Garage clearance, Wedding Reception & FA Cup Final

Pottered around the garden in the morning and then went and got an eye test at Spec Savers – wasn’t in there for long at all and only went because my close up eyesight is a bit blurred now.

They advised that reading glasses might be a good idea but I didn’t need them for anything else, I wasn’t keen to spend money on them right now so I thanked them and made my excuses!

Back home and we went round to Sue’s and worked in her garage removing stuff and taking it down the dump. It’s going to be a long and full-on job to complete!

I then watched some of the FA Cup Final, this was between Man City and Watford, I said before the match to Tasha that I wasn’t too bothered about watching it because it would be one-sided and it would likely be 4-0 to Man City. It was okay for 20 mins, I was right about it being one-sided and Man City scored one goal and you knew it was all over so I got ready and walked the dog, no interested and sure enough it ended up 6-0! Not good really.

Tasha’s friend Ria got dropped round and we then went out to Thame for a wedding for Tash’s old work colleague Michelle, we also picked up Mike on the way. I had agreed to drive and it was a shit decision, I was bored out of my mind and it was a pretty shit evening, just sat there drinking water and eating cheese people-watching. We were not involved in anything and I was relieved when we left at 12.45pm – everyone there had a nice time, but we were very much on the fringes. Dropped them all home and got back about 1.00am.

What made the evening worse??? It was the Vets end of season night out..so WhatsApp was full of daft and drunken messages and photos. They had a great time – the only consolation is I didn’t spend too much and I didn’t have a hangover!

Family BBQ out of the blue

Worked in Raintree today and pretty full on but finished and got home as we were hosting again this evening with a BBQ for Mum, Derek and Grandma. They came over about 5.30pm and I got the coals going, wasn’t the best one but it cooked all the meat fine in the end, we had loads today for some reason. Miles was also over and we got on the gin that Pauline and John gave to Tash for her birthday. It was a small-ish bottle and it didn’t stand a chance…it was so tasty we actually finished it.

We then went through loads of wine as well…anyone would not think it was a school night. It was a lovely evening, a bit cold but those near the patio heater were okay…I wasn’t one of them! Wrapped up in blankets it was fine, stayed outside chatting etc until about 9.00pm when they left and we then stayed out until about 10.30pm. I think both Charlotte and Miles would happily have stayed up longer but we’d run out of wine, so that was the signal for bed.

A very nice evening and Mum appreciates us doing it for them and Grandma just enjoys being out and about so it works well. It’s so nice for the kids to have a great grandparent – she’s 99 in a couple of weeks – we’re going to host a lunch for her then as well, all the families are invited, that’ll be interesting.

Lewis on holiday in Croatia, and a quick family update

Lewis is in Croatia right now, he’s gone with some friends and he’s the designated driver! Not too sure how I feel about that because he’s responsible for about 9 people in a minibus. He’s pretty confident about it all so I am sure he will be fine. They’re just travelling around places and sight-seeing and enjoying a week away from work. Looks nice what I have seen of his photos so far so I hope he has a great time.

Not much else to report, work is desperately slow, I am getting fed up with a client who won’t pay me so that’s a stress I could do without and obviously I don’t have as much work as I’d like..so stress from all areas!

Charlotte is working at Anna Balance’s old school and she’s enjoying it but the real stress in the house is Jack’s A-Levels coming up thick and fast. He’s been working really hard with revision and such like but we have an argument almost daily because I still don’t think he’s doing enough and is too easily distracted. We will see soon enough, they start next week, I really hope he does well in them

Game of Thrones is finishing…one episode to go

So Game of Thrones is coming to an end…sad emoji!!

We’re in Season 8 and have just had episode 5, so Monday will be the last one ever. I have to admit that the show I fell in love with has faltered this season and last, it’s gone too much towards the CGI and action instead of the story-telling and intrigue that made it so great to watch. There’s also not a feeling of dread/danger for some of the characters now, I think it’s referred to as “Plot Armour” or “Character Armour” in which they flirt with danger but then survive!

Anyway, it’s been a great adventure and I will be disappointed when it ends and I strongly suspect I will be very disappointed with the last episode, there is just far too much for them to wrap up in a single episode of 80 minutes, I think it will break the internet with complaints!

What’s been nice is that Charlotte, Miles and their friend Freddie have been round on a Monday night and we’ve watched it together. It’s funny, we’re in total silence taking it all in, it’s not a social event by any means..!

Well, fingers crossed that I am mistaken and with low expectations perhaps I will be pleasantly surprised…I’ll let you know!

Sad news today – Helen Candlin

Mark O’Hara phoned be today and told me that Helen Candlin had died last week having lost her battle with cancer. He knew we’d been together as 16 year olds and he’d always got on with the family and thought I’d want to know.

He’s right, I was glad that he’d told me. Such a shame, she was a nice girl and she was my first proper girlfriend back in the day, we were together for about 18 months I think, and she used to have a scooter/moped to get around and I would cycle to her house in Garden City, Kidlington. I’d not seen or spoken to her since about 20 years old but it’s still a sad thing to hear and consider. What I feel about her death doesn’t matter, it’s not about me, it’s about her family – her older brother had cancer when we were together so it’s a shame for that family that it seems to be with them.

I know the details of the funeral, I really don’t know if I will go, whether it’s appropriate or not – I will decide on the day, at the time of writing this I would like to, to show some support to the family even though they won’t know who I am.

This is going to be the sort of post that will happen more and more I sadly suspect – in our 50’s now, people are going to die, however young or old we feel inside.

I have some old photos of Helen and our time together, I won’t be sharing them with the memorial page or anything.

Such a shame, I hope she had a good life.

This is her tribute page online - https://helen-candlin.muchloved.com/

Nice meal out in Jericho

Pottered around in the morning and worked on jobs around the house, I spent most of my time in the pond! In the afternoon I was still working in there and also on things in my office whilst Tash went out for a picnic for Jessica’s birthday, they went to Brill. I decided not to as I had a lot here I wanted to get through and it was a productive day all told. In the late afternoon we both sat out in the sun and crashed out for about an hour, absolutely knackered, it just hit us. The sun was beating down and making it nice and relaxed.

We’re watching a decent drama at the minute called The Widow with Kate Beckinsale in it, it’s been quite good and is gripping so we made time to watch an episode this evening before getting ready to go out. Taxi arrived on time and we picked up Katherine and Pete on the way and then went down to Raoul’s in Jericho. We saw Tony Thomas and Sheri go past and then had a couple of drinks before heading over to Branca. A few more drinks and then a lovely meal in there, I had the kebab and that was a great choice so I was happy with that!

By the end of the night (10.30pm) TT and his friends were in the bar and calling us over so we joined them for a couple of drinks and it was a really nice end to the evening. Found out he’s a diabetic and has a strict diet now, Tash immediately starting pointing the finger at me and my weight which wasn’t really appreciated!! But then the truth hurts.

Tash was getting tired so we called it a night, got the taxi and dropped the Casey’s home and back to ours.

As we got out of the cab we bumped into Geoff and Vicky who had been to the White Hart and were steaming drunk (surprise) and it was tempting to ask them into ours for a few more drinks but I resisted the temptation, probably rightly so and we said our good nights and parted ways.

A nice evening

Jack’s Prom Night

It was Jack’s Prom Night this evening and after a bit of a panic throughout the week to get the suit and then get it the legs taken in so they were a bit “skinnier” it was time to go. He looked good, as you can tell from the photos below. A few of his mates turned up to the house but he, and they, weren’t here for all that long and after a while they jumped into Jack’s car and drove off to school. Tash and I wanted to be there to see them off but it was too awkward to get in there and also no other parents were there so we wished him well and came home.

It’s a strange year group, they’re all too cool for school and parents aren’t really welcomed, a shame and a big contrast to what we’re used to with the other kids, ah well.

They went to Worton Hall near Witney and they had a great night and they went to Atik afterwards – we saw that through Snapchat! Jack doesn’t drink so he was fine driving and he said the following day he’d had such a good evening. So that was pleasing to hear.

End of an era, a couple of weeks of exams and then he’s finished with school – very odd to have them all done and dusted. Where has the time gone?!?

BBQ Hosting

BBQ hosted at our house - loads of beers and v drunk including a walk on meadow in the evening where I sang to myself and then laid down and stared up at the stars for about 20 minutes!

