Kelly and Craig

The caves and stuff

2009-09-26T09:01:00.000-07:00

We went to the Oregon caves yesterday. The caves were pretty good but the ranger who took us round was a bit of a pain. He got a little confused about the difference between Irish, English and Scottish. He would be saying "top of the morn to ye" no thats Irish. Then a little later going down some steep stairs"tally ho!" no that English.When we reached the largest cavern we all stood in a semi circle, then he asked if anyone would like to sing as "it would sound great here" some guy stood forward and made a crow noise in memory of his dad, who used to do it when the went for walks or something along those lines. Then ranger Bob turned to us and said "what about you guys from Scatland" Kelly then said to the group "i think Craig wants to sing a Scottish song" what song is he going to sing......Kelly replies "DONALD FARS YER TROOSERS" at this piont after being so pleased that i have been volunteered for this lovelly Scottish song i wish the cave would open up and swallow me..or Kelly..ha! I of course had to decline by stepping forward and in my best Scottish tongue say"NAE CHUNCE"Instead some guy stood forward and sung the full version of Star Spangled Banner and eveyone(except the 2 jocks) joined in to a round of applause at the end....class!!

usa

2009-09-22T09:40:00.000-07:00

Sorry the blog has not been updated but Kelly would rather sit in the sun and drink cocktails all day...ha! So it has been left to me. Yes we are in the usa and have been since last week. We are now in Oregon after a few day in California at Ross's new house. I will download more photos on to my stick as we are now using Scott and Lucy's computer. The weather has been great so far amd long may it continue.It is all good at Hotel Lucina:)

2009-09-03T06:40:00.000-07:00

only four days of cornish life left.....

are we sad? yes. do we still want to go to oz. yes - think so ;)

are we looking forward to going home to scotland (yes), but saying goodbye to everyone (no).

are we excited about getting back into a lovely warm home with a flushing loo? (you bet).

2009-08-30T01:36:00.000-07:00

Here is a preview of our new bags. They are 120litres (so big), with wheels, so we don't have to lug the weight. They split from the middle so you have less depth to dig around in when trying to find your stuff. And best of all, we have matching ones. Won't we look so cute?

2009-08-25T12:05:00.000-07:00

Craig is currently travelling up to Exeter to pick up our friend Andy from the airport. So I thought I'd take this opportunity to update you on what has being going on in Cornwall.

Craig's infected gland (behind his ear) didn't respond to the antibiotics, but the GP has suggested another course, as it did reduce a bit. His GP rethunked his initial treatment suggestion of operating as he thought this might leave Craig's ear a bit crooked. So I remain lying awake at nights waiting to see if the boil will indeed turn into a head and begin proferring opinions.

Craig and I have been enjoying the caravan life so much (it s like so totally liberating, man) that we have agreed to take on the responsibility of looking after the chickens from the hippy farmer next door who has gone to Ibiza. Day one has got off to a flier (do chickens fly?) as one of the little beauties has disappeared and we think perhaps been munched by a fox. Its rough down here you know. Either that or he sensed amateurs were taking over and decided to make a break for it. Let's hope we manage to save at least a few for Gareth's return.

Craig's sister Angela is due to come and visit us down here before we head up to Scotland (on thw 8th of Sep now instead of the 6th). Angela bought some tickets for all of us to go and see Othello at the Minack theatre. This is a beautiful outdoor theatre built into the cliff on the southern edge of Cornwall. See picture. I don't expect I ll have a clue what's going on in the play but you can take booze with you, so as long as it is not raining I should be fine with some rum and a good view! This means that I will be having my final night in Cornwall (at least for the time being) in a very cultural way.......darling! Unlike most of the rest of my time here.

2009-08-15T11:49:00.000-07:00

I've had a week of minor calamaties this week. Saturday I got a flat tyre on my way to the beach to see a friend for lunch. Of course being a totally incompetent numpty I had no idea what to do with it. So I had to call my knight in shining armour to come help me. Craig was great and fixed the tyre whilst I had lunch (!) and it was ready for more demolition... I mean driving after. Hooray for Craig!

Tuesday on my way to the gym I broke a tooth on some chewing gum. I managed to call my dentist (without the aid of Craig) and have an appt booked for next week to get it fixed. Well done Kelly.

On Thursday my perception of myself as a competent and capable individual however took a bit of a bashing as I managed to get my car stuck in a ditch (don't ask!). I had to get 8 burly men from the university come and LIFT my car out of it!! O God the Shame!

I've been since contemplating the reasons for said altruistic behaviour from total strangers. I was no damsel in distress- having just been to the gym and looking like Don King's sweaty little sister (the sweat does bad things to my hair- feel my pain, mum?!) and the thought of having to call Craig for assistance again was not an enticing prospect.

I have since come to the conclusion that a) some men like a problem to fix, b) the sun was shining and c) it meant they could get out the office and have a fag. Anyways I was eternally grateful for their help.

I wanted to show them how grateful I was.... I thought.. they're men.... men like beer.... I should offer to get them beer. But then I started to think.... hold on, no, that sounds like I want to date them. So I ended up rather naffly buying them chocolates and dropping them by in the office after. Awful I know, but I could not think of anything else to do. If you are aware of the correct protocol when having your car manually lifted out of a ditch by complete strangers please let me know.

So now not only can they go home and tell their wives and girlfriends about the sweaty, deranged nutter who got her car stuck in a ditch (what an idiot!), but also bemoan how they only got a crappy box of chocs for their efforts in assistance! O well.

Onto other news-Craig has also, this week, been sporting a rather fetching great, big, red boil behind his ear. This boil has lead to much debate between us about it's possible cause. My theory was that Craig has been eating too many Pot Noodles since we ve been living in the caravan and the boil was a reaction to this poor diet. Craig on the other hand has been blaming me. I mean.... me.... do something wrong...?! What?! Anyway- he reckons I have infected it whilst twiddling it. Pah! I mean... I barely twiddle ears now..... ;0) not much anyways.

To resolve this debate, he went to get a professional opinion on Thursday from his GP-who said it was an infected gland (although he failed to explain how these things get infected). He has been given a weeks course of antibiotics- which should reduce it. However if not he has to go for a minor operation. The GP assures us he reckons he could get this done and dusted before we leave in... 2 1/2 weeks.

I hope so.

For Craig's sake, because I know it's been causing him pain.

But also mine.... having watched 'How to Get Ahead in Advertising', I've been waiting for it to turn into another head and start talking!

2009-08-07T13:39:00.000-07:00

Dawn, John and Jordan have just left after their hols in Cornwall. I think they had a good time they are broon as berries. Jordan is very good at surfing and got lots of waves at Praa Sands and Sennen, John got in the water on the body board. A few good bbqs at the quarry and barn(see pics)

2009-08-01T01:26:00.000-07:00

confirmed start date in adelaide... 19 oct. phoning qantas today to change dates on flights, but looks like we will be leaving uk end of august. will come to scotland for a visit before we go. will try and skype later with dates for scotland and US.

other tales from cornwall... snoop kindly delivered me a wee pressie yesterday morning. a dead bird... in my handbag. o the joy of opening my bag to see it there!

and i found a frog in my washing up this morning....! it was sitting in a bowl that had acumulated some rain water from sitting outside. very cute. not big enough to eat. he was more of an aperitif than lunch.

dawn is down tomorrow. dawn, john and jordon are driving down through the night.

2009-07-28T02:16:00.000-07:00

I'm writing this to you, snatching 10 mins between clients.... so no pictures again I'm afraid. But since you never get pictures anymore then you are probably used to this by now. I guarantee a picture fest when I get into a house with broadband again!

Just a quick update as there is not much to say. Ozzie people have confirmed that they have now (finally!) received my second reference.... and they will be in touch this week to confirm dates.... (yawn!). Is it just me or does this feel like it is dragging on forever? I looked at my diary this week and I had the interview nearly a month ago.

Dawn has confirmed that she, Jordon and John are coming down to Cornwall to stay for a week. They arrive on Sunday, and unlike Lauren who stayed in a fancy cottage in Padstow, Dawn is planning to rough it with us at the estate!!! Does she know what's she's letting herself in for..? (Gary/Luca- we have only an outdoor composter loo- feel the breeze!).

And that's about it.... Craig is on school holidays now, so he's working full time on the estate. I've finished uni for the summer so have some study time to finish assignments etc.... and we're just living in limbo til we know when we're going. I keep waking up with my jaw clenched and aching teeth. I guess with the stress of not knowing I must be grinding my teeth in my sleep. They better hurry up or I'll be toothless by the time I arrive!

Oh and PS and it has stopped raining.... but we ll see what happens when Dawn arrives... ;)

2009-07-25T08:02:00.000-07:00

craig has returned from school camp. his 'ray mears' style shelter was, according to he, good... but the weather was so bad that he ended up having to sleep the second half of the night in the van.

he returned looking a little bit weary. and saying it was the first time the caravan had looked like a luxury option!

you would be appalled at our diet at the moment. we are living off cous-cous (because you just have to add water), stuff that comes out of tins, and..... (dare i say it..) pot noodles! o no! the shame. my second referee better hurry up so we can get going. my salt levels cant take the convenience food much longer!

did you know that the adelaide hills are a well known wine growing region, the well known (and cheap) wine Jacobs Creek comes from there.

2009-07-21T06:13:00.001-07:00

Its still raining.......

2009-07-17T00:02:00.000-07:00

Why does it always rain in Cornwall when visitors arrive? For the last few days, it has been torrential rain here. The worst I've seen it for a long time. We've had severe weather warnings for flooding. It's been a real shame for Lauren and Jordon who by now I think have seen the inside of every indoor attraction in Cornwall. There's not that many! But they have seen them all!

Lauren puts a brave face on it and says it's fine, (she bought a new rain mac in Newquay and is certainly getting plenty of wear out of it!) but I bet they're glad that their trip ends tomorrow and they can go home and wring out their wet things!

Although with Jordon turning into a bit of a water baby with his amazing surfing on Wednesday perhaps he ll be less bothered. Craig was seriously impressed by Jordon. His second time surfing and he was standing up,YES, standing up! and Craig reckons caught about 10+ waves! Amazing! But could he wobble about on his knees like his big cousins Kelly and Lucy...? eh....? no? that's real skill that is..!! ;)

Tonight we are going round to their little cottage to have Tapas (bought/made by Malcolm) and we re taking round our sushi making kit. I love making sushi (this is my new thing!) but I wasnt sure if the little ones would be so keen, but Lauren assures me that she thinks they ll love it. So that's what we ll have. And then tomorrow they are gone. Over so quickly. Jordon might be back before he knows it though. Dawn is keen to get down and try out her new tent before we head off.

We have a busy weekend ahead. Saturday is Helstonbury, the local festival at Helston home of the Blue Anchor pub. Music and Spingo.... uh, oh.... sore heads on Sunday I expect. And then Sunday we are heading to June's for BBQ. This is the other TA from Craig's work. She has aranged an end of term do for all of the school so we will be showing face there. They re a nice bunch, so I'm sure it ll be a good day. And I will be taking my speciality Cornish potato salad that everyone loved so much in Tenerife. I'm sure it ll go down a treat!! ;)

Heard from the Adelaide people this morning. One of my referees has been a bit slow in getting in touch with them so no further news yet. Except that I will be chasing him this morning. So we can get this confirmed and know our dates for leaving. My star sign for the solar eclipse this week (I have the same sign as Craig) said I would be going abroad. Which I thought was so insightful! Coming up for summer, how do they know these things..??!! ;)

Ok, better go, I have a study day today and am supposed to be writing this essay, not blogging to you lot. Stop diverting me! I need to go do this! ;)

..... and I think I may have just seen Snoop float past the caravan window on a wave.........

