It's Friday!

Wow you guys! I'm blushing at your compliments and support, and love many of your suggestions. I have to think a bit, but keep those ideas coming!

Other stuff is going on to keep my mind elsewhere: The amazing Margo, aged 93, is in hospital with a dodgy heart. She's out of the danger zone now, and expected to recover. She has charmed all of the doctors and nurses, and they are making sure her medication works before sending her home on Monday. Half the family has been, is, or will be coming through my house this week/weekend, sleeping and eating, and my kitchen table has been EXTENDED to suit. It's fun, and a relief that for now, Margo is still a tough old bird. It is so hard to see her, small and covered with plasters and with an oxygen mask on. "You brought my book! Did you bring my glasses? Oh, good." I'm glad we are near.

Anyway, if you don't hear from me this weekend don't panic, as I will be inundated with sister, cousins, aunt, small extra kids, hungry people, and fireworks on Saturday night.

My mum will be here in a week and a half, which will be wonderful! I miss you Mum! Strawberries are standing by...

Max has a LEADING ROLE in the Panto! He is Badger, one of my favourite characters of all time. He says his lines with the BBC accent he's heard on our "Wind In The Willows" CD and it's hilarious! Strangely, apart from stage appearances, the boys seem to have kept their Trini accents intact. I am glad!

Chas goes to battlefields in Belgium for the day on Monday, and will bring back chocolate. The school bus is taking them as part of a World War Poetry thing, so we will read poetry all weekend, and do a French crash course. Fun! Exciting!

I went to the library and borrowed books on writing! Greengirl, no sign of the one you recommended, but the larger library might have it. Also might look online and order. Are there any recommended websites out there?

Today my mission is to FINISH THE LAUNDRY! It keeps raining. Drat. Hang 'em out, bring 'em in, hang 'em out... I'm going to turn the heating on and drape things all over the house to dry.

Keep byline suggestions coming! I love them, and they are helping the whole thing to percolate in my brain. Speaking of percolate, a cup of coffee on a cold and rainy day? Mmmmm.... Good plan.

And Now, For A Muppet News Flash....

Internetties, I am thinking of becoming much more serious about writing (Not HERE of course, here you'll still find mindless drivel, pocket lists, recipes, half-baked poems, chicken news and blunk drogging). I have a lot of stuff to say, apparently, and I've had plenty of practice writing over the past TWO AND A HALF YEARS! Wow, I've been writing for two and a half years!

You bloggy buddies have given me such awesome encouragement, corrected my spelling, awarded me with cool buttons, offered feedback and been real friends. So I'm beginning a journey today: Nan, the Writer.

What do you think? Any advice? There are some cool writing websites out there that I've been checking out. I'm going to the library tomorrow, to grab some books on writing, freelancing and so on. I'm thinking of doing a course. What do I need to know?

And, say I was going to write a column on moving to Bournemouth for a local paper. What would I call it?? Do you know, I love the name of my website: "Things I've Found In Pockets" was a flash of inspiration, something I didn't even have to think about. But now, I'm stumped. I want something witty and brilliant and totally amazing (like me!). "Fierce Invalids Home From Hot Climates" is taken, alas. So, here's a chance for YOU to win a prize, my friends! Suggest a byline for me. If I decide to go with your suggestion, I will write a guest post for your blog, all about your awesomeness! Or any other topic of your desire. Anything at all. As long as it won't lead to my being arrested.

Hee hee! This is so exciting!

Scary Stuff

By the way, Max says that his literacy teacher says not to use the word "stuff". And he should know, he's an EXPERT!

Maurice Sendak, who also knows a thing or two, and who we hold in high esteem in this family, (should that be "whom"?) and one of whose characters my son Max was named for, (true!) says, when asked what he would say to parents who thought the new Wild Things movie might be too scary for their kiddies, "I would tell them to go to hell..... If they can't handle it, go home. Or wet your pants. Do whatever you like." Not very politic, is he?

