The End of Month One ....

Well, well, well, where does the time go - the end of January already and eleven months to go to Christmas ....
I'm quite impressed with myself - missed two days and been late a couple of times - but as Gail quite rightly says - there's enough stress around without adding to it over a couple of photos ....
Here's to February .....

31/365 - Hazardous Driving ......

I cheated a bit yesterday when I was out and about and took a few photos to see me through the week - which sounds a bit defeatist I know but I get up, go to work and stay in the building for the day, come home when it's dark; all of which gives limited photo opportunities - you get the picture - pardon the pun - lol.  You never know though - there might be the odd photo next week that wasn't taken yesterday - but sorry people, this one was .....

There is a lot being said about these things - potholes - at the moment; and where I live is no exception.  In fact, one of the reasons I was out and about yesterday was to do a sort of Conditions Survey of the village roads where I have my part time job.  All a bit of a waste of time really, I drove the sides of the triangle of the 'patch' which are main roads, although two of them are 'C' roads with the other one not even  being worth a mention - lol; and didn't bother about the criss-crossing lanes - I would have needed a new Memory Card for the camera ....

West Sussex County Council, I am sure, know what their roads are like, without me telling them - lol.

I'm lucky I suppose, but because I deal with this sort of stuff for a living, I am more aware than the average person of where the potholes and broken up roads are and what causes them.

This isn't the biggest one by far - that one had been filled in .......

30/365 - Spring Is Coming ....

I was out and about today - in my car with the still wet seat - lol - and look what I found ....

This clump of snowdrops was growing by the side of the road on one of the very, very narrow winding country lanes around here.  I screeched to a halt across a driveway just to have a look.  Aren't they just lovely.  The owner of the house came out to see what I was up to and he told me that he had planted a few bulbs some years ago and suggested I come back next weekend.  When I looked again - there were loads poking through .....

Will pay another visit next week ....

29/365 - Practical Recyling .....

Last night I came home from work quite late.  I was tired and had half my life on the back seat of my car  to take indoors - boxes and numerous bags.  Getting out of my car is a bit of a ritual - change out of driving shoes, get house key from special place, put office keys in special place, collect up the stuff you need for the drive home from passenger seat and cram it all into handbag and so on and so forth - lol .....

Anyways did all that, fell in the front door, dumped said bags etc. quick coffee and fell up the stairs to bed.  When I went out of the house this morning to drive off to work, I found that I had left the car window open all night - and it had rained - a lot .....

So plastic carrier bags and a wet backside later, I took this photo ....

 

Mind you - I did lock the car - lol ......

28/365 - And Another Ooops ....

Failed again - lol - no photo today .....

27/365 - Ooops ....

No photo today - far too much else going on ....
Be back tomorrow ....

26/365 - An Intense Day ....

I have been here today - the Capitol in Horsham .....

The Capitol is a cinema and a theatre (not been in there before - and all rather swish) but I was there in one of the meeting rooms for a day of HR (in my younger days it was called Personnel) on the subject of Managing Absence.

I learned a lot (I needed to), the people on the course were great (good networking going on), the teacher (or should it be facilitator - not really into buzz words) was excellent and the lunch was rather delish ......

Now all we have to do is put it all into practice ...

Oh and by the way for my eagle eyed buddies - I started this post at 11.58pm on Tuesday - so I'm not really late - lol ....

25/365 - The Other Desk ....

This is the desk at home - where I do the little part-time job I have had for years and years and my crafting.  The photo was taken last night - at the height of the mess .....

Actually looking at it - it doesn't look to bad - but I couldn't resist.  It's tidier tonight because I have had to do a bit of typing - but how about this lot behind me .....

I really have to tidy up - don't I .....

24/365 - And For The First Time This Year .....

This came out .....

I used to quite like ironing but as time has gone on I have decided that I don't like it anymore.  Unfortunately, there has been a basket full (but not overflowing - lol) of things to be ironed hanging round for absolutely ages and today I thought I would take the plunge. Mind you, having had a coffee break I'm not sure if it will get finished - lol ....

Oh yes - and while ironing and looking out the window, I saw that said daffodils from yesterday seemed to have grown some ....

Or maybe I just wasn't looking properly - it was a grey day yesterday ......

