Day 885

Day 885...

I think this will be a relatively short post today as I am writing it fairly late on in the day.

This morning our first job was to nip out to Asda to collect our grocery shop order. Once upon a time Asda was my go to supermarket of choice but lately I have become more and more frustrated with its lack of choice, lack of availability, poor substitutions and general price increases. I think going forward I will use them for big bulky items but keep the majority of my shopping to my local Lidl instead.

There was a little more shopping to be done today but that was online as I needed to place an order with the butchers that I use. So much easier to order great quality products, in bulk and for delivery on a day of my choosing.

After our lunch/brunch Simon and I decided to take a trip into Derby for a wander around and to pick up a few things. This involved stops at Paperchase, Damaged Society, Lakeland and of course Primark; quite an eclectic mix of shops today! We then took some time to enjoy a coffee at Caffe Nero before heading home.

Today has also been all about the 3D printer. Simon has been tinkering with it to get the best possible prints out of it and he has managed to get a few more pieces printed. It is now busy printing a larger section of the model Simon is creating and will be busy printing for the next 9 hours!

Simon has also managed to get some painting completed on some extra parts for his R2D2 as well as some digital painting for his latest art creation. My creative juices were a little more simpler and directed at my current jigsaw!

And with that I will see you all tomorrow.
xx 

Day 881

Day 881...

Wednesday has rolled around and finally the forecasted rain was with us. But we didn't let a little drizzle stop us from taking our early morning walk we just stuck to the pavements rather than get wet feet going over the fields. We managed a pretty quick 2.2 miles in 38 minutes.

This morning I headed out to a local garden centre for coffee and a catch-up with a couple of old friends back from my banking days. I left the bank over 20 years ago but a small group of us still keep in touch and ordinarily we meet up for a coffee every few months or so but today was the first time in over three years! But it was like we'd only seen each other a few months ago and a couple of hours over a coffee soon whizzed by.

On my way home I'd timed it right to be able to stop by a local retail branch of Next to collect an online order that I'd placed yesterday afternoon. How great is it that I was able to place an order and in less than 24 hours I was picking it up.

After a spot of lunch I had a letter from the solicitors to deal with. I'd been waiting for the letter to arrive for over two weeks and it was only because my brother had chased them on Monday that a letter had miraculously appeared today - strange that! The whole process following my Dad's passing in March has been so slow, with the solicitors seemingly stuck in a rut of routines that is now about thirty years out of date. Everything has to be sent by post, payments made by cheque and documents hand delivered. All very frustrating as in this day and age with technology where it is everything should be so much more simpler and much, much quicker. But anyway I finally had the letter and it contained some details that I had to approve, sign to say I agreed and then pop back in the post. 

Unfortunately, it took me way longer than it should have done but I blame how the paperwork was worded, how it was presented and then my haste to get it dealt with and in the post today. I had a deadline of 4pm as that was the time of the last collection at the post box closest to me, but in my rush to get it done I think I caused myself more problems than I should have done. So although I did manage to sort everything I needed I missed the 4pm cut-off, this means that tomorrow I will be going out of my way to hand deliver it to the solicitors instead! 

Before I knew it the afternoon had disappeared and it was time to go down the gym. It was so nice to be working out in a much, much cooler environment than of late and tonight I was focused on my arms and shoulders.

Right I need a cup of tea so I will see you all tomorrow.
xx

Day 877

Day 877...

This morning we were up at our normal time as we had promised to play taxi service for Ethan. He had a day out planned with his work at a local paintball centre and he needed to be in Nottingham for 8.45am as they had arranged transport to get everyone to and from the centre.

Once we'd dropped Ethan off we decided that this mornings 'early morning walk' would be an urban one as we set off around Nottingham city centre. We quickly completed 2.4 miles in 43 minutes and ended up at our favourite Caffe Nero for a coffee.

Before we headed for home we had a quick stop by Primark because it would have been rude not to. And whilst there were a couple of Disney items that I was drawn to I decided not to bother as I wasn't 100% sold on them. We also nipped into Holland & Barret, the health food shop, as we wanted to pick up some Konjac noodles; these are low carb noodles, in fact they have zero carbs in them. We'd tried them last week and were pleasantly surprised by them and decided to get a few packets in. It's not something that I would tend to go for but I know that Ethan misses not having noodles or rice when I make a stir-fry so these are a good alternative for us.

Back home and Simon spent a few hours on and off throughout the day getting on with some work. This is not something that he would ordinarily do at a weekend but as they have a deadline fast approaching ahead of  'Gamescom' in Germany towards the end of the month he wanted to put in a few extra hours today. He'd expected his other team mates to also be online but no-one else appeared to be, but as we have a day out planned for tomorrow Simon wanted to get his extra hours done today.

I managed to complete my latest jigsaw and would you believe it I was a piece missing; that is two jigsaws that I have completed one after the other with missing pieces - how weird? 

Missing piece??

Now whether those pieces are hiding somewhere in the living room having got disturbed by having windows open and draughts coming through I don't know - only time will tell I suppose.

I have also been doing a little online searching for a hotel near Molly so that we can visit in a few weeks time. We have a hotel that we have used the last few times and I was hoping to find somewhere different but after searching I was back to our 'usual'. Not only was the cost either comparable or cheaper than others I looked at but it also has free electric vehicle charging points which obviously are a must for us.

It was then time to go and collect a very red, sweaty and knackered Ethan from Nottingham following his day paintballing. Now Ethan is not the most active of people and I think he will be feeling todays efforts for the next few days to come!

Simon has also been working on his next 3D print that will actually be something that we can both appreciate and will be something that we will display in our new study/craft room...I will reveal more as things progress. Suffice to say it's a decent size and at the moment is predicted to take over three and a half days and one kilo of filament!

And with that I think I will stop for the day as I am very hot and sweaty and need to cool down, have some food and watch some RuPauls Drag Race.

See you all tomorrow.
xx

Day 876

Day 876...

We have had yet another glorious day with clear blue skies, sunshine and high temperatures. Whilst we started our day with a walk it was a little different to normal. We set off later than normal as about half way round Simon and I parted ways...Simon headed off home while I continued on. My destination was a local cafe called 'The Cowshed' so that I could meet up with a friend for coffee.