A good end to the weekend!

The Perch Beer & Wine Festival

Around midday the family from Bicester arrived and we set off with the dogs down to the Perch. Had a couple of beers for the walk and it was a nice stroll down there and they had a Beer and Cider Festival set up – we knew about it as it’s there all weekend.

Loads of space, so we got a table and then started on some of the beers. There was nothing that I was particularly keen on so I stayed with anything that resembled lager, everyone else was a bit more adventurous, except Nikki who got a bottle of Prosecco – good choice!

Had some food and snacks and it was a good laugh, but it was strong stuff, we didn’t go mad but within a few hours of drinking and being in the sun we were a bit tiddly. Jess took Nik and that lot home quite early – I think about 4.00pm but we weren’t ready so carried on.

So there’s me, Tash, Lewis, Charlotte and Miles. Jack went off to get the car and then it started to rain so we went in the tent hiding and Lewis and Tash walked home with Bess. Apparently she feel off the kerb near the Trout and into the road – lucky escape!

Jack drove us home and we all had more to drink in the evening – sat outside with the heaters on and it was a good evening. Everyone went to bed quite early actually…steaming!

Peters work lost today…

Worked at Peters Books today and was called into the office at the end of the day and told I’d been given a months notice. Claire was apologetic and all that but it’s not the point. That’s money I really need and I said as much that I don’t have any work currently. Really pissed off about it, but they do need me still for some work so I will quote for ad-hoc work and rate and see what comes about from that.

I really feel a bit lost at the minute, where is money going to come from to pay all the holidays and breaks that we’ve got coming up? Even this weekend we have things lined up in terms of going out to the Perch for a beer and cider festival and then everyone round to our house for a BBQ on Monday.

I’m getting stressed just typing it!!!

Not sure when I’ll tell Tash, will get the cinema tomorrow out of the way first!

Also, I’m being ignored by people and Hodder owe me thousands and aren’t answering my emails for payment – this is really worrying me, I have a horrible feeling they’re going to refuse some of the costs I’ve charged them, this is a nightmare.

I’m sure it’ll be okay but it’s not ideal and I really don’t need these problems.

Natasha’s Birthday Celebrations – Part 3 – and Jack’s end of era of Youth Football

Hangovers all round this morning! Didn’t get much done.

Jack had football in the afternoon so I went along to that – it was his last match of the season and in fact his last match as a Youth Team player. They were playing against Milton and everything was at stake, if Oxford City won or drew they would win the league, if they lost then Milton (their opponents) would win the league. Sadly, City simply weren’t at the races and ended up losing about 4-1, a real shame for them. I was disappointed, I’d have loved for Jack to win that trophy as well.

I came back a bit earlier from his match as there was a gathering at Sue’s for Tash’s birthday, all the females in the family came along – shame that Gareth doesn’t make an effort and always there is an excuse for him not to be over at either ours or Sues – ah well, his loss. Dinner was fine and Tash had a nice time, a few more wines!!

It wasn’t a late one but it went well and it was nice for her – she’s had a good birthday celebration I reckon

Bluebell Woods & Vicky’s 50th Party

Bit of a slow start in the morning initially and then worked in the garden and around the house

In the afternoon we took the dogs for a walk in the Bluebell woods and that was a good decision, they were in full bloom and looked great. Nice walk, although I was struggling to get around to be honest, my back is hurting!

Back home in the afternoon and we crashed out and fell asleep in the afternoon, sat outside in the sun we were knackered.

Went up to the White Hart in the evening because it was Vicky’s 50th birthday celebrations,  John Bampton was there and we joined him and saw loads of old faces. Caught up with Matty Timberlake (Scatty) and that was really nice to see him. It as a really good night, enjoyed it loads, got quite drunk…again and then wandered home about midnight I think…probably a bit later

Vicky enjoyed it though so that’s the main thing

Tash’s Birthday Celebrations – Part 2

Friday Worked at home today and didn’t get too much done

In the evening we got Charlotte to drop us in Summertown where we met Nikki and Gaz at the Dew Drop, they’d been there for a meal already and then we got to the serious part of drinking!! It was a nice evening and we did get through a fair amount to be honest. What was nice is that they don’t kick you out at 11.00pm anymore, there is not that stress and we were there until about 12.30am in the end!

Left and they missed their bus as usual, they got Jess to come and pick them up, she’s just passed her driving test so that’s great news for everyone

Tash and I just walked home – bit drunk!

Natasha’s Birthday Celebrations – Part 1

So up and about early and we handed out the presents to Natasha in the morning, not a lot this year really but she seemed happy with what we’d got her. Then off to work for everyone, I was at Raintree today as I’d changed my working day so that was nice to be around. Left usual time and home by 5.00pm to Charlotte and Miles cooking a chilli. Tash home and we started straight away. For some reason, I still don’t get why, Sue told Charlotte that she wasn’t going to come round and see her and gave Charlotte her present, she’d also told Tash as well so she was a bit upset about that, it pissed me off so I messaged her and she replied that she was coming round after all. Very odd indeed!

Whilst eating there Wayne and Kerry also came over and then my Mum as well – nice crowd, we quickly finished our food and then went outside to sit in the garden. It was bloody cold but it’s what she wanted to do so we wrapped up in blankets, got the patio heater(s) on and got the drinks out! Nobody stayed very late but the drinks were flowing and it was a really nice evening – it actually warmed up a bit once the wind died down. Gave up about 10.30pm and off to bed, I think Tash might have a heavy head in the morning! But she deserves to relax and celebrate!

Easter Saturday – Book of Mormon

Woke up around 9.00am and everyone was hungover! Lewis was in a bad way, no surprise there really and slowly we all got going.

Around 10.30am we got on the road to London, I went and picked Mum up from home and Lewis and Jack just slept in the car! We drove so slowly waiting for Tash to catch up but they didn’t until we got to the actual parking place which was so odd, I could not have driven any slower! I know they have the black box but I was 60mph all the way there! Anyway, we booked a parking place near Marble Arch which was cheap and convenient and walked to Marble Arch and went past Claudia Winkelman washing her car with her kids so that caused a bit of excitement!

At Marble Arch we were greeted with the strangest sight, there were no cars to be seen at all and it was a tent city wherever you looked. It was part of the Extinction demonstrations which are part of the global peace warriors initiative. Or something like that! It’s taking place all over the UK and the world which has been in the news but it was so interesting to see it in place – there was no way any traffic was coming through these areas and the police presence was really high, we walked through the middle of it and it was interesting and we made our way to Hyde Park. Today is also 420 Day which is the universal weed/drug day as well…so that was good timing!

We found a nice spot and had our picnic which included Moet Champagne which Lewis struggled with! Bit of relaxing and then walked down Oxford Street (empty!) to Regent Street down to Piccadilly Circus where the theatre was for our show – The Book of Mormon. We got in as they were calling people to their seats and our seats were very good, high up, but we had a decent view so we were all happy with that.  I had heard reviews about the show in that it was supposed to be hilarious but didn’t know what else to expect…and bloody hell, was it a shocking surprise. As suggested, it focussed on the Mormon church and teases religion and racial stereotypes and prejudices. But it was disgusting! I can’t describe the songs or the dances, it was just simply appalling bad taste but very, very funny indeed. The shock value was turned right up to ten! I later found out it was written by the guys that write South Park so that put it all into context for me/us.

After the show we all agreed it was brilliant and we loved it, but at the same time could understand how it could infuriate and disgust people of a different constitution. I would certainly consider wisely anyone that I would recommend it to!

Afterwards we started walking back towards the car  but took the back streets parallel with Regent Street and found a nice pub/bar to stop for food and drink and we had a couple of pints in there. It started to get a little cold because it was in the shade so we walked on further down Carnaby street and then down Oxford Street again and we found another pub and two more pints in there. I kept extending our parking end time and it was great because there were no extra charges for doing so, excellent value for money. We finally gave in and walked to the car properly going through all the protesters again and near an incident where the roads were all cordoned off by the police but luckily it wasn’t our way out so didn’t affect us. Tash drove as I’d had a couple of pints…and Lewis and I slept all the way home…nice!

Stopped for MacDonald's on the way back in Headington – although my quarter-pounder wasn’t included and then went straight to bed, everyone was knackered!

