Abandon ship

Today was very busy but satisfying because I felt that I got a lot done. Also it's the last day of January so we can start looking towards the Spring! This evening we watched a documentary about the cruise ship Costa Concordia which sank last week off the coast of Italy. It seemed a bit soon and a bit morbid to make a documentary about it, especially since not all of the bodies have yet been recovered from the ship. However it was very interesting, mainly because of the immediacy of the footage from passengers' phones and the audio recordings from the coastguard as he angrily ordered the captain to re-board the ship from the lifeboat he had got into (he didn't!) There have been so many films made about the Titanic which went down a hundred years ago this year, but this documentary about the Concordia captured the actual moments as the ship listed and the lights went out. There were some spooky parallels with the Titanic; the unexpected amount of damage to the ship (three compartments ruptured by the rock) and the problems with lowering the lifeboats because of the tilt of the ship. If the ship hadn't been so close to land there would have been many more lives lost. Now we are going to watch an episode of our current favourite programme - Mad Men - before bed. 

Journeys back in time

I was a wee bit disappointed with the second part of the BBC adaptation of Birdsong; I didn't think it was as true to the novel as the first half. It seemed to rush through the plot a bit, a few things happened differently from the book and it missed out some important parts such as Weir's sexuality and his relationship with his father, and the complexity of Isabelle's character and her relationship with Max. On the other hand the battle and tunnel scenes were well filmed and I did enjoy it - just not quite as much as the first half, which was outstanding.
I'm reading a really weird book just now which Jamie bought for his Kindle and thus shared with me. It's called "Time's Arrow" by Martin Amis and it's about a man's life told in reverse order - even the dialogue is in reverse order, and so is eating, bodily functions, he takes things to shops and is given money for them etc. "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" has the character aging backwards but time going forwards, whereas this novel is completely backwards. It's very disorientating to read! It is not completely original though because I distinctly remember reading a science fiction short story which includes the regurgitating etc as people start getting younger (my Dad had a huge collection of science fiction short stories which i devoured as a child). This takes the backwards idea a lot further though, with relationships beginning at their endings - which means they get better and better! I'm only half way through but due to the timescales and the protagonist's profession I'm pretty sure that I have guessed where it's heading. Jamie was very enthusiastic about it, and while I would never have chosen it myself I am finding it very interesting.
James' Mum has a new favourite programme, which she asked to watch with us when she was round for dinner last night. It is called "Call the Midwife" and is set in London's East End during the 1950s, based on the memoirs of a real midwife. It is good quality but pleasantly easy to watch, in the fine BBC tradition of programmes like "All Creatures Great and Small" and is full of drama and births - right up my street for a Sunday night! Needless to say I was delighted (and James was horrified) that we will be watching this on Sunday nights. 

Work / Life Balance

On Friday James and I went to see Snow Patrol at the SEC with Ally and Davie. I think it's the third time that I have seen them and although I am not such a fan as James is, I thoroughly enjoyed the evening. Yesterday James, Ally and Davie went to Hampden to see Ayr United playing Kilmarnock in the semi-final of the Scottish Cup. We are all Ayr United fans because of Brian next door, although the boys' main team is Rangers. I had a great afternoon of pottering about and reading a book, I loved it! I also kept the radio on in the background to keep up with the score. We were all really disappointed when Ayr lost, it would have been so good if they had got through to the final but Brian has done very well to get them this far. We went out for a lovely lunch today with Heather and Ewan, to Jamie's Italian in George Square. We were discussing all the things that we will do in Paris, where we will be in only two weeks! The meal was delicious; I had a starter of arancini, which has been a favourite of mine since we went to Sicily, and then meatball carbonara. Before the meal James had been talking to me about why I feel so tired just now, and he thinks it is because I am spending too much time at work and bringing too much work home. He thinks I need to "lighten up" and make time for other things especially taking exercise. I'm sure that he's right; I have deliberately had a very relaxing weekend and I feel quite refreshed, so I will try to get back into exercising this week. I'm looking forward to seeing the second part of the BBC adaptation of Birdsong tonight, the first part was excellent last week. 

