Happy Equinox - we are there already!

 Dear Marmite

I have been really busy. I have been away on holiday. It wasn't a "Grand Tour of Europe" type of holiday, more a mini tour of the UK and I travelled with a very old friend from Stevenage. We had planned to do this trip in January but illness got in the way so everything was postponed until this week and I have only just got home - car is clean and sparkly after grubby motorway driving and the washing is drying in the garden. I really am back to normality. Oh how quickly we get back to our routines.

The main point of the trip was to visit Sammi in Scotland. That is a terrifically long drive so we planned a couple of nights in Newcastle en route. I had never been there before as I think I mentioned in my last letter. Looking back, I think the biggest take-away from my trip there was learning the link with Earl Grey - a Nelson-type monument stands in the city centre to commemorate his work against slavery. I knew about him from history but not that he was linked to Newcastle, gave his name to tea, or that he had such a big monument.

From the museum.. hello

We moved onto Edinburgh to meet up with some other old friends. We stayed on the waterfront in Leith and used public transport. What a wonderful place the whole of Edinburgh is. The Chambers Museum is amazing. I want to return just to see more and do Arthur's Seat. My friends were against the idea of walking up a hill as it was a bit miserable - the guide says it is about 2 hours walking which is nothing really. So that, Marms, is on my bucket list. 

The big dampener in Edinburgh was the hotel I booked. As it had to be re-booked the person on the front desk, who had little command of English and no grasp of the computer system either, refused to accept that I had booked even though I had emails showing I had paid. My first booking was £50 for B&B, then I had to top up for the re-booking. I had to pay 50p more just to get into the bedroom. She refused to read the emails from the hotel and got nasty with us. Customer Service Score minus 5. I personally was affronted by having to pay another 50p. Bloody cheek!

It was late. We gave up arguing and decided we would talk to the person on the desk in the morning. At least we had a bed to sleep on, which is more than I thought we were going to have at one point. Meanwhile the silly woman had cancelled our booking the night we arrived so the evidence was lost on their system. However, the hotel redeemed themselves and gave us a "complementary" breakfast which I had proof I had already paid for... errrrrrr. 

So onwards and upwards! St Andrews is a short hop from Edinburgh. Three nights on the road made it seem an easy trip. It was made even easier as we stopped at Anstruther for coffee. At this point Ann refused to embrace the joys of the Scottish weather said she wanted to have lunch in a cafe and not on the waterfront. I, on the other hand, rather wanted to take in the ozone and have my cobwebs blasted - C'est la vie.

I showed Ann around and to be honest there isn't too much of St Andrews. Three main streets, a couple of beaches, a uni and a golf course sums it up. What there is, is lovely. I was quite interested in the castle this time round as I had just read The Castillians - a novel set around the burning of George Wishart and the siege of the castle. The weather was mostly glorious - considering how far north we were. So many people were walking around with very few clothes on. I imagine they too had come from Newcastle where a lack of insulation is the norm. I felt we rather stood out with scarves and winter coats on!

If only you could have been there with us, Marms. You and Lucky are so much alike in so many ways. Lucky trails along; never too excited about anything. He seems to get looked after by everyone in turn. Even though he is younger than you, he keeps to your pace. To sum up all that happened in our whistle-stop tour to St Andrews - I saw my grandsons, watched a documentary about whale Communication, played and lost at table tennis, ate and drank with gay abandon; so now I am home I am going to have a few "good" days.. No wine, no eating out.

I always feel a little sad saying good bye but we still had Liverpool to explore. The city was bathed in sunshine and buzzing. I love the place even all these years later it has a special place in my heart. People talk across tables to each other and are so naturally friendly. Now it definitely looks loved and upmarket. 

My big downer on the holiday was a slow puncture which I didn't realise I had. The tyre pressure light came on when we left Ann's in Stevenage. I topped up the pressure in Newcastle and then again in St Andrews and then in Liverpool had a waking dream that my tyre was completely flat. It was. That was spooky and not the first time I had seen things in my head either. 