Outside the pub after the show…

Wishing Happy Birthday to Lewis in Hyde Park before the show…

Lewis’s Birthday Weekend–Bank Holiday Easter

I didn’t write this at the time, instead I had bullet points from the weekend that were listed below – I will try my best to detail what we did!

1. Thursday - Lewis down - drinking until v late

Lewis came down from Manchester after work and we got on the beers, not too sure how or why but we ended up watching TV and stayed up very late. He fell asleep eventually but as usual I carried on until I fell asleep but not after spilling drink on myself – not a good role model really am I?

2. Friday - late up, jobs in morning, chicken roast and drinks all afternoon, Zoe, John and Pauline - meal in evening Hugh and Dierdre

Yeah so we didn’t get up very early at all, the drinks in the afternoon was fun. The weather was really nice and after doing some stuff in the morning we had a lunch and then suggesting having gin and tonic, one thing led to another and we got really drunk! Zoe turned up and joined in and then Paul and Pauline did as well. All this happening and we knew we were going out at 7.00pm! Everyone left about 7.00pm and Tash and I cycled up to Cutteslowe for a meal at Hugh and Deirdre’s. They’ve done a lot of work on the house and were keen to show it off. It was lovely and they’re right to be proud of it. I think (hope) we did a good impression of relatively sober people for a while. Jill Partridge was there as were a couple of other women and it was a really nice evening. Lovely food and all that and we enjoyed it. Cycled home without incident and straight to bed, hopefully Lewis was okay as he also went out having drank all afternoon with us!

3. Saturday – we went to London for Book of Mormon – there’s a proper diary entry for that one!

4. Sunday - Lewis birthday, fry up, Easter egg hunt, pottering about, home early, dinner at Sue's, pub with friends

Lewis’s actual birthday – as the points about mention we had a nice big fry-up and also they had an Easter Egg Hunt and were fighting over things as per usual! We went round to Sue’s for Easter dinner which was nice and then Lewis made his way back to Manchester as he was going out with friends in the evening but I think he enjoyed being down here with us. Then walking back we saw Vicky and Geoff walking up to the pub so after being at home on our own for about 20 minutes we decided to go up the pub and join people. Sat in the garden and it was all very nice, only had a couple of beers but it was a nice evening

5. Monday - punting with Tash and Ivy

I went and collected Ivy from Bicester, got a lovely welcome from both her and Woody so that was nice – “JULIAN!!!” – when they saw me on the doorstep! Ivy and I then met Tash down at work and we went to the boatyard and got the punt out. We left left this time towards Marston and it was pleasant enough chuntering along and avoiding people struggling to steer their punts. We went past the pub in Marston and realised neither of us had brought cash or cards so we pulled over later down the river and had our packed lunch. Ivy was really enjoying it all, she got more and more adventurous and was dangling her feet in the water and then walking up and down the punt, she loved it. Bess fell in which was amusing!

Came back home and had a BBQ and then dropped her home.

All in all a really lovely weekend

Jack – Cup Final Match Winner!

We went down to Oxford City and went in the side entrance and got away with not having to pay £15.00 to watch!! Oxford City we’re playing Chinnor in the County Cup Final and it was a tight affair. They were very direct and had big lads but we had the pace to match them. Jack was up front and he was a handful throughout. Playing good first time balls or dribbling- each time he was making the right decision.

There were few chances throughout but he did have one great run from his half right to the 6 yard box but didn’t make the decision to shoot or pass, it was neither unfortunately. The second half was similar and it was getting feisty but then Jack received the ball on the edge of the box, shaped to shoot and threw a dummy that fooled two defenders, he then cut inside, opened his body up and just calmly passed the ball into the back of the net, it was a very good goal and I was pleased as punch to see him score it.

The game kept going backwards and forwards and he was causing them problems constantly.

Here’s his goal that I’ve watched time and time again…!

Vic & Danny’s Wedding

Tomorrow is the day that the Vic & Danny tie the knot. Everyone is pretty excited for it so that’s pleasing, should be a good day. We’re filling up hip flasks which is a bit sad but there you go!

I wonder how it will all go, I am sure it will be fine but there’s been various dramas for this wedding and also the relationship – so I will keep my video camera handy in case anything kicks off and is decent to record!

I am joking of course, I am sure it will be a brilliant day with not hitches – fingers crossed!

Where’s the tree gone?

So when we worked on our garden to add the new shed and make the new area we chopped down the trees inside our boundary. Today I looked out the back and one of the trees in the Mill site was removed – I rushed round to the site and went straight in (contravening all Health & Safety regs) and tried to speak with the relevant foreman to find out what the hell was going on. They were removing the trees to make way for drainage and it was only us affected. Really quite pissed off because it means when the houses are built they will be able to see straight down into our area – we will have no privacy at all. Wankers!

Working in the garden again

Was up and awake early and down to the bottom of the garden and the stump was still smouldering but still loads of it left so I decided to get an axe and have a go with that. Popped down to Wickes and got one and that made a huge difference but it was hard work, I have splintered all the wood and now it’s in a position to try and chainsaw it, we will see.

The rest of the day I completely emptied the stable and there is tons of stuff. I was very harsh with a lot of it and made the trip to the dump with a full car, but we were still left with so much to squeeze into the sheds. I left Tash do most of that and she did brilliantly. I worked on my tools etc and somehow, I don’t know how, we got all we wanted to in the two sheds. Very full but it’s done now and we can get Barry to come round and start on his work for the conversion of the stable into my office…exciting!

This again took us all day. Watched some TV in the evening and a new student, Michelle, from Switzerland arrived. She seems very shy and nervous but I am sure she will soon settle in and be fine, she’s with us for quite a while.

So a good weekend’s work all in all – as the photos below show!

Working in the Garden – Burn Baby Burn

Woke up with a big hangover today, not at all sure what happened last night, just drank myself stupid and woke up having spilt a bottle of beer on the sofa. Went to bed and hardly stirred when Tash left and woke up at about 10.00am. Not good – need to address my drinking “problem”. It might well be a proper problem and I don’t recognise it as such. Anyway, enough of the psycho-analysis!
When I finally got out of bed I watched a bit of TV and then got working in the garden. Wasn’t really in the mood but the list of jobs from Tash was as long as my arm…to save you reading much more…I didn’t do very well.

Sorted out the shed at last and then set fire to this bloody tree stump, and that genuinely took me all day, I had to keep the fire burning and then digging away the charred wood for new wood to be exposed and burn, it was thankless and a horrible job because the smoke just followed me around, really pissed me off. I had some breaks throughout the day of course but I didn’t get to do much else, it was so hard.

I did start on the stable garage and moved some shelving down to the shed but I am really concerned about how all the crap in there is going to get into the shed.
Anyway, stinking of smoke and not feeling on top of the world I gave up about 6.45pm when it was dark and made Jack some dinner.
Tash cam home and didn’t say too much..she was tired from being down with Chrissie in Exeter all day with Lucie so she’d had a nice time

Building a new shed…

Set the alarm for early this morning but was already awake with the intention of working out the in the garden and I was up and out, more snarky comments so I just took myself out to the shed and worked on that all morning…it was bloody hard work and took me ages to get anything done. The instructions weren’t the best and it was a bit of a nightmare. In fact, to cut a long story short I actually ended up getting it added the wrong way around which mean the roof bearing bars were too short. I had to go to Wickes to get some new wood that would reach! I then had the hard work of getting behind the shed to work on the roof…it’s at the stage now that I need to finish the sides which I will do on Monday or Tuesday, I ran out of time and energy in the end!

Jack had a football match for Oxford City in the afternoon and we went along and watched a bit of it, we had the student leaving and Sue coming over for dinner so we had to be back at a decent time meaning we watched about 30 minutes. They were playing Cumnor in an important match that could affect them winning the league, we left at 2-1 to City and Jack was doing okay up front, when he got home he said they’d won 3-2 in the end and he’s scored the third goal which he’s pleased with as there was skill on the edge of the box and he then rifled it into the top corner – so he was pleased about that!