Spas of my life

I was just reading about exotic spas around the world in one of the magazines that James brought me back from the airport lounge yesterday. Allegedly the word "spa" may originate from the Latin "sanitas per aqua" which means "health through waters" but according to Wikipedia this is highly unlikely and it probably comes from the town of Spa in Belgium. It wasn't just the Romans who believed in the healing and restoring power of "taking the waters"; many civilisations throughout history have had similar rituals, such as Scandinavian saunas, or Turkish hammams.
I have a great fondness for spas, perhaps linked to my general love of swimming and hot water in particular - I love a nice hot bath! I also love swimming outdoors, in a pool or the sea. Here are some of my favourites.
My earliest spa experience was swimming in the actual Roman baths at Bath, an amazing experience with green steaming water and real Roman columns. It made a big impression on me, and I was lucky that I visited in the 1970s because the pool is no longer open the the public.
When James and I went to Turkey in the 1980s we swam in Roman pools there, and also in the heated springs of Pamukkale, it was great. James unfortunately cut his foot at a "pool of healing!" 
In Tuscany we went with the children to visit the hot springs at Rapolano Terme, great fun for all of us including white mud with which we daubed ourselves. It was very sulphurous.
Also with the boys we went to Miette Hot Springs near Jasper - the view of the forests around was absolutely fantastic, and Banff Hot Springs which also had an amazing view although the spa was smaller and more crowded than Miette.
In Scotland we have visited the Gleneagles spa with the boys quite a lot and we have especially enjoyed the outdoor hot tub there. It's great to be in there when it's raining; the rain all falling into the hot water around your shoulders. It's my ambition to be in there one day when it's snowing! Turnberry Hotel is also good but Gleneagles is better.
And then in England I have visited Nirvana with Jennifer; she treated me to a day there for my 40th birthday. It was so luxurious, if I lived near there I would want to go every day! And of course good old centre parks - I like the spa at Whinfell Forest very much and although it can be crowded it has everything you need to relax.
When James and I retire it would be great to have a holiday when we would tour "The famous spas of Europe" and travel around trying out all these grand establishments like our Victorian ancestors. Well, not like James' and my own Victorian ancestors of course - I'm sure they would have loved to go to a spa but they were too busy struggling to make ends meet by working down coal mines! I mean rich Victorians!
Talking of aspiring to better things, Ally made me laugh today when he overheard me telling James that he is too snobby to want toasted cheese for lunch - he replied "I just have higher standards!" Instead the boys had steak bakes from Greggs - I'm not convinced that steak bakes count as "high standards" so I had a banana sandwich instead! 

Cold days and Early Nights

The temperature has been shooting up and down for the last few days, from warm, wet and almost spring-like to cold and icy. Today I had to de-ice my windscreen and in the afternoon it started snowing. Rumours abounded that the roads were very bad and that cars were slipping about, so we all set off home sharp, mindful of being stranded at work by snow just over a year ago. However the roads were perfectly clear and despite some truly appalling driving from some drivers who were crawling along unnecessarily slowly, there were no hold-ups and I got home earlier than usual! Ally and Davie were already there, playing a computer game together using two laptops, very chummy. They both had exams today but did not wish to discuss them, telling me tersely that they "went fine". I am enjoying my Kindle, I have just finished a fun crime-thriller called "Dead Simple" which was not too taxing. It's really good that Jamie and I are are using the same kindle account so that we can read each others' books. I have been a bit tired this week and had a nice early night last night; I will do the same tonight. 

Exams for the boys

Ally and Davie are both in full exam mode now. Ally has his A levels and Davie has his Higher Prelims. We are going to see how his prelims go before having another meeting with his head teacher. This morning James was in London and the rest of us slept in a bit. Ally, who had foolishly studied until 5 a.m., realised that his exam was at nine in the morning rather than in the afternoon as his other exams have been, and went into a mixture of panic and rage. I called a taxi and he left the house at twenty past eight, arriving just in time for his exam. He later told me that it had gone fine. Meanwhile it was an important day for Jamie too; he had a big presentation to give to his whole department on the progress of his dissertation. I phoned him in the evening and he felt it had been good, he is never particularly nervous about presentations and in fact has to be careful not to be TOO relaxed and informal. James phoned from London in the afternoon to say that his meeting had finished early, but his flight could not be brought forward so he went for a walk around the centre of the city. I rather wished that I could be there with him. After work I babysat Chris' two lovely little girls while he went to a meeting, they were so sweet and were delighted with the box of toys that I keep for occasions such as this. Later on we watched the first episode of the second series of Mad Men, James and I are becoming obsessed with this programme! 

