Decay of the Decade

It's the last day of the decade. It was cool and damp to start with but improved throughout the morning. Urban-cub brought Ellie along for us to look after while she worked a late shift at the airport. Ellie had only just woken up and was still a bit zonked. It didn't take her long to snap out of it and from then on she was the usual bundle of joy.

The Silver Vixen had bought her some utensils for baking, and yesterday she had ensured we had the correct ingredients for her to enter the great morning bake-off.

She donned her chef's hat and her apron and took all of the ingredients out of the box and laid them out on the work surface.

The Silver Vixen stepped in to help and the Gorse Fox beat a safe distance to his study. Slowly, the smells of baking biscuits permeated the house. They were clearly having a great deal of fun. The timer on the oven went off and there was a frisson of excitement. Soon Ellie was standing by the Gorse Fox's desk with a nice warm biscuit in her hand. It was delicious.

The rest of the day was spent playing with her other crafts. There was painting, there was drawing, and there was play-dough. Then during the afternoon, she took to the lounge and the bedroom, camping on the floor of the lounge and using our bed as a trampoline. Pistol Pete managed to get away from work a little earlier than expected and came to collect Ellie around five-ish.

It was then a bit of a rush. We were due to meet up with the Sonning Crew at the home of Old Bill and Lady Penelope at seven, and we still had to prepare a starter for the meal. (Each couple would be providing one course of the festive dinner). In a flurry of breadcrumbs, paprika, and mushrooms slowly things began to come together. Nevertheless, it was very much down to the wire as we stumbled out of the house clutching the dishes on the dot of seven.

We had a lovely evening. Lots of chat and laughter and a soupcon of lubricating drinks. Slowly the clock ticked down towards midnight. Another couple joined us. The TV clicked on and we watched the New Year's fireworks, both on the TV and through the windows as local families clearly had their own displays.

It had been a lovely evening... and quite some decade!

Obsessive

It has been a cool but bright day. There was fog to start with, but that soon dispersed.

Working with old photos, as he has been, the Gorse Fox is becoming quite obsessive over getting their chronology correct. The problem is that in the "old days" of the 1980s cameras used film and the photos weren't date stamped. As time progressed photos got mixed up across multiple albums, boxes, packages and so forth. The Gorse Fox made a sterling effort to get them filed into the correct years when he scanned them all into the system. He is now, however, finding anomalies and trying to get some sensible data sequence within each year. Why? Well it makes more sense when you create a photo book for a range of years to have the photos in the correct sequence.

Other than that, we have done a bit of shopping and the Gorse Fox has washed the Silver Vixen's car.

Serendipity and Contact

It has been another day where we have just pottered around. Nothing was planned and consequently everything went exactly to plan.

It started off with a quick delve into the accounts. The Gorse Fox has been a little lax since Christmas, so it was time to do a catch up. That cleared, he returned to the photo selection for the next photo book. This started off with various attempts to produce contact sheets for each year so that the Silver Vixen could check them. This, in turn, drove him to his private blog and diaries to check dates. Some photos cannot be easily placed without a little additional context. It was while doing this that he realised that he, apparently, has no coverage of 1984 (or did Big Brother steal it?).

There must be some record of 1984. We had a 1983 and 86, so the 84 must have been there. Indeed, that was the year that he started at Starfleet. Nope, no online digital records. He went searching. Was there a diary he had missed? Well, if he did it's because the diary is missing. One last thought was whether there had been a backup (years later) that covered the diary he had kept online when first at Starfleet.

Cupboards were emptied. Boxes were opened. CDs and DVDs were examined, and in many cases loaded onto the computer for checking. Nope. The Gorse Fox can only conclude that 1984 is lost in the fabric of time. Serendipitously he did manage to find some old Starfleet backups that document his time in various jobs, and what he did for various clients. He thought that this had been lost in the midst of a house move, but was delighted to find it and it is now restored to his hard drive so that he can examine it at leisure.

If anyone out there remembers 1984, and particularly what the hell the Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen were doing that year, please let him know.

