Lazy days

We have done nothing very much so far in this long-awaited Easter holiday.  But a good few days of relaxation, playing at home, and being allowed to indulge in TV and DVDs was just what the boys needed to recharge their batteries.  We have had some very tetchy, and easily irritated little boys in this house over the past few weeks - strange that when their behaviour is at its worst, my patience grows.  Hmm.  Must be because it's easier to spot when they're tired, and know that they're not being naughty on purpose.  Most of the time they are very, very good, and they don't like to think that they've let me down, bless them (they never do let me down, but it doesn't hurt to pretend to be a little disappointed now and then, just to keep them on their toes ;) ).

So we've only been to Dalton Zoo (South Lakes Wild Animal Park) which was quite a bargain because kids are free for the whole of April.  Further bargainous because I told the boys before we left home that I had no spare money, so they did not ask for any souvenirs from the gift shop (I'll remember that one from now on!)

This is what we saw at Dalton:

One day we'd all like to adopt some of these protected animals.  We always feel very sad when we visit this conservation park, because they do tell you the very grave truth about the seriousness of the threat of extinction to so many species.  It's also not very nice to see these majestic animals caged.  But we still go, because it's one of our favourite places - we know this park does as much as it can to protect animals in the wild.  Personally, I feel very humbled when I'm there.

We have had a little fresh air, but not much.  This is what fresh air looked like today, on the Barton Road fields near my mum:

Although Thomas seems to have a sour face here, this is not actually the case - he is just squinting against the sun :)  He actually loves spending time on the field.

Thomas is doing some investigating here - he found a ladybird.

Matthew's looking for ladybirds too.

James would love to have a dog of his own - he will be allowed to have one, when he leaves home.

Super wholesome and refreshing afternoon, out walking me mam's dog :)  The boys don't love much more than getting out for a run around in a field, with a ball and a dog to chase after it.  I love watching them run up and down, showing us their skills, their aikido rolls and their acrobatics.  They're fabulous little boys.  Exploring copses, climbing little trees, getting squelchy in the mud, paddling in the beck, drying their feet by running on the grass.  What I wouldn't give to actually be one of my boys, because they are having the time of their lives doing nothing much - they're not having a bad childhood at all :)  

I'm having a short break tomorrow, being one of my Days Off.  I'll be doing some serious writing jobs, and getting stuck into a couple of projects that I'm hoping to get somewhere with.  After that it will be the second week of the holidays, and I am looking forward to some good weather, to some picnics perhaps, and some more fresh air, hopefully a little further afield (stocking up on travel sickness tablets!).

Life is good :)

Merry Christmas everyone!

I finally got around to getting my last Christmas present this morning.  Kev gave me a cute little home-made voucher for a pair of Doc Marten's for Christmas, and I only just cashed it in.

My docs are this colour.

Actually, they're not.  This photo doesn't get the colour across properly.  They're much more luminous!  Not to everyone's taste by any means, but that's good.  I wouldn't want everyone wearing the same shoes as me, because then I wouldn't be so special :D

It was between these and a pair of shiny pink ones.  The shiny pink ones were on offer, but I knew I would love the green more in the long run.  Maybe I'll save up and get the pink ones too!  Of course, they probably won't be on offer any more, once I've managed to save up.

 
This still doesn't show you the real colour.  How strange.  Well, you'll just have to come and see them for yourself.  I'm sure you'll hate them, but that's alright.

It's going to be marvellous to not get wet feet when it rains now :)  I've been walking around in holey shoes for months, and my toes have been freezing all Winter!

Day Off tomorrow :D :D :D :D :D   I am not to be disturbed.  I am doing some major editing on my manuscript, and hope to have made some good progress with it by the end of the day.  If you see me in Starbucks you must keep the niceties to a minimum and then bugger off :D

Have a good weekend all.

Getting it done!