Bye bye from Soggy Cornwall.............. xx

2009-06-30T01:16:00.000-07:00

I was very excited this morning to see that i got a friend request on facebook from he who should not be named (R***)!

The excitement is helping make up for the fact that i was saddened to hear about the death of michael jackson on friday.

I remember lying in a bunk bed at brownie camp in finzean listening to mj on my walkman at lights out time. i had the thriller album on tape, and was scared stiff listening to it! it was pretty scary if you were about 8 :)

have heard back from the western oz job people, although it is not settled. they say they want me, and the pay and conditions when i get there are fine, but they have not really offered a reasonable relocation package. part of me is thinking, just go for it anyway... but the other half is thinking i should hold out and not just jump at the first opportunity if its not quite right. opinions on this are welcomed. i like to hear what u all think.

ive attached a couple of pictures from mazey day. this is a local festival in penzance that we went to on saturday. our friends kids were in the parade so we went down to watch them and then back to theirs for a bbq later on. the sun was splitting the sky all weekend and i hear we are in for more good weather this week. yeeha!

2009-06-26T01:07:00.001-07:00

Hello... news from Cornwall.... (in words, not pictures I'm afraid!)

No further news from Oz job. I have been sent email to offer me job in Western Oz, but am still waiting for them to come back to me with terms and conditions. This has been going on for a bit so, not sure whats happening. If it works out we could be heading off earlier than Nov. But if it doesnt transpire, then we ll be sticking to original plan. Sorry Lucy for not being a bit clearer about when we re coming! But we re definitely coming! Will keep u posted. Ive sent them a email to try and chivvy them along, but not heard back yet.

With not cycling to work anymore, I've gone back to the rowing to try and get some exercise. Have been going to the beginners sessions at the Helford River on a Sunday. Once I finish uni next week we have Weds off for a month for study leave so I should be able to join them for their early Wed session too.

Craig is fine- working up a good tan from being outside all day every day. Jealous, moi? But he's not been getting much surf due to being busy on the estate. I think the good weather has kiboshed the swell this weekend too.

Tonight we re heading to Penzance to see Gus, Kirsten and the kids. Its the Penzance festival this week. Fireworks tonight and then Mazey Day tomorrow. Will try and get pictures on the blog then.

2009-06-18T13:12:00.000-07:00

Two photos of the log heated hot tub as it is pretty nifty!!

2009-06-18T12:46:00.000-07:00

Just a few pics of the place we are camped up at. The water is the quarry where i have had a few swims in , still a bit chilly but refreshing...ha! The barn has a very large dragon on the roof to protect us :) I will add more but i have to go and rescue Kelly Snoop has just brought a moose back to the caravan..........ha!!

2009-06-02T12:43:00.000-07:00

no pictures yet of 'camp outback' yet (that's what we've decided to call our caravan/ tent settlement)... we're working off a dongle here and don't have enough bandwidth... should be able to connect to wireless soon, so i'll put some on then.

needless to say the amazing weather has given us a false sense of security about what this camping malarkey will be like. at the moment- it's ace! tonight we sat and had boiled eggs and bread sitting on the grass watching the sun go down. the view is beautiful. you can see the small village of constantine and beyond to the goonhilly earth station and further on from this you can see the sea- we have a good vantage point so you can see the curve of the edge of the earth... well, where the cornish coast line meets the sea :)

it really is pretty awesome. i'm hoping this weather will last. or you may hear a different side to the camping experience!

2009-05-24T12:49:00.001-07:00

its been another scorcher of a day down here.. hope the rest of the uk is experiencing the same lovely weather....???

i did a car boot sale today to get rid of some stuff and craig picked up our (second) caravan which will become part of our home over the next few months. o my god. what am i letting myself in for?

we re taking our stuff down to retallick (our new home) tomorrow!

2009-05-23T11:02:00.000-07:00

its been a scorcher of a day down here... although apart from taking snoop to the vet this morning for his booster jabs, ive spent most o the day inside packing and cleaning out cupboards. our new tenants move in on tuesday. they ve paid their deposit and first months rent already, which is quite reassuring. unlike the girl who bought our beetle on ebay last week and still has not paid! she keeps giving excuses... and now im thinking that we might have to open an ebay dispute against her. boo.

2009-05-22T08:23:00.000-07:00

Hi all, this is old bird calling...!

yes- well i made it- im in my 30's.

still not too sure how i feel about it. but there you go!

i was a bit quiet yesterday after the celebrations on the night. i cancelled my supervision in the morning and spent thurs am on the sofa eating left over pizza and reading a book about australia. which was spoiled only by having to start work at 2pm. tough life i have, eh? (well i did have to leave at 1pm to get there on my bike!).... and i couldnt be bothered cycling home so i got craig to pick me up. yikes it was a lazy day! i topped it off with watching the iplayer in bed and catchin up on the apprentice and the great british menu. hurrah! i may have enjoyed the hung over lazing about just as much as the actual night.

today has been repentance day and i have thus far: cycled for 2 hours (to and from work), run for 1 hr 45mins (along the cliffs with bof) and tonight im going to the gym to do body pump and then pilates with my chummie karen. phew! although im still not sure that will burn off the calories of the almost entire box of chocs i think i may have eat yesterday! woops! although do calories consumed during a hangover actually count..? answers on a postcard...but in large print for the old lady

2009-05-19T13:12:00.000-07:00

GOOD BYE MY TWENTIES!!!

2009-05-16T05:47:00.000-07:00

I managed to smile for the photo, but I dont know what happened to Vicky and Angela!

Craig said they look like Wallace and Gromet... but of course I would never say that myself!

2009-05-16T02:15:00.000-07:00

We ve had Vicky and Angela (Craig's mum and sister) down this week. They stayed in a holiday cottage in St Agnes (a couple of miles away) for the week. Angela has back problems and I think she was sick of our rubbish spare bed. The first time she stayed we had her on a blow up mattress which deflated through the night (we think Snoop may have been implicated in the demise of the bed) and the second time the bed collapsed! Oops!

We ve eaten out a lot this week, so we waved them off this morning with fat tummies and light wallets!

Apart from that, what has been happening..?

Well we ve sold the Beetle- to a woman in Plymouth via ebay. We are just waiting for her payment through paypal.

And we ve found some tenants for our house and have agreed a move in date of the 26th of May. So its all go here trying to get the house cleared out. I have a mountain of stuff for the car boot sale, but with the forecast being so wet and windy this weekend.. there's no way I'm going to be doing it.

We re heading out to Bof's house for dinner tonight, so perhaps the crap weather will be a blessing to save me getting up at daft o clock on a Sunday after a night out.

Once I find the cable for the camera I will post some pictures.

2009-05-11T13:10:00.001-07:00

...SSSSHHHH...word to the wise.... Craig's birthday is on Thursday....

2009-05-07T23:33:00.001-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO BRAEDEN!!!

kELLY'S NEW HAIR

2009-05-04T01:23:00.000-07:00

Just a quick update on Kelly's new hair colour(yes its changed again!). The weekend has been good weather pretty good and the surf was great. Yesterday when i was surfing at Praa Sands on the south coast there was two large fins swimming towards me to the delight of my surf buddies. It was a baskin shark about ten feet long and came within a few feet of me, ok i did think i hope this isn't a lost great white or i am in deep doo doo. It was all ok as i didn't hear any music as in the movie. My friends thought it was funny as they were nearlly on the beach the big jessies. Then an evening walk to Chapel Porth to take some photos.

2009-05-01T07:42:00.001-07:00

O no! I can't win...! Trouble for not blogging and then trouble for blogging! Whats a person to do...???!!!

Nothing happening here at the moment. It's raining. I'm home from work and writing an essay (well procrastinating). Going to the gym tonight.

What else can I tell you.... hmmm...????

I had a surveyor round today to get our energy performance certificate done. We need it if we are going to rent the house. (costs £60)

We also need a electrical safety certificate... so need to get that done next week. Need a sparky for that. (£90)

What else...? hmmmm.... I could tell you how expensive it is to advertise your property for rent with an estate agent.. between £500 and £700 (each time you need a new tenant!). So lets hope someone wants to stay in it for a LONG TIME!

So no fancy plans this weekend due to enormous outlays... and beans for tea. Yeah! (for the next month!).

2009-04-29T23:57:00.000-07:00

Its been a busy week, what with going back to university and generally spending far too much time on facebook. I m wondering where the week has gone..?

The weather has been pretty cruddy here, so I ve been soaked nearly every day cycling to work. But I have the car today so Im going to turn up for work in style. Straight hair and still smelling good from the shower, yeeha!

I had intended to do lots of things last night, but when I got home I was tired and wet and had a brain like scrambled eggs from a long day so I just sat and watched TV (and ate the last night of the Thorntons toffee from my easter egg!).

I enjoyed The Apprentice... about time that Nurrell went, he was too drippy. But when are they going to get rid of Army boy..? He's a nightmare. I think the pretty blonde will win.. and James will be second. Perhaps I should bet on it...

2009-04-24T05:22:00.000-07:00

JUST A QUICK ENTRY TO LET U KNOW DAD THAT I STILL READ UR BLOG... I WILL TRY AND KEEP MINE UP TO DATE ONCE THE NOVELTY OF FACEBOOK WEARS OFF A BIT! I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO DO ANY WORK SINCE I SIGNED UP.....MEGHAN IS RIGHT.. IT CAN TAKE UR SOUL....!

2009-04-21T12:56:00.000-07:00

A few from Tenerife

2009-04-21T12:45:00.000-07:00

Book Reviews

2009-04-21T08:43:00.000-07:00

I've just finished a really good book so I thought I would tell you about it. It was written by David Baddiel (the comedian). It's a part fiction/ part true story about Jewish refugees who came to Britain during the Second World War and their subsequent internment on the Isle of Man.

I usually like funny books- (or autobiographies) but I was interested to see what his writing style was like- and I really enjoyed it. Mum, I think you would enjoy it. It's called 'The Secret Purposes'.

It was definitely better that the Douglas Adams book I got recently (he of the HitchHiker of the Galaxy fame). It was guff in my opinion, but on saying that, I think you would have enjoyed it mum. A bit sci-fi and silly. Like a cross between 'Red Dwarf' and something Terry Pratchett may have written. It was called 'So Long and Thanks for all the Fish'.

I also downloaded last night an audibook to listen to on my cycles to work. Its called 'Touching the Void'. Recommended by a friend it is about two climbers who get into trouble whilst descending from some big mountain somewhere! They are roped together when they fall and one has to make the decision of whether to let them both fall into the abyss or to cut the rope and let his friend fall to his death. Oooh! Gripping stuff. Although Dad's response when I offered him a copy was rather muted! Not your cup of tea then??! I listened to some of it this morning and was grimacing as he described dragging himself for 3 days with a broken leg!

