UnChristmassy Festivities & Things-To-Do

The weekend was full of things to do and it started from nothing. My intention of ironing two items of clothing on Saturday moning was just that and not removing, cleaning and tidying three of the biggest cupboards in the kitchen nor did it include making three jellies (two of which with sponge fingers, yum). Yesterday was just as bad and I managed to add an extra large batch of rock cakes and a cottage pie into the equation.

There's something wonderfully blissful about making rock cakes. They were something I made as a child as well as marble cake, which was great fun when it came to swirling colour into the mixture. The cookbook those two recipes are in went astray many years ago which was quite sad as it was one I always referred to. I was fortunate to have a mother with initiative who went on a search for another copy with various bookfinders, and I now have a copy on my shelf with the other cookbooks. It is one that I'll treasure 'til the ending day.

This is the last week at work until January. I'm looking forward to having some time away as, I've said before, there are numerous things I would like to do with my days. One of them was actually doing the whole kitchen so having half of it done makes it a lot easier. The biggest task is cataloguing all of the Disney beanies. I had a system set up about three years ago but due to moving it didn't get completed nor could it continue with newly purchased items. I'll kick start that again over the holiday and it should only take a day.

I set up a table with lots of things to include like the season, if it was limited edition (and which number it was) price etc. All the things that we need to know and also a serial that I created which gets added to the beanie that is wrapped up in tissue paper, after a photograph has been taken. Looking outside in, I'm quite thorough with these things. I like that. Gosh, something positive about myself. Are the tablets working now?!

My intention for my lunch break was to make another pouch but I cleverly brought everything but the zipper so I can't even cut the material down to the exact size. Not my most clever of moves. Next Monday sees me visiting the dentist to assist with a filling that has almost all fallen out and hopefully at some point my brother will visit. It is disgraceful the number of years it has been since I last saw him. Oh and the cats are still bringing in lots of micely presents,

Holly Berries & Baubauls

Christmas and I have never really been friends. It always brings memories of the bad and all the festivities are surrounded with gloom. With the credit crunch setting in, it makes walking around the English town a manic mission and far from enjoyable. People declaring, "I've got to get this, I've got to get that," but not a single utter of, "I'd like to get this." It's always a rush. Always forceful and all for a day. But it's not the day that is remembered, it's the commercialism and the constant pressure to have everything bought in, everything prepared. The day is not welcomed but more greeted with a sigh of relief that the mania is over for another year. How very parallel from the old.

You sang me Spanish lullabies

This past week has been truly miserable, aside from my short visit to Bath on Sunday, which was a little waste of time. Bad news, bad calls, bad letters and pretty bad weather, though the rain staying away has been quite nice, albeit rather cold still. Our trip to Bath was to do with a holiday package my mother had won. This turned out to be somewhat of a con and it annoys me that I saw it when we were at the Marriott one in FL years ago, but I honestly didn't see this one coming. Here's hoping that the Disney Vacation Club is better.

So I didn't get to take many photos in Bath, including one of the Cath Kidston store which is absolutely fabulous! The Christmas range is absolutely adorable and I was very good in not splurging in there; a mere £30 was my total. I bought three more tall beakers with the bird print on, making a nice set of four in my cupboards. The 15 years celebration mints was a must and the tin is perfect for my ATCs. Last but not least, the fabric off-cuts was splendid.
The print isn't very clear in this photo ~ oh alas, the wait of light evenings is taking to long to return! This wad had 10% off the cost and of course my mind span with ideas of uses. The cats are so different and yet incredibly similar. Theodore has no ruff in the summer months whereas Gandalf's blooms to the walls with a mass of fur. In the winter months, Theodore's grows (though not as much as Gandalf's) and Gandalf's disappears more than Theodore's in the summer months, leaving him looking rather small. I gave them and Ophelia some catnip teabags last night. A minor mistake leaving one on my bed as I awoke with drool stains on my duvet ~ they go bananas for them!

