Dear Diary... November 2024
Saturday 30th November - Battersea and Butcher
After some nice breakfast this morning, The Love In My Heart and I headed up and ready to be out for the day. We were going to Battersea Power Station as there was a makers market on, so possibly a chance to get something different and unique as a present, but also to have a good look around anyway. Depending on time, we may venture elsewhere but were meeting up with The Love's niece and her partner later on for drinks and food, so was sensible to set off at a reasonable time.
We got the train from East Croydon and changed at Clapham Junction for the local train to Battersea Park. The trains were super hot and with the weather being mild, wasn't that nice. Once at Battersea Park we walked past the Battersea Cats and Dogs home, and stopped off in their café for a nice coffee, with lovely surroundings and sat by the picture of Dave the tabby cat who looks like Brian the cat. And a film star cat at that now, which shows what a good love of a rescue pet can bring, so yaay to that. In fact we went into the reception and they had plenty of cat and dog gifts, so The Love ended up getting something for Brian, and a nice tote bag too, so that was positive.
Inside Battersea Power Station itself, it was busy, but not chocker thankfully. We did see the makers market and that was good, with some stalls selling some lovely ceramic wares (not cheap, but hand made) and also noticed that the likes of Marks and Spencer were opening inside - they do have a food hall outside, but I guess the footfall means that opening a branch here of their normal shop makes sense. We did mooch around the Battersea bookshop too as well as venture outside to be by the river, with the ice rink proving to be very popular for everyone.
After a stop at the Battersea Brewery for a beer (their saison was on point, by the way, well recommended, and The Love really likes their helles lager too) we headed back to Battersea Park and got the train back to mine for a bit, as we wanted to freshen up before heading out later on. This did mean I could see the semi final of the UK Snooker championship with Judd Trump beating Kyren Wilson 6-2 (and the proper snooker theme is back folks, so tune of the day for Drag Racer by the Doug Wood Band) and we got ourselves all sorted for heading out later on.
We took the train from East Croydon to London Bridge, and after having a quick look at the shops in the station, it was a change over to the Northern Line via Bank and off to Angel. From there we did look in a couple more shops before heading right at Islington Green and on to The Alpaca pub, where we were meeting The Love's niece and boyfriend. Only the boyfriend was there at first because the niece had been out with friends and was stuck on the tube due to the Piccadilly Line being bobbins, but she got there not long after. It was a nice enough place and the cask ale they did have (the Kent Brewery Prohibition) was pretty nice all round, so no complaints there.
We then took the short walk over to Liverpool Road and the Pig and Butcher, which looked a more higher end place to eat. In fact the boyfriend had explained that his workplace supplies some of the baked goods to there, so was worth trying out to see how it was all used but also the food was supposed to be excellent. And to be fair, although not cheap, it was. The Love and her niece both had the pork belly, with lovely mash and red cabbage, and was melt in the mouth pork too, so definitely well worth having. The boyfriend did the onion tart tatin which looked well made and had some chips on the side, big thick ones which were lovely and hot. I had those same chips with my rump steak, cooked medium as I like it and with a lovely peppercorn sauce.
As sticky toffee pudding was on the dessert menu, was I going to refuse that? No, of course not. In fact myself and The Love's niece had that. Two of us had the lager which looked decent, and the other two the N1 ale, which looked to be locally brewed and was a nice session beer to have. They did have Timothy Taylor's Landlord on cask too, a solid option but as I can get that most places, thought it best to stick to the N1. The total bill including service charge wasn't cheap, but the food was all top quality and the staff were excellent service wise, nothing to complain about really.
After that we walked back towards the main road and followed that to Islington Assembly Hall and past Union Chapel and into the White Swan pub. We got seating, and managed to even have a more festive ale - the Bateman's Rosey Nosey which I have had before and was lovely. Time had sped by and it was around 10.30pm by the time we took the very short walk to Highbury and Islington to say our farewells, with two of them taking the Overground back home and The Love and I going to Victoria on the Victoria Line before the train home. It had been a lovely evening.
In fact, we got back and then watch the musicals episode of Strictly Come Dancing on BBC iPlayer. That was enjoyable not least because of the fact that there was a dance to one of the songs from SIX, which I love, and Tasha Ghouri was all dressed in the style of those queens from that musical with Aljaz Skorjanec providing suitable firerceness too, bothlooking all powerful. I did also like JB Gill and Lauren Oakley's dance to a Mary Poppins song classic, and also the ever reliable Sarah Hadland and Vito Coppola having a beautiful time and smashing a track from Wicked ever so well. The final should be these three, but if the public keep voting Pete and Jowita in, well...
Friday 29th November - Baker Street Bliss
It was nice to have the afternoon off work today after what seemed like a long week, testing various things out in preparation for a move and migration onto systems which we'll be being added to by the new owners of our business over the coming months. Naturally, we were going to make sure all was good beforehand and the testing this week has shown that there is at least some constructive conversations happening with some needs for improvement - and thankfully that has at least been replicated both ends, so definitely one to take a positive from at the end of a busy week.
