Lazy Sunday.

I have missed church, not waking up until 9.37am.
This is due to a disturbed night, brought on by a number of factors:
We stood up all day yesterday.
We were decorating until about 7.00pm. I did the cutting & pasting whilst G "hung". We had a snack lunch, which we ate standing in the kitchen.
I think that this may have been because we were sticky &/or we didn't want to sit down & get comfortable.
I have to admit to having taken an hour out mid-afternoon to go to the hairdressers (sitting).
I now have a "classic bob", which looked great at the time & feels good.
Anyway I had cramp in the front of my shins regularly & spent a good part of the night walking around.

We spruced up & went for a meal when the hall papering was finished.
We started at The Bear at Berkswell, sat in the nearly empty bar for bar service, as the restaurant was full. The drinks were fine, the menus were covered with food,nuts were mostly dust from the bottom of the bag, the roasted field mushroom starters, stuffed with Camembert with a crispy herb topping were tepid. I doubt that they had time to become familiar with the inside of an oven.
I couldn't eat mine, so sat with it for 20 minutes or so awaiting the main course, then gave up, took it back, explained it's shortcomings & that we were losing the will to live & would like to go home, which we did, money refunded & apologies made.
We ordered a takeaway from The Polash, sauntered around the byways of Coventry whilst it cooked, & ate a prawn puri & chicken dhansak at some very late hour.
G is filling (I am surprised we have any doorways let alone air vents left.
He is an enthusiastic filler!)
G will the paint ceilings.
I am about to start painting the woodwork - only 13 door frames & skirtings, two coats of eggshell on each.
Finished by tea-time then.

TGIF

Well, not really.
All life's a weekend when you retire!
Best alternative for tgif will win a prize - go for it, aj.

Having had no comments for ages, there were 5 in all on the last blog as charity shop donations were considered.
How do you decide , when sorting out,
1) what goes back?
2)what goes in the bin?
3)what goes to the charity shop?
4)what will be worth taking to a car boot sale?
5) Things worth a significant amount that "I'll sell on e-bay" , one day.

I think that too much falls into 1, too little into 2. The garage loft & part of the factory is full of boxes awaiting a fine weekend when we are free to do a car boot, hoping aj can come & help.
I have yet to get up the nerve to get involved with e-bay.
I'm sure that W will say "bin the lot".

Today was a Thomas day. We lunched at M&S following a gentle stroll around the shops during which T was meant to fall asleep. he didn't.
We finally shopped in JS, T holding my hand & the basket on the top of the buggy.
Sadly, the second bottle of wine was the straw that broke the camel's back; the basket fell over the top leaving all of the shopping swimming in a rather nice Australian rose.
The biggest supermarket disaster since Ben stood on a packet of lard in the trolley in 1981 or possibly the dropped strawberry jam at the checkout some years later.
Does W remember the day he ran the full length of JS in Coventry with my trolley, to hide it.
I remember the surprised look on the face of the woman whose trolley he had actually run off with as she selected her cereals.
He was only about 15 at the time, in school uniform.

Well prepared...

Cracks filled, paintwork rubbed down & walls washed.
Not too long before we can start with the painting & papering.
It's not too painful really as all of the rooms that we use are normal except for a distinct shortage of radiators.
We have done some sorting out & filled the car boot ready for a trip to the charity shop, parting with lots of books, oddments, antique squash & tennis racquets, etc..
There's a lot more to sort out yet, when we move on to the next rooms.

I had a good game of tennis this morning, whilst G laboured, then we prepared the porch after lunch.
I have spoken to lots of people on the phone & feel well abreast of life in general.
I have to go to school tomorrow to collect my work . I've made a scrummy coffee cake for break in the science department - penultimate day!
Happy holidays.

IS THERE ANYONE OUT THERE?
HOW ABOUT A COMMENT!

Rain, rain, go away........