James is 50!

I met James when he was seventeen and I was sixteen, so it's hard to believe that my teenage boyfriend has turned 50 today! Last night we had a small celebration with family and close friends; James was certain that he did not want a big party. So there were fifteen of us, and it was a really nice evening; most important James thoroughly enjoyed it. I got all the food from Mise en Place and of course ordered too much. In our house that is not too serious, we have eaten up all the leftovers already. David and I went over to Dream Cakes in the morning to collect James' cake. This was in the shape of a mountain with snow on the top and a wee climber with walking poles and a rucksack making his way to the summit.
We had some debate about how to set out the back room so that fifteen people could sit down and eat; we finally settled on a large informal circle with various tables placed around so that people had somewhere to stash their drinks while eating. The meal went down well, then Jamie poured champagne for everyone and the cake was ceremoniously carried in by the boys, who had also put 50 candles in a second cake, the joke being that there was not room for so many candles on his birthday cake! We sang Happy Birthday, then the boys made a speech to James, each of them contributing a short part. Jamie thanked James for teaching them about science and technology, and said it had inspired his interest in medicine. Ally thanked James for taking them hill-walking and recalled an occasion when they got lost at the Hidden Valley. Davie thanked James for encouraging his interest in science and "all the useless facts" he has told them - and the useful facts too! Jamie concluded by thanking James for always being there for them and asking everybody to raise their glasses for a toast "To James". All three boys were very sweet and made a lovely job of it, and I could tell that James was very pleased. The rest of the evening was spent chatting in the lounge and it was all good fun. At the end of the evening when everyone else had gone Heather, Ewan and I told James about our forthcoming trip to Paris, he was surprised and pleased. The boys all helped us to clear up, they were all chatting about boy things, it was really nice.
Today was a much quieter day. We all had a long lie then James and I went for a walk at the Heritage Park, we were talking about all the things we will be doing in Paris. This evening we watched the last three episodes of the first series of Mad Men which was brilliant, we are definitely going to get the second series. I think James has had a very good birthday. 

Burns' Night celebration

I have just got back from my school's staff Burns' Night and Ceilidh, which was held in a local church hall. I hoped that it would be good but I didn't expect it to be such a tremendous evening! The meal was traditional and delicious, it was BYOB so I asked Chris to pick up a bottle of Schloer for me on his way. I had brought in a dress to get changed at school which meant that I could work on a bit. Anyway after the meal we got on to the speeches, and they were all brilliant. So clever and witty - and George R's toast to the lassies and Alison R's and reply from the lassies were totally outrageous! And there was a brilliant singer, an ex-pupil whose voice was really great. I would love to go to one of the places he performs to hear him again and at the end he gave me his details. Then the dancing started, a mix of Scottish country dancing and disco which was great fun, everybody was up dancing. A great night. 

Fun at book club

My sore mouth felt better today but my tooth is still sore and slightly loosened so I think I will make a dentist's appointment. After a busy day at work and a positive meeting at Davie's school it was really nice to go to my EK book club, which was at Elaine's house. We had a good discussion of this month's book, which was "Never let me go" by Kashuo Ishiguro. I read it a couple of years ago but I didn't want to see the film when it came out, because the book, although thought-provoking, was rather depressing. We talked about the book and the issues it raises, then had a delicious supper which Elaine made us. Most of all, we laughed and laughed and laughed! What a lovely group of girls, meeting up with them is always a real tonic! Time for a nice bath before bed. 

Fat Lip

I am in the bath, an environment which always cheers me up and relaxes me. I have an enlivening shower every morning but at night time bath is best! I need cheering up because I got head-butted by a pupil at school earlier today and my top lip is very sore where my teeth cut into it. I'm very relieved that my front teeth are still in place, although one of them feels slightly loose. I will not say any more for reasons of confidentiality. So when I got home I decided not to go to Zumba and had a nice roast chicken tea with James and the boys. Then I had a good chat on the phone with Jennifer, and I ran this bath which is just the right temperature for reading in! Last night we watched the final part of the current Sherlock trilogy, it was very good and ended very mysteriously. Ally has another exam tomorrow, he seems fairly confident about it. I am now going to read my book and have an early night. Life's not so bad, even with a fat lip! 

