I love this picture, taken on our Wedding Anniversary in August. A week later Bob started preparing to be Santa for the church toddler group
But inside, he's still the same clever, funny, caring, bloke - both loving and loved. A very special husband, dad, grandad and friend. Have a wonderful day
September and October were ridiculously busy
On Saturday I stayed in my pjs until 1pm! Then we had a pub lunch, because Bob had been busy all morning and a break together was a good idea. But I came home and wrote a new to-do list for November. It is alarmingly long. There are so many little tasks which have been deferred because of all the other stuff. I have a definite system for my lists.
But I am so much more laid back about lists and deadlines than I was back then. I was working part-time 2 days a week at the Primary School in the next road to the one my daughters attended. On the days I was there, my two would wait patiently at the school gate, and I would be there about 10 minutes after they came out. I'd often walk up the road with another parent from 'my' school. One day she said to me "How do you fit in all the work, and home and church stuff? I mean, I am just a stay at home Mum and I can't manage it all. I haven't washed my skirting boards this week" I was dumb-struck
Admit it, readers, how many of you washed your skirting boards down last week, and plan to do it this week as well? Apart from redecorating, we haven't had serious skirting board ablutions since the great Chocolate Mousse Disaster of 1991 [when the visiting missionaries who had come for lunch knelt down to help us, even though their dessert had been comprehensively splattered everywhere]
Next on my agenda right now - another cup of tea, I think
Do you have urgent things on your to do list?
And what about the less important feel-good tasks?
In the autumn evenings, I am quite happy to curl up with my knitting and watch a thriller or 'police procedural' on TV. My favourites at the moment [apologies to those without these channels]
What are you watching this season?
Nick the Pastor had strung pretty lights from the balcony, and after Wednesday's "Oasis Cafe", folk had helped him move out many of the chairs, and put the tables to the side. On Friday morning I was at the supermarket at 8, buying refreshments, and at church by 9.30 preparing the space. After the dreich drizzly Monday, and the cold fog of Thursday it was good to see bright sunshine again.
Despite that, we have had three costumes to help with this week. Rosie is wearing her 2023 Worst Witch Cape as part of a Traitors Outfit. Three years on, that costume continues to prove useful! Bob was prevailed upon to make a Traitors Badge, and he produced an excellent laser cut piece, sprayed gold. I found a spare chain for it. It did not get photographed, but it looks just like this one! Clever Bob
If this hairy green creature arrived on my doorstep on a gloomy autumnal evening, I think I'd probably slam the door in its face, with neither trick nor treat!
Who thought this was a good idea?
Poor Bob, we are holding a Holiday Club at Church today and for a fortnight he has had to live with crafting stuff all over the house. It is only an afternoon event, not the full week of activities which we used to organise in our other churches before retirement. But it does take a lot of time and preparation. There will be four different craft activities [my responsibility] and media stuff - songs, music, powerpoint [his area of expertise] Nick, our pastor is doing two magic tricks
Our theme is Jesus- Light of the World. Good to have some light and joy on the day before dark, spooky Halloween arrives. The crafts are Christmas related - my justification for this is that God was planning Christmas from the foundation of the world! [also I happen to have all the resources for these in my stash already] We don't use the "Messy Church" logo - ours is a Family Funday.
I will tell you how it went next week..
The hot chocolate was very welcome after a cold walk following The Crone Trail. I wasn't so sure about that, a bit too spooky for Jess [and me] - we weren't told it was really for age 7+. We skipped the really weird bits - but did dance round the tree singing "Mulberry Bush" and we answered the question "Who might have gone through the ancient doorway 50 or 100 years ago". Jess thought of a sad person who had lost a friend. Rosie decided on a barefooted stable boy who was too poor to buy shoes - I imagined a girl in a miniskirt and heels, who'd just got her degree and was skipping happily along [as I myself was doing 50 years ago...]
Bizarre conversation with another visitor, who asked me if I thought it was worth buying the Norfolk Museums Season Ticket. "Oh yes," I said, "You only have to go to the castle or Gressenhall a couple of times to get your money's worth" and she asked me if I knew anything about Gressenhall. Funny you should say that....
Back in September, as I packed for Cyprus, I discovered my wardrobe already reflected the very trendy Coastal Grandmother look. I was happy in my lightweight white and blue tops, cool linen trousers, white plimsolls and brown leather sandals, and my favourite sunhat.
But as they say on Game of Thrones [not that I have ever watched it] Winter is Coming! so time to swap over between my summer and winter wardrobes.
“I’d describe it as Little House on the Prairie meets Felicity Kendal in The Good Life, meets Bill and Ben,” says Mal James, professor of fashion design at the University of Edinburgh. But he is sceptical about whether the allotmentcore look has life beyond social media. “I haven’t seen anyone actually garden in it, that’s for sure” Well, Mr James, you should have been in Swanton Morley last Saturday morning! I was out there weeding.
Speaking of stylishness, That Beard is growing thick and fast. Bob is looking less like his much-missed brother Frank, and more like Bradley Whitford in The Diplomat....
