Season of Excess...

... excess visiting people, excess drinking, excess gift giving and receiving though mostly just an excess of eating!
Has been a fabulous few days seeing friends, welcome back to the UK Miss A!, endless nattering and indulging in some delicious foods and drinks!
It's certainly the time of year to sit round in a warm room, all snuggly like, and just spend time with the ones you love.
Tis a shame that I couldn't whisk the folks from New Zealand across, though if I did I'd have to stack and rack them! Missing you all and the telephone is just no compensation at all!
All I can say is that I'm pleased that I'm starting swimming 2nd of January... cause I'm sure looking like a Mrs Claus!

People...

... getting to see them from a different angle is always a good thing in my thinking!
At this time of year every single person in the company, from the Receptionists to the CEO, are out in the off-trade (that's supermarkets etc) ensuring that our wines and spirits are in the face of consumers, well not literally of course... well just about not!
Means I've been dealing with the BWS (beer, wine & spirit) department, customers on the floor and travelling local buses!
I'd have to say that the most interesting, and annoying, are the bus types. Since I've now turned into an overland train commuter, I no longer have the close up bus encounters that I used to. Sad to say that the kids are still obnoxious, the pram pushers still do not know how to collapse a pram, and the elderly are their usual complaining selves. I know that very stereotypical, so tough!
Probably the most harassed is the poor BWS lady at the store I'm 'looking' after over this mad festive time! Considering the amount of alcohol that is currently flying off the shelves, she still has all her hair and looking mostly relaxed. Not her fault if instead of the 23 cases of stock I would like to put out on the shelves only materialises as 3 due to the stock system having a fit and not ordering anything!
I'd have to say that the customers in the store are the most funny... do I know where the gift bags are, which size is more value for money (99.99999999999999% of the time it's the larger size!), and is this brandy darker than this one???
It's amazing to think that at this time of year we sell 40 to 50% of the year's total for some of the bands! Also quite amazing to see the picture of the CEO pushing out a trolley of stock, in his lovely red fleece, though the cynic in me really wants to say staged, Staged, STAGED!
All I can say is that it's great fun, and thank heavens I do not have to do it every day, all year!

Helper or Hinderer?

Changing the bed today, well it's the usual for a Saturday here, and Miss Yo Yo decided that she wanted to help.
Now a cat's help is not the same as a person's help, that's for sure!
Was trying to put on the satin sheets (so much warmer in cold weather compared to flanelette) and Miss Yo Yo decided it was time for some slipping and sliding - obviously trying to smooth out the sheets of course! Only trouble was that she thought that my hands were in the way so decided that annihilation of said hands would be great fun! This also entailed running up the stairs, quick slide across the floor and then jump onto the sheets and wheeeeeee, spinning across the bed!
All I can say is that it took three times as long as usual and she looked ever so angelic in playing! So here's a picture... no comment!

Gorgeous!

What a fabulous autumnal day! Went up to London today (feels so strange saying that after living there for 7 years) and it just reminded me what I love so much about this country I've adopted as my home for now.
It's was a brisk 6 degrees Celsius, or 42.8 degrees Fahrenheit for those that way inclined, clear blue skies and that autumn sunlight that has a golden glow on everything. That light that makes it look like it's a real hot day and everyone should be at the beach!
People were dressed from full hats, gloves, scarf, coat and boots to jeans and a t-shirt (obviously visiting from Greenland!), and every one of them seemed to have a smile on their face. Was it due to thinking that yes, I'm getting the Christmas shopping done, or wow, I'm actually in London and look, there's the London Eye and over there the Houses of Parliament! Whatever it may have been, it was beautiful to see!
If only every day was like that!

Umbrella Wrestling!

Interesting walk through the squalling rain to the train station today...
Had the umbrella blown inside out three times, had to wrestle it into the wind to stop being wrenched out my hands (yes, hands, had to use both to hold it!), as well as leaning into the wind to stop being blown backwards!
I guess I should have just given up and got rain and wind blown, trouble is the hair is now long enough to be turned into Rastafarian rats tails that are virtually impossible to get out! Perhaps I should carry one of those little plastic hats you see little old ladies wearing, then I wouldn't need to do a Mary Poppins impression and get blown away with an umbrella!
Bet the arms ache tomorrow too!

Crikey!

Amazing winds here last night, over 80 kilometres per hour! Quite unusual for England!
So apart from the noise last night, woke up to the footpath side fench snapped from one end and then the fench between the smei-detached completely annihilated.
There goes having the bathroom done!
Winds meant to be continuing today... hopefully it wont bring down anything else... at least the power wasn't cut though!

It's Official...

Autumn / Winter are gone and Spring / Summer is here!
Well that's according to all the catalogues that are currently coming through the door!
Why on earth would I be buying clothes for warmer weather now... I could shrink or expand in size! The current Spring / Summer clothes I have would do me for any trips I decided to take to warmer climates... it's not like I'm up with fashion. In fact some of the clothes I have have not only been in and out of fashion, they're back in again!
I just don't get this future, future now thing that society is doing, why not live for now, if we don't we're certainly going to miss it!