What a difference a day makes

 Dear Marmite

I am writing from home as I am now safely back from my adventures. They haven't been big ones but they were good and I am still smiling with happy memories. I told you in my last letter that my planned trip to St Andrews was curtailed because my friend, Ann was ill. Well, I set off alone in my car and did the 500 mile trip with no passengers. 

I packed the car with stuff left at my place over Christmas and then stopped off to pick up other stuff left in my ex's. Somehow, my family seem to be unable to pack properly! After that it was onwards and upwards to Sheffield - a place I had last visited when I was 6 months pregnant with Sammi. I have to say from my brief visit and trip round a local park how beautiful it is as a city. I stayed with Anita and of course we had a few glasses and a very funny game of Articulate. The Singapore connection lives on. Cheers!!!

After that the remaining part of the drive was daunting. It just seemed to go on for ever. As a southerner, I always imagine the industrial cities like Sheffield to be so much further north than they really are. So when I set off in the morning I felt Scotland was going to be a shorter hop from Sheffield. It wasn't. I got there. I felt whacked. I had planned to get in my car and drive back after just one day and two sleeps in St Andrews. I knew I couldn't do it. My plans needed tweaking.

I also didn't want to do 500 miles in one day. I don't actually think I could it without a passenger. I had a light bulb moment! I stopped off at my cousin's in Wales and that was a wonderful catch up. Whatsapp chats and face time pale in comparison. It made me want to see everyone I know over here. I think we should all have a week long party. What do you think, Marms? You'd be invited.

St Andrews is always lovely. It is such a small city. I made myself busy. I walked Lucky all the way  along the front to West Sands where the golf course is and then met up with Sammi at lunch time. Lucky slept well after that. The following day we all went for a walk through a forest in Falkirk. The boys came too. Reef did a spectacular drop off a rope swing over a stream and landed in the water. We laughed. He cried. It wasn't funny really.  The water was icy cold for starters and he landed with a bump. Being a tough kid he pulled through and we made our way to a waterfall. 

The cafe in the area - The Pillars of Hercules - does the most wonderful curry pasties - not quite curry puffs - even better. They kept us all going! Lucky slept well after his second trek of the weekend. Before setting off home I even considered a dip in the sea with Laura - I didn't get beyond considering it though. See what you missed, Marms! Remember our little jaunts?

So now I am back, the holiday washing is done and I listen to the radio and despair of the politics. Our PM - self-named Big Dog - is now well and truly in the dog house. Life is more or less normal once more and I can't remember what day it is. I spent Tuesday thinking it was Monday and missed my trip to the Orchard - and that is what retirement is I suppose - a string of connecting weekends. At least I know that today is Ezra-Mae's first birthday. Yay!!

So Marms, as I say bye bye, I will get myself ready for today's dip in the pool. I'll count my days in swims and continue to despair of the way this country is run.

Love you

XXX

Christmas is a distant memory now!

 Dear Marmite

Christmas is a distant memory and over here life is mundane once more. The weather is grotty most of the time. There is a permanent dampness in the air and when I cycle I come home covered in mud from the puddles. I did have a big joy to look forward to though. This was a holiday planned with an old friend - a round trip of England and Scotland, taking in a few cultural bits and visiting friends. 

Last weekend she got COVID so our best laid plans have gone up in smoke. That sounds rather dramatic - perhaps I should say that they have been delayed until March. Over here the death toll has passed 150,000 and the infection rate is about 200,000 a day. So in some ways it is hardly surprising that our lives are so disrupted.  The papers are discussing another government flipflop - mass vaccinations are soon to be old hat and we are going to have to live with this virus in its evolving forms. No more pandemic. This is endemic. This new approach comes when we have higher infection rates than at any time previously. Nuff said!

Despite the change in travel plans, I am going to visit Sammi in St Andrews - 500 miles north. The whole family were down, staying with me over Christmas and part of my decision to travel has been to return all the stuff too numerous to mention to the rightful owners. Lucky is minus a dog bowl but that wasn't his fault -  for starters! 