23/365 - Keeping Up With Everyone Else ....

Visiting other Blogs recently, there are a lot of posts out there about the spring bulbs poking through, so just to be en trende, I whipped out to the front garden this morning to take a piccie of my row of daffodils.  Shouldn't have bothered really - they are getting less and less each year, methinks something is eating them or maybe it's because they have been there for such a long time - but there are a few ....

Another note to self - replace daffodils this autumn ......

22/365 - Note To Self ....

How can such an innocuous thing cause such angst ......

Inside here is something that I have realised I don't need and that I don't really want.

I will not be sharing what's inside the box - save to say it's strange what you do when you're under a lot of pressure - lol

Note to self - think before you impulse buy ....

Oh yes - and sorry I'm a day late - thank Mr Smirnoff - lol ....

21/365 - Keeping It Tidy ....

In the 20/365 post I showed you a piccie of my nice tidy (and clean) desk in my second office.  One of the things about my job is PAPER - tons and tons of it everywhere.  Computers such a really useful thing to have but a lot of my job requires that PAPER is created - and kept.  Also the nature of the work that I do involves notes - notes to self, notes to others and the notes, even though they are on neon coloured Post-It notes, get lost in the debris.

For ages I have been looking for a desktop filing system that isn't a letter tray - 'cos you just end up with all the PAPER in piles in them and you haven't got a hope in hell of remembering what's in the pile.  I also don't want things on the walls in my second office - I have a plan for them.  So I was flicking through the stationary catalogue and found this ....

I've had a really busy day and I've already forgotten what it's called but there are 20 framed top loading plastic wallets - so I can have all my lists of people, meetings and other day to day stuff  in some and keep my preparation  papers for meetings and To Do Lists in others.
Oh yes, and construction involved a screwdriver and I put it together all by myself - everyone else had gone home ....

With this and my whiteboard - efficiency will rule - lol ..... 

Interrupting The Proceedings .....

But just for a minute ....to tell you that while I was doing a bit of Blog Hopping, I found this ....
NASA - the space people - have an image of the day and they are absolutely stunning.
You can see them here and I've added the link to my Link List on the right - so NASA are in good company with Gail and I .....
And then I did some more Blog Hopping and came up with this one from the National Geographic site .... have added this one to the Link List too ....
Off to see what else I can find before tea ....

20/365 - I Am So Posh ......

Ever since the person I had the misfortune to work with threw the toys out of the play pen on 24th August, I have had the benefits of two offices to play in, with two desks, two chairs, two computers etc. etc.  I didn't do much in the second office at first - (a) because it was an absolute tip; (b) because it was depressing working away from everyone else (it's upstairs at the back of the building); but (c) it was useful as a quiet place to work when I had to concentrate.

When I got the top job on 26th November I began to make it my own.  Some furniture was moved around, the desk cleared (and cleaned - lol) and here it is - one quarter of the second office - Sue style .....

There was something hugely satisfying about emptying a three drawer metal filing cabinet and getting rid of an inordinate amount of rubbish and useless stuff from just this little corner.  Mind you - you don't need to know what the rest of the room looks like - lol.  Shame my other desk isn't quite as tidy (which I will continue to use) - to say nothing of my work place at home - you can't even see the surface of that one .....

19/365 - I've Been Shopping Again .....

On that well known TV shopping channel ....

This time it's one of most favourite things for my home - Yankee Candles.  These three are part of a set of four over the seasons and the first sending is meant to be for Spring - are you listening Sue - lol.  Having smelt the lids (which is what you do rather than pushing your nose into the jar) I think my favourite is going to be Drift Away - it reminds me of warm sunny days lazing around in the garden. - mind you  Early Sunrise won't be far behind.  I will not be burning these until the Spring ('cos I can wait) and I am still burning winter fragrances - Cinnamon Stick, Tea and Honey and Balsam and Cedar - lovely ......

If you haven't tried these candles, you really must .....

18/365 - And Today's Photo ......

Is particularly bad - and yes I took it - lol ......

This is one of three raised flower beds outside my office window.  The stuff you can see on top of the bark chippings is the the remnants of a fish and chip meal and the obligatory can of lager at the weekend, left by a person with no social graces or community spirit whatsoever.

