Crikey, I must have blinked.

How did that happen? Another year over, and it seems like only a few weeks ago when we went in Formby having a Mr Whippy ice cream on New Year's Day. I haven't had many of those this year, since I found out who was responsible for 'inventing' them.

I don't think I have packed as much into a year as I have during the last 12 months, so here are some of the best bits:

January

I think this was one of the quieter months. I went to see We Will Rock You in Manchester, which was brilliant (thanks mum). Ash (my brother) came too and he'd never been to see anything like that before so it was a bit of a treat. We also went to Pacific for a Thai meal first, so another treat.

In late January I went to a presentation by The Rock Bursary Scheme. Our TWIGs group (Tottington Wildlife Watch Group) had been awarded £1000 so I went along to collect it. Although we meet every month we still haven't spent it, so we need to do that soon!

February

Lanzarote

In February we went to Lanzarote for the first time. We had 10 days of sunshine and relaxation in a lovely hotel. The food was pretty rubbish though, which in a way was OK as we didn't put any weight on! We liked Lanzarote enough to try it again this year.






March

I managed a sneaky few days in Basel for Fasnacht (the carnival). I only booked my flights about 3 days before I went as something at work got cancelled at the last minute which meant I could go. We stayed in the thick of the city and therefore got no sleep as there were drums playing outside my window all night every night, but it was great. Unfortunately I had to be back at work to give a presentation at 10am on the Wednesday morning. There was no direct flight on Tuesday (and it was too early to go home anyway) so I got up at about 2.30am UK time and walked to the train station (the city was closed to taxis etc) to catch the train to Zurich airport. I then got the first train to Manchester, and made it with time to spare.

April

At the end of April the country had lots of festivities for the Royal Wedding. We took advantage of the extra bank holiday and went to Paris. We had an amazing time. We did toast the royal couple by having a glass of wine while we were in the queue for the Eiffel Tower, but apart from that we stayed out of it. My highlight was our day in Pere Lachaise Cemetery.

May

I struggled remembering what we'd done in May, although we were in Paris at the beginning of it. We went to the Louvre on 1st May, as it is free on the first Sunday of every month. Unfortunately, most of Paris is closed on 1st May so we didn't get in! I took my dad to see Yes Prime Minister at the Lowry Theatre mid May. This had been his present for his birthday the previous December!

June

Remember The Dream

In June I was back at the Lowry to see Avenue Q, a sort of adult Muppet Show production. I laughed from start to finish. Later in the month we had a family trip to BBC Gardeners World Show at Birmingham NEC. It rained for most of the day but that didn't stop us enjoying it.



July

I had another first in July. I went to London for the weekend. Alfie Boe and Matt Lucas were in Les Miserables, but tickets had been sold out for ages. However, we found at that some tickets were available for £10 on the day of the performance. We got up early, made our way to the theatre, and got our tickets. The only catch was that we had to stand up at the back for the whole performance. We had something to lean on though, and the view wasn't restricted!

August

Our summer holiday was in August, and we went back to Turkey. We were given a fabulous room with amazing views out to sea. However, I go to bed early when I'm on holiday and it was a bit noisy, so we got moved to, in my opinion, a better 'villa' out of the way.

September

We went to see The Sound of Music in Manchester. Before we went we got an email to break the news that Connie Fisher was pulling out, unable to play Maria. That didn't bother me as I was only going to see Jason Donovan playing Captain Von Trapp anyway. He was so good I even watched him in Strictly afterwards. On this day he kept all his clothes on, unlike the other year when we saw him in Priscilla Queen of the Desert in the West End.

We also got a weekend in Dublin while H was on a school trip. We had a brilliant hotel, and after a full day in the city we went to the seaside (Malahide) at night.

October

Keyserberg

Trip to Putney

All Lego

Alan Turing's desk

We packed so much into October. Early in the month we went to see Peter Kay again, and he was just as good as last time.

For half term at the end of the month we did loads in a week. We went to Bletchley Park to learn about Alan Turing and the Codebreakers. I could have stayed for a weekend, but we made do with an afternoon. We then stayed overnight at Gatwick and flew to Basel the following morning. We were going to a week of fairgrounds, but I found out the week before that I'd mistimed it and that particular festival didn't start until the day after we came home. While we were there we spent time in France, which I loved. We flew back early morning, so we had time to spend time in Putney and Wandsworth, where I lived while in London many years ago. The following day we were at Legoland Windsor. I was dreading it but it was really good.

November

As a treat for Kath's birthday we went to the BBC Good Food Show at Birmingham NEC. I got first class train tickets, and VIP tickets for the show, which made it much less stressful. We had a great day, and partied all the way home by drinking the Yellow Tail Bubbles we had bought.

December

Kirkconnel

We got our trip to Kirkconnel in Scotland that we'd been trying to have all year. It chose the day we were going to snow, but we made it.

For Kath's actual birthday we went to Cloud 23 at the Hilton for afternoon tea. I love it there.

Finally, we had the first Bah Humbug Society Jolly Days Out outing. 9 of us cleared off to to a hotel for Christmas, and on Christmas Day morning we were swimming outside. We had such a good time we may do it again next year.....