2009-04-20T13:05:00.000-07:00

A few pictures of kelly's new hair cut it was difficult to see in the photos after our boating day. Also a few random ones!

2009-04-19T13:10:00.000-07:00

On Friday, Craig and I had tea at our friends house. They made us mussells with linguine. The mussells were fresh, wild ones and our hosts had picked them at the beach down the road from our house. They were small but very yummy.

On Saturday Craig and a couple of his friends went out for a few beers in Truro whilst I went to the beach for a few hours with a friend. The weather was great- good day out.

Today we went down to the Helford river. See the photos. We managed to capsize the canoe we were in. In emergencies, people define themselves into one of two categories- leaders and sheep. I was so shocked when we hit the water- I was definitely the latter. Craig on the other hand proved his metal and told me 'swim!' I noticed after a second that not only was he swimming and pushing the boat but he had the paddles and a hold of the back of my jumper too! We're all ok- perhaps next time I'll leave my wallet/ phone etc on dry land. We had a beer in the sun after before having a beer in the sun.

2009-04-19T13:05:00.000-07:00

2009-04-15T00:17:00.000-07:00

http://www.cornishhorizons.co.uk/lotties_cottage_near_padstow.htm

Here is the link for the cottage that Lauren, Malcolm, Jordon and Ethan will be staying in when they come down to Cornwall in July.

Its nr Padstow which is about 35-40mins from us in the winter. It takes longer in the summer because of the holiday traffic... so I found out when I took a summer job on at the Seasalt shop there last year. The longest it took me to do the same journey was.... 2hrs and 15mins!!! Padstow is a popular little place.

Craig's mum and sister have also booked in at Chez Stewart/ Stenhouse over the summer. They were initially thinking May, but might change this to June so that they can drive us back down the road after we visit Banchory and Strathdon at the end of May for my birthday.

Did I mention that I have joined the local gym? I've been going to a Circuits class at the gym for a few months now and I recently heard the gym were doing a deal for students. So I went down with my student card and got a discounted membership!

So this week I have tried Body Pump= step and weights= good. Body Balance= mixture of Pilates and Tai Chi= not so good. Body Combat= mixture of boxing training and martial arts= absolutely hilarious! Flying kicks were part of the routine, I kid you not. I think I'll stick to the Pump and the Circuits.

2009-04-14T06:12:00.000-07:00

Hello... Happy Easter!

Its been a while since I posted anything and with computer probs that I won't bore you with (they're getting sorted) I can't attach any photos today... so just a quick update with news instead.

Snoop has fleas. He's bitten the hair off one of his legs. I'm fumigating the house.

I've cut all my hair off... again. Photo will follow when aforementioned computer probs are rectified. (This is not related to the fleas).

and.... I think that's it! Its been a quiet week!

Did anyone watch The Great British Menu the other night..? For Lucy, this is a TV show where chefs compete to be able to contribute to a fancy meal/ event. Last year they were competing to cook for the Queens 80th Birthday bash. This year I think it is for returning troops.

Anyway... they often show little clips of the chefs going off to meet with their suppliers (because it's very trendy here just now to eat local, organic food). And this week... one of the chefs went to.... Inverurie!!!! To visit the bakery... they have one best pie of the year or something...

The same guy then travelled to Alford and went to see the guys who produce the oatmeal there. Jennie Bond (ex Royal Correspondent and the narrator for the show) made a bit of a gaff by calling it 'AL- FORD' and pronouncing the L. Whereas we all know better, don't we..?! Oh she's SO silly! Ha, Ha! ;)

If you are really interested you can check the show out on the iPLAYER.

Talking of TV, I went to bed early last night and ended up missing the start of another cooking show I like: Hells Kitchen. So I may watch that later on the iPLAYER whilst Craig is watching the football.

And what else can I tell you about....? erm...

Aha! Lauren has confirmed her plans for coming down to Cornwall. She has booked a wee cottage nr Padstow for a week (commencing 11th of July). We did offer her to stay here (and Jordon and Ethan could have camped in the garden)... but perhaps she had heard of the fleas. But its worked out well that they have their own place because a friend of ours from Scotland is coming down that same week too, so it would have been a bit squashy!

I had emailed her and suggested we could try out the Camel Trail which is a lovely off road cycle track between Padstow and Wadebridge. But she responded by laughing and saying it's been years since she's been on a bike!!! So maybe not.

2009-04-04T10:25:00.000-07:00

WE'RE HOME!!!

THANKS FOR A GREAT TIME.

2009-03-14T11:50:00.000-07:00

Not had much time to use our new camera, but here are a few pics .The dragon on the roof of the barn is where i have been working.......he is pretty cool! The beach is perranporth where we had a walk to clear our germs as we have been ill.No surfing this weekend but i am sure i will make up for it in Tenerife.

2009-03-14T11:24:00.000-07:00

It was a beautiful sunny day here. So we took a walk along Perranporth beach. I'm using the lovely scarf that Vicky, Craig's mum, knitted for me as a hat to stop my ears from bleeding in the wind!

2009-03-12T23:58:00.000-07:00

Or... (on a roll here..)

Granda's Grolsch
I.P.A- standing for 'Independent Pensioner's Ale'

(or was that a step too far...?!!!)

2009-03-12T01:51:00.000-07:00

Ian's Ale
Bus Pass Brew
Knackered Knees Knocker

2009-03-09T12:57:00.000-07:00

News:

1. I have a cold.
2. Craig's new camera arrived today. So expect endless photos on the blog now we have a camera again.
3. Exeter don't want me. So definitely to Oz it is.
4. We are watching the movie 'Atonement' and I'm not really enjoying it (although being on the phone throughout has probably not helped my concentration).
5. I have finally got round to buying Dads birthday present. But after the internet connection failed in the middle of my transaction I have bought double the amount of tickets I intended to.
6. I have overcome my procrastination about taping my therapy sessions and have something to submit for my university course.... yeeha.
7. Craig and I have arranged to come up to Scotland at the end of May (28th) to go hiking with a couple of friends. So we will visit Banchory at some point then too.

2009-03-07T04:02:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Dad! Hope you had a good day. Looking forward to seeing you in 3 weeks in Tenerife.

2 bits of news today.

1. I have just received a letter from South Wales university (which is one of the universities that I applied to do the Clinical Doctorate training at). They don't want me. Well, not exactly true. I am on the reserve list for interview. So not great news. They had 17 applicants per place according to their letter. And I wasn't one of the better ones evidently. But if someone drops out, then they will see me... and then not accept me! Ha, Ha! Well, you never know. I might interview amazingly well and get on. But, possibly not.

So, given that I am away for the Plymouth and Oxford interviews (they are when I am in Tenerife), the only other hope is for Exeter. So we'll wait and see what their letter holds.

I am a bit bummed out by it. If I lived in a world where everything went my way it would have gone like this:
1. Apply to universities and get accepted by one (here's why you have to hope for Exeter!).
2. Be able to defer place til next year and
3. Spend year travelling in Oz
4. Return and complete Clinical Doctorate.

But maybe I still need to get more experience. I was hoping that it would be possible to get feedback from the application process about what areas you need to develop. However, the letter states that due to the overwhelming number of applications they are not providing feedback this year. So, I won't be able to find out what I could have done differently/ better.

Anyway... onto second piece of news. I have this morning applied for travelling visas for Craig and I for Australia. These are not permanent working visas. They are for people who want to travel around a bit in Oz and in my case (since I am under 30- this is one of the last few times I will be able to say that) do some work.

The plan is this: in November once my course is finished and we have remortgaged the house we intend to fly to Oz and spend a few months travelling about. We're thinking of buying a van and living in that. If we are granted the visas they will allow me to take on any kind of work to fund our travel and for Craig he can work, but there are more restrictions. Ie. he can do stuff that an employer will pay him in kind for eg. give him accommodation or food. So we are thinking we will just bum about for a bit and travel up the East coast before returning to the UK and our jobs. We plan to rent out our house when we are away.

Ok- response.... what do you all think..?!

2009-02-27T12:58:00.000-08:00

Yes it's the weekend at last!! Surf lesson(instructing) Sat morning then surf afterwards. I have been invited to play golf on Sunday at Mullion golf course which is the most sutherly course in the U.K. http://www.mulliongolfclub.net/Main.htm. This is training for Tenerife (look out Scott!!) Three weeks until we go on holiday and counting. I have attached the vid of snowboarding in Cornwall of the Mount Hawke freestyle team on the b.m.x jumps.

2009-02-26T04:00:00.000-08:00

Dad- sell the house in Banchory. Buy an R.V. and spend the next few years travelling around the different states in America, playing golf in every one. When you are too skint and too tired to travel any more, I will take you both in and look after you. Why else do you have children?

By then you may both be so doo-lally that staying with me again seems like a good option! Your eye sight so poor that you cannot see the mess, and too tired to complain about my terrible cooking. But at least you would have had a blast in your 'Golden Years!'

2009-02-24T13:38:00.000-08:00

I managed to get the photos of Kellys new hairdoo transfered off my phone. I think it loooks great

yOUR wISH IS mY cOMMAND

2009-02-24T08:59:00.000-08:00

So on Dad's request I thought I better update the blog.

What has been happening here since the last time I wrote..... ? well, ..... nothing really.

We had a meal at Gus and Kirsten's on Valentines Night- which was delicious. Gus is a mean cook (not stingy.. I mean good). For appetisers we had crostini with various toppings- figs and parma ham, crushed cannelini beans with tahini and garlic, feta and chili... all of which were gorgeous. Followed by risotto with pesto and pine nuts and citrus panacotta for dessert. Yum!

I was sporting my new hairdo.... what? Kelly? I new hair do, I hear you ask? Surely not. You are the epitomy of conversativeness when it comes to do's of the barnet. Well, yes... I know. This time it is probably more outrageous/ silly/ weird (delete as appropriate) than normal.

It. is. ..... pink and purple.

I like it. Although I cannot of course guarantee that anyone else will! Craig has a photo of it on his phone, so when he returns from work I will post it. Although I may avoid posting a 'make your vote' section ala Dad. (Save my self esteem!).

Talking of which (voting, not self esteem) I voted that Dad I think you should retire.... This is just my opinion (since you asked for it), but I think if you can afford it, then go for it. Why spend any more time slogging away at work than you have to?? I'm sure that you will find something to do with your time if you retire....! ;) You are hardly short of hobbies and interests. Time to spend all day doing them is what I think.

Ok- so on to the puppies. My guess is that they are Dawn's. I'm basing this on nothing but the fact that they are on a white settee. And I thought, who might have a white settee.... Dawn. So that 's my guess. I also have a white settee, but they are not mine. But I do think they are cute.

So I better sign off now. The urge to write inappropriate jokes about retirement is too much and I don't want the cold shoulder on holiday! Which is only a few weeks away now! Yee-ha!

Hope all is well with you all.
Speak soon k:)

2009-02-15T04:22:00.000-08:00

Some pictures taken of the recent snow. Mark and Siobhan are standing next to the snowman they made in our back garden. The other couple are Steve and Nicky, our neighbours. Steve tried snowboarding for the first time on Craig's board and the other shot is of them in their kitchen (2 doors down from us) having a little party for Nicky's birthday.