Marms, I have been punched regularly by Lucky all through his stay with me. He demands attention in just the same way you did. I got so many hearty nudges from his nose I automatically started to stroke him when he dug me. It was a bit like having you around. He had loads of walks with Shadow, which you would not have liked, and then needed hosing down because of the mud. He wasn't too pleased with the cold water wash and rub down. At least the water was warmer when I did it to you! 

The swimming pool is back on my exercise regime now that I am COVID free. I did a few lengths the other day and saw all the familiar faces. My intention was to go today but I have a sore troat and catarrh today so I'll go out on my bike for an hour and a half instead and get myself plastered! Yesterday I played tennis in glorious sunshine and near zero conditions. Life really isn't the same over here and I miss not having to dress up in layers just to go outdoors. 

That is what I am off to do.... layer up and leap on my bike for a ride along the country roads. 

Sending you all my love

XXX

All the Best for a Happy New Year

 Dear Marmite

Happy New Year!! Maybe this will be the year that we finally get to meet up again but with the way things are, I doubt it. Cases of infection are going through the roof in the UK and I am now officially a statistic. Our Christmas was modified somewhat by Danielle the Super-spreader blessing everyone with COVID and then having the gall to blame Ezra-Mae. Sammi rightly pointed out that at under the age of one, this little one doesn't actually have a social life beyond where she goes with her Mum. So with that rather sustainable logic, Ezra-Mae must also have been the recipient of Danielle's germs. On this, Danielle doesn't have a leg to stand on!

Danielle had a booster on the 23rd. She was sensible. I truly believe that it was the booster that gave her COVID and unfortunately she is the one to have suffered the most. The rest of us have the merest sniffles but we have all tested positive. This is possibly my third bout if I count feeling really shitty in Bologna in January 2020. If I had these symptoms and skipped work in the state I am in, people would have called me out for being a lazykins in the not too distant past. Oh how the world has changed!

So, while being full of Christmas pud and COIVD, Sammi set to trimming the tree in my garden. I cut the branches up on the ground and neither of us were too worse for wear for doing this. My nextdoor neighbour suggested I buy a plot of land and when I get COIVD next time, I should start to build my own place - now there's a thought!

This is the time for thinking, mulling over the past and making wishes for the future while inventing new ways to serve up leftovers. As no-one has been able to go shopping there has been no opportunity to add a little je ne sais quoi to the fayre. Luckily, I have a freezer full of frozen veg, a fairly well-stocked spice cupboard and rice and pasta. I think I can keep going well into January despite needing to feed my hungry son. This might not be Michelin star stuff, but there is food on the table. 

So in times of COVID, we have regularly met up with Richard, Danielle and Ezra-Mae as the COVID Coven; taken muddy walks through the countryside; and played very silly games at home at ALL times of the day and night. Last night we watched Crazy Rich Asians  - a bit of nostalgia for us - then saw the New Year in with a glass of bubbly and a round of Canasta which lasted til nearly 2. It is not nice having COVID blight all our lives but for our family, we have managed to laugh our way through it as we have been forced to stay together under one roof.

Ezra-Mae plays Pictionary

Covid has curbed our activities, the tree lights after a fourth and successful attempt at  going up have died and are now in a bag awaiting recycling, the house is a pleasant muddle, the outside temperatures have broken new highs and I am smiling my way through to an even happier, joyful New Year. I am just missing swimming and tennis. 

Wishing you good health, joy and prosperity, Marms and Rita. 

