A Ghostly Encounter

So, we were sat in the Gardener's Arms the other night. We're not 'regulars' as such; we probably go in once a month, but nevertheless, we're getting to know the, staff and landlord, and on quieter nights, they will sit and chat with us.

So, it was quite quiet the other night. I was sitting at the end of a table, furthest away from the bar. Dan was at the side of the table. The landlord was playing darts with a couple of guys at the far end of the room. There was a couple of guys chatting at another table, and the barmaid was chatting to us, leaning over the bar.

We were just chatting away when a stool which was at the far end of our table just tipped over. There was a huge thump as everyone looked towards us. Dan leaned forward to pick it up.

"Did you knock it over" I asked.

"No!" He was most put out at the thought he might have done it. "My feet were under the table" he said, wiggling his feet under the table to prove it.

"It's the ghost" said the landlord.

"What? It's haunted in here?" I said. It was peculiar that, now I think of it, I'd been getting quite cold sat there the previous few minutes (I'd even untied the silk scarf I keep tied around my bag strap and draped it round my shoulders)

The guys in the bar were adamant. They said that there was definitely something there. Strange things happened in that bar. The landlord's dog would go beserk at nothing, Beermats and glasses would go flying - and there'd be noone in the bar at all!

So anyway, that's our 1st real ghostly experience!

The Fire

After cutting up half the garden the other day, we decided that the best way to get rid of the garden waste was to burn it.

Pics of the fire are up on Picassa ...HERE!

All the scraps you can see on the patio (and no I'm not talking about Dan!) were burned. All that's left is the bin full of ashes. Great and better than taking it down to the tip which is fraught with traumas!

New Project - part 2

I'm getting on well with the needlework. Here are some pics...

I've bought a tapestry frame to help with the slightly unwieldy canvas. It does make a difference!

Oooh, we just met the chicken man!

I've blogged on a couple of occasions about the chickens near to Michelle & Conrad. The last time being about the fact that some, at least, had reached the end of their days.

Well, tonight, just as we were peeling the spuds for tea, Jens "the chicken man" pitched up at the door to see M&C. He ended up staying for tea with us - no doubt a combination of Conrad's persuasion and the incredible smell emanating from the Aga (it was the slow roasted beef with star anise and chilli).

Anyway the good news is the chickens aren't for the pot!!! Jens is moving to another farm where they're going to let him have his chickens!

It's enough to tip you over the edge.

So, as mentioned in my Facebook status yesterday, Dan went all Percy Thrower on me. [1] He was hacking around at the tree in front of the front door which had got so big you could hardly get in!

Needless to say, after a couple of hours there were 7 bags of foliage needing to be disposed of down the tip. We don't have a brown bin scheme here. Usually stuff like that does my head in. Especially as our nearest tip, at Jn27 doesn't actually allow us in to it. (It's for Kirklees council, not Leeds, and we're an LS postcode). So we have to traipse off to the one near the bowling alley on Kirkstall Rd.

We get there and there's a queue. The guy is at the gate stopping people coming in. Apparently they're emptying the skips and it's going to take half an hour. Poo. We went back home.

Half an hour later we traipse out again. We arrive at the gate and it's closed. Again. They're emptying out the skips. Again. This time we hang on a bit and 10 mins later, we're the 2nd in!

I drive over to the garden waste area, and start emptying my bags. The skip is HUGE and so I walk right in to empty my stuff at the back. Unfortunately Dan starts emptying his bags right in the doorway. All the other lazy folks follow suit. No wonder they have to close every hour if people are this inconsiderate, the entrance to the skip would be blocked in 10 minutes with a huge space behind. Sheesh.

As we go to leave, I realised that although I'd parked facing the skip, thinking that the cars would park either side of me, car park stylie, a woman had just parked right accross me. I asked if there was any way she could shove along a bit. She just muttered, avoided eye contact and continued to empty her van.

Stupid, selifish, people.

Even through the descending red mist, with my superior manoevring skills, I was able to effect a 457-point turn and get out without ramming her, even though I wanted to.

[1] Quick update - Michelle, Dan's mum, has just informed us she went to college with Percy Thrower's daughter Margaret! How cool is that???

New Project

So, I've taken on a project. A tapestry cushion.

I know it seems a bit strange - but I have been known to be a bit of a dab hand with the crochet hook or needlework in the past! I just don't often sit down and apply myself.

Anyway, here's the finished product...I have no idea if I have the sticking power to finish it. So far it's the end of day 1 and I've done the dark blue in the middle and started the dark green at the bottom of the artichoke (yes that's what it is!) Lets see if I make it to the pink flowers!

Oooh the lovely bed.

We love going away - anyone who reads this blog will notice that we do it quite often! However in recent years we've noticed a problem. We bought a new bed back in April 07 and I can honestly say it's the nicest comfiest bed IN THE WHOLE WORLD.

