Pinch and a punch.....

....hello February!

My only wish for the month ahead, is that it is drier, with more blue skies than January!!

January has been soooooo wet.

I am fed up of looking at the forecast and seeing more rain!

It's been grey, dull, damp and miserable.

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Wednesday Weekly!

So, on Monday, I went into school, bright and early and did 2 hours in the gallery, 

helping to take down the student exhibition.

I then raced home to join the waiting room and subsequent queue, in getting harry Styles tickets!!

I was successful but we are up in the God's!!

It is one of the most stressful things! I actually got in the queue at quite a low number but it still took me over 30 minutes to get through and actually be in a position to select tickets. It was then, that my computer froze and became unresponsive!! Honestly, the stress levels were through the roof and then, when I did manage to select 2 tickets, they were over £300 each!!! So I had to go again! Anyway, I did get two tickets (£91.25 each) Sophie was happy and we get to see Harry Styles at Wembley!!

I have also spent time this week booking up the remainder of our Greek trip, 

which is only 22 weeks away!!

I got out all our old photo albums, from our trips to Greece, before we had children!!

Before we had children, we always spent our two week holiday in Greece.

1993, our first holiday together was on the island of Corfu. 

          We stayed in Roda, £600 for the two of us

1994, Zakynthos, in Laganas, the party spot!!

1995, Parga, on the main land, boat trip to Paxos/Anti-Paxos

1996, our honeymoon ♥️ 

We went to Majorca as we thought we should go somewhere different!! 

           We should have gone to Greece 

1997, we returned to Corfu, staying in Kassiopi

1998, Lefkas, staying in Vasiliki in the south

Children........23 years later

2021, we returned to Corfu for our 25th wedding anniversary
2022, Kefalonia - Argostoli, Fiskardo and Assos
2023, Easter time in Rhodes and the island of Symi
2024, a month island hopping around the Cyclades- 

Santorini, Milos, Kimilos, Sifnos, Paros, Antiparos, Syros, Pireaus and Athens
2025, Easter time in Crete
2025, summer in the Sporades - Alonissos, Skopelos and Skiathos
2025, September and a week with Sophie in Benitses, Corfu

This year, we are celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary and we are planning a 5 week Ionian adventure, returning to the islands we first holidayed on together and adding in a few new islands too. Our love for the Greek islands continues 

I need something to look forward to, when all we have had this month is rain!

Somerset is flooded and everywhere is wet and muddy!!

On Wednesday, I met a friend (fellow invigilator) in Wells. 

The one morning we had blue skies!!

It was lovely to have a catch up but I could have also made the best of the weather 

and got out for a walk.

There are signs of Spring around, if you look for them!

The rain returned by midday, so I killed time in Wells and went to the cinema. My third film of the year, The Housemaid. I read the book last year so really wanted to see the film. Some bits were different but on the whole a reasonable reflection of the book.

On Thursday the forecast was for showers. So I met my friend in Glastonbury and we had a walk around the town. It's so hard to know where to walk with everywhere being so muddy.

Glastonbury has a mural trail, and this is by far my favourite.

We had a coffee before the rain returned and we headed home.

I met up with another friend on Friday morning for coffee and then on Saturday, I met up with my sister, over at Farrington Gurney farm shop for breakfast. It was a good half way spot and it was a delicious breakfast!!

Then yesterday evening, I popped up to school with Jeff to help him blow up some balloons for his Year 10 Formal. Poor guy had left the house at 7.30am taught all morning, refereed a football match all afternoon. Came home showered and changed, headed back up to school for the formal and got home after 9.30pm. a 14 hour day!!

Today, Sunday February 1st, is wet!!

The month ahead is pretty quiet.

There are two weeks remaining of  school, then it's half term week and then I'm back in the gallery for a four week stint. Which is when I presume, the weather will change and for the four days I am in, it will be lovely! (always happens!) 

I don't have much planned for the week ahead. I have a long, overdue haircut on Monday. I am then off to London on Tuesday with a group of Year 10 students on an Art trip. If it's dry I intend to walk, if it's wet I'm going to start planning out our October trip to Italy and continue with my de-cluttering!! 

Here's to good week x

Chunking out January, one piece at a time

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My Instagram weekly round-up is on a Wednesday and I always check in here, on a Sunday!!
Sorry for any confusion.  You get a slice of both weeks in one square!

We have had so much rain here in Somerset. Any fleeting moments of dry, nice skies, no grey, are to be celebrated fully. It's felt a long month. Mainly because it's been wet and I can't get out much. I always have a chunk of time off in January that feels a little wasted if the weather isn't great. In past years I've done some decorating. Could've of done some now but haven't had the motivation!! 

I've spent a chunk of my time de-cluttering my wardrobe, meeting friends for coffee and going to the local cinema. My second film of the year, Song Sung Blue. It surprised me that the cinema was so full, but I guess everyone one else was thinking the same ....what do you do on a wet Wednesday afternoon in Wells?!!!

I've finally got my hands on the Lenzetto spray for my HRT. It is such a nice change from the faff of the gel and patches. Still have symptoms, but can still up my dose if necessary. Fingers crossed this works and things start to settle down.

A BIG surprise this week, which was definitely not on my radar, was getting Benson Boone tickets. He was absolutely amazing when we saw him in London in November. He'd had to cancel a show in Birmingham just days before our show and had promised to reschedule. It popped up on my FB page that he'd confirmed a new date, so I messaged my friend who should have been going, just to say 'good news'! Didn't think anything more of it, refreshed my Instagram feed and there was Benson, announcing the new date with a ticket link in his bio!!! It hadn't even crossed my mind that there would be extra tickets. After phone calls to Sophie and a frenzied 10 minutes, I got tickets!!! So we head to Birmingham on Mother's Day, super excited!!