Do Not Disturb

It has been a day for pottering around.

The first order of the day was to get some hotel rooms booked for an overnight stay in Cardiff. The Gorse Fox managed to get a good deal and has rooms for Urban-Cub and Cousteau-Cub and Ellie, and one for us.

Thinking about hotels he was aware that he still had not received confirmation that the hotel in Salcombe had been cancelled (even though his Expedia account clearly said it had). With his healthy paranoia kicking in, he phoned the hotel. Sure enough the cancellation had not come through. He ended up having to call Expedia, explain the predicament and they sorted out the cancellation then and there. (Very good service).

The Silver Vixen has been doing an inventory of her threads and checking some of her colours for a pattern she intends to develop.

The Gorse Fox has spent most of the time selecting the next 5-years of photographs. In doing so he found some anomalies, and these took some tracking down. Fortunately, his private blog was able to fill in various dates where he had previously made some rash assumptions. He now has a subset of photos ready for the next photo book. Whether they all get used is doubtful, but they are a good and representative subset.

The Gorse Fox has heard from Cousteau-Cub. Their broadband connection is now active and she was busy setting up her various services. It's good that she's now back online, and consequently contactable at home.

Snaps

Ellie slept well and at seven o'clock started to talk to her dolls and even sing to them. She was perfectly content for about half and hour, but then she wanted to get up and see Nana. The Gorse Fox went and fetched her... and so the day started.

In the mix and confusion of last night, Cousteau-Cub had dropped her phone in Trevor's car. The Gorse Fox arranged to meet him in Chiddingfold for a coffee and to retrieve the phone. The roads were empty and it was a very pleasant drive there and back. While enjoying a brief chat and the coffee, the Gorse Fox helped set Trevor up with Google Photos (this seems to be becoming a bit of a theme!).

The Gorse Fox dropped the phone off with Cousteau-Cub on the way back through, then returned home to play with Ellie. She was in a very playful mood having done some painting with the Silver Vixen and some modelling with the play dough.

We moved into the lounge where she insisted on hiding. In the end, the Gorse Fox built her a little camp in which she could shelter. This was all very fine until she asked him to get in also. He tried his best, but decided he was too big and not flexible enough to hide in there.

Urban-Cub collected Ellie early in the afternoon. The Gorse Fox and the Silver Vixen had half an hour of quiet time, then the Gorse Fox retired to the study and returned to the creation of the photo book. It was worth trying to get it finished as there was a 40% discount available until the end of the weekend. It took a couple of hours or so but finally the project was complete and submitted for printing. We should have about a week to wait for it to be delivered.

Boxing Day

We have had another family day for Boxing Day. Today it was the turn of the Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen to host everyone. The Gorse Fox was up early to get the preparations under way, and the Silver Vixen was soon up and helping. Mountains of food were retrieved from fridges, freezers, ovens, and cupboards. Slowly the table began to sag under the weight, but still the food kept coming.

Everyone turned up at the same time. There was the Gorse Fox's sister, brother-in-law, and nephew, there was Urban-Cub, there was Ellie, and of course there was Cousteau-Cub and the Coventry Hobbit. The house now full, the festivities could begin.

As you might expect, there were more presents. Ellie was amazed that Santa Christmas (as she insisted on calling him) had been to our house as well as hers. He had chosen well. He had brought her an apron (featuring characters from "Frozen"), some utensils for baking cup cakes, lots of boxes of craft bits, and heavens alone knows what else.

There is no doubt that we had all been immensely lucky and we were thankful for what we had received.

The Gorse Fox returned to the kitchen and finished cooking the various pies, rolls, snacks, and other items. In then end everything was ready and we called through to let the buffet commence. Even then, the Gorse Fox realised that there were a couple of items he had forgotten about, but there really no pint as it was clear that we may has have slightly over-catered.

Urban-Cub was the first to leave. She was on an early shift at the airport in the morning, so needed to get home and get some sleep. Ellie stayed with us and will sleep here overnight. Soon after seven everyone else left with Trevor giving a lift to Cousteau-Cub and the Coventry Hobbit.

