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Well, that’s all done with for another year lol. Most years, for Christmas Day lunch, my son and I have a small piece of beef, and a small chicken breast joint too. I had the beef already in the freezer, however whilst he was here, we espied an amazing

After a 3-week break for Christmas, the Deckhand has once again jumped ship. Friday, I set the alarm for 5am to get a good start, however I was awake from 3am; I can’t settle if I have a big journey ahead of me. The day started damp and the Lifeboat was

Now that Christmas is over with for another year, I’ve started to go through the cupboards to see what I haven’t used in a long while. With a move this year, it seems prudent to do this and if I haven’t used something in ages, then I clearly don’t need

Here, wind and rain has been lashing the Ship, and whilst a gentle wind is nice for swinging in a hammock, when it’s whistling around the Ship and keeping me awake, then it’s not so good. Sunday, it rained all day. It didn’t stop. Monday was slightly

Plans never seem to work for me. I plan something, and it invariably goes pear-shaped so now, I rarely bother. This week however, the Plan was to go to my sister’s house, follow her to the garage for some work her car needed, then we’d go shopping in my

Recently I decided I’d make American style blueberry pancakes. Great idea. I had all the ingredients, including home grown blueberries in the freezer. So, a mixing bowl – nope, packed that. Food mixer – packed that too. Oops. In the end, I used a large

Here, the weather has been very changeable. Monday, we had a very hard frost and my bedroom got down to 13C. The cold was making me cough and I got up at 4am and put the heating on. Tuesday it rained, heavily, most of the day but at least it was warmer.

The Matriarch is still in hospital, and whilst there has been some improvement, I’m still unclear if they will send her home soon. A nurse was asking all sorts of questions about her home life and between my Mother and I, we managed to answer them. This

In the late seventies, my divorced Mother took a night class in accounting. There she met a man that she liked, and she would often talk about him. One day, she invited him home to dinner and to meet her 4 children; he was very brave! My Grandad, who

Sunday, I went and sat with Dad for a few hours. He was resting peacefully, and I was assured that he wasn’t in pain due to all the meds and morphine. He didn’t wake the whole time I was there and though I was holding his hand, I don’t think he knew I was

Well, we’ve had some extreme weather here and no mistake. Recently, we’ve had 2 weather warnings, I did some shopping to be safe, and it came to nothing. This time, I did just a little top up shop, and we’re now snowed in. I have bread in the freezer but

We’ve had some rain here, and with the snow slowly but surely melting, things are back to what passes for normal around here. I was surprised to note that our road had been visited by a snowplough and gritter, though not that surprised to see that the

Having to wait 3-and-a-half weeks before I can get a routine appointment with my GP. I couldn’t help it, my response to the receptionist was ‘you’re kidding’. They won’t give me any more eye drops until I see my GP. They obviously worry that I’m going to

It’s been a long week, and it’s only Wednesday. Monday, I did quite a bit of housework. Due to snow and ice, I didn’t go out except to walk the dog. Tuesday, the weather was better, and I met up with my kid sister and we visited with Mum. I was feeling

A busy week draws to a close. Thursday was a quiet day spent at home, just pottering about, and doing some laundry. Friday, we went to visit Mum. On the way onto the ward I saw an air bed in the corridor and joked that it was Mum’s and on approaching her

Almost a year ago, I bought myself a steamer for the microwave, with gift money from my retirement. Can you believe it’s been almost a year! Anyway, we used it a lot and my son liked it so much that I bought him the same one for when he started

Friday, we had a good visit with Mum. She was pretty alert, and even used my name so she clearly remembered who I was. She hadn’t eaten much breakfast, though did say she was looking forward to lunch and she was hungry. We’re still having to wear bright

Another busy week draws to a close. I had a good visit with Mum on Thursday and showed her the new slippers and nighties my kid sister and I had bought for her after visiting her on Tuesday. She was most pleased. I showed her nurse what we’d bought her

Despite being told Monday that Mum wasn’t ‘medically fit’ to be discharged, we had a phone call Wednesday asking us to attend a Medical Discharge meeting on Friday afternoon. We arrived an hour early, so we could visit with Mum. Once again, she was all

Sunday morning, I was awake at 3.30am, for the second morning in a row. Also, for the second morning in a row, I couldn’t get back to sleep. Feeling maudlin I lay there in my hammock, having a good cry. I’ve often felt tearful since Dad passed, however

Recently, a family member was bemoaning the fact that due to changes in benefits, they would no longer receive any help with their mortgage. They were able to buy their council house at well below market value, and in their own words, are sitting on more

