Frogs' Legs!

My good friend Anthea cooked me frogs' legs as a surprise.  As I haven't managed to tick off much recently this was very welcome - and they tasted really nice as well.  She cooked them in a Provencal sauce and I had them with a lovely bottle of Prosecco.

In case you were wondering, they were like little chicken wings and were delicious!

Another One Bites the Dust!

The ingredients were all there; rain, wellies, port-a-loos in fields, dodgy beer in plastic glasses and rock music - we were at a festival!   I have also never seen so many middle aged people prancing around, playing air guitar and punching the air. I've done it now but not sure I'd want to try it again!

Before you think that Redhill  Rocks was rubbish, let me tell you it actually wasn't.  The two headlining acts, Livewire (ACDC tribute) and Mercury (Queen tribute) were both excellent. 

I also enjoyed camping in a field and want to do more wild camping as a result. The weather, however, got the better of me.  Standing outside at midnight when it is absolutely freezing and having been there for several hours was a bit beyond me.

Letter to Someone Famous - two replies received

Waiting for me when we got back from our hols were two hand written envelopes; one each from the offices of Kirstie Allsopp and Paul O'Grady.  The envelope from Kirstie's office held a signed photo.  The envelope from Paul's, a signed photo and  a letter from his assistant which indicated that he had read my letter and was interested in my 50before50 challenge. 

I'm happy with this - receive a reply - DONE!

Two Isles and Three Bridges

I write having just returned from a three-week road trip around North Wales, Scotland and finishing off in the North East of England.  The trip started with a visit to Anglesey - (Visit Anglesey - Done!).

 

This is me on the Anglesey side of the Menai Suspension Bridge.  Built in 1826 by Thomas Telford and so much more impressive than the Britannia Bridge built less than 30 years later by Robert Stephenson.  That is this one:

It was damaged by fire in the 1970s and it looks a bit different now to how it looked originally but still it has never been as beautiful as the Thomas Telford bridge.

Anglesey was pretty but a bit dull (sorry to those of you that love it).  The highlight of the trip there (aside from the beautiful camp site right on a beach) was a visit to a model village.  I've done it now and don't expect I'll return.

Later in the trip we arrived on Syke (Visit Skye - Done!).  Skye also has a bridge.  It was opened in 1995 (previously access to the isle was by ferry) and therein lies an interesting story. 

The tolls charged were particularly unpopular. By 2004 a round trip cost £11.40. Protesters claimed the toll made it the most expensive road in Europe. While the Skye bridge was being built, several other smaller bridges in the Hebrides were also being built or planned. These bridges were to connect smaller islands either to larger ones or to the mainland and were without tolls. Skye believed that the Skye bridge should also be a public road and free of tolls.

The campaign included mass protests and a prolonged non-payment campaign. Numerous toll opponents were cited for refusing to pay the toll, with around 500 being arrested and 130 subsequently convicted of non-payment. Toll collection ceased in December 2004 as the cost of building the bridge had, by that time, been covered.

Skye was very beautiful; the bridge not so:

 

Like Anglesey, Skye was quiet with little to do but relax and look at the scenery - and sample the local water of course!





Finished Reading "The Rosie Project"

I know its not on my list but it is relevant for a really good reason.  I have three books on my list:

Middlemarch
War and Peace
Lolita

All excellent pieces of literature and all have been sitting on my book shelf, staring at me, for some time.  I have started to read both War and Peace (really struggling it is so boring - sorry to any fans!) and Lolita (a bit less boring, well written, but again I am struggling to become hooked enough to keep picking it up).

I am not usually a fan of what I would call "beach fiction".  My daughter bought "The Rosie Project", possibly because her name is Rosie, but for whatever reason she read it and quite enjoyed it so I borrowed it for my own holiday. 

What you need to know is that I have what I would describe as a mild(ish) form of ADD, that is Attention Deficit Disorder.  Note the omission of the often included "H" for hyperactivity.  I wouldn't describe myself as hyperactive.

This unfortunately means that I struggle to stick to things like hobbies or books, or anything else that calls for any kind of long term commitment.  Happily this does not apply to my marriage which is the exception to prove the rule!

Because of all this is it quite remarkable that I have just finished reading this book, and what's more I actually enjoyed it.  I started it this week expecting it to be just another example of "chic lit" but I was pleasantly surprised.  I had put off beginning it but, on the plane back from Turkey, I saw a man (with his female partner) reading it.  I was intrigued; obviously it had to be a bit more than I was expecting - OK accuse me of being sexist I don't care!