Bury Beer Festival 2011

I went to my very first beer festival last night. Bury Beer Festival 2011, with the slogan Real Ale, Real Music, Real Love, was held at The Met in the town centre. The festival beer glasses were £2 each, and then you bought 'beer vouchers' which I loved having. There were lots of local breweries represented, and at £1.20 for half a pint for most of the beers, I thought it was great. The Bury breweries were Brightside, Leyden and Outstanding, then we had Irwell from Ramsbottom, Greenmill from Rochdale, Robinsons from Stockport, Dunham Massey in Altrincham, Bowland in Clitheroe....the list goes on. There were some great names for the beers too: Headless Peg, Purple Moose, Clocking Off, Floral Dance and Blindfold among them.

It was held in 2 rooms that weren't too big. In one was a stage and we got treated to a couple of folk bands. Men outnumbered women by about 50:1, and they weren't all beards and bellies. We did see a couple of 'young people' who stood out being about 18!

We noted the beers we tried, but unfortunately I can't say much about them as things got a bit vague.

1. Chocolate Cherry Mild 3.8% (Dunham Massey, Altrincham). I loved this one and it was like a real ale version of Kriek Belgian beer.
2. White Chocolate Porter 4.5% (Bowland, Clitheroe). I had to try this as it was made with white chocolate from The Chocolate Cafe (@welovechocolate for Twitter users) in Ramsbottom.
3. Blond Witch 4.5% (Moorhouse's, Burnley).
4. Build a Rocket Boys! 4.0% (Robinson's, Stockport). Served at the Ramsbottom Festival Bar. Now this was the reason I wanted to come. I was very impressed at Elbow performing at The Royal Albert Hall but I was totally in awe of them when they made their own beer. This beer is also being sold in Morrisons in Harwood - it isn't widely available. We were planting trees with Mr Elbow this morning, and I told him he must be partly responsible for 'Im Indoors's bad head! http://www.elbowbeer.co.uk/#
5. Selling Out 3.8% (Outstanding, Bury). I tried this as it was quite weak. It was lovely, a bit spicy.
6. Pumpkin Ale 4.5% (Greenmill, Rochdale). See what a healthy evening I had. It was a very nice beer.
7. East India Pale Ale 6.0% (Oakham Ales, Peterborough).
8. Boarsland Gold 3.8% (Bowland, Clitheroe).
9. Rammy Rocket 4.2% (Leyden, Bury).
10. Ossett Treacle Stout 5.0% (Greenmill, Rochdale). This was really thick and treacly. You couldn't drink a lot of it but I managed half a pint.
11. World's Biggest Liar 4.3% (Jennings, Cockermouth). I made 'Im Indoors try this as I liked the name. I don't think he was disappointed.
12. Citra 4.2% (Oakham Ales, Peterborough). This was brilliant and was with grapefruit, lychee and gooseberry aromas. Obviously very healthy.
13. Blond 4.5% (Outstanding, Bury).
14. Black Pudding 4.2% (Leyden, Bury). This was a strangely very nice ale.
15. Lightweights and Gentlemen 3.2% (Irwell, Ramsbottom). We were told this was very popular with the ladies. 'Im Indoors had it.

I wasn't too worried after this as I knew that real ale didn't give you a hangover. We hadn't had time to eat earlier as we'd been called in to help FB move house. What we should have done is get in a taxi and call in the chippy on the way home. 'Im Indoors however had other ideas. The Trackside pub in Bury in a small station bar, funnily enough on the platform at Bolton Street Station. http://www.eastlancsrailway.org.uk/food-drink/the-trackside/ This is a real ale pub too, so off we went. We finished off with:

16. Pendle Witch 5.1% (Moorhouse's, Burnley).
17. Piston Broke 4.5% (Outstanding Bury).
18. Smart Arse 4.5% (Smart Brewing, Essex).
19. Hop 3.8% (Black Edge, Horwich).

'Im Indoors then had another of his bright ideas; we could finish the night off with a kebab.  haven't had a kebab since I went to see a band in whatever Jilly's Nightclub used to be called (Fagins?) on Oxford Road in Manchester, about 20 years ago. About 5 minutes after I agreed to it I realised we must have had far too much and should go home instead! We got a bag of crisps and a taxi.

I.I. has been up since 5.30am feeling very ill, but seems to have recovered now.

We spent the morning with our TWIGs group (Tottington Wildlife Watch Group) at Diggle Lane Allotments, planting some trees that had been donated by The Woodland Trust. This allotment society is excellent, and there is a hut that sells drinks and snacks too. We all got a cuppa, and then the sausages and bacon started to be made. I think the breakfast did I.I. good. http://www.digglelaneallotments.co.uk/index.html

I haven't planted a tree since I was at school, but by strange coincidence I am involved in the planting of another tomorrow. The ongoing work on the banking at the end of our cul-de-sac is continuing tomorrow. We are having a bit of a clear up, but are then burying a time capsule and our oldest residents are going to officially 'plant' our tree - a cherry blossom one. There should be a lot of the close out and I'm looking forward to it.

Trophies at last!

I had a busy week last week. I decided that, after winning the liqueur class in Tottington Horticultural Society Show in March for my sloe gin, I'd have another go in the September show. I decided on rhubarb vodka but after having some Tottington-picked raspberries left over a while ago, I thought I'd try raspberry vodka too. I strained them both before my holidays and had a little taste. The rhubarb vodka was terrible, like drinking paint stripper, but the raspberry vodka was delicious. I also thought it might be quite easy to make a Station Yard cake depicting the Incredible Edible Tottington vegetable plots and the TWIGs (the children's wildlife group) wild flower garden. I took my entry form along a couple of days before the show and found that there was a problem; the entry fee had gone up from 5p to 10p! It didn't bother me, but maybe the people who didn't like this were entering lots and lots (give them the benefit of the doubt).

