May 1st 2003
May 2nd 2003
Bloody Traffic why is the M25 always so busy........ and traffic lights at roundabouts??? WHY???
May 3rd 2003
Busy Day..... I managed to go shopping 5 times in one day and I hate shopping!!! Why because we were entertaining Brian & Jeanette, Ted cooked a great curry meal. Sheek Kebabs to start, Chicken Jalfrezi and Salmon Arachnal with Pilau Rice and some Sag Aloo that Des did. Chatted long into the night................
May 4th 2003
Happy Jedi Day (may the forth be with you!! - horrid pun I know). Nice weather after all the scare stories of another Easter type weekend. Des and Ted went to John the Bass Man and Glenda's to meet the new Grand Children.... Kate & Emma
Mum looks wrecked but then don't all mothers of 2 month old twins. Temperature still in the Twenties had a chance to fire up the brand new Barbie for the first time ... it works well, I'm looking forward to using it a few more times than we managed in the last 2 years. Remember the days were cloudy then the sun came out late so it never really got warm enough to sit out.... Global Climate Change not Global Warming then.
May 5th 2003
Another Bank Holiday spent digging holes in the garden all day long.... It's getting to be like the spare bedroom. Still it was a nice day for it.
May 6th 2003
News Flash!!!
She's back my big and ever so slightly insane sister has returned to the UK all of a sudden with the brood, that's Bronnie & Joshua, in tow. They flew in to Heathrow from New Zealand (via a stop over in LA) this morning several days earlier than expected....... it's going to be crowded at the Fogies Bungalow for the next few weeks if not months.
Still the Fogies are planning a trip to Bruges in Belgium later this week, with my Brian's sister & brother in law, Shirley and John, aka The Popes.
May 12th 2003
Oh my goodness less than a week to learn my lines for the lodge meeting......and there are a lot of them! Don't panic Ted................ OK PANIC!!!!!!!!
News re the long awaited footie match ... it's not taking place at the Gills ground.... and it has already been played without me Sulk!!!!
May 13th 2003
May 14th 2003
Go for a Dog Walk with Cass Bag, wandering around a field muttering my lines under my breath like some kind of idiot, idiot now that is the word to describe how I feel so much time wasted watching TV when I should have been learning my lines!!!!!!
May 15th 2003
Teds' employers are in the throes of reorganisation so we all have been called to one of a series meetings because of this evenings commitment I have to go to one in the Midlands, new opportunities abound.....
Traffic on way south was slower than hoped for, late for the start of the meeting but still in time for my part, so I have been installed in the chair of Lodge. Which with out giving away any secrets was an "interesting " experience.
May 16th 2003
Some companies & institutions are very slow to change, not FK the 1st wave of adverts for Managers jobs arrived by email tonight, Hmmmm what to do?
Kevin has decided to rebuild the fish pond at their place, spent a nice hour or so trying to catch some carp. Before dashing to Asda to buy tea, the women (Des & Vicky) went shopping at Bluewater, fortunately Des could find nothing in her size................
May 17th 2003
Afternoon shopping trip to Calais for Ted and Des, crossed the Channel on the Shuttle, bought massive quantities of wine, well 80 bottles. Looked around the shops had a rather poor meal for a french restaurant, at the Cafe de Paris, shame because we have had some very nice meals there in the past.
 |
 |
| Des in deep thought in a deep tunnel | 25 miles stuck behind the same car!! |
Home late stacked up the bottles then drank a couple...
May 18th 2003
ZZZZZZZ Sleep !!! I need more sleep. No it's not a hangover! Honest!
May 19th 2003
I have decided to apply for both the Hospital and the Primary Care Managers jobs, so spend a while revising the old CV and sending it off to head office before starting work this morning.
May 20th 2003
May 21st 2003
Busy day in London..... then the dreaded interviews to prepare for.
May 22nd 2003
The big day interviewed for Regional Managers posts, really put through the ringer by both National Managers, left feeling very deflated.... and a long drive back home it's nearly a 500 mile round trip.....