The Love In My Heart was also coming down to see me for the weekend which is always lovely, more so when it is a Friday afternoon and after fussing Brian the cat for the morning, she was able to head down on the train in relative comfort with a less busier service and indeed a much more chilled out time. I headed over to Euston to meet her, and we decided that as it'd be almost dark by the time she got there, it'd be a nice thing to go and have a walk down Marylebone High Street and see all the lights and nice things there.
And so it proved, even though the Conran Shop is no more (boo, she loved it there) we did head into the likes of Daunt Books, Caroline Gardner, Bayley and Sage and lots of other lovely little shops, and it was good to see that with the lights on it all looked really good. In fact it was busy but not too bad, and definitely with the Black Friday type sales still on, it made sense that the tills were ringing. We didn't get anything as nothing caught the eye, but still felt very good to mooch around.
All the pubs seemed pretty busy for a drink but I then had a brainwave, so we headed over to Baker Street (cue saxophone intro and Gerry Rafferty classic) and to the Everyman cinema. We were not seeing a film, but the bar area is really nice and a good place to relax with comfortable seating. Granted, no beer on tap, but a good big bottle of the Purity Ubu for me and a glass of wine for The Love, and that was us all sorted. Not busy, nice background music, super chilled out, and in fact one time when The Love comes down we'll have to go to one of their cinemas and see a film, you can get food and drinks delivered to you when watching, and felt relaxed.
We then walked to Baker Street underground timing the walk to perfection so it was past 7pm (offpeak you see) and switching to train at London Bridge to head homewards. I had something in for tea so made that, and we had some Top of the Pops from 1984 on which included some excellent tracks such as The Riddle by Nik Kershaw (make that tune of the day) as well as Frankie Goes to Hollywood's The Power of Love, and Join Hands by Slade. It must have been near the time of the original Band Aid as a lot of the performers in the studio were wearing the Feed the World t-shirts too.
Tuesday 26th November - Throwing It Away
After a half day at work in the morning, I headed to Euston station (albeit I walked from the office due to the rubbish roadworks) and then got myself some lunch to have as the train headed up to Manchester. I was seeing my first midweek Champions League game of the season against Feyenoord, and after recent form, I was thinking that this might be a good time to see if City can turn that streak around and get a result. No doubt we looked very fragile in defence at present, and that was not good.
The train was a little busier than normal but had the headphones on and had a relaxing time with the daylight turning to darkness as I went further North. I didn't have to wait too long for a tram, albeit it was to the Etihad Campus and so got that and then changed for a tram there to get to The Love In My Heart's place. She had got home early and had fed Brian the cat his tea, and so of course he was wanting more Dreamies off me as well as some fussing and cuddles from Mummy, as he would expect.
The Love had very kindly got in a nice meal for tea for us both, some lovely chicken with potatoes and vegetables, and tasted spot on. That meant I didn't need a pie at the game later and so could have a drink if I felt like it in the run up to kick off, and so once that was all eaten I headed off to the ground, got myself in the lower tier of the Family Stand, and had a drink to have on the concourse in the run up to the kick off. The Feyenoord fans were loud and proud in the away end, and it generated a decent atmosphere to say the least.
The nerves during the first half were somewhat soothed when City got a penalty, and up stepped Erling Haaland to thankfully cooly slot it home for the opener. To be honest, I'd take 1-0 at full time to be perfectly honest, and that for me says that we could have perhaps kept the stability in the side - go for more, but keep the same eleven. And indeed early in the second half a corner came out to Ilkay Gundogan who slotted home from outside the box, and an excellent Matheus Nunes cross from the right was perfect for Erling Haaland to slot it home from close range. 3-0, an hour gone, basically from here keep the same 11 on, control and fnish.
But no, on came the substitutions and that disrupted the flow of the side somewhat. And what seemed reasonably in control soon fell out of control pretty quickly. Feyenoord scored through some awful defending from Josko Gvardiol to make ot 3-1, and another defensive howler a few minutes later made it 3-2. And late on, a break resulted in Ederson coming out of goal, not getting the ball, and it was only a matter of time before it became 3-3. Absolute disgrace, and showed the fragility of the side right now. We were thinking about Sunday with the changes before winning the game tonight...
Sunday 24th November - Train of Pain
The Love In My Heart and I had watched Strictly Come Dancing last night, and we both thought that Tasha and Aljaz had fully deserved their full 40 points for a superlative dance they did - full of emotion and smoothness that really did stand out. They were unlucky to be second in the sambathon, but bear in mind they had danced last in the main dance and so had less time to prep than all the others, and they had done a very impressive job all round, kudos to them to be honest.
After some breakfast, The Love and I sorted out one of our annual tasks - the cat calendar! For the last few years we've created our own calendar with Brian the cat featuring a fair bit, and we did include The Cute Little One on her birthday month also. This time we're also including The Cute Tiny One for her birthday too, and The Love managed to get lots of good pictures of Brian over the year, so was able to Bluetooth them across to the laptop for best quality,then we could do the design and get it all sorted.