The walk over was 2.6 miles which I completed in 49 minutes, while the walk back was a little shorter at 2.3 miles in 42 minutes. It was lovely to catch-up over coffee and lovely to be blessed with such a beautiful day although by the time I got home just before lunch I was rather sweaty to say the least!!

A few photos from my walk this morning...

And of course had to get one of the Alpacas....

I arrived home to a couple of parcels...

Not only had the Funko Stitch arrived so that I now have a complete set of the Funko PeopleMover figures...

...but we also received our new Kindle Paperwhite along with a wireless charging dock and case. Consequently this afternoon I took a little time to set everything up which was super easy as I just had to login to the Kindle app on my phone and hey presto everything synced up and it was ready to use.

Mid-afternoon my very good friend, and podcast co-host, Michelle stopped by for a cuppa on her journey down South. She was making her way to her hotel for the evening before she embarks on her journey tomorrow to Orlando, Florida. Yep Michelle is going to Walt Disney World and she also has a Disney cruise booked to round out her vacation. Although things are proving a little stressful as the airline has decided to move her and her friends seats around so they are no longer sitting together despite having paid extra to reserve their seats. Plus she also had to upload proof of her vaccination to the Disney Cruise Line as they will only allow fully vaccinated guests to board providing they have also tested negative 48 hours prior to boarding. This is another level of stress for Michelle as she has to figure out how to get tested and get the test uploaded prior to her cruise while being in a foreign country who follow different rules and protocols to us in the UK.

I really do think it is time that we drop all these silly rules that are still in place for a virus that is now no worse than the flu and is endemic within society. We need to get some common sense and go back to how things were before and adopt a sensible approach...if you are ill stay home - simples! This is how it should have always been and for the majority of people it was. There is no point making yourself do something or go somewhere when you are feeling rough...take the time off, rest and you will be back on your feet ten times quicker than if you soldier on as you will then find yourself in a worse state.

What we need to be doing is educating people about looking after themselves, getting them to be as healthy as they can possibly be so that if a cold or a flu does come along they are in their best shape to deal with it. Unfortunately the cynic in me says that is not a profitable approach. If people eat well and exercise well then how will big food make their profits and if people are fit and healthy then how do big pharma get rich? So in turn why should those of us that do the best we can with our diet and fitness be penalised because the majority choose not to?

And in my attempt to look after myself we finished the day with a gym workout and although it was still very hot there was actually quite a nice breeze and so most of my workout was done outside. Tonight I was concentrating on arms and shoulders.

See you all tomorrow.

xx

Day 869, 870 & 871

Day 869...Friday

This morning started with an increase to my cold shower so I am now at two minutes and forty five seconds! Still got a little way to go to match Simon's four minutes but not doing too bad.

My phone weather app was telling me there was a 74% chance of rain but the skies were blue so we went out on our early morning walk armed with the umbrella just in case...did we need it? Nope!Anyways we did our usual 1.9 miles in another quick 36 minutes and stayed dry all the way round.

My morning was spent catching up on a few odd jobs and having a bit of a clean through before stopping to have a little jigsaw time. Ordinarily I would leave my jigsaw until the afternoon but as it sits in front of some french doors and is in direct sunlight during the mid to late afternoon it can get a tad hot. So today I thought I'd take advantage of the shade and get a few pieces moved around before lunch.

I tried numerous times throughout the day to sit outside and soak up some vitamin D but failed as it decided to rain each time I poked my head out the door, despite my wonderful weather app telling me there was zero percent chance of rain! Mmm something tells me I ought not to pay much attention to this app!

One of the tasks that I have set myself is to go through all the bits and pieces at my mum and dads house and figure out what to do with it all. Myself and my brother have gone through everything and taken anything that meant something to us or could be useful and our kids have done the same. But now we are left with a lot of items that are simply too good to throw away and need to go where they will be appreciated. So this afternoon I made a start...a little start! To be honest I've been putting it off because it feels like such a monumental task and I haven't had the willpower to simply just start but I need to man up and get on with it.

So this afternoon I started with something small; some jewellery. I wanted to go through all the bits that we have and figure out what we actually have and what to do with it. I've decided to keep my mum's engagement and eternity rings although I'm not sure if I'll ever wear them. The engagement ring is quite thin and has some stones missing so would need some restoration work doing to it before it could be worn but I have always loved this ring and am just happy to be able to have it. The other pieces that we have could possibly have belonged to my grandparents as I don't remember seeing them at all but I simply don't know. I think I will be taking them to a local jeweller to get them appraised and see where we go from there.

One item that I'd brought home from my dads house was a christening gown that appeared to be in too good a condition to have been mine but as my brother was christened in hospital not long after he'd been born (he was in an incubator for a few weeks and things were a bit touch and go!) it made sense that it would be mine. So I did a little investigation by looking through some old photo albums, and sure enough found photographs of my christening in early 1968! And I am pretty sure that yes the christening gown we have found is mine! It has a label that is definitely from that time but it's condition is amazing, in fact it looks like new.

The day was rounded out with our third weights workout of the week and today I was focused on arms and shoulders. Really happy with how my workouts are going at the moment as having found some new moves online it seems to have reinvigorated my attitude towards exercise. 

Day 870...Saturday

This morning was a change to our routine as after we'd had a coffee we headed into Derby. It was really nice to actually dress a bit smarter for a change (tend to be a shorts and t-shirt kind of girl) and I was more than a little happy that the denim dress I chose to wear felt like it fitted me much better than it did this time last year so I must be doing something right.

Once in Derby I wanted to pop into Next to see if they had some shorts I've been after; I bought a pair online a few weeks back and decided that a second pair was needed. However they are no longer in stock online and when we visited Nottingham on Monday their store didn't have any and today Derby was no better! Wish I'd ordered a second pair straight away now!

We then went in search of coffee before heading off for a wander around the city centre. It is so sad to see so many shops empty but thankfully the one shop we did want to pop into was still open; Warhammer! Purely for Simon as he needed some model paints for finishing off a couple of prop making endeavours he has on the go at the moment. On our way back to the car we had the obligatory stop by Primark but unfortunately there was nothing that caught my eye.