Especially big hugs

XXX

Christmas Came Early

 Dear Marmite

My big day was December 22nd. I was busying myself doing bog-standard preparation stuff when low and behold a delivery man brought my third, and this time proper, cushion cover for the sofa. To be honest, I had been sent an SMS to say it was due at lunch time the previous day but it didn't arrive. I had been on the phone to the company to let them know about the "no show". Naturally they apologised - typical, I thought... I have been here before so I didn't actually think I would get sorted. Yet, all turned out all right. I have a perfect sofa now. The joy didn't stop there. I then had a call from someone in M&S who obviously wielded power. I now have been compensated with more than M&S vouchers. Case closed. I am now over this and I have a new year to look forward to - free of M&S silliness.

This wasn't the end of my joy. Within a short time from the first delivery the 3 mini heaters I had ordered some time before  arrived by post too. I was convinced I had been scammed. I got them from this company because they promised an earlier delivery than other online ones. Having paid money to them, there was no acknowledgement. I checked out Curry's who didn't have much to offer beyond a £600 Dyson one - yikes. I wanted to warm up the downstairs area where Sammi and Lucky are staying but even my darling son isn't worth spending £600 on. 

By the time Christmas arrived, Nasser had strung up my fairy lights around the room, my food preparations were complete and it only needed me to bung the fully stuffed  turkey in the oven before 8am on Christmas morning. Danielle, Richard and a pretty grumpy Ezra-Mae popped round for Buck's Fizz and present opening. Apart from a poorly little baby who needed nothing more than cuddles, it was such a joy to have everyone together. I got given a lovely walking stick - this was a request from a long time ago. I needed a stick to help with the blackberry picking. I even got a walking holiday for Christmas too. Wow!! 

Christmas dinner left us all very stuffed - not just the turkey! I had catered for both Muslims and vegans and now I have enough food to last me through to the end of January. Lucky is the benefactor of the turkey stock. It was once you, Marms that had this special joy. I used to mix it up with rice for you. Now Sammi and I are working our way through leftovers for the foreseeable future. Even the freezer is stuffed.

We played the requisite number of very silly games, wore hats for the entire day and collapsed far too early! Danielle and Richard  had also got me a pub quiz game which promises to bring out my competitive side. That is one thing many people will know doesn't need encouragement. I am yet to find "friends" to play with. Any takers?

The compulsory Boxing Day walk didn't pass without incident. It was a pretty damp day but we didn't anticipate the Flood Plain of the Nature Reserve to be flooded! This wasn't just puddles either. Well over half way round our walk, we trudged over a bridge to find a lake where the normal path should have been. After a little prevarication, Sammi decided the only way was for him to take his boots off, roll his trousers up and piggyback me to the dry bit somewhere on the horizon. 

The two cyclists who had joined us on the bridge also ummed and ah-ed about their best escape. It was quite funny but turned into total hilarity when Lucky decided it was too deep for him.  He had an audience though felt no shame in being a wimp. He went round in circles and refused to follow Sammi who by now had feet that were bright red from the cold water. Sammi waded back and rescued the stupid mutt. All had turned out well.

Well, I thought it had turned out well. Just as we had got to safety, Richard phoned to say that Danielle had had a convulsion and collapsed in their bathroom. He then took her to hospital where they did a brain scan. Doctor's conclusion - it was COVID. She had tested positive Boxing Day morning despite having a booster on the 23rd and since then had been under the weather. I am still very worried as I don't trust the doctor's diagnosis. She has done all the right things to protect herself and still COVID has done this to her. 

So I am emotionally wavering between the joys and heartaches of the past days. Hopefully, the sun will come out tomorrow - metaphorically - I don't hold out much hope for the weather forecast,

Love to you, Marms

XXX

The Christmas Spirit

 Dear Marmite

Once more I fear that Christmas Spirit might be in short supply. The government is given to a lot of pifflewaffle muttering about plan B or even PLAN C but no one is prepared to give definitive direction. So on this "advice" I am full steam ahead for cautious Christmas FUN!

However, I got rather to the the heart of things and feel I have a few insights since I went to a Christmas Quiz at the Conservative Club in Bletchley. For brevity I'll call it the Con Club and the name seems apt. I had never crossed the threshold of one of these places before so to me it was a real eye opener. It is just like I imagine a northern, working man's social club - a large, badly decorated room with a sad, artifical tree leaning to the right. 