The picture of me is on Friday night. Taken by Craig when we were out at Pizza Express. Note the loving look in my eyes! After our 'romantic' meal we went to the movies to watch 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button'. Brad Pitt movie- he's born old and grows younger. I thought it was good, but Craig was bored to tears.

2009-02-08T10:46:00.000-08:00

We've had no snow since Thursday. But the main road into Cornwall (from Exeter to Bodmin) was shut til Saturday meaning that the big lorries carrying food to the supermarkets couldn't get through and all the shelves were bare.

What do you do when there is nothing in Tesco....?

I had a bit of a Homer (Simpson) moment to myself.

The first plans that came into my mind were as follows (in this order):
1. Go to Sainsbury's (quickly followed by no, no that won't work...then...)
2. Get mum to send some stuff down..... (aherm!... )

Obviously I am not one who responds with brilliant ideas in the face of adversity!

Craig was concerned that I was beginning to develop a hungry glint in my eye- but luckily we have survived the rationing.

On the day of the worst weather Craig and I did our good deed bit and got Des and Betty (the old couple from next door) essential shopping bits (bread/milk). They were so grateful they went out when the snow cleared and bought us some flowers and beer in return! Which was unneccessary, but really kind of them.

Talking of getting gifts- Vicky, Craig's mum, called today to say she has knitted me a scarf. What a lovely gesture! That'll be my first homemade knitted thing since Granny Stewart used to make our Christmas sweaters :)

I'm sure there will be plenty of rubbish weather to come for me to get lots of use out of it.

Snow, Snow, Snow

2009-02-03T01:03:00.000-08:00

We're snowed in!!

Craig's school has shut today, so no work for him. Uni is also cancelled for me. This is the first time that some of the schools have been shut for snow in living memory. Our friend Siobhan has lived in Cornwall all her life and never been snowed in!

Craig tried to venture out the village this morning to go to the shop and buy some milk and coal, but couldn't do it. The car was just wheel spinning rather than going forward! He's managed to go to the local shop and get some limited supplies, but apparently the shelves were empty as the delivery vehicles have not managed to make it down the road to the village.

Let's hope the snow clears quickly, or we could be on limited supplies!

2009-02-02T07:40:00.000-08:00

It's snowing a lot here today. Probably the most snow I've seen down here. Hope it doesn't last. I want sun, sun, sun!!!

Like Dad, all this cold weather has got me day dreaming about holidays and warmer climes. I've attached a link for a super expensive swimsuit that I like. Is £80 too much for a swimmer..?!!

http://www1.landsend.co.uk/pp/StylePage-193191_FA.html?mdiv=wm&cgrfnbr=1360094&CM_MERCH=IDX_1360094

Check out the personalise your model section (click on the 'Try It On' button, bottom of the screen). You can change her size according to your own weight, measurements etc to see what the item would look like on your shape. Ingenious! Although, I think they are erring on the side of being kind and generous!

Knees and Dunces

2009-01-29T10:58:00.000-08:00

I had my check up with my GP tonight about my knee. The IbuProfen, strong enough to medicate a horse (1600mg a day), hasn't impacted on my knees. Boo. So the next stage is the referral to the Knee Clinic. I'm on the (NHS) waiting list. Hope it's not too long.

The GP did offer to give me a steroid shot tonight... but I declined. I think I'd rather find out what it is first, before I think about anything like that.

I'm getting the impression that I may have different attitudes to medication than my GP. Me- I'd prefer not to. He- take some, go on, you know you want to! :)

Did I mention that I went to Plymouth last Sunday (a.k.a The Big Smoke)? On recommendation from a friend I went to see a friend of a friend who is a registered Chiropractor. He did an assessment of my knee and concluded that he thinks it's an overcompensation injury resulting from a problem in my hips.

He's started a treatment- which involves him making me into various shapes to stretch muscles and crack joints. It's been a strange experience but also a bit of a pleasure. When I realised that he was going to make me crack, I got him to do the whole of my back. What a funny experience. I felt like a big floppy jelly baby afterwards! A pleasurable experience.

I'm hoping that it will work (obviously!) but as I'm paying privately for this (even if it is a mate's rate I'm getting) I'm still pursuing the Knee Clinic option.

Ok, so that is my knee update.

Now for the Dunce bit.

I applied this year for the Clinical Psychology Doctorate. You are permitted to apply for four uni's, so I opted for Plymouth and Exeter (the 2 closest by- but would still have to move if did Exeter because all placements are in Devon), South Wales (because I fancied it) and Oxford (they have good links with the Oxford CBT centre which is internationally renowned).

But, what I didn't realise was that they had previously posted on the net their interview dates....and guess what..? 2 of them (Plymouth and Oxford) are when I'm in Tenerife.

So I've emailed them about making possible exceptions/ doing it via Skype etc and they have come back to me and said absolutely no. No exceptions. Group exercises etc are part of the interview process, so they are not able to facilitate idiots who didn't realise they have advertised their dates and book holidays!

It's a very competitive process, so I don't know if I would have got an interview anyway. But through my own stupidity, I've reduced my chances by 50%. Oh well.

Big Stupid Mistakes Made Today: (1- well, only one that I am aware of)
Miles cycled: 22

So good and bad!

2009-01-24T02:10:00.000-08:00

I almost forgot.. in the tradition of Gary and Dad, I had intended to provide you with a list today.

Today's list is the Top 5 Cheesy Songs I listened to on my iPod this week whilst cycling to work.

1. Do Ya Think I'm Sexy- Rod Stewart (Oh, yeah.. I've got that one!)
2. Don't Go- Yazoo
3. Geno- Dexy's Midnight Runners
4. Theme from S-Express- S-Express
5. Groove is in the Heart- Deee-Lite

2009-01-24T00:25:00.000-08:00

Morning!

I'm writing this in a so far quiet house this morning. Craig is having a lie in today. I mention this because this is not normal for a Saturday morning. He's usually up with the larks checking the surf report and texting various surfing buddies to co-ordinate which beach they will meet up at. But last night before he went to bed, he said there was a good surfable swell, but that.... HE WAS GOING TO GIVE IT A MISS....!!!!

What has made him change....?

I think it's this manual work he has been doing with Lorien's dad. In case anyone missed this, Craig got made redundant from one job at Christmas (the place closed) and then the other job (at the school) reduced his hours. A casualty of the credit crunch. Which, I think is definitely more apparent in Cornwall, than it is in Scotland (I assume from reading Gary's blog and listening to friends), where house prices have not dipped as far and Aberdeen continues to have comparably low unemployment.

So anyway he had to find other work. The dad of the little boy he has been working with, saved the day by offering him work on his estate. So Craig has been doing a variety of tasks as required including for example, demolishing sheds and grappling with overgrown gardens amongst other tasks. So far, I think he has really enjoyed the chance to do something really physical.

I am quite jealous of getting the opportunity to work out and work at the same time. The only muscles I use during the day are facial ones! Craig has been pointing out how much of a workout he is getting my flexing his biceps and pulling the 'beach is thatta way' pose... (does anyone know what I'm talking about..?!!!) at every opportunity.

But the work is definitely having it's toll on him. He's been going to bed earlier and earlier each night. And of course, today he is not surfing.

So with Craig crashing out as soon as he hits the sofa and me doing an essay, we've had a really quiet week. We've watched Celebrity Big Brother... (I realise that I may just be speaking to Gary here... but Ulrika Johnsson...!!??! How did she win it??!) And not much else.

I have of course been like everyone else, thinking about our holiday... (Why is it harder to go to work when you have a holiday coming up..?). I had been thinking that I would like to hire a bicycle when we get to Tenerife. So I'd been scoping out prices on the net this week.

I was just looking for a little run around thing. But was quite surprised to find that Tenerife is a bit of a cycling mecca. Apparently because the island is a volcano, it is one of the few places where you can go from sea level to very high up (thousand of feet..!!) on one piece of land. So big name cyclists often go to Tenerife to train before their competitive season starts. Folk like Lance Armstrong (Ok, so he is the only big name cyclist I know... but see how many you can get without googling it first..... !!!).

Anyway, the point is, that you are spoilt for choice if wanting to hire a bike in Tenerife. And Tenerife has some of the steepest roads in the world apparently. So some bright spark has come up with an idea that I thought sounded fun.... They will transport you and your bikes to the top of the volcano and then you can cycle (or really just sit in the saddle!) all the way to the bottom! Magic! All the fun of the downhill and no upill struggle! Hurrah!

I think I would like to try that. Does anyone else fancy it??? I don't unfortunately think it is a child friendly venture. Apparently brake overheating is a major problem. And the top of the volcano is snow topped, so it is no small down hill.

But if you are up for it, let me know. If not, we'll probably try and do it before you arrive.

Ps Gary.. I didn't mention anything about the football offer, due to my own lack of interest. But Craig said he'd happily go along if you all were.

PS Lucy.. is it Scott's birthday when we are there too..?

Have a nice weekend, y'all.

2009-01-19T09:00:00.000-08:00

We've booked our flights to Tenerife. We decided to fly from London. But after Dad's reservations about our initial budget travel plan (bussing to London), we have decided to take the train to central London and then the express train to Gatwick. So train, express connection and flights in total came to £160 each. Still £200 cheaper than if we had gone from Exeter (and that's not included the cost of fuel to Exeter airport and then car parking charges). Although it will take us a bit longer, as long as we make all our connections I think the saving will be worth it.... Now just keep your fingers crossed that we are not delayed (or we'll miss our pre booked train tickets!).

According to a story I read in the paper this weekend, today is officially the most depressing day of the year. I think I have managed to escape the gloom (despite having been able to do a limited amount of exercise this weekend due to the weather). Saturday and Sunday this weekend, we had rain showers and high winds. And Saturday night we had some pretty awesome lightning and thunder.

I did go for a quick run on Saturday morning with Siobhan to see what state my knees are in. Still no good. Although I am religiously taking the Ibuprofen that the GP has given me. It's apparently the anti- inflammatory properties that will help my ligaments.

I was a bit perturbed when I saw the Ibuprofen. Poor Rossie would have no chance! He can't swallow pills because he thinks he will choke. An obvious misconception given that he swallows food on a daily basis. But probably has been fuelled by someone who will remain nameless (Mum) who has been telling him that he has a very narrow throat! .... :)

So I'm going to go and tend to the fire. I've been intermittently trying to light it whilst writing this, but now it's getting dark and the house is cold, so I'm going to give it my full attention.

Rain, Rain and more Rain

2009-01-15T11:18:00.000-08:00

Hi from a very wet Cornwall today. Kelly got caught in the rain on her bike and was totally soaked....poor Kelly.I was going to be working with Loriens dad on his house but it was rained off so he decided to treat myself and a few others who are working on the project to a pub lunch at the Blue Anchor. The food was very good and of course a pint of Spingo(middle) and it was also very good. Then out with Lorien later in the afternoon to visit a "Fogou" See attached pics for mare details. Itried to get Loz to go inside but he was having none of it !! So i will need to go with Kelly so i can check it out properlly. It is on a large estste called Trellowarren and the do a mean cream tea so i've heard. I have aso put on a few pictures of waves(Porteath) and my favorite ale at the moment Skinners Piran Ale.