How could the movie not be scary? They roared their terrible roars, and gnashed their terrible teeth, and rolled their terrible eyes, and showed their terrible claws, remember?

We haven't seen the movie, and I am not sure we'll be making a big effort to, because so far no-one has said to me "Oh, wow, you HAVE to see that movie" and one person has said "Meh. Go see Fantastic Mr. Fox instead, that was great." But readers, we LIKE scary stuff. Don't you? While we were in London, Chas picked H. G. Wells' "The War Of The Worlds" out of the bookshelf and was soon glued. "Ohhh, this is scary" he groaned at bedtime. "Does it have a happy ending? I'm not reading any more unless it ends okay."

And that is what we, especially kids, really want. We'd like to be safely at home in our cozy beds with Mama and Papa sleeping tight, and then have an adventure, and then be back in time for supper. "And it was still hot." Would the "Harry Potter" series have been such a success if poor little Harry had had a slightly tiresome Aunt and Uncle and battled with something that wasn't that scary? Of course not. And would the names Hansel and Gretel mean anything to us now if a writer long ago had said, "Oh, we can't have their parents abandon them in a dark, scary forest, that would frighten our readers!"

Having said all that, I do believe that a scary movie is a different thing from a scary book. It is so much easier to close a scary book, to skim ahead as a parent and say "...and that's all for tonight guys, let's read the next chapter in daylight, hmm?" To say "Mum, read the ending for me. Does this end badly?" Whether we let our kids see a scary movie, or read anything they want, or keep them wrapped in cotton well protected from real or fictional Wild Things, is something we have to decide as parents. Naturally, some children are more easily scared by nature. Some will be crawling into their parents' beds at night after any movie at all. This does not give us parents the right to dictate to artists, just the responsibility to choose wisely.

I suspect the movie "Where The Wild Things Are" will appeal most to adults who loved the story as children and can enjoy it on a whole 'nother level. I think we are feeding the movie hype because we want more Sendak. We really do. But for my kids? I'd like them to have the few words of the original story, the pages without words, the potential for imagining, the slightly creepy emptiness and lack of explanation, still. We know that it ends well. Max stays away for as long as he wants to: Years! The moon waxes and wanes. But when he decides to return (he leaves firmly, he's made his decision), his supper is waiting for him, because that's the way it should be.

No Sleeping Here Tonight...

Fireworks!! Gorgeous bursts of colour, loud bangs, and all seen perfectly out of the boys' bedroom window!

Sigh.

I should have known something like this would happen just as everyone settled into bed. Today the washing machine repair guy came to repair a washing machine that NOTHING WAS WRONG WITH. And I had a conversation with Sam that went:

"WHY ARE YOU WEARING A WETSUIT!"

"What?? You said to put something on."

"Something normal, Sam."

"Like WHAT?"

"????????"

"Sam, a wetsuit is inappropriate. It's hard to wash."

We both walked away from that conversation baffled and rolling our eyes. Sam thinks his family is weird and his mother is completely unreasonable.

Guy Fawkes Night is on Thursday, so we can probably expect some more awesome shows at bedtime. The boys have the best view, over the school playground and towards some park or other. We're looking forward to a whole new experience this week! We will try to dress appropriately, and not be too weird.

I Went On Holiday And Brought Back A Paunch

Since we came to England, I've been eating... differently. You know, nice chocolate. Lots of coffee and tea. Double cream. Chocolate Volcano Cake made from scratch (curse you, Wacky Mommy!) with ice cream. The last week, a half-term holiday here, has been worse: huge breakfast fryups ending in croissants and a blueberry muffin. Long, long lunches of several courses, where by the time you get to the yummy cheeses, you have digested the first course and you suddenly have room again for those last few lonely pieces of prosciutto. Tea, with cream please. Supper, enormous and divine, along with more wine than the recommended daily allowance and followed by large helpings of apple-berry crumble and MORE DOUBLE CREAM.

