I can’t bear to add to all the Michael Jackson claptrap, so I shan’t, but I DO have to say how amazing it is for the sick jokes and comments to start circulating by text and email, literally within minutes of the news breaking.  Who creates these things?  Some are very funny, (if decidedly NON PC), some are groan making and some are just downright stupid – but I’ve never met anyone who has started one – only someone who has received one!  So what else is new?

I’ve been ‘Fast Track Leadershipped’ recently – a subdued, (by American company standards) event held within the confines of the National Motorcycle Museum – I quite like motorbikes – but there are so many of them there that one starts to zone out after the first 2 halls, (or maybe the first two rows).  I have to confess that I quite like these events – lots of plain speaking by the Exec Team, (we’re all doomed unless you work harder, longer, more efficiently – but let’s not forget to celebrate how great we have been); a chance to network with like-minded colleagues, (meet in bar and drink lots); a chance for a frank exchange of views, (loud mouth Lucy strikes again) and that joy of all joys, an after-dinner, motivational speaker.  In the shape of none other than Frank Dick OBE.  Who he?  Indeed.  Frank’s website describes him as an ‘Extraordinary speaker with the power to inspire and motivate audiences, Frank Dick’s presentations are highly amusing and anecdotal. He is the former British Athletics Federation Director of Coaching. Currently, Frank is the President of the European Athletics Coaches  Association, and Chairman of the International Association of Athletics Federations Academy.  I can only say that ‘it depends’.  It depends on whether sport floats your boat, it depends on whether you like being part of a team or are more of an individual contributor and mostly, it depends on whether you are desperate to go to the loo, with no way out of the room, other than past the speaker and therefore cross your legs and count every second.  He spoke for 2760 seconds – that may not sound like a lot, but believe me, it is.  Reader, I managed to wait, but I was so boggle-eyed with concentration on my dilemma and the need to improve my pelvic floor INSTANTLY that many of Mr Dick’s motivational, amusing and anecdotal words were lost on me.  If forced, I could tell you that sometimes we need to sacrifice ourselves for the good of many, (wasn’t that Jesus) and sometimes, we just can’t be any better and learn to live with it.  I am sure there was more to it than that, but it went over my head.  At some dull point, I intend to read the copy of Frank’s book, ‘Winning’ that we were all given as a souvenir, in the faint hope that it contains some tips on how to improve my lottery chances.

Changing the subject completely, we are off to Italia at the weekend – it’s my birthday and I deserve a treat.  Lovely husband has already told me that he’s ‘bought me a couple of things’ – this after a prompt from me that I didn’t want anything more than the trip itself……………so I am getting excited already.  Knowing him, it’s either a metric spanner set or a new car wash kit.  Love him.

Very quick, just to let you know I am still (barely) alive. It’s been difficult lately, very difficult in fact. Top 3 things contributing to my difficulties – No 1 child who is most definitely having a crisis – enough said for now. No 2 child who doesn’t see the need to have a crisis about anything himself, but believe me, now that Banksy has gone mainstream, (with a very twee exhibition at the Bristol City Museum) and colleges only want you if you have 27 A* at A Level and been a successful member of every youth movement from the Boy Scouts to the local AmDram, with a foray into right wing, (or left wing, if you really insist) politics en route. Give it up, get a job. McDonalds are reportedly receiving over a thousand graduate applications a week!!!! And that’s just for the ‘do you want fries with that’ department. Thing number 3 is myself – bad decisions, bad management and bad at dealing with stuff. My favourite position is ‘head in sand’, a Pilates and Yoga combination that stretches lots of muscles but changes nothing.

