Shopoholic

I keep receiving stuff that I have ordered for Christmas and JD keeps asking what it is and is it for him. So far I have said all are for him, but when I opened the large box I assumed was for him it turned out to be something I ordered for Karin and Tora. Oops, so the box I thought I had ordered for JD has not turned up, probably because I had a hissy fit at Amazon when they told me it would be delivered after 25th December (N.B. I ordered it on the 18th of November). Next to my bed is a growing pile of Christmas presents to be wrapped and most packed to come with me to Sweden. Oh I love Christmas.



The best bit is getting presents and wrapping them and then putting them under the tree.

The second best bit is getting the Christmas decoration box out on the 1st of December and my pretty Lisa Larson blue pig Advent Candle holder.

The third best bit is the lovely smell of hyacinths (three blue ones on the mantle piece right now, best to start early).


And through it all I am allowed to drink unlimited amounts of glogg. Mmm...

Matandarna.com

Its all Johan's fault. I have been spending most of my time lately humming a little song some students from Uppsala wrote and recorded a while ago. Its about space, how nice it would be to live in space. It is silly in Swedish and doesnt improve when I try and translate to my collegues what I am sitting in front of the computer singing.

Division of Labour

At one point yesterday JD was outside using the axe to cut the logs into smaller chunks for the fire. I was at the same time sitting in my chair in front of the fire knitting.

Felt like I had just slipped into the world of 'Little Women', but with comfortable clothes and without all the sisters.

Update

The cleaner has finally cleaned the tap.

Jenny pointed out that we must spend so much time writing notes and worrying about reactions to notes that in that time we could have just cleaned the bloody tap ourselves.

Good point.

I just need to get to it before JD spots he has a wee bee in his bonnet about that tap.

Pose of tranquility

Yoga postures, who gave them names? Some are seriously misleading and most are just weird.

Take for example:

Sunbathing Spider: lie on your back with arms and legs stretched up in the air and flex/stretch hands and feet. I can count 4 limbs, I thought spiders had 8?

Pose of Tranquility: Lie flat on your back, 'throw' your feet over your head (so you have your legs above your face and the feet behind it) and balance on your shoulders. Once you have found balance move your arms above your head and grip you ankles. Keep balancing til you suffocate. I guess that is one way to reach tranquility.

Winter

Lego tower completed. We have decided that for now it will live next to my chair. I hope that JD will pack it down after Christmas. But not holding my breath.

We had a community day at work yesterday, scrub bashing on the downs. We were sawing and cutting down shrubs to ensure the delicate wildlife will come back next year. Then we burned it making sure that anything living under the fire or in close vincinity will not be coming back for a couple of years. I did less cutting and more dragging and burning. I am aching all over today and have had to wash all the clothes, gloves, hat, scarves I brought to get rid of the smoke 'perfume'.

Re: cleaner. JD has decided enough is enough and the bathroom tap needs doing better. So he has made a drawing of it and with arrows and instructions making sure there is no doubt as to what it is we want her to do. Wonder if we will find our home burnt down when we arrive back Tue night...

Lego

JD went into town especially the other day to go to the Lego store. He bought an Eiffel tower model that is 1.3 M high when completed. I have been invited to help out building it but declined gracefully.

Oh how I am looking forward to the 'discussion' of how long it has to stay up and where before we can dismantle it and put the box in the loft... Its currently living on the guest bed so the cleaner didnt crash it by mistake (or purpose, seeing as she aint too happy with me after last weeks note...).

Grasanka

JD decided last minute to go to Belfast so suddenly I find myself all alone...

So to make the most of it I am off out with Tracey tonight, Wood on the Nose for some lovely food and plenty of wine. And tomorrow I am seeing Barb in town, we have 2.5 hours between C's feeds to get some shopping done, then via Carlccios back for lunch.

Saturday evening I am reserving for Strictly Come Dancing. And of course dinner, grilled salmon with celeriac mash.

Its a tough life.

Oh and the cleaner did a great job on Tue after my slightly more blunt note. AAAnd the reply to me was not the standard two pages but just 'I have done what you asked, ok.' Yup, ok with me.

Cleaner

Justin is convinced our cleaner is a psycho. She keeps leaving letters where she tells me about her life, what she is doing on the weekend, that she hasnt had a holiday for ages but wants one and other bits of info from her life. I am not sure, I think she might just be sociable but stuck in a job where you dont get to meet a lot of other people.



JD doesnt care, he is just concered she doesnt clean the tap in the bathroom and seems for some reason to clean the whole living room floor except under my chair and the sofa. So I shall write a letter on Monday trying to be clear (again) on what is basic cleaning requirements, while being nice and polite (in case she is a psycho) but try and not encourage the long letters about her personal life.



I tried writing instructions on post its to discourage the notes, but she wrote back to me on about 15 post its instead....

Ketchup

My approach to work is sometimes a bit like a bottle of Heinz. I sit on tasks so that in the end I have to rush to get it all done before everyone starts screaming at me. I can hear them warming up their voice cords right now...

All this year I have supposedly worked on two projects in parallel, in truth one has been resting peacefully since March and I had for some reason imagined that would be OK. But of course not. We are now heading towards end of year with speed and people have started asking uncomfortable questions and I am panicking. Time to start working.

Its all my own fault but I am still resentful noone shouted earlier so I would have had at least a chance of succeeding in getting something half way decent delivered. My boss is too nice, he leaves me to get on with things, which is great, but right now I wish he had chased me a bit more a few months ago.

I want mum to call in sick for me so I can just hide in bed reading for the rest of November. But knowing my mum she would just huff and tell me to get on with it.