wagwaan?

This'll have to be a short one...

Phew! Sunday evening and I haven't seen the time go by! Yesterday I spent the day doing chores, and sweating in a very un-ladylike fashion. Today, we were talking about the bedroom and the mess, and all of a sudden there we were, moving furniture, taking stuff down to be dumped, and sweating (again) in a very un-lady- and gentlemanlike fashion!
It would take too long at this late hour to recount exactly what went on, but my bed is on the opposite wall to before, the yukky brown carpet with lino underlay has been taken up, the Mac has come up from the basement to be installed in its own home-office cubby on our landing... and the ironing has all been done. Yes, that WAS my weekend "off"!
When I was downstairs getting the grocery delivery sorted, the boyf had ripped up all the carpet and this is what I found when I went back upstairs: he'd decided to get out half the candles I have in the bedroom and light them. You must picture the scene as it was prior to the clearout - this chest of drawers (which I got at Oxfam last year) was piled high with my junk, as it had become a bit of a dumping ground. So this was a much prettier vision, I can tell you!

 

See the floorboards? I'm going to paint them white (at last... some day). And I love the way the chest of drawers is all battered. It's lived a bit, you can tell. The little shelf thingy that's standing on top of it needs to be hung on the wall, so I'm fluttering the eyelashes a bit, to see if he'll take the bait. He's handy with a drill...

Anyway, tomorrow remind me to post a pic of the beautiful necklace he bought me yesterday. Aww, he's such a sweetheart...

Hope you all had a good weekend. Nite nite!

Safe and sound, and other fun things

I finally got an email yesterday!  Until I got that, I was wondering if everything was going well, but of course she's fine. She said the flight was long and uncomfortable -must be those long legs of hers- but she was able to watch two films. On arrival they were taken to the hotel and she shared a room with 3 girls. They all went out to Taco Bell at 9.30pm because they were hungry... WHAT? Are they NOT FEEDING my BABY??! (picture me clutching my heart in a dramatic manner).  That's already two things she's experienced that I haven't: a transatlantic flight and a Taco Bell.  Anyway, you can read all about it on her new blog if you feel like so inclined.
This week is particularly tough because it's the week of all the monthly Executive meetings, and it's glorious sunshine outside so I keep looking out longingly and dreaming of the evening when I'll be able to go and sit in the garden with an ice cold Diet Coke. So far, that's not happened because I got home late both nights. Damn shame!
To keep our spirits up, the girls in the office have decreed that we are going to learn to jive or lindy hop next Tuesday after work, which will be interesting.  I'm glad the joints are behaving at the moment but it could be a totally different story next Wednesday morning! I might also have to invest in a heavy-duty sports bra. Sorry for the overshare; I'm just saying.... 
So - I hope this post finds you in good spirits and full of the joys of summer. Back soon!

And she's off!

This morning, after a night spent tossing and turning (Claire) and getting up to pee (me - sorry for the overshare!), the day dawned nice and bright and warm.  Claire was up and in the shower by 7 am I think. She was too wound up to eat breakfast, but once I'd had my original Ready Brek we checked all her luggage, passport, ticket etc, and got a cab to the airport. Yes, we decided the treck to the bus stop with heavy bags was just a tad too far for comfort.  We went via the countryside to avoid any traffic on the M25 and ended up only taking 30 minutes, which was great.  Of course, I whipped out my phone to take  pictures, to Claire's disgust.  Here's Terminal 3

And Claire trying to avoid the camera as she walked in

She has a flat ticket/money pouch on her belt, her camera bag and messenger bag as hand luggage, and a huuuuge red rolling holdall, as well as a spotty holdall with her sleeping bag in it. I managed to get a bungee cord thingy to attach the smaller bag to the rolling one - it is very light but this avoids her having to carry too many bags. We checked them in separately and I was relieved to see that the bigger bag was well under the regulation 23kgs allowance!  Of course, she hates this picture (sorry Claire!), but I had to post it anyway ;)
We went inside the terminal and there were loads of red t-shirted CampAmerica counsellors checking in. Most of them seemed to be with other counsellors, but we saw one or two singletons with their "mummy and daddy", so I'm sure Claire didn't feel out of place.   There were plenty of staff on hand to point you in the right direction for the automatic check-in machines, complete with scales. You have to insert your passport, photo side first, and the machine scans it and comes up with your boarding pass and airline ticket. Very nifty.  I usually check my boss in online every time he flies, but we didn't have the option as she's on a group booking. The online drop-off desks had much shorter queues, it has to be said, so next time you travel I strongly advise you to check in online, ok?