Sue came over about 5.00pm and I stopped working on the shed around 6.00pm, I was shattered. Tash and Sue had already opened the bubbly so I had some of that and a new bottle was later opened! Dinner was lovely and we then sat chatting – it got a bit heated because Sue is adamant that she wants to sell the house and move to Bicester, but we can’t see the reason behind doing so and think it’s a huge mistake. I am keeping quiet to be honest, it’s upsetting Tash because she knows that Sue (and Bella) won’t get the support from the Bicester-based families that we give. We won’t be doing the Nando’s meals and all that, we do the boring side like taking Bella out and things around the house. This doesn’t get seen and it’s winding Tash up and also I think making her sad that her Mum is so keen to go running off to be closer to her other sisters after all the work she’s done for her. Selling the house is not the problem, it’s where she’s going to move once sold!

After Sue left, we sat and watched a new series on TV – called Cheat – which was good fun and had a few more drinks, I opened the flavoured Vodka but it was just nice – not a drinking session.

So the end of another eventful and enjoyable weekend, work early tomorrow as it’s off to Birmingham with Peters Books

Tash to see Lewis in Manchester & Charlotte in Nottingham

Tash was up bright and early as she was going to Manchester to see Lewis and was taking Zoe so I wasn’t going to go. She left about 9.00am and I just sat in bed reading Twitter and watching videos – just wasting time. I had a long list of jobs but only really got one sorted which was sorting through the footballs and I’ve now decided to get rid of all my kit but the rest of the morning I just pottered around and played my records and didn’t achieve much at all. Had some lunch and then went to Jack’s football, we stopped at the garden centre first to get some compost and then I went at sat in the bar at the clubhouse and had a couple of beers watching the rugby and reading articles on my laptop. Had a chat with a few parents from Ardley (Gilo and Waz) and then when the game started I was outside watching because Jack was starting.

Unfortunately the wind was blowing a gale and it made for difficult playing conditions, the game was fairly even and Jack was doing okay but it was hard for him to get involved and it was frustrating to watch, Wayne Holden also came along to watch so he and I stood together chatting and then at half time went inside for a drink. Second half started and after only about 5 minutes Ardley scored a wonder goal from about 7 yards (wind-assisted!) and Jack was substituted – that didn’t make any sense at all and pissed me off. It did mean we didn’t need to go back outside anymore and had another pint instead! The game finished 2-0, Ardley could easily have scored more, Abingdon are a poor side sadly and it frustrates me that Jack doesn’t get more minutes playing – I am sure it’s because they see him as the young player and don’t yet trust him. Waited for him to get changed and we left pretty quickly once he’d had some food and went back home. I drank a few more beers in the evening and just sat watching the rugby and a film and didn’t do anything else – very lazy! Went to bed at 10.00pm!

I lack any sort of enthusiasm to do anything at the minute, I think I am spending far too much time on social media so need to address that but also too much drinking as well which isn’t doing me any favours. Tash had a nice time with Lewis in Manchester and that was successful and she then also took a detour to Nottingham to see Charlotte as she lost her phone last night whilst out and very, very drunk. Really disappointing that’s happened, not good at all. We had a spare iPhone so Tash was taking that to her. When Tash got in around 10.45pm she made some snarky remark but I wasn’t in the mood to argue so ignored her, turned over and went back to sleep!

Mum over for dinner

I worked at Raintree today having changed my days around for the holiday and training I did on Thursday and it was a nice day there. Got a lot done but it was quiet there, I think there were 6 people including myself! Left early as usual and home to help with the meal as Mum and that coming over in the evening.

I must admit I was tired and not too talkative but we had a nice time and the meal was good, Tash did a new chicken one and it went down well. Grandma’s hearing was better today so she was engaged more in the conversations so that was pleasing and they were gone by about 9.45pm. Jack and I stayed up to watch a film and I then watched another after he went to bed so went up myself about 2.00am!

Homeward bound from Morocco

The alarm went at 4.20am, up and quick shower, last packing and downstairs for 4.45am. Surprisingly, and with relief the taxi was waiting for us and we were off straight away. The hotel is only a 15 minutes drive so that was nice and quick. Through passport control and immigration with no issues and then found somewhere for coffee and croissant and then waited around killing time. Flight boarding was on time and we were off at 7.20am – just over a three hour flight and we slept the first half but then listened to music for the last hour or so which was enjoyable.

No hassles and then we’re in Stanstead, again through customs and passport control and collecting our bags really quickly, got the coach and I was driving us home. The girls fell asleep and then we were home and saying our goodbyes. We had a great time and we all loved it, I’d happily go with them again for another break if it’s suggested.

Tash dived straight into housework, I was less keen to do work but I got some done as I have training sessions planned for Thursday.

Sorted a few things out, Charlotte came home so we caught up with things – she has an interview tomorrow which is why she’s down here again. I was tired so ended up going to bed around 9.30pm for once.

A great break, wish I didn’t have to work!!

Black Box

So today we have a black box fitted on Tasha’s car! The man came round and it didn’t take long.

The reason being that Jack has had so many prangs since he passed that the insurance was mentally high and we couldn’t afford it, so the only option was to get a box fitted and that reduced it to something like £500pa now. Hopefully that means that the driving standards of all in the car will improve now…we’ll see. I think we’re able to monitor it online or on an app now, so that will be interesting

A bit of a pain in the backside though and not something we need, but if it’s going to make Jack a more responsible driver then it will be a good thing!!

Derek’s 80th Birthday Celebrations

Derek was 80 this weekend, quite a milestone!

Friday – worked in the morning and then Jack, Charlotte, Miles and I went down to Tasha’s work, left the car and walked down to Gloucester Green, Derek and Mum were waiting and he was quite surprised to see us there. He had no idea where he was going to who with, so we told him and I think he was looking forward to it. The coach came and we settled down and chatted, I was getting a bit anxious about the time as I understood the Shard to be quite officious with their bookings and when the traffic got bad at London we got off a couple of stops early (Westfield) and used the Tube. We got there with minutes to spare and all was fine, there wouldn’t have been a problem…but you just never know! We were taken to our table and the view from the restaurant was stunning. It is very much an upmarket place and we were fortunate to have a set meal offer and decent choice. Ordered drinks and food and just enjoyed everyone’s company and it was lovely. Food was great and the service and we took loads of photos, it was excellent and would recommend to people.

I ended up paying the bill, £345.00, didn’t quite expect it to be that much and I paid it all…bit taken aback, especially as at the minute work isn’t exactly booming for me right now, I kept quiet though.

We left there and fancied a couple of drinks so we walked round the corner to Borough Market and found a pub and got seats and stayed there for a couple of pints, Derek appeared to be getting tired so we got the Tube back to Victoria and Miles and I went and got some beers for the coach journey home. That was enjoyable, we got quite drunk! Mum and Derek got out at Headington and we continued into town and Jack drove us home.

A really lovely evening and we had a great time.

Sunday – Lewis and I went to The Britannia in Headington and Lewis was struggling big time, kept throwing up on the walk up Line Walk – light weight!! When we got to the pub it was Mum, Derek, Louise and Molly. We ordered and that took a long time to be delivered but it was fine and it was a nice atmosphere chatting and catching up. Tash wasn’t there because they’d taken Zoe on a spa day for her birthday but it was fine. Derek seemed to enjoy himself and he said how much he’d enjoyed the meal on Friday so I think that went down well. Had a full Sunday Roast and Treacle pudding and that was it, time to leave. Said our goodbye’s and they wandered off towards home and we went back down Line Walk to retrieve the car. It was nice that we went and we enjoyed it.

Got home and Lewis just crashed out on the sofa and I watched TV! He left about 5.00pm to go back up north and Tash was home about 6.30pm – they’d had a nice time so a decent weekend all in all.

I think we’d helped Derek celebrate his 80th in style  

Fatboy Slim

Dropped Tash off to work this morning so the cars were all at home and then went shopping to Aldi and that was surprisingly pleasant because it was early and not many customers in the shop!

Went home and worked but didn’t get a huge amount of work done during the day because of the concert in the evening. On Twitter there were quite a few videos of the show last night at Wembley and it looked great, so

I was working but half watching other music videos and the like. Got stuff done but also distracted!