Ellie was exhausted and the Silver Vixen took her to bed and read her a story. Peace descended. It had been another lovely family day.

Family Christmas

We have had a lovely Christmas Day. It has been the first "family" Christmas for many, many years. Urban-cub and Pistol Pete hosted us in LA. Cousteau-cub and the Coventry Hobbit were there, we were there and, of course,  Ellie was there.

Ellie had been eager for us to arrive and, with help from Cousteau-cub, made a video call to find out when the Gorse Fox and ~Silver Vixen would arrive. "Come on Grandpa, there are presents" she explained. When we arrived, she started handing out wrapped gifts before we had even removed our jackets. There was no stopping her. There was also no definition as to whose present was whose. This was soon under control as we gathered around the tree and drifts of wrapping paper started to form around Ellie.

Lunch was the usual sumptuous affair that you expect at Christmas, particularly when Urban-cub is doing the cooking. The table creaked under the weight of mountains of food that had been prepared. We all tried our best but there was still sufficient left over to feed a regiment of the British Army and the crew of HMS Queen Elizabeth (as long as they brought their own drink).

After lunch, Urban-cub, the Silver Vixen and Gorse Fox took Ellie for a walk to the new children's play area that had been opened near their house. The ground was very soggy, but the play area was well equipped and was clearly a big hit with Ellie. She tried the swings, the slides, and a roundabout, while Urban-cub and the Gorse Fox both had a go on a zip-wire (without falling off and ending in the mushy ground beneath.

It was a lovely afternoon but by early evening Ellie was getting tired. The Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen said their goodbyes and headed home.

It was so nice to have the whole family together in one place for Christmas. That was, really, the best present the Gorse Fox could have wished for.

So it begins

The Gose Fox and Silver Vixen had a quiet morning. He made the most of the time by returning to the study and working on the selection of photos and their placement in the photo book he is developing for the 1970s. He has now completed his way through to the middle of '76 but several further hours work will be required to complete the decade.

The Christmas Festivities have begun. We had arranged, back in November, to meet up with the Sonning Crew and have lunch together on Christmas Eve. At noon we set off for Chichester. The traffic was negligible and the bus was trying to beat the land speed record, so we arrived in no time. The table was booked at The Giggling Squid and though we had arrive forty minutes early, we were able to take our table immediately.

We had a lovely lunch with lots of inconsequential chat and plenty of banter with the waiting staff. It was a delightful couple of hours. Cousteau-cub came in to say hello as we were finishing. She had just finished work and was no finished for a few days. She didn't stay for long, but it was nice to see her so relaxed.

We hopped on the bus home and the Crew came in to spend the rest of the afternoon with us. We laid on some festive drinks and nibbles and just sat and chatted. It was a perfect way to start the Christmas festivities.

Quiet before the storm

For the Gorse Fox at least, it has been a quiet day. The Silver Vixen went across to LA to help Urban-Cub with her Christmas food shopping. They decided to go to Morrisons and that proved to be a wise move. They were able to go straight in, park, and find everything they needed in the store. Other stores were absolutely rammed again, but Morrisons turned out to be quite civilised.

Left at home, the Gorse Fox washed all the floors downstairs and started to prepare the Orangery for the onslaught. Having done that, he retired to the study and spent several hours selecting photos from the 1970s for our next photo book. He still has to process 78, and 79, but it has been fun looking through the archives.

Mid-afternoon the Silver Vixen phoned to say she was leaving LA and on her way home. Unfortunately, there had been an accident on the A259 and the road was closed. She diverted up through Yapton and Barnham and eventually up to A27 and back via Tangmere. Overall, it took her well over an hour to get home.

We had appointments at Sainsbury’s and M&S to pick up the final items of food that we had ordered. This was relatively  pain free, and with the last groceries stashed in the fridge, we are all set.