During the week before the show I started collecting cake decorating things together. The cake was covered in green icing (for the grass) and work began. The wild flower garden was easy, and I got some butterflies to stick in it. The vegetable plots were more difficult and took a lot of fiddling with cardboard, paint and cocktail sticks to build them. Finally they were in place, along with chocolate blobs for the soil. A woman in the decoration shop told me that spaghetti made good green beans. I couldn't work this one out until someone mentioned fresh spaghetti, so I bought a bag of it and painted it with green food colouring. It didn't work and I ended up using green garden string and putting red icing blobs on it for the flowers. I managed OK using the icing tubes to make cauliflowers, cabbages, potatoes and carrots. Finally I piped on the writing and put a garden theme edging round the cake.

The cookery entries

I then had to decant some of the vodka, which had been maturing nicely under my stairs, into a clear bottle and label it. The rhubarb vodka had improved over a month and the raspberry wasn't quite as good as I remembered it. It wasn't quite ready. I decided to enter it anyway (the rhubarb will be going into the spring show in March).



The winning entries and trophies

 On the Saturday of the show I took along my goods then made a hasty exit as I had a date in Manchester with the very lovely Jason Donovan. (I've just got the box set of Moving Wallpaper and Echo Beach so I can watch him again, but this date was a real life encounter). Later on in the afternoon I got a message that I had won the decorated cake and the liqueur class, so I was over the moon. I was even more pleased when the message came through that I had won best in show for cookery and best in show for wine. 'Im Indoors went up to collect the 2 trophies that I can keep for the year. I've never won a trophy before!

Alan Turing statue, with his apple

While I was in Manchester I went to see the Alan Turing statue in Sackville Park. This is between the University and the Gay Village. The statue shows Turing holding an apple, with a bite taken out of it. The apple is a symbol of forbidden love, but it is also thought that Turing died after biting an apple laced with cyanide (he died from cyadide poisoning but the apple found next to him was never tested). It is rumoured that the 'apple' symbol came from Turing's apple but the company have always denied this, saying the symbol is based on Isaac Newton's theory of gravitation. 2012 is the centenary of Alan Turing's birth and events are scheduled to take place in several countries around the world to commemorate this. I have just started a biography about Alan Turing which I need to read quite quickly as I have a queue for it before I go to Switzerland next (it will be wanted there too). I have wanted to go to Bletchley Park for ages so I'm interested in finding out about it, and Mr Turing, before I go to visit it. I'll be going on the way to Switzerland as the absolute bargain flights I got were from Gatwick, so I'll be more or less passing. Turing lived for a time in Wilmslow, and when he worked at Bletchley Park he was a key figure in breaking the Enigma codes during World War 2.

The day after this was the annual World Black Pudding Throwing Championships, held in Ramsbottom. For the first time I saw 'The Golden Grid' being brought to the competition. The grid is from the original championship site, in Stubbins, and contestants have to stand on the grid to throw. Each year on competition day it leaves its 'home' and travels to Ramsbottom by steam train. It is then carried up Bridge Street, this year accompanied by the mayor who had the first throw of a black pudding. It is a really fun event and we had contestants from all over the world taking part. The Hairy Bikers from the BBC were also filmed there having a go. All proceeds are for charity.

The Hairy Bikers having a go at throwing black puddings. Note the foot on the golden grid.

During the week I also found out that I had got enough votes to be on the new Township Forum advisory group. I have attended the first meeting of Ramsbottom, Tottington and North Manor township forum (the largest by a long way in Bury), where the subject of wheelie bins was heatedly discussed. I'm still not 100% sure what my role is as the forums are so new, but it can't do my CV any harm.

I'll be preparing another cake for Incredible Edible Tottington Harvest Party that will be held on Station Yard Field on 2 October 2011. Please come and find out more about the group between 1pm and 3pm.

A Night At The Casino

As 'Im Indoors has been snoring very loudly I'm up, have completed and submitted my census form online, and have time for a quick blog. I would have preferred to have been snoozing myself, especially as I stayed up late catching up on Silk episodes and the clocks have gone forward an hour, but that's life.
I've had a really busy couple of weeks, so I'm going to go back to just over a fortnight ago. It seems like months ago so much has happened since!

I follow Pride of Manchester on Facebook, and the website keeps me up to date on what's going on in the area, and what special offers are around. I noticed a competition to win an outing to the launch of a new menu at a casino in Manchester - Circus Casino. Not only have I never been to a casino, but I've always said I never would go to one. The idea frightens me and I think of the debt, not the glamour. I once heard from the family of someone who, with great intentions, went to a casino (not for the first time) the night before the annual holiday. He had ideas about doubling their spending money. Of course that didn't happen, and the family found out when, a couple of days into the holiday, the guest house landlady informed them that the cheque had bounced. I found that so sad. However, I decided to enter as a) it might be a nice meal and b) of course I wouldn't win anyway.

On the Wednesday I got a message to say I had won, and the launch was the day after. I would (along with a guest) attend a champagne reception, sample the new menu while listening to live entertainment, and then get to 'hit the tables' with a complimentary £5 chip. I had to make a few quick childcare arrangements, but on the Thursday myself and Debbie set off on the tram to see what it was all about. We went thinking we had nothing to lose, although I must admit I was a bit sceptical about it all. We found the Circus casino, had our photo taken, and were given a whistlestop tour while we passed through the floor to get to 110 Restaurant. The casino is all underground and is huge - the biggest in Manchester. We were passed to our host at the restaurant, given a glass of champagne and shown to a seating area where we could listen to a woman playing a grand piano and singing. It was all very nice, but I still thought we could be in for a timeshare style presentation about joining the casino. We'd got a glass of champagne though so we were happy.