I do of course have one for myself, as this is always a good thing to have as I can adore Brian the cat from afar when we're not together. He was being adorably cute too wanting tummy tickles. We all watched the Formula 1 race from Las Vegas, with the World Championship being decided for drivers as Max Verstappen finished ahead of Lando Norris and that was all he needed to do to win it, with George Russell taking a well merited win and a British one two with Lewis Hamilton second. I also noted the UK Championship snooker on BBC Two, with the return of the proper snooker theme - at long long last. Get in! So Drag Racer by the Doug Wood Band is deservedly tune of the day.
The Love and I headed out later in the afternoon once the rain had stopped for a bit and went off to the Sheldon Arms close to Ashton-under-Lyne. Two good reasons really - first of all they do a really cracking carvery, and that was of course to be enjoyed by us both - and the added option of some extra pigs in blankets too, so definitely one to enjoy there. But of course being a JW Lees pub, that meant one thing - Plum Pudding beer! It is back for the festive season and naturally, of course I was going to have that. It would have been rude not to, to be honest.
We were going to mooch around Dunelm nearby but that looked like it was closing for the day, and so we headed back to The Love's place. My 1835 train was cancelled (meh) and so because you can now board two trains before to spread out the load, I decided to go for the 1755 to see if that would help. I got the unreserved coach G and a seat so all was good and settled in with the iPod in tow for tunes. What I didn't realise was that how long the journey back was going to be.
All was well til Stafford, but then as the train stopped at Rugeley Trent Valley, the staff told us that there was flooding near Rugby and trains had to go through very slowly and then have the track checked each time, so we were in a queue to head through. So that did mean a stop at Lichfield Trent Valley, Tamworth and then Nuneaton. I thought it sensible to get a meal deal to keep me going, and was glad I did as the train made an extra stop at Rugby and shed loads got on - and then we were crawling behind other trains on the approach to Euston. What should have been a 2 hr 20 minute journey was close on 4 hours, and the delay was still as if the 1835 was an hour late!!
Saturday 23rd November - Four Crying Out Loud
It was good for myself and The Love In My Heart to have a lie in today, and Brian the cat was doing his best to try and get The Love up, from miaowing by the bed to then scratching at the mat to want to go outside into the hallway. The Love did relent after a bit but it was good to get some well earned rest, and got myself changed and ready and headed over to Asda for a few things. I did get some ear drops for the ears as I suspected there may be some build up in there, and certainly after the first few drops of Otex, that did help a little bit to make me feel a little better. Not sure how that will work long term yet but some light relief was good.
Later on The Cute Little One and The Cute Tiny One came over with their parents - one was decorating the house and another was off to the football, so we had them for the afternoon - and both The Love's sisters and a niece came too, so it was good to have coffee and some nice scones that The Love had made complete with jam and clotted cream (jam first, the proper way of course) and that certainly was lovely. I wish I could bake half as good to be honest.
Once most of the relations had left, The Cute Little One and The Cute Tiny One were being adorable, with lots of fun and laughter along the way. Of course they wanted some nice cartoons on the telly, including a set of My Little Pony ones with cuteness overload, and The Cute Tiny One was just full of little happy giggles and smiles as she was sat on my knee looking around and wanting a little sing song, which was being provided by some of the nursery rhyme compilations on Youtube, including Down in the Jungle, Five Currant Buns and that sort of thing. A lovely way to spend time to be honest.
I headed off over to the Etihad later to see Manchester City at home to Tottenham. After we had lost the last four games in all competitions I didn't hold out much hope to be honest, but I guess we had not lost at home yet (those four defeats all away) and wanted to see us bounce back. I got there early as there was a rather good presentation so that we could all congratulate Rodri on his Ballon D'Or award (richly deserved too) and to be honest, shame he wasn't playing right now as City could do with him back sooner instead of later to be perfectly honesty, with Gala's Free From Desire blasting out (make that tune of the day) and enjoyable nonetheless.
That was where the fun ended though. Manchester City didn't take chances, and Tottenham, deservedly, blew us apart. I had noted from the league cup game about Dejan Kulusveski being dangerous, and it was his cross that came across the six yard box for James Maddison to score, and another flowing move saw him score again with Son Heung-Min providing able assistance. It looked all so easy for them and to be honest keeping the score down to 2-0 was something. Granted, we had come back from 2-0 down to win 4-2 against Tottenham at the Etihad before, but this time, I wasn't having it - I felt it was a defeat on the cards.
And so it proved - every time Tottenham broke forward I thought they might score, and although the likes of Haaland, Gundogan and Foden all went close, it wasn't enough. Tottenham added a third a few minutes into the second half via Pedro Porro, and right at the end Brennan Johnson who had come off the bench had te easiest tap in ever. 4-0, and it could have been more. City's worst home defeat at the Etihad in the Premier League, and the worst league defeat since Arsenal trounced us 5-1 at Maine Road in 2003, where they went 4-0 up inside 20 minutes if I remember well. And that was some Arsenal side!