A road trip with Jamie

After my pleasant railway journey yesterday I took a taxi from Darlington Station to Scotch Corner Services. At least that's what I thought I had done; the taxi driver dropped me at a small area with a Travelodge and a Little Chef. The sign said Skeeby. I asked the driver if he was sure that this was Scotch Corner services and he assured me that it was. I then got a phone call from Jamie, who had just arrived at the real Scotch Corner Services just up the road. It didn't take Jamie long to come and get me but you have to wonder what was going on in that taxi driver's head! It was so good to see my boy! We had a quick coffee then headed northwards. I had intended to share the driving but Jamie insisted on driving the whole way. I was still glad that I had gone to join him though, it meant that I could make sure that he was alert and concentrating. It also gave us the chance to have a lovely chat in the car, probably the longest chat that we have had in some time without other people there! He had a wonderful time in Norway with Nicola; it all sounded great. They went to Oslo, which he said had a great cathedral, then to Bergen, and then to Tromso which he said was his favourite town in Norway. They went to a place north of Bergen where they slept in a yurt, which was a round structure with wooden walls and a canvas roof. It had a fire in the middle and was lit by candles. They went dog-sledding and saw the Aurora Borealis. We got home in time for tea with James, Ally, Davie and Grandma, and Jamie showed us his pictures of Norway, which were excellent. He then packed up all the stuff that he had left at home and headed off to Dundee. Ally was studying hard for his next exam, which was today. 

On the train to Darlington

I am very excited to be blogging from the train because I love train journeys and have many happy memories of them over the years. I am on train from Glasgow Central to Plymouth, I wish I was going the whole way because I have never been there and it would be a tremendous rail journey. I am in fact going to Darlington to meet Jamie, who is on his way north from Nottingham to Glasgow. It is a journey of about five hours, and then after collecting various belongings, he will have another hour and a half drive to Dundee, so I am going to share the driving and keep him company. Needless to say, Jamie feels no need for this but I'm still his Mum and I think the journey is a bit too much for him to do alone. I got a row in the train, along with the other passengers in my carriage, for sitting in the wrong seats! I had reserved a seat, but I moved to a better one which was not reserved. However the ticket inspector said that this just leads to confusion. He also gave a stern warning to three young girls about not making noise (it was a "quiet" carriage), which was a bit unfair because they were not making any noise beyond quiet conversation! I think he was suspicious of them because they are young! This was a very bonding experience for me and my fellow passengers and we all pulled faces after he left the carriage. So now I am eating my delicious Marks and Spencer lunch and reading my book, what fun!

Hamish and Dougal go to Largs

Today we went for a really great walk all the way from West Kilbride to Largs. This was part of our ongoing quest to walk the whole of the Ayrshire Coastal Path. James had planned it all; we drove to Largs, listening on the way to the Hamish and Dougal CD that Ewan and Heather gave James for Christmas. We saw Barry Cryer and Graeme Garden performing Hamish and Dougal sketches at last year's Aye Write festival and thoroughly enjoyed it. The CD provoked many chuckles and groans on our journey! We caught the 9.53 train to West Kilbride, and started our walk by making our way through the town to Seamill Hydro, which is where we finished another part of the walk. When we got down to the beach we could see some seals basking on the rocks. We headed north towards Portencross where we had coffee; we saw wee brown birds with red legs and long red beaks walking about the water's edge and we also saw an oyster catcher carrying some sort of small shelled creature in its beak and dropping it on rocks to break it open. The weather was ideal for me when walking; cool so that I didn't overheat and not much wind. We then walked on through the grounds of Hunterston Power Station which was quite interesting, James was telling me about its different parts. We saw five workers dressed in full nuclear gear checking out a drain, I wonder what was down there? And we saw steam coming off the sea where they pump the hot water. We walked on and had our lunch in a picnic area at Fairlie, which had a scary automated toilet. I say scary because soapy water started to come across the floor while I was using it and I was terrified that it was going to go into full self-clean mode while I was still in there. I didn't hang about! And then we walked on to Largs. When we got to the marina we were into very familiar territory because we have walked there and back from Largs many times. When we got back to the car James checked his GPS and found out that we had walked 19.4 km! I was delighted and pleased that I still felt quite energetic. When we got home I had a quick bath then a nap. When I got up I found that all my leg muscles had stiffened up and now I am hobbling around! We are going to have risotto for tea with Ally and Davie and then we will all watch a film. 

