On Ice

...not metaphorically or psychologically, as one could imagine in these depressing winter days, but quite literally 'on ice'. Tonight am escorting Mark's mum and sister to a showing of Swan Lake on Ice at a local theatre (a late birthday treat for Mark's Mum), while Mark whoops it up at his work Christmas party... spot the mistake?!

Actually, am secretly looking forward to tonight. Mark's family are good company, and Swan Lake is a lovely story. Jane and Jamie will account though for how this story can be misconstrued though (didn't we think that Bernard Matthews made an appearance in the Albert Hall rendition? ;-), so am printing off a synopsis for tonight, so we can check what is happening! heh...

Actually... have just spoken to Mark and it seems that it will be less of a whoop, and more of a whooping cough... he has picked up the cold I had last week, and is feeling pretty rotten. It seems that I may be having a wilder time than him after all! Actually, I hope he still makes it... he could do with relaxing and having a laugh after his week at work.

All else is good with me... looking forward to the weekend. Got NO PLANS, and Mark is off work - yay! Diet going well - have lost two pounds this week already, and am hoping for more by the weekend (returned to running this week, and have eaten sod all).

Had a text from Tesla this week to say that she gave birth to a little boy at the start of the week - a young 7lb chappie called Namar(?!). It is an Arabic name apparently, and I think it is a rather fetching one. Anyway, hopefully will catch up with her soon and she can talk me through the ordeal ;-).

Much love
Hayls
xxxxx

Retrievr

Cool link: http://labs.systemone.at/retrievr/

Hairdresser on Fire

Am utterly pooped today... last night drove to Norwich and back in one evening (about a 140 mile round trip), and although I ended up quite enjoying it, I am bloody tired today!

The house in Norwich looked fine; Lesley and Jason move out today, so the quest for new tenants is really starting in earnest. Was nice to catch up with them, and was bloody weird being offered a cup of tea and asking to use the loo in your own house! This landlady business is something that will take forever for me to get used to.

After I sorted out stuff at the house, I went over to Nikki's for a spot of dinner (a delicious chicken and bacon salad), and watched a bit of tv with them. Left their place at around ten, and got home about eleven thirty to find Mark fast asleep... I miss him when he is working! Talked to Tracy part of the way home, and am feeling sad for her. She needs a new man to concentrate on! Any suggestions?!

Today have had a terrible haircut at lunch (famous last words to Nikki on the phone before I went in: how badly can a hairdresser mess up short hair?!?!?!!?!!!!). I guess the only consolation is that she (junior stylist) only charged £12, whereas I have in fact had some slightly worse haircuts from Toni & Guy and been charged £60 for the pleasure. This poor girl was literally shaking like a leaf, and looked genuinely pleased that I didn't shout at her for 'razoring' off my fringe... why do I do it?!

Tonight I have netball, and hopefully Emma will be joining me. My exercise routine has gone out of the window since my return from holiday, and I really must get back on track. Am also restarting WeightWatchers with a vengeance. I WILL get on my little black dress this Christmas!!! This means a self-imposed ban on the biscuit drawer at work, which is no mean feat. They have Garibaldi biscuits, Hob Nobs and Jammy Dodgers on tap for chrissakes!! There are days when I can't stop myself cramming four or more biscuits into my mouth on every kitchen visit! :-|

Anyway... must get on with work. Lots to finish off this week.
Much love
Hayls xxx

PS. Saw this today and it cracked me up so much! http://www.southflorida.com/events/sfl-scaredsanta,0,2245506.photogallery?index=1

We Are Family!

Tracy had some gorgeous pictures of herself and the boys taken last week in Helen Nicholson's photographic studio in Beccles.

The results are gorgeous. Lovely natural pictures of the three of them. The poor photographer certainly had her hands full, as Henry wouldn't stand still for one second! Click here for the full set!

My Eyes Have Seen The Glory

Had a truly lovely weekend. Was spoilt to within an inch of my life by Mark, and was reluctant to see the weekend end.

