Friday 30 September 2011

Invite Someone for Tea!

Yes, I have to admit that I was tempted to pluck some poor unsuspecting stranger off the streets and drag them in for tea!

I wussed out though and invited Bernie round instead - then I cheated by ordering a take away rather than making tea.  Although, in my defense, it didn't actually specify that I had to make tea - in fact, it didn't even specify that it had to be food, it could have meant a cup of tea!

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Thursday 29 September 2011

Be Naughty Day!

I'm terribly disappointed - I didn't get much opportunity to be really naughty!

I did feel rather mischevious all day and I was told off by several people (surely getting told off means I've been naughty in some way?!) for the, now daily, chocolate marshmallow teacake run I made this morning!  Unfortunately I'm starting to get quite a collection of these in the office now and they just keep on coming (courtesy of Auntie Betty) so I've had no choice but to start distributing them to everyone in the offices (or forcing them on people in some cases!) rather than just leaving them out for everyone to help themselves, in an effort to prevent them taking over the office!

I have just been reminded of a poem my mum used to say though..................

I think the original version was this......

There once was a girl who had a little curl,
Right in the middle of her forehead
When she was good she was very, very good
And when she was bad she was horrid

And I actually can't remember whether my mum used to say this version or whether it's just me......

There once was a girl who had a little curl,
Right in the middle of her forehead
When she was good she was very, very good
And when she was bad she was better!

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Wednesday 28 September 2011

Wear Hats!

I turned this one into a two day event!

One day to try hats on (and add to my collection) and one day to take all my hats to work and wear them (and encourage others to wear them!)!

Monday was trying on day, Nadine was visiting so we went on a mission to town to find hats.  We both have very small heads (Bernie calls me Pinhead), which probably isn't a bad thing as there were several I would have bought if they hadn't been far too big - it was great fun trying them all on though!

So, I ended up with this one, which I thought would be good for Autumn............


Nadine tried this headband hat thing on - I thought it looked fabulous on her but she wasn't convinced!



And, of course, I couldn't resist this one - and the matching gloves!



Pirate Panda!  You can't see it on the photo but the eyepatch on the hat has a glittery sequined purple heart on it - I can't wait for a an opportunity to wear it out with friends ;-)

Well done Elaine for wearing your straw boater!



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Monday 26 September 2011

Believe in Something!

I'm a believer!

I believe in more stuff than I don't believe in (I think)

(This list is by no means exhaustive and at any time anything on the list could easily go on the other list!)

I believe in...................

Love
Santa
Fairies
Second Chances
Guardian Angels
Fate
Myself (sometimes)
Miracles
Procrastination
To do lists
Friendship
The power of positive (and negative) thinking

Now I know there's no way you weren't expecting this and I'd hate to not measure up to your expectations so here it is!



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Sunday 25 September 2011

Magnificent Friday!

It's another one of these days - and it's another one I end up spending with Kevin!

I was honoured to be invited to the traditional Friday night gathering (this has previously been sacrosant to just 'the boys') where I enjoyed a civilised, cultured evening before retiring home for an early night.................honest!

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Friday 23 September 2011

National No Car Day!

Ok, so this isn't a day in the diary (or a day I've made up and added to the diary) - but, as I heard it announced on the radio this morning I thought I'd hijack it!

I managed this one with zero effort (always a bonus)........ given that it's best for everyone if I don't get behind the wheel of a vehicle (any vehicle!) it was a no brainer really!

Oddly enough though I did actually see more cars than usual on the roads on the way to work this morning, perhaps having National No Car Day in summer might have been a better idea?!

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Thursday 22 September 2011

Notice Small Things Day!

How bizarre - it doesn't seem like a year since the last one!  Which might account for the fact that I failed to notice that it was 'Notice Small Things Day' until 3pm on said day!

After a bit of a wobble again yesterday (hey, it's only been a couple of months - give me a break!) I felt better again today and it was the little things that helped......................
  • I noticed that I didn't drop the fridge door on my toes this morning (new fridge - although this also meant I couldn't get in the damn thing as I didn't notice (remember) it was the new one so I was trying to lift the door off - d'oh!)
  • I noticed the sun rising over the fields as I made my way to work
  • I noticed that it was almost exactly a year since Pops sent me his pavlova recipe
  • I noticed how fast time flies
  • I noticed that I have an awful lot of lollies on my desk and I really should do something about that!
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Wednesday 21 September 2011

Be Lovely to Everyone Day!

Well I wasn't mean to anyone but whether or not I was lovely..................who knows?? 

I even managed to not say anything derogatory to my landlord when I found out that he'd, once again, been in my flat without giving me any notice (tut, tut!) - this time to leave a new fridge in my hallway!  Apparently he'll be back at some time to fit it - no doubt that'll be a surprise visit too!

I did decide to be lovely to myself though with a 3:45 finish - I think I still had some sleep to catch up on and, after a pretty productive day, I thought arriving home early to snuggle up with some leftover chinese sounded like a plan!

Of course then I needed to decide whether to read one of the books I got for my birthday, watch one of the DVD's, continue with The Tudors or start Dynasty!

Decisions, decisions!