I was completely wrong about the evening. It was great, and we were really looked after. We didn't have a sit-down meal, but instead we had a steady stream of beautifully presented mini sized versions of the new menu items brought to us. I'm funny about my meat, but as the food was bite sized I could try all sorts of things I wouldn't normally consider. Belly of rare breed pork with teriyake marinade and glazed pak choi, ham-hock terrine, savoy cabbage and home-made piccalilli and roasted rump of lamb mini shepherds pie are all things I wouldn't have entertained, but they were all gorgeous. I wouldn't have liked to have a full meal of them, but they were still very nice. There were also things that I couldn't have eaten plenty of. The pan seared king scallops, fresh strawberries and vintage balsamic, treacle cured salmon, rocket, cucumber and fennel pickle, and baked sea bass fillets with chorizo, roast peppers and pak choi were absolutely delicious. The vegetarian amongst us was given plenty of green pea and asparagus risotto, crumbled feta and white truffle oil and baked portobello mushroom, Stilton rarebit and aubergine caviar. The desserts were just as nice, and we were brought out chocolate brownie and strawberry skewer with pistachio ganache, lemongrass pannacotta, coconut ice cream and pineapple shooter and banana parfait, toasted marshmallows and chocolate fondant. We had decided that this would be a night out on a budget and we would only spend on fares, so we were relieved when our glasses were regularly topped up with champagne. We were able to go and get a top up if a refill wasn't nearby too, although unfortunately (for us) we drank them dry and they ran out towards the end of the evening.

I had expected the food to be a bit processed and mass produced, but it was beautiful and very reasonably priced. A 3 course meal with 3 choices for each course is just £12.50 from Sunday to Thursday. We got some vouchers for that menu but with a £5 gaming chip and a glass of champagne, still for £12.50. It is definitely worth a visit for a meal and you don't have to be a member. It is somewhere a bit different. We checked out the wine menu too. I had expected that to be extortionate, but obviously people having a drink or two is good for business so you can get a bottle of wine for as little as £10.75, with lots under £20.

Towards the end of our time in the restaurant area I felt a bit uncomfortable. We'd seen a couple of familiar faces that we couldn't put names to (X Factor types), but then people who seemed very well known started to come in. These we didn't recognise, and I think they may have been well known for 'other' reasons in Manchester. They were given an incredible amount of attention from the girls working there, and although they didn't look affluent, a LOT of money was around. The girls working there (I want to call them hostesses to I'm sure that can mean something else too, and they were hostesses in the old fashioned way) were all very thin, had very short skirts on and wore heels that were a minimum of 4 inches high. Yes, I am only jealous, and they were interesting to watch. We decided to leave, but not before we got our free gaming chips.

We were both given a £5 chip. This was a 'special' chip that couldn't be exchanged for money. It had to be played. We had a wander, and it was getting busier by this time. I didn't see any James Bond types as I had imagined. I haven't seen Casino Royale but I had a picture in my mind. Some people were dressed up and there were some suits around, but the majority of people were at best casually dressed. There was lots going on, with dozens of roulette wheels, lots of slot machines, and tables that I have no idea what was going on at. There were security cameras everywhere, and a bank of screens where security could see exactly what was going on at each table. Around the edge were coffee-type tables, and these had card games going on at them. We decided on roulette, and we had been told that all we needed to do was put one of our chips on odd, one on even, and we were guaranteed a £5 real chip as we would win. We watched for a while to try to work out what was going on. At the roulette table we chose there were about 6-8 people playing each spin, and they put loads of chips down. Again I had no idea what was going on. As the wheel was spinning more chips were put in strange places. Some were across 2 numbers, and some where 4 numbers crossed. I'd seen the roulette wheel scam in The Hustle but it didn't give me a insight into all the rules!

The chips that were being played had different coloured edges, presumably to denote their value. We had the lowest of all chips and that was £5, so there must have been hundreds of pounds gambled on each spin of that roulette wheel. On the first spin we watched no-one won anything. I was fascinated, and a bit saddened. I am certain that these people weren't secret millionaires. The casino was on Portland Street, very close to China Town, and the majority of the people there appeared to be of Chinese or Asian origin. The majority also seemed like normal people, who shouldn't be gambling with their bill money. We were surrounded in thousands and thousands of pounds, but I couldn't see the glamour. All I could see was the debt and devastation that must be going on for at least a few of the customers. Perhaps it was having the gambled holidays spends story in my mind that did it.

Anyway, we played our chips, one odd and one even, and we got our £5 chip. I don't think the other players were impressed as us 2 joining in, but we were over the moon to have come with nothing and end up with a fiver. I can see how people do get sucked in to it all, as we decided we would gamble again. We put our chip on odd (it had to be odd with us really) and waited. You'd have thought we'd won millions when the ball landed on odd, but we the had £10. What to do next was a bit of a dilemma, but this £10 would buy us a round of drinks at the pub afterwards so we quit while we were ahead. We went to the cashier and got a crisp £10 note - not bad for a few minutes work.