Friday night, we went for a few drinks and Mark took me to Sala Thong for a gorgeous Thai meal; mixed veggie starters, and steamed sea bass with lemon and chilli. Delicious!

Saturday we did a spot of shopping in Tesco, and then later in town. Was nice and Christmassy, if not a little rainy. I accompanied Mark to get his haircut, and was treated to the sight of an IT-geek kinda guy who was very nervously getting his pony tail chopped off in anticipation of starting a new job in 'the big smoke' (he had not had his haircut for 15 years, and seemed to be visibly quaking at the thought!). In the evening Mark cooked an utterly delicious meal (Mussels, steamed in cider with onions and chilli, and then a red snapper type fish in a tamarind glaze?!). Am thinking... why doesn't he cook more often?!?! We sat up until far too late watching "The People Vs Harry Flint", which was very good - great to see Courtney Love doing her thang!

Sunday we had Mark's pares over for lunch (I did toad in the hole and mash, followed by Irish lemon pudding), and in the afternoon we all settled in front of the fire to watch Finding Nemo... sniff!! I forgot how bloody sad that film is!!!

In the evening, we went for a few pints at the local (very cosy, as have log fire at the moment), watched a bit of Blue Planet on tv, and then to bed... sigh! Why can't ALL weekends be like that?!

Tonight I have to schlep over to Norwich to say goodbye to my tenants, and might pop in for a coffee with Nikki and Carlos. Not looking forward to driving 140 miles in one evening! Booo....

Much love,
Hayls
xxx

London Calling

Yesterday, made my weekly trek to London for work... this, I have to say, is a much more enjoyable experience for me at Christmas time. It always seems to bring out the best in London, I think... Anyway, John took me out for a lovely lunch at Osteria Appenino in Devonshire Row. Gorgeous homecooked italian food - the Lasagne is to die for!

Am coming down with a stinker of a cold, and last night was feeling pretty rough by the time I got home. Mark got home from work, and went for a run to get rid of a bit of cabin fever. I cooked salmon, and then stayed up after Mark went to bed to knit some of my scarf! heh... my life is just so rock and roll these days... ;-)

Tonight, Mark has Noel coming over, and I am going to have dinner and shoot the breeze with my cousin Robert. Emma is away with work, but we are looking forward to dining on the finest chicken kebabs tonight, and a nice pint of Brewer's Gold in the local cosy pub. We know how to live! ;-)

Hayls
xx

Bond Girl

Not convertible bonds... but gorgeous porgeous blonde bonds. Wuff...

Loved the new Bond film. Loved the new sexy, tough fighting but soft hearted bond...

These are a few of my favourite things...

I couldn't let my birthday pass without saying hello to my two of my fave girls. Both looking gorgeous as ever... (apologies to all the other girls/boys I have left out this time...).

Little Helena giving Barniscubus a much-needed hug... pretty in pink!



Ever the follower of fashion, little Lola modelling her stripey tights...



Little Eloise in the park... I want a coat like that!!



P.S. Am pleased also to announce that Adele and Jamie are also due to have their first bubba in May, and Tesla is due in the next few days! Exciting times ahead...
P.P.S I forgot to mention the other week that I got in touch with Alison from my pottery class, and she now has a gorgeous little girl called Emily. Was lovely to hear from her, and she seemed very very happy with her new husband!

November Spawned a Monster

Well... today is my... ahem... 34th birthday! Yay... had a lovely day so far, and looking forward to an evening Bond fest (this is not some weird bondage request, but a trip to see James Bond at the cinema...).