The latex repair stuff leaked out on the carpark floor. I cursed. Then the AA man came in less than 30 minutes. I am in love! He - John - was wonderful. He put a bung in the hole, phoned ahead to Kwik Fit and we were on our way. Kwik Fit didn't quite live up to it's name. It took two hours to get the wheel sorted. In that time we strolled up Lark Lane and round Sefton Park - another worthwhile excursion! Nonetheless, despite a long wait, we were on the road again and onwards to Stevenage. 

So now I am back and I can promise I have waved at everyone I know en route. They don't know that of course but I realise I know people spread far and wide around the British Isles. If they were reading this along with you, Marms, they would know who they are.

It leaves me to give you a big wave too, and hugs of course.

Love you

XXX

Chatty Daffs

 Dear Marmite

I am writing to you from Newcastle - a city far north from where I live. I am with an old friend and we are heading for Scotland and a visit to Sammi. I left my little home just a couple of days ago and said good bye to all the spring bulbs that are now out and bursting into flower in my garden. Last year a dear friend gave me some tete-a-tete daffodils. These are mini ones and they are making a magificent show around the garden. I like to think of them as being chatty daffs!

In the hopes that the spring flowers will be superseded but the seeds I have sown, I carefully prepared lots of pots at the beginning of March. I have my fingers crossed that some will come up but I did catch an old crow pecking away and sending soil and compost in all directions. Who knows what he managed to snaffle. My new hobby will most probably involve an airgun - watch this space!

Now I am  in Newcastle and this is my first visit. My first impressions are very mixed. Once I had driven round the city centre three times just to find the hotel and carpark, I felt pretty much au fait with the layout. It is not particularly large but it is difficult to navigate by car. After a drive from up south just finding the hotel added another 40 minutes. I asked Ann to read her phone map and to look for street names. I didn't realise how difficult this would turn out to be. She needed one pair of glasses for the phone and another to read road signs. Swapping between the two proved a hurdle. Besides this, there were roadworks that google didn't know about - Hey Google - you know nothing! The satnav system seemed slow as well. We only got to our destination after phoning up the front desk. My nerves were pretty much in shreds by the time we got to the hotel room.

So here I am almost ready to hit the town for our second day. Yesterday afternoon and evening we explored - walked over bridges, had lunch and generally soaked up the atmosphere. Today we hit the art gallery and tonight, the theatre. So many shops are closed. The Eldon  Garden Shopping Centre tags itself as being inspirational. Not so! There is grafitti everywhere - and not the nice stuff, rubbish is strewn in every nook and sadly even in this cold, damp weather, people are sleeping on the street.

In contrast to this, the architecture is magnificent. The new and the old blend beautifully and the Quayside is a delight even in a nippy breeze and drizzle. There are advertising hoardings telling the locals what "levelling up" means to them. Despite all the construction going on, I feel there is a long way to go. 

The locals are a hardy lot. I know it is early spring but wearing flip flops, shorts, t-shirts and not much else is a pretty brave thing to do even down south. There are lots of locals who walk the streets dressed this way. You Marms, would need your fur coat for sure.

I have been on my soap box about all that is wrong with the world. I am going to offer a place to a stray Ukrainian. It is the least I can do. At home I am taking cold showers and not using the gas hob in protest to where my gas supply might be coming from. If I hadn't had my holiday booked for such a long time, I would have probably postponed it. Unfortunately I am travelling by car so I need to use petrol. I do have a pang of guillt even though I am enjoying the trip. 

So, as they say, onwards and upwards, the day lies ahead. Missing you laods,

Love

XXX

Oooops a daisy

 Dear Marmite

At last the sun is shining and all is well with my little world. I wish the same could be said for all the people who are now homeless because Putin's ego has caused devastation and upheaval on a scale unthinkable. I have found it too much to listen to the news on the radio or read reports of the war in The Guardian. It is beyond my imagination the suffering he has created. Here I am in a green and pleasant land where my government has managed to sort just fifty visas for Ukrainians. Again, it is beyond comprehension how incompetent and callous this Home Office is. This is a war crime in itself.

I could go on and get really political. I won't Marms. I promise. I have pledged myself to not use my car any more than absolutely necessary and burn fuel that might have come from Russia and I am conscious of not using gas in the home any more than the minimum. I am taking my own little stand hoping that nothing I do will help the Russian economy. 