Friday 22nd November - Crystal Balls Up
It was a busy day in the office all told, although the office itself was pretty quiet. I was able to get on with a few things including testing what will be pretty much the new standard laptop - a Dell one at that. All seemed okay and that did at least mean that the speed was decent, all the standard apps worked as intended, and there was also a sense that any application requests would at least be functional as needed for those users. I did feed back to some of the team involved and that was met pretty postiviely, which was a good thing.
Naturally I wanted to head up North tonight and with Storm Bert looming over the weekend, some quality time with The Love In My Heart was going to be important to have. I was keeping an eye on things and thankfully at least the train I was getting was not cancelled. I also tried out a thing with my GP - an e-consultation. Following the antibiotics I had been taking to try and alleviate the sinusitis, they worked but a few days after those had stopped, I feel like bunged up a little again, so wanted to see what they said.
In fact, I had been to the Boots pharmacist round the corner from the office, they were lovely and said that definitely they would have expected the antibiotics to work, but no dice, and a refer back to the GP was sensible. I filled out all the form in and later on that day they got back to me, stating that it sounded like it still needed some of the nasal spray to keep taking to do the final bit of shifting, and so prescribed me one. They didn't tell me which chemist it had gone to in their message, so I had to ring them and to eventually find out.
Sorry, GP, but that is poor. Do I have a crystal ball and expect to know where the pharmacy you will be sending the prescription to is - and what if I couldn't have got through for any reason? Would I then have to keep trying or emailing the centre to find out? That to me smacks of the e-consultation not doing what it should and especially as it sounds like the nasal spray is probably going to be the same as what the pharmacist I spoke to last week is going to be similar - and despite the fact I actually mentioned what had been prescribed as well in the form I filled out. Did this GP even bother to read all that I wonder? To be blunt, this makes me want to think about changing my GP to someone who will actually give me the right time to be seen to.
Anyway, rant over. I eventually got to Euston, no thanks due to a temporary set of traffic lights really making things go ever so slow, got myself something to eat, and then boarded the 1913 train to Manchester Piccadilly. It appeared to go slow near Milton Keynes Central following a local service, and just outside Stoke on Trent it had to follow a delayed CrossCountry service and pretty much follow that all the way into Manchester, meaning a 25 minute delay in all. Once again, another slow Friday evening and the amount of Delay Repay I've claimed shoots up once again.
I was just glad to see The Love In My Heart - the weather was icy and not that warm, and I had wrapped up warm at least which was something. We got back to her place and once all unpacked, it was time to settle in for some Gogglebox followed by The Last Leg. That cracked me up as they continue their World Cup of likenesses to the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, complete with Informer by Snow in the background (make that one tune of the day as it's a 90s classic) - and a good way to relax for the Friday evening at least.
Sunday 17th November - Northern Day and Night
It was really nice for both The Love In My Heart and myself to have a lie in, having had such a busy weekend already. We were out with our good friends later on and that was going to be rather lovely, but being all snuggled with Brian the cat being by our side (and wanting his Mummy to get up and feed him!) was good. In fact I got up first and managed to give Brian some Dreamies - he was not saying no to any of that, let me tell you, he was more than happy!
I got myself ready and headed out to Asda with good timing so the tills would open once I had got what I needed. The good news was that the cat food which we needed for Brian the cat was in, so he could have his sensitive Purina as well as the Sheba Fresh and Fine in gravy which he laps up massively. With the boss all sorted for later on, we managed to transfer the pictures from the camera to The Love's laptop, and we emailed over the parents of The Cute Little One some lovely pictures, which they appreciated massively.
We were all good to go and rain was forecast, and rain came - and then some. It was chucking it down as we left and just missed a tram too - although at least the tram stop does have shelter from the elements. We erventually got into the city centre, headed along towards Thomas Street - and Fierce Beer was shut. What kind of sorcery is going on? So instead we headed over to Terrace, where our friends happened to be - they had had the same idea as us. So we settled in for a pre-lunch drink there.
It was then along Thomas Street to Smithfield Social for the Sunday Roast. It was nice to catch up and chatter a fair bit and to be fair, it was lovely that we weren't rushed either unlike some places that seem to want you to go in and out in record time to fill more tables. I went for the roast beef, and I think for some it might have been a bit too pink, but I didn't mind it - and there was plenty of it. The Love and one of our friends had the roast pork, which was very nicely done indeed, whilst our other friend had the vegan wellington, which actually to be fair looked really nice!
We had a good time in there and it was over to Fierce Beer, which was now open. The staff told us they'd had some issues with the gear but it was all sorted, which meant some nice beer for everyone. They did have the pomegranate radler which was really nice and different, and I did also try the 0.5% versions of both the Hometown and the Cerveza, which was spot on in both cases. The Love was enjoying a Cerveza or two and we were all happy chattering away.
