'm waking up a lot! I could swear I was more awake than asleep last night! And the dreams...constant and suitably weird.
Consequently I look every one of my 50 years today. What do you mean I'm only 40?? Time for drastic measures! Tonight I've got decongestant, cough medicine and nasal strips. I'm taking a hot bath, drinking some cocoa and praying for 8 hours solid sleep!! I need every second of beauty sleep I can get!
As soon as I lay my head down to sleep my nasal passages fill with snot the consistency of UHU glue which makes it damn near impossible to blow. It also makes it impossible to breath through my nose, which means I'm breathing through my mouth. God only knows how Stephen is managing to sleep through what must be deafening snoring! This also means that I'm waking up with a raging thirst, dry throat and a cough. And I'm waking up a lot! I could swear I was more awake than asleep last night! And the dreams...constant and suitably weird.
Consequently I look every one of my 50 years today. What do you mean I'm only 40?? Time for drastic measures! Tonight I've got decongestant, cough medicine and nasal strips. I'm taking a hot bath, drinking some cocoa and praying for 8 hours solid sleep!! I need every second of beauty sleep I can get!
Saturday 13 March 2010
Sniffles
Okay, so my "gorgeousness" of last Saturday was probably down to the imminent onset of a heavy cold bringing a rosy flush to my cheeks. I was lingerie shopping in good ol' Marks & Spencer when I realised my throat was sore. I hoped it was because I was dry and thirsty, but a coffee and an orange juice did nothing to help. By the time I got home I was shivery and by 8pm I was in bed slightly feverish and feeling miserable.
I stayed in bed on Sunday, packing Stephen off to the grocery store with the shopping list of Kerry's essential foods for illness (nursery food basically!). I wanted rice pudding, I wanted a ham roll, I really wanted grapefruit juice.... He did manage to get it all (more or less)...but he didn't do too well with the grapefruit juice. It was on 3 for 2 offer, so how many do you think he bought me? 3? No. 2? No. He bought 1 carton of grapefruit and 2 of OJ. D'oh. I don't particularly like shop-bought OJ as its a bit sweet and blah. He wouldn't do well on "Mr & Mrs" would he?!
I had to get out of bed on Monday - although it was a struggle. We were having the central heating boiler replaced as our old one was really on its last legs, and the chaps turned up right on time at 08:30. Of course, the needed access to all the radiators and the water tanks in the loft, so there was nowhere for me to hide, especially as the loft hatch is in our bedroom. I put on a t-shirt and 2 jumpers, grabbed a throw, cosied down on the sofa with my laptop and got to work.
Monday wasn't too bad. Tuesday and Wednesday were pretty awful though. They had to drain down the entire system on Tuesday to connect it all back up and then load it up with the chemical cleaner. This meant that all the external doors were open as they connected all the hoses to the radiators and then drained them outside. You have no idea how long it took to drain it down. I think the doors (including the one right beside the sitting room where I was) were open for a good 3 hours. It was the same on Wednesday when they went through the process again to drain the cleaner and then fill the system. I was frozen! Which is not a great thing to be when you've got a cold! In order to try and get warm I built myself a burrow. I took all the throw pillows and packed them round about me on the sofa to try and block out the cold wind that was howling through the house. It was such a relief when they finally closed the doors and began the process of balancing the system.
Unsurprisingly, I felt utterly awful on Thursday. As there is only one of me in this role at work I had little choice but to get up and deal with the approvals that had come in overnight from the US. When I'd done this, I took my laptop upstairs and crawled back into bed for a couple of hours sleep, then conducted the rest of the days work from under the duvet. The bed rest seemed to do the trick as I felt okay enough to go into the office on Friday.
I stayed in bed on Sunday, packing Stephen off to the grocery store with the shopping list of Kerry's essential foods for illness (nursery food basically!). I wanted rice pudding, I wanted a ham roll, I really wanted grapefruit juice.... He did manage to get it all (more or less)...but he didn't do too well with the grapefruit juice. It was on 3 for 2 offer, so how many do you think he bought me? 3? No. 2? No. He bought 1 carton of grapefruit and 2 of OJ. D'oh. I don't particularly like shop-bought OJ as its a bit sweet and blah. He wouldn't do well on "Mr & Mrs" would he?!
I had to get out of bed on Monday - although it was a struggle. We were having the central heating boiler replaced as our old one was really on its last legs, and the chaps turned up right on time at 08:30. Of course, the needed access to all the radiators and the water tanks in the loft, so there was nowhere for me to hide, especially as the loft hatch is in our bedroom. I put on a t-shirt and 2 jumpers, grabbed a throw, cosied down on the sofa with my laptop and got to work.
Monday wasn't too bad. Tuesday and Wednesday were pretty awful though. They had to drain down the entire system on Tuesday to connect it all back up and then load it up with the chemical cleaner. This meant that all the external doors were open as they connected all the hoses to the radiators and then drained them outside. You have no idea how long it took to drain it down. I think the doors (including the one right beside the sitting room where I was) were open for a good 3 hours. It was the same on Wednesday when they went through the process again to drain the cleaner and then fill the system. I was frozen! Which is not a great thing to be when you've got a cold! In order to try and get warm I built myself a burrow. I took all the throw pillows and packed them round about me on the sofa to try and block out the cold wind that was howling through the house. It was such a relief when they finally closed the doors and began the process of balancing the system.
Unsurprisingly, I felt utterly awful on Thursday. As there is only one of me in this role at work I had little choice but to get up and deal with the approvals that had come in overnight from the US. When I'd done this, I took my laptop upstairs and crawled back into bed for a couple of hours sleep, then conducted the rest of the days work from under the duvet. The bed rest seemed to do the trick as I felt okay enough to go into the office on Friday.
Saturday 6 March 2010
I've pulled!