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Tuesday 20 September 2011

Bake

In hindsight planning to bake a cake the day after your birthday celebrations maybe isn't such a good idea - in terms of timing and also the rather delicate nature of my condition the following morning.

So, despite the fact that Pops and Olive bought me some funky silicone bakeware, I'm sorry to say that there was no baking on Sunday!

I did make sandwiches for everyone though so I suppose I can claim it as 'Bacon Sunday' ('Bake on Sunday - get it?! Never mind (sigh)............)

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Monday 19 September 2011

Spontaneous Party Day!

I have a confession to make.................there was nothing spontaneous about this, and it wasn't exactly a party, although it was a fabulous celebration!

As it was my birthday on Thursday this was a planned celebration, in fact it was planned with military precision!  This was largely due to the fact that we (Bernie and I) were springing a surprise on Pops and inroducing him to his nephew (cousin Matthew) for the first time. 

Where, and when, to leave cars, collect surprise and smuggle to Bernie's, hide surprise in Bernie's flat, keep Pops and Olive away from hiding place, when, and where to introduce surprise - seriously, the organisation that went in to this is ridiculous!

Anyway, it was a fantastic evening with good food, great company, plenty of alcohol and lots (and lots) of laughter - thank you to everyone who contributed!

And here are a couple of photo's of me with a tea cosy on my head (don't ask - I have no idea!)!




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Saturday 17 September 2011

Make the Impossible Possible!

Haha!

So, Boss was threatening to send me a sardine because my latest nickname is Flipper (the threat of a sardine in the post was mildly preferable to the bizarre phone call - I wasn't sure whether he was doing an impression of an aquatic animal, Skippy the kangaroo or whether the bizarre noises were a prelude to the sort of conversation you generally need a whistle for!)..................

Just over a week ago I Made the Impossible Possible - I learnt to swim (hence the Flipper nickname)!!

I've always had a deep fear of drowning but have also always loved being in the water (weird huh?) so when Louise and I had to stay overnight at a hotel in Wales we thought we'd take the opportunity to make use of the pool and sauna - as you do!

So, there I am bobbing about in the shallow end whilst Louise headed off to the other end - turns out there was no shallow end, the entire pool was the same depth.  The removal of the fear of getting out of my depth was the catalyst so when Louise said 'it's easy really you just do this' and gracefully launched herself off through the water I thought 'well why not (which is totally different to my usual life tagline 'will this complicate my life.........let's do it!')'!

To my utter amazement.............I actually float!  Mine was a much less graceful effort but I succesfully made it to the other end, then spent the next half an hour traversing the length of the pool backwards and forwards!

I then insisted on a pre meeting swim the next morning - just to check that it wasn't some sort of fluke.

I suppose you could also say that, based on a youth spent running down railway tracks (don't do it) and sticking a knife in the sandwich toaster and holding on to something metal so the current flows through you (also not advisable), the fact that today I reached the grand old age of 35 could also be classed as Making the Impossible Possible!

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Friday 16 September 2011

Go on an Adventure!

Woo hoo!

Today's little adventure involved going to The Cairn Hotel to donate blood (see Bernie, the needle is your friend ;-)

I absolutely hate doing this but it's one of the few New Year's Resolutions over the years that I've actually kept - on this occassion the experience was vastly improved by the glitter disco ball above my bed (I'm easily distracted by shiny objects)!

Being chatted up by the bus driver on my return home (yes, I decided not to walk home afterwards - see, I do occassionally learn from my mistakes!) was also an adventure of sorts!

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Thursday 15 September 2011

Extremely Lovely Tuesday!

Well done Helen on your commendation - how extremely lovely!

I'm afraid that's all folks!

Ah, except to say please, please VOTE for Nelly (my friend's rabbit) in the Britain's Cutest Bunny on Facebook competition!  How can you possibly resist the 'extremely lovely' photo?!


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Wednesday 14 September 2011

No Computer Day!

EPIC FAIL!

Maybe I should have booked the day off work for this one!  Not that it would have made much difference, if I hadn't been at work I'd have struggled not to use the computer at home.  Short of physically restraining me I really don't think there's a way to seperate me from the wonders of modern technology!

Sad, but true!

Perhaps it was just the thought of having a No Computer Day that made me incredibly ratty on this day - to the point of spinning head, scary eyes (in an exorcist kind of way) at anyone who dared to speak to me. 

Answering the door (while on the phone to Cousin Matthew) in my Hawaiian leis (I'd forgotten I was wearing them!) was pretty much the saving grace today (except that, on recounting the story, Boss now thinks I just play dress up at home for the fun of it - which, to be fair, isn't beyond the realms of possibility!)!


Please VOTE for Nelly (my friend's rabbit) in the Britain's Cutest Bunny on Facebook competition! How can you possibly resist the 'extremely lovely' photo?!



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Tuesday 13 September 2011

Really Go to Town Day!

I did, I did!

I really went to town!

Ok, ok, I did really go to town - to Asda, to get my shopping, as I do every weekend.  This time though I also called into town proper and had a coffee (well, actually a tea (and a slice of Welsh Rarebit) as I don't drink coffee) at Devil Angel with my good friends Jamie and Sarah!

