We've just been for a walk along the beach in Cromer. It's a seaside town in Norfolk (East English coast). As you can see in the picture, we had to wrap up warmly before we went out - it's less than 10 degrees out. :-)
I'm staying with Bruce's family for the week. There's Bruce's folks - John & Gwen, his Grandad & Bruce and I. We're staying in a listed building (built in 1800s) which was super cold when we arrived but has warmed up after leaving the heating on all night. It's a strange house with three stories - kitchen & a family room on ground floor; two bathrooms, a lounge & a bedroom on first floor; and three bedrooms on second floor. I'll keep fit running up and down the stairs. :-)
We're just about to go and have lunch. *big hugz* thinking of everyone.
Merry Christmas from Scotland, dear family! We arrived in Irvine late last night, and after a long lie in, followed by a walk along the snowy beach, we're back in a warm house playing carpet quoits and watching Christmas telly!
Hope everyone is having a good day, we miss you and can't wait to see you soon.
I think I've got the hang of my new gadget enough to send an update. :-) I've got a new phone - pay as you go with internet and unlimited texts if you topup each month. It's one of the things I'm doing to save money.
I've just finished my 14th day working at IOP headquarters. well, 13th and a half. today was super-quiet - most people have been on holiday this week. Unfortunately I only have enough leave to cover the compulsory days between Christmas and New Year, so I had to work Christmas Eve.
I guess this is part of why it doesn't feel like the festive season for me. We have a tree up at home but none of us will be there for Christmas, so there are only a couple of sad little presents underneath. We were going to have a family celebration last Sunday but Royal Mail was slow so we didn't do pressies, just had a Sunday roast. Tasty, but not Christmassy!
I'm currently eating lunch at the train station, waiting to head to Wolverhampton for Christmas with Bruce & his fam. It's my first English Christmas so I'm hoping it snows! I made mini puds & yummy slice last night - without copha cos I couldn't find the english equivalent. So the slice didn't cut very well but it should still be tasty. ;-)
I hope everyone has a great day tomorrow. Thinking of everyone!
Lots of love n hugz,
-d-
Great to see Damien, Cheryl and Oscar this afternoon. Nana was here so she had a cuddle. After dodging illness for the year at kinder, last night the gastro wog hit me so I kept my distance. Hopefully it will be gone by tomorrow. Tonight is a BBQ for our Christmas work function so I'm not happy to be feeling queasy. Also had a visit from Janet and Kevin. Uncle Ray is deteriorating so they were called up yesterday. On a happier note, the Probus dinner on Monday went well as did the Rotary one on Wednesday. Santa visited two more kinder groups on Tuesday and Wednesday. He did a great job despite the heat 38 on Wednesday. Today Dad went for the ultrasound. He still has pain but will now have to wait for diagnosis and treatment options. Congratulations to Carolynn and Jared who both received awards from school.
There is more on facebook and I'm getting all my friends to put their pics up too. It was a great night, we won belle and beau of the ball, "belle and male belle" is what they called it.
Good luck to Dayna as she moves to London. You do remember that your gggrandfather was born there so you're a local. Hope it all goes smoothly and the new job is everything fun and not frustrating.
Okay, it's taken me many hours over the last few weeks, but I've finally finished the new Bandwagon Header. I wanted to update it with the new members of our extended family, so I figured why not just update everyone as well.
I'll also separate out all the different people so you can grab yourself or reorder or remix them.. My plan is to do it now but it'll depend on how Ossie goes, I've just put him to bed for a nap :)
So what do you think of the new header?
Edit: Okay, here are the files.
If you want to remix the header, grab these ones. They're all transparent PNGs with a background the exact size as the header bg and everything placed as it is in the header.. so you should be able to stack the pngs in layers in a photoshop file and then work with each person independently. Adam Carolynn Chez Dad Me and Oscar Daria Dayna Dee Glenn Jared Lisa Mum Nana Trinity
I've also put together massive (1000x1500) transparent pngs for each person, in case you just wanted yourself (for avatars etc) which are here
And finally I thought if you wanted to do a calendar rather than using the long horizontal version you might like the more compact tee version, so I've made a big (2880x2100) white background jpg of that for you. It doesn't have the text the tee has.