Had some lovely surprises today... Mark has got me a book (Cooking Tofu - I suspect this is more for him than me! heh) and a CD I wanted (The Magic Numbers). Mum and Dad gave me money, as did Nanny and Grandad. Jen organised me to have a lovely massage locally, Janine got me a foot massge thingy and some shower gel, and a gorgeous picture of Lola. Ricki got me a very funky handbag. Mark's pares got me a lovely gardening book, a bookmark and some smellies, as did my aunt Alison and family. Adele and Jamie got me a gorgeous poinsetta plant (very xmassy!), and Marie bought me some gorgeous pink wine bottle stoppers (very handy!). Kathleen at work got me some bath stuff too (am starting to think maybe I smell!!). A few more pressies and cards are winging their way in the post it seems... all in all have been thoroughly spoilt! :-D Mark is planning to take me out/cook for me this weekend, as he will be off work (he is working today, sadly)...

The weekend was very nice. Went out with Mark on Friday night for a few drinks and a curry. Saturday, picked up my parents from the station and took them shopping - even started some xmas shopping! Saturday night I cooked for Mum and Dad and watched Hero on DVD, although the evening didn't finish so well as Dad was sick! Maybe my cooking got to him! ;-) Sunday we went to Wimpole Hall (an Xmas craft fair) and Burwash Manor, dropped Mum and Dad off and then went out in the evening to see Amy Winehouse, who was bloody amazing! All in all a very good weekend...

Anyway... better leave off work soon before I get tempted into eating my 4th doughnut of the day (it is tradition to buy doughnuts for all the people in the office on your birthday, and then eat most of them yourself... well for me anyhow!).

Much love, and thanks again for all the pressies and cards. I have been touched by the good friends I have.
Much love,
Hayls
xxx

Good Little Brownie

Well, this week has been extremely busy at work, and have had no time to blog! Quelle horreur!!! I have even been known to work twelve hours in a row a couple of days this week... what is the world coming to?!!! Slave labour...

Anyway... now on the eve of the weekend, I have time to tell you about my last weekend.

Friday night, Mark and I had a really nice night out; a few beers and a delicious curry at the local Indian. We even joined in on a rant with yer typical Daily Mail reader about 'the state of the world'... a good time was had by all! ;-) Saturday, with some trepidation, I made my way to Norwich to meet the agents that will be renting out my house there. I must confess that this has been stressing me out for some time (God knows why... I am turning into my Mother - anything vaguely out of the normal is enough to send me into a tail spin!). As it turned out though, the guy made it sound all very effortless on my part, the house was absolutely spotless (in fact, to my horreur it looked better/tidier than it did when *I* lived there! harumph), and he even said I could probably market it as 'furnished', which means that I won't have to find homes for all my bits of furniture that are there! Hurrah!! The day was made even better by a delicious lunch at Olive's with Nikki, Carlos, Mark and Lindsey (gorgeous Greek platter), and a long catch up with Sandra (ex pottery buddy). The only downer on the day was a parking ticket, which I got outside Nikki's place (after I had ignored their advice not to park on the yellow line... doh!).

Sunday was another entirely pleasant day. Met up with Ricki in London - did the Columbia Road Market thing, a lovely curry (tandoori chicken) in Brick Lane, and then Spitalfields market. Ricki was delighted with her purchases; a "fat fairy" Christmas decoration, which was extremely expensive (at £25) but am sure will give her years of pleasure... remember, a Christmas decoration is for life, and not just for Christmas... errr... and I actually managed not to buy anything, which might even be a world record?!

This week at work has been a round of long days and trauma over the release of a user guide and help file... (I won't bore you with the details), and last night (Thurs) was the first night I could relax. I had a lovely dinner (that I cooked!) at Robert and Emma's, and a little walk to the pub... very nice!

The plans for this weekend are as follows: Tonight - drinks out with Mark. Saturday: Parents are arriving, and we plan to do a bit of birthday pressie shopping for me (yay!) and xmas pressie buying for everyone else (boo!). Saturday Night: I am planning to cook Tuna Meatballs for everyone, and take a walk to the local. Sunday: We have no real plans for parents as yet (depends largely on weather, which right now is downright miserable), but in the evening Mark and I are going to see Amy Winehouse play at The Junction (her latest album is fab)... am looking forward to finishing tonight!