Wednesday was a day of extreme frustration. I chased up my rental application, only to be told it was held up because my landlord hadn’t provided them with a reference yet. I explained that he’d sent me an email Friday, saying he had mailed it, and he’d

Just over 5 weeks to go until I abandon Ship. I don’t have a firm date as yet, despite my asking, however it’s looking like the first week in June. I’ve alerted my scurvy landlord of the above, and maybe he can ‘bother’ them to get a firm date for me. So

It’s a scorcher here and no mistake. The Ship’s Dog is sunning himself on the deck, though I won’t allow him to do that for much longer. An area, which has been shut off from the Ship’s Dog, has been ‘treated’ to some weed killer, and I’ve been up the

The weather has taken quite a turn here; from an average of 22C, we’re now averaging a mere 15C with some winds thrown in for good measure. The Ship has been buffeted daily and walking the Ship’s Dog has been quite a trial with me wrapping up well against

It seems I’ve finally lost the plot. I’m not sure if I can blame lack of sleep as I’ve had a few good nights, can’t blame being too busy as things are just ticking over here, maybe my age? LOL. I sent my sister a Birthday card, addressed it to her, and

After too many days of hot sunny weather, we’ve had a little rain at last. The forecast is for showers all day, and we had a nice amount first thing, but the garden could use a little more. We’re forecast rain again Friday morning, and thunderstorms on

I wanted rain for the garden, but frankly, it’s now become a drag. We have a dry day, and I start to think my sister could come and take some plants, then it rains again. So far, we’ve had to reschedule twice. She could still visit, however the potted

This week, as regular readers will know, I’m abandoning Ship, and Wales too. The Deckhand and me will be renting a Ship together in England which will be cheaper for both of us, and more convenient for us too. All is going to plan so far though that

Good journey up to the Midlands, safely moved in, with a minor hitch with the removal firm holding my 'stuff' to ransom until I paid more money! More of that to follow. The Deckhand chose well (mostly) and I moved him to the new home the same day

Ransom – Despite stating that our new home was on a narrow street, and also a one-way street, the removers turned up with an enormous lorry that couldn’t get even close to our new home. Calls were made, and I was informed the removal men would have to go

Well, it’s Friday again, and we’ve been installed at the new Ship for a little over 2 weeks now. I had hoped to install a plank for those that are ‘naughty’ but I’m having trouble deciding where to place it. Off the galley roof seems like a plan to me

Since my move, I’ve been feeling well and truly gouged, financially speaking. As regular readers know, the removal firm held my goods hostage until I forked out over £200 extra, though I have had half of that back, and my car insurance charged me £20 just

Today, I was in touch with my boss from the campus where I used to work. Regular readers will know that I used to work in Education - teacher training (and the hated Psychology area). Apparently, after 5 years of work and bids, the Welsh government has

It’s been about 5 weeks since our move, and we’re settling nicely; finding shops, a vet, GP and dental services. We have a new shower which is great, and we’re managing to work the old boiler (not me) at the house too. The rooms, especially upstairs,

…Having a drive to park on. Parking on the street isn’t so bad, but after having my own drive it can be a pain, and my car has already been scratched, probably deliberately, as it’s on the pavement side that I have a long scratch. We’ve worked out that if

Friday, I travelled back to South Wales for Mum’s funeral. I’d set the alarm for 5am, woke at 4.30, so got up and got on with it. I was on the road by 5.30, hoping to have a leisurely drive, and be able to fill up with petrol and a coffee once I got to

Recently, I filled in an online benefits calculator to see if I’d be eligible for help with my rent, or further council tax deductions. I filled it all in, only to be told I’m paying too much rent, and that I am penalised for that and therefore don’t

Late in the week I had an appointment to see my GP. Unlike in Wales where I often had a 3-week wait, here, I only had to wait 9 days for a routine appointment. It could have been sooner, however I specified that I wanted to use the surgery within walking

This week, the Ship’s Dog had to attend the vet’s clinic. He’s been yelping when he gets up, or lies down, and we gave him a couple of days quiet time and he seemed okay. Friday morning however, he would not settle and kept yelping as if in pain and he

Thursday was a good day all round. The Ship’s Dog had a ‘yelp’ free day, my pack mule (the Deckhand) walked with me to the supermarket for a top up shop, and we had a deliciously simple, simply delicious dinner. The house alarm has been sorted. I received

No, I’m not talking about the main road near me though it is a tad noisy some mornings, and I swear the dust in this house, which is plentiful, is mainly due to the main road and lack of rain – I’ve never dusted so much in my entire life – I’m talking of

