Malawi & More

 After M's presents, I finally succumbed and joined A for the park run. I walked. And very aware that I haven't got the fitness I once had. Time to get fitter then.  Possibly not in the spirit of getting fit we then got croissants, two filled with chocolate and had tea and Margaret's jam. Saturday was a lusciously lazy day and I just enjoyed not really doing much, my main task was waiting in for the Tesco delivery and Sunday was similar. BigA was out at a frisbee weekend, M was with her family in Bedford and A was either with her boyfriend or doing essays.  The work week, was well, long as I had to do all the days. Some were better than others. Told I looked like a bumble bee and, rammed into by another, but some successful lessons and some laughs too. I know I shouldn't, but I do feel bad for my yr 10, who have been asking if I'm staying. They are so used to teachers leaving that I can see they worry about ones that they have gotten used to leaving. F...

  BigA and I had a splendid Saturday, a proper date day, a delicious lunch followed by a comedy show, podcast thing and then drinks, where we hobnobbed with the stars. I have the selfies to prove it. Then home at a reasonable hour in time for me to fall asleep on the sofa.  The next day, despite intending to do almost nothing, we both set off to Enfield to watch Adam (Sal and Si's son) play a bit of rugby and have a cup of tea with Sally. And then home for some much needed sofa time and a nap and out again to celebrate Ebony's birthday that evening. I was extremely sensible and just had orange and lemonade. Ready for a working week. It's sad in some ways that I'm already counting down the days until I leave. Working out how many times I have to teach that class and work out if I will need to be there many evenings. Happily only 2 from what I can tell. And with the other news of the week, it should be even fewer. I know this isn't a great sign. And many of my lessons...

 Our good friend Jess visited on Saturday day and we had such a lovely catch up. I am wondering when I'll stop catching up and be in the loop with people more. Maybe never in this busy life.  Saturday evening was the much anticipated 40th birthday party at a posh hotel in London, the dress code linen, I had bought a dress but I looked rather rubbish in it and went for a linen skirt and a cotton top - an outfit I would have worn to work in Malawi, so with the help of very high red heels and some make up and nail varnish I glammed it up as much as possible. The party was lovely, extravagant without being ostentatious - but I still felt like the old and poorer guest. I met a celebrity and I think, bored one women to sleep. But as we only knew the birthday boy it was an evening of small talk. Fun though.  As a result of the free bar BIgA and I spent Sunday on the sofa and did nothing else.  On Monday I got up with the girls who went off to college, did a little house wor...

We headed to you after the girls had done the park run and I'd nursed my slight hangover, still smiling broadly at my job news. I've already been making lists of things I need to find out and do and been enjoying the prospect of my new role.  It was   lovely to be greeted in the hallway with all your smiling faces, some a little changed from the last time I'd seen them in the flesh. Gabby and Jacob are now very much adults. You know this but if course, we all enjoyed the catching up. On Sunday we took advantage of the relative closeness of a Decathlon and then went for a long walk with my dad's youngest brother and his wife. The sky was a clear sky blue, very suitable for being in my dad's old hunting ground. We even parked by the Coventry football stadium at one point. Seeing Keith was a little strange, there's so much of my dad's features in him that there was a little jolt when he came walking over. More detailed catching up, getting to know what my cousi...

I'm quite drunk I'm fuzzy I'm aware I've just talked a tonne of shit. 

 The girls got up and went on a park run on Saturday, very pleased they did. I miss the level of activity they did while at school in Malawi. M being a very positive influence on A in getting more active. I had booked in to attend an online conference, no idea what I was expecting but the link didn't seem to work. So that didn't happen. Instead I saw an old friend and got chatting about gender, her child was Rosie and is now Oli. She has some strong feelings about this. The week was ok, at the start. For BigA's birthday we went out for a lovely meal, expensive but well worth it. A place in Tottenham too, so great to have somewhere a bit different to go to. A kind of tapas place, but not mediterranean. I even had a few glasses of wine, which I'm happy to report didn't give me too much of a headache, but I didn't go to the pub after, which the men did. I would not have coped with my lessons if I had. Most of them have been alright this week, still not to my high s...

 waking up in my old home was a comfort, and a pleasure to be able to get home so quickly. My mum made me a healthy breakfast and as I enjoyed it, she turned on the radio, the Byrds song, Turn, Turn, Turn was playing. This song has always felt significant because, for as long as I can remember, my dad had said it was to be played fortissimo at his funeral. And it was. And as my mum exclaimed 'can you hear what's on the radio?' we both felt a little stunned, not least as it was my dad's birthday. So we stood in the middle room, held each other and had a little cry.  Following that, we got ready and headed off to church for a short mass. I will always feel so welcome and at home there. It is a very simple building, although made slightly less so with the harvest mass greenery around. I was amused by a random apple attached to some leaves, but mostly it all looked very autumnal and warming.  As we sat and prayed, holding hands and me, just about getting used to the new wor...