Author: anniesleath@hotmail.co.uk

After the girls had left last weekend, I spent Monday girding my loins for a two-day trip into deepest Wales.

A little while ago, Paul had said to me, “Is it still on your bucket list, Mum, to do a Zip Wire?” I had hesitated. It had been on my bucket list a few years ago, but when asked the question, I suddenly felt old and fragile. “Yeees…..?” I replied, unconvinced. “Right!” said Paul, “Let’s book a date in the calendar.” So we did and, gulp…. the due date had arrived. Eeek. I texted Jaime to let her know I’d be missing yoga class and told her, “I think I’ll take my brown trousers!” “Well, I would if I was you!” she replied.

On Tuesday morning, Paul was on my doorstep at 9 a.m. sharp and we set off for Penrhyn Quarry in North Wales. It was a good journey, despite the driving rain and the heavy Welsh mist, and we arrived in good time.

We were both a bit nervous. Me, because I thought I was old and fragile; and Paul, because he’s inherited John’s acrophobia. He had a brandy to settle his nerves and I had a chamomile tea. “Ready?” Ready!!!

Kitted up in harnesses and helmets, we made our way to the first zip wire which was short and fun – a great way to get you used to the idea – and then we hopped into a truck which trundled us all the way to the top of the quarry. Jeez…. it was very high up – and, for a moment, we didn’t look too nervous…….

After the quick photoshoot at the viewing point, we went inside the hangar from where we were to be launched. We looked nervous then….. just look at those rictus grins!

Anyway, once we’d been strapped in, had weights or a sail added (depending on how heavy you are), we were on our way. Here I am, zooming over the lake, camera at a wonky angle and with my mouth closed. For most of the video, my mouth was flapping about like a wet wash-rag, as I travelled at 70 miles an hour downhill. Honestly, there’s another tale to tell……hehe!!

And here’s Paul – looking far more composed!!

Four minutes of fun!! Boy, we did enjoy it! I’d definitely go again. It was brilliant. Didn’t need brown trousers at all.

Afterwards, we travelled to Criccieth for an overnight stay. What a fabulous hotel and room we had, overlooking the sea, all of the bay and Criccieth Castle. So very beautiful. Paul had chosen really well and, not only that, he’d ordered champagne for the room, too. So lush. We sat for a couple of hours, sipping our drinks, chatting and watching the sea lapping on the beach and the gentle view of Criccieth Castle, before making our way to a local Tapas bar where we had fabulous food. It was lovely.

On Wednesday, we had a leisurely breakfast, then went for a grand walk along the coastal path as far as the River Dwyfor and, of course, stopped for a Cadwalader’s ice cream on the way back. More lushness.

Such a fabulous couple of days with my eldest. He was such great company, so very thoughtful and made me feel very loved. Couldn’t have asked for more. Counting my blessings.

The College Crew arrived, one by one, and we enjoyed love and laughter – and a drink or two – the whole weekend. What a lovely weekend we had!

After a glass of Prosecco and a slice of cake in the garden in the afternoon, and a great fish ‘n chip supper on Friday night, we retired early. We were all surprised that, by about ten o’clock, we were all considering making our way up the wooden hill. “We can’t take it anymore,” laughed Sue P. We all agreed – no, we can’t!!

Everyone slept well, and we gathered together after breakfast to make our way to the station. I had a last minute look at the website to check all trains were running….. shock and horror! No, they weren’t!! Not to worry, we went in the car instead. Nice easy drive and nice easy parking when we got there, so no sweat.

As we got out of the car though, I wished I had had my camera and wits about me. It was raining slightly, so Sue P thought she’d shrug on her zipped-up cagoule. Well, this wasn’t as easy as she thought, and she wriggled and wriggled in what looked like a straight jacket, while the rest of us giggled and giggled at the very funny sight in front of us. We were still giggling at the memory of it well into the evening later on! Fortunately, she took it all in good part, but it certainly made a memory for us all as we arrived in college.

The college was looking good, and we reminisced over the buildings, “Oh, that used to be the library!” we exclaimed, “And there’s the old Principal’s house….” and then, “Where is the Chapel? Round here?” we weren’t sure. Some of the girls roamed the current corridors, declaring ‘it ain’t wot it used to be’. Indeed, the college, purpose-built it 1850, is now accommodation for a Housing Association, so the very narrow corridors we had in the ‘Old Block’ are now wide and airy. All very different. But some features remained the same: the Porters Lodge entrance, the Crest; and the Main Block. Nice.

The old college Refectory had been set up with tables for us all to sit at for our reunion lunch, and our 1974-leavers cohort were pretty much centre stage. Once more, we delved in to Reminiscence Country. “Is it as big as you recall?” “Ah… we used to come for breakfast, do you remember?” “We used to queue just there, didn’t we?” Crikey, it’s 50 years since we left and we couldn’t believe it.