One problem with eating so much is that there is no way you can exercise at any point because you are TOO FULL all the time. After supper, it's all you can do to drag yourself to the living room floor, snuggle your toes under a warm friendly animal or human, and watch the entire first season of "The Muppet Show". Contrary to popular belief, laughing till you cry does not burn enough calories to count. (My sister and I laughed so much her fiance threatened to call off the wedding. He tried to tell a joke "These two bats..."

"Walked into a bar?" sez my sister.

"No, silly, FLEW into a bar" sez I. And we fell about in hysterics. We calmed down enough to say "Sorry, sorry, please tell us the joke. Come on. Two bats..."

"Fly into a bar..." and we were off again. It's that bad.

And Dan walked off in disgust to find some men to talk to. My sister and I cannot fold a towel together without getting the giggles. We never did find out what happened to the two bats.)

My jeans have been getting tighter. And now, when I suck in, my tummy still sticks out. Disaster! It's time for drastic action. Yoga. Smaller portions. Muesli for breakfast. Situps, even. I feel sluggish, like I've finally overdone it. I don't like feeling like this. But man, it was worth it. What a holiday. Thanks, family! I love you guys.

QOTD: Some really intellectual stuff:

From "Does Anything Eat Wasps?", questions and answers from "The Last Word" column of "New Scientist" Magazine.

"Because cats always land on their feet, and toast always lands buttered side down, you can construct a perpetual motion machine by simply strapping a slice of buttered toast to a cat's back. When the cat is dropped it will remain suspended and revolve indefinitely due to the opposing forces."

Discuss.

London

I'm sitting on Beans and Andrew's couch, watching the boys rock out on Guitar Hero. We're between events:

Visiting family- A+!

The Natural History Museum- Always excellent. It's the half term holiday, so the line was looooong, but the new Darwin Centre was amazing. We all got cards which we could 'scan' in the different areas we were really interested in, and later when we go online we can go more in-depth into those areas. Interactive! Behind-the-scenes! We loved it. Had a good chat with one of the assistants there, and she said that it seems to appeal most to older kids who are already into natural science. I can understand that. Most little ones probably won't be so keen on looking at racks of bugs and decoding DNA, but I did see many very small kids (including my tiny cousins) who looked like they were having a good time. Lots of buttons to press, and visually appealing. Good explanations of the classification system. We will go back as soon as we can, and do it all again. You really need more than one day to really take in the whole Natural History Museum, and we've been several times and still need to go back. It's free of charge, though the Museum Shop is full of great buys so do take some money and stock up on gifts and stationery. There are several restaurants, a little expensive but good. We tend to take a picnic and hang out on the grass outside while we stuff our faces and recoup.

Picnics- We have these down to a fine art. If you're spending any time in London with kids, they will need regular feeding, and with the average cheese sandwich clocking in at a meelion pounds, a picnic is essential. We make sandwiches, and pack a bag with crisps, nuts, cookies, juice packs, chocolate and fruit. We buy coffee, tea or ice cream because you KNOW it isn't an outing if we don't buy something, and ice cream is a great bribe. And coffee warms your fingers.

Fantastic Mr. Fox- We loved it! Someone left the cinema in a huff halfway through the movie, and we did see some cross faces afterwards, which I can understand. The movie was very different from the book, story-line wise, but I thought the main characters were correct. Except for Mrs. Fox who I found much improved. Mr. and Mrs. Fox have one son, and a cousin who comes to stay. They all do a groovy dance together from time to time. Boggis and Bunce and Bean are HORRIBLE! We all loved it, adults and kids. We saw it in Brixton, and got a 'family deal' which I thought was very nice of the cashier... there were nine of us!

I bought a great pair of boots at Clarks. Yay!!! And, they were on sale. Double Yay!

Margo's Birthday Party And Christmas Day Practice Run was a total success. Margo had a great time, despite her complaints last week that we were making a fuss out of nothing, why would anyone want to celebrate a ninety-third birthday party? (We told her it was just an excuse to have a family party, so suck it up) She beamed all day, and we all ate very well with 27 different puddings. It was an eat fest.