An amazing storm has just passed over, at high speed, blocking out the TV sound for some minutes. This was poor timing as we are watching "What's really in our food", which is good stuff.
I am very disappointed that M&S lochmuir salmon does not come from Lochmuir.
There is no such place.
It does come from a Scottish Loch, where it is farmed.
Final message, don't eat pies (unless you or your mum made them)

I went to KS this morning to talk through the work for September. I'll have to go back on Thursday to collect the paperwork & textbooks, as they weren't ready.
I met G at the radiator place to check the colours, then home to lunch & sanding paintwork, whilst G went to the chiro.
The decorating is coming on well & the rest of the house is still live- able.

There was a fascinating programme on radio 4 about Masquerade, Kit Williams' book leading to the golden hare. aj spent some time trying to crack that one back in the 70's.

I have lost another lb & am having a Benedictine, to celebrate.
Tennis tomorrow whilst G does something dusty.

The government is considering compulsory insurance to pay for care in old age.
Can they charge pensioners, or have we escaped?
Another bl..... tax.

Man on roof.

No blog as the Internet has been unco-operative.

The builder is now on the flat roof, repointing & repairing bits. Apparently the roof is in good nick otherwise. The lounge gable & chimney looks good & the scaffolding is coming down today, hence the car is parked outside.
We are stripping paper in the hall & have selected the paper for the study (the hardest bit).
I've been to play tennis, had some toast & am about to get going at something useful.

Last week I went to KS on Wednesday evening to a quiz to celebrate J Sedgwick's retirement.
I was in a team with Chris, Barrie & Mick - great fun was had & we were only beaten by "une point"
Strangely, JS (& 2/5 other assistant heads) was not there either)

We went to see JR on Thursday & took him to to Frinton on Thursday, before coming home to go to Nesta's retirement do at The Greek Restaurant in Tamworth..
A good evening if somewhat noisy - the venue, not the party.

We sorted out the decorating materials on Saturday - more to do yet, paint never looks the same on the walls as on the chart.
Sunday, P< A & family came for lunch & to blow out the candles on P's cake.
School tomorrow to sort out the work for next term.

Advanced facial day.

W&MK gave me a voucher for a Clarins "advanced facial! at John Lewis, last December.
I feel that I have advanced sufficiently to take advantage of this, so will hopefully be glowing by this afternoon.
I had hoped to have my hair done as well, but "Brian only works on Thursday & Saturday in Coleshill". Bother!
G wants me to go to a "posh" hairdresser but I'm not sure about that.
The good news is that I have lost over 4lb & feel better for it, mainly because my jeans are not so tight!
I played some tennis yesterday, before we were rained off, so I went to the gym.
Solihull had monsoon rain so I arrived home at tea-time steaming. It has only just stopped raining here, so gardening is off the agenda this morning again today.
The man is actually coming to collect the radiators this lunchtime, the lounge chimney & gable is re-pointed, so the repairs are underway.
We will not be able to resist the decorating for much longer.

I'm not convinced about these "Anthony Gormley" bods on the plinth in Trafalgar Square.
Are they nuts?
Who would want to look at them anyway, apart, perhaps, from their loved ones?

Raining again.
I shall take an umbrella!

Happy First Birthday DK.

What a week.
I could say that I had been at Wimbledon all week - just wishful thinking - but I have been very busy.
I have watched the odd few matches, which have all been brilliant; the big TV really came into its own.
Mon - no tennis as the ladies decided that it was too hot - home to skivvying.
Tues - gardening followed by shopping, especially M&S to buy plants with the half-price voucher - an enormous begonia, lavender & a pepper for the pots.
Wed & Thurs - to J & G's to help restore the "garden". Two six hour sessions at 30 degrees +, but we were very pleased with the final result & had the chance to spend a little time with the grandchildren. M provided 5* accommodation.
Fri - to P&A's for a Thomas day, with G, who did some jobs. We spent the afternoon in the garden, tidying up.
We are now available to the highest bidder - garden work, & general labouring undertaken, own tools provided!
Sat - we went to the Belgrade to see "The Tiger Who came to Tea", with T & J, then out to lunch, home to relax for a while & make cakes together for tea then back to P&A's.
We had a lovely day, T&J were a delight. Their conversation in the back of the car was highly entertaining.
Sun - church then gardening, interspersed with Wimbledon watching - we came in at 4.00 to see the final set, which went on for 2 hours!.
I'll finish the digging tomorrow!!.