I really wish.....

I really wish that I had some exciting news to impart to you, but I don't.

The parents came up for the weekend.
It rained. A lot.
Lurcher No.2 has a poorly paw again.
I'm still not sleeping well and am very tired. OH's snoring doesn't help so if anyone has any remedies I'd be pleased to hear them!

And that's it! It might be quiet and boring but every now and again, quiet and boring is GOOD!

Up above the streets and houses.......

.....or, more correctly, up above the Common.

On Tuesday afternoon, the sky turned that really foreboding black, pregnant with the rain that's about to burst forth............oh for heaven's sake, Angela, stop with all the dramatic stuff, you'll never be a writer....

What happened was this.....the sky went black, the sun was shining at the same time, there was a windmill and a rainbow to throw into the mix and, once stirred, you end up with something like this:



















Not too bad considering it was shot with work's little Olympus point and shoot as I didn't have my dSLR with me at the crucial moment and nature won't hang around for you to nip home and pick it up.

I haven't given you a cottage update for a while have I!? "No" you cry, "do tell what's occurring". Quite a lot actually. OH has been ploughing on with what he can before the plumbers arrive on 4th December. Walls have been stripped, filled, rubbed down and given a coat of undercoat to help keep the dust at bay. Fireplace has been made good and the mantle piece fixed into place - that's great that is, it's an old oak fence post that OH has cleaned up and oiled and fixed to the wall so it looks like it's hanging there! Aerial man is coming to put in a new aerial and aerial points next week. The kitchen has been paid for and should arrive on 13th December and the delivery of the sofas has been delayed to 8th December - which suits me just fine. Chimney sweep booked for 2nd December and the new wood-burning stove that arrived last week can then be fitted. So it's all moving on slowly and, fingers crossed, we will be installed in the New Year!

Think Fast!

Nicked from Stu!

Think Fast Survey- answer with the first thing that pops into your head DONT CHEAT!!!

1. My ex is still…
....drunk probably.

2. I am listening to…
...the sound of a mini-digger as it demolishes the old stable block next my office.

3. Maybe I should…
....do some work rather than be doing this!

4. I love…
...my Lurchers!

5. My bestfriend(s)….
....is poorly and I can't do anything to help.

6. I dont understand…
.......the minds of some people.

7. I lost respect for…
......my father when he decided his "bit on the side" was more important than his daughter.

9. The meaning of my screen name is…
.....my initials: Angela Oakley Jayne

10. Love is…
....overrated!

11. Somewhere, someone is…
...living my alternative reality.

12. I will always…
.......be me.

13. Forever seems…
.......too close for comfort with so much to cram in!

14. I never ever want to lose…
......sight of the good things.

15. My mobile phone is…
...errrrmmm around somewhere, just not sure where!

16. When I woke up this morning…
...I hit the snooze button and had a cuddle with Lurcher No.2.

17. I get annoyed at…
....incompetent people.

18. Parties are..
...really not my thing.

19. My pets…
...are my life.

20. Kisses are…..
......important.

Marching for Greyhounds

On Saturday I joined about 200 other like-minded people and marched through central London to try and highlight the plight of racing greyhounds. The march was organised following the revelations in the Sunday Times some months ago of the death of thousands of greyhounds at the hands of one man (and I use that term loosely) in Seaham, Co. Durham.

We began the march at Whitehall Place, along Whitehall up to Trafalgar Square and then along Pall Mall and St James's St to Picadilly. From there to Hyde Park Corner and up Park Lane to Speaker's Corner for speeches.

Apparently at Hyde Park Corner we held up the Mayor of London and 5 minutes later the Police Commissioner received an official complaint that the police had allowed us to march that route on a Saturday afternoon. We can only surmise where the complaint came from. How arrogant is that man?

We had one or two famous faces join us, Annette Crosbie and Jaye Griffiths and it was great to have their support.

We can only hope it starts to make a difference. We just all need to keep the momentum going and hopefully, one day, the despicable treatment received by these noble beasts at the hands of the people who are supposed to care for them will be a thing of the past.