The main character in the book reminded me of Sheldon from "The Big Bang Theory" and I think, for mainly this reason, it will be a book both men and women will enjoy.  It certainly made me laugh out loud on several occasions.  So, if you get a chance, read it - you might just enjoy it yourself!

Break a World Record

For those of you that don't know, Rainbows, in Loughborough,  is the East Midlands’ only hospice for children and young people, Rainbows is a place where life-limited children and their families can find care and support.

It is a local charity for us here and is one that we often raise money for both personally and professionally.

This year is its 20th anniversary and to celebrate the amazing folks at Rainbows are trying to create the world's biggest rainbow made from selfies.   They want us all to take part.  I have taken my photo and submitted it - see below - and you can see that I chose the colour green. 

This is something we  can all do and I have posted the link here to take you straight through to more information.  You can post your own photo on the Rainbows page on Facebook or on their Twitter feed using #RainbowsSelfie.   The more people that take part, the easier it will be to break that world record and you will be part of it too!

http://www.rainbows.co.uk/wp-content/cache/page_enhanced/www.rainbows.co.uk/birthdayrainbow/_index.html_gzip

Message in a Bottle

So this was the plan - go somewhere a long way from here,  write a message,  put it in a bottle, chuck it overboard, done; but it didn't quite work out that way.  I thought the Marmaris to Rhodes ferry would be perfect - open sea between Turkey and a Greek island - what could go wrong?  Let me tell you that what could go wrong is very rough seas and lots of sea sickness.

Unfortunately, because it was rough, we were confined to our seats and my seat was inside and downstairs (I'm sure there is a technical term for downstairs in a boat but I have no idea what it is!).  All I could see was the porthole, and the horizon appearing and disappearing.  It wasn't long until my hand was going up in the air requesting a sick bag.  All you could see and hear was people throwing up which, when you have a problem with travel sickness yourself, is not ideal.

The crew, of course, thought it was hilarious, even when one of them ended up with vomit all down the front of his lovely polo shirt. 

Thankfully I managed to retain the contents of my stomach and went on to enjoy a wonderful day wandering the winding narrow streets of Rhodes old town.  The story on the way back to our resort was pretty much the same, however, and the message, snuggly ensconced in the plastic water bottle, remained in my beach bag.

So it didn't quite work out as planned, but the following day plan B took shape and the bottle was safely dispatched into the Aegean Sea via a Kayak loaned from the hotel.

Lets hope it travels far and that I can report to you in due course with regard to its destination.  Bon Voyage little bottle!

Letter to Someone Famous

Two letters are written and are about to go into the post box.  One is to Kirstie Allsopp and one is to Paul O'Grady.  I've sent them to their management companies, lets hope they a. receive them, b. read them and c. reply!

I chose Kirstie and Paul because I love both of their personalities and enjoy their programmes.  In the letters I told them about this blog and I sent them both a photo. I sent Kirstie a picture of my dresser full of 1970s Denby pottery (amongst other things) and I sent Paul a picture of my dogs Arnold and Rufus on the beach. 

Wouldn't it be great if they log in to the blog and post a message as their reply - watch this space!

1,000 Page Views

I've just hit 1,000 page views on my blog - thank you guys,  although it is probably just ten of you looking at it over and over again!  Anyway, I'm really chuffed that there has been so much interest and it keeps me on track with my list of things to do.

Once again, may thanks!

Vin de la maison de poissons

Today is the day - bottling the wine  It has been settling in the demi-johns for the past six months and now will enter a further six-month period laying down in bottles and hopefully ageing beautifully.  We already have this years' batch of grapes developing on the vine just outside the kitchen and it is with a great sense of satisfaction that we are now at this stage with our first batch. 

We have bottled 12 in total - a whole case from our own grapes!  We have re-used some bottles - sterilised of course (you can probably see that from the photo) - but I do have plans  for printing our own labels to put on them.  If we actually get to that stage, you'll be the first to know!

Cheers!

(By the way that is "wine from the house of Fish" for those of you that, like me, don't speak any French - thanks Google translate)

Redhill Rocks

Tickets booked for my first ever festival.  OK its not Glastonbury and we will be camping over in the caravan - but I don't do tents or porta loos.  Really looking forward to it; some good local bands on show and also an AC/DC tribute and a Queen tribute.  Sounds like a great weekend and only  half an hour from home!

Car boot on a sunny Sunday

Getting up at 5:30am on a Sunday is hard.  Persuading my lovely husband to get up at 5:30am on a Sunday is even harder!

