My 50th birthday!

There are three distinctive peaks seen from Le Corbier called Les Aiguilles d'Arves. One of them reminds James and me of Jack's wee head, and it is appropriately called La Tete du Chat! I have had a marvellous birthday! We skied up to l'Ouillon and then over to Saint Sorlin d"Arves which is a lovely area with plenty of runs to suit all tastes. As James and I skied down runs, the boys would appear from off piste, hurling snowballs at each other as they shot past us. Lunch was in a gorgeous little mountain restaurant called "La Bergerie" with amazing views. And all day texts kept arriving from friends and family wishing me a happy birthday! I wasn't expecting this and I was really surprised and touched that so many people remembered. After lunch the boys went off to do their own mad skiing and James and I decided to start making our way back to Le Corbier which should have been about an hour and a half away including lifts. It's lucky that we started so early! Some of the pistes were a bit gruelling, especially the one which will forever be etched in my mind as "the so-called blue which was at least a hard mogully narrow red and maybe even a black!" Needless to say my skiing deteriorated due to nerves, tired thighs, and cramps in my calves. The piste map was a bit wacky in places and James ended up leading me off piste to get back to our apartment quicker. When we got back James ran me a lovely bath and the boys (who arrived back shortly after us) are making the tea. In spite of my sore legs and exhaustion I have had a brilliant birthday! 

Le Corbier

Today was a beautiful day in Le Corbier with blue skies and plenty of good quality snow. James did his usual efficient job of organising breakfast and soon we were heading up the mountain for our first ski day. The great news is that I can still ski! I had been nervous about this for good reason - my right knee in particular is very dodgy and I am not at all fit. However with my knee support strapped on securely my old leg didn't let me down and soon I was flying down blue runs with ease. I had requested blue runs only today so that I could build up my confidence. However the Anderson family navigation is never reliable when skiing and despite much poring over piste maps we were soon going down plenty of rugged reds as well! Actually I managed them fine so it still boosted my confidence. David was very nice about my skiing and said "I've never been so proud of you!" James and the boys were also delighted to be back on the snow, and we had a lovely day. We had lunch at a mountain restaurant above La Toussuire in the sunshine and as we all sat chatting and eating happily Ally exclaimed, "I love this! I'd forgotten how fun it is!"
After lunch we decided to head back to Le Corbier area so that we would be near the apartment in case anyone wanted to finish a bit early (me!) Needless to say we took a wrong turning and skied for miles around La Toussuire before finally finding the lift back to our own valley! When we got back to the apartment we went for a swim in the pool, which I especially loved because I love swimming outdoors. It was so strange to be swimming surrounded by snow, as people were sledging past! 

Au revoir la pluie!

I haven't mentioned the weather recently - it has been fairly mild but miserably rainy over Christmas. It didn't matter too much because we have been busy with cooking and entertaining. However it was very nice when we arrived in Lyon at lunch time on Saturday to emerge from our plane into beautiful spring-like weather. The sky above us was blue with little wispy clouds and in the distance we could see the reassuringly snow-covered mountains.
Our journey had been straightforward so far and the five of us had a lovely chat at breakfast in Edinburgh Airport - I just love all of us being together - I enjoy our children's company and always have. They are all so funny and interesting and yet so different from each other.
We collected our hire car at Lyon; a roomy Vauxhall Zafira which was declared very satisfactory by the boys (in the past there has been much moaning from the back seat on ski holidays when they have had to sit with cases on their knees!) We set off optimistically on what should have been a two hour journey, only to run into a massive traffic jam! According to the French traffic reports there were "bouchons" on many roads approaching the Alps, and it was even mentioned on the main news - the cause was the high volume of holiday traffic. Unfortunately this doubled our journey to a gruelling four hours! It was especially gruelling for James, who was driving. Finally, in the dark, we arrived in Le Corbier and checked into our apartment which to our relief is very good; clean and spacious with a large balcony overlooking the swimming pool and the mountains beyond. So it was a long day! We explored the resort a little and went to a pizzeria for a pleasant dinner, followed by an early night. 

Birthday celebrations

My birthday celebrations started four days early with a small family gathering arranged as a surprise for me by my dear husband! After all these years I am still surprised by how sensitive James can be sometimes! I often forget how much he understands me. It should be noted that earlier in the day he also surprised me by treating me to three new tyres to replace the baldy ones on my car! I was also very touched that Marjory and Forrest came along especially when they are working today and tomorrow, and it was great to see the children and Grandma too; we had a good laugh and a delicious Chinese meal. It reminded me of how my Dad used to talk about family. It will be also be great to see Jennifer and her boys in January. I'm a lucky girl with a wonderful family. 