A lesson

Here's a lesson for you:

Do not try to pick up a Le Creuset saucepan with one hand.

In particular, do not try to pick up a Le Creuset saucepan in one hand when it has recently boiled water in it.

And even more importantly, do not then drop that Le Creuset saucepan and chuck that recently boiled water all over yourself.

It hurt. Lots.

Zzzzzzz........

On Monday night, I got to sleep just fine. Then I woke up at 3am and couldn't get back to sleep so got up at 4am and started working on the Board minutes.

Last night I couldn't get to sleep and it was 3am before I finally dropped off.

As I'm an 8 hours of sleep a night kind of girl, 8 hours sleep in the last 48 hours might just mean that today gets a bit fraught.

They remember

Lest we Forget

Remembrance Day

For every red poppy
That grows in the field
Marks the bravery of men
That the battle did kill

For every soldier
That lay down his life
He left behind
A family, a life

For every red poppy
That sways in the breeze
Remember the men
Who died for our peace.

By Vicky Poxon (13)

A Girl Night In

OH has gone out with the boys so I cooked myself my favourite dinner (which OH hates) and watched my favourite film.....I defy anyone to watch Steel Magnolias and not ball their eyes out.

Only one thing wrong....I forgot to get in the chocolate *slaps self for being so remiss*

Deck the halls.....

...I've just had my first mince pie of the year. It's all downhill from here really, isn't it!? 46 days to Christmas and counting. If I were reading this blog I'd probably want to shoot me for reminding me of that.

All gone very quiet

Nothing terribly exciting is happening at the moment. OH is cracking on with stuff at the cottage but it's mainly repairing the rotten floor and other little bits and pieces that don't seem to have much to show for them but are important nonetheless. The electrician turned up, went away again and we've only seen him for a day since. To be fair, he's having some health problems and his girlfriend was attacked by a group of hoodies last night.....not a very nice thing to have happen. The cooker and hob have been delivered and seem to be taking up inordinate amounts of room so they are going to keep getting in the way and I dare say I shall be cursed roundly before much longer!

Taps

My taps have arrived and they are each wrapped in their own jersey-cotton drawstring bag....how classy is that!?

Bang flippin' Bang

Last night Wimbledon was under sporadic shelling which rapidly turned into a full-on barrage of explosions. Yes, the fireworks have started in earnest.

I have a love hate relationship with fireworks. I love to see them but I hate them because of the effect they have on Lurcher No.2. Last year he was so scared I honestly thought he was going to have an heart attack he was panting so hard. I use all the natural remedies - Rescue Remedy, Dap diffuser, Valerian drops and, although they help, they certainly don't get rid of his fear completely. Last year we had to get some tranquilisers from the vet and we are having to use them again this year. We've been trying to de-sensitise him with the "Scary Sounds" CD but it's a long haul. This weekend is going to be horrendous.

Cottage up-date: the kitchen, toilet, bathroom sink and associated taps are ordered. The cooker and hob are ordered and I've maxed out the boss's credit card!! A visit to IKEA on Tuesday resulted in the purchase of curtains for the bedroom and several other sundry items that really aren't going to be needed until at least next January...I have my priorities in order you know! I'm also watching a couple of wood-burning stoves on e-bay and tomorrow will hopefully be ordering the fridge freezer.

The only fly in the ointment is that the plumbers aren't arriving until the first week of December, which really does knock everything else back but nothing we can do about that so will have to plan accordingly. Unfortunately my sofas are arriving on 1st December and they're going to be in the way but I have to wait for the manufacturers to ring to see if it's possible to change the delivery date and still get them before Christmas.

Woot!!

Been back to the Royal Marsden this morning for my test results......BACK TO NORMAL, THE CANCER HAS NOT COME BACK!!

They have taken another blood test just to be sure but it's looking like the blip was just that, a blip. They can't explain it but it does apparently happen sometimes for no explicable reason.

Yay!