I have posted often about the Gressenhall Farm and Workhouse, a few miles up the road. It is owned by Norfolk Museums service. Built in 1777, next year is the 250th Anniversary.
In 1946, 80 years ago, what had been the Workhouse was turned into an Old People's Care Home, called Beech House [for the large tree at the front of the premises] It remained a home until 1975. when it was closed, and became part of the museum service.
We would talk with them, and say a prayer before we left. Sometimes young people from our church went and sang hymns [and carols at Christmas] Rachel was really interested, and so in August I went to be interviewed about this, and Gabby Meadows recorded our conversation. I was the first recording she'd made. I gave my permission for the recording to be used as and when needed. G thought there would probably be an audio section as part of the displays.
Then on Saturday morning, I was reading the BBC news website, and in the Norfolk section there was an article. It mentioned me, and the fact that I'd said residents were unhappy being sent to live in "The Workhouse". They were the generation who were told "Be a good child or you will end up in there" - and they lived through 2 world wars, and now were sent here in their old age. It was hard to convince them that this was not a punishment!
I'm on the BBC News Website!! I shouted to Bob
Then yesterday at Church, Barbara said she had heard me speaking on the Radio. BBC Radio Norfolk had interviewed Rachel, and two clips from recordings had been played. At the end, the two people were named and thanked - and one of them was Angela Almond!! Barbara said she remembered me mentioning the interview back in the summer. I have tried to find it, unsuccessfully on BBC sounds.
I will wait to see if anybody else messages me about it.
Now he runs a company NewDay and is a lifecoach for people whose work is really stressful, and struggle with mental health issues. He uses his own experience to help others pull through their tough times. Here are his tips for people under stress who make a genuine mistake, and need help to recover
Get your thoughts out of your head. In a dark place, your
mind jumps from "I made a terrible mistake" to "I am a worthless
person" at the speed of thought. Writing it down or talking to someone
slows things down to give you a chance to notice the illogical leaps.
Continue activities you enjoy. When you feel unworthy, you
stop doing the things that lift you up. Work out what they are - the gym, a
book, a long walk - and make them non-negotiable fixtures in your routine.
Remember your worth and your success. I keep an evidence
board by my desk with notes of things I have achieved and kind things people
have said. It's a tangible reminder that I am not that mistake, I am so much
more.
Find your critical friend. You need someone who is your
cheerleader but will also call you out when you let good habits slip. Anyone
who is truly on your side.
Work out what you can fix, and what you can't. If you've
caused harm, take responsibility: apologise and put things right where you can.
But don't assume responsibility for things that were never yours to carry.
Don't confuse your worst moment with the whole story of your
life. You are not that mistake. You are still the person who existed before it,
and there can still be a person after it whom you haven't met.
The end of British Summer Time, back to Greenwich Mean Time.
We lived in Orpington, whilst Bob was a student, and less than three miles from our house was Willett's Wood, named for William Willett a local resident. Just after the start of the twentieth century, he was out riding one morning, and noticed how many houses still had closed curtains.
Every year people argue about the wisdom of this action - some say it is helpful, others say it is pointless! Willet's Memorial is a sundial in the wood - set to show BST "I only tell summer hours" says the inscription.
It takes me a while to adjust each time the clocks go back/forward, less crucial now I am retired. I feel sorry for those are really affected by the change.
But I am grateful for a warm home, and a comfortable bed. In my youth I'd often stay up late, because I had an extra hour, and did not want to waste it - This year I plan to use that hour for extra sleep!
It takes ages to adjust all the clocks in the house on the Sunday morning! We had a brief power cut a few weeks back, my cooker clock is still wrong!
Today, as part of my work with Voluntary Norfolk, I am working as part of a PLACE team. PLACE stands for Patient Led Assessment of the Care Environment
The NHS website says "Good environments matter. Every NHS patient should be cared
for with compassion and dignity in a clean, safe environment. Where standards
fall short, they should be able to draw it to the attention of managers and
hold the service to account. PLACE assessments will provide motivation for
improvement by providing a clear message, directly from patients, about how the
environment or services might be enhanced."
"The assessments involve local people [known as patient
assessors] going into hospitals as part of teams to assess how the environment
supports the provision of clinical care, assessing such things as privacy and
dignity, food, cleanliness and general building maintenance and, more recently,
the extent to which the environment is able to support the care of those with
dementia or with a disability…The assessments take place every year, and
results are published to help drive improvements in the care environment. [Note
that PLACE assessments focus exclusively on the environment in which care is
delivered and do not cover clinical care provision]"
What do you think of when you hear the word pillbox?
...and Happy Birthday Steph, hope you have a wonderful day. Looking forward to seeing you in 3 weeks time.
Hip Hip Hooray! for me too, celebrating the fact that I am not in need of a hip replacement operation. Peter The Physio says my hip pain is "gluteal tension" [!?] Entirely muscular and can be eased if I do daily exercises.
Prior to my appointment, I had convinced myself I did need one. I was chatting to an older friend at the conference, who assured me such ops were brilliant "I've had three" she said proudly, "and now I can do aquarobics and ride a tricycle". I confess that bothered me - do the prosthetic joints wear out? Or does she have a third hip?