2009-01-14T11:46:00.000-08:00

Hello... we're back. After nearly a week off from blogging.

We've spent this week mostly trying to get Craig organised for going off-shore to work. We've booked his survival; the week's training you need to do... where they do all sorts of insane things like put you in a helicopter simulater, dunk you upside down in water and then expect you to get out.

Craig however thinks it's become a lot tamer than the last time he did it (he previously worked off-shore for 10yrs B.K. (before Kelly)). Apparently they no longer set a real fire in a room and then ask you to cross it. It's just simulated smoke now. Huh! That makes it really easy then, heh?! Joking. Still sounds unbelievable awful to me.

Craig's also been on to all his off-shore contacts trying to get a foot in any door.

However, it looks like there may have been an eleventh hour reprieve. The dad of the little boy who Craig does some work with, has offered him work on his estate. So Craig can work with him to bulk up his now reduced hours from the school. Hurrah! So I guess I keep my house buddy.
I had been thinking about how I would get on without him for a few weeks at a time. We'll cancel his survival tomorrow.

Because of all the uncertainty, we have not booked our flights to Tenerife yet. But I plan to do it now I'm confident that Craig will be able to make it for the whole 2 weeks. Contrary to Dad's advice, I think we are going to try and do the hellish journey from London. It's nearly £300 cheaper than going from Exeter. Craig is going to ask Mark if he'll drive us over to London and we'll do public transport home.

Trying to get organised for the holidays, I bought a dress from ebay this week and it arrived today. Oh. My. God. It looks different from the photo! It's the most hideous thing ever. It's shapeless and kind of orange with flowers on it. Terrible. So I may have to do some actual shopping in person to get some stuff.

2009-01-08T12:58:00.000-08:00

A few pics from my mobile this is Church Cove near Helston when i had a walk on the beach.The picture of Kelly is at my Christmas doo with the school. The other one of me is with a rather cheeky smile....not!!!
The steam train is rush hour in Camborne

2009-01-08T07:13:00.000-08:00

Another picture that doesn't relate to what I'm saying, but we're short of new pictures at the moment whilst the camera is still out of action. So I thought you might enjoy this one...

So we got our load of wood yesterday. I spent an hour of so in the garden shifting it from where the truck dropped it off and stacking it beside the shed in the back garden. Despite it being a monotonous job, I quite enjoyed it. The weather was freezing cold, but the exercise kept me warm and I had the radio on, for something to listen to.

It was about 4pm when the guy made the delivery so I enjoyed watching the sun going down whilst in the back garden. I've been admiring a few of our sunsets recently. I think maybe they've been notable due to the clear skies. In the evening the sky's been a rainbow of colours from blues to reds. Beautiful.

There was still more to do when I finished, but I had to stop to get ready for Circuit training. Last night was the first time I had been to that class. I went with my friend Siobhan. For anyone not familiar, you work your way around separate stations doing a different exercise at each. This is punctuated by sprints around the hall. I enjoyed the core muscle workout and the work on the arms, but the sprints made my knees kill. So since then I have come to accept what has been nagging at me for the past few weeks: that my knees are not going to be better to start training for the coastal marathon in April. I've made an appointment to see my GP and will ask if he can refer me to the physio. Boo.

Anyway, not all bad. I can still cycle. And this morning I had a great cycle. I had to leave the house earlier this morning as I've arranged at this surgery to see some clients at 8am (rather than my usual 9am start). So I head off at 7am today. It was still dark when I left, and there are no street lights in Mount Hawke or any of the country roads I take to work. So I was cycling by the light of the moon! (Don't worry- I am visible to any traffic by my bike lights, reflectors and fluro clothes. Not that there is any traffic on those roads at that time.)

I had just got up to the crest of a hill and was away to start the descent. The fields ahead of me were all glistening with frost in the moonlight. And when I looked up I could see the purple blanket of sky studded with stars. It was beautiful! It was so lovely that I think I maybe had a wee tear in my eye... or was it just leaking in the cold wind!?! Anyway- it was really a sight to see. Shame I didn't have my camera. Or perhaps you just had to be there. Or maybe I'm a touch sentimental!

So I'm going to sign off for now. This sentimental fool has some calendars of fluffy kittens to look at and weepy movies to watch. Boo, hoo!

12 weeks to Tenerife, eh?! Not long now. I can regale you then with more descriptions of the sunsets there. Aaah- can't wait! Can you..?! See you soon,

K xx

2009-01-07T07:10:00.000-08:00

This picture has no relevance, but I thought I would add something to give you something to look at.

So Craig and I are just settling down into the usual January routine. Beans, soup, beans, soup etc.. cheap and less fattening food.

The weather here has been so cold recently, we've burnt a small forest in the wood burner! We're getting a load of logs delivered this afternoon. It's cheaper to buy in bulk. And less hassle. It'll mean that we don't have to make a trip out to the shops to lug back a bag of wood.

I'm sure you'll realise that Craig is the one who does most of the hard work for the fire. Do you remember the Rocky movie when he goes to fight in Russia? He trains in the snow by cutting up logs etc. Well, that's Craig at the moment. In the back garden, in the frost, cutting up logs. Well, sort of! He's not quite doing sit ups from bars in the ceiling. But you get what I mean!

Talking of the cold weather, Snoop got caught out short last night. The bristles on the cat flap somehow managed to freeze a bit and meant that he couldn't push it open. The first we realised was when we heard a knocking at the patio door. We looked down and there he was knocking on the window (probably the frozen paws assisted in making a more definitive knock!). He's a genius that cat though, I tell you!

So, I'm off work today. It's usually university day, but the uni doesn't go back til next week. So we've been granted the day at home to write our essays. So I guess I better get back to doing mine.

I can't wait til Tenerife. How many weeks to go?!

Happy New Year!

2009-01-02T04:32:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post to say Happy New Year to all. After barely drinking all year, I made up for it on New Years Eve. Hence why I haven't manage to post anything til the 2nd. Yesterday I ate my weight in chocolate and chips. But the calories don't count cos I had a hangover.

Hope 2009 is a good 'un for all.

Ok- nuff typing already... I'm still tired. May have to sit and watch more TV. Celebrity Big Brother starts tonight. I'm not even going to pretend that I'm not watching it this year.

2008-12-26T01:49:00.000-08:00

xmas swim

2008-12-26T01:40:00.000-08:00

We had a nice Christmas swim as St Agnes today, no wetsuits allowed. The weather was fine and after a wee whiskey we ran in to the sea to brave the elements. The water was very refreshing and muled cider at the Driftwood pub ready for crimbo. Kelly and Siobhan did better than Mark and i but i do prefer 5mm of Neoprene. MERRY CHRISTMAS !!!!

2008-12-23T11:12:00.000-08:00

Gary- perhaps I could ask Kat if we can pop by yours on the way through to Banchory. Instead of you coming to Banchory, we could drop in for a coffee and then that might be easier for you. Whattdya tink?

2008-12-22T01:56:00.000-08:00

Lucy- your parcel also arrived this morning. Thanks very much. Its lovely- I have opened it already!

Gary- thanks for your offer to pick us up on Friday eve. That's great. Will that interfere with the little guy's bedtime..? It would be great to see you. But if doing it is a bit of a hassle, my friend Kat has offered to drive us through. Let me know what's best for you.

Dad- Craig didn't express much enthusiasm for the football. We hadn't decided whether we would go up to Peterhead on Sat or Sun, but it sounds like it might be better to go on Sat...? I'll confirm with Craig when he gets back. He's out surfing at the moment. Craig in surf shocker!

I'm trying to ignore the fact that I might be coming down with a cold at the moment. But I can't complain, if I do get it, I think that'll be my first illness this year... (or perhaps I have selective memory..?!) But I can/will complain about my growing list of injuries! OK for those partial to a list- here it is.
So far...
1. Sore knees (stopping me running for nearly 5 weeks)
2. Bruised bum from falling in Plymouth and now....
3. Pulled muscle in neck (did this whilst doing my Pilates DVD, which I'm doing to try and strengthen more core muscles to help my knees!!!)

Whilst I can't run, I've been doing some more cycling. I managed to convince Craig to do some with me on Saturday. We pedalled from Mount Hawke to Penzance and back a total of 50miles (over 2 days). We babysat for our friends in PZ on the Sat eve. I had thought it would take us about 4 hrs each way. Craig thought more like 2.5hrs. He was closer- 2hrs 20 on the way there and 2hrs on the way back.

Useless Fact- my chum Maggie who did the Land's End to John O Groats cycle, did it in 2 weeks averaging 50miles per day.

2008-12-18T06:03:00.000-08:00

Gary- your parcel arrived today. I'm too nosy to leave it til Christmas, so I've opened it already! Thank you vey much. My pans appreciate it! Although I won't say what it is, just incase others are getting the same.

I have just sent yours Lucy, so I guess it probably won't arrive in time for Christmas. Sorry. But I never do anyway, do I? At least I'm consistent.

I'm taking the rest up to Scotland with me.

I've just handed in my last assignment before Christmas for uni. And tonight we're going out for a pre Christmas meal with work colleagues. So I'm starting to feel a bit festive.

The weather is really good here this week. Warm, clear days. I see it's snowing in Scotland.

2008-12-15T12:56:00.000-08:00

Thanks Dad for the flights- we really appreciate it. You didn't fancy staying in the Cornish rabbit hutch then..?

Unfortunately Gary we are not going to make it up for Christmas Day although we would have loved to sprung that one on you at the last minute! That was really kind of you to offer. And you managed to do it whilst retaining a calm exposure. Although would you have been so calm if we had agreed....? (depends on whether of course you would have had to do the cooking..!). But no, we have already promised our friends Gus and Kirsten that we will go to them for Christmas. They have two little boys that are infatuated with Craig, so we better not let them down.

Boxing Day eve though... beers at mum and dad's..? Lucy... we miss you all too. Not long til March. We'll do cocktails then. Can't wait! PS- Cade is looking tall in those photo's on your blog!

2008-12-14T04:20:00.000-08:00

Loved your blogging Carole , very funny. Gary- Craig and I love seeing pictures of Luca. I'd be bored if they were pictures of random babies you were bestowing upon us, but love seeing little Luca (Cade and Braeden too). Dad- yes, if you could change the tickets to our name we would love to come up.

Yesterday as the rest of the UK was being battered by wind and rain, we had a really nice day in Cornwall. As Craig has already mentioned I tried to go for a short run yesterday, but it still hurts too much. I've been stretching like a good 'un, taking every opportunity. I stretch brushing my teeth, whilst watching TV etc... but no relief as yet.

I bought a Pilates DVD from eBAY for my core strenghtening exercises. I'm still waiting for it to arrive, but I've started doing exercises at home. Craig is enjoying his new role as sado-masochistic exercise buddy. He's been showing me the exercises he used to do when he was boxing. The worst of which involve me lying on my back on the floor, holding onto Craig's feet (he's standing above my head). I lift my legs up in the direction of his chin and he then throws them down to the ground. I've to stop them and lift them back to the starting position before they hit the ground. Ouch! I think I could be developing a six pack, except it's well hidden underneath a big, soft squishy pillow of fat!

