Busy!

It seems to have been a very busy few days! I was desperate for the week to end, it seemed to drag on forever and it was a relief when work finished!


We had a quiet night on Friday, although it was nearly 9pm by the time the shopping was done and we had a chance to sit down! 


We had to be up early on Saturday to go and pick up a sofa from some friends of my sister - they're moving and wanted new furniture, so we are having their old one! Anything is better than the old, falling to bits furniture we were using so the donation was gratefully received! My wonderful Dad hired a van and we dumped the old and picked up the new on Saturday morning. The rest of the afternoon was spent sorting out where everything would go. It's a stop gap really, but has certainly given us a bit of breathing space when it comes to saving for a new sofa :o)


Saturday evening was great fun. Some old friends travelled up from London and we had a lovely evening of drink, chat and Chinese. Just simply catching up with Chris and Anna is always lovely and I'm sure it won't be long before we make the return journey down to London....armed with my new DSLR of course!!!!


Speaking of which, Chris brought a lens with him for me to borrow so I could finally play with the camera! He also gave me a few hints and tips about how to use it, as it's a big old change from my little Nikon Coolpix, and there is a hell of a lot more to consider when taking photographs with this one - but it's a learning curve I can't wait to start!


Today has been a lazy one. Hague has lost his voice, and has been reduced to a very quiet little squeak, but is being very good natured about the new range of nicknames I have imposed upon him, including Mighty Mouse and Captain Squeak, yes I really am that mature lol! We're both shattered, so I think tonight will be an early one, with hopefully plenty of sleep before we return to the work rat race for 5 long days!


End of an era...

The start of a new one!

Another Birthday!

Today it was the turn of Bayleigh Boo! I had in fact forgotten this when I went to work, but was swiftly reminded of it by Hague - as Bayleigh has her own FB account it had popped up on his profile!


It was nice to get home to spoil her, although today at work wasn't bad at all by normal standards, with a wedding invitation received and some freebies given out - but it's always nice to clock out and head home. Now, normally this takes me around 35-40 minutes, and the last stretch is an 8 mile road which is one long, straight single carriageway, with a 60 mph limit and just one easy bend, a nice easy drive. Not today though, as happens more often than it should today it was shut - an accident meant it was shut for around 3 hours, meaning I had to divert through all the villages from Acle to Caister, adding around 10 minutes to my journey :o(


I did eventually get home though, and Boo has been spoiled rotten, with cheese on her dinner, another lamb shank bone from Sunday's dinner, mini sausages and a Jumbone - heaven on earth to a Basset Hound! She's been allowed on the settee as well! 


I know she has absolutely no concept that today is her birthday, but it's always fun to make a day a little bit special, no matter how frivolous the reason! So....Happy Birthday to Boo! :o)


The Birthday Girl! Six today!

The Right Thing ≠ The Easy Path...

An odd day today. It is the day of the much awaited and once adjourned second directions hearing regarding Dan's contact with his children. The boys live in Barnsley, 185 miles away from us in Great Yarmouth, and as is usual, the hearing is at the court closest to them - so a long old drive and a long old day. 


Dan was in front of the judge for around 10 minutes, long enough for the judge to register his utter disgust for his interpretation of Dan's behaviour whilst he has been ill. As Dan put it he was "utterly reamed".


When he first got back to the car and told me, I was so annoyed at the judge, how dare he decide all this and lay blame where it wasn't due....however, Dan could  have done more to stay in contact whilst he was ill, and during the course of the 4 hour drive home we have taken many positives from today...


Yes Dan was ill, very ill with a ruptured appendix, a wound that re-opened and then further damage to the nerves in his back...however, that should not have stopped him picking up the phone to talk to his boys.


Yes, it's easier not to have to deal with his Ex, but she's not going anywhere anytime soon, so she shall be dealt with swiftly, politely, and strictly on topic.


Yes it's easier to act like a victim, and blame others - but facing up to things gives a real sense of achievement, and looking into the eyes of someone you love and knowing they are proud of you is worth fighting for.


The boys deserve a Dad they can look up to - and I truly believe that today is the turning point. Today is the day when Dan will really push towards being that man, for the ones he loves. Sometimes you do need to take a good, hard look at yourself to realise who you are and what you want. I truly believe today was that day for Dan.


Perhaps now he'll learn to listen to his wonderful, all knowing girlfriend ;o) 

At Bleeding Last!

I'm finally feeling better! I'm still a bit sniffly and sneezey but the aching has finally gone, and although I'm still very tired, I know I'm on the mend, it's a wonderful feeling!