…Or over the top? As regular readers will know, I recently moved to England from Wales. In that short time, I’ve had a check-up from the practice nurse – a necessity when joining the practice apparently, been invited to have my boobs squashed (already

The weekend didn’t go quite as planned. The plan, was to travel down to my sisters on Saturday, go shopping in the city with her, then stay overnight. We would then pop over into England in my car, about 50 miles, attend a large country fair, and meet up

After recently having a credit to my bank account, and not knowing why, I asked my previous landlord to forward mail addressed to myself. I offered to reimburse him for costs. If it were me, I’d collect up the mail, put it into a large envelope, and mail

The weather here has certainly been ‘exciting’ in that we’ve had high winds though not as bad as some parts of the UK (yet) and serious amounts of rain. It rained all day Thursday, in between the rain it poured it down, and over a 24-hour period, we’ve

This week has been glorious so far, and more forecast to follow. The nights haven’t been too bad, the mornings a tad chilly, then plenty of sunshine and a nice breeze. Perfect for drying laundry on the limited rigging, and for dog walking. We may be

This week we’ve had a small invasion of ladybirds in the garden. Not hordes, but more than I’ve seen in a good many years and Thursday I had to shut all the windows as they were crawling up the windows, the kitchen wall, and the back door. Weird. Only one

Since being told 3 weeks ago, that we were due a House Inspection, I’ve been walking slowly through the house trying to clean or paint over any marks left on the walls by the removal firm; nothing major, just the odd small mark here and there. It only

After a hiccup, I finally had my NHS health test. Some 9 years late lol, though maybe my previous health centre in Wales didn’t run them, who knows. Mostly all is good, and my heart attack risk is low, although my blood sugar levels are borderline not

This month the Ship has been beset by crawlers (ladybirds outside) fliers (tiny little flies outside) and now slithering sea beasties. The beasties have somehow found their way into the downstairs loo, and so far, this month, I’ve had to slash and burn

It’s turned cold here, as forecast, and no mistake. We had some rain, then a few nice sunny days, and now we’ve had a hard frost the past two mornings and even some flurries of snow on Saturday. In October. Good grief! According to Yahoo, the UK has had

As regular readers will know, I like food, like to eat out on occasion, and am invariably disappointed. To this end, the Deckhand and I decided to make our own Chinese meal on Saturday. He prepared a simple marinade for ribs, I coated them, then left them

Early this week, the Deckhand was taken outside, tied to the main mast, and summarily flailed with the cat o’ nine tails. His crime? He was using my cast iron pan, and it cracked on the cooker top. I’ve been using this pan, on and off, for the past 15-odd

Over the weekend I phoned my kid sister; we both have ‘free’ calls on the weekend if we natter for under an hour. Is it Saturday already she asked? No, I truthfully replied; it’s Sunday. It was her turn to call, and somehow, she’d lost a day. She’s not

Since moving to the Midlands, England, some months ago, I’ve been called some names. They range from chick, hen, chook, duck, and darl which I assume is short for darling. They’re obsessed with fowl! Lol. Mind you, I feel it’s preferable to what they call

My kid sister is a hoarder. I’m talking big time here. Furniture, books, material, statues – what’s that about? Seriously, she could open a mausoleum with the creepy-arse statues she has in her home. I love her to bits, like her too, but her house never

Now that my new GP surgery has my medical records, finally, I decided to bite the bullet and ask for a referral to Neurology. I saw my GP Monday, described my symptoms, the fact that I’d seen a neurologist, however briefly, in Wales and that far from

Wow is it Monday again? This past week has flown by. Despite my cold finally coming up for air, and an upset stomach to boot, I’ve had some good rest this week and even slept in 3 mornings. By sleeping in, I mean I’ve slept past my usual 5 or 6am wake up.

…On a wet and windy Sunday morning. Now and again, I open YouTube and just see what’s available. I’ve been listening to Gerry Rafferty – Get it right next time, it really speaks to me – when I noticed an ‘ad’ for Enigma. Man, that took me back, and I

youtu.be/Tjp5OmoDYQM

Thursday was the last day of term for my son at university, and thankfully, he finished early. Usually, he’d finish at 6pm, and what started as a 15-minute journey to collect him has recently turned into a 30-minute journey through horrendous traffic. I

After last year’s Christmas blog, I’ve been feeling pressured to come up with something along the same vein, however I’m not feeling it. It’s been a year of great upheaval, and without being maudlin, loss too. Not one person has wished me Happy Christmas

As regular readers will know, I love my table. It’s almost as old as the Deckhand and is a pine table with hand painted tiles inlaid. Nothing overly fancy, nor particularly expensive however I like it. On this Ship, most meals are consumed at the