Ok, maybe I'm not there yet, but I did manage three sit ups yesterday.... Not bad eh!

I am quite frustrated not being able to run now. That's me had 4 weeks off. On my way to the supermarket this morning I passed a load of my running buddies doing the last race of the season. It was snowing (yes, we've had snow in Cornwall today!) but I was really jealous of their little red faces. I felt like I was in one of them movies, when it's all snowy outside and a wee scavenger looks through the snow framed window of a house and sees a family of people all warm and cosy inside happily eating away at their Christmas dinner!! Except, it was them out in the freezing snow and I was in my warm car... Hmm...

Talking about the snow, it's an ongoing joke down here that at the slightest hint of snow, Cornwall goes into shut down. And funnily enough, the A30, the main road in Cornwall was shut this morning. I wonder if it was the smattering of snow that lead to the closure..? Surely not..?

Surfing Saturday

2008-12-13T11:34:00.000-08:00

Just a few festive pictures from Cornwall. The fire is roaring, tree twinkling and Snoop chilling!! Surf was good today at Marazion with St Micheals Mount as a back drop. Kelly went for a run but her knees are still giving her jipp....boo!! So we had to have a few beers in the Driftwood Spars in St Agnes(good old Betty Stoggs) I have been checking out the surf spots in Tenerife and it looks pretty good :)

2008-12-11T07:21:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I went to Plymouth for the day for university. In Cornwall we don't really get the frost, but when I got to Plymouth there was black ice. Slippy as hell, but you couldn't see it. I got caught out short because I had on my boots that have flat, smooth soles.

Can you guess what happened next....?

Yup, on the way to uni I fell on my a*** twice. The first time was pretty scary as I slipped and landed flat on my back in the middle of a road. Only to see a car approaching from the junction. He saw me and tried to apply the brakes and slid on the ice too. Needless to say, he did stop and it was ok. Five minutes later (on the pavement) I fell again. This time I landed on my side. I have a 3" by 2" bruise on my thigh to show for it :(

I was with two other women and they picked me up off the ground both times. The rest of the way, we walked really slowly holding hands (just to make sure I got them down with me the next time).

It wasn't just me demonstrating my amateur ice dancing. I saw countless others slipping and sliding, limbs everywhere. I wish I'd been able to see it all from above. It must have been a hilarious sight! I saw one woman who had obviously slipped over a few times and had decided to take her shoes off to get more grip and was walking along the road in her tights (I imagine her toes were gripping on tight).

Craig had dropped me off at the train station that morning for the 7am train as I didn't want to cycle when it was still dark. I had assumed that when I got home I could catch a bus from the station to our village but there have stopped service. So I had to walk with my library books.

So to add to my sore knees (yes, they are still sore), I now have a sore back and shoulder (from carrying my books) and a sore thigh (from falling). I feel about 80yrs old today :(

But I hear that this is not as bad as Dad is feeling. Get well soon Old Guy :)

2008-12-09T08:05:00.000-08:00

Gary, don't bother buying presents for me and Craig. Just get us a beer (or two!) when we get to Tenerife.

PS- I thought that celebrity lookalike website was hilarious!

Until I saw that you had entered me onto it.

As I scrolled down, I was thinking: this is not so funny......

Until I saw my lookey likey.....Wey, hey! So generous! It must be designed to be as flattering as possible. But really, most celebs are super glammed up anyway (except maybe that shot of Demi on the left- the one that matches me). So unless you are matched with Jimmy Tarbuck or Alan Carr- you should be ok! Can you give me the name of the site? I want to pass it onto my friends.

In spirit of fairness, I think it should be you next by the way.

2008-12-06T08:48:00.000-08:00

So, I'm just back from having my gait analysed. The woman who did it is a former PTI from the RAF, so I think she knows her stuff.

Apparently, and suprisingly, she says I have good technique! Who taught you to run like that? she said. According to her, I run from the ball and middle of my feet. Which is apparently good. Funny, I thought I was very flat footed. But not so, it seems. Craig still says that I drag my feet when I walk... but I guess I'm dragging them on tippy toes! So, it's not my feet that are the problem. Which means I don't need special trainers to compensate for a funny technique.

Stretching... she says. How much do you do? Erm, probably not enough. Within seconds she had me lying on the deck, one leg bent in front of me, whilst she stretched my other leg behind my back. How does that feel? Err.. sore. I was glad that the shop was quiet whilst she grappled with me on the floor like a female wrestler.

This is, she believes, the problem. Not enought stretching. Yoga and Pilates is what she thinks I need to be doing. Particuarly as I've been doing lots of off road stuff. It can really stiffen you up says she. So I've just invested in a Pilates DVD from eBAY. Craig says he wants to do it with me, because apparently it's very good for strengthening the core muscles which are also used for surfing. So we will be embarking on this together. Stretching those muscles!

2008-12-05T05:48:00.000-08:00

Question: does washing dry on the line when it is windy, but cold.
Answer: I don't know yet.

I am experimenting today.

How am I doing my laundry through the day on a Friday...? Well, I'm at home again this afternoon. If you recall I get a study day a week now. It used to be a Friday, but I've have had to change my whole Friday off, for two half days- now on a Thursday and Friday. So on those days, I get back about 12.30pm- 1pm. Which I think on reflection I actually enjoy better. I enjoy getting home early when it's still light. I'm not that keen on cycling in the dark. I think I am better at my work too. This is an argument that I may store up and use when this course is over. Working half a day is just more civilised, isn't it?! Hmm. Fat chance me thinks.

I keep getting soaked whilst cycling on my way home. So I get in, lay the fire and set it and put my pj's on! I have also taken to watching some of 'Loose Women' which is on at lunchtime. Its dreadful. But today they had the singer Seal on it, and I quite like his voice. God, life must be quiet at the moment, if I'm enjoying day time TV. I'm starting to feel strong empathic bonds with the legions of sick, unemployed, retired and mother's of young children out there. I'll know when it's got too far if I start watching Jeremy Kyle (mum and Gary- you know who he is!).

Ok, so I should probably go and do what I am supposed to be doing just now. That is, writing this essay.

In case you were wondering, the orange slices worked out good. I need to just thread my gold ribbon through them and then they will be ready to hang on the tree. Which I might buy tomorrow. I'm heading down to Helston (that'll be the first time I've driven in donkeys!) to get my gait analysed tomorrow, so I could probably get it when I'm there.

2008-12-04T06:50:00.000-08:00

Dentist says.. nice teeth, and very good oral hygiene.. so no fillings for me today! Not even a scrape. Yah! Gold star for me.

I made popcorn for the first time this afternoon (I know.. I've lived a sheltered life). For those who do not know how to do this (as you may not have mastered this essential life skill either) you put the kernels in a pan, put the lid on and leave on the heat for a few minutes.

Initially, I was very excited (well that could be a slight exaggeration) as I watched the little kernels puff up into what I recognised from the cinema. But, I took my eye off the ball and this lead to disaster! The instructions said (best to blame it on the instructions)- leave it on the heat til there is no more popping. So I did. And I burnt them, so now the house stinks of burnt corn. Not good.

I may try again later. I had planned to a) eat some and b) leave some to go stale and then thread it into garlands for my Christmas tree as an alternative to tinsel. I know, I know.. you wish I was there to do your Christmas dec's this year too.

I have not given up altogether on my Christmas decorations and I am currently slow roasting orange slices in the oven to see if I can dry them enough to use to decorate the tree. Oh yes, I plan to have a natural/ edible tree this year.

I'm hoping that these endeavours are more successful than last years present wrapping fiasco. If you recall I had the 'genius' idea of using receycled newspaper and red bows. In my mind's eye this was beautiful and eco friendly... but actually it just turned out rather crap. By the time Craig's family received their presents, the bows had somehow disappeared and we were left with presents wrapped in last week's news. Marvellous!

2008-12-02T08:33:00.000-08:00

Hello...

Just wanted to say thanks for SeaSick Steve... I shall be downloading to my iPOD tonight for my cycle tomorrow morning to uni.

After Lucy's good advice about core strengthening I am thinking about maybe doing a session at the gym tomorrow after uni. Although if I get as soaked on the way there as I did on the way home tonight, I might just give it a miss and just come home after class.

Craig had the building regulations guys round today to assess the work he did.. and they are happy.. so we are legal! Yeeha! Craig bought us some coal and we are trying that out for the first time. So it was nice coming home to a warm and cosy house after getting soaked. I'm in my jammies already (its 1645!) Craig only ever sees me in my jammies now. Usually with crumbs of food and stains all over them.... :)

If you are all having a quiet Christmas feel free to come to soggy Cornwall. It is not cold and crisp and snowy as your photo's of the NE of S look. We are mild and wet. Quelle surprise!!?! But our house is warm (and dry)... we also have inherited a second double bed.. so no more blow up mattress (although I think it was us that suffered the rubbish mattress anyway!). Am I making this sound appealing yet...? I also cannot cook, but I have a recipe for Christmas margheritas and I haven't finished my Thornton's toffee that mum sent (although we do only have the stuff without chocolate left!), so I could share that with you... tempted..?! That invite applies to all, so if Gary et al fancied a short jaunt to the SW, you are all more than welcome.

2008-12-01T11:31:00.000-08:00

I have the Kings of Leon album 'Because of the Times' Gary. I think it's their 3rd album.There is a more recent one- but I've heard various reports that it's not as good. I had a quick listen to snippets online and it certainly sounds more polished/ less rocky than the album I have. I can make a copy of the one I have for you and post it up if you like? Or if you see Dad before....

I've had a quiet weekend.. some Christmas shoping in Falmouth and we went for a walk in some local woods yesterday. Picked up some pine cones and sprayed them gold for my Christmas tree. I'm thinking I'm going to try and have some more 'natural' decorations this year.... I'll let you know how I get on with the popcorn garlands!

This week I have a normal uni/ work week ahead with the addition of the dentist! Yeeha! Although hopefully just for a check up.

I've been invited to the Christmas party of one of the surgeries I work for.. it's in a hotel near Falmouth. The GP's pay for everything meal, drinks the lot. But because of this it's staff only, so no partners. It's also formal dress, so I'm not sure if I'll accept as I don't have anything to wear! I am up in Plymouth next Wed for uni, but I doubt I'll have time to go out and find something. So probably not this time, but it was good of them to offer.

I have the Christmas meal for OSW, the people I work for on Friday, but I think we are having a business meeting and buffet.. so no drunken dancing to Will Young for me!

2008-11-30T02:44:00.000-08:00

I can offer you in return a copy of my most recent album purchase... it's not arrived yet, but when it does.... it's by Jackie Mittoo and the Soul Brothers and is called the Last Train to Skaville.

2008-11-29T13:34:00.000-08:00

Hi Dad,

Do you have any SeaSick Steve albums...? I know that you are into him. My chum Siobhan has recently heard of him and I wondered if you had any you could share with her..?

I heard one of his songs on the radio which was good (something ...Blues...) so I might also be keen to have a listen...

2008-11-29T04:54:00.000-08:00

Oh dear.....

June, one of Craig's colleagues, has given Craig her chainsaw. She doesn't need it anymore. So Craig is now the proud owner of a new 'man toy'.