Puss in Boots again

When I took a group of pupils to see "Puss in Boots 3D" before Christmas, James was sad because he had wanted to see it with me. We always enjoyed the Puss in Boots character in Shrek and of course we are both cat enthusiasts. So when he asked if we could go to see it tonight, before its run finishes in the cinemas, I agreed to go along. Ally did not accompany us since his first A level is tomorrow, but Davie came along and we went to Showcase cinema in Coatbridge. I remember when it was a state of the art, brand new cinema, however now it is rather shabby and I avoid the toilets because the last time I went there they were disgusting. However once you are inside the cinema it is just like any other, apart from retro GFT or the luxurious Grosvenor. James absolutely loved the film and declared it to be the best film he has seen for ages. Although I wouldn't quite go that far, I still enjoyed it the second time around and the animation is very good.
Ally has been working very hard to revise for his GPS exam and he looks exhausted. I have advised him to stop revising and get some sleep but I expect he will ignore me! No exercise for me today, instead I'm heading to bed soon to get a reasonably early night and then I'm planning to go to Zumba tomorrow after school. 

Exercise is making me tired!

Eleven days into the new year and I'm still exercising. In some ways it's going really well; I went to the gym at school today after work and I could tell that I was a wee bit fitter than the last time I ventured into a gym. It helped that I had remembered to bring earphones so that I could listen to my own music, which always helps to encourage me and makes the experience more enjoyable. However although I did feel very energised at first, I have been feeling very tired over the last few days. James thinks that this is because I am taking more exercise but keeping the same old late bedtimes, and he may have a point. I spoke to one of our lovely P.E. teachers about it and he said that maybe I should take a break every couple of days to allow myself some recovery time, which is also good advice.
I saw the first half of a rather good BBC drama last night, "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" adapted from Dickens. I'm very intrigued about what is going to happen in the second and concluding part tonight, because I have never read the story. And I'm enjoying reading a book that James gave me for Christmas called "A 1000 Years of Annoying the French" by Stephen Clarke, which is very informative and quite amusing. 

Ninth day of Resolution

One of my colleagues told me today that this is the day when most people give up on their New Year's Resolutions - only nine days after they were made. I checked this out on the Internet when I got home and sure enough, the Daily Mail website reports that a survey by allabouthealth.org (whoever they are!) has shown that three quarters of British adults admit that they will no longer be sticking to their promises, which are mainly to do with emotional and physical well-being (just like mine!). It was just as well that I heard about this, because I was feeling tired when I got home after a busy day at work, and after tea I was thinking I would skip today's exercise. But suddenly I remembered what my colleague had told me and I dragged my self through to do Zumba on the Wii! So I have managed to keep going on the critical ninth day, which I hope is a good sign. Of course I realise that I have a long way to go, and that there will be days when due to time constraints I really won't be able to exercise, but it's a start! 

Afternoon Tea at the Crutherland

Last day of the holidays; it has been a really long and good break, despite the appalling weather. James, Ally, David and I went to the Crutherland Hotel for a swim in the afternoon followed by afternoon tea in the lounge; it was an offer from "itison" website which I bought a while ago. It was a good way to spend the afternoon in very pleasant surroundings. The changing rooms and pool area were so much cleaner than our local pool, there is no excuse for how dirty it is. However the Crutherland is not close enough to home for me to go there regularly, so my search for an ideal pool continues. My favourite type of pool is an outdoor, lido style pool, like the one I visited in Ilkley on a school trip years ago. That would be ideal for me, but there is nothing like it near us; the closest outdoor pool is Greenock and it was very crowded and the changing area was quite dirty when we visited it a couple of years ago. After a swim and a sauna we got dressed and went for our afternoon tea - it was very nice! We had tea or coffee and a select ion of sandwiches, scones and cakes on an old-fashioned tiered serving tray, very elegant. It was a relaxing way to mark the end of the holidays. We are about to watch the second episode of Sherlock Holmes which I recorded earlier and which we all enjoy very much.
So, has it been a good holiday? I think it certainly has. We have struck a good balance between being social and having some quiet times. We have had a reasonable amount of exercise even though the weather has been disappointing. We have done some useful tidying and admin in the house, and although we could have done more I think it is good that we have also relaxed. So no complaints from me, I hope that my batteries are fully recharged ready for the term ahead! 

