Today I've mostly bin...

[giraffe]

I think the police have taken it quite seriously as the young lady that answered the door is disabled, and three men pushed past her into the house.

[gill216]

Another scumbag has been taken off the streets today. They've just arrested someone for 50 caravan burglaries and removed about the same number of televisions from his house. One of them would have been mine if they'd moved my caravan a day earlier. Good news for the 6 people around me who can now go and reclaim their property.

[eirian]

... dropping Thomas off for his first day at pre-school

[Wulfruna]

What a fabuloous picture of my gorgeous grandson . We'll be dying to hear how he gets on. The big test, of course is what happens when he has to go back again the next day.....

[Bunnylump]

Aw - how cute! Hope the day went well!!

[eirian]

the day went really well - he was really excited about going back this morning

[Bunnylump]

That sounds very positive! Although I find it completely terrifying that he's old enough to be GOING to nursery... Mind you, my little soldier is 22...

[supersleuth]

Finally, finally, and fingers crossed, ironing out the last of the glitches in our newly re-vamped website.

http://www.ypwd.info

[Bunnylump]

That looks very professional! Well done. And a very worthwhile cause, too.

[Bunnylump]

...To an exhibition of art and photography. Two of our friends were exhibiting (along with some other weird and wonderfuls!!)- Maude
http://www.eg-design.co.uk/ and Neil http://www.commercial-photographer.info/. It was held in St Mary's Church in Pitstone, which was a nice setting
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sheepies/4895273648/

And best of all, I've got some Christmas presents!! Neil was doing a 2 for £30 deal on some of his lovely 10"x14" prints. Here are two of the ones I chose. The first one was taken when he was in Cuba, the second is local - near where we had the Ashridge PB meet.




Lovely, aren't they?

[MBH]

They are Wonderful depth to that second one.

[Bunnylump]

You know, the real shame of it is that he's such a brilliant photographer, yet he struggles to make a living with it. I have ordered another beautiful one (which I can't show you because it isn't on his website) which was taken at dawn in the woods in autumn. That one will be going on my wall. He picks his spot, then sets up at about 4am, when he has about a 20 minute slot where the light is "right". Now there's dedication for you!! I am in awe of people who can take lovely photos. Mine are always a bit sideways, with people's heads chopped off...or a telegraph pole growing out of someone's head...

[LAT]

......on a boat on the Thames. Husband's aunt was 90 and her son had hired an old steam barge to take us from Runnymede to Maidenhead. The boat was over 100 years old but has recently been renovated. It was wonderful, all wood and brass, the weather was great, the scenery beautiful (gosh how the other half live, some of the houses were magnificent!) and the lunch delicious. This celebration had to be postponed from June as there was too much water in the river then.
I was so pleased for her that it turned out so nice today.

[Wulfruna]

Recovering after being away for a week helping to organise an international conference (in Malvern) for 65 women from 25 different European countries. They have an annual conference in a different country each time and it was the UK's turn to host it. So we do know some of the regular attenders, and it is always exciting to meet new people. It was great fun, but hard work!

I had been helping some of the East Europeans with getting visas - a nightmare task with the strict rules laid down by the UK Border Agency . The form even asks "have you been involved with a terrorist organisation or engaged in terrorism" . We had to send in all kinds of documents to prove they were bona fide visitors - not just an invitation letter, but also the conference programme, the budget (showing that their costs would be underwritten by us), and receipts for the booking at the Centre. Another Catch 22 is that they advise people not to book their travel until they have actually got their visa - and then on another page suggest that they bring their flight bookings with them to the embassy to prove that they have bought return tickets! But it all worked out in the end and they did not have to wait a long time to get the visa as used to be the case in the past.

I was also involved beforehand in doing translation from German of a celebration booklet which was presented at the conference - the organisation (of European Christian Women) was celebrating its 30th birthday.

[clvrlad]

sounds like hard work
im glad you enjoyed it as well

[Bunnylump]

...Running around a wood all day doing activities with year 7s. It was the Cuffley Camp trip - assault courses, problem solving (bridges across swamps with tyres / boards etc.) woodland shelter making with massive branches, that sort of thing. The kids particularly enjoyed making the shelters - the best one by a long was was made by a traveller boy's team - which was even slightly waterproofed with moss etc. We tested this by making the kids get into their shelters and then tipping watering cans of water over them...

Anyway, the kids largely had a great day (only two of my team in tears and one boy falling off a rope bridge!!) I am now KNACKERED. Certainly beats being in school.

[Snoopy]

What a wonderful day you all had. My grandson had his first Cub camp this weekend and came home filthy, tired but very happy.


Today I was in Glasgow at a posh auctioneers to get some Chinese vases and plates valued. They will be put into an auction in January but I don't think I'll be living it up on the proceeds

[gill216]

I'm looking out over a ploughed field and watching the real life redjimmy's in their helicopters evacuating the oil riggers from the north sea and landing about 200 yards away from where I'm sitting in the brilliant sunshine at almost 5pm.

I left Leeds this morning in the pouring rain and wished I hadn't bothered . The rain and road spray on the M62 was horrendous. I had wipers full on both back and front and I couldn't see a thing in any direction. I hit the A63 and the sunshine coming through my car window was burning my ear. OH has been out for a bike ride and has now gone to play golf. Withernsea strikes again. Doesn't matter what kind of weather we are supposed to have it's almost always the opposite. It's like living in a parallel universe at times. It must be really bad out at sea for them to do this. Get home safely boys.

[clvrlad]

well i can see drizzle

compared with the downpour and floods from yesterday this is good weather

hope they are all ok

[MBH]

Had a total mess of a week thanks to Tuesday morning and the rain/floods

Taking Maisie for her early morning walk which involves driving down to the Quayside business park I was on Scotswood road driving carefully through the weather. [30 in a 50 limit]. I don't know if it was reflections of light making things look normal but suddenly I drove into about 1.5-foot depth of flood water. The engine cut out

Traffic Control truck heading in the opposite direction turned round the roundabout and the guy pushed me up out of the deep part onto a slight rise allowing me to get out of the car without flooding my shoes. He also closed off Scotswood road in both directions declaring it officially impassable.

Poor Maisie got to do her walk and 'business' along the grass by the road and was put safely back in the car where I thought I could just restart it once it had drip-dried out a bit.....

How far out of date am I?????????

I'm sure in years gone by the engine would drain of water, then if it didn't turn over a spray of WD40 of certain areas would fix that, and running the engine would then dry out the rest. It seems todays cars are not now designed to 'go outside' the way they used to do.

I was told the air filter will have turned to blottting paper making that useless, and it is not impossible that the engine might be wrecked and the car a 'write off' What the heck???

The RAC said about 75 minutes to wait for the truck to arrive. That would have been 7:45. Got a call from him at 8:00 saying he was in Washington and everything was stuck - the A1 was a flooded mess. I stayed as long as possible and eventually needed to find somewhere to leave the keys and to start walking Maisie the 3-miles back towards home. Hospital appointment for OH meant I was on a time limit. I found out later it took the RAC almost 4 hours to get to my car (from the 8am phonecall from him).

Got a hire car replacement for now, but it has not been a good week at all.