In fact, the nice thing was that the background music had plenty of classics that I was happily enjoying, including Anarchy in the UK by Sex Pistols, Rise by Public Image Limited, Lucretia My Reflection by The Sisters of Mercy, Tower of Strength by The Mission and all sorts, but perhaps best of all some classic R.E.M. including Orange Crush, so that has to be tune of the day for me - still a classic. Time went by and it was time to head off and get to Piccadily station for the train home and a sad farewell to The Love In My Heart - the time had gone by too quickly again!
Saturday 16th November - Trams and Slides
It was another busy day with The Cute Little One and The Cute Tiny One, both of which were up and about at around the same time. We fed them both breakfast and I headed out to get some McMuffins and orange juice for myself and The Love In My Heart, so meant she did not need to cook - probably sensible. It was raining though so The Cute Little One asked to put on Frozen (having watched several episodes of some Barbie adventure yesterday as well as Angela's Christmas 2) and so she was engrossed in that and loving the songs from it - and I can understand why.
The Cute Tiny One was having fun with the little playmat, and some books which she could touch or lift the felt (or try to eat the felt!) but also she does love her little Sophie la Giraffe, which is a perfect little toy for teething - she can put that in her mouth and all the textures are all good. In fact she had little cheeky grins at me during the morning and was being super adorable, so there you go. We did see if the weather was easing up a little, an so decided to head to the local park for some playtime, and also maybe out to see a bee which I know someone would like to see.
It was out with the buggy and so on, and we got out as the rain got a little worse. It did ease off a little by the time we walked down the canal and to the park, and in fact The Cute Tiny One was nodding off, an with some steady pushing and rocking, she was having a little sleep all cosy in the buggy. Awww. The Cute Little One was in her element, but due to the slides being wet, and even with The Love getting most of it dried off with a towel, going down the slide was at a fast pace - good job the surface you land on has some give and that it didn't hurt too much when landing beyond!
After swings, slides and the mini roundabout, we headed off across past the Etihad Campus tram stop and then down the walk to the city centre, where a large model bee was. The Cute Little One managed to get on to it and have her picture taken, and as we were half way to Holt Town tram stop anyway, we knew she wanted to get on the tram. With that in mind we did that so she could have a little ride, and The Cute Tiny One had woken up earlier, but she was all happy - perhaps her first ever tram ride in the buggy too. In any case we got back all safe and sound to The Love's place, and with me keeping The Cute Tiny One occupied, The Cute Little One and The Love set about baking some lovely cupcakes (I had one later, they were ace!)
The day sped by really and it was around 7.15pm when their parents arrived to collect them - and they were super happy that they had both been so good (which they had - The Cute Little One was being super helpful such as getting the brush and dustpan to clean the cat litter which Brian had spilled when having his wee, and putting rubbish in the bin and so on.) It had been a long two days but definitely ones which we both had enjoyed, and spending time with the lovely two was just special - I think for The Love she definitely appreciated me being there for support.
With everything more calm, Brian the cat joined us in the living room and had plenty of fuss and cuddles as he was on the pouffle, The Love put some posh pizzas in the oven for tea, and we both settled in for Strictly Come Dancing - the Blackpool special, which I could put on iPlayer and do a play from start so we could watch as live. I have to say that two couples stood out - Sarah and Vito going quite Fosse with their couples choice with a Kyle Minogue number, and Tasha and Aljaz slaying the floor with a very impressive and classical paso doble, doing that dance massive justice. Bringing him back was such a good move (said a lot of my female work colleagues!)
The best bit of the night for us both though was no doubt The Pet Shop Boys doing a medley of some of their songs complete with the pro dancers doing all the songs justice. I really of course liked some of their early stuff, so the likes of Suburbia, West End Girls and It's a Sin all featured wonderfully well, and even their cover of Go West later on as the celebrities joined in. However, if I did have to pick one of theirs in the medley that strikes a chord, it is What Have I Done To Deserve This, which was of course with Dusty Springfield back in the day - tune of the day for me without a doubt.
Friday 15th November - Lights of Love
I headed up to The Love In My Heart's place last night, and that was good at least because it meant I could have some lovely hugs with her and Brian the cat, who did let me fuss over him massively to a degree (good boy, Brian!) - and we were preparing for today and tomorrow. The Love was having both The Cute Little One and The Cute Tiny One stay over, and we had a nice surprise planned for them. She had also asked me to bring along my DSLR camera too in order to try and get some nice pictures too, and hopefully some of what the surprise would be as well.
Their parents dropped the two little ones off mid morning after breakfast, and it was definitely a case of having plenty of fun times around. I did get the camera out and The Cute Little One was fascinated, she wanted to have a go of it but I don't think her hands are quite big enough to press the shutter button and hold the camera too, but over time she will be fine. I did get some nice portraits of the two of them being all cute, which I am sure their parents will love to bits too - which is really nice.
We revealed the surprise to them both, and The Cute Little One was super happy with that, and was all ready to enjoy herself. After we had done some more playtime and ensured everyone was fed and indeed had their toilet breaks sorted out, it was then getting everyone in the car. Naturally the buggy came along (it folds really well) along with the spare car seat for The Cute Tiny One (there is one permanently in for The Cute Little One and she loves it) so once that was all sorted, we were ready to rock and head out. The traffic did go pretty slow for a while and I think due to teething, The Cute Tiny One did cry a little bit.