I'd feel the same about litter like this even if I didn't work in local government .....

17/365 - Meeting Rachel .....

Today was a big day - I went out to lunch at a lovely pub not far from home.  My son, Matt, is one of those people who can deal with whatever life throws at them with confidence, charm and street-wise savvy - he's a great bloke but without being cocky about it - but last night and this morning he was in bits.  The reason - I was meeting him and his new girl friend, Rachel .  Matt has had a really tough time on the women front and he knows how protective I am (indeed, of both my children) and he decided neutral ground was best - what does he think I am Cruella DeVille - lol .....

I don't know why he was worrying, she's a lovely girl - down to earth, friendly, chatty and - most importantly, she looks you in the eye when you speak to her (one of my pet foibles - lol).  We had a lovely lunch and the conversation flowed with lots of laughing and then we all went to see my daughter - and again she was a hit - down on the floor with The Gorgeous One, aka Finley William, chatting away and she even looked at my Blogs - how's that for a good omen ......

So - Rachel scores 9 out of 10 - she would have got 10 but she didn't eat all her lunch ....

PS - I didn't take the photo 'cos I forgot the camera - just in case you were wondering about the flowers - lol

16/365 - I Will Never Moan Again .....

Well not for a couple of days at least - lol.
A friend in New Zealand emailed me this piccie of Niagara Falls in 1911 ....

and this one .....

Kind of puts everything into perspective doesn't it .......

Normal Service Will Be Resumed - But ....

In the meantime here is ......

A Message for Anita ......

A little bird told me you were getting yourself set up to comment - Where are you - lol ......
PS - same applies to you too Sue - lol ....

15/365 - I Meant To Do It - Honest I Did ....

Ooooops a day late - but I was just too tired and stressed to do anything when I came home again but collapse in a heap in front of the TV with a box of those choccies that they have at parties thrown by ambassadors - lol.

Anyways - here we have the contents of a parcel that was delivered yesterday - the knitting needles - and two other WIPs (works in progress) ....

I am just soooooooooooo into this knitting thing ........

14/365 - Oh To Have Red Shoes .....

For the last couple of days, the music of the latest ad for Virgin Atlantic has been going round in my head - you know the one - it starts with a line of walking red patent high heeled shoes on a line of air stewardesses bringing an airport to a halt.

Everytime I see the ad, I covet a pair of shoes like that.  Don't know why because I hate wearing shoes  and the thought of shopping for shoes fills me with dread - lol.  The ad though just makes me smile and reminds me of when I was younger - not lol - and it makes me think that having a pair of those red shoes would empower you.  What absolute twaddle - lol.

So - I was looking for a piccie of the red shoes in the advert but I couldn't find one (and I don't have any red shoes either) - but I did find this ......

I think the photo is just as stunning as those shoes ......

13/365 - The Great British Social Disease ....

Is Apathy - and I'm going to have a moan - a long one - lol.  Some time in the night (and it wasn't there at 1.15am 'cos I looked) another 2" of snow fell  and the weather this morning was atrocious.  So much for new found confidence in driving yesterday.  After much pacing about, many telephone calls with my work colleague about how we are moving to somewhere warm and the now standard bowl of porridge, I set to with my shovel - again.  Kind taxi driver along the road retrieved my car from the pub car park round the corner, so I started by cleraring the snow away around the car and just kept right on shovelling (you find yourself getting into a rhythm - lol)

I cleared the whole width of the road outside my house and my neighbours (the heroine one who walked to work that day last week).  Despite getting very warm and just a tad out of breath the job was done in 45 minutes.  It was quite easy, once you got the shovel underneath it, it just lifted off in chunks.  Here's my pile of compacted ice ....

So why Apathy - if everyone came out and did the same outside their house, the road would be clear in no time.  But no - they just stay inside with the expectation that the local authority or someone else will come and do it for them.  This will not be the case.  One side of the road is lined with the houses and the other side is a slope, with additional parking places and this time of year gets very little sun.  It hasn't been clear really since the last lot before Christmas, but all everyone does is moan.