I have been neglecting my admin! I always do this. Little jobs that need doing pile up, and I have them in the back of my mind, and they fester away and annoy me. Instead of just getting it all done when it first appears I put it off, and put it off, because there are more interesting things to do, such as Bob the Builder jigsaws, and Lego sets. But then I have a mad go at the admin stuff, and get it all done in one go, and find that it's all dealt with within half an hour and there really was no need to keep putting it off and putting it off.

So that's what I've done with the first part of this morning. I couldn't really find an excuse to do a jigsaw, what with all of the kids being out! So I got down to the phoning and form-filling jobs. I finally completed my passport application (now I just need to remember to post it, and not let it sit in the bottom of my bag for three months!). I also completed my replacement driving licence application form - which has been sitting on the kitchen worktop for over three months. I made us all an appointment at the dentist, made an appointment for a lens check for me, and booked the car in for its MOT and service (ouch, horrible expense - paying someone to tell you that your car is fine! Usually - oh dear, I've probably just cursed the poor car, and it will turn out to need some serious welding and a head gasket replacement!)

What else did I do? Oh yes, I sent an email to my old Human Physiology tutor to ask if he thought I would need to do the course again (as the qualification only lasts for five years - I can understand why, to be perfectly honest, because I can barely remember a thing that I learned), and if he thought that I didn't need to do it again, would he give me an academic reference :) My lovely doctor has already said that he will give me a super reference.

I also tried to print off a description and model number for the cooker that we need to ask Comet to order for us. I came across a stumbling block there, because I have no knowledge about things such as dimensions of housings, so I couldn't decide which cooker was the right size and spec. I could work it out, I'm sure, but I'd rather make absolutely sure that I'm right, and get Kev to confirm it for me, before getting it ordered only to have it be the wrong size. But this is the only thing on my list of jobs that has not been done, so I think I've done very well at motivating myself this morning.

It's Hoover's fault that I've neglected these little jobs for so long. We were without a washer for three months, until recently, and every few days I was on the phone, in queues, on hold, on edge, talking to someone at Hoover about getting my washer fixed or replaced. The whole experience was stupid. But I shouted in the end, and got it replaced. I've never been so happy to do washing! My poor dad has had it all for the last three months - thank you, Dad! :) But talking to someone in a call centre so often kind of puts you off using the phone at all for a while.

But I do like admin. I always have. I think that's probably why I'll get a place on the midwifery course, when I eventually apply!! I've heard tales of women getting onto the course and finding that it's not what they thought it was going to be because of all the paperwork. Excellent!! Bring it on. In seven years of working at the University, never once did I tire of filling in a form. Hell, I would fill in forms for other people because they hated doing it. It's in my blood, seemingly - my mum is the same. Give us a form and a nice, non-scratchy, non-blobbing pen, and we'll be happy. Of course, I will enjoy the delivering babies bit :) I wouldn't choose such a physically and emotionally demanding career just for the paperwork. I don't know what it is about this midwifery thing, but I just seem to have supreme confidence about it, like I just know that I'll be good at it, and that I'll be able to make the important people see that I am the best person for the job. I've NEVER felt so confident about anything before, in my life. I feel quite confident about my writing - about the novels that I'm working on anyway; my blog's probably a bit dull at times! - but not as confident as I feel about midwifery. I feel horribly arrogant saying it, but there it is.

Anyway, I'd better get to work on that novel before the morning's over. I've got a lot that I want to get done this week. I'm plugging away at the story, getting it down on paper (yes, by hand, with a pen). But this evening I want to work on some character cards and see if I can get more out of my peripheral characters - there are none that are really making the impact on the story that I'd like them to make. They need to work harder to keep their place in the book! Another Day Off on Saturday, so I'll get a lot of work done then :) I'll be having tea at Verdes with my mum, and she's hoping to see the staff ask me about my writing again. She's considering coming with some work of her own and sitting at a separate table to me to observe!

Two things.

Guitar and politics.