Off we went, very pleased with ourselves, we met a friend visiting from Switzerland and took him to Sam's Chop House for a drink and to see the new life size bronze Lowry statue. That finished it off nicely. The night was certainly an experience, and although I'm not tempted to go gambling I would definitely go to Circus Casino again, for a meal and to people watch. Start looking at the Pride of Manchester website as there are regular competitions, and as I found out there ARE real winners and the prizes are well worth having.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-12524755

Holiday relaxations

There are not many things quite as relaxing as lying on a sun lounger with clear blue sky above you, feeling the heat of the sun while listening to the gentle waves, oh and with an ice cold drink and a not-too-taxing novel. I don't really like getting wet (except when having a long bath), or walking in the sand (I blame the parents! I was never allowed in sand pits as a child as cats and dogs did dirities in them!). However, next to the hotel pool does me fine. Next to another hotel's pool may be even better, but that's for another day.

I wasn't planning on doing much all holiday so I took myself off to the Bury Hospice shop in Ramsbottom and bought 5 chick-lits for £1 each - plenty for my holidays. I started the first one on the plane going:

Number Ten - Sue Townsend. I didn't read the back in the shop, I just knew Adrian Mole used to make me laugh. What a great book, about the Prime Minister going around the not best places in the country dressed as a woman.

The One You Really Want - Jill Mansell. A typical happy ending story, that you can more or less work out from the first 10 pages! It kept me daydreaming though.

It's Now or Never - Carole Matthews. I loved this but again there is nothing to it. A happy-ish ending and easy to read. Well.....I am on my holidays! I can leave the War and Peaces of the world until I'm back at the 'W' place.

Once in a Lifetime - Cathy Kelly - I didn't think I'd like this but I started it last night before going to bed and I have hardly put it down since. I have just finished it and it and far from being a totally rubbish girlie book it was amazing and made me cry.                     

And now I have just one left, on day 8.

A Spot of Bother - Mark Haddon. It is about a man settling down for retirement and a lot of family stuff. I'm torn between starting it today though or saving it as I have lots more time before I go home. I'm only Internetting now as the men in my life are getting showered etc and they take long than me to make themselves presentable.

A strange thing happened to me the other night, which I'm still getting stick for. I had mt iPhone alarm set as we were going off to the volcano and none of us are good at waking up early. It went off and we got up and dressed. I couldn't make out how sunny it was (it has never been less that 'very sunny' though) as it was still dark. It took quite a while for me to realise that perhaps it should be daylight. During the night my iPhone had changed times. Now it doesn't need the time setting, even when you change timezones, as Apple knows exactly where it is and sorts all that type of stuff out. I checked the world clock and it knew that the Canary Islands was the same time as the UK. I can only think that my phone is convinced it is in Spain. I'd been here 5 days before it changed though so I have no idea why it suddenly felt the need to confuse me. I am a bit paranoid now though. What if it changes time the night before we go home, and we miss our plane. Now that would be a shame....

Well, I'd better see what the rest of The Kelly Family are up to. We are off to eat in Playa Blanca tonight as our taste buds have forgotten what real food tastes like. To be fair, all the reviews for this hotel didn't rate the food too much so it haven't been a surprise. We just wanted to know H could eat.

I'm off to enjoy then my final 2 full days relaxation before I have to start counting down the days until the next holiday. Paul is taken with the Canaries and wants to come back (hooray).

Sorry - no photos this time; the hotel Internet isn't that good.

Flabelos

The TWIGs tree

Not many weeks ago I wrote about the things we do (or I do...) for the sake of our appearance. I've had another appointment at the torture chamber, and it wasn't that bad really. I booked to go again in another 4 weeks so I wouldn't chicken out.
Well, just over 3 weeks ago I decided I'd have a lunchtime walk up the Kirklees Trail. I'd been sat at my desk too long and needed some fresh air. I decided to walk back the road way, and I noticed that the post office in Greenmount had changed into some sort of salon. There was a poster up about fake tans, sunbeds, false nails etc, and unfortunately something caught my eye. 'Lose a dress size in 3 weeks....". I know I'm a big sucker but I thought I'd pop in and see what it was all about. 'Flabelos' is a new concept of an old idea (apparently...I'll believe anything). I was told that I could stand on a machine for 10 minutes most days, and in 3 weeks I'd be a dress size smaller. I was told stories of people who couldn't even consider doing up their jeans, yet 2 weeks into a flabelos programme they didn't even have to breathe in. 10 minutes is the equivalent of an hour in the gym. I had nothing to lose, and as luck would have it, the machine was available for me to have my free taster session.

The machine looks like those scales you get weighed on in Boots. You stand on a metal plate with your feet as far apart as they will go and your knees slightly bent. You then hold onto a bar for dear life and press 'start'. I was warned I may feel a bit strange and if I got a stitch, which wasn't uncommon, I should bend my knees more. The owner of the shop (Tan and Tone in Greenmount) stayed with me while the machine set off, then left me to it. It was the weirdest experience. Your whole body wobbles, and after 2 minutes it speeds up. There are 2 more speed ups before it slows down for 2 minutes at the end. You aren't half thrown about for 10 minutes. You don't realise how much you are vibrating until you look down, and your flesh is flying about in all directions (OK, mine was. I suppose not everyone has quite as much). I had strange sensations in my legs and body, and I had to keep checking that I hadn't wet myself as it really felt as though I could have done! The best way to describe it is this. Have you used one of those new Dyson hand dryers? They are bright yellow and in some public toilets. You put your hands slowly into the top, withdraw, then do it again. The skin on your hand looks like it is going to be transformed in some strange Dr Who like experience as it is being sucked, or blown so strongly. Now imagine putting your whole body into one! It feels very odd.