We were walking into town, heading towards a cafe for a cup of coffee, a read of the papers and a good breakfast scoff, when we passed a gentleman collecting for the air ambulance. We paused so Stephen could empty his change into the collecting jar and as I was walking away the guy leaned over and said something to Stephen in a low voice. I could hear "Tell your ladyfriend..." but didn't catch what he said. It turns out he said "Tell your ladyfriend she's gorgeous"!!
Awwww...well that was nice....but also slightly alarming! Have I reached the age where I can now pull pensioners? I was hoping I had another 10 years before I became irresistible to the over 70's!!!
Awwww...well that was nice....but also slightly alarming! Have I reached the age where I can now pull pensioners? I was hoping I had another 10 years before I became irresistible to the over 70's!!!
Wednesday 3 March 2010
Conspiracy theory
Oh. My. God. What is going on today? Did I miss the announcement that this was "Drive Kerry round the twist day"?? I would seem that everyone decided to pick today to be naughty and there were a rash of minor misdemeanors requiring a slap on the wrist and in once instance, a kick in the nuts - all delivered via email so they could reflect on their punishment and see where they went wrong.
The kick in the nuts guy really tested my patience! He was a persistent offender and has had many and varying levels of chastisement before. He got a real stinker a couple of months ago when I was having to dig him out the poop at 7:30 on a Friday night when I should have been having dinner served to me in our fave restaurant. But he'd been persistently "careless" recently so it was time for another... Then he really made my head swim when he wrote back and asked for an example (WHY? Did he think I didn't have evidence?). What he was surely saying was "Please Miss, can I have another"...so I obliged!
Then, barely an hour after this, his co-worker sent an email which broke lots of rules, was monumentally idiotic and induced Sudden Onset Tourettes in me!! I had to stuff the whole Cream Egg in my mouth to stem the flow...!
The kick in the nuts guy really tested my patience! He was a persistent offender and has had many and varying levels of chastisement before. He got a real stinker a couple of months ago when I was having to dig him out the poop at 7:30 on a Friday night when I should have been having dinner served to me in our fave restaurant. But he'd been persistently "careless" recently so it was time for another... Then he really made my head swim when he wrote back and asked for an example (WHY? Did he think I didn't have evidence?). What he was surely saying was "Please Miss, can I have another"...so I obliged!
Then, barely an hour after this, his co-worker sent an email which broke lots of rules, was monumentally idiotic and induced Sudden Onset Tourettes in me!! I had to stuff the whole Cream Egg in my mouth to stem the flow...!
Tuesday 2 March 2010
Don't give away my LW2L!
We were in work especially early this morning - even before the coffee shop opened! This disrupted the morning routine somewhat as we usually collect our coffee as we pass on the way to our desks. I was understandably getting a bit desperate by around 9am when I'd done an hour of work in an un-caffeinated state!!
Kate and I headed over and, as we were approaching the till to order, a guy rushed past us to get ahead in the queue. Okay, I thought, he obviously needs coffee more than me. Let it go....! He placed his order for 2 coffees, Kate placed her order and then I placed mine. We took a seat and waited for them to froth the milk etc. Finally they called his order and Kate's order so we all headed for the bar to collect our coffee...me knowing that mine was coming up next. Imagine then my horror when I witness this conversation...
Bloke: Oh, I wanted 3 coffees. Did I only order two?
Barista: Yes. What else did you want?
Bloke: A skinny latte
Barista: Tell you what. Take this one...
She then proceeded to hand over MY coffee!!!!! What the....?!?! Can you imagine the look of utter horror that crossed my face? I was desperate for coffee! I didn't want to have to wait another second, let alone another minute, for a new coffee to be produced! Is it my problem if this guy can't count?! I could just about stand it if they gave away my coffee if it was an afternoon cup...but that first vital cup of Liquid Will to Live? Jeeeez...they were lucky I didn't wrestle him to the floor and prise the cup out of his hand!!
Kate bought me my first Cadburys Cream Egg of the year. Yum Yum! We joked that when the office became too noisy and I wanted to stand up and yell "SHUT UP" at the top of my lungs, then I could just shove it in my gob and eating it would keep me quiet. Of course, once the sugar rush kicked in I would then become Ninja Kerry and fly round the office (in the style of Crouching Tiger) taping up their mouths with duct tape!
Kate and I headed over and, as we were approaching the till to order, a guy rushed past us to get ahead in the queue. Okay, I thought, he obviously needs coffee more than me. Let it go....! He placed his order for 2 coffees, Kate placed her order and then I placed mine. We took a seat and waited for them to froth the milk etc. Finally they called his order and Kate's order so we all headed for the bar to collect our coffee...me knowing that mine was coming up next. Imagine then my horror when I witness this conversation...
Bloke: Oh, I wanted 3 coffees. Did I only order two?
Barista: Yes. What else did you want?
Bloke: A skinny latte
Barista: Tell you what. Take this one...
She then proceeded to hand over MY coffee!!!!! What the....?!?! Can you imagine the look of utter horror that crossed my face? I was desperate for coffee! I didn't want to have to wait another second, let alone another minute, for a new coffee to be produced! Is it my problem if this guy can't count?! I could just about stand it if they gave away my coffee if it was an afternoon cup...but that first vital cup of Liquid Will to Live? Jeeeez...they were lucky I didn't wrestle him to the floor and prise the cup out of his hand!!
Kate bought me my first Cadburys Cream Egg of the year. Yum Yum! We joked that when the office became too noisy and I wanted to stand up and yell "SHUT UP" at the top of my lungs, then I could just shove it in my gob and eating it would keep me quiet. Of course, once the sugar rush kicked in I would then become Ninja Kerry and fly round the office (in the style of Crouching Tiger) taping up their mouths with duct tape!
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