Until The Sun Goes Down

Yesterday was a remarkably short day whereas today seems to be endless, made worse by the fact that I'm boiling in the building, thanks to the Plant Room being next door. Heater? Never needed such a thing, aside from in the summer months where the sun is hidden on the other side of the building, leaving this little office in the shade and leaving me to grab some soup or Whittard's tea.

All hopes on a decent costume for someone's leaving party worked out well ~ it actually fits and isn't paper thin! I was a little dubious buying from the same website that gave me a rediculously sheer Spanish dress but thankfully, this one is far better and worth the money that I paid. The power here was meant to be switched off this morning but that's either been deferred for later in the week, or people are able to work around it although whichever is happening, the server has gone kaput, so I've spent a good portion in the day in the new archive, which is finally coming into fruition!

I could do with some time off though, there's a big amount of post that I have to get sent off and I can't see me getting it done after work, due to the baking that needs to be done for the bake sale I'm doing for Children In Need, plus there's all the books to do. I'm keeping all things crossed for someone to do a bigger-than-usual order seeing as Christmas is approaching but I'm still waiting for such a thing.

The end of my lunch break awaits...

And So It's Here

Having to tell your cat that the little field mouse he brought inside is no longer around because his younger twin decided to have an early dinner is a rather sad affair. At least there have been no rabbits brought in for a few weeks, thankfully. Knowing that Theodore managed to consume an adult rabbit is still rather baffling but cats will be cats and he has the hunter instinct still very strong in him. I'm very excited that I have finished my zine, which is a year in the making. How sad that I didn't actually know which number I was up to and had to check my webpage to see which was the last one I did.


So there it is, in all its papery glory, aside from the orange tinge it's acquired through the camera. I'm in the process of getting details for distros to send it to. It's been such a long time since I did that, it all seems very unfamiliar, but exciting at the same time. I see it as being the darker side of the light which has been on showcase in previous examples. It's also different from the other Koocachoos (zines prior to these aside) in that I opted out from using my typewriter. I was huddled up in my room for most of this and typing it on my typewriter would've produced such a racket and I didn't want to do that; just to get it typed up and out of the way.

Look at the time! And I've hardly done anything. Here's hoping that I have a peaceful night without Rose & Fred West appearing halfway through my 'dreams'. Not nice.

The radio is on repeat

Well, what a week so far. Monday I was off work with excruicating pain that left me bedridden and my head is still suffering despite an increase in medication. America now has a new leader which, after a change at the weekend, I do believe is for the better. I'm not very politically aware, especially for a different nation, but in retrospect, I think it would be an awful result if McCain had one. Now all I need is to watch Jon Stewart and then my week is complete!

Last night was Martha Wainwright night. Despite the man in front being a complete pain with his constant jiggering and reassuring arm around his girlfriend/wife/victim, it was a really good night. There was a small part of me that hoped Rufus would make a guest appearance but it's like with Jason Donovan at the Kylie concert. If only!

I'm a couple of steps closer to completing my zine; just a case of printing it off, pasting and the grand copying, which shouldn't take too long. I'm yet to decide if I'm keeping the name or changing it for something new. When I was typing it onto Word from my original typewriter prints, I had trouble understanding half of it. I think I was in such a state when I typed it, it was a polar opposite of how I was on Sunday. However, I've gone back to that today so it should all be comprehendible to me once again. But it is quite different from my previous ones, so do I keep the name as it's still me, or do a new name because it's different? Maybe I'll have decided by the time the weekend is over.

The north wind doth blow

Well that's a good start; clicking on Create New Blog instead of New Post. There are never enough hours in the day. Fact. Ensuring everything that requires doing is done this week has been an absolute impossibility and I curse myself for any time that has been wasted. My head has been in some far off atmosphere due to discussions with my doctor and the increase of my headache medication to almost double the previous dosage. I've been at a higher rate, but it's just getting used to it. I may have to create a tag to hang around my neck to state the dopeyness to others.