From the East to the Wild West

In the morning I went through to Edinburgh to visit my Aunt Margaret. The roads were nice and quiet and I had a pleasant drive through, listening to the radio. It was really nice to see Margaret; we had a good chat and although her Alzheimer's is very advanced now, she seems calmer and less worried than she used to be. She asked and repeated lots of questions about Dad and how I am related to her, so we had lots to talk about. It is sad to see her unable to walk unsupported when she used to be so fit, but her nursing home is very nice and the staff are friendly and helpful. After my experiences with Mum, I am more philosophical about the changes that old age brings than I used to be. I have learned to accept these rather than railing against them as I used to. Getting upset is no use to the person you are trying to help; what they need is reassurance and cheerfulness and that is how I (eventually!) learned to be with Mum. Margaret is a lovely and dignified lady, and she looks as if she is being well cared for. I then went to Edinburgh airport to collect Davie from his flight from Milan. It was great to see him and we drove straight along the motorway to Glasgow and had a celebratory lunch at TGI Friday's, where he told me all about his adventures in Pila. He has had a great week and has loved his skiing, he had lots of funny stories to tell me. James arrived home from hill-walking near St Mary's Loch and in the evening Grandma came round; we had fish suppers and decided to watch a film. Grandma said that she likes cowboy films so after a search of the "on demand" films on Virgin Media we settled on "A Gunman's Pledge", a film made a couple of years ago, very much a traditional Western, which was fine although not anything out of the ordinary. A relaxing Saturday evening. 

The Iron Lady

A really pleasant day around the house. Today it was time to take down all the Christmas decorations and I also posted Jamie's camera case to him at Nicola's parents' address in Nottingham. I just love pottering around at home with Jack to keep me company; when I went downstairs in the morning Jack took me to inspect his bowl and we were both surprised and slightly alarmed to find it empty, we stared at each other in a concerned way until I filled it with fresh chunks. Then I had a coffee and Jack had a snooze on top of the radiator. I heard on the news that Bob Holness, famed for presenting Blockbusters in the 1980s, died today. How we used to be amused by the famous line "Can I have a P please, Bob?" and the occasional gaffes such as a contestant answering "orgasm" when he meant to say "organism". And of course the hand-jiving by the audience at the end of the show! I was pleased finally to receive Jenny's adoption pack from Edinburgh Zoo at last (serves me right for having anything to do with a zoo!). I was pleased that they upgraded Jenny's adoption status from Bronze to Silver by way of apology, which means that in addition to a certificate, stickers and badges and being invited to three "Adopter" events per year, she gets extra tickets and photos and will have her name displayed on her Capuchin monkey's enclosure. In the evening James and I took Grandma to see "The Iron Lady" at the cinema, it's a biopic about Margaret Thatcher, told in flashback from her old age when suffering from dementia and hallucinating that her husband Dennis is still alive. Meryl Streep is truly amazing as Mrs Thatcher, she has captured her looks, voice and mannerisms perfectly. Grandma said at the end that it was a very good film but it is also very disturbing and upsetting and should not have been made while Mrs Thatcher is still alive. I agree with her wholeheartedly. 