Girl clothes

Yesterday we had a great afternoon with Janet, Peter and Anne. We had a copious lunch of leftover turkey and all the leftover trimmings, with added chilli con carne etc. to make sure that there would be enough. Just as well because most of it was devoured and we finished it off for supper. Cat and all the boys were there too and we had a hilarious afternoon playing charades and "Who am I" with the names attached to our foreheads on post it notes. The youngsters were all amused that us oldies were all having to share Janet's reading glasses to read the charades!
Today I found myself alone in the house at lunch time which is very unusual. James was back to work. Jamie had very kindly given Davie a lift to see his girlfriend, and was then going to have lunch with Chris and the gang. Ally and Cat had set off for a family party at Cat's house. Even Jack was napping somewhere upstairs after a lively morning of following me around the house. A feeling of great peace descended. I made myself a coffee all by my own self using James' splendid (or should I say "magnifico"!) coffee machine and I chose to heat up the milk in the microwave rather than froth it, which I actually prefer. I decided to be a domestic goddess (for a change) so I went to hang up a washing and found to my surprise that there was a pretty embroidered dressing gown which didn't belong to me! I suppose that it belongs to Aisling or Cat. It was a source of wonder to me to find female clothes other than my own in my house of boys! It reminded me of the line in the film "Always" where Dorinda sees the beautiful dress that Pete has bought her, and says "Girl Clothes!" James always said that I would get my girls some day and now I feel that I have! 

Family Christmas

Well it has been a traditional Anderson Christmas day and the best part of that for me is all of us being together. The day started with everyone opening presents in our bedroom - including Jack! I will not go into details of all the wonderful presents that we received except that they were so very thoughtful that I felt very grateful. Grandma, Forrest, Marjory and the children came round in the morning and we had champagne (or Champomy for those too young or not inclined to have alcohol), party snacks and Christmas cake. Later Grandma came back round for dinner and we were unusually efficient at getting everything served out, warm, at 5 p.m. Everything was cooked to perfection apart from the chipolatas which were a bit overdone.
Much later as we sat around playing games, replete and contented, I asked my boys what has been their favourite part of Christmas day. Jamie and Ally both said that they enjoyed their cousins being round in the morning, and Davie said he enjoyed winning a game of Risk for the first time ever! James said he enjoyed making a good job of Christmas dinner. 

Festive Day

A lovely Christmas eve - plenty to do but plenty of time to do it in. In the morning I did some last minute food shopping then went over to Noah's 4th birthday party - what a cute birthday boy he is, and when everyone sang Happy Birthday to him he was just SO happy and cuddled into Jackie. Jackie gave me an amazing birthday present - a personalised framed poster of our family, complete with cat! I love it!
I then went for a pleasant lunch at Clockwork with James and two of his colleagues before an urgent visit to a pet shop to get a cat Christmas stocking filled with cat treats for our furry boy Jack. Thank goodness that there were some left!
A relaxing afternoon of present wrapping ensued, followed by the preparation of the turkey. This year Jamie sewed it up using his surgeon's techniques! After a few final preparations such as setting the table we all sat down to watch "The Snowman and the Snowdog", a sequel to the thirty year old classic animation. I thought that it was rather lovely, a fitting tribute to the original. I then had to make a mercy dash into the centre of Glasgow to collect Alasdair who had managed to miss both the last train and the last bus home! 

Festive lunch

I got up reasonably early to get my hair cut. I want it to look smart for Christmas, my birthday and our ski holidays. I thought that the hairdressers would be very busy but actually it was quiet; maybe people were too busy Christmas shopping to get their hair done. The weather today was absolutely grim; it was windy and lashing with rain all morning. It was much worse in the north east where there was flooding causing landslips; the trains were off between Dundee and Aberdeen, which affected Aisling's journey home to her family. In the end she managed to book a bus instead which got her safely home.
With my hair all sorted I drove to Ingram Wynd where I was meeting James, Heather and Ewan for lunch. Because of the rain I drove up and down the street several times to find a good parking space, little realising that the other three could see me going past from inside the restaurant! We had a lovely meal; it was my first visit there and I would definitely go back. Then we strolled down the road for drinks and chat at the Metropolitan, a favourite haunt of ours situated in Merchant Square. The indoor courtyard had a large Christmas tree in the middle and was all lit up with Christmas lights which made for a nice atmosphere. It used to be part of the old Glasgow fruit market and outside it there is a wall of commemorative tiles with photos of the market in the old days. Ewan was just telling us that his Dad used to do business there when James spotted that on one of the tiles was a picture of Ewan's Dad's open backed lorry! Amazing! Ewan used to ride in it as a child! We had a very pleasant afternoon before heading home to make tea for Grandma. 