Much love... have a lovely weekend,
Hayls
xxx

Celebrity-a-likes!

This is truly addictive...

http://www.myheritage.com

And for Mark (my Mum always said he looked like Cliff!):

http://www.myheritage.com

Sexy Ron

Well....

On Weds night, Mark and I went to see Ron Sexsmith play at The Junction, and went for a few drinks (before, during and after). Was a really good night - nice to get out and actually have a laugh with each other now and again! Ron Sexsmith was really rather good (I had vaguely heard of him a couple of years ago, but he is not someone that has really ever popped up on my radar). Lyrically he is fantastic, and his voice is beautiful. Not so sure about his shock of wavy hair and bad checked suit though - the title of this blog is ironic, in case u hadn't realised ;-)

Poor Mark spent the entire day yesterday trying to fix the boiler for hot water and heating (we were expecting a deep frost last night, so it was pretty urgent!). A stroke of genius by him meant that he fixed it just before we went to bed last night. Was unfortunate that the *real* faults in the system (he replaced some major parts) were fixed, but that by coincidence the reset button in it was also broken. this meant that even though he had indeed fixed the thing earlier in the day, he had unwittingly been unable to reset it, so it was still showing that it had a fault. Anyway... it was nice to have a hot shower this morning!

Mixed plans for the weekend. Mark is working (boo), and I am heading to Norwich for lunch with Nikki and Carlos and I have to meet the agents who will be letting my house (boo). Sunday, am meeting Ricki in London, and we are planning a day mooching around the Columbia Road plant market, Spitalfields market, and maybe a curry in brick lane.. yum yum. This is part of my extended birthday celebrations (I like my birthday to last at least two or three weeks), so that is good!

Have a nice weekend!
Lots of love,
Hayls
xxxxxx

Holiday Snaps

If you are VERY bored.... check them out (there are LOTS!!!).

• Xi'an in China - our stay with Jez and Marta
• Shanghai in China
• Phnom Penh in Cambodia - our stay with Andy and Srey Neath
• Koh Samui (Island) in Thailand

You take a look at the blog entries here (China and Camobidia) and here (Thailand).

Hayls xxxxxxxxxx

Cruisy Weekend

Well... last weekend (I know this is a late report!) was pleasant, and very quiet (but busy at the same time, if you know what I mean??!!).

Friday night we stayed in - Mark was so tired from work that he could hardly eat dinner, so half of the pavlova I bought for dessert got eaten out of the packet by... errr... moi! This seemed to set a precedent for eating cakes for the rest of the weekend! ;-)

Saturday, I got up early (had builders to make coffee for) and mooched in the village - had eyebrows waxed (how decadent is that?!). Art lunch time, my cousin Robert and Emma came over with my Aunt Doreen and Uncle Kenny. We had a thoroughly pleasant catch up, and a nice cup of tea... its the first time they have seen the house, and were suitably impressed! In the afternoon I went with Adele to the local craft fair... amongst the knitted doilies and toilet roll covers, there was actually some rather nice stuff; some nice jewellery at least. I managed to start my xmas shopping, and bought myself a lovely woolly hat, and a lovely lemon crunch cake... rock and roll, hey?! In the evening I wandered down to the local fireworks display with Jamie and Adele and co... oh, how we "ooooohed" and "aaaaaahed".

Sunday morning, was up early again, and drove over to Haslingfield to meet up with Angie. We took Molly (dog) to Wimpole Hall for a gorgeous walk - was surprisingly warm! We stopped for... err... yet more coffee and cake, and chatted about Angie's impending working holiday to NZ... lucky woman! At lunch time I went over to Mark's parents and had a gorgeous roast beef dinner with his family (including Caroline and Phil and the girls). again my will to diet was ruined by the addition of steamed treacle pudding and custard!!! :-s Later in the afternoon popped over to see Andy's mum (Andy from Cambodia) to give her some bits to take to Andy and Srey Neath during her trip to see them this month... very exciting for her!