Blue skies at last

Today (by today I mean Thursday because I am posting this after midnight - I'm not doing very well with my "early nights" resolution!), the rain stopped and the sky was a beautiful watery blue colour, as if washed very clean by days of constant deluge. The ground is still very wet, it must be saturated! I took Jack to the vet in the morning and she said that the lymph node which was infected is getting smaller which is a very good sign; it confirms that it has been an infection and not a tumour. He is to get another check up in a couple of months. Jack was not at all happy about the outing but was delighted to be home again and to get a nice fresh bowl of chunks. Later I went over to see Jackie and her gorgeous boys; she has broken her foot badly and it is in plaster. We went out to a soft play centre which was very smart - a big improvement on fifteen years ago when I was frequenting similar places. It has a cafe which serves delicious healthy food - I had a huge baked potato with tuna mayonnaise and coleslaw - and it was very clean and well maintained. Finn and Noah had a grand time and Jackie and I had a good catch up. I am keen to keep taking exercise, so I decided that with the sky still blue I would take the opportunity to go for a walk. I walked from home via Burnside (where I called in to the estate agent to let them know that the For Sale sign at Mum's house has blown down and broken in the storm) to Rutherglen, where I got a train home. The walk took 50 minutes and I felt really energised. The timing was good because by the time I got home at five it was dark. In the evening Brian and Christine came round for drinks and we had a very pleasant chat and a laugh. Later I finished my current book; Armadillo by William Boyd. Although it was quite interesting I didn't think it was quite up to his usual high standard. 

Torrential Rain!

As I write this the rain is battering down on the glass roof of the extension, which I actually quite like because it is nice and cosy inside! Today was James' first day back at work and I had a nice lie in before doing some much needed admin such as making a vet's appointment for Jack, ordering an online shopping, reconciling my bank account using the spreadsheet that James made for me etc. After lunch it was time for Jamie and Nicola to set off down south; they are spending a few days in Manchester, Nottingham and London before going to Norway to go husky sledding and hopefully to see the Northern Lights. I was worried about the rainy weather for their drive, but at least it's not icy or snowy and Jamie texted later to say that they had safely arrived. I also got another text from Davie who is enjoying his ski holiday:
"It's amazing there's lots of fresh snow and good weather I also think I'm gettin better went down a black today and it was easy I'm in advanced group it's so fun"
I'm so delighted that he is having such a great time! Alasdair and I went down to Morrison's where he used the "Coinstar" machine to deposit the many coppers that he has saved up and to get a voucher for money in exchange. There was a processing fee of 8.9 pence per pound but Ally was still very pleased with the £49.77 that he received. We also went to the post office where Ally sent away his old Blackberry for which he is expecting to receive £46. Alasdair is so clever with money, he reminds me of James in that way. In fact he reminds me of James in many ways! We then went down to the sports centre where Ally went to the gym and I went to the pool where I swam another 40 lengths. And that brings me up to date on this rainy and windy day; we are going to watch another episode of the addictive "Mad Men" which James gave me on DVD for Christmas and have a cup of tea. 

Very big winds

James and I were woken this morning at about 6 a.m., or perhaps earlier (I didn't look at the clock) by really high winds outside. The wind was unusually strong to actually wake us up from sleep like that - much stronger than the winds on 8th December. The trees were lashing about outside and the house was groaning in the wind. A slate flew off the roof and hit the car, and a piece of wood was blown down from Alasdair's window. Jack jumped up on the bed and sat up beside me, I think he was quite disturbed by the weather as well because he kept licking his lips the way he does when he is nervous, and at one point my bedside lamp started to shake because of the storm shaking the house and Jack and I looked at it and then looked at each other in a worried way. Later we heard on the news that gusts had reached 91 mph in Glasgow and there was lots of damage to houses, trees blown over, and even lorries overturned on the Kingston Bridge.
By about 9 a.m. the strongest winds had died down and the rest of the day was just very wet and windy - probably the worst weather of the Christmas holidays so far! But that did not daunt us and we had a great day around the house. James started using his DVD "Learning Guitar for Dummies" which I gave him for Christmas, and Ally and I went to the shops for a bit. Jamie and Nicola watched Sherlock Holmes and got packed up for going down south tomorrow.
Later I went to the Zumba class which is taught by my beautiful and fit neighbour Christine; she asked me along ages ago but this is the first time I have gone, spurred on my by resolution to get fitter this year. I thoroughly enjoyed it and felt very virtuous! 