Yes, I'm at that exciting stage of the year again...Exam time. Our exams go for a week but over two weeks (yes it's strange to put the weekend in the middle of them). I'm not looking forward to exams but im definatly looking forward to the formal. Its on the 2nd of December, I already have my dress (I made it) and all my friends and I can't stop talking about it.
I finally got around to uploading some photos today; you can find them on Flickr (with a couple retroactively added to our last post). I've also got a new phone (an Android phone, whee, it's "wik" (wicked, good) for all you non-geeks, nyah-nyah) and so have a few ... creative ... digital-filtered photos from around London.
One filter makes photos look like a polaroid, and gives me a manly, straggly beard
So we had the beer festival in Norwich (Norfolk) the other weekend: a massive, Hogwart's-like hallway under a vaunted, cathedral ceiling filled with barrels and barrels of delicious beers. Traditional ales, lagers, stouts, ciders; there was something for everyone (well, everyone who likes beer I guess), and all paid for with little paper tokens we bought when we arrived.
You'll be a pinball-wizard, Harry
With too many different types to possibly try all of, I tended to base my decisions on the name of the brewery and/or the beer itself. So after a Red Dragon ale I had a Jack The Ripper, a Hobgoblin, a Pirate, a Neverwinter Nights (confession: I'm making them up). We stayed in a local hotel, had breakfast downstairs and headed back to London with Chris and Tina.
We also saw an amateur production of Jack The Ripper (The Musical) -- yes, the same one I was in so many years ago (ours was better :-D). It was in a tiny little theatre built under London Bridge (literally under -- in a gloomy tomb, very appropriate for the show and probably more spooky than the acting).
Another filter: "toy camera".
Yesterday we visited "Befnal Green", our old 'hood in the East End. Took the bus into Liverpool Street, walked through Spitalfields (Jack The Ripper again!) and up Brick Lane; street markets and food stalls and crowds of too-cool hipsters scared us into the straightest bar with the campest name: The Birdcage. We sat with a bunch of old rummies and watched Arsenal play Wolverton ... then finished our drinks (I had a Fosters!! Tee hee!) and ran away to watch some fireworks.
The number of people were intense! After 30 minutes of the fireworks we thought we could beat the crowds, and so ran away to the nearest bus-stop. Unfortunately, no bus came and eventually we were walking along with the herd looking for another way home. Turned out to be another bus stop, then a late night taxi back here -- our planned early night after a few nice fireworks turned into a gruelling trek across the urban jungle towards the safety of our temporary nest!
The punchline: we got home, ordered some dinner from a local curry house (yes, lazy, but nothing in the 'fridge because we've been so darn busy) and then settled in with a tasty glass of Australian red. Waited for food, waited some more, waited, waited, waited. Eventually we got through to the curry-house who informed us that a power-cut had shutdown their kitchen, so it was no dinner for us. We searched through the cupboards, and ended up with popcorn for dinner...
Hi all, Just returned from a weekend in Shepparton to celebrate Josie's 40th. She had organised well and had some games(naming TV series from the 70's and 80's and a song and artist from 1969 to 2009) as well as a jukebox and disco lights. Cleaned most up as the evening progressed then went back to finalise this morning. Later went to Cheap as Chips for a little shopping with Denise and Mum. All of Josi Very warm here again with 32 and 34 (at least) and hotter in Shep. The next week promises more of the same so the air con is getting well used. All of Josie's children gave up their beds for the visitors. ( and Robbie ended up out on the couch) News from Berrigan via Val Loomes- Grace Harvie passed away last Wednesday. We were sorry we missed Charles's christening. Waiting for Lisa to tell us how that went, but she's at a Tupperware party. Laundry to do and Foxie wants some tea. Hope all is good for all of you.