It's been a weird old week, starting as it did with me grumping massively over the flu and ending with Dan back at work and me in the house alone!! Now that may not sound like an extraordinary occurrence but it is to me. Except for when Dan was in hospital (when the only time I was here I was sleeping) I've not been alone here for years!


I've made the most of it with a looooong delicious soak in the bath, enjoying a little treat of some Hot Butter Fudge bubbles which just smell gorgeous and now I'm just relaxing and watching cookery programmes :o) Simple pleasures!


We are still waiting for the return of Mutley's ashes. We'll be looking after him until Lee and Tina are back in the country, when they'll decide whether to scatter him somewhere he loved or take him back to Singapore with them. It's still hard to think that he's gone, and has really hit home to me how hard it is to say goodbye to a pet. I will be beyond devastated when anything happens to Bayleigh :o(


All in all it's been a bit of a stressful week, Dan returning to work wasn't without it's issues, as it's been so long (September) since he's worked, and as he was going back to a different placement, it was an anxious day. This placement is a lot quieter than his first one, but...he's training up and this will give him experience with working with older people in a care environment. 


Adding to the stress has been a lovely letter from the CSA - due to their own incompetence they haven't taken money from his wages for two months. Apparently this is somehow Dan's fault....got to love dealing with government agencies! We have no idea why it's taken them two months to inform him that they've been unable to take his payments from his wages, and as for the fact that they've passed on false personal information to his ex wife......infuriating isn't the word!! Still, wage slips are on the way, so perhaps they'll sort it out before Christmas.....


In other, much happier news, at 9.30pm tonight, Dan will finish work and the weekend can begin! I think I'm finally feeling well enough for a little drink tonight, and as I'm planning on (finally) returning to Slimming World on Monday this may be the last chance for a big drink for a while! Next week will be stressful as well with a court appearance about the boys pending, so a relaxing weekend will be very welcome!


Oh...and I *may* have bought myself a DSLR camera.....I've been thoroughly enjoying my 365 and can't wait to start playing with my first "proper" camera :o)


A DSLR effort (with Lee's camera) of Lee and Bayleigh!

Enough Already!

Eurgghhh! Just eurgghhhh! I am STILL ill, my attempts to return to work today were thwarted when I visited my GP to get my certificate for my absence. She said I shouldn't be going back until I was more fully recovered, so signed me off for another week.


I am bored, I am sick of feeling so tired and aching everywhere. If I try and do anything it wipes me of all energy and makes me need to sleep for hours. I'm sleeping for 12-14 hours a night and am still shattered.


All I want is to feel better, to get back to work, to be able to get my butt to Slimming World and start losing weight and to start taking some interesting pictures for my 365!


Flu...you suck, big time, please sod off and leave me alone :(

Goodbye Mutley

Despite the inevitability of yesterday, it was still a very hard day. 


Lee arrived safe and sound with us, and managed to get a few hours with Mutley. Even the appearance of his Dad wasn't enough to really perk him up though, and sadly it just seemed as if Mutley knew it was his time.


He was a very sweet dog, he liked nothing more than snuggling into his crate and the  occasional fussing. Yesterday all he wanted was for someone to be there with him, just stroking him and talking to him, and we were there with him until the end.


The vets were lovely, giving us time with him, and making it as calm as possible, but many, many tears were shed for a dog who was definitely part of the family, and to Lee a dear, close friend who had seen him through thick and thin over the last 13 years. It will be a hard few days as we come to terms with the house without him


Mutley - you have left a huge gap in our lives, and I will never forget the time you spent with us.

A Long Night

I'm still suffering from flu, but that's the least of my worries at the moment. A post or two ago I described our little menagerie of animals, and today Mutley isn't well :(


Mutley's Dad is en-route from Singapore as I type, and we shall be staying up all night to ensure he is as comfortable as possible. He has descended quite quickly in the last 24 hours, and much as I hope he will be okay I'm really not sure how good the outcome will be for him. He's 13 and his age has been showing in recent months with him becoming more and more unsteady on his legs.


All I want is for him to be as comfortable as we can make him tonight, and for him to still be with us in the morning when Lee arrives.....not that much to ask for. I hope beyond hope that he will be okay, but until he sees the vet in the morning, we just won't know.


Not a good day, and it will be a long hard night....


Mutters

Zeitgeist

Today has mostly been supremely unproductive, I'm still feeling awful - in fact worse than I have since last week, and as such have barely had the energy to move from the sofa, let alone doing anything interesting or exciting.....so I found myself meandering through Facebook (for a change..lol). 