Had some food and then got things sorted and went and picked up Tash around 3.30pm. Miles arrived on time as well and we drove to London, took just over 2 hours because of the traffic but we weren’t far behind John and Pauline and we dumped our stuff in the room and were down in the bar! Went across the road for some food and then a taxi to the venue

Loads of space and we just had a few drinks there and then the acts came on, even as early at 7.50pm we were dancing – the DJ was Hannah Wants, she’s local and she was good. Then the main event at 9.20pm with Fatboy Slim coming on, and wow, it was amazing! Didn’t stop dancing at all, absolute banging tunes and videos and lights and fireworks. It was everything that I wanted it to be and more. It was so good. Got some videos and they’re good, we were right at the very front and it was no hassle, loads of space and we were dancing away. Loved it. Buzzing now writing about it! Would definitely go and see him again if the chance arose.

We left the venue and went across the road to a bar and had more drinks – there was a great atmosphere in here and we had a laugh, bit of dancing and saw a fight so all good fun! Got a taxi home but took a detour to McDonalds for a drive through and then back to the hotel to crash out

The following days I check social media and there are some great videos from the night – loved it

Meal down the Cowley Road and nice weekend

Not much to update this diary on to be honest, feels a bit of a routine at the minute, I think it’s the usual come-down from Xmas and being flat throughout January and can’t be bothered to do much. But this was a nice weekend in that we went out with Wayne and Kerry on Friday night down the Cowley Road, started at Be At One and had some good cocktails, best one being a Jaiger-Mega Drive – lovely! We then went down the road to the Syrian Restaurant, the Walnut Tree. Starters were lovely but the main meal less so, I had a stew which was okay – a tagine? – but I’d not be in a hurry to return there. We then walked back towards the plain and went in the bar we went to with Charlotte and Miles and that was really relaxed and nice and we had quite a few pints in there.

Jack picked us up about 12.30am and dropped Wayne and Kerry home before taking us home but not before a detour to the kebab van for him!

Saturday I felt slow and ponderous nearly all day, a cross between the drink and the food I think, Tash was the same! There was no football because of the snow we’d had yesterday so I worked in the garden and Jack helped me with building our new log store, looks okay and we’re pleased with it, also cleared a path for the trees being chopped down later this week by Merlin, that’ll be a sad sight! Walked the dog and our student left whilst we were out which was a shame as I think she wanted to say goodbye to us, she’d enjoyed her stay, Mica from Argentina. Jack still had football training and when that finished we met him in town and we did some shopping for the wedding, I got some new shoes, not for the wedding but I needed some new black shoes which was pleasing, and we got Jack a shirt etc. I ended up with a tie but it cost £45.00 – I was shocked! I was surprised we were even looking at the £27.00 ties so when this ringed up for that much I was speechless, far too much however nice it looks.

Back home I watched the second half of Ireland v England in the first game of the 6 Nations rugby and we won so that was pleasing. Had a nice dinner and then Tash spent the evening doing her puzzle and we watch House of Cards and other things on TV, a nice evening.

Next morning I helped Jack with his applications for apprenticeships, that was tough going and we took the dogs for a walk over Shotover, still some snow around so it was a nice picturesque visit, back home we had nice dinner, did more with Jack’s work and then watched a film and more TV again with a couple of bottles of wine.

So a nice weekend in the end

January almost over

Can’t believe this is my first post of the year – welcome to 2019!

January as usual has been a pretty slow month all round with work and life which is why I’ve been so quiet I guess. Sat on the train to Birmingham right now without internet so typing this up made sense! The main thing to comment on really is that I have joined a gym, yep, you heard me right!

Natasha’s gym at the Holiday Inn closed down so they were re-directed to the Jury Inn at the top of our road and we got a joint membership, I’ve been a number of times now and I think it’s helping me, no obvious signs of improvement to be honest but I quite enjoy going up there and it’s making me a little more conscious of what I am eating, hopefully in a few weeks time I will be a bit more toned…we shall see!

Xmas and New Year has come and gone once more and now we’re planning for the year(s) ahead. So we have the following lined up:

• Marrakesh with John and Pauline
• Italy with Gareth and Nikki
• Crete – just our family
• Dubai – just our family

The Dubai one is a secret! I feel guilty that we haven’t included Mum this time but it was a case that the cost went up substantially per person, very odd so we had to make a decision because money is a bit tight, I don’t have too much work on my plate so I am a bit anxious about commitments.

In saying that, Tash is wanting to plan for her 50th which is next year…!

We’ve got other things lined up as well including Victoria’s wedding, Tears for Fears concert, FatBoySlim concert and Pete Tong Ibiza Classics concert (Manchester – December) – should be great fun, can’t wait! And we will still try and get tickets for Glastonbury when they’re released again in April.

So that’s a recap, Jack’s football is hard work, he’s broken into the first team at Abingdon Utd but they don’t seem to trust him enough to play him regularly so he’s getting frustrated. He’s had two unconditional offers from Universities even though he says he doesn’t want to go at all and I think he’s very distracted and not working hard enough on A-Level revision, so that’s causing a lot of friction in the house!

Charlotte was home most of January because of term time but she’s back at Uni now in her last term!

Lewis is working hard with his job, under-staffed it seems, don’t hear much from him which is a shame.

They all keep in touch better with Mum and not me, I need to be more pushy and involved though so it works both ways

Oh, and finally, Donald Trump is still President in the US and is an utter fuckwit, I really don’t know how he’s accepted there for so long, it really is a concern!

Another Xmas Weekend Completed

A decent weekend again…it’s getting to be a regular occurrence!

Friday I was up a little late because of being out last night with Jason, nothing to worry about, just tired and couldn’t be bothered with working. Did have a few calls and training to do but it was fine. In the afternoon I travelled out to Witney to meet up with a woman I’d been recommended to try out for my back problems. It wasn’t a chiropractor as such and was more of an intense massage and exercises for afterwards. It was fine but I am not 100% certain how well she has fixed my issues. I will carry on doing the exercises that were recommended and see if that helps otherwise I might go and see Chris. When I got home we had a nice dinner and then we had a lazy evening sat in front of the TV and we watched the Bruce Lee film Enter the Dragon say that was one of the films that have been ticked off the list that we need to complete .

So on Saturday I got jobs done in the morning and took the dogs out for a walk etc etc. We had Jack's football in the afternoon, he was with the first team again and was on the bench to start with. I kept watching out the window and unfortunately he didn't actually get to run out so it was a bit of a waste of time however he was told that he would start and play the game on Tuesday night say that was one bonus. Whilst I was at football I took the opportunity to work on the quiz and that went well – I got the music round sorted!

Went home and got changed and then Tash and I went out to the White Hart where we met with Nikki Henderson and Matt Todd and proceeded to get quite drunk together – the night flew by and it was late quickly, we left about midnight I reckon where both women had a bottle of wine each – Matt and I were fine…the girls less so!

Next morning Tash was struggling and was being sick – a pattern that lasted all day! I worked downstairs on the quiz and other chores that needed doing including cleaning out my office ready for people coming over during Xmas and so on. We then made a trip out to Wallingford to put the holly on the graves (Tash was sick in a bag and the layby on the way there!!) and we stopped at the cemetery for grandad as well, always a sad occasion and we all miss them a great deal.

In the early evening we then went over to Bicester, just me, Tash and Jack as it was Danny’s 30th birthday and Victoria had organised a surprise birthday meal for him, we were there in good time so ahead of him coming in and there was family from both sides there and about 16 of us – he was pleased and it was a nice evening. Had a couple of beers and the food was really good – loads of it as well! Chatted to his brother and girlfriend and that was nice as they’ve travelled – well the brother more so and it was interesting

Came home and watched some TV before going to bed and getting an early-ish night.

Charlotte was at Miles, she’s now back in Oxford for Xmas period, she was having a party at their house yesterday and it lasted all night, so I can imagine how tired she is.

Again, a nice weekend

Xmas Drinks and Catch Up

Went out this evening into town and met up with Jason, Chris, Allan Smith and Pete Roberts for a few drinks ahead of Xmas celebrations. I met with Pete in the Four Candles on George St and we caught on a few things work-related and chatted and then Allan Smith walked in. I’ve not seen him for about a year and I was shocked by his appearance – he’s lost loads of weight, it transpired he lost about 7 stone. It was a process that is akin to hypnotism I later found out where the cravings for certain foods is taken away. I thought he’d been seriously ill and was careful not to say anything initially, I think it’s too much weight to have lost but I think he’s comfortable with it and happy so that’s great.