Still to come: Cousins to visit on the other side of the family, a wedding, and the kids really want to go to Hamley's, the bestest toy store ever. It's great to have comfy places to stay and good big breakfasts, and extra nice to have lots of time and no pressure. You need the occasional 'off' day when visiting a big city, or it can be overwhelming and exhausting.

We'll be home next week, so I'll be back online properly then. Hope everyone's okay, internetties! See you soon!

Quote Of The Day

"Some people feel the rain.

Others just get wet."

Bob Dylan

Will it rain? is the question on everyone's minds tonight. The half-term school holiday is next week. THE WHOLE OF NEXT WEEK!

What are our plans, you ask? Well, there's a wedding, a birthday party, "Fantastic Mr. Fox", "Billy Elliot", hikes through the countryside of "Howard's End" and some museums going on, with hordes of cousins, uncles, aunts, sisters, great-grandmothers and in-laws.

It may rain. Enjoy it, half-termers!

I Think That When You're 93 It's About Time To Swallow Your Pride And WEAR. YOUR. HEARING. AID!

Old Lady With Stick: "Well, good morning!"

Old Lady With Chic Silk Scarf: "Good Morning!"

OLWS: "There's a taxi."

OLWCSS: "Oh! Are you waiting for a taxi too?"

OLWS: "Yes, isn't it?"

OLWCSS: "Well I'm sure mine will be along soon."

OLWS: "A little nippy though."

Granddaughter: "That's your taxi, Margo."

OLWCSS: "He'll only be a few minutes I'm sure"

G: "Let's go and ask him, shall we?"

OLWCSS: "Really?"

OLWS: "I can't imagine who he's waiting for."

OLWCSS: "Oh, you're waiting for someone?"

OLWS: "Well, maybe it will clear up."

G: "Oh, LOOK! There's the number you called, on the side of the taxi! This must be YOUR TAXI!"

OLWS: "Are you expecting a taxi? There's on there..."

OLWCSS: "Well, maybe we should ask him."

G: "GOOD IDEA!"

OLWCSS: "Because this person doesn't seem to be in a hurry."

OLWS: "Yes, I think it might."

OLWCSS: "Oh, is it? Well, we can wait..."

G (steering OLWCSS by shoulders): "Okay, then! Let's go!"

OLWCSS: "Hello"

Taxi Driver: "Mrs. E?"

OLWCSS: "Well that's all right then. To the hairdresser's in W. And we can give you a lift Nan."

G: "Well, it's out of your way, isn't it? I'll be all right walking, thanks."

OLWCSS: "So that's A. Road."

G: "THE WALK WILL DO ME GOOD!!"

T.D: Very savvy, bundles OLWCSS into car, waves me goodbye theatrically, and starts talking loudly to OLWCSS, "HAVING A HAIRCUT TODAY ARE WE?"

Granddaughter beats hasty retreat. Laughing merrily all the way home and grateful for the wisdom of Bournemouth Taxi Drivers.

Inside-Out Umbrella Weather

The rain comes UP, under hems and into the backs of your shoes. Your legs get colder and damper and the wind turns your umbrella inside out with a snap! Turn the spinning umbrella the oooother way around, to get it right side out again... but SNAP it's inside out once more as the wind changes it's mind and wheels about you, trying to unwind your scarf and get behind your defences. Put umbrella away, pouring umbrella rivers into your handbag and up your sleeve, simultaneously. Put hood up. Wind blows it down. Wasn't that wind coming from the other way a minute ago? Tie hood on with wet scarf. Grin maniacally at wind. I am warm, Wind. You can't get into my anorak! And soon, I will be at home with a cup of tea and dry fuzzy socks, watching you zip the last few leaves from the tree in the garden and tap, tap your raindrops on the windowpanes.