It was good to meet up with our fellow former students. Embarrassing when you didn’t remember someone but they remembered you….. ah, well, a lot of water has gone under the bridge since then hasn’t it? Equally embarrassing was the chat with one chap that the girls teased me over. “You spent ages talking to him!” Oh.

Once we were home, I had planned food for our evening. But guess what? Everyone was still full after the lovely lunch we’d had. Instead, we just nattered and started on a jigsaw – this was one that dear Lizzie had given me for my 70th birthday, but I hadn’t started. Not sure how I’m going to get on with it – it looks hard.

On Sunday, we breakfasted like Kings on a full English before the girls packed up their belongings and headed off to the various parts of the country from whence they had come: to Somerset, Lancashire, Hampshire and the West Midlands. It was a fond farewell to them all with great hugs on the door step.

Fearing I’d be lonely without ‘me mates’, Paul invited me for a late Sunday Roast. Andrew was home too, so we both enjoyed a delicious meal at Paul’s – it was a great way to round off a fabulous weekend. Lucky, lucky old me.

Some of the College Crew are coming for the weekend. We’re going back to college (now a housing complex) in Saltley, Birmingham, for the Annual Reunion on Saturday.

I am so looking forward to it – you know, I can’t wait to see the girls – it’s always a fabulous experience – but please….. please don’t look at the un-washed, un-dusted, un-vacuumed, un-polished, un-tidy bits of the house. It’s been a while since they came to stay….. so let’s get the Prosecco out and blur the vision – hehehe!

And when we get to meet up with old College acquaintances, please don’t look at the wrinkles, the plump waist, the gnarled hands, or the stooped shoulders. They really don’t exist – we are the girls we once were: beautiful, vibrant and clever. Here’s to us rolling back the clock!!

Here we all are – plus Helen, Sue D’s daughter and Stella, her granddaughter – can’t tell the difference between the generations, right?

I’m a bit of a hoarder. So I have gone from horror corners, to now finding where things are hidden…..

How do I know this? Because I thought I’d have a clear-up of the loft bedroom. Of course, there were more Christmas decorations in there, but I also found four duvets. Why had I kept them? Well, in the olden days, people used to come and stay and we needed extra quilts upstairs, downstairs and in My Lady’s Chamber. One of the duvets is brand new – I had bought it to go on the bed that Paul and Harriet gave us. The bed is still in bits, under another bed, because Andrew came home and brought his own bed and duvet….. “Don’t put your stuff in storage,” John had said, “we’ve got plenty of room. It seems a waste to pay someone else to look after it.” Argh….

So where am I hiding things? It’s mostly in the loft. Everything that I don’t know what to do with, or want to keep for sentimental reasons, is up there. And it’s rammed! Ah, well, I have no doubt I’ll get round to sorting it all out in due course – I am, after all, on a tidying spree.

After hearing about my low mood over the weekend though, Danielle texted me yesterday to see if I’d like to go out with her and two of the children to Packwood House. In the end, I said ‘no thank you’ – I thought I’d have a duvet day instead. But I was delighted that she called in for an hour on her way home. Oliver was asleep in the van and Thomas sat in the lounge and watched a bit of TV, so that gave Danielle and me a great opportunity for a natter. It was lovely.

And an update from the weekend! Thomas has ditched the baby talk of ‘Lill-am and Oh-la’r’ and is now fully managing the words ‘William’ and ‘Oliver’. What a milestone. Love it.

Another thing I love is the thoughtfulness of my friends. I had a lovely chat to Carol on FaceTime yesterday which cheered me up; and then, today – guess what? I had a text from Dawn asking if I’d like Peter to come and trim the hedge at the front of the house. It was very overgrown and, although I had thought about cutting it, I hadn’t done it. So, obviously, I said, ‘yes please!’ He did an grand job. How grateful I am to have such dear friends

On a more sombre note, we heard that one of John’s particular friends’ and fellow Mason, Jeff Way, passed away yesterday. Jeff had a similar illness to John and had recently had a stem cell transplant but was hit with GvHD (Graft versus Host Disease) as John had had, and then an infection. Gosh, it’s such a cruel disease, isn’t it? My heart goes out to Carole, Pippa and Naomi. It’s definitely not the news you want to hear.

The last few days have been lovely – full of friends and family – but a bit wobbly.

On Thursday afternoon, Margaret came round and we put the world to rights over a bottle of Prosecco and a slice of cake. It was so good to see her.

The following day, Nev and Jane travelled up from London and we went into Solihull for lunch. It was another opportunity to put the world to rights, this time over a nice meal and a glass of wine or a cocktail. It was so good to see them, too.