I love all the goodies that Yankee Candle produce for Halloween but this has to be one of my favourites. We bought it either last year or the year before from the Florida Mall in Orlando where they got a little crazy with the bubble wrap but thankfully, this one didn't break in transit like another one did. The house was partially decorated and we had a little 'graveyard' area near the road which was nice but I do want to do a lot more handmade decorations next year. With the munchin pumpkins and gourds, I am going to add melted wax and form my own candles for use next year; an idea I got from Martha Stewart's magazine. Unfortunately I've never made my own candle before so it'll be interesting!

Another thing I tried, using an edible pumpkin as above, was create a pot-pourri by coating the inside of the lid with cinnamon. Unfortunately due to the downstairs floor still smelling of the Yankee Candle tart, it was hard to tell if the pumpkin was giving off any scent. It looked pretty against the roaring fire though. And gosh how it did roar last night with the weather! I'm still amazed that we had snow in October though a little miffed it didn't stay.

When I haven't been running myself into the ground and turning my hair grey, I found some time yesterday for me, so I went to Bicester Village for the Cath Kidston store. It really isn't anything to write home about apart from the prices being around 1/3 less than what you're charged in the other stores. The majority of stock were oilcloth bags, purses, wallets etc. Barely any goodies for the kitchen and I don't recall seeing any stationery.



However, they do have a good selection of left over fabrics which I got as above. The pink is 1m oilcloth and the other is just under half a meter of cotton-other fabricstuff. With my apron in the wash when I was baking Halloween cupcakes on Thursday I realised that I really should have a spare one, which I found yesterday along with a utility skirt for a mere £10 which was originally priced at £45. Fabulous! Both of which need a good iron but here they are:

The rain started up when I'd finished there and even though it was incredibly cold, I still needed to go to Witney for wax and some bits from Boots. I absolutely adore and recommend Soap & Glory's products; they're wonderful. Boots had a 3 for 2 offer on all the gift sets and when I have bought them, it tends to be after Christmas because you're paying extra for things that would be cheaper out of the box and not during the Season. However, I did a price check on the Soap & Glory boxsets and decided to go for it, giving my mum the third. Plus with their spend more than £50 and get £10 worth of points on your card offer, I went for a couple more things. What an expensive weekend!

Time to sign off as I can't work out how to use the heater in this cubby!

Cold Sunshine

After a week in the Lake District, I thought ever-changing weather was done for the year but alas, this week at home has been a little bit of everything. Unfortunately I wasn't fully prepared for steep walking; having never been to the Lake District I didn't know what the landscape was like and thought that the walking would be pretty much flat. Oh how wrong I was! Beatrix Potter's house was such a disappointment. I forget how much the admission fee was but the only written information available around the house (and not all of the rooms were open) was a label on a clog. Of all things, a clog! So the photos, pictures and other niknaks were just objects without any history. Chance of getting the National Trust lady to speak at a reasonable volume, not bellowing, was not likely and even then, I genuinely don't think she knew a great deal; she was just there, letting people in.

Thankfully though, the visit to Wordsworth's house was far more enjoyable. There was a detailed, guided tour and visitors were left to wander around the [albeit small] garden at our own leisure. And the things the girl knew ~ I'd imagine there's a degree in the life of Wordsworth in the works there!

I found a spot on Thursday where a rainbow kept reappearing and you could see the whole span of the arc, even the end which faded out against the trees; something I have never seen before. This one above was actually a double arc, which is quite common in Carterton near the health centre, but it was so incredible that I could see the whole thing and it kept coming back.


The above is from the boat ride across Lake Windermere which was a 90 minute journey and mighty cold! I thought I could withstand the wind blowing but crikey, out on the open, not very kind so on the return journey I stayed downstairs in the warmth. I have to say though that was thoroughly disappointed with the display of items at the Lakeland shop. It's good to see their products for Children In Need and that the charity receives a decent amount from the sales but everything else...I think it may have been built up in my head to be something spectacular but in the end it was just a bit shop.