Back soon I hope

I hate not having enough money – the credit crunch is biting and our lifestyle is still in catch-up mode. Those who know me may not have noticed much evidence of frugality in the household, and I readily admit that doing without my beloved glass of sparkly would be a step too far. But I am now reduced to ‘value’ buying in certain categories. Why this new emphasis on home economics? Because I am taking some wise advice to heart and considering, fully, every single time I am about to spend money whether it is APPROPRIATE. I heard a snatch of an interview a few weeks ago on Radio 4 with he of the Dragon’s Den, Mr Duncan Bannatyne – I have always been attracted to men like Duncan and his Scottish burr only helps – but he made so much sense in the few minutes of interview I heard that he has already changed my life! His point was simple – don’t think about BOGOF’s, 2 for 1’s, limited offers or anything else – just ask yourself – ‘given my financial situation, is this purchase appropriate’? The second bit of the advice was to apply it to everything from beans to Manolo Blahniks. So far, I have ’saved’, (well, at least ‘not spent’) by not buying: 2 bedside tables that would be nice to have, but aren’t absolutely APPROPRIATE, £80; not buying some walking shoes that are just like the 3 other pairs of walking shoes that I already own – £70; and various smaller savings made by not buying premium brand baked beans, noodles, biscuits and so on. I HATE putting the gaily cheap and cheerful packaging on the conveyor belt – it just screams ‘I’m a cheapskate’ as far as I am concerned, but I defy anyone to tell the difference between a ‘value’ Rich Tea biscuit and a McVities one!!

However, I did find it entirely appropriate to book a long weekend in Italy – with the express intention of scouting out some possible cookery school locations – more of that in July after the visit………..

Tatty Bye!!!

Bank Holiday that is………….roll on August!!!

Did you have a good Bank Holiday weekend? Surprisingly, the weather was pretty good for once- and depending where in the country you live, it was possible to avoid the rain altogether – not this morning though. Waking up to a grey, rain splattered day is always depressing, especially when you have to heave your body out of bed and go to work!

I have managed to avoid all manner of reality ‘entertainment’ shows, and the description of one of the acts from ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ of a man doing bizarre things with power tools had my stomach churning just hearing about it. I know we all say things were better ‘in the past’, but thinking back to a line-up of ‘Jim’ll Fix It’ and ‘Blind Date’, I’m not so sure. I was quite taken with Merlin on a Saturday tea-time over the winter, but it did have an air of predictability after just 2 weeks. I still don’t think there’s enough good quality comedy on mainstream, main time TV. The absolutely dire re-make of Reggie Perrin is just not funny, (Though we have friends who LOVE it). What a waste of the talented Fay Ripley and ubiquitous Martin Clunes.

Lowlight of my weekend was a 50th Birthday party at Usk Conservative Club – a friend of the Lovely Husband was celebrating his becoming a ‘grown-up’ and having never met him or his friends and family before I was a bit of a loss. Now, I’m not normally shy or retiring, but being in a group of people who all knew my husband when he was married to somebody else is a bit intimidating, even for me. Plus, the photo spread of ‘all their yesteryear’s’ included several pictures on which the ex was prominently featured. Now I know that that was then and this is now, but my green-eyed monster finds it hard to keep silent at such times. Luckily, I wasn’t the only one in this situation, I managed to find K, who, although she has now been with her partner for 15 years, was not one of the original crowd from the 1980’s, she too wasn’t in the photos, but the ex was. I was tempted to get to work with a pen-knife, but realised that might have been considered petty………….Still, I almost embarrassed myself by getting up to do ‘the Cha-Cha slide’, a dance I perfected whilst living in Spain, (don’t ask me why) but managed to hold back, to the immense relief of LH if the look on his face was anything to go by. All good parties need a buffet – and this one was no exception – I’m not sure if the food was deliberately chosen to represent the height of 1980’s chic, but it reminded me of the food they always used to serve at the works Christmas party. Still, no one else seemed to mind and the table contents were decimated within a short space of time!!!

Toodlepip

I suppose it’s the time of year for green shoots, blossom and flowers – but my head hasn’t caught up with the speed that the year is going at yet! In my mind, it’s only just past Christmas and still winter! We’re off on our summer holiday in just three weeks time – a week visiting family in Poland – I hope I feel a bit more seasonal by then!