I'm hoping the ticket God's will be kind tomorrow, when the Harry Styles tickets go on sale!!!

I finished my first book of the year 'The Seven Husbands of Hugo Evelyn' and started my next 'You and me on vacation'. I am determined to read more this year. I have plenty of reading material to choose from. Sophie passes down books she's read, plus I have my kindle, so no excuses.

I hate recommending books as everyone is so different, same goes for holiday recommendations, what suits one person may not suit someone else!! I have similar reading tastes to Sophie, and for me, I need something pretty easy to follow (menopause brain to blame there!) so I read what she passes my way. 

By Friday I was ready to head to the charity shop and drop off my de-cluttering!!

And then made the most of a window of dry weather. I looked at the weather radar, saw a clear patch and headed over to Ham Wall for a burst of fresh air. The paths and gravel tracks, although scattered generously with puddles

But it is so calm and peaceful over there, so good for the soul.

I did take these photo's. Annoyingly the kingfisher alluded me. I did spot it, but is was too fast and fleeting for me to capture. Next time!!

Friday night was Traitors final night. I've persuaded Jeff to watch this series with me and I'm pleased to say he stuck it out to the end. I love it. It's just good old family tv. Two very deserved winners!

Yesterday was a Gallery day, my final Saturday for this exhibition.

It all comes down on Monday morning, gets a refresh of paint before the next exhibition, and my longer stint resumes after February half term.

So here we are, another Sunday morning. So far it's dry, but not for much longer. Today I am booking the final two parts of our Summer trip. I've been doing some research the past few days and just need to get it booked now. Then I can run through the whole itinerary, remind myself what we have booked and then I can start to delve into the resorts and islands a little deeper and plan out some ideas of things to do, places to see.... The ferry schedules will be released soon, so we can get that all booked up and we have to book a car for Ithaca, as public transport there is very limited. You need some thing sunny to look forward to on these miserable, grey January days.

Half way through January!!

I hate January!! 

I always feel January is a bit of a marathon, an endurance test!! 

But we're two weeks through!

Mock exams are done!!

I ended my stint with a 3 hour (with an extra 45mins) Philosophy exam.

We were the last ones standing. Just me, a boy, and an empty exam hall.

My exams are done until April, so I have a bit more time at home. 

This is what I come home to....a daily scene!

The plate has now reached the worktop, rather than being left on the kitchen table, but still hasn't quite jumped into the sink and washed itself!! I keep explaining to Sam that he is no longer a visitor but is living here, for the foreseeable, and that means doing the washing up!!! Hasn't quite computed yet!!

Wednesday was a lovely morning. Frustratingly, I had a doctor's appointment, so a walk was off the cards. It was still pretty on my walk into town. I had a HRT follow up. Another change of treatment to get my symptoms under control. I will get there eventually!!!

I spent my afternoon over in Wells, at my local little cinema watching Hamnet, my first film of the year. It's a fabulous place, £5 for a ticket with a free coffee/tea and a biscuit. So I try and use it when I can. 

I spent a very wet Thursday embarking on my de-cluttering mission! I have so many clothes but end up wearing the same things day in, day out. So I want to really go through everything and really analyse what I wear. If I haven't worn something in a year, get rid! I have a box of duplicates. Being short, I often find it hard to find trousers in particular, in the right size/length, so if I really like something, I buy a duplicate pair ready for when the original wears out. So rather than these being hung up, I've made a list and boxed them up, so it's easier to see what I have. So far I've gone through my shorts, trousers and skirts (which I never wear, but have just in case I have an occasion where I might have to wear one!!) Next week I'll tackle my jumpers, tops, jackets etc. The charity shop is going to love me x

What a gift of a morning x

My day started off with an impromptu walk on Friday.  

I had no plans to walk, as I had a coffee date in the diary but when you wake up to a morning like this, you squeeze it in!! I had to stop en-route to take this capture. Simply stunning.

A quick hour around Ham Wall before meeting up with my friend.

The light was perfect.

And the views stunning.

My first Scarlet Elf Cup spot of the year.

And as always, the friendliest of robins.

Saturday was a Gallery day.

The Student Exhibition.

I have one more Saturday next week and then that's me done until the next exhibition, which starts after February half term. I wish more people came to see it. It really is a fabulous celebration of student work and worthy of being seen.

This week has been full of drama on the music front, well, if you are a Harry Styles fan! He has been teasing/dripping out his new album/tour hints. I will try, being the operative word, to get tickets when the pre-sale goes live. I think it will be a hard ask, but if it's meant to be, it will happen. Sophie and I saw him live in 2023 at Cardiff Stadium. Rumour has it, it'll just be at Wembley, so will be highly sought after. I just hope tickets go on sale before I'm back in the gallery, so I can sit at my computer and waste a morning watching the queue crawl to nothing!! I must be positive!!

Today (Sunday) is grey, damp and miserable!  If we get dry weather during the week ahead, I will get out and walk. If it's wet, my de-cluttering mission will continue. I need to spend some time researching/booking the last two destinations of our summer trip. I've booked 90% of the trip, just two short town stops to get done! I've been loving Amanda & Alan's Greek Job on the island of Corfu. It makes me excited for the summer. We are ending our Ionian adventure on the island of Corfu. The island where we first holidayed together and where we will celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary. I have so much love for the island of Corfu. I'd happily be there now, instead of a grey, damp, miserable day in the UK! 24 weeks away and counting!!