Festive cinema trip

Eight of us met up at the GFT this evening - James and me, Jamie, Ally, Davie and their girlfriends - to watch my perennial favourite "It's a Wonderful Life". I have lost count of how many times I have seen it, and each time I discover something new about it. I had booked our seats which was just as well because it was completely sold out, and I distributed paper hankies to all of our party for the emotional bits! I loved the film as always and I think everyone else enjoyed it too, the whole audience applauded and cheered at the end. We all discussed it on the way home; Cat pointed out that maybe George is so angry about his daughter catching a cold on the way home from school not just because he is stressed due to the missing money but also because he lost his hearing in one ear after a childhood cold. I thought that this was very perceptive and I was impressed.
When we got home we all had the chilli con carne or lentil chilli that James and I had prepared earlier, with rice, pitta bread, salad, soured cream and doritos. This all went down well and was followed by chocolate yule log. An excellent evening.

Batch cooking

This afternoon James and I are cooking up a storm - we are making supper for later this evening. At James' suggestion we have made 4 x quantities so that we can freeze some for later in the festive season. We are playing Michael Bublé's Christmas songs and feeling pleasantly festive in a domestic way. I quite like Michael Bublé's voice, he sounds like a traditional crooner. James has made me a gorgeous coffee and we have been chatting and setting the world to rights. Not bad for a rainy December afternoon!
Our boys are all in town Christmas shopping with their girls and we will be meeting them later to go to the cinema and then we will all come back here for supper. 

Santa drives a bus!

Yesterday Jackie and I provided the staff lunch which went very well, and to my surprise I was presented with a very generous and thoughtful 50th birthday present from my department - a gorgeous Jo Malone gift set in my favourite fragrance - Basil, Lime & Mandarin! Everyone had signed a card with lovely messages. I felt really quite moved. I took a class to the cinema to see "Nativity 2: Danger in the Manger" and although the plot was complete nonsense it was a really festive, comic, feel good film and we all enjoyed it.
Book club was fantastic last night. We laughed and chatted and ended up staying very late - and on a school night too! Rosemary is a lovely person and she made us a delicious supper in her beautiful home. We all opened our Secret Santas amid great jollity. They are such a nice bunch and so interesting too - one of the girls was telling us how privileged she feels to be a midwife and to help people at such an intimate and important time in their life. It got me thinking that I'm very privileged too - I love my job even though it can be very stressful at times.
As David and I approached the school this morning we saw a bus approaching as we waited at the mini roundabout - and Santa was driving it! I don't mean someone with a Santa hat, I mean Santa in full regalia with a massive beard! David and I found this very amusing!
The last day of term can be emotionally charged but this one went quite smoothly and was even quite fun, incorporating a very successful Christmas party for the pupils. We had a staff gathering at lunch time and there were five teachers who were given presentations for our 50th birthdays! It was interesting to see who is almost exactly my age. All very embarrassing but good fun - the story related about me concerned an incident on the Holland trip which was very funny - when I innocently looked out of my bedroom window only to see that it overlooked another window where a topless George R was dancing and calling "Hello ladies it is me, Raul!" (in reference to an Irn Bru advert). We did have a good laugh on that trip!
So now I'm on my holidays! It has been a long hard term but we have got a lot done and I feel that I can relax for a bit. 

The company I keep

What a pleasantly busy week this is turning out to be! Pleasant and busy do not always go hand in hand, but this week's activities have been great fun. Last night I went to a festive mince pies evening at Catherine's; I knew some but not all of the other guests; it didn't matter because they were a very friendly group and we all chatted away happily. I also had a lovely chat with Helen which I enjoyed very much.
After a busy day at work today I met up with my friend Margaret in town for a meal at Zizzi's. It was a pleasure to see her, she is one of my oldest friends - by which I mean longstanding rather than aged of course; Margaret is a young thing compared to me! We came back home for a cup of tea with James and the boys and a good old chat. The boys have known Margaret all of their lives and treat her as one of the family.
Tomorrow I am going to my EK book club Christmas meeting at Rosemary's and the main reason I am looking forward to it is the great people I will see there. We have all been there for each other through life's ups and downs. It occurs to me that I am a very lucky girl; as the saying goes, "You are known by the company you keep" and I truly like the company I keep! 