It’s Eurovision time again – I have never been a big fan, but I have to admit, (shock horror) that I find the prospect of Graham Norton much more appealing than Terry Wogan – am I the only one who doesn’t find Terry nearly as amusing as he used to be? And certainly much more egotistical. I am a Radio 2 listener more often than not and have enjoyed two weeks of Johnny Walker while the Togmeister himself has been away on holiday, Johnny is much wittier, nicer to the others on the show and comes across as an all-round nice bloke. I have often pondered why it is that Radio 2’s ’substitute’ presenters like Jo Brand, Mark Lamar, Liza Tarbuck, Martin Freeman and Melanie Sykes are much more entertaining than the ‘regulars’ they cover for. And don’t get me started on the subject of Sarah Kennedy. The heart of the matter is that there isn’t another radio station with a better offering, I don’t like local radio and particularly dislike the cheesy local advertising and features on the size of this year’s pumpkins at the Coombe Bassett summer fete. Lest you think I criticise Radio 2 too roundly, I still LOVE Steve Wright and his guests, I ADORE ‘Ask Elvis’, which has remained one of the funniest sections on radio for years, I think Aled Jones does an excellent job of ‘Good Morning Sunday’ and Michael Bolton is a great presenter and interviewer – who’d have thought it? The craziest lady on radio anywhere has to be Elaine Paige – but she’s a hoot and listening to her on a Sunday afternoon is one of my guilty, (shouldn’t I be mowing the lawn or something) pleasures. The great Paul O’Grady has finally been given his own show too – about time – he’s always been quick witted and sarcastic, but he does it so well on a Sunday evening. Radio 2 is absolutely the best Sunday lunch preparation background a girl could wish for.

It’s also the Moonwalk this weekend and my beautiful sister, Clare is walking the Marathon 26.2 miles with her best friend Fiona – (spot Clare as the ‘odd one out’ in the line-up of Radio Stars above – sorry Clare – I can’t find a way to get the pics in the order I want them – OR to add captions)!!  Both their husbands have signed up as marshals for the event, so I am sure they’ll have a good night – they are hoping to complete the distance within 6 hours…………………if you feel like sponsoring them, you can at http://www.justgiving.com/claregooch Apparently, it’s T-shirts OFF this year – not sure who decided that, but it seems to have caught the public imagination, (I wonder why)!! Good luck Clare!!!!

 

 

 

Regular reader, (thanks G)!! will be pleased to hear that I feel I am almost back to my usual form after my recent holidays………………..the rest has done me good and spending time with my Lovely Husband is never a hardship. I shall spare you the intimate details, but the opportunity of a few lie-ins is very rare in a household where he works 6 days a week and we are usually ‘up handy’ for Church on a Sunday. I have written before about living in Spain – which I did from March 2002 to January 2005 – and I have to say, it’s a place that I don’t miss much when I am not there, but every time I return, I realise what I am missing……….if that makes sense? Stepping off the plane at Alicante airport just a hop, skip and a jump from a very wind-buffeted Bristol I instantly recalled why I loved Spanish spring so much – a warm wind, that unmistakable smell of ozone mixed with aviation fuel and airport staff who looked tanned, relaxed and were smiling. there wasn’t a lot of that on the ground at Bristol I can tell you.

And the food – if you can find a restaurant that doesn’t drown everything in about 3 inches of olive oil you’re usually onto a winner, the fresh fish and prawns are always fabulous and I like ‘merluza’ much more than I like hake – what a great name for a fish. The beaches are variable, but in the Costa Blance they are generally CLEAN – swept everyday, (even in the winter), dog-free and sandy, shelving into a usually calm Med. An old-fashioned promenade in the late afternoon at Guadamar Del Segura is charming and peppered with greetings to little old ladies clad in black, old men playing boules and teenagers trying to get away from their parents for a little while. And a glass of chilled local Rose wine accompanied by some Queso Manchego or a bowl of bread and olives is just divine. I can’t wait for the time when I can return to living in Southern Europe again…………….

Of course, it’s not all milk and honey in the land of the Moors, prices are going up, many Brits are giving up the ghost and returning ‘home’, disillusioned that they can’t find work in a land where they don’t speak the language and frustrated by the bureaucracy of getting things done; consequently, many houses lie empty and the holiday ‘rental’ market is saturated to extremes – if you are thinking of going to Spain and self-catering this year, you’ll pick up a bargain I’ll be bound – and if you don’t mind doing at least some cooking or barbecuing, then fresh food prices are still much cheaper than they are at home. A week of sun, sea, sand and Sangria could be just the ticket!!! Hasta Luego.