On Saturday, it was the Beer Festival in the village and Paul had bought tickets, so we toddled a long. The weather held and we were able to catch up with friends who were also keen to sample the drinks on offer. I mostly ‘people watched’ – one of my favourite hobbies – but the family was attentive and I chatted to one or two people I knew, so it was nice. Freddie ate his bodyweight in sugar, putting away a fizzy drink, a massive milkshake, sweets, popcorn and candy floss. He was very happy, bless him! As always, it is so good to be among the family.

We trundled back home just after seven o’clock and ordered a Tamarinds take-away. I must say, since Tamarinds has changed hands, the food is lush. Really tasty, well-spiced and tender meat in every dish.

Paul and Harriet stayed over and went for a trial session at the tennis club this morning, while I went to church to listen to the new Bishop’s sermon. It was a great service and I really enjoyed it.

I nipped up to Pete and Dawn’s at lunchtime to drop a ‘Congratulations’ card in for Liz and the new baby and, guess what? I was able to cuddle baby Flo there and then!! Oh, gosh it was so lovely to see them – and I know I am biased, but Flo is really beautiful.

The day was polished off with a good old Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding dinner at Paul and Harriet’s and then we tortured ourselves watching the England vs Slovakia football match. I don’t know how England won – I thought they were dire.

So why a ‘wobbly weekend’? Hmmm…… because ever since Wednesday, I feel overwhelmed every few minutes, and there’s a bit of leakage from my eyes. Honestly, you’d think that with the lovely weather and the grand company of everyone, I’d be OK, wouldn’t you? But no, I have managed to embarrass myself in several locations this week. Argh! The blues come on when you least expect them, don’t they? Ah well, I tell myself to be patient and it’ll pass. Liz, being the wise girl that she is, says it’s OK to lament – after all, the Psalms are full of it! Righty-ho! Advice taken, I’ll lament when I need to.

For a good while, we concentrated on ‘middle earth’ for the latter part of John’s life. No time for getting into corners and proper spring cleaning, tidying up or sorting out. We focused on what was in front of us and ignored the edges.

Sadly, I now have time for such things and, although I couldn’t face anything much for the first six months after John died, I now find myself mending things, tidying and sorting (well, a little bit anyway).

And goodness me! What a lot of corners our house has – with most of them being horror corners. Honestly, the spiders in the front bedroom have had a party!

After Christmas, we just dumped all the Christmas boxes into the front bedroom, ne’er to get up into the loft. The bed, laden with boxes, creaked at the seams. The boxes, spilling the decorations out all over the bed and onto the floor, giggled with glee at their freedom. I shut the door and ignored it all.

Until the last few days, that is. I side-eyed the boxes; they looked glumly back at me. Their party was over and they knew it. I tipped them all out and carefully slotted the contents into the relevant places. I sobbed over some of the ornaments – the fairy for the top of the tree – dainty, battered, bruised and in tatty taffeta – had belonged John’s parents; a beautiful glass apple we’d bought together as a memento from a holiday; and so many of the decorations having been the Quasar ones. I had intended to sort them all out and give half away to the charity shop. But, guess what? They are all back up in the loft now……

And the horror corners in that particular room are now swept clean. I can hear the decorations and boxes grumbling up above me in the loft though, with the fairy trying to keep them all in order. Hehehe – that’s my girl! That’ll do.

After the previous two days of excitement, I was ready for a day of doing nothing very much yesterday – which is what I did. A little bit of yoga, a little bit of TV, a little bit of gardening and a little bit of housekeeping – but ignoring the dishes that were still to be stacked into the dishwasher….. couldn’t quite face that! Plus, I had a visit from eldest son, whose company I so enjoyed as we sat and drank a cuppa in the garden together – lush! Lucky me.

The weather, of course, being so lovely and warm, contributed to the feeling of, ‘oh, let’s just put me feet up’. I enjoyed it so much I thought I might repeat the idea today. However, I already had other plans in place, so there was very little room for putting my feet up.

A trip into Kenilworth to drop off some dry cleaning and some boots for repair, then off to the hairdressers for a haircut all before 9.30 a.m., and then on to Pete and Dawn’s for a lovely natter with them, Alison and Sally. Guess what we talked about? Babies and politics!! Liz has just had a beautiful baby girl, now named Florence Dawn – such exciting news – so naturally, we chatted about the new addition to the family and what love that brings. Here are the very proud grandparents….

I nipped back over to Kenilworth this afternoon to collect Oliver from the childminder’s house, while Danielle collected the boys from school. It was such a hot day that it felt best to restrict the amount of time Oliver would be sitting in the heat and the sun. Ah… it was lovely. I think everyone needs a daily dose of Oliver – he’s such good company.

