I googled ‘lost’. It said – ‘that which has gone and cannot be recovered’. That makes sense, and would apply to these things: – my youth, my cool, my eye sight. When I was young and foolish, I once lost … Continue reading Of losts and founds, friends and strangers…
Don’t overplan – On the 20th, last year, you locked yourself out of the house, your car filled up with water and your hubby broke down on the motorway in a rented van. Didn’t plan for that did you? But … Continue reading Next Christmas – Notes to Self
There’s a cow in the garage. It’s sandwiched between the lawn mower and a man in a red coat. The man is not Santa but my husband. He’s packing away the wise men’s gifts, giving them a cursory polish, so … Continue reading Polishing gifts
And so it begins: the slow slide becomes a headlong rush into festive full-on. I’m not ready. I’m cross with Christmas this year. I want to grab it by the baubles and tell it what I really think. About Dad … Continue reading We are Christmas
So I had a bit of an episode. I lost my diary. I keep all my passwords in there – well, obviously not my actual passwords (I’m not stupid. At least, not in that way) but the clues to them. … Continue reading Falling off the edge
Last week we visited a gorgeous pub, doubling as a village shop, in a tiny village in Hampshire. The food was excellent, the atmosphere perfect, the fire warm. The waitresses were very good and very young. Between mouthfuls of beef … Continue reading Gifts in skin
People can be very annoying, particularly in supermarkets. The other day, they were being deliberately obstructive: standing around; staring into space; loitering for several seconds, three deep, in front of a vegetable I was gunning for; even (cardinal sin) turning … Continue reading How to be stressed
A while ago, we had a tiny crisis, involving my daughter, her I-phone and a toilet. She quite likes our little town, though it was hard for her that we moved from London in her final year at uni, so I wanted to give her a taste of Sussex life – the forest, the sea, Harvey’s Bonfire Boy. After the I-phone 6, with 8 months on the contract, decided to investigate life in the U-bend, it took the edge off things a bit. We buried it in rice, put it in the airing cupboard, prayed – but the screen with … Continue reading Give us this day…
I didn’t grow sunflowers this year. Last year was our first one here and the best place to grow them – at the front in the sunshine – was annoying to water and beyond reach of the hose. They did well and had massive heads, particularly the ones in compost, and I kind of regretted it in the end, but there we are. I grew seeds in the greenhouse – nasturtiums and geraniums and star shaped cosmos and potted them up for the back. It grew hot, the air stilled, we went away. The cat lady came to feed … Continue reading Lessons from a sunflower
Since we moved to Uckfield, I’ve become a criminal. Some time ago, I received a notice of intended prosecution from the Sussex Police. It was a long letter with lots of red, shouty writing and thick black letters at the top with a picture of a police badge in black and white. It had my full name on it too which I hate because people only use it when they’re cross, or before operations. I was distraught. I am a very law-abiding person. I floss (occasionally), queue at bus stops (always) and go into Tesco’s to buy something if I … Continue reading Criminal Tendencies