Islands

Rain has continued on and off through the night though it has been pretty dry during the day. It’s just as well really. This area has turned into an island perched within a huge lake. Aldingbourne Rife has burst its banks and the waters have spread across the flood plain. One consequence of this is that the large Tescos car park is under water and though the store is open, nobody can get there to shop. The result is that they all headed for Sainsbury’s. The Gorse Fox went along there at midday, but seeing the queue to get into the car park, turned back and headed home. It was chaos.

The Silver Vixen was wrapping presents and the Gorse Fox chipped in to help. Needless to say, the pile for Ellie was a s big as all other presents put together. Many now nestle under the tree, whilst others are ready for us to take with us to Urban-Cub’s on Xmas day.

At about two-thirty the Gorse Fox took his chance and returned to Sainsbury’s. He made his way to the farthest point of the car park from the store and parked easily. In the store, as busy as it was, he managed to find everything on his list and then forced his way past the queues for the checkouts to the scan & pay checkouts. One was free and within an minute or two he had settled up and was heading for the car.

Other than collecting the pre-ordered food from Sainsbury’s and from M&S tomorrow, that’s all the shopping done now.

Random stuff

It’s been a pretty random day. The weather had been mild and dry this morning but the rain has started again with vengeance as the sun went down.

We had a quiet start to the day after yesterday’s late night. A brochure dropped through the letter from the hotel we stayed at in Sidmouth. They had some good deals so we bit the bullet and decided to cancel our planned Tripp to Salcombe in February and switch to Sidmouth again. A few clicks and a phone call later everything was set.

The post also included some mail for Cousteau-Cub and we had an Amazon parcel for her, too. As the Silver Vixen hasn’t yet seen their flat, the Gorse Fox convinced her to come along for the ride. It was early afternoon so there was no traffic and we were there in no time. Cousteau-Cub was busy on her laptop (whilst watch The Goonies) but showed the Silver Vixen round. She looks properly settled now. The Coventry Hobbit was at work, so we didn’t see him.

Back home, we made the most of the pleasant afternoon and got out into the garden to wrap everything up for the winter. It didn’t take too long but it was noticeable how quickly the light was beginning to fail. That’s what you get for going outside on the Winter Solstice.

The Gorse Fox has spent the rest of the afternoon working on his recent photos, ensuring all the face recognition is correct..

Neighbourly

We made the most of another quiet day.

The morning was spent sorting out the Orangery as it will be needed for Boxing Day and was being used as a staging ground for the decorations. The Gorse Fox managed to get the boxes and bags stashed away in the garage while the Silver Vixen dusted and polished. We also brought the collapsible table in from the garage, ready for the feeding frenzy. Once done, the Gorse Fox  used the Karcher to wash the floors. Finally, we concluded, it was all set.

The Gorse Fox spent some time looking at the St Columba’s College archives, checking that he had all his old class photos and conversely they had the full set. It turns out that there were a couple that they had which the Gorse Fox didn’t and there was one that he had that they didn’t. In the school we used to have 3 streams: Derry, Kelly’s, and Swords. The split seemed fairly random in the lower years, but as you progressed the split seemed to be more relevant to your choice of subjects. The problem that the Gorse Fox faces is that, while he remembers which classes he was in for most of his school life, he cannot remember which class he was in during the 4th year. What doesn’t help is that he doesn’t appear to be in any of the photos for that year. Now, this is not the sort of information which drives the economy, makes technological breakthroughs, or solves world poverty; but it is frustrating that such an item of trivia has slipped from his memory.

The evening was fun. We had, along with many of the neighbours from the Crescent, been invited to drinks and nibbles at a neighbour’s house. Their house was decorated within an inch of its life and, to be fair, looked very festive. We had a lovely evening chatting and enjoyed the opportunity to catch up with some of the neighbours who we see less often. It was late by the time we left, but we had enjoyed a splendid evening.

Last few

It has been an immensely quiet day. There was nothing scheduled and we found no reason to adapt the plan. After the usual Ocado delivery, we sat down and went through the last few Xmas presents that were needed. The nice man from Amazon was able to fulfil all of our requirements and has promised to deliver them tomorrow. That was good and meant there was no reason to get wet as we rushed around the shops.