So, with the sun shining, I set off on my bike this morning heading for the swimming pool for a swim with Danielle and Ezra-Mae. I didn't get far. I fell off just outside my house - the gears got stuck and they wouldn't slip into the lowest ratio. Ooops a daisy! So there I was lying on the road with the bike by my side hoping that no one else would notice. 

I quickly recovered from my embarrassment, sorted out the chain and set off for the tow path. Luckily, I rolled and didn't fall heavily. No real damage done - the swim ironed out any possible niggles - I only did 1000m today as the main reason for swimming was play time in the baby pool for us Woolheads. 

Ezra-Mae - at thirteen months-  is a real waterbaby. She loves the water. She doesn't mind being splashed and she goes under without fussing. Danielle - proud Mum - and I sat chatting to the swimming instructor in the water and she said how many parents are really nervous about letting their children get water on their faces. I am glad that Danielle is chilled with Ezra-Mae. We spent some time pushing her back and forth on a float and then she slipped off and went under... ooops! No harm done!

I have also taken up a new hobby - of sorts. I went to my local village hall for a table tennis club the other evening. As you know, Marms, I have only really ever played with my children so I am not particularly good. Surprisingly, I managed to hold my own with the gentlemen of the village and am looking forward to going along again. Danielle said she would join me and tell the others that she had only really ever played with me - her Mum. I should get Sammi to join as well - although anyone playing him needs nerves of steel and the ability to duck quickly.

Talking of ducking... I planted seeds and shrubs in my garden. After all the digging I swept up and thought how neat it was. Later that day, I found bits of earth all over the paving slabs. The culprit, I later found, was a mighty crow who was systematically digging up the seeds from the tubs. Now I'll be surprised if anything comes up. I am prepared to throw things at birds who undo the good that I have done. They had better learn to duck! I have included a picture of my front garden with the new stones in. It was taken from my bathroom window so it is a bird's eye view.

So Marms, planting seeds, setting off cycling  - all signs that better weather is here. 

I am sure you would love it - especially with that thick coat of yours

Love you as always

XXX

I write when I can

 Dear Marmite

All last week I really didn't have much to say. Here it was mostly rain and I did the same mundane things that really aren't worth mentioning. This week, however, has been a whirlwind of excitement by comparison. 

It is March! Yay, I have planted seeds and nipped or lopped bits and bods in the garden already. This I have on good authority is what you need to do at this time of year. Most things are showing signs of life. I am a little concerned how early my bulbs have come up but I notice it is the same everywhere. The tree which Sammi hacked at last Christmas doesn't appear to have done much though. It is not a big garden so it is easy to keep an eye on progress.

Last weekend I set off across the village with a wheelbarrow to pick up some free rocks from a house up the road. They were dismantling their pond and I needed some rocks to create some relief in the patch at the front. Both parties are happy with the exchange! My back didn't enjoy the experience though. For my efforts, my front garden looks just a little better and with all the rain, it is looking green. My olive tree survived the winter so all is well out in the front too. Looking forward to a lush-looking patch in the near future with splashes of colour.

Despite the weather, I braved the elements and made it to a few pub quizzes too. I am part of a wonderful group of really smart people who tolerate my getting the odd one right. The other night I got the tie-breaker which meant we took home the winnings. Over here, winning means a few pennies in prize money which keeps me in drink. How good is that?

I have also had my first experience of the WI. A lady in the village asked if I could give a talk about my travels so I put together a slide presentation about Syria

and did my best. After all this time not standing up in front of a large group. it all came back to me. Verdict -  they were lovely ladies and only one fell asleep while I was talking so I'll take that as a success. Apparently, I might be doing the same talk for another local WI sometime in the future.

So Marms, I leave the best to last -  Cambridge. Naturally it rained all day. That is what it does here. Dearest Margy organised for Peter, Karl and myself - all ex BC -  to meet up for a day in Cambridge and a trip to Kings College Chapel for Ash Wednesday Eucharist. Margy's son, Matt is one of the choristers. It was lovely to catch up with people from Singapore - just like old times - and also to feel a connection so far from where we all used to be. 