An Interview With Margo Eden, 93

Sam is doing a project at school about World War 2. As part of his project, he decided to interview my grandmother, who lives just a few blocks away from us here. Sam had some questions written down, but the interview went beyond his original expectations and he spent hours yesterday copying Margo's experiences onto his project paper. I'm going to write down here what I've got scribbled on the scrap of paper in front of me, the notes from the interview, as I don't want to change anything!

We made a pot of tea, and Margo put aside her tapestry and sliced some cake. Still baking cakes, full of fruit! (and still refuses to be called "Granny"!) I sat poised with my pen and paper, and Sam began:

How old were you during WW2?

... 34? How old WAS I?...

Did you cook? What kind of food?

Yes. We had everything we needed, but because of rationing we had less. If you baked a cake, you used half the ingredients. You had cake, just smaller pieces.

What difficulties did you have?

Rationing was fierce, petrol rationing... No cars, you just parked up until the war was over... Fewer buses and trains.

Were you ever hungry?

No, not if you were sensible. Some people would eat everything they had quickly, and then they were hungry, but if you were careful there was enough.

What kind of shelter did you have? (Sam was trying to get a specific answer, "Anderson" or "Morris", but the mention of a bomb shelter set Margo reminiscing)

None. We lived 12 miles from Liverpool, in Ormskirk. We weren't at much risk, though the planes dropped their leftover bombs after they'd been to Liverpool, on their way home. My mother sheltered under the stairs. We had two children from Liverpool, evacuees, for a while. I wonder what became of them? Their parents took them back, before too long.

What kind of shelter?

At work in Liverpool we had a shelter, of course. I worked the Comptometer. You had to use two hands. To get to work we went by bus. One morning as we were driving through Liverpool, we saw two old people come out of their door, and carefully lock it behind them. The door and a few walls were all left standing of their home. They must have sheltered under the stairs, I suppose. They had nothing left. Everyone on the bus was weeping to see those people locking their door.

They were lucky to be alive, I suppose, but is that lucky? To lose everything?

One day we arrived at work to find the building had been bombed. Everything gone. My savings Certificates! They were in my desk drawer! Four fire watchers were killed.

Jack was in the Merchant Navy. One day when he was on shore leave, his ship went down with all hands. All of his friends. He didn't speak for three days. When my grandsons were born, I thought that if there was ever a war.... Why are there wars?

Shubh Divali, Peace and Light and Long Hikes On The Cliffs...

Today is Divali, and everyone is eating amazing vegetarian curry, visiting each other, eating some more, lighting deyas, and I AM MISSING IT SO MUCH!!!

However, today the sun shone out of a crisp blue sky, and we went hiking along the cliffs to a cafe, had a picnic and hot coffee and cocoa, and walked back along the beach for MILES. It was so lovely that I almost didn't mind missing Divali. We lit a candle in the window, and hopefully Laxmi still visit us tonight, and bring good fortune and good things.

Om, Shanti, Shanti, Shanti.

Shhhh, It's A Library!

We've joined the library! We all went off, bundled up against the growing October Cold, the boys and Sean on their bikes, though they sensibly parked outside and didn't ride upon the bookshelves. Chas DID borrow a book on BMX bikes, full of technical stuff, since our latest thing apparently is BIKES! Bikes for independence, bikes for speed and stunts.

But we are not here for bike talk. We're here to talk about books, dear readers. A review of last night's bedtime stories:

"The Boy With Two Shadows", by Margaret Mahy. We loved this sweet story about a boy who takes good care of his shadow. He meets a witch and agrees to babysit her shadow, but it is so naughty it chases his own shadow away. Happy ending!

"When The Library Lights Go Out", Megan McDonald and Katherine Tillotson. Library puppets have an after-hours adventure! This was a great first story for us, new as we are to the library.

"Sir Gawain And The Green Knight", the classic story retold by Michael Morpurgo. Beautiful watercolour illustrations by Michael Foreman. We love many of Morpurgo's books, they are usually well written, boy-friendly and adventurous. So far, the Green Knight does not disappoint. Did I mention the illustrations? Lovely borders, too. I am such a sucker for good illustration. Looking forward to a chapter a night of this one.