There's nothing else to report.

Last Game

Today saw the Gorse Fox hit the football pitch for the last time this year. The turnout was good but uneven so we ended up with a 7-v-8 game where one player switched at halftime. The sides were picked and, as usual, seemed a little lopsided in terms of talent.  The Gorse Fox was playing for the yellow-bibs and we managed to hold off the orange bibs for a good fifteen minutes before, against the run of play, we managed to sneak a goal. Now that the deadlock was broken we started to pass the ball about and make better use of the space. Our one goal soon became two, then three, and by halftime, we were 4-0 ahead.

In the second half, we lost our one-man advantage and the orange team changed their formation. The Gorse Fox expected to be under the cosh in the centre of defence. He was wrong. Again, our use of space and better passing kept them at bay. We finally conceded a goal, but withing moment the Gorse Fox swept up the pitch and with a neat interchange of passes, hammered the ball into the net. The final score was 5-1. The Gorse Fox finished the year with 106 goals, having "run" 520kms during his various games.

Back home the Silver Vixen, who had been along to Pilates without joining in, was finishing off her Christmas cards. The Gorse Fox went and checked the garage loft. There are some trinkets that have been sored away somewhere and we can't find. The garage proved not to be their hiding place. He also had to go and fill up the Fiesta, yet again. He seems to be forever at the petrol station... July, September, and now December. He's also noticed that he has finally broken the 15,000-mile mark in the car - he must be wearing it out.

Out to Lunch

It was a fairly wet and miserable day. The Gorse Fox, who seems to be on the verge of a cold, woke with a deep and gravelly voice but felt as right as the rain outside. We had visitors due. Betty and Barney Rubble were coming down for the day.

They arrived soon after eleven and we settled down for tea, coffee, and biscuits, and the opportunity to catch up on all the various family news from both sides. They have a busy time coming up with family arriving from Switzerland to stay for the holiday period. At least they now have a house that is large enough to accommodate everyone.

At lunchtime we headed out to “The George” at Eartham. It is always nicely decorated at Christmas, it’s warm, and it’s welcoming. Amazingly, we were able to park in the car park. Clearly Tuesday is not a peak day for Christmas lunches.  We settled down to wear, but the Gorse Fox’s phone rang. Just the one ring before the call failed, but he was able to see that it was Cousteau-Cub on the other end. He made his excuses and went outside where there was a stronger signal. She phoned back. She had just heard that she had been offered the job she interviewed for yesterday. It is still within the same company but will mean transferring from the operations team to the sales team. She is, rightly, very excited and the new role starts in mid-January.

The Gorse Fox returned to the table and passed on the news and we all settled down to eat. Well, settled might be an exaggeration as Barney suddenly leapt in the air with a cramp in his thigh. Slowly it subsided and we had our meal. The Gorse Fox had some hake, and the rest of the grou had fish and chips. (Fish might be an misnomer as it could well have been a whale on each plate). The food was delicious and we were all too full to even consider a dessert.

We headed home and spent the afternoon drinking tea and chatting before Betty and Barney headed out into the dark and made their way home.

We had a nice long call from Cousteau-Cub during the evening. She had time to chat and was able to give us chapter and verse regarding the interview and job offer.

Quiet Day

The Silver Vixen had an appointment at the hairdresser. The Gorse Fox was left in charge. He made use of the time by moving the car and clearing all the spilt cat litter from the garage floor and then started to store the boxes in which the decorations are normally kept. It was then time to return to the Christmas Card list and clear some more of the annual cards. Now only those for the Silver Vixen's friends and family remain.

The Gorse Fox popped into M&S. There was a side of salmon, ordered on Friday, waiting for us. It does look delicious as it now nestles in the freezer waiting for Boxing Day.

Team effort

Ellie slept through until nearly eight. Then the Gorse Fox stood by her door and watched as she sat in her bed telling stories to her dolls. She was explaining about the Gruffalo and how Nana had a bad leg and had to go to the doctor. This must have gone on for ten minutes or so before she got bored and called out to get up.