On the way home we stopped by a DIY store to purchase a piece of furniture panel that we could make into shelves for the cupboards we have built upstairs in our new study/craft room. We had taken measurements before we had left home this morning so knew that the piece of panel whilst big enough to make the shelves that we needed would be too big to fit in the car. So we had come armed with a tape measure, a couple of saws and our calculations of where we needed to cut it! So using a couple of large trolleys as a bench we were able to take a 2.39 metre piece and cut it in half so that it fit perfectly in the car and knowing that each half would make two shelves of differing sizes!

After a spot of lunch we then spent the afternoon spent cutting the wood panel to the correct size for the four shelves that we needed. Although the units we'd bought were Ikea they didn't sell extra shelves hence why we were having to make our own. When we'd looked at the panel online we knew that it wouldn't be quite as deep as the shelves we already had but it was the best sizing that we'd been able to find. But when Simon started to measure up we found out that the piece we'd picked up was actually deeper than the one we'd seen online and in fact deeper than the existing shelves! So although this did involve extra cutting for Simon it did mean that by the time we'd finished we had four new shelves that matched perfectly to the existing ones - win!

The last job was to iron on the white trim to cover up the bare wood edges and while the edges were 'setting' we nipped out to Lidl for some salad stuff. Back home and all the edges were set and just needed a quick tidy up by Simon. 

The one thing we hadn't picked up when we bought the wood panel were shelf pegs but that was probably a good thing because when we went to order some online we realised that the holes we have were slightly smaller than the standard. But by the power of Amazon we were able to order enough pegs to be delivered tomorrow.

Day 871...Sunday

Today we had a gentle start to the day and with a coffee inside us we headed out for a not quite so early morning walk. We had a lovely 3.5 mile walk in gorgeous weather in one hour and 7 minutes, although this did involve some blackberry picking along the way! 

Our first job of the day was to swap over some light fittings. We had a couple of wall lights that we had bought when we moved into our first house and that had come with us when we moved here a lot of years ago. Suffice to say these lights were showing their age by rocking an eighties vibe pretty well! After taking them down Simon need to fill a few holes before we could put up the new fixtures, so while the filler harden we had some lunch. It was then a simple job of putting up the new brackets and installing the new much simpler sconces.

By mid-afternoon the shelf pegs had arrived so we were able to see if all our hard work from yesterday paid off and thankfully we were able to install all four shelves with relative ease. We now have three cupboards with extra shelf space which is great as Simon is now able to store all his art materials in a much better way to keep all the paper and card flat and clean.

Simon has also been able to spend a little time cleaning up some model parts as well as airbrushing his latest R2D2 3D printed pieces. He was even able to get a little more paint applied to the interior of R2's doors as he puts those final finishing touches in place.

I've been able to catch up with writing this blog and then at 6pm I was able to hook up via Zoom for one of our  Disney Dream Girls Sunday Disney Quizzes! And I think I won which means that I'm going to have to write the next set of questions although our next quiz won't now be until the end of September!

And with that I think I will stop typing and see you all tomorrow.
xx

Day 865 & Day 866

Day 865...Monday

Our day started off as normal with our early morning walk and because neither of us are working on a Monday we took a slightly longer 2.4 miles in 46 minutes. It was a lovely start to the day and along our way we even managed to stop and pick some blackberries, as the fields where we walk seem inundated with bushes.

After our walk we were straight back out the door to go and collect the grocery shop. I am trying to keep this bigger shop to once every two weeks or more and use it to stock up on the bulkier items so that in between I can take advantage of my local Lidl for better prices and better quality fresh food.

With all the shopping organised and put away we opted for an early lunch/late breakfast before heading off into Nottingham for the afternoon. This past weekend had not been one of my better ones; my mood was off and I just generally didn't know what to do with myself and so we decided that today we needed to get out of the house for a few hours.

And it was the best thing that we could have done as not only did we get to have a lovely walk in the sunshine around Nottingham but we also got time to spend together. We stopped for coffee at our usual branch of Caffe Nero and the barista there always remembers us and always takes the time to chat which is lovely and as a bonus he always gives us extra 'stamps' on our loyalty app!

I think that the adjustment for me to being 'retired' is probably having a bigger effect on me than I perhaps envisioned...maybe bigger is not the right word, perhaps it should be different. Tuesday to Friday while Simon is working I find that I am occupied predominantly with jobs around the house along with some bigger tasks relating to sorting my dads house and going through both our photos and my dads to get them digitised. I also have the time to do tasks that previously would have had to have been done on an evening or at a weekend. So when we reach our three day weekend I can find myself in a bit of a quandary as to what to do with the time. I'm very aware that the weekend is 'down time' for Simon and that he has things that he wants to do because he doesn't have the time during the remainder of the week so we kind of reach an impasse. 

I want to give Simon the time to do what he wants to do but at the same time I'm unsure as to what I can be doing as I've now done all the 'stuff' during the week and for some reason even though I could carry on with certain tasks I've convinced myself those are 'week day tasks' and not for the weekend! Argh! I've been so used to the make-up of a week being split between work and down time and those lines are now blurred and getting used to that is, it would appear, having a greater impact on me than I sometimes realise.

And then throw into the mix that I am terrible at doing anything 'just for me' and always want to make sure everyone else is doing what they want that I end up either not doing anything or feeling resentful that others have things to do and I don't. Which I know is my own doing and so we go round and round in circles. So not only do I have to realise that doing things for me and me alone is perfectly okay but that everyone else will be perfectly fine!

So as you can probably gather Simon and I had some big conversations this afternoon in an effort to get me out of my own head and recognising that I can do what I want, when I want and how I want and that I am not answerable to anyone for that but me. I think there is also a pressure I perceive that everyone on hearing that I am retired expects me to have 'a plan', that I am off doing something amazing or that I must be wanting a new job or new direction. When actually at the moment all I want is to be home, spend time with Simon and enjoy not having the pressures of work...and yet I somehow feel guilty for wanting those things!

Anyway after a few hours drinking coffee and poking around shops, with nothing bought,we headed home. 

Today I finally received a letter from the solicitors advising that probate has been granted following my dads death and that we can start to move forward on settling the estate. We still have the house to sell but there are other items that can now be distributed. Although it does make me laugh that the solicitors still insist on using typed letters and the postal system when surely email would speed up the whole process. I make a point of always responding to a letter by email! And don't get me started on their apparent reluctance to use bank transfers as a means of moving money around as they prefer to use cheques!! Really?!!