One of my friends, Lisa, posted on her status that she had watched Zeitgeist, and recommended that her friends watch it as well. This is a film that I have been planning to watch for ages, in fact Hague had already downloaded it for me months (if not years) ago. Seeing her status reminded me, and I finally bothered my arse to get onto the website and watch it.


Watch Zeitgeist Here....

I found it utterly intriguing - it contained many, many things that myself and Hague find ourself pondering and discussing over and over again. The Paganistic roots of Christianity are no surprise to me, being a Pagan it's something I'm well aware of, but to see the extent of the crossover I found interesting, and as I'm interested in theology in general, it will probably be something I study in more detail.


The second part of the film concerns September 11th 2001. Now, I'm sure everyone is aware of the multitude of conspiracy theories regarding that day and the aftermath, and whilst before I accepted there were oddities about the day, and certainly a cover up of sorts, I refused to believe that a government would sanction action of that level on their own countrymen and women for their own ends, but Zeitgeist throws up many questions on so much surrounding that day, that again I will read further about. The thing I liked most was that the facts were simply presented, you are left to come to your own conclusions regarding the information.


The final part of the film discusses the power of money and wealth, and the level to which our economies and commerce are warped and corrupted by banks, and the further pursuit of the few for ever increasing riches and power - and the subtle direction towards war as a business enterprise.


The film opened my eyes to a few things, but it didn't preach, it presented facts, and encouraged me to go on, explore, question and research the world around me and the growth of our Big Brother society. To keep my eyes and mind open, and value the world and people around me.


The final message was not one of uprising, protest and war, it was one of hope, of love and of the power of intelligence and curiosity. One of the final quotes spoke to me in bounds....


"When the Power of Love overcomes the Love of Power, the World will know Peace" - Sri Chinmoy Ghose.


Whatever your views, give the film a go - if you take nothing else away, the message of Love is one we can all appreciate.

Regular Check Up

On my challenges that is! We're now 9 days into the New Year, so a good a time as any to have a bit of an update!


A minor spanner in the works appeared in the form of getting ill last week with either a really nasty cold, or a dose of flu. I certainly felt as rough as hell and pretty much slept my way through Thursday and Friday! I'm still not feeling great now, but should be okay to go back to work tomorrow. However, it's meant that not a lot has been achieved for some of my challenges....


Going well....is the Project 365, a photo has been taken every day and I'm still really enjoying the challenge. I've also found a website where you can chronicle your project (My 365 Project) and have really enjoyed browsing through other projects and getting to know some people on there in the last few days.


Going as well as can be....are the Trust and Money challenges, no significant issues with either at the moment! Well, the money is there to pay the bills - but that's it, but that's nothing new lol! I suppose I can put the Photography challenge in here as well, as I've decided against the Photoshop course for now, as I can buy the Dummies book for £15, and shall see how I get on with that first!


Not going anywhere yet....are the Losing Weight and Fitness challenges. I've had to wait for payday to join Slimming World, which will be on Monday. I'll be signing up for 12 weeks, so no excuses! The fitness one has been thwarted by me feeling rough, but I will certainly get myself into a routine once I'm back to something resembling health!


Things are going pretty much as expected so far I suppose, I'm looking forward to started at Slimming World tomorrow, and shall be setting up a ticker as soon as I get back. I do need support when losing weight, so feel free to kick me up the arse through comments lol!

The Menagerie

I am very much an animal person, I like having a pet around, am a vegetarian, and hate to see an animal suffering needlessly. This doesn’t mean that I am against meat-eaters, each to their own after all, it’s just my view. In Hague’s words, I’m a soppy cow when it comes to animals!

This has somehow led to us becoming the owners of what can only be described as The Menagerie over the last couple of years. Originally, in the times before Hague I had only one pet, my Basset Hound Bayleigh Boo (alternatively knows as The Boo, BooPig, WigglePuppy, PwincessPaddyPaws and a million variants thereof). I’ve had her since she was 10 weeks old in April 2005. She has a wonderful personality, is very stubborn, playful and jealous of anyone being around “her” Mummy. She likes to be the centre of everyone’s world, and will always try and make us giggle. She doesn’t just wag her tail, she wags her entire body! She can be utterly naughty and defiant as well if she thinks she can get away with it…..it other words, she’s a typical Basset! She also thinks she is a little lapdog despite weighing in at just under 5 stone, and is constantly trying to sneak up for cuddles with me on the sofa, thinking that Dan won’t notice the appearance of a ridiculously long dog taking up most of the seat! She owns the soppiest puppy eyes you’ve ever seen and for all intents and purposes is my baby….yes, I know that’s incredibly sad lol!