We got to Dunham Massey and parked up ready for the evening, with the slot being 4.30pm for the Christmas experience. Yes, I know it's November, but try booking for December - not a chance. Plus it may be less busy for the little ones, which may prove to be better. Anyway, we had a good look around the shop, got an advent candle sorted as well as a little toy too, and then off to the light trail. It was nice to be there early and The Love even spotted some people she knew, which was nice. The trail itself was really utilising all of the gardens of Dunham Massey, so for example the light tunnel with stars drew you out on the other side of the house with the lake all lit up.
There were various tunnels and light shows around the gardens, and I really liked the multiple coloured vertical poles that seemed to change colour in time to the music, as well as the gingerbread men (The Cute Little One loved that as you can imagine!) and also candy canes, snowdrops, trees all lit, and it was really nice. We did pause half way round so we could give The Cute Tiny One a feed, but she loved the lights and was fascinated as she looked out of her buggy - as I was pushing it I made sure that she got some nice things to look at and she had little giggles too which was rather cute, it has to be said.
The final part of the trails had a cathedral of white small star lights which looked pretty, and I managed to get some nice pictures inside there, before we headed back out of the gardens, seeing the projections on the house as we headed back past the lake with its light show there. The small fun fair and food and drink stalls were positioned so you could go back to them afterwards - with the entrace to the trail just off it. This meant we headed back, all had food, and The Cute Little One went on a little carousel with a red London bus with number 25 on, and was having a good time. The festive music played including Wham's Last Christmas which is tune of the day - yes we were Whamageddoned, but hey ho, worth it to see two little happy faces.
We eventually got back to The Love's place, with the traffic around Manchester being bobbins due to the Courteeners playing at Co-Op Live, and eventually both of the small children headed to bed. In fact, The Cute Little One nodded off on her bed and slept all the way through the night, she must have been tired. The Cute Tiny One only had a couple of wakes during the night, but she had love and cuddles and she was all good once we had her comfortable. In fact I think she liked lying between us both and getting lots of attention, all snuggly. That did make me feel happy too.
Wednesday 13th November - Sinusitis
So for the last few days or so, despite being able to chat to friends online Saturday evening, I have increasingly been bunged up and even worse, blowing my nose has produced a considerable amount of crap. Even worse, the ears feel like they are about to pop at any moment due to the bunged up ness. I got home from work on Tuesday evening and felt really panicky and worried. The Love In My Heart did her best to give me some suggestions, and to be fair, I could have taken those over the weekend had I been able to. But it was just a case of not being able to shift the congestion in the head.
I rang the NHS 111 and they referred me on to a local pharmacy close to me. In theory then they will see the conversation I've had with the phone line and then be able to sort me out, as they class it as a minor illness - not threatening in any way (apart from the odd difficulty to breathe properly due to the congestion). I got to the pharmacy on time, and the pharmacist was stuck in traffic, eventually arriving a little llater than planned. I gave my details to the staff and was the first to see the pharmacist (cue The Fall's cover of Mr Pharmacist being tune of the day - had that in my head!)
Anyway, he soon diagnosed that it was a form of sinusitis, but by the sound of it, it had been an infection as well that had spread quicker than imagined. He recommended two treatments, the first being a course of antibiotics for five days, which would alleviate the infection, and then also a nasal spray that has a bit of steroid in it to basically stop the congestion getting worse. Instructions were given and I headed home, still feeling very cloudy in the head but at least I had an idea of what I needed to do now and indeed be able to sort myself out (famous last words and all.)
I managed to get through the day, although we were still mopping up a little from yesterday, where I had to pull the plug on a Mac deployment pretty quickly after the updated version was causing issues with messages appearing every 30 or so seconds on client machines - this despite being exhaustively tested beforehand. That was annoying to say the least but I think doing an early pull stopped it being worse, and indeed it also was able to claw things back well with people. Most of the tech folks were understanding enough to say "We've all been there..", but.
Here's the thing. I set myself pretty high standards overall, as I think if you put in quality from day one you will keep at that level. I know there are some important things to learn, but there is always that underlying feeling of letting the side down, not being good enough. I do suffer I guess from being imposter syndrome, feeling like I won't always be the best at what I do, so need to prove myself a bit more. It is something over time that I need to let go of a little bit, just to have that breathing space, and extra stress on top of illness definitely won't help matters.
Thursday 7th November - Up and Down
It's been an up and down week overall it has to be said. I do feel a little bunged up at present and that seemed to occur over yesterday a bit and then at night I did feel all shivery - despite the flat being nice and cosy and warm. It's more of a nasal and head thing, and having had the flu jab a couple of weeks back, I'd like to hope that it's had time in the body for that to kick in and stop the general feeling getting any worse. I don't like it when I am not at my best, and really have to concentrate more when you need to think about work and getting thngs done the right way.