And although it was a little late in the day we decided to have a gym session...we said we would just have a short thirty minutes or so...an hour later we were done! While Simon took the opportunity of being in the garage to take his most recent 3D prints and fill where needed (stinky process involving car body filler!) I grabbed a shower and managed my second two minute cold shower of the day. I then re-set my timer so that tomorrow I'll be on two minutes and thirty seconds.

Day 866

Well the morning was grey but warm and we headed out for our early morning walk of 1.9 miles in 37 minutes, although we did get a little wet about half way round. Despite the weather app on my phone saying there was only a 12% chance of rain we got rained on, and at one point it started to come down quite heavy but we had no umbrella with us and no rain coats. Thankfully it only lasted a few minutes before it eased and stopped completely and by the time we got home our clothes were dry.

My day today has been one of getting a few jobs done around the house; laundry, cleaning, emails etc. We are trading in our old Kindle for a newer version and have taken advantage of Amazon's trade in offerings and so today I was able to package up the old one and drop it off at a UPS collection point. Not only will we get a little cash for the old one but we will also get 20% off a new one - win, win! 

I've also done a little internet surfing ahead of podcast recording tomorrow as I think Michelle and I will be looking forward to some Halloween themed foodie treats coming to Walt Disney World. And as they start their Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Parties in mid-August those items will be available rather soon and if you ask me a little too early for celebrating Halloween!

Towards the end of the afternoon I found a little time to make a start on sorting pieces for my latest jigsaw before I headed down the gym for another workout. A gentler workout this evening with the focus on body weight exercises and as it was quite a warm and muggy evening it was about all I could manage. It did mean that a shower was necessary once I'd finished and this did mean my second cold shower of the day and my second two minutes and thirty seconds!

And with that I will see you all tomorrow.
xx

Day 863 & 864 - Another Weekend

Day 863...

Simon was up and out early this morning for a 7.30am barbers appointment! After he arrived home we had a coffee before popping on our walking shoes and venturing out for a longer walk than normal. As it had been a bit wet overnight we kept to the pavements and headed in the direction of a local garden centre that has a lovely cafe called Piptree Cafe.

It was a 2.2 mile walk which we managed in 40 minutes and then we had the same journey home again. The day was rather grey and looked like it could rain at any minute so we went out armed with an umbrella and rain coats and needed none of them! Typical!

After a bit of brunch we had a decidedly lazy afternoon. It was raining off and on and Simon had his latest piece of digital art that he was desperate to get completed. I had a few online bits to do but then spent the remainder of my time just chilling and watching some TV and some YouTube.

After a very lovely keto dinner of black pepper chicken stir fry we settled down for the evening to watch a couple of Drag Race shows. We had the final of All Stars Season 7 which has been phenomenal to watch and in our opinion the right queen won. And then we started watching the second series of Drag Race Down Under.

Day 864...

The day started a little later than usual and after a coffee we decided that a walk was very much needed. Not sure what was up with me this morning (and the majority of the weekend if I'm honest) but I was struggling to feel motivated and actually felt quite grumpy. I'd hoped that getting out for a walk might have lifted my mood but I'm not sure it made any significant difference. 

It was another grey day following rain over night and again looked like it could rain at any moment, although it was surprisingly warm. We kept to a flatter route and tried to avoid too many wet fields but we still clocked up 3.5 miles in 1 hour and 6 minutes.

While I had the exciting task of updating our online grocery shopping ahead of collection tomorrow Simon was focused on cleaning up his recent set of 3D prints. This involves sanding the pieces to remove any lumps and bumps that shouldn't be there along with smoothing out the lines that appear with a 3D print, followed by the application of a resin filler to fill in the gaps and help create a smoother surface.

I made a start on my newest jigsaw which by the power of Amazon was ordered yesterday and had arrived by late morning. I have still not found the missing piece of my last jigsaw so have packed it away in the hope that it may show up at some point in the future. But today I was able to get the edge completed of my new Winnie the Pooh themed one...

Simon has been able to hook up a special camera to his 3D printer which means that he will be able to keep an eye on the printer from wherever he may be, which as the printer is at the opposite end of the house to where Simon normally works is going to be pretty useful. He can even control the printer from the app that runs along with the camera! It's a nice safety feature to have in case a print gets too hot (although it should shut down automatically) or if it starts to misprint. This way Simon will be able to avoid unnecessary errors and the waste of printer filament.

And then for the first time in like forever we had our Disney Dream Girls Sunday meet-up/quiz. We started doing a weekly quiz on a Sunday sometime in 2020 when the world was going mad and we'd been pretty good at making it a regular weekly occurrence but as life became more 'normal' and our lives resumed it had become harder to find time when everyone was free to 'meet up'. Since out last meet-up it would appear Zoom have reduced the amount of free time you have to chat and so our little chit chat was cut short and we didn't even get around to having the quiz element! But we have put next Sunday in our diaries and so hopefully then we will be able to chat and quiz!

OK, I think I will sign off and see you all tomorrow.
xx

Day 733

Day 733...

We have another Sunday and it started off as is the norm with collecting the weeks grocery shopping. But with that out the way we then had the day completely free.

Having used the fire pit yesterday to destroy some old paperwork we had the messy job today of clearing it of all the left over ash. Once clear it revealed just what a poor state our fire pit is in...I knew it had a hole somewhere but hadn't realised just how bad it had gotten...

Hole number one...

Hole number two!

We still have some stuff we need to burn so I am hoping it lasts us long enough to get that cleared before we can finally get rid of it!

Simon had a little updating of his latest art piece to do as he has also just received a request for a private commission and so wants to get his current project cleared so he can make a start on that. 

As the day was bright and sunny, with just a little chill in the air, we decided to take a walk out in search of coffee. Just two and a half miles from our house is a local garden centre that we very rarely visit, if at all. Our idea of gardening is to keep everything simple and as low maintenance as possible! But at this garden centre they have a lovely cafe which I have been meaning to visit for a while and we were so glad we did today. It is a lovely space, beautifully presented and they serve a local coffee called 200 Degrees which is fabulous. They also sell some high protein, low sugar cakes made by a local bakery called Sweet Rebellion, who I'd only recently become aware of so it was chance to give one of their treats a go.