In July 2009 I got a phone call from a very old and dear friend, he was moving to Singapore with his lovely lady and was unable to take his Doberman with him due to his age. He had made plans for someone to take him in, but they fell through at the 11^th hour, so he made a desperate plea to us to take his 12 year old boy in – I shall refer you back to my opening paragraph to ensure the fact that we agreed to take him in is of no surprise to you!

Despite being much larger than The Boo, Mutley immediately moved himself to the bottom of the pack in the house. He obviously missed Lee desperately as he was very quiet to begin with, and we had issues with him settling. I think he has found a happy level now, he’s an old man, and he spends most of his time making his crate into a nice nest and snuggling up in it and sleeping. He has lost some of his bounce, but still has a good old wag of his little stump when he gets a treat for being a good boy :o)

Obviously 2 pretty large dogs weren’t quite enough for our house, as in the Autumn of 2009 Hague decided he needed more pets – and so the Gerbils arrived (for some reason pronounced with a hard G….don’t ask!). The new members of The Menagerie were named quite quickly, and as such, don’t particularly suit their personalities too well. We have JCB – named due to the fact that all he does is dig, and dig, and dig, and dig….he will also eat stuff in his cage, but digging is mainly what drives our little sandy coloured friend. The second of the Gerbily Little Dudes is TiggerPig, so named as all he did on the first day we had them was bounce around the cage like Tigger! He’s a brownish colour, and contrary to his name is actually much quieter than that. The last Gerbil is the bossiest one, woefully named Mousey as he barely showed his face for the first few days and was a pretty silvery grey, so we wrongly decided that he must be the quiet one….we couldn’t have been more wrong!! He bosses the other two around, always wants to be first to any food and is without doubt the leader of the tiny Gerbilly universe we have! I had owned a Hamster years ago, so wasn’t overly keen on the addition of more rodents, however, The Gerbils are way more fun, they are very nosy and at every noise or bit of movement a little head will pop up to see what’s going on! It’s like having a budget Meerkat commercial running constantly!

So, we’re now up to 5 pets and 2 people! Hague though is Cat People, and as you may have noticed, a cat flavoured pet was missing from The Menagerie. So we started to check various Freegle/Freecyle/Pet Charities for the perfect cat for us. They had to be used to dogs and litter trained, and we tried for a fair while until I randomly answered an ad for someone looking for a foster or permanent home for their PussyCat. After exchanging a few emails with Claire she decided that we sounded like the perfect home for her, and so we had our final addition – PussyCat, now more usually known as Flump. A tortoiseshell cat of unknown age, but totally dog savvy, litter trained, and who has slotted straight into the Random House of Mayhem that is the MitchHague residence! She enjoys nothing more than snuggling up on the settee and having cuddles, although she does get very vocal if her bowl gets to anything even vaguely resembling empty, again, she has a great little personality, and seems to revel in being allowed on the sofa when Bayleigh isn’t. In fact her interactions with Boo are highly amusing as Bayleigh has absolutely no idea what Flump is…..she keeps sniffing this weird looking dog thing with such intent, but seems to have no idea how to deal with her – poor thing!

Anyway….there you have it….an short introduction to The Menagerie, or How I’ve Suddenly Found Myself One Pet Away From Having My Own Zoo!

A Few Firsts!

Not all good ones! I've had to ring in for my first sick day of both the new year, and since my job became permanent. I felt rough yesterday, but despite an early night and tons of sleep I woke up this morning feeling even worse! I'm hoping it's not full blown flu, I really don't want to be ill like this, work is busy right now, and I just can't be off for any amount of time! I'm keeping myself full of paracetamol, orange juice and lemon and ginger tea, which will get me sorted nice and quickly with any luck!


The first takeaway of 2011 has also been ordered, mainly as neither Me or Hague have the energy to walk to the kitchen, let alone make hot food, as once again we've both got sick together, so much for being looked after and waited on hand and foot! O_o


Another first is that I have my first (and second!) follower on my blog! This is most definitely a good first, and it really has put a smile on my face. I mainly write this blog for me, but it's nice to know that people have had a look and are interested enough to follow it. *waves*


Perhaps I should up my game lol???