Walking and cooking

A good day. James and I walked round Strathclyde Park in the morning which kept up my resolution of taking more exercise, and was quite pleasant despite the weather. The weather has been rather wet most days since before Christmas, but we put on our jackets and hats and had a good walk and chat. After lunch we decided to do some batch cooking, and James made a large amount of chilli con carne while I made double quantities of Italian beef stew. It was really nice cooking at a leisurely pace while talking to James, Jamie and Nicola, who has returned from spending New Year in Aberdeen. Ally spent the day studying in his room, and seems to be working hard, but he's a bit fed up. I do feel for him, but unfortunately this is an important time for him with his first A Levels in a couple of weeks, so he just has to get on with it. I got a very nice email from Antoine's parents wishing us well for the New Year:

L'embarquement pour le vol 2012 est annonce!
Vos prochaines escales sont: SANTE, CHANCE, JOIE, BONHEUR, AMOUR ...
La duree de votre voyage sera de 12 mois.
Laissez aux objets perdus les mauvais moments de 2011 pour n'emporter dans vos bagages que les meilleurs souvenirs.
Le menu servi pendant le vol:
Cocktail de l'amitie
Supreme de Bonne sante
Gratinee de prosperite
Plateau d'excellentes nouvelles
Salade de reussite
Buche au bonheur
Le tout accompagne de bulles d'eclats de rires.
Tres bon et agreable voyage!!!

What a nice message and how very French!

Later we all had a pierre chaude (another of our traditions at this time of year) we had beef, turkey, salmon and prawns, accompanied by potatoes, salad, asparagus, mushrooms and dips, and it was delicious! We then watched a film "Horrible Bosses" which was quite rude but also quite funny. 

James doesn't believe in New Year's Resolutions

James doesn't believe in New Year's resolutions but I do, so here are mine:
My first resolutions have to be about getting fitter. I plan to do this by:
1. Going to the gym at my school at least twice a week.
2. Zumba after school once a week.
3. Swimming / going for a walk once a week.
4. Go to bed earlier so that I have enough energy for all the exercise!
Then I would like to live a bit more for the moment rather than always planning and worrying so I will attempt to:
5. Go to the cinema with James once a week or fortnight.
6. Use the Apps on my iPad and use the Wii instead of watching television.
I think that's enough to aim for; I haven't put anything down about the boys but I hope that my resolutions will energise me to be a fit and fun Mum!
The New Year has started well so that helps me to have a positive attitude; my birthday yesterday was great fun. James, Davie and I went to the Museum of Scotland and wandered around it, I particularly enjoyed the Egypt section and the Restless Earth section. We had a light lunch there and then walked down to Princes Street where James bought me a Kindle as my birthday present. (I have had an ereader for a couple of years but it's really complicated to download books onto it and I really like the look of the new Kindle). David was delighted when James got him Xbox Live annual membership. We finished the afternoon with a coffe at Valvona and Crolla before dozing on the train home. We all enjoyed our day out. Then in the evening James, Ally, Davie and I went over to visit Heather and Ewan, who had kindly invited us over for a Hogmanay curry. Jamie was going to a party nearer home and my lovely god-daughter Jennifer was out at a party, however Andrew was there and he and Ally and Davie also had curry and spent the evening having a great time playing Risk, at which Andrew was the clear winner! To my surprise Heather and the boys brought through a gorgeous cake (like a giant cupcake with daisies on it) with candles and everyone sang Happy Birthday to me! I was overwhelmed, how lovely of Heather and Ewan to think of that!
Soon it was time to bring in the New Year; we briefly switched on BBC1 so that we could hear the countdown. I felt very moved as we all wished each other a Happy New Year, there is something very symbolic for me about the start of a new year, it gives me a feeling of hope. Before we switched off the television we watched the Edinburgh fireworks display and then the very lavish London fireworks display; it was really amazing, perhaps in honour of the Olympics this summer? It was great to spend the New Year with such good friends.
This morning David and I got up nice and early because he is going on his school ski trip to Italy, leaving from the school at 9.30 a.m. He was very excited and had packed his case very well, it only needed minor adjustments and was well within the weight requirement. When I got back from dropping him off I dived into bed like one of those penguins on Frozen Planet diving from the ocean onto the ice! In the afternoon James and I went out for a walk round the Heritage Park and this evening we had our traditional New Year family fondue! This was a great idea of James' - when we spend New Year in France we always book a restaurant for our last night, which is usually either the 1st or 2nd of January, and have a fondue and a pierre chaude which we all love. So James decided that we would have a fondue at home instead, and it was delicious! Then Jamie and Ally decided to make a chocolate fondue for dessert which was also delicious, and we watched the first episode of the new series of Sherlock Holmes starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman which was excellent! I think that the last 24 hours has been a wonderful start to the New Year!