Peanut Caramel creation - yummy!

It was then time for the return walk of another two and a half miles, so hopefully the extra calories taken in will have been off-set by the walking!

Back home and the next phase of our upstairs bedroom re-imagining took place; the 'let's get rid of the mattress' phase! Thankfully Simon was able to roll up the mattress and with some nylon rope, and a little assistance from me by sitting on it he was able to get it tied up into one big roll. It was then squeezed into the back of the car ready to be disposed of tomorrow at our local recycling centre. And with an empty car we will then be heading in the direction of Ikea to buy a sofa bed to replace the aforementioned mattress!

And with that exertion out of the way it was time to settle down with a coffee and chill; I had my jigsaw to continue with and Simon had his digital art. We then have a plan to start re-watching the Star Wars movies in preparation for the new Obi-Wan Kenobi TV series that starts in May. I made the mistake of commenting that it's been a while since I've sat and watched the movies, so I inadvertently gave Simon a good excuse to get them out and re-watch them! May the force be with me!

See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 719

Day 719...

Sunday has rolled around once more.

We started the day off with the collection of our weekly grocery shopping from Asda. Really beginning to notice not only the price rises but also the lack of availability of some things. But we were home and everything packed away by about 11am and so we had the rest of the day in front of us.

We decided to head into Derby for a little mooch about; chance to have an explore around to see what was on offer. We are very fortunate to live within equal distance of both Nottingham and Derby but of late we have found ourselves visiting Nottingham more so we decided to give Derby a go today.

Derby has a lovely shopping mall but we decided to park away from the mall so that we could have a wander through the city rather than just experiencing the mall. Derby is not a big city and is quite easy to explore. We were very aware as we wandered about just how many shops were empty, or simply had chosen not to open on a Sunday. We noticed how quiet the city felt and it was really quite sad.

We made our way over to the mall which is a lovely space to walk around and has all the major retailers that you would expect to see in a city and while the mall itself had plenty of people walking about it was not what I would call busy. Perhaps it was because it was a Sunday but it felt awfully quiet for what was once a busy city centre. Just so sad to see so many shop units empty.

I did manage to come away with some new make-up though; a lipstick and eye-liner...

...and I was tempted by...but resisted the Disney make-up by Morphe!

Before heading home we stopped for a coffee and took the time to talk and start evaluating our current position in our world and where we see ourselves heading.

With my decision to leave pre-school and head for 'early retirement' there are lots of things to be thinking about and lots of decisions to be made. And part of this whole process is a chance for me to stop and think about what I want to do for me...not what I need to do, not what I ought to do, not what is right for everyone else but what is actually right for me at this point in my life. I have no idea what that is as yet but I do know it's going to take a little time to adjust to that thought and a little time to figure it all out.

And today, by simply talking with Simon, I have started the process...I have no idea where it's going to take me or how long it will take me to get there and I suspect there is lots more to talk about between now and then!

And with that I will say, see you tomorrow.
xx 

Day 711

Day 711...

So last night we had the pleasure of experiencing La Deda Cabaret in Derby. A burlesque and cabaret show produced by the delightful Scarlett Daggers and compered by the hilarious Stage Door Journey. 

We have been going to these events for a number of years now and can't recommend them highly enough. They have an array of talented artists from burlesque performers to singers to mime to knife throwing and more. We have seen so many varied acts over the years and consequently no two shows are ever the same.

Last night we had two of my favourite acts. Kiki Lovechild who is a mime and manages to incorporate humour with heartfelt meaning along with Velma Von Bon Bon who serves up a mix of burlesque, comedy and acrobatics. Both of these never fail to disappoint.

So this morning we had a steady start to the day as we really did not have much to do. We had hoped to meet up with Michelle for a coffee before she headed home but due to a build up of traffic she decided to head home earlier than planned. But it had been lovely to see her yesterday evening.

We popped out to grab a coffee and a car wash. We have discovered that one of our favourite coffee shops has a jet car wash located next door so we make a point of when the car needs a clean we need a coffee!

Before we knew it the day had rolled along and while Simon jumped on the exercise bike I took a much more relaxed approach by completing my jigsaw. Although I am one piece missing...as this jigsaw was passed onto me I don't know whether it was always missing a piece or whether I have lost it somewhere!

We will be rounding out today with keto pizza and hopefully the latest episode of RuPauls Drag Race.

See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 679

Day 679...

A normal work day today with the morning in work and the afternoon at home.

The morning was chance for myself and my deputy manager to get our heads together ahead of our staff meeting tomorrow afternoon. We have decided to take what is referred to as an 'inset day' in education; this means that we close pre-school for a few hours so that staff can attend meetings or training sessions. So tomorrow afternoon we have about four hours to review our current curriculum and working practices to ensure that everything is running to the best of our abilities.

I popped home at lunchtime for a quick change out of my pre-school uniform as I was meeting up with an old friend for a coffee. I spent a lovely couple of hours drinking coffee and chatting the time away.

Back home and there was just enough time to sort some laundry out and get up to date on a couple of emails. I also had chance to check a few things out ahead of the staff meeting tomorrow.

It was then gym night and time for a weights workout in our slightly chilly gym! Looking forward to much warmer evenings so that I can hopefully feel inclined to spend longer and expand my workout.

See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 677

 Day 677...

A quiet Sunday to round out a quiet weekend.

The day started with the usual collection of our weekly grocery shopping, which was rather uneventful for a change. With the shopping all put away it was time to figure out how the rest of the day was going to unfurl.

We had no plans, and we had no jobs that had to be done, so we decided to simply get outside and enjoy the fresh air. We headed to Elvaston Castle, our closest country park, for a brisk walk. We completed two miles in 39 minutes and then decided it was time for coffee.

We headed to our closest Starbucks. We were chatting about the need for the car to be washed and had resigned ourselves to making that the first job when we got home. But as we were leaving we noticed that the garage across the way had jet-washers; £2 and 5 minutes later and our car was sparkly clean once again. Win!