Jason turned up with Chris who I like and we had a few drinks and chatted nonsense etc and it was a nice and relaxed evening. We left there and went to O’Neill’s and it was more of the same, got some food etc and about 10.00pm Jason and Chris had to get their train, Allan had already left as he had an early start in the morning and Pete left with JG so I had one more pint and made my way home as well. I was under very strict orders not to ruin the evening as she was out on her works party as well.

Her and Jack came home not too long after me actually and all was fine.

Good to catch up with Jason as usual – it’s been ages since we’ve seen each other, I think about 6 months!

Xmas Weekend with the kids…oh no it wasn’t…

What a great weekend we have had.

Charlotte has been down here since Wednesday so that’s been lovely and on Saturday, Lewis came down and was here about 10.00am. So we had a nice cooked breakfast and then put the tree up with all of them plus Miles and that was enjoyable as always. Got the usual photos. In the afternoon we just relaxed and then went out for a dog walk but Lewis was going to meet with Dan and Liam to go to London so we popped into the White Hart for a beer and I dropped him at the train station and then in the afternoon Tash and Charlotte watched a Xmas film whilst I worked on the Family Xmas Quiz that Paul and I are doing this year. Was pleased with my progress as I did a couple yesterday as well so it’s moving forwards.

Charlotte went over to Miles’ house as it was Ozzie’s birthday and Jack went out with his mates so Tash and I just sat in and had a few drinks, she went to bed and I was a bit drunk and stayed up on the sofa watching MOTD and then a film and then YouTube!! Lewis came in about 1.00am and we carried out, Jack came in at 3.00am and was absolutely pissed as anything, Tash then came down because of the noise and it was really amusing, He was talking so much shit, all the “I love you” and happy drunkenness. He then went upstairs and threw up! I carried out drinking and fell asleep on the sofa at about 5.00am in the end!

Woke up about 10.00am and wasn’t too bad, and Tash wasn’t cross so that was a relief! Pottered around in the morning and did another couple of dog walks and got things sorted for the following week and then made our way to Aylesbury, took a detour to Old Marston because my poster frames had been delivered there instead of my house so picked those up and then went to the pub opposite the theatre, we were in loads of time so it was nice to relax and not be hurried. Jack was wiped out…bless him!

The panto this year was Peter Pan and we were right at the front again so that was pleasing, it wasn’t quite as good this year for some reason, I personally don’t like Peter Pan as a story anyway but it was enjoyable of course and the guy Andy who is always there did his usual 12 days of Xmas that went down a storm, so many people (including us) brought their own water pistols and even toilet rolls – clearly regulars! It was mental when the water pistols came out, he was soaking!

Photo outside and then home…had nice cheese and biscuits and watched the final of I’m a Celebrity and Harry Redknapp won, I don’t think was a shock and then all went off to bed around 11.00pm – aha, but not before I’d bought tickets to see Pete Tong and the orchestra for Ibiza Classics in Manchester next December!

A long but really enjoyable weekend – great to have the kids all here

Failing eye-sight

Bit pissed off to be honest, just lately I have found it harder to focus on text when close up whether it’s hand-writing or on instructions. Arms length it’s fine but anything closer I am struggling with. Tash told me to try on some £1.00 specs she got from the pound shop and the difference was remarkable, so clear and in focus. Took them off, and fuzzy as fuck again!

So it looks like I am becoming long-sighted (just Googled it to make sure I got the correct definition!) so might have to get some reading glasses. I am not going to use the £1.00 ones as I wouldn’t trust those not to be damaging my eyes at the same time.

I’ve always been luckily with my eyes so I guess I shouldn’t complain but it’s another sign of creepy old age…I am fifty you know…

Derek Retirement

Worked in Birmingham today at Peters Books and on the way into work collected my new camera. It’s basic but I hope it’s what I need/want and it can deliver. So I was a bit distracted with that throughout the day!

Normal day’s work with Peters and then home on the train but just outside Banbury we came to a halt and we were told there was a broken down freight train and they couldn’t move it, so we sat there for 1hr and 20mins until they finally got it sorted and moved. So instead of meeting at the Turnpike at 7.30pm as planned I managed to get there for 8.00pm and my meal wasn’t too far behind! It was nice as there was obviously Mum and Derek but also us, including Jack and Sue and Simon. The food was okay and it was nice to be catching up on things.

Derek didn’t really say a lot to be honest, but we kept trying to involve him in conversations and that.

Anyway, paid and left and it was a nice evening. Tried my camera and that seemed to be okay!

Weekend round-up

A lot done and achieved this weekend starting with working in London on Friday for Hodder at their offices with the Assessment Team there. It was a good session though and they were the best of the people I’ve been working with for the training carried out. Finished and left their offices around 4.00pm and fancied a beer so had a couple of pints in the Marylebone station itself for once and then got the train home. Got on the wrong train initially but luckily heard the announcement and changed pretty quick – had about 90 seconds to spare…oops!

Home and changed ready to go out and we picked up Katherine and Pete from theirs and make our way into town for a meal at Mowgli. We had some drinks in Victor’s and then had a really nice meal, loved it and then back to Victor’s afterwards for more drinks and some dancing…was a really enjoyable night. Taxi home and then walked down from First Turn as they had to go and pick up Lily as she was having taxi problems.

Saturday had a bit of a lie-in and then blitzed so many jobs! Icicle lights up on the front of the house and all other lights inside the house, kitchen etc all sorted. My drinking photos all arrived, they’re so good, really pleased with them so I was laying them out and sorting through them, my Star Wars Blueprint posters also arrived so that was good! More chores out in the garden, fixing the shower, porch light fixed, did really well. Took Bess and Bella on a massive long walk on the meadow and then back for something to eat and we even bought our Xmas tree from Carl’s shop and got that home ready for next week when the kids are all down.

Tash and I then went out to watch Jack’s football, we got there at half-time to avoid paying and he wasn’t on and when we watched the match it was soon clear the other side were better than Abingdon and they were soon 2 and 3 nil down. Jack came on and he was put into centre midfield and he did well. He went on one run which should have ended up with a goal but the forward messed it up – Jack really made an impact and should be pleased with himself even though he got 20 minutes and they lost 4-0.

He told us later that his manager praised him in front of everyone and pointed him out as the only one to come out of the game with any credit and also the other team’s manager praised him and said he should have been on the pitch sooner! So he was pleased about that. And to be honest, he’s absolutely right.

Tash and I went to Tesco on the way back to get some bits and pieces we needed and then home and our new student arrived, she’s with us for a week and seems nice enough, had dinner and then watched TV in the evening.

Sunday, Tash finally went through the Japan book I made, I think she liked it but did think it was a lot of writing – whereas I was downstairs and working on the drinking images, I’ve put them in one of the maxi poster frames I have (will get a new one for Iron Man!) and after a bit of trial and error and a lot of patience I got it sorted and it looks absolutely brilliant – I am so pleased with it. Shared it on social media and loads of people thought it a good idea. You can see below!

We worked on jobs again and I also went out to check out the camera I want to buy and decided on one which I then ordered on Argos and will pick up tomorrow in Birmingham. Got a picture frame delivered for the movies scratch poster I got for my birthday and also sorted out drinks for Xmas and then we got a fire going and Tash wrapped presents, nice dinner and went through x2 bottles of wine whilst watching The Gangs of New York

That was it – loads done and very productive indeed.

Jack & Abingdon Utd 1st Team Involvement…again

Jack went training today and he was asked to train with the first team, when he got home he then got a text from Steve the manager saying that he’s in the squad for Saturday and would be getting a lot of minutes so he was pleased about that. Really delighted for him, hope it works out, hope he gets paid as well as he will be over the moon – not sure if they do get paid at that level or not but we will see on Saturday now!

Hopefully they’ll put him in left midfield which is where he should be, surprised they’ve chucked him on up front, but anywhere is better than the bench!!

Matilda for Ivy’s birthday

I dropped Tash off to work early in the morning and then back home to do some work of my own before getting ready and then picking up Ivy from Sue’s and then making our way back to Tash’s work to collect her and then we drove off to London. The traffic was fine until we got into Central London of course and then things went pear-shaped! My windscreen wipers would not stop working, it was so odd, whatever I did I couldn’t turn them off. We sat in loads of jams but eventually I was able to drop them off near to the theatre and they walked on whilst I managed to find somewhere to park near to Blackfriars for my meeting with Janice and Gabrielle, but I had to leave my car parked with the damned wipers still working away so I was really worried about the battery running out.