One such example was today where I was deploying the new version of the script we use for Macs, called Superman, which has all sorts of good stuff to control updates in a better way and also allow for sensible automatic updating with deferment, to make the experience a lot better. The new version is more compatible for the new OS Sequoia 15.x, but with that are some options changes, so I needed to get the options for that deployed at first, followed then by the new script which would then take advantage of the options. It did also mean we'd be able to get those older machines upgraded to Sonoma 14.x too if they are able.
I also worked out a schedule for getting our updated VPN client out for next week, having already configured and tested it with a number of people and that appeared to be working well. It made more sense because I could then get the default options all set as we wanted (a slight change at the same time) so all ties in well, and means that I would be able to get some plans laid forward for some other ideas for the next few months, all with the aim of making some of the transitional work as smooth as potentially possible.
I've also been playing some old games and writing some more reviews too - so earlier this week it was time to re-load Kikstart, a Shaun Southern classic and of course a homage to the 80s motorbike trials series. In fact I watched an episode of that for good measure, and lots of obstacles around the former Lord Hesketh's manor grounds of Easton Neston, with steep hills, balancing beams over drops, barrels, and even a stop box for timing too. It reminded me of Summer holidays watching it on the telly thinking "how did they do that?" and then attempting to show off my (lack of) gaming prowess on the Commodore 64 version.
What you may not know is the theme tune itself to Kick Start has a very chequered history, coming from the pen name of Draifi Deutscher under the alias Mr Walkie Talkie. I did write an article on this some time ago after I tracked down the 7 inch single that was used as the theme, but nonetheless it will be tune of the day for today. I now just need to watch some more of the action and see the mistakes being made when clearing the bunny hop!
Sunday 3rd November - Lazy Sunday Afternoon
The Love In My Heart and I got up after having a pretty cosy night's sleep in the Hampton by Hilton, and once we'd got ourselves ready it was down for breakfast. It was good to have such a nice selection and I did go for the full cooked breakfast as well as cornflakes, yoghurt and orange juice, so that went down well. The Love did the cooked brekkie too and we were both tempted by the waffle maker but decided against it in the end. After we had that and got back to the room, we sorted out any final bits we needed and it was time to check out and head off, and had two lovely nights' stay in all.
We decided to head back to Clitheroe first on the way back and off to Holmes Mill, primarily to go in the food hall there which had all sorts of nice food gifts, Bowland Brewery beers, and some decorations ready for your Christmas tree amongst other things. The Love had a good look around and did get a couple of nice ltitle decorations as well as looking at some potential food gift ideas for people too. It was nice to mooch around but maybe a bit too early for the staff to say Merry Christmas when serving. Remember, it's not Christmas until at least 1st December - and Noddy Holder says it is. Or else it's just too soon folks.
We headed back towards the A56 and onwards to the M66 and before long we were back at The Love's place, where Brian the cat was of course wanting fussing and attention (and well why not right?) - and he definitely was allowing strokes and cuddles even from me. Tabby Cat made an appearance mid afternoon hiding in the bushes a little, but Brian didn't seem too bothered and was rather just wanting some extra cuddles from Mummy instead, bless him. He is so adorable when he wants to be.
The Love had got some nice food in to make a good Sunday afternoon meal, as we had eaten out and stayed over all weekend, and we had some nice roast chicken with potatoes, vegetables, gravy and a Yorkshire pudding for me. That was all lovely and I have to say that it went down a treat. We also looked at potential places to stay and go on holiday next year, and we did have some ideas as to how that would all work. The food was gorgeous and that set me up nicely for the train journey later.
As alas, I had to go via Sheffield due to engineering work and train slowness, so it was on the 1743 to Sheffield, which was delayed and had its platform changed at Sheffield, so rather come in at 8 and be next to 7 for the East Midlands Railway train to St Pancras, it was a sprint across the station to just about make the train on time. Phew! I settled back with some excellent new music from Penfriend (the title track of the new album House of Stories which is out next year - tune of the day for me as I got the track as an exclusive for pre-ordering the album in advance.)
Saturday 2nd November - Nice Day for a White Wedding
The weather looked cloudy as The Love In My Heart and I woke up at the Hampton by Hilton, with the rolling hills beyond looking a little misty. We were hoping it would clear up for later in the day, and so went down to get the breakfast. And that was all rather lovely - we definitely did well here. Lots of cereal choices including muesli, yoghurt, toast, even a waffle machine, and all the classic ingredients for a hot breakfast - bacon, scrambled egg, sausages, mushrooms, hash browns, beans, all sorts. Needless to say we tucked into that along with an orange juice and that was plenty to keep us going for a fair while.
We then spent time during the morning relaxing with a bit of telly, some coffee in the room (The Love had brought a jar of Azera and a flask of milk which was nice and cold in the fridge) and then we got ourselves showered and ready. The Love had a new dress and looked gorgreous, in a petrol coloured blue/green velverty dress which had a nice silver detail to its middle, so she matched that with a nice silver clutch bag and leather silver shoes from Office, which proved for her to be super comfortable all day and that did the job wonderfully well. For my part, I had a nice pair of trousers and a paisley shirt, all in dark blue.