As part of my attempt to raised £1,000 for pancreatic cancer research, we stood at Quorn car boot sale today.  Many items had been generously donated by family and colleagues (thank you to everyone who found things to donate).

I have done this several times before and this was, by far and away, the most enjoyable.  Paul (hubby)was on great form - I have never heard so many boomerang jokes in my life before - and all to get 10p for the item in question!  Many thanks to him as he has to put up with a lot so that I can complete my list.

What never ceases to amaze me is how little people are prepared to pay for items.  I had things that I know (because of my addiction to charity shops) that you would expect to pay £3 or £4 for in such an establishment, and it was difficult to persuade people to part with 50p.

On the other hand there were some lovely people who were refusing to take their change or were paying more than I asked for things because of our cause.  One young woman told me that her father had in fact died from pancreatic cancer and there was a general feeling from people that we need to put more money into research - my thought exactly!

The most expensive items I sold were a Manchester United shirt and a Jordan F1 fleece, both donated by Marilyn, a work colleague and both achieving £5.

In the end we raised £77.30 today which I am really pleased with and brings my total up to £117 - still a long way to go but we will get there.

STOP PRESS - Just sold all the remaining stuff on ebay for £15 for a job lot - brings the total raised to £132.30.

Firewalk - Success!

I did it!  Just got back from my fire walk.  Thank you to Scott Bell (World Record Holder) and UK Fire walk for making this possible.  The evening started watching others carrying out a "glass walk" and then in to an hour's seminar on fire walking   to prepare me and the other brave souls for what was to happen.  I was strangely nervous having wanted to do this for years.  The choice of music, as I took my place at the head of the 600 degree burning pile of coals, was a song  I actually love, Firestarter by The Prodigy.  And then I was off; following the instructions perfectly, positive thoughts, brisk pace and wipe your feet at the end.  Then it was all over.  

It was hotter than I had expected. As I sit here now there is a faint sense of a glow, almost like a touch of sunburn on the soles of my feet.  But I'm glad I did it!

Car Boot - Raising Money for Pancreatic Cancer Research

As you will know by now, one of my 50 before 50 is to raise £1,000 for pancreatic cancer research.  This is a charity I have supported since a work colleague died from this terrible and deadly disease.  More research is needed to aid earlier detection and improve survival rates but of course that needs to be funded. 

I  have decided to have a stall at our local car boot in Quorn and I am currently planning for this to be on 22nd June (weather permitting - it may need to be postponed to a later date to give me the best chance of selling my stuff with a bigger crowd). All takings will go to the charity.

I am making a plea, therefore, for you to either come to the car boot and buy something (I'll keep you posted via this blog to confirm the date) or make a donation, or, if you know me and live near enough, to donate something I can sell.  One or two work colleagues and my lovely sister have already pledged items and I am busy sorting out the loft but the more stuff I have the more I can raise.

So, many thanks in anticipation of your generosity.

Postponements and Updates

You might be wondering why there are no pretty pictures of my balloon flight.  The reason for this is simply that, as expected might happen, it was postponed because of the weather.  It was too windy.   We have rearranged for Monday 16th June.  Similarly, the fire walk that was arranged for tomorrow evening has also been postponed to 18th June.  So there will be two big events in one week!

There are also a few things that need an update.

• Read Lolita - I'm about half way through and whilst it is well written I am finding it a little disturbing.

• Read War and Peace - only a small way through what is, dare I say it, the most boring book I have ever had to read. 

• Decorate the whole house - kitchen done now working  my way through the living room and just need to finish painting the walls and then the woodwork.  On the way round I am also de-cluttering a little which is making me feel really organised.

• Drink a glass of homemade wine - the wine is still in the demi-johns in the airing cupboard and is ready to be filtered again.  Won't be read to drink for  a few moths yet.

So whilst the postponements are frustrating there are other things part way through and others in the pipeline where bookings have been made so all in all it's coming along nicely.

An orchestral concert

The massive pipe organ at the Leicester de Montfort Hall was majestic last night as it presided over the London Philharmonic Orchestra.  This is what the "de Mont" was built for!  It was amazing!  Around 90 musicians, all top quality, were guided by the conductor Vladimir Jurowski.  He was a little eccentric but highly regarded and  rightly so as the performance was everything I had hoped for.

For the first eight minutes we enjoyed Mozart's Symphony No.32 in G major.  This was followed by the Concierto de Aranjuez where the orchestra was accompanied by the renowned classical guitarist Milos Karadaglic.  If you have never heard him it is well worth looking him up on YouTube.  

