Reflexologist in the Family!

Turns out that Miss Yo Yo has been taking secret reflexology lessons and has now decided to try it on me!
In the middle of a long bank holiday weekend and thought I'd have a bit of a lay in before facing the world. Do you think I was allowed to? Do you think that becuase it's the weekend and I'm not up at the usual 07:00 that I can have a little extra sleep time? No!
First is was placing the front paws on my arm, leaning into it, giving that dead arm effect... well I just moved the offending limb under the covers and that dealt with that! Then she tried the old front paws near the top of the thigh leaning into that, the pressure steadily getting more and more painful. So rolled over to avoid that one!
Miss Yo Yo then tried the get under the covers, sit on the stomach whilst leaning onto the chest & I would have to say she scored a bulls eye, or is that eyes, on that one!
Now if I can only get her walk up and down my back, I think we can come to a happy medium!

Entertaining!

Love it, absolutely love playing the role of hostess! Thinking up what I'm going to serve, and the alcohol to go with it... though considering my collection, it's durn near impossible not to find a food/alcohol match! Then heading off round the deli's, little grocers and if need be the big supermarkets (surprisingly enough the supermarket has the yummiest sun dried tomato bread!) to buy all the ingredients. Mostly try to do this the day before, though things like blackberries and bread are best purchased day of eating here!
On the big day it's all go, quick house clean and then getting low down and dirty with my hands in the food making it all... just love doing that, so relaxing and feeling like acomplishing something from scratch. Though if I can get something that saves a little time then I have no qualms about 'cheating'.... take ready rolled pastry for example, a blessing! Especially when I'm making home made sausage rolls as well as a tomato and mozarella tart! I do have to say though that this time I surpassed myself with a baked mousse cake (200g of chocolate and 5 eggs!) and have already been pestered with the receipe twice!
Of course the best part is sharing it with the guests, seeing the looks on their faces and the compliments my handy work receives. Don't do it often enough and I think that's something that ought to change... though with them living in London it is rather a hike to Woking, especially when four of us make our way through nine bottles of champagne and wine!

G.O.M!

Or spelt out Grumpy Old Men! They certainly need to take a chill pill and relax or will all be dropping like flies hit by Raid!
Why the rant, you may ask? Did the weekly shop and managed to leave my debit card at home... had wallet just managed not to have swapped card from one bag to the other, doh me! Sure the queues may have been 3 deep and it was a wet day out, though no excuse for abusing the poor check-out assistant! If anyone was to be abused it was myself for being a total ditzy blonde and I told him as such.
Cheekie old git said "sorry, did not hear a word you said"... well one thing for it, looked him up and down and said "no, you would not", cocking one eyebrow in that special way I'm told I have, turned my back to him and apologised to the young lass for the lack of manners in the old. At least it bought a smile to her I'm going to burst into tears anytime now face!
Guess who'll be double checking their cash situation before heading out to shop again!

Workmates

Lunched and theatre matineed with some ladies from work yesterday, and an ex-workmate. Always a great surprise, and absolute delight, when I do this. The conversation flowed over delicious food and good wine and only about 5% of the conversation was about work!
The matinee was brilliant... we went to see Avenue Q. If you've not been to see this yet, or even heard of it, it's about a bunch of people / puppets living on a street very much like Sesame Street, and singing about life... that everyone's a little bit raciest, the internet is for porn and have hardcore puppet sex on stage. Everyone seemed to walk out with a smile on their face and talking about it excitedly. If you're one of those folks that like something a bit off field then I'd say go!
A few of us then carried on for some more beverages and conversation... so much better than heading home, slouching in front of the tv with a dvd and eating junk food!

Muted

Strange coming out of the office today with just the sound of road traffic. Normally there's an underlying rumbling that erupts into a plane going overhead about every 30 to 60 seconds.
Instead of the usual 10 - 15 planes going over me on the way to the train station there were only two! What a change it made to the noise levels in that area.
At home there may be the odd plane that comes over, heck I think wherever you live in Greater London (and even probably the whole of the UK), at some stage you'll have these great winged metal beasts interupting your thoughts.
They're a fabulous way to move quickly round the planet... at least I don't have to spend a month on a ship getting to New Zealand to visit the family, or taking numerous little flights jumping from place to place, or even driving overland and taking a ship at the salty water bits! Though it'd certainly be a fabulous way to check out all the countries on my to see list!
Only trouble with flying is the media, eco, and even government frenzie on the effect flying has on the environment, let alone the twice the general populatuon incidence of melanoma skin cancers in flight crew!
All I can say is hurry up with a fully functioning transporter, then it'll be Scotty, beam me up!


PS: you can check out your flight's effect on the environment at www.chooseclimate.org/flying/mapcalc.html
My England to NZ journey needed 997kg fuel. Which is as much as the electricity used by 25 60W lightbulbs lit continuously for one year, or the food eaten by 13 people in one year in the UK. Oh my.

$^&*&%^$"£%!!!!!!!

Apparently it's Christmas shopping time already!
Yes, you read right... Christmas..... shopping..... time...... NOW!
What on earth is Harrods thinking of, there are still 139 days to go to the big 25th celebrations for goodness sakes! Apparently it's because tourists are asking for Christmas decorations, whoop de do da, they could at least wait until November! What's the fun in buying them now, you need the short days, cold weather, rain and crowds to really make it feel like Christmas shopping, heck even have some snow and jingling bells!
But please, please, please stop this silly season starting in August! It's as bad as being able to buy Easter eggs December 26th!

One Big Sigh...

... to how this world we live in is getting more and more like George Orwell's Ninteen Eighty-Four. Everything is now becoming so covered in red tape the world is looking lobster like, the politically correct brigade have ruined the book industry and health and safety is getting to the stage where we'll be walking round in the big fake blow up sumo suits so we can't get hurt!
Unbelieveably a school has now banned cross-country running, and a council has banned a 100 year plus running tug-o-war competition (one that no one has ever been hurt in either!). Talk about the Nanny State... though no doubt to to the increasingly they looked at me wrong, oh the bus was late, I grazed my knee so give me millions of pounds in compensation society that we live in.
Come on people stand up and OWN your lives, your mistakes, and your hurts!

Arrggghhh!

The great bathroom suite hunt has begun. Yes, all those of you who know how much I hate the 1985 salmon suite, lime green walls, wallpaper dado band and blue carpet (who on earth puts carpet in a wet, damp, humid, little room?!) room that is the bathroom in the house!
Visited all the usual DIY stores, even looked on line and yes, have found a bath that is perfect, a toilet that is perfect and a basin that is perfect, trouble is not all in the same suite! If I had oodles of money, then all three could be purchased and the non-wanted ones sold on... trouble is, have very little money to splurge on it, and it is just a first home so a swanky set is not required. Just one that that is not salmon! White, white, white, gimme white!
Once that's achieved then it's the whole well what tiles to get, where to put the tiles - the whole bathroom, just round the bath, half the room, no tiles at all and trust it to bathroom paint, what paint colour to choose, and then it's the bathroom cabinet, how big, mirrored front, have it chrome or wood or plastic or painted something, or could the cabinet and basin actually be one unit?
Gawd my head hurts!