Back home and Simon spent a further ten minutes giving the car a wipe around the door sills and he even hoovered it as well! Now, Simon is not a car fan and admitted that he has never really been bothered before about keeping any of our previous cars especially clean and tidy. But he is really enjoying this new car, he loves driving it and wants to keep it looking good! Well, who am I to stop him?!

With the afternoon drawing in it was time for more jigsaw for me before the light faded and some digital art time for Simon.

A quiet Sunday in January. January is such a strange month, the anti-climax following the hustle and bustle of December, the festivities of Christmas and then New Year so it always ends up feeling a bit 'flat'. Then add in cold weather and dark nights and it feels like a recipe for a bit of a non-event. I think we need to get a few things put in the diary to look forward to, especially as England sees the majority of its restrictions lifted towards the end of the coming week which means life can start to feel more 'normal' again. I checked back on my blog posts from this time last year (not long after we'd gone into another lockdown) to see what we had been up to and we had snow! In fact we had so much snow that we had to close pre-school for two days...no chance of that happening this year as though it's been chilly there is no sign of any snow.

See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 669

Day 669...

Another cold and foggy start to the day and an early start for a weekend as Simon had a barbers appointment at 8.30am. But this did mean we had the whole day ahead of us.

I'd realised late last night that I'd lost one of my rings, a thumb ring that Simon had bought me years and years ago. I always used to wear it on my right hand but after a spot of home decorating a couple of years ago my knuckle had swelled and ever since it was uncomfortable to wear my ring so I had swapped to wearing it on my left hand. I went to take the ring off last night and it wasn't there...I'd not noticed at any point during the day it was missing! I know that when I get cold it has slipped off before but I'd always been aware of it happening. Having no idea when it went missing I resigned myself to having lost it for good.

But this morning I thought I'd have a quick look in some obvious places; my handbag - nope, work bag - nope, bag of paperwork I'd brought home - nope, shopping bag I'd used yesterday - nope, pockets of my work coat - nope, checked my gloves - nope and then I checked the left pocket of my work fleece and hey presto my ring!! It's not an expensive ring, it's just a simple silver ring that has a dent in it but I've worn it for so long it was going to be weird not to have it but thankfully that's not now going to be the case.

This morning we decided to drive out to a flooring store in Nottingham to see about getting some new flooring sorted for Molly's old bedroom and what will become our new study/craft room. We knew which flooring we wanted (the same that we had laid last year in other parts of the house) but hadn't been able to find it on the store's website. Well, within fifteen minutes not only had the store confirmed that the same flooring is still stocked but we had arranged for the room to be measured later this week. It may be a while before the floor can be laid but we are in no hurry, it was just nice to get things moving along.

We then popped into Nottingham city centre for a coffee and to try the new Broadmarsh car park. Now, Broadmarsh car park and shopping centre has been a part of Nottingham for as long as I can remember but over the last few years there has been a lot of regeneration taking place and this led to the shopping centre closing and the old car park being demolished. Unfortunately the company in charge of the renovation went bust and now everything has been left to the city council to sort and as a result progress has been slow. But the new car park has now opened and is great although having changed all the roads leading to and from it now means it is more awkward to get in and out of. So while it was great to give it a try today, and will be handy for certain events that we go to around that specific area of the city, I don't think we will be using it that often. Although it does have electric car charging points!!

Finding a local coffee shop we took some time to chat and have a couple of coffees. We are both approaching that point in our lives where we are re-evaluating our goals and planning for a future that enables us to do more of what we want, when we want to do it. I have been following the opening of the Festival of the Arts at Epcot in Walt Disney World and it's events like this that I would love to experience, but at the moment due to our work lives we can't. So it's great to think that these type of things are slowly becoming more within our grasp.

And while in the coffee shop we did shake our heads at the number of people wearing masks to enter the shop, order their coffee, then sit down and remove the aforementioned mask while they chatted and drank their coffee. So, and I know I've said this before, this virus thing is it only a problem when ordering coffee but when you sit down to drink it the virus can't 'get you'? There was a family of three; a mum and two daughters, one of them late teens the other probably around 10 or 11. The youngest spent her time in the shop with her mask on (the others were not wearing theirs) and I watched her move it up and down to drink and eat. Is this what we've done to the youngest in our society? 

If you want to wear a mask then fine do it, but don't contradict yourself, show some common sense. And if you are really that frightened of an airborne virus then why are you out and about? At least we are consistent with our decision to not wear masks.

The rest of the day spent at home was a quiet affair with a little more added onto my grocery shop for collection tomorrow, some laundry sorted and a little more time spent on my jigsaw. And with wine in hand it's now time to spend an evening in with the TV.

See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 657

Day 657...

Today marks the end of our Christmas break...sort of. Both Simon and Ethan are back to work tomorrow while I still have a couple of days to go, so there is that feeling of day-to-day life returning.

Molly messaged me this morning with a photo to show that they had taken down their Christmas decorations today. Because I will be at home the next couple of days while the men of the house are working I've decided that I will start to take ours down then. I have three trees, multiple ornaments and outdoor lights to sort so I will approach them all in a steady fashion. I love all my Christmas decorations and always hate taking them down as everywhere feels so empty...Simon on the other hand tolerates the clutter that Christmas brings and always looks forward to 'getting the house back'!

We had a very slow start to the day, so much so that breakfast was more like brunch! Early afternoon we headed out for a coffee; a chance to just have a little time for Simon and I and chance for Simon to drive the car. He is loving it, in fact I've never known him enjoy a car so much before!

We arrived home just at the right moment as we had an Amazon delivery arrive and the lady delivering was looking rather confused and was struggling to find our house and that of a neighbour and so we were able to come to her rescue just at the right moment. Our delivery now means that we have a set of dip bars to add to our gym. Simon had tried the set that Dan has and was surprised at how neatly they stored away and had quickly found a pair online. Once inside the house the bars were assembled and of course had to be tried out. I can't see me using them but never, say never!

This afternoon Simon jumped on the exercise back for a 45 minute workout and while he 'cycled' I moved some jigsaw pieces around. As you can tell my idea of exercise and Simon's are quite different, but I think once I am back into our normal routine I really need to get focused with using the bike and alternating that with gym sessions.

And that kind of rounded out our day, very chilled and laid back and no doubt will see a few more episodes of Queer Eye and Canada's Drag Race watched this evening with the obligatory glass of red to hand and some dark chocolate.

