I fell asleep on the sofa just as Traitors was about to begin and woke up as the 22.00 news was ending. Shock Horror. I was so traumatised by not knowing what had happened in the latest episode that I caught up with it in bed. No spoilers.
I then slept quite nicely until it was time to flex and arise.
T had nearly driven me up the walls and over the roof yesterday evening because he was smitten by a coughing fit. That lasted an hour or two. He does not cough quietly. His asthma sometimes makes him cough so I suggested he use his inhaler. But my suggestions are usually ignored, and this was one such.
I needed ear plugs! I may have mentioned that he can be incredibly noisy -muttering, coughing, water taps on full etc etc.
Anyway there was no coughing this morning and he cooperated in getting ready for day care and off we went. It was another very frosty morning at -6C.
However, when I picked him up from daycare, they said he had been coughing and making good use of tissues. Aha, a cold, I thought. Sometimes he just needs his inhaler because his asthma can cause coughing However it is now nearly 21.00 and there has been no coughing or snorting. Or snotting.
H and I walked at Cholsey again and the frost is even thicker as it has built up layer upon layer each night. All crunchy and crystalline. H thought she would have another roll. I missed the school rush, but then most schools have now broken up for the Christmas holiday.
Yesterday I was engaged chatting to a lovely man with an 11 year old, mostly black, springer called Mabel. She was plodding wearily across the frozen turf which made me think she was older than she was. He explained that she was in her dying days (literally) due to an aggressive cancer. Such a beautiful dog, who had spent most of her life on Hampstead Heath, because his wife had a National Trust job with live in accommodation. Cholsey was their second home, and it was where he spent his childhood. So sad.
I returned home to deal with a number of chores, best done in T’s absence. The new single electric blankets are now on the bed along with a new sheet, made of some special cotton fabric that is supposed to control temperature somehow or other. Ha ha. The new blanket controls allow you to direct the heat at certain parts of your body. Now now…. For example : feet.
Reni sent me a little video of Millie and Charlie having fun in the frost. Charlie was so animated, bless him. He always seemed to keep himself to himself in Crete. A bit like H does really. I’d love H to have a live in companion. But I’m not sure that she would want to share us.
I also made soup for lunch. Sweet corn with leeks and a few carrots and quite a lot of garlic. It was very tasty and there is more tomorrow.
it was still frosty when I picked up T.
The gardener has done a great job in France clearing the garden. I’m very impressed . He thought it would take him four days. It took him two. And he only charged me for half his original quote. Money well spent. I’m not going to let him escape! Maybe we can spend a little time there next year before selling up. Our time is usually spent trying to control the garden so it would be much more attractive to be there without having to do that. He’s blasted the tops and sides of the hedges! I had to climb through one last summer!
Today has been a mixture of being busy with a little relaxation. Tomorrow I need to start to get on top of Christmas. We are dining out with the family in the evening. And various Yorkshire in laws.
I’ve worked out menus for Monday which include baked gigantes, with dumplings on top. It’s a bastardised recipe as most people will have a chicken pesto casserole (with a few gigantes) and then dumplings on top. And I might make a Cretan orange cake because it is Fleur’s favourite. And I have crumble topping left from last Saturday so that will mean another crumble. I have 11 mouths to feed. Monday will be a cooking day.
Today is slipping by – time to go and make supper.
Traitors is drawing to a speculative close. There must be some mega assassinations to come because there are too many contestants still alive.
Thought for the Day
Leave a Reply