We managed a quick tour of a couple of the galleries at The Fitzwilliam - armoury and china. On our wanderings, a couple of questions came to mind: firstly how strong the knights of old had to be to wear the metal cladding and also to wield incredibly heavy weapons as well, secondly - would I have known that certain bits of pottery were valuable if they weren't behind glass? I am sure I wouldn't have.

The service at Kings was a religious experience - beyond words. I felt the music in my chest, the incense added to the atmosphere and the sermon was a step well above anything I had heard from a pulpit before. A wonderful day all round - I'll keep that safe in my memory.

You are always a part of my thoughts though. 

Love you as always

XXX

Visitors

 Dear Marmite

This week has been busy. Not just me - most of the country has had Dudley, Eunice and and now Franklin visiting their neighbourhood.  When guests come, I make special arrangements. Fortunately for me, None of my guests have caused any damage so far! Remembering the impact of tropical storms and hurricanes from my time in The Bahamas, frankly I thought it would be much worse. 

Rail services were cancelled and a RED warning went out for 10am in my area. Tennis was also cancelled. Friday brought wind but not rain. The canal had waves. The skies were sunny, and on Saturday, I took a walk around the Flood Plain Nature Reserve to see what damage had been wrought. Nothing - just a few twigs and small branches across the paths. The sky looked decidedly Gothic and the wind was still whipping around even then. We were lucky. Parts of the UK are without power again. 

While these storms are not hurricanes, they are named because of their potential to cause havoc. It could be rain, wind or snow. Outside even now the wind is whipping up in that noisy way that makes me want to stay put, drink coffee and eat biscuits. My heating has been sorted out just in time. It is easier to control now and, according to the instructions it picks up on what my habits are and turns itself on and off accordingly. Clever!

Despite the weather being a disruptor, I also had nice visitors as well. Gaby from Singapore popped up the M1 for a short visit on Thursday ahead of the bad weather. You might remember her from tennis, Marms? Obviously we talked about the old times, grandchildren and, of course, tennis. More and more I do tend to talk about the old times. We also said that one of our great joys of living in a hot country was; you don't have to wear many clothes. This is something I still haven't got right over here even though I am almost through my second winter. We went for a local walk and once again, I wore the wrong clothes - I was far too warm that time. Other times, I need a hat when I didn't think iof taking one. You, Marms, are lucky you just have a lovely fur coat and you don't have to make such decisions.

On Friday Binny and Ana braved the elements and came up for lunch. We had a cosy time in my local. I never have any issues getting there as it really is next door. This brings to mind the joke: It takes five minutes to walk to my local and about forty-five minutes to get home afterwards - The difference is staggering!!! I seem to recall we spent most of the time discussing when would be a good time for them to leave and which route to take vis a vis the storm. 

Then yesterday it was my time to visit. This was a trip to a cousin of my mother's, Paula. With Danielle and Ezra-Mae -  plus a pile of baby paraphernalia -  in tow, we set off for Aylesbury - not far away -  for a wonderful day out. Ezra-Mae is a crawling dynamo. for the time we were there she never stopped crawling, climbing, playing and smiling. Obviously, she was the topic of conversation for this trip. When I was a child and the world was a very different place, our extended family would get together on high days and holidays and we would always end up playing cards. Paula and I had a few reminisces (is this a word?) about this and times gone by and the family members long since passed. 

Today it is a swimming day! Just another normal run-of-the-mill activity day. I love seeing people - long may it continue.

I only you could visit too.

Lovely you

XXX

My learnings for the week!

 Dear Marmite

As I write this, I am watching the weather outside take a turn for the worse and I am dressed and ready for a tennis match. I really should have learnt from my experience of last weekend when I played a mixed doubles in less than ideal conditions. Why couldn't it have been like the weather in this picture?

 

On the day in question, it was refreshingly nippy to start and there was more than a light breeze whipping across the court too. Not long after the match started driving rain interrupted play and then when we got back on court hail pounded us. If this wasn't bad enough; at one end we looked straight into blindingly low sun. My partner joked that all we needed now was a rainbow; and hey presto!! one appeared. 

Playing tennis in conditions like this isn't tennis. It is not the sort of tennis that you used to watch me play from the comfortable bench at DFE. I toss the ball to serve and it moves two feet to the left before I can swing at it. From one end everything is wind assisted and from the other you have to whack the ball just to get it to pop over the net. I need lessons in taking advantage of these conditions. Better still, I should refuse to play. At least swimming lengths is not weather dependent.