Why?

Well it's a Super King size for a start. This is it. So there's enough space to move around in! We don't disturb each other when turning over, and, now we do the split quilt thing, you'd hardly notice there was anyone else there! Secondly it's one of these heavenly mattresses. Squidgy on the top and firmer in the middle! Sounds just like me! Anyway, it's so comfortable that we both love getting back into it when we've been away. Nothing else quite compares.

I should probably go on their website as 'Pleased of Leeds'

Familiar Faces

Well the last post entry left us in the Eastern Eye with me knowing people on 3 other tables of the 12 table restaurant! It was just like coming back home.

After chatting to the guys, it turned out that the reason why there were so many people I knew in the vicinity was that the crowd of guys I used to hang around with when I lived here were in the pub 2 doors down for a birthday party!

I hardly ever get to see them these days, eve when coming down to Pompey as they all have young families and to catch them all on a night when they had babysitters was too good an opportunity to miss! We headed to the Wine Vaults (a pub which I'd just boasted to Nick and Laura that I used to be able to walk into and be guaranteed I'd know someone) and walked in.

It was brilliant to see the looks of surprise on people's faces! Accompanied by a whole load of 'what are you doing here' and 'did you take a wrong turn at Leicester' we had a very warm welcome. It was top to catch up with the crowd! Back in the day, we all lived in a group of streets in Southsea called the '-shotts'; Hayshott, Greyshott, Empshott, Bramshott.


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It was a great set up. Newly graduated, it was like being students at the same time as being grown up and having your own house! We saved money by having cheapo dinners round at each others' houses and didn't even need to get a cab home!

Some things never change

So we're sitting in the Still & West and decide to go for a curry on Albert Rd. The Eastern Eye is my favourite curry house of recent years. Given that it's about 2 minutes walk from Scotty & Michele's I thought I'd better call and let them know we were in the vicinity - otherwise the chances of them popping into the EE for a curry at the same time would have been very high! Then I'd have got into trouble for not telling them we were in Pompey!

So, they were expecting visitors and planning to go for a curry too - in Aubergine, the new upmarket curry house where we went with Helen back in the summer. Yummy it was too. Nevertheless, we fanced 'proper' rather than 'posh' curry.

So we got to Albert road and popped in to see the guys for a swift drinkie before their guests arrived! We stayed a little while, said hello to their guests, checked out Scotty's new projector and then headed off in search of poppadoms.

About 10 minutes in to our meal, Scotty, Michele and their 2 guests walked in to the Eastern Eye. Aubergene had over an hour's wait, so they decided to crash our restaurant! We tried to sort out a table next to us but actually the restaurant was full, so they sat at the end of the room.

About half way through the meal the table next to us finished and left. I was thinking that Scotty & the gang could have sat next to us, when a couple came in and sat down. I did a bit of a double take. It was a guy who was on the same Uni course as me! John White. I stared at him a bit until he looked over and then we had a little catch up of the last few years! We're friends on facebook but haven't seen him for AGES!

So back to the dinner, and we were just getting to the end, when I look up and another group had walked in - I recognised a couple of the guys! Brian and Carl. Another 2 of the Pompey crowd from way back when!

Just like going home!

Well it's been a while - I think the last time we were down in Pompey was last July to see Helen. It was a typically gorgeous weekend involving walking along the seafront, ships, beer at the Still and West, Gunwharf and all the things you'd expect from a classic Portsmouth weekend.

I miss it.

We don't go down that often because I do like it too much! Part of me would rather not know what I'm missing.

So here we are again! We've been meaning to visit Nick and Laura for quite a while. They lived in Wimbledon but have recently moved to...Portsmouth! They've just got a flat in Gunwharf - quite close to the shops. You can see Jongleurs and the edge of the Customs House from their window.

As would be expected, after a reasonable (4.5 hour) drive down on Friday night, we hit the wine and cocktails quite hard - we did eat; Nick's famous jerk cicken with rice and peas - but to be honest there was alot more drinking going on.

At 2:50 we decided we'd be sensible at go to bed! I'm not sure who thought this was sensible, but I was quite glad we didn't pull an all-nighter like last time - the night before going skiing where we actually didn't go to bed and got picked up by the taxi at 7am feeling flavoursome!

Needless to say, it was a slow start yesterday! We managed to drag ourselves down to Cafe Rouge (4 steps away) for some coca colas, chips and moules!

Because N&L haven't been down here very long, we took them for a wander to old Portsmouth for some beer in the Still & West - where else?

We did manage to sit outside for a bit, even though it was a bit breezy! I love that part of Old Portsmouth.

Nice view of the tower and Gunwharf too.

Piccy of the day

Well what a picture this is , Of Bansko, Place in Bulgaria where a mate of mine has bought a ski chalet (Like you do)

I can barely bring myself to say it

But now my SHOULDER is hurting.