He intends to go out and cut some logs for the fire (read cause mischief) this afternoon.

I'm staying here.

2008-11-28T08:27:00.000-08:00

Boo Hoo....

After my knees hurt so bad during the marathon, I had taken some time off running til today to let them heal a bit. I thought I'd be ok today so I went out for a short 6 mile run. Bad move. More pain. Both knees feel like I am getting pins pushed through them (Big ones!). I hobbled all the way again.

I've been online and looked at the advice there... rest, compression, getting gait analysed etc.. so nothing I didn't know. I've been trying to contact the gait analysis place this week, but not managed to get through yet. I am thinking about whether I should bother contacting my GP, or if the advice will just be the same...?

Advice is welcome please.....Dad (because you used to run and have sore knees) and Lucy (because you have some medical training and live with a PT) your views are especially welcome on this one. That's not to say that I don't value anyone else's views, but this I assume is not your specialist area...

FYI-Mum I would pick you if the Phone a Friend question was about Star Trek/ Poirot or some sci fi programme. Gary- anything to do with music that no-one else has heard of..

Ross knows what I call on him for (and I do frequently!)... but I don't think that I need to mention him, because he tells me he never reads anyone's blog anyway!

2008-11-26T10:02:00.000-08:00

Yes- Sorry Dad. Meant extra time off. Yes, we will be there the whole week that everyone else will be. We are thinking of camping for a few days before too. That was what I was referring to.

2008-11-25T08:35:00.000-08:00

I'm just home from uni and have read dad's blog. Craig is trying to find out when he can get time off work for the holiday next year. So we have not quite finalised when we will go to Tenerife. So thanks for the offer of booking flights in advance, but we will need to hold off until he can get it organised.

So, to movie reviews. 'Forgetting Sarah Marshall' I thought was ok. Not amazing, but watchable. Russell Brand plays himself and is amusing in doing so. All the rest of the characters I thought were less entertaining. I particularly thought the end was crap. The girl who lives in Hawaii (in a job that is not supposed to be matching her potential) goes back to mainland USA to finish 'school'. Err... is she stupid or what? Stay in Hawaii. Stick at the job. You live in paradise.

The other movie we rented was the Brad Pitt movie about Jesse James. However, when we put it on, we realised they had given us the wrong DVD and it was a movie called 'Made of Honour' instead (that's how they spell it in the movie).

Has anyone seen it? If not, don't rush out and get it. It's a cheesy American rom com about a female and male who are best friends (both are secretly in love with one another but have never confessed it.... can you see already what is going to happen....?). She goes from New York to a work placement in..... Scotland! and falls in love with a ginger stereotype. The movie is about how her american best friend eventually confesses his love to her, she ditches 'ginge', and they all live happily ever after. Except on the way they pull out every Scottish stereotype going.

The actor who plays the Scottish love is not Scottish.... (why they couldn't employ a Scot, I don't know) but they get this guy to try his best at the accent. You can almost hear the dialect coach whispering in his ear.... 'just speak really quickly and unintelligbly and rrrrrrroll... every R you pronounce!'

He lives.... yes, you guessed it, in a CASTLE. Yes, as we all do. And has staff who are all wearing... yes! you guessed it TARTAN! and they eat..... (well need I go on..?).

Anyway, but there were some factual inaccuracies as well as stereotypes... the 'Scottish' guy says that in Scotland we've never heard of basketball... During a game of basketball he says 'no we don't have this game in Scotland, I've never seen it before. I think we would call this netball and only girls play that....! Er, what?!

As this is the first time we've rented movies from this shop in our village, Craig and I were getting a bit paranoid that they had given us the 'Scottish movie' for a reason... I had to watch the ending in case there was some hidden message from the shop keeper to us. But I couldn't decipher one. Unless he thought 'them jocks will like this'. So I have concluded that it's probably just a mistake/ coincidence...!!!!

We've arranged to go to our friends in Penzance for Christmas Day this year. Kirsten is going to do lunch and I'm on pudding. I was just planning to do a trifle as per expectations. But I was thumbing through a magazine this weekend and came across a Jamie Oliver recipe for... butternut squash cheesecake.. I think it sounds good, so I have emailed our hosts and asked for their vote. Apparently it is very good with Christmas Margheritas..! Let me know if you want the recipes.

Ok, so I'm going to go and light the fire... this will be my first time...!

Useless fact that I read this weekend: A cat's hearing is so sensitive that they can detect a mouse's footsteps.......

2008-11-23T08:20:00.000-08:00

We don't have the snow that the NE of S are having, but here it's WINNNDDDY! We had been invited to go for a cliff top walk today, but decided better of it. Instead we have spent most of the day in doors, admiring the new fire (it's very cosy, you know!). We bought one of those 'Yankee Candles'- we were going to get a cinnamon one (for Craig is very partial to cinnamon- yes, he and mum don't just share a love of animated movies), but instead got the Frosted Pumpkin one- which is very nice. So we are all snuggled up warm, in a woody and pumpkinn-y smelling house. I presume we are still in Mount Hawke, but we may have been lifted by the wind to somewhere else. But I'm not going to go out just yet and check.

Last night our neighbours (Steve, Nicky, Izaac and Joe) 'first footed' our new fire and came round for the evening. They all arrive decked out in bermuda shorts, Hawaiian shirts and sunglasses! We toasted marshmallows and drank what is now called the 'Glendale Champagne' (in homage to our close). It is actually just a quite cheap, white cider that gets you in the 'Christmas spirit'- quickly. Good thing they didn't have far to walk home then.

Today, Craig and I have just finished off some scones with clotted cream and jam (Oh mY gOD, what was that Lucy was just saying about heart disease..?) and are planning an evening in with two movies.... Forgetting Sarah Marshall.. Russell Brand movie (I need my fix, now he's off the radio) and the Brad Pitt movie about Jesse James. I think I remember Gary saying that the former was worth a watch....

In response to Dad's comments about the holiday next year, I've had a couple of thoughts.....

Craig and I could still fly on the Tuesday to get the cheaper fares and camp for a couple of days... we've not had a holiday for ages, so the more time in the sun the better! or we could drive to London and get a flight from there. Whilst I'm writing this I'm thinking the first option sounds more appealing. But I will speak to Craig once I'm finished writing this. He's in the kitchen at the moment cutting veggies for tea.

Not much happening this week. I've decided to put in an application for the Clinical Psychology doctorate so I've been working on that this weekend. The statistics show that on average people tend to apply 3 times before being successful... so I'm not expecting much. But, I thought I'd go for it. I need to send the application tomorrow for it to arrive on time. It would be for entry 2009. You can apply to 4 at the same time, so I've selected Plymouth and Exeter, South Wales and Oxford. I'll keep you posted. It's another option if the Oz thing does not materialise. If I'm successful in getting a place, it's a 3 yr course and then I'd be automatically chartered as a Doctor of Clinical Psychology... ! The application to places ratio is high so as I said this could all just be talk for nothing, but shy bairns get nowt! (or whatever the saying is..!)

Ok, so I think Star Wars is on... so I'm going to sign off for now. Have a nice weekend :)

2008-11-22T05:04:00.000-08:00

I see it's cold and snowy back home in Scotland, but it's roasting down here in Cornwall!!

Well done to Craig for getting the flue installed for the multifuel burner. This is the test run fire and all appears to be going well.

Our friends are cooking ham in our oven this afternoon (they're cooking for 10 today and don't have enough room in their own oven). So between that and the fire, we're melting in here...!

One slight hitch that I hadn't thought of.... our very efficient fire alarm thinks the house is on fire and keeps going off. So we've had to disable it..... I wonder what other people do..? If you have a real fire, do you just not have a fire alarm..?

As for songs about Scotland Dad, I'm not sure I can think of any.... I will give it some thought.

Ok, better go... it's so hot, I think I need a wee nap.

2008-11-17T12:40:00.000-08:00

Well done Kelly (before and after) she must be mad to run it did offer her a lift in the car but she declined......! While Kelly was punishing herself i had a great surf at Godrevy and the standard pint of Betty Stoggs afterwards,its tough i know. The stove will be installed by the weekend as i am already through the ceiling, only the roof to go :)

2008-11-17T11:22:00.001-08:00

Ok- so now for my news.... No, I'm not pregnant (I'm getting to the age when I feel I need to state that every time I say I have news!)..... no, yesterday I entered.....and completed..... the Cornish Marathon!!!! Yes, a whole marathon. All 26.2 miles of it. Oh yeah! My knees are in bits today!

It was a horrible course.. so hilly. Constant up and down for the first 13 miles. And bleak for the next 5, across Bodmin Moor. No-one around for miles. At one point I wondered if I was going in the right direction.. I hadn't seen anyone for so long! I did get to pass the Jamaica Inn at mile 15 though (Daphne du Maurier, famous author wrote about it). I thought as I gazed over to it that it looks pretty unimpressive actually. In the middle of nowhere, by itself, right on the road.

I had not done enough training. I had been very blase about the whole thing and it showed. All the girls I normally train with at the club were miles ahead of me. I started at the back of the group (there were only about 200 hundred people mad enough to brave the Cornish wind and rain that day) and didn't gain on anyone. But I didn't come last (not quite at least!). I struggled home (half limping with sore knees- I think I need my gait analysed and new trainers) in 5hrs and 20mins..... I know, exceptionally slow- (my half marathon time was about 2hrs)-limping is not fast, you see- but at least I did it. See Hayle Runners website for pictures in the Photo Gallery.

Onwards and upwards. Something to improve upon for next time. Next time I hear you say- yes, I think I might do another one in April. Its the day after we return from Tenerife, so I could use our holiday as my 'rest week'!

So glad its over...... chocolate and sitting about for me this week :)

2008-11-12T09:14:00.000-08:00

Gary your blog was very funny. Dad, those dates are fine for us.

2008-11-11T08:37:00.000-08:00

I'm writing this as procrastination.

I'm just back from uni and am finding it hard to get knuckled down to writing my essay, so I thought I'd do this instead......

I've already cleaned the kitchen.

We were looking at planning and decision making in therapy today, if anyone is interested. Tomorrow is supervision (2 lots- group and then individual) followed by problem based learning in the afternoon. I'm enjoying it. The people on the course are really nice and I'm getting to know them pretty well since we spend 2 days a week together. That's a novelty in this job because you can feel pretty isolated. You work alone and in different surgeries all the time. So it's good to get to know some colleagues.

I'm sitting in the living room typing this, watching Craig throw sticks in the garden and Snoop chasing them. I think he thinks he's a dog (Snoop of course). He doesn't fetch them though. Gets to them all excited and then just sort of looks at them. Still room for improvement then.

Craig is procrastinating too. We have all the bits for the flue now so he's ready to install the multifuel burner. It could be in for Christmas!

2008-11-10T09:49:00.000-08:00

I give James Bond 6.75/10..... Craig says 5/10 (ooh, he's so harsh!).

I've read bits in the papers about it and I can't really add anything to the reviews that you've probably already read.....It's based on a short story written by Ian Fleming and I agree with the reviewers in the papers that it's a bit light on plot. There are times when I noticed I was wondering when it was going to end.