Dancing Duo

After our lovely weekend of house guests it was back to work today for the last week of term. James was up even earlier for a work trip to London. I left all of my boys and girls fast asleep - how nice it must be to be on holiday already! Davie was off sick with a sore throat so I handed in his overdue folio piece for him. He has worked hard on it with me over the weekend and it is much better structured with some good arguments. Some of his friends came to my room at lunch time to ask how he was which I thought was very sweet. It is a busy last week at school with numerous excursions and celebrations, which can prove to be rather stressful for all concerned as well as enjoyable! In the evening a much recovered Davie and I took the Wii over to Jackie's - she has purchased it from Davie as one of her boys' Christmas presents. He instructed her in how to set it up and we practised using it by dancing to "Just Dance" and Michael Jackson's "Thriller". We had such a good laugh as Davie sat on the couch making critical comments as he watched two DHTs dancing! 

An Unexpectedly Long Journey

Nearly three hours! Well, one hundred and seventy minutes to be exact, was the running time of The Hobbit Part One, which we saw at the cinema today. And that's only the first third of the book, so the total length by my calculations will be a whopping eight and a half hours. Now, James' childhood copy of The Hobbit has 272 pages (I have just checked) so that means that there will be nearly two minutes screen time devoted to each page of the book! Having said all that, I thoroughly enjoyed the film. I thought that Martin Freeman was perfect casting for Bilbo and I loved the brave but boorish band of dwarves. And I had no idea how long the film was lasting until I checked the time at the end and found to my alarm that it was already 6.30 p.m. - I hadn't checked the running time so had expected it to finish about an hour earlier! So although it was long, it didn't drag for me. We phoned Jamie to ask him to put the dinner on and then jumped in a taxi to get home in time for tea with Grandma. All went well and eight of us sat down to a nice dinner; Cat and Aisling have been here all weekend and I love having a house full of young people. We are now eating apple pie and watching BBC Sports Personality of the Year. What a pleasant evening. 

Sometimes the box opens

I was talking to a good friend recently who has had some very difficult times in his life. Completely different from the difficult times that I have had. We spoke about our issues for a while and he was just great to talk to. I asked him how he copes and he said that he tries to compartmentalise things. I agreed with that and said to him that I have found that if it's something really terrible and there is nothing that you can do to sort it out, the only thing you can do is try to put it aside - "put it in a box". But at unexpected moments something will trigger a memory and .... "The box opens", said my friend. We looked at each other and didn't need to say any more. It's so nice to have a moment of perfect understanding with someone. 

An Anderson family tradition

Today we went to choose our Christmas tree at the David Marshall lodge, according to a family tradition that has been going on for at least twenty-seven years. We have been choosing our tree there since well before our three children were born, and it has continued through babyhood, childhood and the teenage years. The boys love it and still want to come along even now. However this year we had a couple of new additions - Cat and Aisling both came along so there were seven of us! It was great fun. First we solemnly chose our tree, spending time deciding based on height, shape and straightness. The girls enthusiastically took part in these deliberations and we chose a fine specimen. Then after the tree was tied firmly to the car roof we went down the hill to the Woollen Mill in Aberfoyle for lunch, because the David Marshall lodge (where we usually feast on soup and toasties) is currently being refurbished. Next we went for a walk in the slightly damp but surprisingly mild afternoon through the woods to the waterfall. It was spectacular today, the white water was crashing down on the rocks below. We also went to a newly built wildlife hide, from where we watched lots of red squirrels climbing up and even inside the feeders, their winter coats thick and darkened. There were also lots of birds feeding, including some seasonally appropriate robins! Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, and there was lots of chat and laughter on the way home in the car.
When I left to go to my staff night out James, boys and girlfriends were all starting to decorate the tree. I had to hurry into town though because my night out started at 5 p.m. which I thought was very early. We had a cocktail making class at Bar Strata followed by a meal. The cocktail class was great fun and we had a good laugh; everyone was in good form. The meal which followed was excellent and good value, and the service was great. A good evening was had by all. I left about ten thirty, forgoing the option to go dancing! Town was absolutely jumping with Christmas revellers, but I was glad to be heading home to my loyal, loving family. 