Now - there is talk about why the dustmen haven't been - well they won't be coming.  The entrance to the road is on a bend and two very inconsiderate people park their cars right on the bend (serves them right if someone slides into them I say).  The dustcart hasn't got a hope in hell.

Everyone likes to see children playing and having fun - but two teenage girls (dressed totally inappropriately.  Speaking of which did anyone see the pictures of the girls out clubbing in Newcastle in the Daily Mail yesterday - positively ridiculous) and a large tyre creating bob-sleigh runs on the additional parking places on the slope are just plain stupid - as are their parents for letting them do this.
People need to shut up and get on with it ....

Still - at least we aren't in Port-au-Prince ......

12/365 - Yummy Yummy ....

Well what more can you want than this at your desk for lunch ...

It was cold outside, gorgeously warm inside, the phones were manic and the visitors were plenty - so we locked the door for half an hour, ignored the phones and sat in appreciative silence with our feast of good old Fish and Chips ....

When we opened the doors again, the visitors were dead jealous - lol ....

11/365 - The Great Escape .....

After five days of going nuts, climbing the walls and generally being miserable - yesterday afternoon I booked a taxi to take me to work today.  I had heard such horror stories about the disgusting conditions out there and little cars like mine being pushed off the road by bigger cars and looking at the state of my road alone (which looks like a Martian landscape), I thought a taxi was required.   I did try and drive yesterday and got as far as reversing out of my parking space, which is on a slight downward slope and then down onto the road but the back wheels span, I panicked and I let it slide back into said parking place.  Most unlike me, I had totally lost my confidence about driving.

I had also decided that I would stay overnight in the office and come back Tuesday night, so that I could, hopefully, drive myself on Wednesday.

So I left with this lot ....

and returned with it - plus a bag of sugar and a pint of milk.

My pal at work, Eamonn, persuaded me that it wasn't really one of my better ideas to stay in the office overnight on my own and then we had a light bulb idea - ask the taxi driver to move my car round the corner where the road is a bit clearer and flat and there are no obstacles, like other parked cars - and bless him he did. So - tomorrow I am going to be a big brave girl and get behind the wheel again ......

10/365 - A New Toy ....

I have decided that enough is enough about all the white stuff outside and this afternoon I settled down and had a little play with a new toy I purchased from a well-known shopping channel ....

This is a Pandigital Photolink One-Touch Scanner.  With this you can scan photos without having to get the big scanner out and you can either scan to the Memory Card (provided) or direct to your computer (USB cable provided).  It would have been a great thing to have had this time last week, when I was visiting relations and going through our Family Tree.  There were lots of photos on the table, which took ages to scan and save to various external memory devices because none of us wanted to loan them out.

It's really easy to use - just plug it in, press a button, feed photo through and there you have it ....
Apparently, according to guest presenter on said well-known shopping channel, you can scan 100 photos in an episode of Coronation Street ....I thought I would just try one - lol - so here's a scanned photo of me when I was a little girl - get the hair - and the dress - lol ....

For something so small and diddy, I think the result is quite good.  I also have bought myself a new HP Photo Printer, which has a card reader thingy, so when that's set up, I'll report back ....

9/365 - Home Security Measures ....

How about this then ....

This is a huge icicle hanging from my guttering just along from my front door (I've written icicle because I can't remember whether it's a stalagmite or tite and I can't be bothered to trek downstairs and find a dictionary - lol).  It's about 18" long and if someone just happened to be standing directly underneath it when it breaks off they would have, at the very least, a big headache.

Here are some smaller ones - just above the front door ....

Potential burglars beware ....

8/365 - A Day Among The Stars .....

Still snowed in here and like Gail, I am a day late - but for different reasons ....  Gail forgot her camera when she went to the pub - I brought the pub to my house and fell asleep - lol.

I love films.  I'm not a film buff by any means and I don't go to the cinema as often as I should but I have quite a wide variety of DVDs and videos.  So yesterday I selected a few  'rom-coms' (even though most of them had been on the TV recently and I've watched them many times) and settled down, with my knitting, to watch.  Trouble was in the early evening (well if I was really honest, late afternoon) I thought I would have a small drink to keep the spirits up .....

And a bit later I fell asleep on the settee under my cosy blanket.  So here's a staged photo ....
I have to tell you that I only had two small glasses - because as we all know alcohol and the cold do not mix - and it is so cold in my house. 

