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| The snow family in our garden |
Thank goodness the snow and ice has gone. I can cope with whatever life throws at me (I might have a few minutes of panic but then I get on with it), and I have even learned to cope with wasps if I really have to, i.e. if there are children to protect! All that goes out of the window when faced with an icy road. Last year for a whole month my footwear consisted of slippers or hiking boots. Luckily the hiking boots were only out for a few days this time. As Paul is a gardener he can't do much in the snow so I had a chauffeur for a couple of days when I needed to go out for work. No matter what meetings I went to though, the hiking boots stayed with me. I did make sure I wore trousers and not a skirt though so I didn't scare too many people!
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| A bleak St Anne's church in Tottington |
Harrison had church parade the other weekend, but the roads were still bad, especially on our close. We got him to Bury Parish Church but it was sheet ice on the cobbles outside the church. We intended to go shopping while he was in the church (we only tried staying for the church bit the once!), but Wetherspoons, directly opposite the church doors, looked too inviting. It was an ingenious idea. It was only 10am so it was quiet - although there were a few people relaxing with a pint - and we could pick the best, most comfortable seats and keep warm for an hour and a half. We had a great breakfast and coffee that was much nicer and cheaper than at Tesco cafe, and we read the Sunday papers until we spotted the congregation leaving church. We then nipped back across the road to collect H, where everyone assumed we'd been shivering and singing for the duration.
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| My sloe gin day 33 |
Ramsbottom is having 3 Xmas/Farmers markets this month, and for 2 of them Bridge Street is closed to traffic and is full of stalls. Next Sunday the 'living nativity' will be there, along with birds of prey and owls. I have been having a bit of a Cachaca Crisis, as I've only been able to find it abroad or in duty free shops, and every so often only a Caipirinha will do. I went into The Vineyard in Ramsbottom on the off change that they stocked it. This is a fabulous wine shop and although there are some amazingly expensive wines there were 'normal' ones too (but no wine cubes!). I was fascinated listening to the owners giving customers advice about regions and tastes; that must be a really worthwhile job to do. Anyway, when it was my turn to be served I was offered a choice of Cachacas! I'm over the moon to have found a local supplier (they weren't quite as pleased as I didn't buy any - I don't need to just yet!) and they said they always have at least one type in stock. I was even more impressed when I found out I was practically related to one of the owners - well he is my step-mother's niece's brother-in-law!
At long last I have had an article published in a magazine. My '101 things to do when your teenager leaves home' was condensed into 10 things as I only had 800 words. The magazine is called Northern Life and it covers Lancashire and Yorkshire. I'm trying to coerce people to write in to say they want more of me, which although I'm biased I think would be great for the magazine sales! I'm still hoping for paid work, but as they say, you have to speculate to accumulate.
Yesterday was my dad's 70th birthday. It's hard to believe as he looks at least 10 years younger (that's where I get it from ha ha) and thinks nothing of cycling 30 miles and playing 5 sets of tennis.....I don't get any of that from him! He decided that he didn't want a fuss so just a few family were invited to the house. This 'few' family did grow to many more and friends as well, but it was lovely for us all to get together and by the time yesterday arrived dad was looking forward to it. I'd decided that it would be good to order him a photo book containing pictures of people he knows with their happy birthday messages. For weeks I have been a private investigator on the side, tracking down old friends and family that he hasn't seen for ages. I got some brilliant photos emailed to me along with tales about my dad from years ago. The best one had to be about a group of them getting legless at a stag night in the early 60s, the night before the wedding where dad was the best man. In the days before drinking and driving became illegal 3 of the group borrowed a motorbike and sidecar, lost control of it on a bend, and all 3 of them ended up through someone's front window. They did make it to the wedding but were a sight in their various slings, plasters and cuts. Some people sent me photos by post, including one who sent a typewritten envelope just in case he happened to be at my house when the post arrived and recognised the writing. It took me hours to get it all together but the end result was brilliant, and it is safe to say he loved it. There were photos in the book from America, Australia, Denmark, Cyprus, Switzerland, and even Burnley. It was well worth the effort but if anyone else is thinking of doing something similar it may be an idea to be better organised than I was, with my dozen or so lists all over the place.
Dad - don't expect anything similar for your 80th........unless your mind has gone by then and we can pretend it is a new book we've done. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