Monday I had to schlep into London for work (although did manage to see Jean and Shelley at lunch; they had come for Jean's leaving drinks). In the evening though we went to see the local reserve footie team play, which was quite fun - although bloody cold! Tuesday I went for a run at lunch time, which was my first since the holiday (absolutely exhausting!!). Last night I played netball (cold, exhausting, spot a pattern??), and then languished in the bath with some wine (Mark was out with Noel). Cooked myself a gorgeous piece of salmon, as have just started getting a fish delivery from a Grimsby fish van - very nice, but can tell it is going to cost me an arm and a leg!!

Anyway... thats enough boring stuff... back to work (very very busy). Have just been informed that the boiler at home is broken - so, no doubt tomorrow I will be very cold and a bit smelly... oh joy! The lack of showering facilities will be sorely missed, especially since Mark and I are going out tonight to see a gig (smoky/beery)...

Much love
Hayls
xxxxx

Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others

Well... I am having a bit of a Smiths/Mozza revival on my itunes this morning, and this song title always makes me smile... in fact, today this is definitely true. Yesterday I over indulged somewhat in the lunch time buffet we have every Thursday at work, and last night Mark and I went for a curry... "some girls are bigger than others... some girl's mothers are bigger than other girl's mothers"...

We had a nice evening last night actually. Mark took me out to save me cooking. Went to a local pub which has been taken over in the last month by a woman that Mark worked with years ago, so that was quite good. She was keen to buy us a drink, and it was fun for me to sit back and listen to all the work-related gossip... Afterwards we went for a curry at the local Indian; Lamb dhansak and chana rice for me. Although I am slightly suspicious that they didn't serve me a dhansak at all (was far too creamy). Maybe I looked like a korma type of girl ;-)

Got a fairly nice weekend lined up, although Mark is working all weekend again (which always takes the shine off it for me!). Might be going to a craft fair in the village with Adele (will be buying you all a knitted toilet roll holder for Christmas), and have arranged to see Robert, Emma and my aunt and uncle at some point - possibly for lunch. In the evening I will be going with Jamie and Adele to watch some local fireworks (Mark won't make that, as starts too early), and for dietary reasons I am skipping the curry with them afterwards! Sunday I have been invited to roast dinner at Mark's parents, which should be nice as haven't spent much time with them since we got back and Caroline (Mark's sister) will be there with her new baby and Katie.

Have a nice weekend!
Much love
Hayley
xxx

The Last DJ

My friend at work (Sam) creates a radio show every two weeks or so... it's always a great mix of indie/80s/60s stuff, and he does requests! You can download the latest show here and sign up to receive a reminder whenever he creates a new show.

Big Smoke

Netball was pretty good on Tuesday night, although am regretting asking Emma to come along - she is a bit too bloody good for my liking! It does bring back memories of being st achool though... freezing my butt off outside, and sneering at the teacher when they make you do warm up exercises!

Yesterday I went to London for work. Had a very busy day work-wise, but still made time to catch up with John over lunch at the Japanese canteen (near work).

After work I headed straight round to Robert and Emma's place. I went for a couple of beers with Robert at his local (The Kingston Arms), and we were joined by Emma and a rather cold/cheesed off Mark. Poor Mark had waited over an hour for a bus (so he could have a drink with us), but had to abandon the idea after developing frostbite and jump in his car. Robert cooked a yummy dinner, as always (stirfried prawns, a noodle dish and pak choi in soy sauce), and we listened to some weird fisherman stylee music!? I think it sounded better to Robert and I (as we had consumed beer and lots of wine) than it did to Mark and Emma.

Got a busy busy day at work today, and no other plans really... (aside from the large buffet at lunch time! I like Thursdays!),

Much love
Hayls
xxxxx

Red Red Wine

I must be practically immortal!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6105412.stm