I borrowed books on being a working mum in the UK, acing interviews and other such boring stuff. The boys borrowed over twenty books, and I'll let you know how they go as we read them.

The library was cozy, and the librarian said that it's one of the smaller branches. Our cards permit us to use any library in the area, and there are twelve, so once we've read our way through our little neighbourhood library we can move on to the larger ones. Chas can pop in on his way home from school. Free internet, homework groups, audio books, and it hasn't cost us a thing. Yay library!

(shhhhh!)

Coincidence?? I THINK NOT!

Yes, folks, I'm quoting "The Incredibles" there, an awesome show...

So we've had some coincidences, recently, as well as historically, and today I read Debbie's post concerning answered prayers, and TA-DAAA! An idea for a post! And I even have peace and quiet today to write, for a change, luckily.... OR IS IT LUCK?? I will let you, dear reader, decide.

* My dear friend Kelly has a most wonderful green blanket at her house, and whenever we spend the night there we covet it. It's SO warm, so fuzzy and soft. When we came to England, I told the boys that they could have any blanket they wanted, and after a few days of trying out different types at Pat's house and Ailis' house, they knew: Sam, a duvet. Max, a stripey colourful fleece. Chas sighed and said "I know it's not possible, but you know Aunty Kelly's blanket?" We had been looking around department stores, and there was NOTHING like that anywhere. "Chas, honey, we may need to ask aunty Kelly and try to order it from the States". Sam and Max got theirs, and Chas used whatever was available.

Then, Ailis took me to a discount "overstock" store, and there, on top of a heap of random throws and covers, was THE BLANKET. Just one.

* One day, I was driving from the boys' school drop, frantically thinking of HOW to get the work done, orders filled, money banked, in time to pay school fees, the house is a mess and will have to stay that way, I really need help.... Many working mothers have had times like these when everything is TOO MUCH and you NEED HELP. I had been searching for a housekeeper/babysitter with increasing desperation as work and bills piled up and things at home got more grungy. Suddenly, I saw a dog that had been hit by a car. It was alive. It was awful. Bones sticking out and blood everywhere.

Readers, I drove on, cursing and shaking my fist at the sky. "Haven't I got enough on my plate? I need help, not more stress!!" Fifteen seconds later, I turned back. I spent the rest of the "working day" driving back and forth, cursing uncharitably, until I had convinced an animal shelter to come out, and at great expense, put the poor suffering dog to sleep and take it away. Finally I sat in the drain on the side of the road, exhausted, wiped the dog blood from my hands and said "NOW what?"

At that very moment, a person came out of a house nearby. They had seen the goings-on, and wanted to commiserate. They introduced themselves, and said "You from de Ceramics Factory up de Road? Allyuh need any workers? I do housekeeping, but I can learn anyting."

And dear readers, Suzanne came to work for me. She was wonderful. She stayed until Max was at school full-time, and made life good.

* One morning, I had planned to meet a good friend (Hi Diana!) who had just had a baby. (MWAH, Jakey!) I popped into the grocery and bought some banana bread, and yogurts, and fruit, thinking that halfway through the morning a mama needs a snack. While at the grocery, I saw a large pack of washcloths. They just caught my eye, you know how sometimes your eye says LOOK! WASHCLOTHS! YOU MUST BUY THEM!! I shrugged and thought "Maybe Di could use these?"

Then Diana called and said that she had to take the baby to the doctor, she was concerned about something. "Hmmm", I thought, "What to do with all these goodies?"

I decided to visit my grandmother, who could always use a visit and some goodies. As I arrived there, I met my aunt Judy charging out the door. "NAN! Hi! I haven't slept in two days. Tricia is recovering, but Sheilagh and I have been up all night with the twins and we haven't even had breakfast... I am just going to buy us something to eat, and head back there now."

I reached into the car, and pulled out the bags of banana bread, yogurt and fruit. "Here, Judes, take this. Anything else I can do to help? What do you need?"