I got home from the match and started to cramp up. I am good at getting cramp. I have suffered all my life and when I told Danielle about my suffering after the match she recalled a brief history of all the places I have ever had cramp. This is true. I do get it really badly. She might have shown some sympathy for my plight.

Anyway, back to my suffering. After over four hours of tennis. I couldn't get off the sofa and stand up. I rubbed one bit of cramp away only to get it somewhere else. I actually couldn't stand straight. I went to bed but couldn't sleep. One little twitch of the toes and my whole leg would seize up. OUCH!

The next morning I decided I would just swim without doing flippers and paddles. 1500m no problem! Then I got out of the water and it all started again. I couldn't stand up. I was rolling on the side of the pool, beached! I had cramp in both legs and my stomach.

Three fellow swimmers helped me while the the life guard sat on his perch and failed to notice my little crisis. Thank God I wasn't drowning! The big lesson here is - don't expect life guards to save you! They are there for show, and in this case, not to enhance the look of the place!

I realise that I am repeating my past mistakes - overdoing things and then getting cramp for starters and then agreeing to play matches in winter. Repeat after me Marms, I must not...

Actually there is a very long list of - I must nots... As they say, one is never too old to learn - or, is it that you can't teach an old dog new tricks! I am a work in progress, even at my age!

Love You!!

XXX

A Rollercoaster Ride of Covid Cancellations

 Dear Marmite

First of all, it was so nice to see you making the most of the CNY holiday with all our old friends. From a distance, your Reunion celebrations seem covid unhindered. I have to say I felt really "homesick" for all that I miss in Singapore and I have just passed my two-year anniversary of returning home here to the UK. Despite this passing of time, I still feel strangely attached to a place that was my home for 24 years. Especially, seeing all the pictures of you and your friends, I wanted to give you a great big hug.

Covid has slipped off the front pages over here. Big Bad Boris makes far too much interesting reading to make space for a few hundred daily deaths. I know that schools are really struggling, people are  now weary of the pandemic, and, around my neck of the woods people are no longer wearing masks. However,  I still do when I go into shops. For all intents and purposes Covid is behind us here even though it is still keeping the death toll high and it is a disrupter. Health Minister Saj has even done a U-turn on compulsory vaccinations for health workers.

Because of Covid, my social life took a bit of a battering this weekend as people I planned to meet up with have tested positive. I still have a tennis match and a quiz to look forward to today and in future weeks I'll get to meet up with those who are isolating  - may they recover quickly!

The plumber came round this week to sort out my combi-boiler. I had been living in a house without heating or hot water for five days. I showered in water 6c before I realised there was no hot water! That was refreshing! Other than that, I did OK as the weather was unseasonally mild and I also spent a lot of time out of the house as usual.

The plumber - a nice man - and not the least bit patronising showed me how to twiddle a couple of valves to refill the boiler and get it going again. He also went round the house and banged his screwdriver on the pin inside the thermostats. Hey presto!!! the house heated up like never before. I know plumbers are expensive but this one actually gave me a self help lesson so he was worth it!!

Last Thursday I was in charge of Ezra-Mae so I decided we would go swimming. I couldn't believe the paraphernalia that seems necessary for a quick dip plus all the warm clothes needed for the cold weather outside. If I needed to do that with my own children I am sure they wouldn't have been such good swimmers. Living in a warm country with our own pool made it so easy. I'd get them changed, throw a towel over my shoulder and leave the house for the pool. 

However, it was all worth it. I put Ezra=Mae on the floor as I sorted out the bags and she made a break for the water's edge. She loved it. She doesn't mind splashes, she loves getting wet, and she is so relaxed. Being on the small side, I think people think she is younger than she really is too. The life guard who knew me was impressed and true to form my little grand daughter made eyes at him. Despite the amount of STUFF I need to lug around, I can't wait for our next dip.

So Marms, apart from this recent highlight in my life: I mostly drink far too much coffee, swim, play tennis, get out on my bike and poke around my garden. That is it... the extent of my happy life.

Missing you as always. May the Year of the Tiger bring you great blessings.

Love

XXX