Today I have been practising the guitar again. My fingers are actually a little tender today, thought not quite bleeding! I went to the music shop this morning, but it's selection of books was, to be perfectly honest, pants. There was nothing at all that appealed to me. And nothing that was at the right level for me. I'm not quite a beginner now, but I'm by no means an intermediate. So I came home and had a look online, but there was so much choice that I had no idea which book to choose - it's not so easy online either, because you can't see how it's all presented inside. It would perhaps help if I knew what kind of music I'd like to play, but I don't really - I just know that I'd eventually like to be able to play Metallica's Nothing Else Matters! He he - that won't be for a very long time, I should imagine :) So I'm still stuck with the book that I've been using for the past few weeks - it's getting a bit boring now though, practising the same chords over and over.

I did find a very good website that has free Tab on it. UltimateGuitar.com. It's got a good forum on it, where there's lots of advice from other beginners and more experienced guitarists. It looks very good indeed. Noomski uses it too :) I did take a little peek at Nothing Else Matters - ROCK HARD!!! I'll take a look again in about ten years, ha.

But I need something more structured, so that I can see some progression in my playing, and so that I feel like I'm getting somewhere. I could do with lessons really, but they're very expensive, and I don't think there's any way I could afford them. So I'll have to just get along as best I can without. It's still fun though - I love it. I've only been playing since January, and already feel like I know quite a lot. I can play loads of chords now :) And when I pick the guitar up it all feels very familiar too, like it fits in my hands automatically and it's supposed to be there. Mmm, nice.

The other thing I was thinking about this evening was politics. This election's hotted up a bit since the live 'debate' last Thursday, eh? Mmmm, very exciting. I'm going to watch as much I can on the 6th, with Jeremy Vine and the Swingometre. For the first time I have no idea who to vote for in the Parliamentary elections. In the Council elections I vote Green if there is a candidate - usually there isn't though, so I just pick one that's not Conservative ;) But this time - I just don't know. Don't think I like David Cameron - but I don't know why I don't like him. Quite like Gordon Brown - but think he's a rubbish politician/PM. Do like Nick Clegg - might vote LibDem - but not at all certain about that. Oh, I'm not going to be voting based on which leader I like the most, don't worry! No, I do pay attention to the policies; I couldn't really tell you what any of them are, of course, but I kind of let all the random words and soundbites float around in my head and try to get a general flavour of what the party's about. I mean, really, is there anything more that we can do, since when they actually get into power and get their hands on the books, they soon find out that they can't deliver on most of their promises anyway, right?

But then I was thinking that perhaps everything in politics is going to change for the better from now on anyway, because ALL politicians know that they've been bad and that we know they've been bad and that we're fed up of them being bad.

Well, anyway, just less than two weeks left. I don't know who I'm voting for. I think I will be walking into the polling station still undecided. I don't want that to happen, I want to have decided before I go to vote, so that I don't just stick a random cross down at the candidate with the nicest name! I always feel like a bit of a numpty when it comes to politics - I wish I knew more, so that I could make a more informed choice. But where are the canvassers? Not on my street. Can't ask them what they're all about if they're not knocking. I don't want leaflets through my door - waste of money. I want someone to come round and tell me things.

:) That's about as deep as it goes with me and politics - I can think about it in lots of detail and depth, but I can't write about it, for fear of getting things wrong and sounding like a right fool.

It's my Day Off tomorrow. Oooooooooh, I'm so looking forward to it. The day always passes much to quickly, but that's why I stay out late :) I used to come home before tea, but didn't feel like I'd really had a day off because I had to come back and help with the kids again. So now I take myself off to a restaurant for my tea, and then go to the pictures in the evening as well - a proper, full day off. It's completely heavenly. I think I'm staying in town tomorrow. I was thinking about going to Liverpool for one of my days off, but I don't really feel like it at the moment - it would be nice to do the galleries, but I don't feel like I deserve that much of a treat yet, because I've not done any writing for ages. So it'll be writing all day tomorrow, in peace :) Delicious. If I get a few chapters drafted this month then maybe I'll go to Liverpool on the train next month.

Well, I'm going to go to sleep soon. I want to get up nice and early, to make sure that I get as many child-free hours as possible!

Night.