After all the paperwork was done, we had aaaaages of time, so we went upstairs to get a bit to eat. Well, I did - Claire still couldn't eat a thing. I know what that's like as it happens to me all the time when I'm travelling. Anyway, she used the time to fill out her landing cards, and when we were ready we went along to passport control. We had a big hug before Claire went off with nary a backward glance, through passport control on her way to her big adventure.
I must admit, as I turned to go I felt a bit of a lump in my throat, and a very strange feeling came over me. I couldn't be happier for her, or more proud, but it's still strange to see your "baby" (she'll shoot me!) go off on her first big grown-up adventure.
Claire has started a blog that she hopes to update from Camp. She has to put the pictures of the kids online for the parents to see, so hopefully she will get computer access from time to time! If you are interested, subscribe to Claire at Camp and read all about it.
It's been an absolute scorcher today, and I'm looking out of the window at the beautiful sunshine and blue sky. I really don't want to go to work tomorrow. Gah, just thinking about the commute is depressing me. That's a slight exaggeration, but you get the idea!

Hope you have all had a lovely weekend. Toodle pip!

New banner...

...in honour of Wimbledon fortnight which starts on Monday.  It really IS summer then!!

Last minute prep

Claire's out at work with the little French kiddies, the boyf has gone up to London and I'm sitting here after a treck to the doctor's with a nice home-made latte in my John Lewis spotty thermos mug - a steal at £1.50 in the clearance bin...

The trip to the doctors was to get a repeat prescription for my meds and to show him the strange rash I have. Turns out it's vascular and it may mean I have to stop the treatment for arthritis; he has to run it by the Professor at Guy's Hospital first. I feel fine and my (very regular) blood tests are fine too, so it's probably nothing but a side-effect.
Anyway, I'm waiting for Claire to get home so I can see what she's packing and make sure she doesn't forget anything. She hasn't even started yet. Oh wait, she's STARTED but in her teenage way that means she's put a pile of clothes on top of the bag she's taking and reckons that's ok.  I have just done a wash and found several cardigans and tops in there that I think she might want to have with her for cooler evenings, so we'll see!  We also have to book her Hostel in NY for when she's finished camp, and we have to work out where the bus stop is for tomorrow morning because last time we went to Heathrow they had GONE AND MOVED IT and we had to order a last minute taxi or we'd have missed our flight. A bit of a heart-stopper that was, I can tell you.  Not having a car can sometimes be a right pain, but luckily there is a direct bus to Heathrow from where we live. It's a nice comfy bus too, more like a coach actually. Now if we could only work out where the nearest stop is, we'd be fine!
Claire's check-in time is 12:45 but I discovered yesterday that her flight doesn't actually leave until 3 hours later. What fun!  Hopefully, there will be plenty of other people in Camp America t-shirts at check-in so she has people to hang out with.
After that, I can come home and collapse on the sofa and look forward to a quiet 3 weeks before our Russian language student comes to stay. Didn't I tell you I rented out Claire's room as soon as she was out the door? Hey, I've got to make a living!
Oh, and here's a random catch-up picture that I forgot to post. When the Tube strike was on, I had to walk from Euston to King's Cross to catch a bus, and I passed the British Library which I didn't even know was there... I really should go up to London more often at weekends. Anyway, I liked the entrance and the statue just inside so I stood there among the throng of pedestrians rushing by and took this picture on my phone.

Garden visitors, and other pictures

I've got the day off today, because it's Claire's last full day before she goes to the States. I had errands to run, but when I looked out of the window I saw the visitors my neighbours told me had taken up residence at the bottom of our garden. You can only really see the garden from the window by the computer downstairs, and from Claire's bedroom upstairs, and when you are downstairs you can't see what's lurking in the (rather long) grass. But today I saw them. Foxes!  I went out in the garden and saw two foxes sunning themselves in the grass. One of them just looked at me, but the smaller, more timid one, took one look and ran to the safety of the brambles. I think maybe it's a mother and baby? Anyway, this is what I saw... First of all, yes, the garden is a mess. No pretty flowers left but lots of greenery. The ginger ball of fur in the foreground, looking up at me, is Lyle. The ginger ball of fur at the other end of the garden? A fox.  I'd been outside at this point and scared one of them away.

 

 

Then the other one came back, and as the sun was out, they were rolling around seeming very relaxed. It was like watching a couple of pets, it was so sweet (although I know they are wild, so not THAT sweet in reality). They're still out there now... and from what I can see it definitely looks like a mum and its cub.

See? They're totally rolling around, basking in the sun. 

Then, I think they heard a noise...