Christmas cake finally finished!

I went up to the Home Economics department at lunch time to finish off my cake by adding the baubles on the tree and the star for the top of the tree. There was a lovely busy atmosphere as pupils and staff all hurried to finish their cake decorating, supported by the incredibly patient Home Economics teachers. I brushed the baubles and the star with glitter and at last my cake was finished. I am SO proud of it, although I admittedly the disproportionately huge Jack cat that I have added in front of my family of penguins does make for a rather bizarre Christmas scene! 

Good deed

I felt much more energetic today and got lots done. I also did a good deed today for a colleague. I can't blog about it because it's work related, but I got the warm glow that comes of doing something nice for someone who needs it. I do try to help others when I can. For example I remember many years ago when I was a student teacher I got an excellent chance to do a good deed. I met a lady who had made an accidental thoughtless remark to a person who had been recently bereaved (she momentarily forgot and asked him to say hello for her to his deceased wife). When she found out that I knew the person too, she asked if I could convey her apologies because she was too embarrassed to contact him. I was delighted to do so; our mutual friend then asked me to tell her not to worry about it, and she then felt able to phone him. This may sound trivial but it didn't feel trivial to her at the time, and I was very happy to be able to help her even in such a small way. And that's the whole point; it doesn't have to be a grand gesture. I'm not going to list any more good deeds or it will sound "bigsy" as they say on Westray and anyway I'm sure that most people share my philosophy of "help not hurt". I have met some lovely people in my life as well as some less pleasant individuals - I try to be "one of the good guys". That's what a friend of ours called my Dad after he died - and it was true! If I could be half as good a person as my Dad I would be very happy. 

Not quite firing on all cylinders

I am now in the bath on my way to bed because I have not been feeling great today. Nothing specific, just heavy eyes and a slight headache. I am not alone in this; a lot of my colleagues are feeling less than 100% too. The annoying thing is that it has affected my concentration and I did not get through everything that I wanted to today. After school I went to the Cookery Club's Christmas celebration which went very well, and, during her speech to the invited parents, Shona very kindly thanked me for being her helper over the last couple of months. I nipped into the store room to have a look at my penguins and felt quite pleased with them. They look as if they have been made by an adult amateur - not as if a toddler has made them, which is what I feared. By the time I got home I was really tired; lovely Davie made the tea and I perked up a little. Ally is feeling a bit better I'm glad to say and is planning to sit his exam tomorrow. I need to get him a doctor's line for the exam he missed today; it's very unfortunate but he really couldn't help being ill. He is going to ask his Advisor of Studies when he will next be able to sit the exam; I suspect that it will not be until June or August. The best thing I can do now is get a good night's rest to restore my energy levels. 

Seven assorted penguins

Today I made the seven penguins for my Christmas cake and I have to say that it was very hard work. One of my Home Economics colleagues very kindly demonstrated to me how to make one, and in his expert hands the task seemed deceptively easy. Not so when I came to try it. The black icing was very difficult to manipulate and it kept making dirty marks on the white icing even though I tried to be careful. The beaks and feet were really footery. However I did end up with my seven penguins completed. They all look slightly different in size, shape and expression so I have pragmatically decided that this is a good thing! They are called Susan penguin, James penguin, Jamie penguin, Ally penguin, Davie penguin, Grandma penguin and Cat penguin. Cat, Ally's girlfriend, qualifies for the cake because she is lovely and has put up with Ally for two years now! Jack cat will also feature on the cake but in cat form rather than penguin form. It's not as complicated as it sounds!
In other news, our new boiler went out today because a pipe froze in the garage. The house was freezing when we came home and James was furious - he had told the installers that he didn't like the way the pipes were set up but they had dismissed his concerns and now he has been proved right. James managed to fix it by pouring boiling water over the pipe but he shouldn't have had to do that with a brand new boiler system after only a couple of weeks. The most comical aspect was when Jack came through and climbed up on the radiator for a heat after eating his dinner (James refers to this as "cooking his chunks"!) He made his way up as usual via the couch but when he put his front paws on the radiator and found it to be stone cold he did a double take and retreated disapprovingly! Also worrying, especially since he is in the middle of his exams, Ally is not at all well, with flu like symptoms. He went to the doctor today and it looks like he's going to have to miss tomorrow's exam. He is understandably very upset about this but as I pointed out to him, unfortunately these things happen and he can arrange to sit his exam at a future date. 