"Oh! Thank you! Thank you! Well...." she consults her list... (can you see what's coming here, readers?) "We really only need some washcloths, Tricia doesn't have nearly enough and those babies are pukey."

Oh yes, discerning thinkers, could there be something going on here that we cannot fathom? I have had so many curious coincidences that now, when things seem to be going wrong, I can truly step back and say "Hmmmm, I wonder what's going to happen next?" and even if I see no REASON for the mishap, keep-back or bad day, I feel that somewhere, somehow, it is certainly for the best. Hundreds, thousands of moments, some tiny, some huge but too personal to write here. It can take time and practice to live in the moment, to notice the washcloths, to ask for what you need, to stop fighting the flow, but it's what we have to do.

I really believe this. And this is what is called Faith, I think. Knowing that somewhere, someone or something is organizing things in such a way that if YOU do what you are supposed to (and this is usually what makes YOU happy), and listen carefully for instruction, all will be well. The instructions may be as clear as "Look there's a creature in pain there", or as vague as a feeling. Today, think about this. Listen well. Become part of the team. Get great benefits.

The Weekend In Brief...

...And in bullets, because we've been having too much fun around here to think about writing.

*The sun shone on Saturday! We went over to Boscombe, the neighbouring town, and checked out The New Artificial Surf Reef there. There were no waves, so we didn't really get to see the reef in action, but that didn't stop the boys from buying summer wetsuits (Clearance! On Sale!) and renting a board. The board was a really dreadful foam thing, but Chas still ripped the ripples, as you can see!

* Max managed to get Sam to pull him out kneeling on the board, and he surfed all the way in, standing up, and DID NOT GET WET above the knees. The second wave, he fell into the freezing sea and that was it for him. He ran onto the sand and demanded warm hot-dogs and never went back in.

*There's a surf cam on the pier, so you can check the surf and weather online before leaving home...

* There's also a BMX bike park nearby. It's on the way to Chas' school, and he rides to school, so he's been dying to check it out PROPERLY. This morning, Chas and Sam had an early large breakfast (no sleeping in for me, alas) and took off to be first on the ramps. They had such a blast, only came home when they were hungry, and then dragged their Dad back there this afternoon. They are stiff, sore and exhausted, and plan on meeting there tomorrow after school.

* It's a good thing they are often hungry, or I may never see them again. The bike park is about halfway to the surf reef, both easy riding distance.

* Learn to love English Rain: Take up Gardening!! Yes, I finally understand that serene look on the faces of English Gardeners. While the rest of the nation is muttering about the rain, Gardeners are thinking how good it is for their bulbs' root structures, and how nice it will all look in the spring. I have been poring over Gardening Magazines, and have planted wallflowers, tulips and crocuses. Next: Daffodils, if I can get some! I have no idea whether they will actually grow, as I had my kids AND the neighbours' kids, that's six all together, "helping" with the planting, and we all got a certain amount of dirt in our hair. You are supposed to plant everything a specific depth below the earth, apparently, but no measuring happened. Today, when no-one was looking, I went and heaped some more dirt on my bulbs so that they will sleep warm and cozy until March. Sleep well my little bulbies!

* My uncle Pat called to say that he may pop in this week, and I asked him if he could please bring me some worms, as his worms are so wonderful, and he said that he certainly could. Only a fellow gardener would appreciate this request. I only hope they don't escape in his car on the M25.

* Some previous tenants left a compost bin behind, and it's a Thing Of Beauty and a Joy Forever.

* The worms are going to love it!

* Whenever it rains, I think "YAY! My bulbs will be so happy!" But I say nothing, for fear of offending my surfers.

* Chas was born here, and one serious national newspaper headline that week cried, "Wettest Drought In History!" I kid you not. I kept the newspaper article, of course, and I find that it defines Chas. He has a particular English sense of humour, and WOULD be born during the Wettest Drought Ever. My boys, they defy the status quo. The sun will probably shine all through October, just for them.