After 10 minutes of me clinging on it stopped, and I meandered back to the reception desk, complete with my sea legs. I was a bit wobbly getting home, but this promise of an easy tone-up was on my mind. I went again the next day and signed up for a months course. Unfortunately I was going away in 3 weeks and a couple of days, so I had to squeeze in the sessions. I kept it up, and whenever I went out in the car I would call in for my daily wobble. Amazingly after just over a week I noticed that some trousers I wear for work did up much more easily.

Here I am 3 weeks and 2 days later, and what have a lost? Thirty pounds is what I have lost. Thirty whole pounds....Great British Pounds Stirling I'm afraid. To be fair, there was never any mention of weight loss. The promise was just a tone up. Well the measurements are in and I've lost 2 inches off my waist,  1.5 inches off my hips, 1.5 inches off my bust and an incredible half an inch  off my thighs. There isn't a noticeable difference, but trousers are looser, so it hasn't been a complete waste of time. In fact, I've quite enjoyed it. I think if I had cut down on food, as they advised, it may have made more of a difference! As far as new experiences go, it is one that's worth a try, even if you just go for a free test. I managed to take a video on my phone, so turn up the volume and see what you think.

Our Twiglets had a great time at the Tottington Wildlife Watch Group last weekend. It was 'Adopt a Tree' day and although we got a few complaints about going outside tree hugging, as soon as we were outside they were running about deciding what tree they wanted. We decided the best tree on our field could be the TWIGs tree, and the Twiglets could choose another each, so they can observe it and the way it changes throughout the year. I've sorted out Twitter and Facebook so we are on each. On Facebook just search for Tottington Wildlife Watch Group, and on Twitter we are @TottingtonWIGS. Please follow us.....we are trying to spread the work!

Save our Libraries

We've had a very busy fortnight with one thing and another, and there are lots of events coming up too.

TWIGS (Tottington Wildlife Watch Group) received word that we had been successful in our The Rock Bursary Scheme application. We had put in a bid for £1000 so that amongst other things we could buy wildlife cameras to keep an eye on what is going on while our Twiglets (and us) are tucked up in bed. We are also hoping to buy other equipment and protective clothing, and perhaps get ourselves an 'identity' logo. Laurie Sage from Laurie Pink designs has even drawn a prototype logo badge, so I'm hoping that will take off. On Friday Alan Turner (another TWIGs leader) and I went to the presentation at Barista along with the other successfulapplicants where we received our certificate. The money is now safely in the bank, and we need to plan the finer details. Our children will benefit greatly, and we are very grateful to The Rock for supporting us. Well over 100 groups applied for a bursary and there was only £20,000 given out so we have been very lucky.The Rock will be repeating the scheme next year and they will be kept informed on how the funding has benefited the organisations.

I did a walk around on Thursday with one of the Police Community Support Officers. We had 2 other 'pairs' out as well in the pouring rain so we could see as many people as we could. We went door knocking to see how the people in our little bit of Tottington were and if they had anything they needed to discuss under the umbrella of 'Home Watch'. Hardly anyone had any issues which was great to hear. We were also sounding people out about the forming of 'The Friends of Rhine Close' to develop more community spirit. Most people were interested in being involved in some way so we need to get on with it. The Local Area Partnership has grants available to local groups and we are hoping to apply before the deadline of the beginning of March so that we can do a tidy up at one end of our close. We have enough volunteers to dig up the brambles etc, but some funding will enable us to buy some plants or trees to really brighten up this forgotten patch.

Tottington library







Our pile of books

Today is the Save Our Libraries national campaign. I'm very proud of my dad who went along to take part in the protest rally outside Bolton library. He has reached 70 without getting into any bother so he was hoping today wasn't be the day he ended up getting arrested. I've seen the photo in the BEN and couldn't pick him out but I'm sure he'll have been there. We didn't play quite as big a part in the campaign, but we did go along to our local Tottington library and we all took out the maximum number of books that we could. The idea was that if everyone did the same the shelves would be bare. I was surprised how busy Tottington library was on a cold wet Saturday morning. We spent an hour there reading the papers and filling in questionnaires in the hope of stopping some of the cuts. It is missing a coffee machine really. We then struggled home with our 32 books, that we'll be able to take back next week. Seriously though, it will have done us good. I have 'Twitter for Dummies' so I'm hoping to 'get it' a bit more and be able to pass handy hints onto @HaleGC!

Incredible Edibles Tottington has also been incepted this week. This is a Guerrilla Gardening community gardening group that will look at utilising small patches of unused land to grow food that the community can then help itself to. TWIGs will be starting the project with a couple of pieces of land that the council have said we can use. Allotments are in such high demand and lots of people would like to involved in small scale growing so this, if it takes off, will be ideal. There is a group in Ramsbottom that has been very successful, and they have even taken over an orchard. Diggle Lane Allotment Association (who were also successful in their Rock Bursary Scheme application) have been kind enough to let us use one of their greenhouses to start off plants before planting them outside, and they have said we can use their meeting room too if needed. Our hope is that if we can get a lot of support and get the children and schools involved the things we grow will be left alone and used appropriately, not dug up by young people who don't have enough to do in the evenings. All we can do is try, and I'm really looking forward to eating some produce grown in the village.

Lastly, it hasn't been ALL work. We had lunch at The Chocolate Cafe in Ramsbottom. This was absolutely gorgeous. If you don't already, follow them on Twitter @welovechocolate and you will get the Buy One Get One Free vouchers. It isn't cheap, but I think the offer is on throughout February so it is lovely for a treat.