Finally we were treated to Tchaikovsky's Symphony No 6 in B minor.  This was the entirety of the second half and lasted 45 minutes.  The whole orchestra was on stage for this (previously it had been a reduced number).  All I can say is "wow!"

Apologies that the picture is an empty stage - we quite understandably weren't allowed to take photos.

As an aside we sat next to a lovely man who we both worked with 10+ years ago at English Martyrs Catholic School.  It was great to catch up.

Learning to Crochet

After reading the instructions in the book and stitching, then undoing and reading again and stitching again and so on several times I have produced this ...

I won't say I have learnt to crochet yet as I am only on page 36 of a book with 297 pages, but I am on my way.  Once I have mastered it enough to actually make something I will tick this off as done.  Watch this space ...

And a big thank you to my colleague Diane for lending me the book , "Stitch 'n bitch crochet the Happy Hooker"  .

Get Something Published

Last month I wrote a letter to the Caravan and Camping Magazine.  It is the first time ever I have written to a publication and, guess what ... it was published and I won star letter!    So not only can I tick off get something published I have written, but I also won a prize.  Doesn't get any better than that. You might just about be able to read the letter in the photo from the page below.

Ardingly Antiques Fair

Well today was the day.  We arrived at the fair at around 9:45 am and the weather was glorious which was brilliant as most of the stalls were outside.  We are used to going to fairs of this size having attended Newark and Shepton Mallet in the past but Ardingly in West Sussex is the one I'd always wanted to go to.  Whilst it was a massive fair with probably more than 1000 sellers, I don't think it was actually as good as the Shepton Mallet one. We were determined to spend some money but the only thing we purchased was a set of spears for cocktail cherries and two plastic cocktail stirrers.  Some great stuff available but as our house is already stuffed with vintage furniture, we were on the lookout for smaller items.  Sadly only found a few pieces of our favourite Denby Arabesque tableware for sale (the large and small coffee pots, a teapot and some cups and saucers) and we already had those.  

World Record for Most Disorganised Event more like!

Okay - we arrived in plenty of time at 9am, duly wearing our onesies.  The queue to drive in was massive and it took us half an hour to crawl the last few hundred yards.  Once in we joined the foot queue; this still gave us an hour before the world record attempt but the queue was so long we were concerned. I asked several people working there what was happening, were they changing the times to get everyone in - no one knew.  Eventually, an hour, later someone was able to tell us that the world record wouldn't include us.  I was furious.  We arrived in plenty of time and they simply had not organised the event to deal with large numbers of people.    As we walked back to the car, to add insult to injury we could see the people who had got in receiving the news through the fence that they had broken the record.  The joke of it was there were more of us outside than there were in - but of course we didn't count.  Gutted and annoyed that if this had been organised properly we could all have been counted.  Oh well - back to the drawing board - and thanks for nothing Drayton Manor Park.

Break a World Record

And there I was thinking this would be hard and in reality all I have to do is put on a onesie and turn up at Drayton Manor Park next weekend!  Two chances to be part of a world record - most people in a onesie in one place and the longest scream by a crowd of people.  Who thinks these things up?
So at around 9.30am (probably) next Saturday you will find me in a queue outside Drayton Manor Park, wearing either my own polar bear like ensemble, or my daughter Rosie's far more attractive and stylish paisley version.   I really hope enough people turn up to make this a successful record attempt.  If you are reading this, please, please, please, share the link below and, of course, turn up yourself.  This is my chance to be part of a world record and I am really excited.

https://www.facebook.com/events/1447562342147227/

Swim a mile

I did it! - averaged 55 seconds a length which I'm really pleased with.  My brilliant colleague Ian who is also a very talented athlete challenged me to a "race".  I had a 32 length start and he was trying to catch me.  This was a tall order as it means I was half way before he even started.  At the beginning I honestly thought he would catch me but he didn't.    So although technically I won, he actually swam a mile much faster than I did so well done Ian!   If anyone wants to sponsor me retrospectively please use my just giving page - link on the left.  I am trying to raise £1,000 for pancreatic cancer research.

Balloon Flight - in the post

Look what arrived in the post today - it's our tickets for the balloon flight.  They came with an adorable little wicker picnic basket complete with cava and truffles.  We've booked the date - weather permitting we take off across Rutland Water on 10th May.  Can't wait!

Swim a Mile - Sport Relief Challenge

This time next week I should have this one in the bag.  Next Friday is Sport Relief and I have been challenged to swim a mile by a very sporty colleague of mine, Ian.  Not only is he sporty - he is a talented athlete who has recently switched to triathlon.  Those of you who follow such sports will know this involves a swim. 