I've been awake since 5am because every time I turned over, the muscle twanged with a vengeance. I realise I must have put my left arm down first as I hit the deck the other day.

When I was doing my military fitness last Thursday I was crawling around in the mud, and a realised that my knees were really sore. It wasn't news. I've not been able to put my right knee flat on the ground since I fell the first time at Arcadia just before Christmas. And, I can't put my left knee flat on the ground since I did a spectacular skid in the reception at IBM on a wet day about 5 years ago, crashing to the floor and landing on my left knee and winging the heel of my (really nice) brown suede platform boot across the foyer.

I wonder if there's any way I see the doctor about my sore shoulder, 2 knees and ankle without mentioning the 3 falls?

Oh the shame!

RICE with green beans or broccoli?

Our Jane, 2 x marathoner, has given her advice on my dodgy ankle (still aching).

Apparently it's R.I.C.E. (!)

R=rest
I=ice
C=compression
E=elevation

I've been doing the compression - bought a tubi-grip from Sainsbury's pharmacy whilst hobbling around there last night, and I have been resting it *a bit*, but I was a bit short on the ice and elevation elements of the treatment.

Off to the freezer for the obligatory bag of peas only to find there were no peas; Dan did a pea soup last week!

So the next big decision is, green beans or broccoli florets?

Anyway, I find myself now, laid in bed, foot on a mountain of pillows, with a bag of green beans on my ankle, having a nice RICE and beans. I think the broccoli would have done more harm than good!

More "ow ow ow owwwwwwwwwww"

Well the weekend was pretty painful. My muscles haven't been put through their paces in that way since about 1996. However on Sunday I'd more or less recovered. 

Today, however, I managed to go over on my ankle and fell spectacularly in exactly the same spot that I went over on it just before Christmas. It was just on the long walk up from the Arcadia car park to the offices where the IT dept are. Just about here in fact....

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Poor Chris, he was there the last time I fell (on the way back down the hill). I hope he's not getting freaked out by the fact that I'm falling at his feet alot lately!

Anyway, I'm really aching now. My ankle is twice the size of the other one. I'm wearing a nice tubular bandage which caused me to scream loudly whilst just trying to put it on.

I think I may NOT be doing my military training this week.

Dance advert - wish I was there!

T-mobile did an advert where they filmed 400 dancers (posing as commuters) start up a dance routine at Liverpool Street Station at 11am on the 15th Jan. Their objective was to try and get as many members of the public to join in with them.



I wish I'd been there. Wouldn't it have cheered you up on your way to work?

Ow ow ow ow oooooooooooooow

I have various plans for the summer.

1. Race for life 5k - a couple of them at least
2. Jane Tomlinson 10k Run for All - June - must improve considerably on last year's time.
3. Abbey Dash 10k - one of Leeds' fastest (coz it's the flattest) road races.

All very good thoughts, but, although I've had good intentions, I've not actually got off my ar*e and done any running.

About 10 days ago this email popped into my in-box...

Armed Forces Fitness Classes To Start In March

Armed forces fitness classes will be starting on March 3rd and will take place every Tuesday and Thursday between 6:15pm and 7:15pm.

Classes are an hour long, suitable for all abilities and are run by ex armed forces who are qualified military physical training instructors. Warm layed clothing works best.

The meeting point for the training is at the roundabout opposite the icon Business Centre just off Century Way.

Organised by the people who look after the Thorpe Park Business Park where IBM is - it seemed too good an opportunity to miss - a group sporting event, literally right on my doorstep!

Anyway - Janice and I headed off there in a determined effort to get fit for the summer running schedule (she's running a half marathon).

I'm afraid the memory of what happened has partly been blanked from my mind. Lets just say it was bad and good at the same time. I remember nearly passing out during the WARM UP, Jan nearly puking during the squat thrusts, and me lying in the mud doing sit ups with my bum in a puddle. At one point I couldn't feel my legs.

Strangely enough I was thinking about Vik - the sorts of things we used to do together would have the same feelings of utter exhaustion and exhilaration. 'Come ON Rossi, you can DO it' always ringing in my ear half way up a mountain, down an abseil, or blind rock climbing in the pitch dark in a slate mine. She really knew how to push me to my limits.

So today, I'm in pain. I can feel the location of every single muscle in my body. But do you know what? It's great. I feel like I felt the week that V and I climbed Snowdon 7 times in 7 days! Shattered, elated & in pain all over. I'm not complaining. All I want to know now is, where do I sign up?

Bring...it...on.

Some incredible pictures

I'm not one for just putting links to other things in the blog. I do like to actually write stuff, or at least embed the link as content. Technology doesn't let me embed the pictures so I'm going to just have to link you to these pictures I found on the BBC 'most emailed' tab.