Getting Tubby

Now with all of this sitting around over the colder months due to a serious shortage on the work side I, with horror, have weighed myself and in no uncertain terms I have become tubby. This is not a unusal event for winter but I do hate it!! I am not an overly vain person but extra weight makes me feel slow and uncomfortable so its time to cut out the biscuits and crisps (I have been eating far too many) and take the dog on longer walks, I have been a bit sloppy in this aspect as well lately, in order to lose about a stone. Its never a problem after spring arrives as Im back into active mode outside working and playing on the allotment. Still it wont hurt to get a headstart this year and it will get me out of the house which always ends getting me into cant be arsed mode and reaching for another snack.

The tickets are booked and the dates confirmed. I am back out to Spain for the first two weeks of April and cannot wait for it. The first few days will involve alcohol with my father in law then I will be left to look after his dogs and house sit. Its a shame wifey wont be coming but we cant afford the extra tickets at the moment so will make another trip later in the summer which will give us something else to look forward to. It will be 20 months since I have been back to southern Spain and it will be nice to catch up with friends who are still out there.

Now I chuckled to myself earlier in the week looking at Facebook. I enjoy forums on things that interest me but Facebook never really has and I was made to open an account by wifey and friends, not that it gets used a great deal just endless emails about rubbish really. The chuckling was caused by photos that have been uploaded by my younger sisters and their friends. I am sure they all think they are models LOL The bloody ridiculus pouts and poses that they all seem to do when they realise a camera is pointed there way are comical!!! They look like a PG Tips Chimps party most of the time but must think they look fantastic as they put these monkey shots on the web for all to see and then comment on each others saying how lovely they look LMAO.
Status updates...now what the hell is all that about??? Coded messages about what clothes you are going to where, whos the bitch for this hour and what colour your dump was 5 minutes after you've taken it!???? I must be seriously out of touch because when I wanted to talk to a mate I would go around to see him or give him a ring?! Must be getting on in my head you know.

Ive got some work lined up, not alot but every little helps. All I need is for this snow to melt and a few dry days to put some money in the bank. The sharks have started circulating again after money for adverts so thats a sure sign that spring is on the way again. It will only be a few more weeks before I am planting flower seeds ready for the onslaught of hanging baskets and bed work.

Have you ever driven a Transit in the snow? Now thats an experience that must be had by all :) As long as you dont expect to go in the direction you want everything is ok. Parked cars and oncoming is all fair game to the transit it cares not which it heads for with its rear wheel drive LOL Its like driving an old Capri in the wet, always make sure you bring a spare pair of pants with you!

I've just got off of the phone with my youngest brother who lives in Dublin. Now he is living his life his way. Hes always loved playing his guitar and singing and he has made a living out of this now for over 2 years!! Good on him. He had a dream chased it and succeded. He has just moved in with ihis girlfriend and is setting up his own recording studio so he can expand in what he loves...music. Not just his own music but everyone elses as well. I am extremely proud of him and a little envious of the path he has chosen and has won. He works hard in a job that he loves but best of all earns money from his passion. I am sure there a very few of us that can say the same.

Anyway enough rambling for tonight. Im going to make a cup of tea and then head for bed.

Feeling like a kid!!

Ive had a great morning!!! I was awoken by wifey via a text message at 6.50am saying im stuck in the snow!

I popped my head out of the window to see over a foot of snow had dropped overnight and wifey had treid to drive to work in it!! You couldnt tell the road from the paths and they were obviously ungritted. I called wifey back to find out where she was and she had only managed to get about 3/4 of a mile up the road. With a bit of help she got the car turned around and managed to sledge it home LOL.

She was panicking about not getting to work but as I explained what else was she supposede to do? She couldn't walk there as its about 5 miles and the car was going no-where. So we decided to wake the kids, grab the dog and go and play in the winter wonderland!!

2 hours of snowmaen and snowballs followed by tea and toast at my parents! Then a nice walk back home enjoying the winter wonderland pictures around us.

I cant work today, the wife cant work today and the schools are closed. Time to wrap up indoors keep warm and have a lazy day...nice!

And the country stops.

I love the snow and have to admit I am the worlds biggest kid when we get any. I had a fantastic hour with the kids in the garden building a snowman and throwing snowballs. The dog seemed to love it more than us constantly running around in a snow plough effect with her nose deep in the freshly fallen snow.

But how are we always so unprepared for it as a society? We know its coming but everything grinds to a halt as soon as we get more than a dusting of the stuff! I wonder how certain countries manage to cope with it? You dont see parts of France, Germany or Austria grinding to a halt when the main income of their tourist industry falls from the skies!! It just seems daft that we do. NOT that the kids were complaining about the time off of school!