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Monday 12 September 2011

Meet the Postman/Lady!

I'm usually at work when the postman/lady comes to call so I wasn't entirely sure how to achieve this one.............then I remembered..............the postman/lady comes to work twice a day to pick up/drop off our mail!!

Yay!

Bizarrely, as I was already doing the whole 'Travel By Train Day' stuff on Monday, I'd move this day from Monday to Thursday - and guess what? I bumped into the postman delivering mail to work (on Monday!)and I knew him! Sadly I didn't have my camera on me though!

I caught him again on Thursday though so here's proof - I met the postman! (thanks Oljay!)



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Saturday 10 September 2011

Another Wonderful Wednesday!

Ah, back in the office and back to reality (sorry, did I use 'office' and 'reality' in the same sentence, my mistake!)

Wonderful was...............................................

hearing from someone who's been incommunicado for a few days
getting a lift home in the rain on the day I'd forgotten my coat (thanks Helen)
finally confirming a table for my birthday celebrations
Boss threatening to send me a sardine in the post (all will be revealed on 'Make the Impossible Possible Day')
roast day at work (yep, I'm really scraping the bottom of the barrel today)


Not so wonderful was.....................................

painful facebook posts (must stop my stalkerish behaviour)
the current sad circumstances of a very dear friend

(and yes, the more observant of you may have noticed I'm a couple of days behind in posting)

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Friday 9 September 2011

Wink at a Stranger Day!

I got into the swing of this one by starting with a wink at someone I know but haven't seen for a while, I then proceeded to spy on my fellow conference delegates to gauge who might be most receptive to (most receptive and least likely to act on) a wink from a total stranger - I feel much more comfortable doing this at a conference in Wales than I would in the canteen at work!

Anyway, I did my thing..............and got a wink back - result!

And at least it's been more successful than last year!

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Thursday 8 September 2011

Travel by Train!

To Wales no less - with 2 changes!!  I usually try and limit any changes to just 1 as this minimises the (all too likely) chance of me getting on the wrong train and ending up somewhere else!

However, (probably because I was with Louise) I reached my destination, in one piece and with all my baggage (not that I had much having employed my 'pack lighly - repent when you get there' tactic) - unfortunately this does make for a rather dull post though!

Travelling by train often brings this song to mind so I thought I'd include it here!



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Wednesday 7 September 2011

Happy Sunday!

I think I need more fancy dress days (I'm still determined to get a pirate day in somewhere!)!

Happy Sunday - not bad at all!

Met cousin Matthew for the first time, frighteningly like Unc T!  It was really, really good to meet up and find out all about each other!

A glass (or two) of wine round at Bernie's made it a happy ending :-)

Oh, and finally got around to starting the dancing again - thank god for muscle memory, my actual memory is absolutely shocking but if I just listen to the music and let my feet do their own thing without thinking too much about it I find that it all comes flooding back!

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Monday 5 September 2011

Exaggerated Facial Expression Day!


Welcome to September!

Here are the extra's for this month (plus Travel by Train (from August))



So, facial expressions..................examples of feelings that can be expressed are:


Anger
Concentration
Confusion
Contempt
Desire
Disgust
Excitement
Empathy
Fear
Flirt
Frustration
Glare
Happiness
Sadness
Snarl (mainly involving the levator labii superioris alaeque nasi muscle)
Surprise
Love

Apparently my face can be read like a book and I've been told several times that I should never play poker (which is a shame as I've always wanted to be able to play poker!).

The closest I got to an exaggerated facial expression today was that face you end up pulling when you try to stifle a yawn - you know, the one that really isn't fooling anyone.  But three hours with Auntie Betty feigning interest in the same conversations we had during the last two visits left me with little choice!

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Saturday 3 September 2011

Learn a New Fact Day!

Hahahaha!

I googled new facts and it came up with stupid facts - says it all really!

Anyway, for those of you who might be interested in new/stupid facts here's the link - knock yourself out!

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Thursday 1 September 2011

Bring Back an Era Day!

Last year I went for the 50's (ish), this year it was 80's (ish)!

It was kind of a mish mash really, Auntie Betty provided the madonna (ish) gloves and incredible hair thingy (technical term), Helen provided the leg warmers and jewellery - I'm told it all combined to create a very 'Desperately Seeking Susan' look!  I'm loving the gloves/wristband/rings combination and have to admit that it was with great reluctance that I took them off!







It was 80's music all the way today (and I found quite a good 80's music site here) including New Kids on The Block, Def Leppard, Whitesnake, Tom Petty, Madonna, Richard Marx, REO Speedwagon, Luther Vandross, Michael Jackson and Wham!

And the day was finished off with a couple of classic 80's films (Mannequin (I LOVE this film), Romancing the Stone and Jewel of the Nile :-D)

Thinking of 80's films (apart from making me realise there are far too many great films from the 80's to even think about making any sort of list!) reminded me of Ghostbusters which, in turn, made me think of this.......



..............and Star Wars which, in turn, made think of this.........................



Knowing this day was coming up prompted me to grab a couple of photos of my Popples during a recent visit to Pops and Olive!




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