Cloud 23 cocktails

We should have been going to Scotland this weekend, but decided against it due to the severe weather warning, floods, gale force winds etc. Instead, we managed a last minute sneaky night out in Manchester last night to celebrate us being married for 10 years. First stop was The Hilton Cloud 23 for cocktails, then The Marble Arch on Rochdale Road for some unusual real ales. Both are well worth a visit. The Hilton has to be for treats only, but The Marble Arch is great for a cheap night out and it does good food too.

 

Beer at The Marble Arch

Another Year Over....and a new one just begun.

It was my birthday on Friday, and I marked it with another 'first'. I had my underarms waxed. It is something I have always said I would never have done as I'm soft, but I had it on good authority that I would never look back. I go regularly to have other bits done, but armpits just sounded much too painful. The worst bit was growing the hairs in the first place. It is over 30 years since I've had the continental look. I had my first experience with the razor when I got a black 'wet-look' jumpsuit with no sleeves, that I'd got for the school dance. Every 2-3 days since then I've repeated the procedure, until last Christmas Day when my new regime began. On Friday in I went, and I got the bikini bits done first as I can easily cope with that. Despite what I'd just had done, I found it really embarrassing showing someone my underarms! I was scared, especially when the beautician warned me it would really hurt, but in for a penny.... Yes, it did hurt, a lot, but I'm booked in for round 2 to see if it gets easier.

The experience got me thinking about all the daft false things we do for the sake of appearance. Having hot wax poured on you then having your hairs ripped out to the follicles is just the beginning. The first time I had my eyelashes dyed was more painful than childbirth. It was a 'free gift' with a massage and it totally undid the good that the massage had done. They must have got dye in my eye before they left it to take. I've had false nails that only actually made my real nails worse, hair colours and perms, and some really dodgy hair styles (I always thought I looked great!). I did the cabbage soup diet that resulted in my losing 9 pounds in a week. Soup for breakfast is a killer. It was in my single days and I couldn't get away with doing it now. The whole house stinks of cabbage and you have to sleep with the bedroom windows open. The fish pedicure was just plain odd.

I've had a body wrap that promised I would lose inches and inches in a couple of hours. For this you strip off and get measured at various body points. Felt tip marks are put at the measuring points to get accurate results afterwards. Bandages soaked in a 'secret recipe' of mud are then wrapped all around you quite tightly. When this had been done I had the perfect hour glass figure. If I could have put on a long frock and gone out I would have looked amazing. The next stage is to be put in a plastic tracksuit, then helped onto a bed to relax for an hour. When the hour is up you are helped off the bed and out of the tracksuit. This all has to be done on a tiled floor as so much water pours out of the suit. The bandages are taken off and you are re-measured to show that you have indeed lost lots of inches. There are strict instructions not to shower for 2-3 days as the mud/clay keeps working and it does keep you clean (I believed it!). Whether it works or not (I think not although my skin was really smooth) you couldn't show off your newly sculptured body as it has bits of dried mud and felt tip pen marks all over it.

The spray fake tan has to be the worst experience though (I have blocked the horrific Turkish massage from my mind). For this I was stood in a plastic tent in a pair of paper pants. The tent walls were so dirty that it looked like the last occupant had been axe murdered. The beautician, stood well outside the tent, then proceeded to turn on a hose-pipe and spray me with the 'tan'. To get it everywhere you have to lift bits and bend all over the place. It really is very undignified. It looked quite good when I got home, but I couldn't do much for a few hours while it dried. I woke up to tan coloured bed sheets, and someone who had smoked 40 Woodbines a day for 40 years wouldn't have had yellower fingers. My whole body was orange and streaky. My feet were filthy, and if I'd have had it done to go on holiday with I think I would have stayed indoors for the first few days. As it was, I had lots of showers and wore the loofah out scrubbing.

I'm sure I will fall for whatever new thing comes out next, with the excuse that life is there for having new experiences. I am determined to have at least one further 'first' this year. I've never been to an opera, and although I'm not sure it appeals to me, you don't know until you try!

When I was, erm...38 (?), it was a very good year...

I could possibly have mentioned having a 'troubled' year once or twice. However, I also had an amazing year in 2010, and I didn't forget it no matter what else was thrown at me. This is for me to look back on and smile, and for others to be amazed at the fantastic things that sometimes went on behind the scenes.

January
January started with snow, and lots of it. The schools were delayed starting back after Christmas as people just couldn't get there. In January I signed up to do the Great Manchester Run in aid of the MS Society, and training started, very slowly at first. However, it wasn't all healthy stuff. We had a great time when 'the girls' went to The Hilton in Manchester for a champagne high tea, followed by a trip to see Les Mis. Even though it was January, we managed to get a clear day and could see for miles.

The trail behind our house

My mum(s) at The Hilton

February
At the beginning of February we had 'Priscilla' night, as Debbie had just returned from Australia and seen where the ping pong scene was set, and Andrew was over from Switzerland. Unfortunately the Priscilla Queen of the Desert DVD didn't arrive from Amazon in time, but we managed to get hold of a copy anyway. We also had the most needed holiday ever, and we got the most February sun we have seen in Cyprus. Apart from the slight hitch when my case didn't arrive that I didn't mention (much) it was sooo relaxing.

Andrew and Debbie



Paul and H at Limassol





March

Towards the end of March a great friend who I lived with in London and did voluntary work for years ago died. She lived near Portsmouth so we went down for the funeral. P and H went to see the ships while I was at the service, and we stayed overnight in Portsmouth.