See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 641

Day 641...

Well after a rubbish nights sleep (thanks night sweats!) it was a slow start to this Sunday morning.

Late morning we took one of our elderly neighbours out for a coffee. She has been very intrigued with the prospect of us having an electric car and so we had promised to take her out for a drive and a coffee once we had it.

I think she was suitably impressed and after we had enjoyed a coffee and cake we headed back home. We invited her in for more coffee and chat and to show off our Christmas decorations. 

Our neighbour very sadly lost her husband to dementia last Christmas and as her children all live abroad she has had to cope with it all on her own. She was hoping that one of her sons and his family would be spending Christmas here with her this year but the current 'pandemic' situation has put paid to that. This is the unseen, and not talked about enough, side of the restrictions that are being forced upon us; an elderly lady cannot see her family at Christmas, never mind the first anniversary of the death of her husband who she had been with since the age of 16 (she is now 84). The heartlessness that is going on is beyond belief.

But back to my day...and a very quiet rest of the day split between jigsaw time and a few mundane jobs.

Nothing much more to say for today. Time to cook dinner and then stop and disconnect for a few hours; today feels like one of those days that as rumours abound with what will be happening, and when, I need to step away from social medias and shut the world out...if for just a little while.

See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 628

Day 628...

One more Monday and another Monday not working and so a steady start to the day was in order.

We then ventured out of the house to a local supermarket to pick up a few bits and pieces. We enjoyed a quick fifteen minute shop without masks and marvelled at all those wearing masks and how despondent they all looked. We were in the same store this time last week the day before 'mask mandates' were reintroduced for shops when about seventy percent of the people were mask free, today we were definitely in the minority.

But with shopping done we headed home and had an impromptu leaf clearing session; tomorrow sees our last garden refuse collection for a couple of months so we decided to brave the rain and fill our bin with as many of the leaves as we could manage.

After putting the shopping away we headed out for coffee and the last trip out in one of our cars. At the well known coffee shop that starts and ends with an 'S' we marveled at the lack of thought displayed by those around us. Person walks into coffee shop with a mask on, orders coffee, takes coffee to a table and sits down, mask comes off, person forgets something and walks back to the counter without their mask on...just doesn't make any sense to me. If you think masks work why would you be taking it off and on in an open space?  Do they think that the virus will not 'get them' if they're sat down? Do they not realise that the virus could be in the air and could be anywhere inside the coffee shop and wearing a mask to enter and leave and not when sat down makes no difference to the virus? I just don't get the logic, or rather lack of logic being displayed by the public at large. All I see is people blindly doing as they are told and not questioning what they are being told, or is it simply that they just don't want to rock the boat?

We've been doing all these various restrictions on and off for over twenty months and nothing has worked to curb the spread so why would it suddenly start working now? And don't get me started about the studies that have proved masks do not work as we are being told. How about we start treating this like the flu...if you feel ill stay at home and if you get really bad seek medical help otherwise let everyone go about their business as normal without restrictions or mandates. Let us make our own decisions about our bodies and what we put into them rather than imposing, or threatening conditions just for the vague chance we can live a little more 'normal'. We need to stop scaring the public and go back to life...but I fear that is a long way off as it feels like some out there are benefiting from all this scaremongering, from all this fear inducing too much to go back now.

And breathe...

The remainder of the day was mainly spent sorting a few of my kitchen cupboards...I know exciting stuff! But they were long over due a clear out and needed reorganising. About half way through the afternoon the garage we are buying our new electric car from brought us over a courtesy car and have taken our two cars away until such time as we are ready to take delivery of the new car. We have reached out again to the contractor due to carry out our electrical work and are waiting for them to get in touch. I shall be glad when all this is sorted and I never have to hear the phrase 'ground works' again. On the plus side the courtesy car is an updated model of our old cars and is very snazzy although I did have to take five minutes to sit in the car and figure out what everything does!!

The day was then rounded out with a little time spent on my next jigsaw before we headed down our 'gym' for a quick weight workout session.

Monday is done so I will see you tomorrow.
xx

Day 514 - Steady Saturday

Day 514...

So another Saturday has rolled around and today has been a rather quiet one.

First job of the day was to get Molly to her Saturday morning guitar lesson and as is the norm she drove us there and back. Yet more driving practice for her and yet again her skills go from strength to strength.

We nipped for a coffee while she 'rocked out' and discovered that a Starbucks very close to where Molly's guitar school is had opened, so we thought we'd give it a try. On ordering I asked how long they'd been open to discover that today was their first day! The good thing is we will be able to walk here from Molly's guitar school in the future so this will prove to be very handy for us.

This afternoon has seen Simon create some more digital art. Molly has been busy with her various creations and spent an amount of time sanding and finishing off a few pieces; I think she is pretty close to working out what she wants to achieve and how.

Busy sanding away

Sneaky peek...

And I have been going through yet more photographs using the Photomyne app. I have managed to scan in a good proportion of 1991 and am now working through our first ever trip to Orlando in the same year. Although I have three albums of just Orlando to work my way through yet!!!

And with the afternoon gone it is time to make keto pizza and pour some wine.

See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 500

Day 500...

Wow, 500 days of writing these diary entries. This started out as a way to document the first 'lockdown' back in March 2020 as it was something that we had never experienced before and I thought it would be interesting to record what happened and how we 'coped' with it.

At day 500, and despite England having experienced 'Freedom Day' on July 19th, I am still writing and posting. My entries are now more focused around my daily happenings but as we enter this new landscape of 'freedom' returning I thought I would carry on writing. We may have been granted our 'freedom' but life is still not back to where it once was.

But today was Saturday and the day started with a couple of jobs for Simon and me. I had the online grocery order to update as we are picking it up a day early this week (tomorrow) as we have plans for the coming week. Simon was out in the garage applying gesso to a couple of paintings that we had created years ago but no longer display. Simon is hoping over the next couple of weeks to create some new art physically which will be a change to the digital art that he usually does. We then also had our new door number to install which I think looks rather fetching...

...and really invokes a 'Disney's Tower of Terror' ride vibe.

And before we headed out for the afternoon the post arrived...it was a good post day as it was my delivery from Hotel Chocolat...