Then, this evening, with it being a Wednesday, it was Quiz Night, of course! Thank goodness for everyone else. I knew next to nothing…. ah well, there’s always next week!

And the Blog seems to have a mind of its own. I thought I would just write a paragraph this evening but, being a wordy person with lots to say, just look at how much I’ve written…….hehe.

Here’s my haircut by the way….

On Sunday morning, Freddie (having slept over) and I got up at a reasonably early hour, to ready the house and garden for Thomas’s 4th birthday party in the afternoon. We’d been busy overnight baking cakes and doing a spot of gardening, so what was there left to do? “Grandma, can you draw some more buttons for our space ship (aka the Harry Potter cupboard), please?” Freddie pleaded. Clearly, the highest priority for when the Kenilworth Newbies arrived. I obliged, of course!

The Newbies arrived later that morning whereupon they, too, busied themselves to ready the house and garden. Danielle, laden with trays of food, bustled about in the kitchen. Michael, laden with tents and toys, bustled about in the garden. Paul and I were willing helpers while the children ran around, very, very excited.

Here we are, still prepping and waiting for the guests to arrive…..

The garden looked smashing, especially once it was filled with children, including cousins Alexander and Nicholas, plus all the things to do, games to play and food to eat. And oh, what a blessing that the weather held. The kids had such a marvellous day with water fun in that Pirate Ship!

Today was Thomas’s actual birthday and a picnic in the park in Leamington was the agenda. Uncle James and cousin Connor were coming too, and Uncle Andrew. Not only that, but it was going to be a train ride there and a bus ride back. How very exciting!

With the weather warm and balmy, a wonderful day was had by all. The rocket launcher Uncle Andrew had gifted was the favourite game of the day as Thomas sent each rocket ‘into out at space’.

I believe Thomas’s birthday celebrations were complete once Daddy was home from work and the family went to Abbey Fields for pizza in the park. Lots of fun and lots of giggling on the videos that we received…… I think Thomas had the best birthday ever!

Just before Christmas, my granddaughter, Catherine, came back to live in Kenilworth with the Kenilworth Originals. Feeling for me in my bereavement, she boldly declared, “I’ll come every Friday and cook your tea,” upon which declaration she has made good. Almost every Friday evening, when she or I are not off gallivanting somewhere, she arrives straight from work, laden with all kinds of goodies with which to cook my tea.

Last night it was a lovely chickpea curry. I thoroughly enjoyed it and, of course, enjoyed Catherine’s company, too! How fantastic that my beautiful granddaughter should be such good (and willing) company. We nattered our heads off!! Great times.

This evening, I had a babysitting evening scheduled at the Kenilworth Originals. Harriet is off on a yoga retreat with her sister, and Paul and Lily were taking in a Kings of Leon concert in Birmingham. With Catherine going to bed before Freddie, as she’s up at an ungodly hour for work tomorrow, I was all set.

Mid-afternoon, Paul phoned. “Would you be up for Freddie to sleep over at yours instead?” Well, of course! I don’t mind at all. “He’s keen to sleep in the cupboard……” Well, I had to laugh. Honestly, that ‘Harry Potter cupboard’ is seeing it all!

Not only have I been enjoying the grandchildren over the last couple of days, but on Friday, I also enjoyed the company of my cousin, Janet. She came over for lunch and we had a really lovely time chatting, settled in our armchairs in the garden – in the sunshine – before she went off to play ping-pong with the U3A in the afternoon.

Janet had the privilege of meeting Thomas and Oliver, too, as Michael had called in with some bits and pieces ready for tomorrow. Thomas will be four on Monday and he’s having a birthday party. “Grandma,” he said to me, “We’re coming to your house for my party!” Hehe. Danielle looked worried. “Is that alright?” she asked. Of course it’s alright. What an absolute privilege that my grandson wants his party here. Wish us luck!

Back in January, I promised myself that I would plan at least one thing each month to give myself something to look forward to. As the year has rolled on, I have found I have had lots of things to look forward to, so I have done well, thanks to dear family and friends.

One such outing ‘to look forward to’ was the Rothesay Classic Tennis at The Priory Club in Edgbaston. I had texted Linda C and asked if she fancied a day out. She had said ‘yes’ and so there we were today, in fabulous sunshine, in a very civilised location, making an impact on one of the ushers (!!), sipping Pimm’s while watching some exciting women’s tennis.

We had a really lovely day, enjoying each others’ company, with every single thing going smoothly. I didn’t even get a ‘numb bum’ from the hard seats as I’d had the forethought to take a cushion with me! Whoop! Whoop! More like this, please.