The Spinnaker in Portsmouth

H on The Victory

April

After Portsmouth we stayed on and went to Stonehenge, where I'd never been. It was amazing. I loved it. Although you can see it from the main road it was well worth the entrance price to go and have a close look. We then went to Avebury to see the stone circles there, before going to Bath for the night. Even though the main purpose of the trip was to attend a funeral, we had a great time and I am certain that Val would have been pleased.

Stonehenge

Pulteney Bridge, Bath

May

We were busy in May. It started off bad with the election result, but it wasn't for lack of trying. I roped H in, and we had lots of production lines going in our house when we were on envelope stuffing duties. David Milliband and Tony Blair even paid us a visit. Paul and I went to see Peter Kay and got in the private bar beforehand so we could relax with champagne. We also had a last minute day out to Liverpool, where we got to see the childhood homes of John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The highlight of the month though was The Great Manchester Run which I completed, raising over £600 for the MS Society.

H on election day

A visit from Tony Blair



The Three Graces, Liverpool




Lennon's house, Liverpool





   

Finishing The Great Manchester Run, and still smiling




Before Peter Kay

  

June

We managed a sneaky weekend away to Scotland to stay with my friend who runs a B&B in Kirkconnel. We really got away from it all. It is lovely around there, and rolling the car 'up' a hill at Electric Brae was weird. We went to Gardeners World Live at Birmingham NEC. I had got Paul tickets for Christmas as I thought he'd like it, but we all had such a good time that we are having a bigger family day out there this June! It was also the first Manchester Day Parade, which the city of Manchester was kind enough to arrange on Debbie's birthday. This is going to be an annual event.

Dunure, Scotland

Drumlanrig Castle, Scotland

Gardeners World



Gardeners World



Manchester Day parade





July

July was a bit quieter! It was the X Factor auditions in Manchester, where The Chorladies came so close to fame. We didn't let a little rejection get in the way of a good day out though. We had time on 'the beach' that had been especially constructed for the World Cup, and as well as yet another trip to Cloud 23 we found a new bar, Taps, where you have beer pumps on your table so you can help yourselves. An iPod Touch attached to the pumps works out how much you have had an charges you at the end.

X Factor Auditions



Taps bar




Debbie on the beach in central Manchester



August

In August Paul got his first ever suit, for the wedding of a friend, and he looked ever so smart in it. We had a night in Hebden Bridge as a friend had just moved there. I was in charge of finding a B&B, and I don't think I'll be given that job again. We had a bad taxi experience, although the B&B was lovely, if a little too far into the country. Soon after we had our first all-inclusive holiday, to Turkey. The hotel was brilliant, the weather perfect, and we were close to Ephesus so we had a bit of history too.

Paul in his first suit

Hebden Bridge

P and H in Turkey

Ephesus

September

Probably the quietest month of the year. Debbie had her MacMillan Coffee Morning, with wine in the afternoon, and she raised a fortune. The wine in the afternoon soon turned into more wine at night, but it was all in a good cause. I also started a course, and it was strange writing essays again, being told what I had to write about. So far so good, and all the assignments have been passed so far.

Come Dine With Me following the coffee morning wine afternoon

Massages were given in exchange for donations

October

We did lots in October too. A tidy up was organised on the Kirklees Trail, which is just outside our back garden gate, so we went to help out. We also joined TWIGS (Tottington Wildlife Watch Group) - a local group for children that I'm becoming a leader for. I don't know much about wildlife but I'm guessing I just have to be responsible and one step ahead of the children! We had a couple of trips to Manchester, taking H on the Wheel that he's been asking to do for ages, and visiting the John Rylands Library. At the end of the month H and I went off to Switzerland, leaving Paul at home to 'do jobs'. We flew via Heathrow and flying low over central London was brilliant. We stayed in Basel a couple of nights, but we also had a couple of nights in the chalet in the mountains, swimming in the outdoor spa heated pool. I always feel better about everything when I've been to see The Swiss.

Our tidy trail

The view through the shutters in my bedroom in Inden

Over the rooftops in Basel



November
Things didn't slow down in November, when it was time to pick sloes after the first frost. Sloe gin is now maturing under the stairs and is a lovely colour. It will be ready in a couple of months. I was talked into having a 'fish pedicure' where you put your feet in a fish tank and let them eat the dead skin. I also had an interesting experience at a fondue night, that took me days to recover from. The night after I went to see Marc Almond for the first time. Although I was very subdued it was great.

Sloe gin day 33

Fish pedicure



Things got rowdy at the fondue night....


 

...and the night got worse after I left!

December
Finally the end of the year was in sight, but not before a big party for my dad's 70th birthday. He didn't really want any fuss, but I think he enjoyed it. We put together a book full of birthday messages as a momento for him. It snowed on the day I was having my Christmas Play Out in Manchester, but it all worked out well. We managed drinks, a meal at Sweet Mandarin (where I've never been but heard great things about - all true), and then went to see James at the MEN. It was a great day with great company. Paul had his hernia operation a few days before Christmas and the bruises are still there now, but it went well. Christmas was a bit deflated and we managed to get through it without hitches, although I have my thinking hat on to make next years better. FB wanted Pot Noodle for Xmas dinner so that is what she was given (Xmas dinner flavour, yuk). The year finished with a good curry, a scary film, and hundreds of Chinese lanterns in the sky.

Dad's birthday

Dad's birthday

Christmas did come to my home-office

FB enjoying her Xmas Dinner

I'm already saving the good stuff for next year's review, and yes, I am going to throw all the rubbish back!