In the pile is one of my favourite films of all time - The Quiet Man with John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara, who have been in many films together - oh to have red hair like her; The next fave is The Holiday because it is just soooooooo .... Mind you the Jude Law/Cameron Diaz story line is a bit too close to home - it was filmed not far from here in what was probably pretend snow - they should have waited - lol. 
My most favourite film at the moment is The Bucket List with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, which hasn't been on recently.  It's the story of two terminally ill men who meet in hospital.  Jack catches Morgan writing a list of things he would like to do before he dies and because Jack has the money to do all those things, they go off together on a series of adventures.  It's a heart-warming story which, whilst sad, is full of hope and somehow makes you feel happy for these two men.

I think we all have a Bucket List in our minds - I do at the moment - to get out of the village - lol .... but I'm working on an escape plan ....

7/365 - Dreaming While Shovelling .....

Today saw no snow but bright sunshine which had no effect whatsoever on the copious amount of the white stuff lying around.  All the news channels are keeping us informed about the whys and wherefors of the current crisis, the science of gritting, the benefits of cat litter - but where I live - hell no - it's shovels out ....

I am not a huge fan of strenuous exercise - like shovelling - but I have to say this morning was the warmest I have been for many days (apart from my feet - wellies are not good to make your feet warm).  I can now, if I choose ('cos the engine started), get my car out onto the road where I live - but there's no point doing that really because it is just thick snow turned to ice.

Here, I must tell you about my neighbour - she works in the Doctor's Surgery some five miles away as a pharmacy dispenser.  She, and another girl who works in the shop in the same village, walked to work this morning - well they got four miles and someone stopped and gave them a lift; and someone else gave them a lift back home - how's about that for heroism ...

Anyways, my neighbour tells me that the roads linking our village to the nearest main road that would definitely be gritted are no-go areas - even proper 4x4's are having difficulty, the roads are just solid ice.

So as it gets colder, my milk supply dwindles, the kids next door continue to make a hell of a racket and I get more and more fed up, I am dreaming of this ....

 

But I have a plan - but you will have wait until 9/365 .....

6/365 - Well It's Rather Obvious - Isn't It .....

That today's photo would be about the White Stuff ....
No talking this time - just pretty pictures ....

 

Keep safe and warm everyone .....

5/365 - It's Not Funny Anymore .......

I have deliberately not posted any photos about the weather 'cos we are all suffering, but, as I say - it's not funny anymore ....

Here we are this morning .... (mind you - should have taken this photo yesterday when it was -8.5 - lol)

I generally don't mind the cold but I'm getting cheesed off with it now.  I absolutely detest, hate and loath scraping the car off in the morning - however pretty it looks ....

The windscreen is OK because I lay a really heavy blanket (acquired from some removal men - can't remember how) over it but it's the scrapping off the side windows and the  fiddly wing mirrors; slipping and sliding  along the icy road from my house out to the main road through the village (which does get gritted); negotiating more icy roads (ungritted) on windy country lanes for the first five miles of the journey; driving along on clear roads at a reasonable pace (and I'm not a slow driver) with a white van in my boot; desperately wishing all the time that the windscreen washer bottle would defrost; looking for an ice free parking space in the car park at work; and, when I finally get into work, spending the first 15 minutes of the  day draped over a radiator.

It's also very cold in my house - only having two stupid and ineffective night storage heaters.  I spend my time at home in socks, a sweater and two cardigans - not a pretty sight - lol.  Germs don't live in my house and it's amazing that I haven't had a cold - seeing as it's like a greenhouse at work and the Arctic in my house.

Light bulb idea - tomorrow lunch I will nip into that well known car bits shop and buy a hoodie for my car .... oh yes and a new scrapper seeing as mine is a bit knackered - lol

4/365 - The Paper Fairy Didn't Come .....

Here is Day 4 - a day late - but I will explain - later .....

Well it was back to work today and this is my desk (or part of it) at work - just as I left it at 12.30pm on Christmas Eve - an absolute tip.  So despite what everyone says, there is no Paper Fairy.