An evening of my life that I won't get back

This evening I was nagged by James into writing our Christmas cards. Writing a hundred or so cards takes me several hours and I didn't feel very festive; in fact it was a bit of a chore. This task merely serves to make me feel guilty about all the lovely friends that I have not seen for ages, and I always vow to get in touch with them soon. In fact James and I were just discussing during our walk at the weekend that it's time we contacted a few people.
A couple of my book club friends announced last Christmas that they would no longer be sending Christmas cards because they are too much hassle. These are not people who don't like tradition, far from it, but they are both quite a bit younger than me and that's what makes me wonder if the days of the Christmas card may be numbered? They are quite attractive as decoration but could easily be replaced by a bit more tinsel! And the Christmas greetings could be transmitted by e-card, something I have already used occasionally for late birthday greetings. This is my prediction, you read it here first. As for me, I'm too set in my ways to have a radical change so I will be sending Christmas cards (and moaning about it) for the foreseeable future! Meanwhile James was happily watching the second part of a documentary about the Rolling Stones. I told him that since I have written the Christmas cards for the first twenty-eight Christmases of our marriage he can write them for the next twenty-eight years! James agreed, but only on condition that he writes the list of recipients - which I presume means that it would be a very short list! 

The Reluctant Santa

Today we went on the hill-walking club's annual "Mince Pies" outing. The company is always convivial and it's a really nice festive treat. Club members and their friends bring along children and grandchildren and it's always well attended. This year our walk was to the Forth and Clyde Canal and the Antonine Wall; a circular walk starting and ending at the Auchinstarry Marina, where we had a slap up breakfast before setting off. The weather was absolutely beautiful; sunny with blue skies. It was much milder than last week but still quite icy underfoot in some places so we had to watch out. We set off along the canal towpath before heading up Croy Hill where we had lovely, if slightly urban, views up the valley. Then we went on to Bar Hill which was steeper than I had anticipated but manageable - at least it was grassy and not icy! We went down a little to have lunch just below the trig point out of the wind, and as we walked on we saw the foundations of a Roman fort. We then descended to Twechar and back along the canal towpath to Auchinstarry. It was a good walk. James and I saw four swans flying above us us as we walked along, with David sliding recklessly but enthusiastically along beside us on the icy path. Our festive celebration was held at the Coachman Hotel in Kilsyth where we had a function room booked. There was a quiz and a raffle and much drinking of mulled wine and singing of festive songs. However there was a problem - no one had volunteered to be Santa! With some persuasion (from me and hill-walking club Heather) James very reluctantly agreed to do it. To be fair, being Santa goes against everything James stands for - his horror of showing off and his lack of enthusiasm for children! He took so long getting ready in the gents toilet that I thought he might have climbed out of the window and done a runner. However he emerged wearing his santa outfit and looking very grim, and Heather helped him to put on his voluminous wig and beard. Finally James entered the party room as everyone sang "Jingle Bells" and I have to say that he did a very decent job. Santa's Little Helper (Diane) kept him on the right track as they distributed the presents to both children and adults, and James sportingly interjected a few appropriate phrases such as "Have you been good?" and "Ho Ho Ho!" The general opinion was that he was a good Santa but needed to grow his paunch a bit more. When it was all over and he had changed back into his civvies I asked if he had enjoyed this new experience even a wee bit. "No" came the firm response, "It's just not me." 

Battle on the lawn

I was watching a magpie and a squirrel squaring up to each other on the grass this afternoon. The magpie was the most aggressive and danced right up to the squirrel but the squirrel turned round to it and they had a brief skirmish, they seemed evenly matched. I have had a pleasant Saturday. I was bag-packing at Sainsbury's to raise funds for the music trip then did a bit of housework. Ally and Cat were studying together and Davie was in town with his girlfriend. In the evening we all had dinner together then James and I watched a quirky wee film that had been recommended to me called "Up there" It was a strange wistful black comedy filmed in Glasgow and Saltcoats, with a rather bleak view of a bland bureaucratic afterlife. It had haunting music, the acting was good and I enjoyed it. 