The meeting was a waste of time and I was done in under an hour, back to the car and the wipers were still going!! I drove around for a bit and ended up in Shoreditch again, such a coincidence to be there a few days after having been there so recently. Went round in circles and eventually got a bit of grudging help from a mechanic who pointed out where the fuses were and sure enough I managed to turn the bloody wipers off!

I then went back towards Drury Lane and found somewhere to park and went and got a coffee and cookie whilst working and waiting for the show to finish. Tash had taken Ivy to see Matilda for her 4th birthday and the show today included Miles’s brother Ozzie. I wandered down to meet them and Tash said it was good and we saw Oz by the stage door before going back to the car and making our way home.

Stopped at McDonalds of course for healthy food…and then back to Bicester to drop Ivy off and then home

She appeared to enjoy the trip and experience – let’s hope so.

Jack & Abingdon Utd 1st Team

Jack went training last Thursday for the u23’s but it had been cancelled so he trained with the first team instead as he was there, Saturday morning he got a call saying that he’d impressed in training and was requested to join up with the first team for their match that afternoon, he didn’t get on but it was a good experience for him.

I am typing this on Tuesday sat in the Abingdon bar waiting for the match to start as he’s been asked to be involved again this evening. Again I doubt that he will get a run out but I’d like to be here if he does. I won’t sign off this pot until the end of the match in case he gets on…fingers crossed.

So I was watching from the clubhouse and worked whilst witnessing all the match – Abingdon were 3-0 middle of the second half and Jack was then brought on. They put him up front and he did okay, didn’t get much of a sniff but looked dangerous and busy. At the final whistle all his team-mates were congratulating him so he’s been accepted

Very proud of him, pleased he’s done it. Hopefully they will keep him involved but we will have to wait and see

This was on the website before the match…

End of a nice weekend

Up and out of bed early and pottered around in the garden and cut some wood with the chain saw and in the evening burned everything I’d cut in the morning!!

Didn’t get up to much else really, Tash took Charlotte into town to get some more Xmas presents for her and I stayed home and worked through things I wanted to tick off – sad things like sorting out the PlayStation 2 games for Xmas, Singstar and Buzz!! Looked for a few things for presents of my own but didn’t order them, will wait to see what sort of budget we have. Got a fair amount done and then the girls were home and the four of us (Jack) had a really nice roast dinner.

Took Charlotte back to Bicester Village North and said our farewells and she went back to Uni seemingly a lot happier with things now.

Back home, we watched more dramas that we like, Jack went off to Max’s house as it was his 18th and we ended up in front of the fire with red wine in had and eventually had an early night because we’d eaten early and with the dark nights now it feels so much later than it is

A nice weekend and we think Charlotte is okay and back on track now – she needed to be home for a bit and it’s helped we’re certain

Drinking Images Compiled & Ordered

Didn’t get up until about 10.00am as we’d not got in from last night until about 2.00am, Tash was going out with her family to Milton Keynes so got sorted and was off. Charlotte and I sat at the dining room table, her working and me working on the drinking photos I have been taking all year round. I spent ages on them, the hardest thing was trying to get the best offer for printing them at a reasonable price and the size I wanted and the text I wanted in the polaroid footer of the image.

I settles for something in the end and proceeded to import the photos and then add the captions – it was really enjoyable, I can’t believe we did so much this last year. I had certainly done the right thing with the naming convention of the photos as I’d created and then saved them. I loved setting it up – so I worked through it all and it’s now ordered so hopefully get those in a few days time, probably the same time as the photobook!

Now I need to find a frame for them – that’s going to be just as hard to get sorted I suspect.

I feel I want another challenge now as my list of 50 Things is slowly being whittled away.

I pottered around in the afternoon and took the dogs for a walk and got a fire up and running and made dinner – we had chicken korma – not as nice as last night’s but it was good though. Mum came home and we didn’t do too much really, dinner with Tash, Charlotte, Jack and Miles and then Jack took C&M out to meet friends and we sat in watching TV or sorting things out for Xmas shopping etc.

Caught up on a couple of episodes of the dramas we’re working through but a nice chilled and relaxed evening

Jack the Ripper Tour in London

Worked at Banbury today running a training session with team from Hodder and it went okay, loads of questions but they seemed happy at the end of it so I think I did my job okay! I ran out of there at the end as I needed to get home as soon as I could and I managed to get back at the time I wanted and Charlotte dropped me and Mum at the Park and Ride near Wayne and Kerry’s and we met them and jumped on the x90 to London for a night out. Slept on the way there and made our way to Aldgate in East London and found the meeting place we needed to be at for 7.20pm, we were an hour early so went in a pub that was just like we expected for the Jack the Ripper scene.

So yes, we were on the Jack the Ripper tour that Wayne & Kerry got me for my birthday and we had a great tour guide but the first thing was that there were about 30 people or more on our tour, then you walked past another group of people and then another and across the road was yet another group of tourists on the same tour, it was amazing that so many people were all getting these trips around. It was fascinating and we learned loads from the experience, really enjoyed it. It’s so strange to think he’s so famous for what he did and yet he “only” killed 5 women and was “working” for 3 months in 1888, incredible.

What was amusing is that in the pub when we were waiting I checked Google Maps and said that we were quite near the area that we were going to stay in after the darts, Shoreditch, and sure enough – we actually walked past our hotel – really please as we’re in a great area. There was a road we walked along called Brick Lane which was so lively with bars and places to eat, can’t believe we’re so close to it. The tour was enjoyable like I said and when it finished we made our way back to Brick Lane and more or less went in the first curry house we came across – had a really good meal, really enjoyed it. A few more beers and we’d got the taste for it but instead of staying in the area we made our way back to Victoria station in case we missed the last trains or anything and “intended” to have a drink and then get a later bus, I knew that wasn’t going to happen and it didn’t happen, we stayed by the bus stop and got the 12.01 bus home – that was fine, we were tired.

Journey home was uneventful and in fact we just all slept, Wayne and Kerry got out at their stop and we carried on into the centre of town, Tash contacted Jack and he came and picked us up and gave us a lift home as he was still out so that handy.

A great evening, we get on very well with Wayne and Kerry – would recommend people going on the trip and visiting the area that’s for sure.

Japan Book sorted…at last

So having only just completed the USA book a few weeks ago I have to work on the Japan one and I was under a deadline because of wanting to get the best deal possible from Blurb but also needing to get it done before Xmas. So I’ve been working my bollocks off for weeks on this and over the last couple of days it’s been full on – took me about 4 hours or more last night and a couple more today again but finally it’s completed, uploaded and ordered!

We can view it from this link: http://www.blurb.co.uk/books/9084041-the-dark-family-japan-holiday-2018 

I am actually really pleased with it, there was so much to show and it’s huge but it’s done now and the discount I got from Blurb was 50% because of the Black Friday offer and it was absolutely brilliant because it brought down the cost of two books to £57.00 including the postage…phew!

So that’s one thing off my list of things to do and it’s a great thing to have sorted.

Such good memories in the book as well – mum and Tash will be delighted with it.

Charlotte a bit stressed out..

Charlotte came home from Uni today to recharge her batteries, she’s been up against things a bit the last few days at Uni and her home and was getting tired and stressed so she came home for a few days and is going back to Uni at the weekend, probably Sunday. I am updating this a couple of days later and it’s been the right thing for her to do and she’s a lot more relaxed and back to normal now, I think too many things had got to her and she needed to “run away” from it all and get her head straight at home near us and of course Miles! Whatever works.

She does have a lot on her plate and she’s had a night out to forget, then a tutor who’s a bit of an arsehole and a boiler next to her room that’s making a din and she’s unable to sleep so anyway, all#s well at the minute for her now.

This year is going to fly by – she’ll be at her graduation in no time!

Hangovers all round!