On the other hand there is me.  Other than a few splashes in a pool in Malta on holiday a couple of years ago,  I have been swimming a grand total of three times in the past seven years. All of these occasions have been in the last four weeks.   I can swim as long as my face doesn't go under.  Breast stroke is as good as it gets!  I do have stamina and can just keep going, but a mile is 64 lengths.  The most I have ever swam in one go without stopping is 40 lengths.

My time recently has been about 60 seconds per length, so this means it should take me just over an hour to swim a mile.  Ian's time is about half that.

So this is our plan:  I set off first and when I get to 32 lengths he starts.  The idea is that with this handicap we should finish at around the same time, meaning the race will be on. 

We will have an audience - staff and students at our school will be paying to watch and we are being sponsored.    We have asked staff to sponsor the person they think will win.  So far I have four takers for a total of £14.

If anyone would like to sponsor me, you can do this via my just giving page - this money will not go to Sport Relief but to Pancreatic Cancer Research (and will also go towards my 50before50 target to raise £1000 for them).

Many thanks and wish me luck - those of you who know me personally will also know that my competitive nature means that I just have to win!

Insects

Not what I was expecting!  I bought a packet of crickets from an online exotic foods supplier.  I opted for crickets because they looked pretty awful.  I deliberately didn't go for those ones you can buy where they are encased in a lollipop etc - that seems a bit like cheating to me.  Anyway I thought I would eat them with an audience and  managed to eat two of them before the rest were "pinched" by everyone else who wanted to try them.  I was really looking forward to this one but ended up pretty disappointed - they were dry and tasteless.  You would also have to eat an awful lot of them to feel full I think.

Attend an Orchestral Concert

Just a quick update - we've bought tickets to go to see the London Philharmonic Orchestra at Leicester's De Montfort Hall  in April.    They are being accompanied by the classical guitarist Milos Karadaglic.  I had never heard of him (to my shame!) but having googled him I have to say I am very impressed and really looking forward to it.  The best thing about this list is that it is forcing me to make an effort to do the things I've always wanted to do but just never got round to.

Ardingly Antiques Fair

Ardingly Antiques Fair in West Sussex takes place six times a year.  It is massive and I have always wanted to go.  There are usually around 1700 stalls - if you want to have a look at all of them then it takes all day.  I have been to its sister fairs at Newark and Shepton Mallet but Ardingly is the biggest and the one I have always wanted to attend.  I do have a thing about antiques fairs and generally buying old stuff.  My house is pretty much full of old things, from books to toys, furniture to crockery.  Most things I buy nowadays are old; doing my "eco" bit rather than contributing to the manufacture of yet more modern tat.  If you buy something old it is generally better quality and more interesting.  I also get a strong sense of satisfaction that I am preserving something that might just have been scrapped.  Often my purchases are met with incredulity at home; like one of my most recent purchases, a 1930's french knitting spool shaped and painted like a fairy tale toadstool.  

Anyway, my quest to visit it has taken a step closer as we have just booked a break away to Crowborough in East Sussex which is pretty close by, and, guess what, we are going at just the right time as the fair takes place during our trip - can't wait!

Applied for a job I have no chance of getting - Done

I have applied for The Apprentice as suggested.  I will tick it off my list which means this is three out of 50 done.  If, however, I am successful I will reinstate the challenge to the list (you never know they might like the sound of me).  I took a slightly different approach to how I would normally present myself in a job application; I was totally candid about my views about why I am the best candidate and also about what makes me better than others.  It made me sound a bit arrogant and opinionated but having watched the programme regularly I think that is what they are generally  looking for - so let's see what happens!  Closing date is 19th Jan and they will let everyone know by 27th Jan if they have an audition ... sorry interview.

Procrastination

642 days and 48 tasks: that is one task every 13 days.  I currently have two in progress; decorating the house (started on the kitchen  today) and reading "War and Peace" (chapter 21 and crikey is it hard going!)  This week I will be starting the letters to celebs and the application to "The Apprentice"  - if you are friends with me on Facebook you will have seen that everyone seems to think it is a good idea to make that the job application for a job I have no chance of getting. Soon, however, I need to take on one of the more difficult challenges and rather than procrastinating I need to put some work into that.   Decorating, reading, writing - all easy.  What shall I do that's a bit more difficult?  Anyone know where I can go abseiling?  It would be good to do it off the top of a building rather than a rock.  How do I go about organising that?

(Yes that is a glass of Prosecco - essential part of the kit!)