In other news, I'm 6 days into Project 365, and despite feeling awful still managed a picture that I like, which is my first food/beverage themed one! :o)

Back to Work

First day back at work today after 11 gorgeous days off. I couldn't have been in a less enthusiastic mood to be honest, but have to get myself back into the swing of things quickly.


We've got a busy few weeks coming up at work, but I can't seem to get myself in a positive frame of mind for any of it. It's at times like this that I am so jealous of people who have found jobs that they love. I can't think of anything more rewarding than going to work everyday with a feeling of anticipation about what the day will bring, and a desire to excel at something you truly enjoy.


I've had quite a few jobs over the years, but never anything I've really wanted to do, certainly nothing that has had me waking up full of enthusiasm about the day ahead. I think half the problem is that I'm not entirely sure what that job would be for me....I have quite a few things that interest me, photography, anything 50's/60's retro, family law, reading, cooking, and expanding my knowledge in things that I could never tire of learning about, such as space and religion. However, they don't really fit neatly into any sort of job. 


I think this is why I live for the weekends - it means I can do what I want to do, I'm not restricted and confined by a job, or by an early night, or by having to do anything. I'm free to do what I enjoy. 


Now, if someone has a job going that means I can get up late, take pictures of interesting retro items whilst reading about religion......give me a call ;)

They Think It's All Over :(

And it is now, all those wonderful days off, Christmas and New Year - all done and dusted. It's the evening before I have to go back to work and it's come around way too quickly for my liking!


As I've blogged before, Christmas was lovely, as was New Year, but I don't feel ready to go back yet - but I haven't won the lottery, so back I must go! It will be a busy few weeks at work up until my Birthday in February so the time should go quite quickly, but I'll miss the freedom of being at home. The simple pleasure of waking up and knowing that the whole day is yours to do whatever you want to do, such bliss!


I'm also on day 3 of Project 365, and am enjoying the challenge of finding something that will make an interesting photograph and will be a reminder of the day for me. For the first time, my camera will be coming into work with me as well - no opportunity shall be lost! :)


Tonight will be spent relaxing, trying to get myself in the mindset of going back to work, and the reality of getting up in the AM again! lol! Hague is also back to work as soon as his placement is sorted, so a back to earth with a bump moment for both of us! 

Challenges for 2011

I am not much of one for making resolutions, but I have set myself some challenges for the year ahead. Some are to improve my health, some are to improve me as a person, and some are just things I'd like to do - which I suppose covers most things that people resolve to change when the New Year comes around! So, in no particular order, here are my challenges for 2011.


Lose Weight
I think this has been a resolution of mine every year for as long as I can remember lol! As always though, I start January absolutely determined and shall be returning to my Slimming World class on Monday. I need the weekly weigh in to help keep me on track, and so have decided to go back to give myself a fighting chance. I have a hell of a lot to lose, so look out for the return of the ticker :)


Project 365
I am really excited about this one! My first picture is taken and I think this is one resolution I will find easy. I love taking pictures and this should encourage me to keep my camera on me at all times and enable me to take those pictures that I miss time and again due to not having it with me. I'm hoping that my photography will improve over the course of the year as well. At the end of the project I'll put all the pictures into a photobook as a record of 2011 for me.


Fitness
Now, I can lose weight with the best of them, over the years I've lost stone upon stone (but not kept it off) but I'm not so hot with the fitness side of things. I start off with good intentions but never keep it up. However this year I've been given a Wii Fit Plus for Christmas, so I am setting myself the challenge of getting it out at least 3 times a week. That's not a daunting amount, and as they say, Every Little Helps :)


Trust
This is a harder one to describe, and to measure I suppose. I need to have more faith in others, need to believe that if they say they will do something, they'll do it, and not worry about things that are not "my" problem. This is something I find hard, as I've blogged before, but I think I need to focus on it a bit more this year.


Money
Things are slightly better than they were, however, they could be better. I want to be more sensible with money, use it more wisely and try to get some savings together for emergencies. We have the money to do these, but we are terrible at talking each other into spending it!! We're both totally to blame for this, but I'm hoping to be a little more productive with cash in this coming year.


Photography
This fits in with Project 365. The local college runs a few photography courses and I want to attend two of them..."Improve Your Digital Photography" and "Introduction to Photoshop". They cost £74 each, which isn't too bad - so this should be another one that I should be able to achieve :) (Presuming the Money one goes well of course).


So there we have it, those are the challenges for myself for 2011, and the final one is to keep up this blog to both record my progress for all of them, and of course to witter on about general crap along a similar vein to last year!