I did feel sorry for my youngest this morning though, her school was closed leaving her free and clear to play the day away only to find herself feeling really ill by half past nine this morning. Talk about bad timing but with more of the white stuff coming im sure she will get another opportunity this week.

Obviously no work on for a few days as the grounds frozen solid. No chance to play at the allotment as its white!!

I wonder with the forecast on the economic climate whetehr I should stay self employed or look for a full time job. In honesty I love working for myself and would prefer it stayed this way but if work is still this slow later in the year I really will have to consider all of the options. My biggest enemy is boredom/cabin fever but I really must take up another hobby to fill these slower times. The problem is I cannot think what sort of hobby I would like to take up so watch this space for all sorts of suggestions soon :)

What a week.

I dont even know where to start this time, so much has happend over the last week!

Ok then...The group we were going to raise money for whilst doing out ride to Santiago is run by the local county council. We had dropped off 2 computers, sofas, table & chairs and collected a load of paint. The site was up and running when we were informed by one of the bigwigs from the council that we had to STOP! Turn off the website and dont give anything else to the drop in group. The reason? As they are run by the County Council we cannot activly raise any funds or goods for them. They can run it through a communications commity to see if something can be arranged but its doubtful!!!
What!!! Have you ever heard of such self indorced popus crap in your entire life? We had asked for nothing from them and only wanted to make the users who attend the group a better enviroment. These guys and girls have various levels of learning difficulties (inc my sister) and we were only helping make there day to day lives in the group a bit more comfortable. So the motto seems to be, as far as the local council are concerned, dont bother trying to help out because we wont allow it!!!

Ok then thats my rant over! Onto the rest of the week...

Works looking up with a regular customer upping my hours, shes funny as hell as we spend more time going between her house annd her allotment each visit than anything else as she cannot decide what to do where LOL

I also got a new contract for a hotel so thats superb as its a bit more regular income starting from March.

I spent a happy few hours in our local A&E last night and felt like such a pratt! I couldnt get out or tell if I had a contact lense in my right eye. By the time I got there I looked like something out of a horror film with a blood red eye! I looked like I had some horrible diesease and a coupl of little kids just kept staring at me in horror :) Well after speaking to a Nurse then waiting on the eye Doctor I was happily informed the only thingI was trying to get out of my eye was my eye!!!!!!! :0 I apologised to the doc for wasting their time when I was told that they were going to numb my eye for further investigation....Why???????????

"Well if you didnt take it out or remeber it coming out it may be stuck under one of the eye lids"...So they then proceeded to poke and prod around for a few minutes (not a nice experience) to then declare me contact free! Thats the end of me answering to my vanity so im back to my good old reliable specs because even though they are a pain in the arse where works concerned Id rather put up with that then wondering whether Ive still got a contact in!

On a lighter note my wife and I were watching the news the other morning when an article came on about how Tigers in the wild have moved on from eating cattle to eating humans. The news piece was very detailed including a women who was describing in depth what a nusance this was for the locals who were just trying to live their lives. It was then determined that people were encrouching on the native habitat of these Tigers and wondering why they were being eaten LOL Now Im all for live and let live but this must have been a slow news day. Obviously us humans cant move that quickly so we are going to get eaten! They wanted to train dogs to bark loudly when a Tiger came close to a village but my wife piped up "wouldnt it be easier to put up a fence" LOL Now I know thats a simplistic solution but you would think these do gooders would look for the easiest way to deal with these problems....and try to remember that this wasnt a problem before they strted knicking the tigers territory!!

Went to the allotment today to discover most f the greenhouse glass blown out so its going to be a busy day on the plot tommorrow.

The weather...been a funny week with all seasons in a few days. Its been freezing and then raining, a bit of sun and overcast oh and I shouldnt forget the fog!

They are saying its going to snow so I will try to get some pics.

Busy Busy Busy

Well its been a hectic couple of days with a hectic week lined up...its so nice to be doing something again after being ill so I am not complaining!

The sponsorship for the drop-in centre is already going well just 5 days in. We have so far got them a new table & chairs and new sofas! I got someone to fix an old pc I had at home for free so that will be delivered on Monday to them. We have paint waiting to be collected so next week I will be rolling my sleeves up and getting on with freshening the centre up!!! It really gives you faith back in humanity when so much cn be achieved in such a short space of time by only word of mouth.

The website for the Camino cycle is coming along nicely and is up and running but is incomplete. Have a look and let me know what you think of it so far... www.cycletosantiago.co.uk Im hoping to have it finished by late Sunday evening.