May 23rd 2003
The bad news came a little after mid-day, phone call as I left Hastings (Conquest) Hospital.... I didn't get the job damn damn and damn! Still at least I didn't have to wait forever to find out.
May 24th 2003
Busy day.. got to the gym for a swim and sauna to relax my neck after the stress of yesterday.... Then Vicky and Kevin were having a barbie ........ They needed to borrow a few bits, Chairs, tables, table cloths, lanterns, plastic knives and forks and the barbie itself so Ted had to locate all the bits from the Shed, the Garage, down the side of the house and transport them all up the road.
When I arrived after walking the barbie grill up the roaf to their front door I was asked "Have you got any charcol?"
"Ha! and I don't have any sausages either!" came the swift reply!
Nice evening tho' Pictures Here
May 25th 2003
Happy **th Birthday Des! Yes the old girl is ** years old today (no not 88 clever clogs!). So she spent most of the day on the phone.
In the afternoon we went to see one of the venues suggested for "Festival 04", Nice but very busy, 2 weddings and a Mini Bus all arriving at the same time as us ..... left a proper visit for another day.
Got home and took the dog for a walk, suddenly she stopped, paw held up ..... she's hurt her leg somehow, somewhere I can't find anything so we go home to rest it.
In the evening went in to town for a meal, started in a Wetherspoons Pub, but they got off to a bad start, the doorman told Kevin to take his Baseball Cap off .... Why??? Bearing in mind that there were a dozen guys in "school uniform" getting slightly drunk in there already. It got worse - the white wine was warm, the replacement glass was better but still not chilled. Then when I finally got the menu open, they were very scarce & soaking wet, nothing vaguely interesting to eat. Left and walked to the White Rabbit, had a nice meal even if the beer was more expensive.
May 26th 2003
Bank Holiday in England according to my diary so no work! Joke !!!!! Mowed the lawn watered the plants sorted stuff out in the house on the computer and in the garage! Phew! had to rush it all going "up West to see a show" Part of Des's birthday present Ted took her to see Mamma Mia the ABBA based musical. Great show, good performances of many of the songs, several very funny moments but....... weak male voices and every thing else was so expensive 500ml water £1.25, 1/2 pint lager £2.80, small bag of wine gums £1.25 (that was a shilling per wine gum in old money, yeah I know I'm so old but a shilling was worth a lot more than 5p! and I would not normally pay 5p for one Maynards Wine Gum either.
The Dog is still hobbling
May 27th 2003
Went to look at 2 other venues for "Festival 04" one is a bit tacky but they are prepared to try to accommodate my needs. The other I am going to name and shame. Staff at "The MARRIOTT TUDOR PARK HOTEL" didn't give a tinkers cuss. So sod them. They couldn't even be bothered to ask me my name, considering I was trying to arrange an event that would take over 50 rooms for 2 nights plus drinks etc... oh no hire the room? yes.....Standard menu? yes..... Stay over? our standard rates are on the board.... Sorry Guys NO CHANCE!!!!
May 24th 2003
May 29th 2003
May 30th 2003
Details of the job I'm supposed to apply for arrived today.......guess what it is my current job with a down sized title. Ah well it pays the bills.... Which is just as well as we are off to Bluewater Shopping Village this evening.
Des want to get a pair of "cut down trousers" (Capri Pants) she has seen and some other bits. I think she is hoping to get me to buy some new clothes. Good trip? NO! They didn't have any of the clothes she wanted, still she got the repair kit for her face and she did force into buying a pair of trousers "for the holiday" shame they are about 20cm to long for me
May 31 2003
The Heat!!!! A very hot day, took Des to get her hair done (nice one Ashley!). It's the middle of Dickens week in Rochester so there was no where to park, it was too hot to go shopping so spent the afternoon sitting on a field overlooking the river and getting a little bit of sun....wonderful!!!!!
Hmm 10 of us the Great British Summer... time for a barbie, Vicky & Kevin's place again. Then down to Rochester for the Fireworks Spectacular and it was fairly spectacular...
Rochester Castle and the fair from Strood Fireworks
A beer in town then home for a quiet drink on the patio