Sunday 27 February 2011

All systems go...



Well I managed the drive back along the M25.  Nearly 100 miles - that's pretty good going for me!

We have spent today trying to get the abuse out of it from the previous owner who appeared to be a dry-liner who liked fishing; sweets; an occasional roll up and had a black dog!  Well that is what the evidence we found told us anyway... But here is the car.  I think that it is quite big enough to enable us to sleep overnight in it when we are en route to Spain in the summer.  In fact with the back row of seats taken out of it I can lie down quite comfortably so that should give us a good night's sleep and help prevent Mick's back from playing up.

I ache rather a lot now though - can't do as much as I used to!  A nice hot bath relaxed me but it hasn't taken away the aching muscles and now I feel quite tired.  Just hope I remain that way because I am a dreadful sleeper normally...

So now I have the registration number I have booked the ferry (crikey it's gone up a lot this year); booked Eurotunnel and am all set for the summer hols.

You may think I'm eager but our break at Easter is less than 8 weeks away and then when we get back from there we only have about the same amount of time before we are due to go to Mallorca.

I just won't think about the money, I'll just keep on working :-)

Saturday 26 February 2011

New Motor

Well today I drove almost 100 miles in our truck which is not bad going for someone who hasn't been behind the wheel for about 6 months!

The problem with commuting to work is that I never get chance to drive anywhere and boy was I nervous about all that mileage on the M25!

My incentive was the fact that it is Mick's birthday in about a week and the only thing he wanted was a car that would be comfy to drive to Spain in, and I had received a small annual bonus, so I promised if he could find one within the price range then he could have it.

Well we found one that was in auction but we had to travel to pick it up.  So I told myself I could still do it and I did.  Mind you the weather didn't help - it was raining.

So now we are back to two vehicles.  The truck for pulling the trailer and a Chrysler Grand Voyager for driving about in comfort and it has cruise control which is essential when driving all those miles to Spain.

Now Mick is making a shopping list for Halfords for cleaning equipment etc....

Mind you I told him not to expect a birthday present like that next year!

Sunday 20 February 2011

Good Weekend

Well I have enjoyed the two days where I didn't get up until I felt that I had rested enough.

Yesterday was spent doing all the normal chores that I have to fit in over the weekend but today I took it a little easy.  I've been going over my web coursework again because it's surprising how quick you forget what you've learned!

I feel quite satisfied that I am getting somewhere and have to admit to enjoying creating my own websites even if no-one else can see them yet.

I feel a lot better today and not quite as drained as last week.

Only just under 9 weeks until I get my week away at Easter.  I'm really looking forward to it.

Friday 18 February 2011

Easter Holiday

Well we had wanted to take the trailer to Cordoba for Easter this year but unfortunately due to the fact that Mick can't get enough time off work we have had to rethink our plans.

If we were driving to Cordoba it would take two days to get there and to get there in time for the Semana Santa parades we would have to leave on the Tuesday before Good Friday.  Mick just does not have enough holiday available to do this.

So we have booked to go to the South West of France again.  It will enable us to leave on the Thursday night and get to the campsite by Good Friday and then with the bank holidays available we will be able to stay there for a week yet only using up 3 days holiday allowance.

Very sorry we can't make it to Spain and sad we will not be able to join in with the Easter celebrations.  Sorry Cefe if you are reading this but it just wasn't possible this Easter.  Still not long until we join you again for our summer holiday.

Tuesday 8 February 2011

National Health Service! Stop treating my step-dad as a senile old man

Four days after his major operation and still Stanley has not come back to us!  He survived the operation and is physically quite robust but mentally he is a changed man.

Now I am talking about a man who at the age of 90 took a computer course; I am talking about a man with a great wit and sense of humour;  I am talking about a gentle, kind man.

Whether it is the drugs he is on or something more serious we don't know because the only answer my mum gets from the nursing staff is "well he is 95".  No he is not a senile old 95 year old!  All we want to know is why he is behaving totally out of character.

I managed to get my mum to phone a fellow lodge member who is going to meet her at the hospital tomorrow and see if he can get any further information from the nursing staff and hopefully he will see Stanley and also assess the situation.

Don't judge a book by its cover and accept that family members know when something isn't quite right!

Friday 4 February 2011

Replacement replacement hip op

Well I am so pleased today that Stanley has come through his emergency operation.

My mum phoned in a panic yesterday as Stanley, age 94, had fallen in the kitchen the night before while taking his cup out to wash it up before bed.  As he fell he landed full weight on his hip and it broke!

Now he already has two hip replacements but undergoing emergency treatment today entailed a 6 hour operation which was quite tricky and in which they had to remove his previous hip and insert a longer length hip replacement.

Bless him before his operation he even arranged for his Masonic friends to be notified and they called round to see my mum today with a bunch of flowers and to see if there was anything they could do for her.

Have to admit that it brought a tear to my eye that even as he was in pain his first thought was to make sure that mum was being looked after.  You don't find many like him nowadays.

So while he is in the recovery room I will just say "Bless you Stanley, make a swift recovery".  After all he is wanting to get his telegram from the Queen!