I could take pictures of clouds forever! I don't know what it is..I like seeing the different shades with the rain and when the beams of sun burst through and produce the rays..I find it very inspiring. On the drive home, I stopped at Oswaldtwistle Mills at Topaz Crafts was there, whose 'shop' was again, a little disappointing. However, there was a rather large section devoted to Yankee Candle who I absolutely adore so it was nice going around and smelling the new scents since my last big purchase last year in Orlando. And I still have some left over, surprisingly. Now what I would really like is to find the lemon cheesecake candle I bought from the Disney hotel, made with soya bean wax. The smell was incredible and even outshines Yankee Candle with that scent.

The last stop before heading home (Cadbury World had shut before we'd gotten to Birmingham unfortunately ~ thanks mobile web!) was Heptonstall as I wanted to visit Sylvia Plath's grave. It wasn't an easy one to find and there was an odd sense of calm and silence when I did find it. I was quite disgusted to see that the Hughes part of her name had either been covered over or blackened out. It was part of her life. As much as fans may loathe the man, Ted Hughes was her husband and father to her two children. You can't erase someone's history like that. I hadn't anything with me to leave but I did tidy up the flowers a little. Unsurprisingly I felt terribly sad when I thought everything through.

Which brings me to this week. I'm getting my hands stuck in on a big filing project with an archive for various chunks of paperwork for nearly 900 assets on base. It'll take a little while for my part to be done but I'm actually looking forward to getting a system in place..something I can leave when the time shall come. Headaches are present everyday for the past fortnight and I may have to speak with the doctor again and get something done, again. You'd have thought after thirteen years of being medically alert to these, something would have been done. A thought, hmm.

Heading yonder

This past week has been incredibly busy and I am thankful that it is now Thursday, my end of the week. The rest of the day is going to be equally busy due to needing to take the cats to the cattery when I finish at four o'clock then having to establish what I'm going to take with me. Yes, for once, I do not have mentally planned what I will be needing on holiday. The Wellingtons, Uggs and walking shoes were a given but considering this week's weather, I may need to take a good portion of my wardrobe!

My hair is a good few inches shorter thanks to yesterday's visit to the hairdressers. It is a little strange as I've had long hair for quite some time but it's equally theraputic having such an amount taken off. If only life's other complications were as simple. Alas I cannot stay on here forever as I'm at work for my lunch break.

Photos when I return.

The spooky night hour is approaching

There are some days when reality hits you and you realise that you must wake up and walk away. To say a light shone may sound too poetic but considering it was nighttime and I had an idea (hence, lightbulb) then it is fairly acceptable to say so. This week has been rather interesting, work-wise. It started off very slow then by the middle, a wave of things to do brushed in, which meant that when I finished this afternoon at the earlier time of 1400hrs, I was in over my head with projects that required attention and completion. The odd thing is, I like that. I really do like having a mental list of things that needs to be done and then afterwards, I feel quite accomplished.

Halloween is starting to draw near, which I'm very excited about. I have my Martha Stewart Holiday magazine from last year to refer to and over the weekend I plan on going through decorations purchased last year and previous years to see what I can create for later this month. The end of next week sees me heading off to the Lake District for a week which I'm looking forward to as I'm yet to visit it. Also on the agenda is heading two hours away to Heptonstall to visit Sylvia Plath's grave. Somewhere between now and then I need to wade through this lot and create Halloween greetings cards.

I'll fit in sleep and the Betterware catalogues somewhere along the lines too!

Sugar Parcels

On Friday I purchased an icing bag with a kit of six nozzles, which I put into practice this afternoon by making pink cupcakes. Unfortunately, the food colouring wasn't on my side and I had to leave the shade half pink and half peach otherwise the next step would have been red, which I did not want!



The tasting test was done pre-cooling stage in the fridge and it was delicious! I was using the standard cupcake recipe from my Cupcakes book that I received for my birthday this year. There are definitely a couple of adjustments that can be made to perfect them, but I'm getting there. I adore the cake stand which I purchased from Paperchase a couple of weeks ago. The table cloth however, I'm not so keen on.

Chapter One

For almost ten years I have relied on the Friends Only aspect of LiveJournal for my thoughts. Looking back, it seems so juvenile to own a 'journal' on that site which I had locked for years. So pointless. Thus begins life at blogger.com.