I am hurriedly writing this blog before I have to take the kids to my 4 year old nephews birthday party at a place charmingly named Cheeky Monkeys. Sounds like something off a Pink Panther film and I can just imagine Peter Sellers saying it :) Its one of these take them in and let them go places with ball pools etc so a bit of a dumping ground really where the kids wear themselves out whilst the parents sit back and enjoy a coffee. The good thing is my brother is bringing his Landcrab over for me to have a butchers at, you've got to love classic cars, and no doubt talk him through whatever new problems it is presenting :)

We are then off to help build a gate for a friend and have dinner there so it should be a busy but good day today.

The thing that made me smile yesterday was when I put my youngest to bed and she told me I was the "best Dad in world" :) Why she said it I do not know...perhaps she hasnt figured out im a miserable bugger most of the time yet!!

Seed spuds are chitting nicely and it looks the sun is trying to break through the clouds...a bit of sunshine always makes a day better.

LOL Ive just watched the dog run head long into the garden gate after a cat...stupid animal!! So i best go and see if shes done any damage.

Been Busy :)

Well what a few days! Ive been rushed off of my feet in one form or another and have no commited myself to a few things and I couldn't be happier!

Right then where to start?

As ive mentioned before wifey had decided that we are going to cycle El Camino Ingles in northern Spain. 124km of Spanish countryside and I have to admit I am now looking forward to it. Its going to be a great way to explore the area in more depth and there will be no rush to do this in. The dates we have set for this run are 19th-24th August.

We have chosen who we will raise funds for on this our first epic journey, god Im sooo unfit this really is becoming a reality and I have to get into some sort of training, and that group is called Grapevine. This is a drop in centre for adults with learning disabilities that my sister uses on a daily basis. The group is evolving into more than just a drop in centre, its now actively helping gain employment and volunteer work for these adults within society and also raising awareness/encouraging intergration. They are self funded and I have to admit that the place really needs alot of renovating and goods supplying to make the enviroment a nicer place (not that its a bad place it just really needs updating).

Now as I work for myself I am in a position to be able to offer time. I will be decorating the building and getting lots of replacement furniture off of freecycle for them, in fact I managed to get them a new set of table and chairs that was desperatly needed the same day which was fantastic!! I will also be doing a day a week volunteer work with them which I am really looking forward to as many have worked in gardening and we are going to use my allotment to encourage further education. They will have there own area to grow veg of their choice which we will then cook at harvest time!

There are many other items that are needed inc a new kitchen/white goods, computers and carpets so we will be hitting companies to see if they can supply some of these things for them. I am putting together a website about the cycle run and these wonderful peebs will have info on there of what they do and why. The link will follow in a few days!

Onto other things now... Ive started some regular gardening for a new customer today and what a card she is!! You have got to love the older generation, they have seen so many changes over the years and the stories are just downright hilarious! I am employed for 6 hrs a week by her and we spent the first three drinking coffee!!! I did keep pointing out we were on the clock and should we do some work? but she just laughed and said I am enjoying the company dont worry! I then told her I cant take money off of you for drinking coffee but she was adamant she had planned this so we could get to know each other better.....so in other words I was being checked out in a big way on just about all counts of my life and lifestyle LOL
I must of been ok as its now a weekly arrangement!

The kids are actually in a good mood at the moment. This does make a nice change as the older girls 11,12 are convinced they are in their late teens and the 8 year old seems to be mimicking their moods at the moment! The past few evenings have been a joy with coherent conversations and kisses goodnight instead of sculking off to their bedrooms and festering :)

I must get my seed potatoes out to chit or I will be late planting out. Nothing else to be done at the moment seed wise as its still too early and cold.

The weather....rubbish :) Rain High winds and then frosts, dont you just love a british winter.

Right then lots to do so Im off...

Wifey has decided on our first holiday.

Before wifey shot off to work I have been told to look into riding the Santiago de Compostela pilgramage route! Now I am not an overly religious person but I do love Santiago. Its a fantastic city with a mix of superb history in the old city and a new vibrant modern city surrounding it. The culture is fantastic as are the Spanish people there.

Appently alot of folk walk many many miles as the old pilgrams did but im buggered if im doing that!!! I am far tooo lazy for that!! So we are going to do 200 kms on, get this!!!>.. push bikes!!

When she said ride I thought I was going to get the motorbike out and have a superb blat out but no. We are to use pedal power and I cant remember the last time I pedalled more than a mile or so!!!!!!!! Still marriage is about compromise so I will of course do as I am told :)

No seriously I think it will be good. We will raise some money for charity and see some fantastic parts of Spain as we go along. We have agreed that we will stay in proper hotels along the way so its more of an adventure holiday than anything else. I suppose I had better get fitter and get my poor backside used to a saddle again!! Sounds like lots of talcom powder will be needed!!

I will insist on us having a proper break as well but that will be a family one with the kids in tow. I think camping will be yet again on the cards.

Right best be doing a bit more research on these routes then :)