I am off to Spain for a few days of R&R and just hope that I am not afflicted with my usual ‘holiday malaise’. It’s that sudden illness that takes a grip when your brain finally realises it’s got a few days off and doesn’t have to show up at work at 8.30am the next day – it has various forms – a cold often, (though I have one of those already that seems to have been a permanent fixture for the last few months); a tummy bug is another good one as is a desire to do nothing other than sleep.  The pics above are of good times and I have included them for no other reason than to cheer myself up!!!

I have just re-read that last bit and realised that I sound like a right grumpy old woman!!! Things have been somewhat rocky of late, with some domestic problems culminating in a break-in earlier this week and the theft of our relatively new TV. The (very young indeed) policeman informed us that ‘there are quite a few of these in Old Town lately’, which didn’t really make me feel any better. Especially as he went on to tell us that they usually change hands for no more than £50 in certain parts of town. I’ve got a £50 excess on my insurance policy – perhaps I should just go and hang out in a few dodgy pubs and see if I can buy it back!! It’s all the mess too, the shed was broken into, (though don’t know why, there is a pile of bricks right by the front gate left over from building works that would have been ideal for putting through a window), but instead they used an axe and smashed one of our original Victorian sash windows with that. So, that’s a new window frame, new glass obviously, a re-painting job that needs to be done, but most of all a feeling of vulnerability and insecurity that is very uncomfortable indeed. Lovely husband has changed the locks and added new ones, to which the best I can come up with is put these words into the right order……….door, stable, horse, bolted, close. No amount of locks are going to stop someone determined to enter – AND the house was occupied at the time – even scarier – though not uncommon – my brother was burgled a while ago whilst sleeping in the next room. He was unluckier, as the thieves not only made off with quite a lot of his goods, they used his car to cart them away in!!!!

So, it’s Mrs Glum this week. I shall make a determined effort to be cheerier upon my return!!! Hasta luego.

Almost 2 weeks ago I took part in a scarecrow trail – I have noticed these becoming more popular in Wiltshire in the last few years – there was one in Wanborough last summer and this one is in the picturesque village of Lacock, host of many a film set over the years for its twee backgrounds and picture postcard cottages, mills, stream flowing through and so on, (recently seen as Cranford on Sunday evenings). Before attacking the trail though, lunch was on the cards – a traditional Sunday roast at the Red Lion – me and friend M went for lamb; lovely husband went for beef and friend V opted for pate and home-made chutneys – it was busy in the pub and we did have a bit of a wait, but the food was pretty good – plentiful, hot, well cooked but not outstanding – and reasonably priced too. A nice bottle of red helped it all go down and we decided on desserts as well – a platter of cheese to share was more than enough for two, (though it did take a bit of wangling to get some extra crackers, otherwise home-made cheesecake was very tasty and a Yorkshire parkin was gooey and custardy in just the right proportions………

So, a slow stroll around the village spotting the village school’s eclectic collection of ‘pop star’ scarcrows was just the ticket. It was a warm and sunny afternoon, the place was teeming and all the hostelries, tea rooms and ice cream establishments were busy. At £2 for a trail sheet it wasn’t prohibitve and as all funds go to the local school, it gave a warm glow of satisfaction too! The scarecrows covered musical genres as far back as the 50’s and included some that were bang up to date. We are still unsure if we correctly identified them all – results are not announced until the end of April, (the trail closes this Sunday, so still time to fit it in, weather permitting). We settled on Gary Numan for one of them, but are still not convinced – especially having seen a picture of the man himself! The trail itself is now in its 6th year and last year raised over £10K and bought a new ICT suite, plus other equipment for the small school. A very English sort of outing which delighted German friend V – I feel sure there will be a scarecrow train in a small village outside Munich sometime soon!

Have a lovely weekend everyone.