Tash woke up early this morning and kept going to the bathroom to be sick – not a great sound to hear first thin in the morning but there you go! I felt okay but just heavy-headed, not ill. We stayed in bed and dragged out leaving until the last minute and checked out about midday! Walked down to Charlotte’s house and it was quiet and everyone was just feeling lazy and some were being ill so we just chilled on the sofa and literally did nothing. Charlotte put on a film so we watched Limitless which seemed to go on for ages and Tash just slept though! We ordered some KFC via Deliveroo and that went down well!

We started to make a move when the film finished and we said our goodbyes etc. Drive home was uneventful, I didn’t feel tired or in difficulty at all and it was a good run home again, dropped Miles home and got back to ours – nothing happening so we crashed out and relaxed in front of the tv and did nothing whatsoever for the rest of the evening

Early night to bed and another successful and enjoyable weekend.

Student night out in Nottingham

Up nice and early today and got things sorted in the morning, Miles arrived in good time, sorted Jack and then got on the road for Nottingham – Lewis was leaving Manchester around the same time so we looked on course to all be there at the same time – perfect. The run up there was uneventful, in fact it was pretty quick to be honest. Stopped at McDonalds to get some breakfast and then were there at Charlotte’s house. Sat in the kitchen catching up with her and her house-mates that we know and planning how the evening would work out. Lewis arrived and we then walked into town. On the way was out hotel so we dropped our bags in there, once we were given the correct room and then continued into the shopping areas of Nottingham. Wandered round and it wasn’t overly successful but I think we got some ideas and some presents for the kids – that’s what Tash really wanted to pin down this afternoon so I think that worked.

People were getting hungry so we went to Pizza Express in amongst an area of the town centre I like, some great looking bars and Indie shops – meal was nice and we had a couple of drinks and then went from there to do some more shopping which was more successful and we then made our way to the Xmas Fair/Market they’d got set up. They’d done a ski lodge and it was great, we went upstairs and got a drink and then looked out over the balcony at all the shoppers and the snow machine kept blasting out the ‘snow’ and it was really enjoyable. We only stayed for a pint and then more shopping and made our way back to hotel and agreed meet up times and they all carried out home.

Just got ready in the hotel, Tash had a sleep and I watched TV and then we jumped on a tram for one stop before walking down to their house and we sat in the kitchen listening to music and drinking…we then went in the front room and got Ring of Fire going. It’s a card drinking game and it was enjoyable – the drinks were definitely flowing now and we were all getting a bit drunk. About 10.30pm we left and got a tram into town, quite a big crowd of us went and we all got in the same pub and the other parents that were taking there kids out were there too so that was nice. I went and got a round and for some reason did it for everyone - £65.00! Oops…although to be fair I didn’t have to get another drink all night..!

Stayed in this bar for a while chatting with the kids and parents and then made our way to the Bier Keller that was planned – got in with no issues and it was quite an eye-opener, no one was on the ground, all of them were on the benches singing and dancing to the DJ. We found a space and climbed aboard and joined in of course. That went on for the rest of the night and we stayed until closing time. Staggered out and went to get some food and find a taxi for us all.

Witnessed quite a nasty fight which I didn’t help by shouting “Fight! Fight! Fight!”…made me laugh anyway!! Taxi got us back to the hotel – can’t remember much and then crashed out fast asleep!

A really enjoyable day and night – I think everyone else had a good time as well and it was great to spend time with everyone

Still working up North..

Hard work today, I was at a clients to go through x3 sessions introducing the Logical Office solution to users and when I walked in it was clear there were ‘problems’! Basically there was a lady completely opposed to the introduction of the system and they’d been arguing about it before/during my arrival at the offices – she was in the first session I ran and made it very difficult instead, so argumentative and over-bearing, it ruined the session for any normal users. It then kicked off again whilst people were coming in for the second session with her and other partners of the business, I just kept quiet of course, it wasn’t my argument but it made for a very difficult atmosphere all day.

Yet the guy I was working with that organised it all, Richard, was great, really nice bloke who I think would be a good laugh down the pub and a day/night out – felt sorry for him

Anyway, all done and dusted by about 3.45pm and I was out of there and on the road home, but I was knackered so I did stop for about 90 minutes and slept deeply about 25miles north of Nottingham so I didn’t actually get home until 8.15pm – nice dinner and a catch up with Tash, problems in the Bull family sadly and then watched a couple of dramas to keep up with things and then to bed.

Another early start tomorrow as off to Birmingham and Peters Books…I need a rest!

Long day in York

Working up North today and typing this from a hotel between Leeds and Pudsey – yes there is such a place! Nice enough hotel, all workmen in the restaurant and I had a couple of double-gin and tonics and scampi and chips. Ready for bed shortly, I am knackered.

Was up and out the house by 7.00am this morning and the run up to York was excellent so I was at the Designer Outlet roundabout by 10.15am and I wasn’t meeting anyone until 12.00pm so went into the Outlet centre. I could have spent quite a lot but didn’t, however, I found the white Ted Baker shirt I liked in my size at an absolute steal – £40.00 plus an additional 30% off – wasn’t going to turn that down!!

Actual work was fine – the manager I was meeting for the first intro session was quite hard to work with and the training with the Marketing team was fine as well. The new system we’re trying to release isn’t very intuitive and experienced Data Mining users are finding it hard work, I really need to find a solution or training delivery that’s going to make this easier for them. It was a really long day, we started at 1.30, 15 mins break and through to 5.00pm – v tired

Then hour drive to the hotel – traffic was painful but got here in one piece!

Might have an early night now as it will be a long day tomorrow no doubt.

Booked Marrakech

So one of the 50 things on my larder door was to go to Marrakech and this is now ticked off as being organised. We mentioned it to John and Pauline Bampton a couple of weeks ago and they were up for it. We wanted to get it booked so we followed up with them a couple of days ago and they said yes definitely, sure enough, Pauline has now booked it for 4 days in March. Should be good fun and we’re going for quite a long time so should really experience the most from it.

Tasha is delighted to have had someone book it for her instead of her having to do all the work!

How exciting!!

Doncaster again

Worked in Doncaster today with the Hodder Northern team reps and it went okay. Got there just in time and unexpectedly it went on and on so I stayed on late and did a lot more than planned, but that was good and it seemed that everyone was happy with the end result before I left. What was good was the train I got was a non-stop one and I was able to get loads done. not so good on the way back because I didn’t have a reserved seat and it was so busy, but also was sat opposite someone from an insurance agency and they just talked throughout the hour that I was with them until they got off at Derby!

Got home at a decent hour although I’d been up since 5.00am so was knackered. Had a couple of beers in the evening and a Baileys but it was good to get the work done – I like travelling.

Queen film

Pottered around in the morning, quite heavy heads but nothing too serious, in the afternoon we worked on all the jobs we wanted to get done and had dinner. We had a target time to complete everything by and we met it and it meant we could get changed and go to the Vue near the Kassam stadium and watch the Queen show called Bohemian Rhapsody which was mostly about Freddie Mercury. We took Jack with us and we all really enjoyed it, I loved it – brought back so many memories of a time that I was young when it focused on Live Aid in 1985.

Interestingly the film has had mixed reviews, but those of us not too concerned about 100% facts and more the things that he did and achieved and the music they played it was a great film and worth going to watch.

Back home afterwards and to bed after watching a bit more TV!

Black Eyed Peas

Got up late this morning and had quite a hangover, last night was great fun and unexpected to be quite so bad! Worked in the garden cutting back trees and sorting out the pond so it was productive in the end. Couldn’t be bothered to do too much to be honest

In the afternoon we got ready and then set out for Milton Keynes, me Tash, Charlotte & Jack went off to seeing the Black Eyed Peas. We got there in good time and parked up near the venue and went looking for somewhere to have a drink, we settled on Frankie & Benny’s because it was the only place that had a normal bar and then we queued up and eventually John & Pauline Bampton came along as did the Holdens – all of them!

We then made our way to the venue and having queued to get in the queue for the bar was about 7 deep and we couldn’t be arsed to wait so in fact we didn’t have another drink all night!

The girl group on as the warm up act were pretty good and then the main event took place and it was actually brilliant, really enjoyed it. Shame that Fergie wasn’t there but they had a replacement and she was very talented and involved and confident so it worked.

Loads of their classics and it got the place going, they were on for 90 minutes and more and it was entertaining.

Finished on a couple of banging tunes and then the night was over – no problems getting away and out of the car-park, very well organised and home with no issues whatsoever

A really good end to the weekend!