I've had great fun all day, looking out of the window periodically to see what they are up to.  I checked out the RSPCA website and they say there is no evidence that foxes and cats don't get on. Night vision film has shown foxes and cats ignoring each other. If anything, cats will scare away foxes...  They say if you want to discourage foxes, don't leave food out (we don't anyway), clear back overgrown bits of the garden (um, okay) and plant prickly plants (the place is overrun with blackberries anyway!).  So I think we'll leave them for a bit. Until they become a nuisance, anyway. Apparently, the neighbour's nice flat well-mown lawn makes for a very attractive toilet!  He told me they live in my garden and use his as a loo, so I'm not sure how happy he is to have them there! 

So, on to my next little project. I have been practicing with Claire's 1.8 lens, because she'll be taking it with her (sob) so I'll have to either get my own or wait until she returns...  I want to make some more cards, and here are a couple of outtakes. They feature French Fancies which were my darling grandpa's favourite. Towards the end of his life, he used to say he had nothing to live for, and when he refused even a French Fancy I started to worry :(  

 

Hungry yet?! 

That's all for today. I've got a couple of 18 yr olds due home soon, and I haven't done half what I set out to do...

Not a lazy Sunday

Up bright and early, but the two girls were already in front of the TV, watching the extras on the Band of Brothers DVDs. After Roisin left, Claire and I went into town to finish the shopping. I think we've got everything done now; there's all the little stuff you don't think of, such as an insulated drinking bottle; a hat for the girl who won't wear one; a travel organiser that slips on your belt and keeps your travel docs/passport/money safe; a padlock for her bag (not so much for when it's checked in but rather to keep things safe when at camp); a UK/USA adapter plug; a camera bag (glad she has a staff discount for that one LOL); travel sickness pills; etc etc.  Phew!  I asked Claire if it was exciting to be buying lots of stuff, but she just had a nervous tummy at the thought of next week...
We also went back to Millets and bought the (in)famous 3 season sleeping bag, deftly avoiding the guy with the ponytail who turned out to be the manager. They didn't have any ladies' ones, and they only had the green display sleeping bag, but it'll do. Claire doesn't seem to feel the cold anyway.
We traipsed home, tired and hot, but glad to have done a good job. I sat in the garden with a cuppa and a book, and later I had a lovely bath.
This evening I've done some very important work: I have scanned all Claire's documents (passport, visa, medical report etc) and sent them to her email inbox as well as printing out spare copies. I hope to have covered all our bases that way. I often scan stuff and send it to my inbox because if the computer ever dies at least I'll be able to access important stuff via my email server. 
I was led to reflect on this when my colleague's fiancee was here last week: she hadn't kept all the emails her fiance had sent her, because you don't do you? Well, she had his Blackberry and although she could access his Gmail on that without a password, the company are going to have to cancel the account because it links directly into the office servers. They are happy for her to keep the actual device as a sentimental memento of her fiance, but when that account ceases, she won't able able to access his emails via another PC - the family have been unable to crack his password. It's not something you think about, but seeing her despair got me thinking about how to prevent such a thing.  It turns out that you can write to Google with various pieces of documentation to access the account of a deceased person, but it's a faff. I tried looking online to see what's out there, and the most interesting thing seems to be a service called Deathswitch (I know, not very user-friendly!). You can see what it's about here, and an article about it here.  I'm seriously thinking about signing up. I don't see it as morbid, I see it as practical, and I'm nothing if not practical!!  
Anyway, it's really late and we still have to email CampAmerica with some stuff, so I'm off :)