I ordered a drink which was very nearly poured into a mucky glass - eagle eyed me spotted this just in time. Was this a metaphor, I wondered? Our host promised food. I expected to be getting a proper meal - maybe even Christmas fayre. I had saved myself for this treat. Looking at the scribbled chalk menu, I noticed the choice was rather limited - cheeseburger and chips, hot dog or scampi and chips - our team held back and resisited as none of this excited us. By the time we relented, the kitchen had closed. It was 8:30 and the quiz was in full swing. In some small way we have done our bit to save the planet as the Con Club serves meals in polystyrene boxes. What does that say about our government's green policy? 

At least we won. The prizes weren't great but there is always the warm smug glow I feel for having sat with intelligent but hungry friends!  After the quiz we did a takeaway from a kebab shop in the main street of Bletchley. It was top notch yummy. We sat outside the shop in a cold dank mist and ate it - even funnier -  we played a game to name songs or artists with colour in the name. Then we went on to a karaoke pub - nuff said... What a funny night it was.

Christmas cheer abounded at my local tennis club. Despite heavy mist and nippy conditions, enough silly people plus a musical penguin showed up to the social. It wasn't quite the Red Hat Socials from my previous life but it was fun even though I had numb fingers by the end. 

I went to my local village church again and I can't help thinking how blessed I have been to have found a home in such a friendly little village. This time there was an "elf" organisist and we sang carols through face masks. One of the congregation insisted on this even though we were in separate pews. Afterwards I hung around for mincepies and a chat. We all took our masks off for this and mingled in a much cosier part of the church. No one saw any irony in our close proximity without masks on. After all, had anyone planning this thought how we could possibly eat delicious homemade mincepies through a cloth barrier?

So as I head towards Christmas and the number of COVID cases grows daily, I have at least three swims, a couple more quizzes, another knock on the court, a trip to Tescos- err...and a partridge in a pear tree....

So, Marms, on our third Christmas apart, I'll be thinking what to do with the excess turkey gravy with you not here with me to lap it up. I do know that you won't go short of hugs and treats though. You are in a wonderful loving pair of hands. 

Merry Christmas old boy. 

Hugs and kisses.

XXX

Mad Dogs...

 Dear Marmite

I know you must have heard the saying; Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun - well, over here Englishmen appear to be even more crazy than the saying suggests. Here is why. I went walking in the rain last Sunday with Ezra-Mae in the stroller plus Shadow on her extending lead. Along the bank of the canal for as far as I could see were MEN.. Just men - sitting on a wet canal bank in damp, chilly conditions dipping their lines in the water. Apparently it was a competition. Madness! 

My walk with Shadow proved that she is herself, a little mad too. Holding an extending lead with a chunky handle while pushing a stroller on bumpy ground is not ideal. This you must realise, is an understatement. The daft dog kept walking ahead and then across my path garrotting Ezra-Mae who was tucked up in the stroller. When the mood took her, this silly dog then dropped back until the lead was stretched and I was jerked to one side as I was pushing.This made the stroller lurch to the side.  I know that you wouldn't have behaved in such a despicable way. 

I have told Danielle that if I have both dog and baby again, I need a proper lead. I need one that isn't stretchy. The annoyance of this will stay with me, no doubt for some time. I returned home grumpy and muttering about the mud, the dog and  the weather. Once in my garden I stuck Shadow in a bucket of water to wash the worst of the mud off and left her to shake herself down while I sorted out the baby. 

To be honest, I thought about dunking  myself in a bucket the previous day. I had been to Wolverton Christmas Fair where I had felt pleasantly warmed by the atmosphere and music despite the continual drizzle. I cycled to the fair and then when the rain had reached downpour proportions, I decided enough was enough, I needed to return before it got dark as well. Cycling  home along the towpath, I ended up covered in mud and I was wet through despite wearing a raincoat that clearly hadn't lived up to my expectation of keeping me dry. I am still not sorted with the right clothes for English weather and I have been back for almost two years. 