Fandabbydosa

I fell down this morning on the ice beside my car! It was black ice and I just didn't see it at all. Mainly my dignity was hurt but also my left arm, my butt and my left foot. I'm going to have some spectacular bruises. Work was busy, busy, busy with prelims, but it was a good day. I picked up James after work and we went Christmas shopping in town. This proved to be a rather successful trip and we made very good progress with our list. Then we went for dinner to Dakhin and had a delicious dinner; the sauces are so gorgeous. I had char-grilled chicken with pathram which is an assortment of ground rice and lentil pancakes. James had a lamb dish which he loved and of course we had a huge paper dosa on the side. Now I'm watching Bruno Mars videos with Ally and Cat. 

The icing on the cake

Today I iced my Christmas cake! I chose ivory coloured icing just because I liked the rich luxurious look of it. The icing is weird to manipulate, very stretchy when I lifted it onto the cake using a rolling pin. It also had a couple of air bubbles which I had to pierce with a pin and then smooth out. I was pleased with the result and it is now ready to be decorated next week - I'm still thinking about penguins.
Ally had an exam today and he thinks it went well. I hope so. Meanwhile Davie has found romance at school, not his first girlfriend but his first Duncanrig girlfriend; it's so sweet but he would be furious if I blogged about it at this early stage so I will say no more. Jamie has been having accommodation problems; his landlord is pressuring Jamie to find replacement tenants right now for the people who will be graduating next summer which seems very premature and unreasonable. Why should Jamie have to find the tenants anyway? I suspect the landlord would find it simpler to move in a new crowd of 2nd year students next session once most of the current ones move out in July so that they will all be there for three or four years. I think Jamie should just find a new flat for his final year at university; his lease doesn't run out until after his big exams in July so it won't affect his studies.
James made coffee using the new coffee maker tonight! There were various alarming sounds as the beans were ground and whatever other strange processes take place. The coffee smelt gorgeous and tasted authentic! 

Marzipan skies

I have now put the marzipan on my Christmas cake. It's a lovely pale gold colour and looks very smart. I got such good advice from my colleagues and also some pupils, on how to roll it out properly and smooth it onto the cake. Everyone was so encouraging and I'm very excited about the next stage of icing it.
David and I went into town yesterday evening to collect the coffee machine and we had a browse round an almost deserted John Lewis. I got some very nice Christmas crackers but Davie was tired so then we just went for a coffee and had a lovely chat.
On the way into school this morning the sky was magnificent - brilliant blue with swathes of gold clouds (like my marzipan!) The weather continues to be cold; -4 degrees when David and I set off home this evening. Hard to believe that I was sweltering on the beach at Sandwood Bay five months ago - I bet it's bitterly cold there too tonight! 

Ready for winter

It is well and truly winter which I suppose isn't surprising for December. When we walked along to Alison and Hugh's for dinner on Saturday evening the ground was icy with huge ice crystals that looked like broken glass! Last night the forecast snow arrived and we woke to a couple of centimetres of powdery whiteness. The brightness that this provided outside our windows fooled Jack into thinking that it was daytime at 5 a.m. - he paced around the bedroom, deliberately knocking over the bin, chewing loudly on a plastic bag, clawing the carpet and walking over our inert forms. Woken too early, we remonstrated with Jack but he appeared unrepentant, and when we set off for work he was settling down for a nap. Outside it was icy and slushy but the roads were clear so there was no delay in getting to work. The car park and playground were covered with a sheet of ice, so I am now carrying my moon boots and yaktrax ice grips in the car. With my new super scrapers and de-icer spray I am ready for the cold weather ahead! 

My own blog used against me

James wanted to go for a hill walk this morning but I wasn't up for it because I was tired. Needless to say this led to various recriminations and David even joined in and read aloud from my blog of a few days ago where I bemoaned my lack of exercise. Eventually James and I decided to go into town to shop for a new couch. There had been a heavy frost overnight and the paths were thick with ice. It really is winter now! The ice on the car was a feathery pattern which looked very beautiful.
Our trip into town got off to a slow start; the couch hunt will have to go on because we did not feel inspired by any we saw. However we had a pleasant lunch in Zizzi, did some useful Christmas shopping, then finally ordered a magnificent coffee machine in John Lewis. I say "finally" because, like many Anderson purchases, it took us an unfeasible amount of time to decide which one we wanted. I think the coffee machine decision has taken about five years! James will collect it on Tuesday and then we can start grinding and brewing!