...about every 12 weeks or so I have what they call their 'High Cocoa Curated Selection'; a little treat that I indulge in and have done for a fair few years now going back to when it used to be called the 'Chocolate Tasting Club'. And although they no longer send a 'sleekster' box of different chocolates I still get to experience chocolates that I may not have otherwise chosen myself. 

Our afternoon was then spent in Nottingham having a wander around and enjoying a coffee or two. 

We even indulged a little by sharing a Panettone and some dark hazelnut chocolate!

It was great to be in the city and to be able to wander where we wanted without having to think about masks or 'checking-in'. It was also amazing to walk into one of our regular coffee shops and be greeted by the barista who remembered us and wanted to chat and find out how we were...it must be 18 months since we were last there, how amazing is that for customer service?!

We took some time to sit and watch the world go by and soak in the atmosphere of a bustling city centre...

And we did have a giggle at the way the city centre pigeons had positioned themselves on the sign for the now defunct Debenhams department store...

...such a lovely old building that is now left empty; it will be interesting to see what happens with the rather large space in the months to come. 

As we wandered the city it was lovely to see everywhere busy with people and a good percentage of people had chosen to ditch the face mask which was great to see. But it was also sad to see a lot of shops closed or units with 'for sale' and 'to let' signs...are these another knock-on effect of the last year and a half where businesses have not been able to re-open their doors or have perhaps had to adopt an online only presence? I guess only time will tell before we understand the real impact of the numerous lockdowns and discover just what the economic impact has been on these small and medium sized independent businesses, never mind those bigger names that are having to reduce the number of outlets they have up and running. 

On our way home we stopped by a DIY store as we needed some wood stain for the frame around the garage door that Simon had repaired last weekend. And then once home it was time to order an Indian take-away for our dinner - yum!

And that was our Saturday.

See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 493

Day 493...

And we have another Saturday and one that started off rather slowly as both Simon and I struggled to get moving this morning.

First job of the day was to get Molly to her guitar lesson which now means letting Molly drive us there. With Molly dropped off at her lesson we headed over to our coffee shop of choice and for the first time since March 2020 actually went inside to enjoy our coffee. Throughout the pandemic malarkey we had stuck to drive thru' coffees but with the easing of restrictions and no longer having to wear face coverings or 'check-in' we were happy, and prepared, to enjoy our coffee inside.

It was so nice to see all the staff without masks and a good proportion of the public doing the same too, we even got talking to another customer who was also enjoying being out and about without the previously imposed restrictions. We also got chance to chat with Joe, one of the store assistants, who we have gotten to know pretty well over the years. He was in early for his shift and came out of his way to sit and chat with us which was just lovely.

Molly then drove us home via our local chip shop to pick up some fish & chips for my dad. As we were leaving my dad's Molly was all set to drive us home when we noticed that the 'L plate' at the front of the car was missing...not sure how we'd lost it but can only presume that the magnetic seal had worked its way lose and it had been lost somewhere on the drive back from her guitar lesson. Thankfully the set Molly had bought has a spare one, but as that was at home we thought it best not to let her drive the short distance home!

Then for the rest of the afternoon we went to visit Simon's aunt and her partner who had moved closer to where we live around a year ago but who we've not been able to see because of all the restrictions. So we spent about four hours catching up on events in our lives, going out for a walk with their gorgeous dog and drinking lots of coffee in the sunshine. We had a lovely afternoon and are looking forward to being able to see more of them from now on.

With a dinner of keto pizza eaten and a glass of wine poured I think it is time to sign off for today.

See you tomorrow.
xx

Saturday Shenanigans

Day 430...

So our Saturday morning in Bournemouth started quite early as we had arranged to meet up with one of Simon's work colleagues.

But it did mean we were early having our breakfast before the restaurant got too busy, although we still had to go through the pantomime of mask wearing. Wear your mask to walk into the restaurant, wear your mask while accessing the breakfast buffet but once at your table the mask can come off...where we were sat near other diners...again where is the common sense in all that? And that assumes that masks make a difference...which they don't! And all the tables were still as close to each other as they were last time we visited this hotel...so no masks at tables and effectively no social distancing...I don't get it at all, as I said it is all pure pantomime.

Oh and the breakfast buffet is now an assisted breakfast buffet because we can no longer help ourselves and touch the same implements yet there were some items that we could help ourselves to but with signs saying only touch what you want!! Argh!!

And I think we confused the server when we only wanted bacon, eggs and sausage and not the hash browns and baked beans! Low carb all the way!

All fuelled up we headed down to Bournemouth Pier to meet Simon's work colleague. So Simon works from home, and has done, for about 7 or so years but the company he works for is based not far from the South Coast. Prior to the pandemic Simon would visit the office once every few weeks or as needed but since the pandemic hit he hasn't seen any of his colleagues in person! But it just so happened that one of his colleagues was visiting family close by and had a new piece of equipment for Simon; a fancy graphics thingy!

We then found one of our favourite coffee shops, which we were so pleased to find open as there was the fear that the effects of the past 14 months may have caused it to close along with so many other small businesses. So we enjoyed an hour or so chatting and drinking really nice coffee.

After dropping the new tech back at tbe hotel we walked along the sea front from Bournemouth to Boscombe and then a little further before we headed back. Despite the grey sky and occasional rain we really enjoyed the walk and enjoyed being around other people as by the time we arrived back at Bournemouth Pier everywhere was pretty busy. We headed into the town centre with a view to have a wander which resulted in walking by Primark. There was a queue to get in and so we started to walk by and as we did so the queue started to move so we quickly diverted back and walked straight in. 

To be fair the shop seemed as busy as it would have done on any other day. But this was our first time in a non-essential retailer since March 2020, how ridiculous is that?! I made a beeline for the Disney section, of course, and came away with 2 tshirts, a sweat shirt and a pair of jeans (non-Disney) as well as a couple of bits for Molly!!

We then headed back to the hotel to put our feet up and try on my new purchases. We timed it well as not long after it decided to rain!

Next we paid Molly a visit at her boyfriend's house and had a guided tour of his 'gym'. Like we've done he has converted his garage into a gym over lockdown and has done a really good job.

We rounded the day out spending time with Molly's fella's family and enjoying an indian take away and lots of chatter.

Take care.

xx