For those with eagle eyes the vinegar bottle at the back (just behind the dead African Violet) is for the fish and chip suppers I have when I have to attend evening meetings.

And the reason for the late posting.  It was just a teensy weensy bit of a shock to be back at work after such a long break (even though I was beginning to get just a tad bored), that when I came home, I had to have a power nap.

After that I had to do a couple of rows of knitting to 'set the pattern' and then shock horror found that I had made a mistake four rows back.  I was not impressed because each row is 278 stitches !!!!!! So I undid five rows, did two rows and made another mistake, so undid three rows and knitted four.  All is well now - or at least it had better be, otherwise it won't be a WIP (work in progress) - it will be a WIT (work in trash). If you want to see the WIP pop over to my other Blog ....

Isn't it funny how one can digress - all this has nothing to do with the photo - lol

3/365 .... All Good Things Must Come To An End - Or Must They ....

Today is the 3rd January - the last day of total slobbery in what has been a week and a bit of total slobbery - lol.

Most of the UK marches back to work and school tomorrow and I am spending today quietly doing 'stuff' - nothing in particular, just stuff.  No housework, no paperwork - just stuff that takes my fancy.  Today's photo is someone else's (because I'm not going out of the house) and I think it fits in quite nicely with my 'me day' .....

Talking of not going out, have a look at Gails 3/365 - 7.30am in Chingford.  Gail and I are going to motivate each other to see this Project through to the end - well try anyway ....

So, I've decided - I'm off to do some crafting, which will make my friend Sue (the one who hasn't got a Blog but should have) quite jealous because she wants to take over her dining room table again.  You never know there might be a post on my other Blog later!!!!

Have a good day people .....

2/365 - Families - Who'd Have 'Em ....

This is a photograph of one of the wheels of my car .....

What has this got to do with today, you may ask.  Well, the plan was to travel from home in Sussex up to Epsom in Surrey to meet two of my second cousins to swap notes about how far we had progressed with the Family Tree.

Before I set out I needed to get some air in my tyres - something which I am unable to do myself (how sad is that - lol).  To achieve this I enlised help from immediate family - daughter and her father (ex-husband).  Did they - did they hell. So after much huffing and puffing, I managed to work out how to use the digital air machine on the garage forecourt and set off on my way.

After getting lost and one of the second cousin's husbands coming out to find me, having a brief stop over in a car park at the top of Epsom Downs where the view across London (from Canary Wharf to Heathrow) was outstanding (it was such a shame my digi camera wasn't up to the photo - lol) I arrived at destination and had a great afternoon and got some useful information and scanned photos for my Family Tree.

I managed to drive home in the dark - not a favourite pursuit of mine - to find an answerphone message from my mother, who said that she was feeling unwell and that basically, I was not being a good daughter.

Results of the day - (1) there is now one more thing I don't need anyone else for - putting the air in my tyres (2) I want a better digital camera (3) families aren't always what they're cracked up to be (but I knew that already - lol) .....

1/365 .... The Debris Of The Day After The Night Before ....

I'm not a huge fan of New Year's Eve but last night there was an impromptu event chez moi with an old friend. Said friend arrived with prawns for prawn cocktails, cream of turkey soup (home-made) and slices of gammon (from a proper joint on the bone) and a bottle of Baileys. I contributed the gateau and the wine.

I am ashamed to say that all of the Baileys has gone (and it was an unopened bottle), the kitchen apparently looked a bit like a war zone but said friend very kindly washed up and put away, and I didn't really come to until about 2.30pm.

Round about lunch time I remembered Project 365. In a pitifully pathetic state I gingerly ate some toast, drank three glasses of water straight off, took a staged photo of some of the remains of yesterday and crawled upstairs and set up this new blog .....

If I can do this today, I am sure I can continue for the next 364 days - lol. Wish me luck ....

A New Project ....

In amongst all the other stuff that I do, I found this a few days ago - Project 365 ....

Apparently, the Project is widely followed and entails you taking a photograph every day of the coming year .......
Sounds simple enough - but with my blogging track record recently - we will see ......
I've got the impression that the 'photo tells the story' but I like to write stuff too - so my Project 365 is going to be a bit of a diary too - full of the minutiae (is that spelt right?) and highs and lows of my life
So off we go .......