Locally, in a small town, the lights for Christmas look spectacular. My photo hasn't done them justice. Small market towns steeped in history have ridden the COVID storm admirably. The specialist shops look as if they are thriving despite the gloomy economic news.  On the high Street, the food delivery robots were neatly lined up outside Costa Coffee - I presume they were waiting patiently in line for a carry out to warm their wheels before they set off to deliver goodies.  The scene was very much 2020s but the feel could have been Victorian. Even on a damp evening, the decorations looked beautiful. Well done Stony. You lifted my spirits. 

Perhaps it was this shot in the arm that inspired me to write my Christmas cards at 6am this morning. They have stamps on them and they will be in the post today! The lights in my livingroom are currently draped over a curtain pole. They are still not up. I am giving myself a SMART deadline... December 2022. After all, I have all the time in the world. 

You are in a better place, Marms. No winter chill to ache your joints.

Love you as always

XXX

Plain Daft

 Dear Marmite

The weather here is not nice. It is either damp and raining or crispy cold. Too cold to enjoy being out playing tennis matches, that's for sure. Yet, yesterday that is what I did. I still see pictures of the tennis events at my old club and people there are wearing very little. The pictures are current and they are all standing on sunny courts. This is the sort of tennis I consider normal. On the other hand, over here I have to get dressed up to play and my recent purchases have all been for thermal stuff. I even bought a pair of gloves that can grip a racquet - but I don't recommend holding a racquet like that. I haven't even decided on the best combination of layers for free movement. Over the course of a game I shed some of these layers, but still, I am beginning to see games such as chess as being more my thing even though I once tore a disc playing that. Moments like these, I reckon I must be plain daft. 

We are well into December and I haven't forgotten a certain old dog's birthday coming up this week. Sadly though, December birthdays do tend to play second fiddle to all the things we need to do to get ready for Christmas. I feel busy just thinking about Christmas. My tree is up. My lights went up around the livingroom and then came down again - three times. They are still in a heap on top of my wine bottles. I am awaiting inspiration on this hiccup. Meanwhile, I feel an urge to drink the vino and forget the lights. I have bought Christmas cards hoping they might write themselves - ooops. I have also thought it would be nice to decorate the tree in my garden with delicate lights. I am still thinking about it and as they say, it is the thought that counts.

I feel totally uninspired doing any Christmas shopping. I went to a craft fair advertised to open at 10am and when I turned up with Danielle and little one, it said it was opening at 11. I am thinking about going to another craft fair. I have been doing a lot of thinking lately. 

Last night the village had a lighting up ceremony. A brass band from the local town turned up and played beautifully. There were braziers lit up on the green at the end of my road where the "do" was happening and there, a tent had been set up to sell mulled wine and mince pies. It was a really heart-warming affair despite the cold. I fully expected the large tree on the green to be the feature for the lights. To me, it seemed contemporary and imposing. My focus was on that one. I didn't notice it was an unassuming, minature Christmas tree on the other side of the road that we did the countdown for. When I realised which tree was the ONE, I muffled a little giggle at my stupidity. 

So as you can see, Marms, time slips by and we are heading for my second Christmas here in the UK. I have known nothing of a "normal" existence here as I arrived home and almost immediately it was lockdown.

In many ways I can imagine another year of COVID life ahead of me and it makes me sigh.  Our statistics are obviously the wrong side of dreadful. I am beginning to dream of travelling to far flung places. My feet are getting itchy.

Meanwhile, I have been doing a bit of painting to while away the hours. I have to say, this really does make the time fly. Before leaving Singapore I thought of setting up an art shack / garage but even that is now a distant thought. Maybe I think too much!

What do you think, Marms?

Love

XXX