How is everyone? Are you well? Feeling fit? Ready to take on the world over Easter? I wish I was!!! I am now on what must be the 9th or 10th ‘cold’ I have had this year. Many of my colleagues, including a particularly persistent French Business Development Director are insisting that I don’t have a cold, I have an allergy. Tosh! I know a cold when I have one………. achey muscles, stuffed head, tension headaches, massive sneezes, sore throat, wheezy chest and a nose that would win the 100m with the amount of running it’s been doing!! And what pray am I meant to be allergic to? Pollen. Don’t be daft. Surely after the coldest winter on record and combined with the fact that the blossom has only just begun to sprout, pollen is an unlikely candidate? And these colds have been going since January, on and off, (but mostly on). Traditional remedies have failed miserably. The ‘Max Strength Cold & Flu remedy with decongestant’ doesn’t event touch the sides. But finally, a light at the end of the tunnel……….or maybe it’s the oncoming train, who knows? Chinese medicine. I have absolutely no knowledge of what goes into ancient Chinese remedies, but I know a woman who does. My colleague, who spent the first 20 odd years of her life in China, swears by it and she finally took pity on me. First of all, a hot, herbal drink – no idea what it’s called, it’s all in Chinese, but it stinks the office out and smells of camphor and mothballs. It works though. I took one yesterday and another one today and my chest feels much easier, the wheeze has definitely lessened. In addition, the oil to rub on my pressure points seems to be helping as well. I may get some funny looks as I shove it up my nose, (very important pressure point halfway up the nose apparently, only accessible from the inside – now, lest you think someone is pulling my leg, I have the diagram in front of me – it’s there alright), but it seems to be working. My headache has lessened for the first time in 3 days and I can breathe more easily. I’ll be taking it on TV soon at this rate! I was somewhat sceptical to start with, but it’s having more of an impact than the usual tablets I rely on, so I won’t knock it. Interestingly, another colleague tells me that it’s common for ex smokers to suffer like this – but this isn’t the first time I have given up smoking, and I don’t remember one cold after another before.

I am looking forward to a lovely, peaceful Easter. We’ve got a family get together on Monday Chez Little Brother, who is soon off ‘oop north’ to start a new Army job, I’ll miss him – it’s been good knowing he was only half an hour down the road, even if I didn’t see him very often – no doubt it’ll be less once lovely Liverpool has him in its grip. Happy Easter one and all. And in the words of the fabulous George Handel’s Messiah, ‘I know that my redeemer liveth’.

 

 

Well, finally a few minutes to breathe for the first time in what seems ages. It’s been a bit of a mad rush lately, and no signs of it stopping either!!!! I have recently come back from Railtex – the largest UK exhibition of ‘things Rail’ and THE place to be seen when one is a serious railway industry player. The challenging part of a role like mine is that I am a real ‘Jack (or Jill) of all trades’, I was responsible for the stand concept and design, managing the delivery, agreeing how and what we would display, who should say what on the various days, meeting the press and letting them know what our plans were as a company. I was also responsible for making tea and coffee at times, cleaning up and washing the dirty mugs to boot!! Mucking in at a very fundamental level. One of my criticisms of the Rail industry generally is that it is very chauvinistic, if you’re a woman, then you are probably a secretary or a cleaner, seems to be the way of thinking. It a very male dominated industry – with a higher than average share of ‘anoraks’ who can reminisce about the days of steam until you are ready to chew an arm off with tedium. But I like it!!! There is some glamour too – there’s a conference in Malaga next week – one of my favourite Spanish cities – sadly, I’ll be in London keeping our end up at MetroRail – the world’s largest, (they’re all large) conference for the mass transit industry, while some of my other colleagues get to swan around in the Spanish sunshine between ‘networking sessions’. I have always admired the Spanish tendency to relax at every opportunity – with siestas and late dinners part of the way at life – the drinks reception on the first night in Malaga doesn’t even start till 9.30pm!!! I like that style.

On a totally different matter, what is it with men and illness? I would have thought there had been enough high-profile men who paid the ultimate price for ignoring symptoms for too long, (John Diamond springs to mind, plus the newsreader whose name I can’t recall, but first had a leg amputated and then died). My Lovely Husband has been ill on and off for ages – and I mean ‘ages’, probably at least 3 years – but he constantly brushes it off as ‘just a bit of lurgy’. After passing out at work on Tuesday he has finally had a couple of days off, but still won’t take on board that a variety of symptoms that have persisted over the last 3 years are anything to worry about – any ideas on how I can make him see the seriousness of it all? Worst of all, he was cross when he found out that I ‘knew’ because one of his staff called me – he had expressly told them not to, because he ‘didn’t want to bother me at work’. Nightmare!!!