I had the common sense to pre-book a taxi, and that came spot on time, and the price had been fixed at £7 during booking which was pretty good value for the close on four miles covered, and that dropped us off right by the church. We soon saw some of the family and relations outside, so it was good to catch up and say hello to everyone. Before long we all went inside and assembled ready, with my mum and brother there along with plenty of other relations as well as friends of the bride and groom, so all was well.
The bride arrived and she did look lovely in her simple but elegant dress, and the daughter was the bridesmaid who walked down with her and looked adorable in her little outfit. The service was pleasant enough and there were some hyms to sing along to, and before long the vows had been made, the bride had been kissed and my youngest brother was now a married man, and very happy for it. The register was signed and we all waited outside with some confetti as they emerged from the church, and that felt nice.
We walked up to the local cricket club later on where the reception was being held. We had a number of tables to sit at with drinks, and later on a carvery van was outside which served carvery for everyone - a choice of meats along with vegetables and a Yorkshire pudding. It tasted pretty good but the fact you were having those metal trays instead of a real plate may not have been to everyone's liking, and wooden cutlery wasn't cutting it for some either (literally.) The food was consumed and all was well, and some more drinks were had before the evening's entertainment had turned up - a live band at that.
Overall the band were not too bad, but some songs they didn't do a good job of - most notably The Chain by Fleetwood Mac, which felt all over the place a bit. They did do some Abba songs and these were better, includign Mamma Mia and Does Your Mother Know, which went down well. They were doing all sorts and even the likes of Teenage Dirtbag by Wheatus got an airing which was good (and tune of the day for me) . It did feel a little loud for the room space to be honest, but at least it was live and giving considerable entertainment to plenty, so that was a good way for the night to wind its merry way. As for me, it was nice that they had Come Away With Me by Norah Jones for the first dance, and also that it felt a nice day for them which was the most important thing.
The Love had managed to speak to the bar staff and get a local taxi number for the journey back, which was £9, and that was pretty quick too. Before we knew it, we were all snuggled up and having enjoyed the day well, and it had gone better than expected at least which was something. I just hope my youngest brother and his now wide had enjoyed themselves, and realised just what a good day it was for them. Thankfully, I didn't get asked any questions about The Love and I marrying...
Friday 1st November - Hampton by Hilton Here We Come
I had the day off work to travel up earlier than planned to Manchester, and for a very good reason. My brother is getting married tomorrow and so we would be heading to where he lives to attend the church service and then the reception afterwards. He lives around 30 miles from Manchester itself, and previously for occasions such as their children's christenings, The Love In My Heart has driven there in the morning and driven back later in the day. However, we thought that it might be better to be able to both have a few drinks later in the day, and so once we were both paid at the end of the month, we booked a hotel.
We managed to find a Hampton by Hilton hotel which was a few miles away from the church and reception venue, but also meant that we could stay over in a comfortable bed, have breakfast each morning, and be able to freshen up nicely on each day. As most hotel check-ins were not until after 3pm, we decided on a two night stay and to make a weekend of it and so once Avanti Worst Coast had done their usual and let me down on the train up during the afternoon (it was that slow that Delay Repay was to kick in once again) then The Love came over to Manchester Piccadilly to come and collect me.
We knew the Friday afternoon traffic would be difficult, and we managed to use some of the lesser used roads to head towards Heaton Park and get on the M60, then M66 through the other side of Bury and towards Rawtenstall, staying on the A56 to skirt around Haslingden. From then on it was a straight run and much quieter, turning on to the M65 and then coming off for the roundabout and spotting the Hampton by Hilton. We parked up, brought our stuff with us, and checked in - all paid, all good.
We had a room the third floor with a nice window overlooking the front (so The Love could see her car in the car park) and it had nice touches, a small Smeg fridge to put cold drinks in, air con, a really good powerful shower with nice bathroom and toilet, a good sized wardrobe and hanging rail, and a massive TV which was also a smart one and had the likes of iPlayer on. No complaints there whatsoever, and we settled in for a bit before I had a quick shower and change so we could head out for the evening.
We decided to head over to Clitheroe and to Holmes Mill in the town centre, the main Bowland Brewery part is pretty sizeable and one section of that is more a dining area. We got a table and I perused the many lovely beers before choosing their own stout, as I was ordering a steak and ale pie. The Love went for the fish and chips, and both of those were all rather lovely all round. In fact, the music choice in the bar was also good too with some nice selections in the background including some 90s indie tunes, so definitely met with my approval.
After that we headed over to the local Sainsburys so we could get some bottles of sparkling water for The Love before heading back to the Hampton by Hilton where we got back in good time for Gogglebox, and that was always entertaining especially with some of the television choices. The Last Leg was on later (make Public Enemy's Harder Than You Think tune of the day) and that had some good humour throughout as well which was really good.