More shopping

What a beautiful day it was today. I was up and out early, because SOMEONE had to go to the GP's to pick up Claire's medical certificate for camp... guess who that someone was? Claire was at French and wouldn't be back before they closed, so I put the headphones on and strode off down the hill to the surgery, picked up the certificate and came back the same way. I was sweating by the time I got back, but I'm so glad I had that steroid jab recently, because my Achilles tendons haven't hurt me at all since (touchwood!).  It's about a 45 minute return trip, uphill all the way back. After doing a couple of loads of washing I got lunch ready and then when Claire was back we headed on out to the shops. We bagged ourselves some bargains: we still had to get a white outfit for Friday night dinners at camp, and we found a lovely white linen-look skirt and fitted long sleeved tee-shirt for £8 and £6 respectively. We also picked up a nice black swimsuit for under £4 (!) and some cropped jogging bottoms for nightwear. Well, Claire has several pairs of pyjamas with very skimpy shorts, so she wanted something to slip on before bed and when she gets up in the mornings. You can't prance around impressionable young kids with shorts half way up your bottom can you?! 
We then went to Millets to look at the sleeping bags. Oh dear - the sales assistant, a not-so-young man with a ponytail, was so condescending when we asked about the 3-season sleeping bags, which is what the supply list stipulates. Did you know that women lose more heat from their bodies, so they need more insulation? Also women's sleeping bags are wider at the hips and narrower at the shoulders!  He said we'd have to spend "considerably more, around £90" for a decent ladies' sleeping bag, or she'd be cold at night. Oh dear :(   Sorry Claire, you're going to have to wear all your clothes if you end up camping out!  We have no idea why she needs a sleeping bag, because we believe she'll be sleeping indoors, but what do we know? We've never done this before!!  I mean, I know it's called "camp" but we thought this place had proper dorms... I hope we can get away with a 3 season men's sleeping bag because I don't want to pay more than £30 for it, and that's the price of the one we've seen. Fingers crossed eh?  Luckily, he walked away before we remembered we wanted to look at torches. We picked up a mini wind-up one and took it to the lady at the till. She said that if we were planning on buying something else, even a Kendal Mint Cake "for 60p", then we could have the larger size wind-up torch for half price, i.e. £7.50 instead of £15. What a bargain!  I chose the chocolate-covered version of the mint cake, and had a nibble of it tonight. I haven't had any for ages - it's like a rather thick After Eight. Yum but ever so sweet. The torch is really cool, too, and the LED bulbs are really bright.
Tonight, Claire and her friend Roisin are having a girly movie night; we've had Marie-Antoinette, and now they are watching Moulin Rouge. Wayne's gone off to bed (he has very long days with his commute to Oxford at the moment), and I'm sitting here with the tumble dryer on, waiting for his clothes to dry...
What a shame - a picture-less post. I'll have to make up for it tomorrow!  Night Night xx

So excited!

Oh my goodness - Claire's postcards have ALL BUT SOLD OUT!   There are two packs left, but I think my sister wanted to buy some, so Steph? You'd better contact me quickly :)   We shall be ordering more though, so never fear.

 

I took a picture of them this morning in their cellophane packaging with the Cath Kidston stickers. Too cute! The funny thing is, while hawking them around the office one of the girls told me her friend did CampAmerica 5 years ago. Turns out, she went to the very same camp that Claire is going to... and that she made some very, very rich friends, who let her have the keys to their apartment in New York whenever she wants to visit. I think Claire is going to have the most amazing time in New York!

On a more sombre note, last night I attended the Mass for Louis. The church in Leicester Square is absolutely beautiful, quite modern with a domed ceiling. I met his family and they really are exceptional, dignified people. Today they came to the office to sort out some paperwork, so I also met his fiancee. When I read the tributes to him I was amazed at how much he had managed to pack into his short life, including a stint in Afghanistan, taking part in a rescue mission just off Stromboli, diving and trekking, kite-surfing and climbing Mont Blanc... the list goes on. He was a very devout young man, and, call me fanciful, but I get the feeling he wasn't meant to be long on this Earth, so he made the most of every second and every opportunity. His father even said his death is having far-reaching repercussions already - without going into detail it's just bringing up so many contacts and good things are happening because of it. They are so proud of their son, and rightly so. It all made me feel very humble because I don't know how dignified I would be under the circumstances.

Well, that's all for today. Got a busy weekend ahead, sorting Claire's stuff out before her trip, so I'll sign off now.

So exciting!!

At lunchtime, the guy from the postroom came round with two parcels for little old moi:  The first, SO EXCITING, was Claire's postcards. They look AWESOME and some people who were in the office and saw them have already bought some off me!

  

Not very clear (bad light in this office) but this is what the back looks like. They are super shiny, and they look really professional.  I'm really pleased because tonight there is a Mass in London for Louis, and I was able to show these to his best friend while we were preparing the order of service, as we are donating some of the money to charity.(scroll down to the bottom if you open that link).

 

The second parcel was my gorgeous pink "Keep Calm and Carry On" poster. I love it. Can't wait to frame it and get it up on the wall in my (soon to be decorated) house...

I got it from this place, and they were really quick with their delivery. Great service.

Apart from that, the only news these days is the Tube strike in London. Yesterday it took me 3 hours to get to work. Last night was pretty good the other way. I waited till 6pm and there were far fewer people travelling. Also, the Northern Line was in fact open, which was great, because it made getting back to Euston much easier (my alternate route when I have to get the train not the Tube).  This morning I left a bit late and got the bus to the Junction instead of walking for half an hour, and then it was a straightforward journey, so a lot better than yesterday. Having said that, there is hardly anyone in the office up this end, as my boss and several other directors are travelling; one of my colleagues has gone to the Isle of Wight festival, and my other colleague has left early. I'm all on my lonesome!

Well, that's it for today. I'll leave you with the order buttons so you don't have to go searching for them. And don't forget to pass it on (please specify flowers, sweets or mixed on your order).

Type of card

Post-It Cards £5.00Notelets £7.50Birthday Cards £10.00