Bit of a disappointment then as I had thought the previous one, Casino Royale, was pretty good. I recently watched Daniel Craig on Jonathon Ross's tv show (before the furore) and thought he seems to take himself pretty seriously. I got a bit fed up of him during the movie doing that sort of stern pout thing that he does.

Anyway, my advice would be, don't rush out to the cinema- just wait for the DVD.

2008-11-07T00:20:00.000-08:00

I haven't told you about Hallowe'en down here have I? It was mental... from about 16.30 onwards the door barely stopped knocking! We must have had about 50 kids to the door. We had bought enough sweets to fill our biggest soup pot, but half way through the night I had to send Craig out for reinforcements because we had run out (and that was with me only eatin a few!!). They don't to a trick or anything down here they just stick their little hands out for sweets. It's quite American, they talk about 'trick or treatin' and carry pumpkins... I asked local friends if they ever heard about guising and using turnips as your lantern and they just looked at me funny.... no, why would you do that? turnips are just plain hard to carve. Hmm, good point.
Later on we went out with a few friends to the bar at the beach for a few drinks.

On the Saturday, Craig, Mark, Siobhan and I went down to the beach to meet my friend Bex for the fireworks. They had a really good display- it lasted for ages and had some pretty impressive fireworks. Poor Snoop was a bit traumatised by the the noise. When we got back he was hiding under the shelf where we stack our shoes. We didn't let that stop us let off our own fireworks in the garden on Wednesday though. They were quite good, although the first few were so lame they went off a bit like a wet fart. I was impressed that this came off without hitch, after the catherine wheel that had been attached to the garden shed spun off and set fire to the cover for the BBQ!

Its been a quiet week, just work and uni. Tonight Craig and I are planning to go to the cinema to watch the new James Bond movie. Will let you know what we think...

Have a good weekend.

2008-10-31T09:39:00.000-07:00

Hi Mum- I didn't catch all of the broadcast made by Brand and Ross, but only the bit where they sang a song into Sach's answerphone. The lines I can remember were .....

'I did something that I shouldn't have oughta/
I slept with your grandaughter'

Not exactly going to win them any literary prizes.... (although it can be fairly tricky to find words that rhyme with granddaughter) but hardly warranting 30,000 complaints..?!!

Craig has taken pity on my rationing of radio comedy and went out and bought me Jonathon Ross's new book. Published this year, "Why did I say these things".... aptly titled given the current controversy. Or perhaps this is all part of a masterplan to sell more copies....? Or am I following in my younger brother Ross's footsteps and seeing conspiracy theories everywhere!! The book seems reasonably good so far. Its not an autobiography, but a collection of stories/observations and funny happenings in his life.

The flue for the fire arrived today! Hurrah! But they've sent us two pieces that are incorrect sizes (we needed a 5" pipe they sent us a 7"). Please insert your own joke here.

Sea grass in Da hoose!

2008-10-31T05:36:00.000-07:00

A few pics of our new flooring and the stove without it's flue, still waiting for it to be delivered.

The photos are a bit dodgy as my camera is playing up.

2008-10-30T12:59:00.000-07:00

So what do we all think about the fact that Russell Brand and Johnathon Ross have been suspended by the BBC? (I think Brand has now also resigned). This was in response to the public outcry regarding a recent broadcast where they phoned the actor who used to play Manuel in Fawlty Towers. For your benefit Lucy, cos I'm guessing this hasn't made news in the States, Russell Brand had previously had a sexual relationship with this guy's granddaughter. He and Ross called during a pre recorded programme, and left 3 answerphone messages relating to this. She is a singer/burlesque dancer in a group called the 'Satanic Sluts' and has Brand as a 'top friend' on her MySpace page. Apparently 30,000 people have called the BBC to complain that they felt Brand and Ross's actions were unacceptable.... She has been interviewed lots by TV/papers etc and is apparently upset. As is her granda, Sachs.

I haven't heard everything that was said during the programme, but I can't quite see what the extent of the outcry is about from what I have seen and heard. Does anyone else think it's a bit of an overreaction?

I quite like both Ross and Brand and listen to the respective shows on the radio frequently. So I'm a bit disappointed they are off air for the time being.

So, on a totally different note, Craig had to come rescue me from running today. The weather got really bad when I was out: at one point I'm sure the wind was so strong that it had lifted my eyelids from my eyeballs! I was about 5miles from home when I phoned Craig and asked him for a mercy mission. I was so tired and exhausted that when he answered the phone, I was so relieved to hear the sound of his voice, that I burst into tears! I don't often cry (maybe only at the odd sad movie/ book) so when Craig heard me- he was really worried..... What's wrong he was asking... so I tried really hard to say something to let him know that I hadn't been mugged or something. All I could manage in between blubs was: 'I'm cold.....and tired!' I was aware at the time that this sounded really ridiculous! So was half laughing, half crying. God, I was beat. Anyway, I was fine once I got home, had a hot shower and something to eat!

2008-10-29T03:36:00.000-07:00

Hi Dad- I would like a copy of the music you have downloaded please.

As you can see I've spent some time fiddling about with the blog design. This enabled me to while away time that was supposed to be spent reading for an essay. Productive, no? Did you know that if you are in a similar mind to procrastinate, you can play pacman on our blog now? Bottom right hand corner. Please do not blame me if you get too excited.

Yesterday, I did manage a short run with Siobhan. She peeled off after 8miles and I continued the rest of the 13mile route. The last bit is over the cliffs and it was fairly windy so I was hoping that I didn't get blown over the side. But lucky me, I'm still here. Did you see the article in the Sunday Times last week about regional causes of death- Glasgow remains the place where you are most likely to be murdered (it is the number one cause of death for teenagers in the area) and for Cornwall it's drowning. This fact started playing in my mind as I tried to run crouching down and as far from the edge as I could be....!

Siobhan got a bit worried about me and decided when she got home that she was going to come out on a mercy mission to try and find me (by then it had also started raining heavily). However, by the time she made it out, I was already home and heading for the shower. She arrived at the house some time later after having sat in her car at the bottom of the cliffs for a while...oops! Wasn't that good of her though?

Today, is my second study day this week (I would normally be at uni, but its half term) and as such I'm still in my jammies again. I have done some reading for my essay though. Later, I might go for another run, but the forecast is for heavy rain so perhaps not. Next week is my last week of training for the Marathon. The following week is a rest week before the race on the Sunday. I say race, but I'm using that term loosely. I've looked at the route online and the description of it sounds horrendous. Words such as arduous and strenuous are used frequently. Apparently there's a 3mile hill at mile 22, just to totally finish you off. If I manage to finish I'll be happy. The Cornish is rated the 3rd hardest in the UK, so definitely not PB material. Do you see how I'm preparing you and myself for if I can't do it, or make it home in a really slow time eg. 10hours...?!!! Telling you all this beforehand will preserve my running self esteem (if I have any!). Bof and Maggie, from the 3 Peaks, have asked me if I want to join them to do the Paris Marathon on the 5th of April. But I think I'll wait and see how I get on with this one first....

2008-10-28T04:43:00.000-07:00

In response to your question Dad about which dates would suit us best for next year: we don't mind. Craig needs to book the time off work anyway because his Easter holidays are in April. I have essay assignments due in for uni in the beginning of February and April. So I would try and work around when we are going away. I don't know what the general consensus has been so far, but if I was to express a preference I would probably say earlier in March, as then I still have some time when I get back to get on with my assignment.

We're now one step closer to getting the multifuel burner working as we've bought the flue etc online. We should expect delivery of the materials in the next few weeks and then Craig and our neighbour are going to fit it. If they manage (....when they manage) that'll save us a vast amount of money. Probably around £1,400. So definitely worth giving it a shot.......! I hope.

I'm on a study day today, so I've been slobbing around in my pajamas reading journals about cognitive therapy. I'm contemplating getting dressed and going to my chum Siobhan's for a run. Craig is on holiday this week (it's half term) and he is out in the garden cutting up wood for the fire (once it is eventually fitted). He got a load of wood from the residential unit he was working in. The kids would break their furniture, and Craig was grab it and take it home for the fire. Recycling!

2008-10-27T13:10:00.000-07:00

Craig found this picture on Magic Seaweed, his favourite surfing website. Its of Porthleven, one of the wee villages down here. Do you remember sitting on the pebbly beach beside the church before we went to the Blue Anchor bar in Helston? It was the time Ross came down to visit. Dad was reading the book by Stuart Maconie. Thats a big wave coming in there....

2008-10-27T10:47:00.000-07:00

Ooh that lad is talented with a knife...... Craig's attempt at pumpkin carving (I know.. they use pumpkin's down here, not neeps).

2008-10-27T09:33:00.000-07:00

Good News and Bad News from Oz (depending on your perspective...)

I woke up this morning to an answerphone message on my mobile from a woman called Carole from Oz. She had called to try and arrange a telephone interview with me for a job near Sydney in Australia. I had applied for this post over the net a few weeks back. It was only after applying that I measured the distance from the town where the job is based to the ocean. I had assumed that as Sydney is on the coast that all their posts would be close to the sea. However, that's not the case and their health service covers quite a large geographical area it seems and quite a lot of it inland. The job was in a place called Junee, and its too far- about 4 hours from the sea (Google Earth it if you want a look). Craig won't consider living so far from the sea, so I guess I need to contact her and say its a no go. Disappointing, but I'm glad in a way that it means my application must have been strong enough for her to have considered it. Having just started this course I can't go now anyway. What I need is a job to come up close to the sea, that I can do, around June next year.....

We have decided that we're not coming home for Christmas this year (sorry). We can't afford it for one (now that Craig's hours have been reduced) and we've been up 3 times this year already with weddings and what not (Craig has been up 4 because he went to his friend's mum's funeral in Peterhead). So we're planning to just spend some holiday time at home. I could probably benefit from spending some time studying as well. Everyone is more than welcome to come and visit at any time over the festive period. We may well need the extra weight to hold the house down in the wind. Gary will be of little use of course. Unless we feed him up on mince pies in preparation.

2008-10-26T05:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a bit of a wipe out for me. I did a really long run in the morning and then spent the rest of the day recovering. Thankfully, I had been prepared and purchased a big bag of chocolate banana before starting the run! So as I arrived home, I kicked off my shoes before grabbing the bag on my way to bed!! What a state I was in- I think I was slightly delirious! My legs were aching, I was exhausted and laughing maniacally! Craig had sprayed painted my metal bed cream whilst I was out (we had discussed this- it was not just an impulsive act of interior design vandalism!). So I appreciated this silently (I was too tired to speak) as I launched myself into bed. I will take photos of the bed too when I eventually get round to getting my hands on the camera.

Today, I'm supposed to be getting on with some studying so writing this is procrastination. I've also cleaned the bathroom and done the dishes. Doesn't the house get so clean when you have studying to do?!

I've been thinking about my fancy dress party on Friday. I think I might give up on the BeetleJuice idea. I think instead I might fashion myself a gumshield from tinfoil and go as Jaws from the James Bond movies instead. Low effort outfit. Although I'm a bit worried about the tin foil/ teeth sensation....

Gary- those photos on your blog are horrendous- are they from the upcoming 'I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here' series? I think I read about those spiders in the paper..... Ergh!