The Gorse Fox had football. it was the last Sunday game until the New Year and we had a good turnout. The Gorse Fox was hemmed in at the back by the attack from the other team and slowly we succumbed to their pressure. Though the gOrse Fox hit the bar a couple of times, he didn't manage a goal. We lost 11-7.

Before he had left for football, the Gorse Fox had retrieved the Xmas decorations from the garage loft. When he got home, the Silver Vixen and Ellie were sorting through them and deciding what would go where. Soon, Urban-cub and Cousteau-cub arrived. Decorating then became a team effort. The Gorse Fox, knowing his limitations, stuck to draping Xmas lights around the bay window and the porch. He then retreated to the kitchen and made a start on the Sunday Roast.

He must say that the decorations look very good.

In a deep dark wood

Urban-cub brought Ellie to us. G-Force would be in command until tomorrow. We had a good morning as she played with her toys and playdough and tormented Jasper whenever he was foolish enough to show himself. As usual, the Silver Vixen and Gorse Fox tag-teamed so that we could individually get things done. The Gorse Fox made the most of Ellie's "craft-time" (she was making a lantern with the Silver Vixen) to get stuck into the Christmas cards.

The afternoon was special. We had obtained tickets for "The Gruffalo" at the Minerva Theatre in Chichester. We duly headed in and parked up. Then, having arrived early, Ellie and the other children made the most of the children's play area and all the books, toys, and most importantly the dressing up materials. We had about 30 minutes to wait so enjoyed some mince pies and a drink as the children played under the watchful gaze of their parents, peering over their teacups.

We made our way into the auditorium and settled into the second row. Ellie was intrigued and spent the next ten minutes looking around at all the other families as they settled in.

The lights went down and the show started. She was a little bewildered for the first few minutes but soon got into the swing of the event. Within a few minutes, she was screaming with laughter, clapping with the songs, and joining in with the chorus. She was completely mesmerized by the whole event. It only lasted about an hour, but it was an excellent introduction to the theatre for little ones. It was funny, it had plenty of chances to join in, and it told a well-known story. By the end, she was hooked. All we have heard since is about the Gruffalo and the fact she wants to go again.

All Clear, At Ease

Despite the worse fears of the Gorse Fox, we had a seismic result in the Election. The Marxist-led Labour Party were hammered, receiving their worst results for a generation. The Conservative won a huge majority. Let us just hope that they use it wisely. It just goes to show that all the social media "shouting in a barrel" is a very small, if vocal, subset of the population.

In celebration the sky was blue and the sun shone. A fitting celebration for the result.

Ellie had been good overnight, not waking until nearly eight o'clock. Once up and about she was the focus of the morning. Several bowls of cereal, a bowl of porridge, and various snacks kept her going while she did some drawing, some modelling with play-dough and generally played with her toys. Pistol Pete came along at lunchtime to collect her.

We made the most of the afternoon with a trip to Sainsbury's for the next instalment of provisions for the Xmas entertaining and also stopped off a Turner's for some pies. After that, the Gorse Fox retired to the study to print the labels for Xmas cards. We are a bit late this year, but it's done now. (It always takes longer than expected because it is something he only does once a year and has to remember how to do it each time).

Clear and Present Danger

Well, it's Election Day and, as a country, we face a clear and present danger. The chances of ending up with a Labour Government run by Jeremy Corbyn and pretty high. The Gorse Fox makes no secret of the fact that has traditionally been a blue vote, but accepts that this time he might actually have considered other candidates... but for the risk of putting Corbyn in No. 10.

The rain was incessant throughout the day, casting a miserable pall over the proceedings - probably an harbinger of the impending doom if the young electors succumb to the promises of everything for nothing because the "rich" will pay. Clearly they are too young and stupid to remember or have learned the lesson from our last left wing Government in the 70s. Rubbish piling up on the streets, bodies remaining unburied, flying pickets, national train strikes, miners strikes, and dockers strikes.

We did our duty and went along to vote, taking Ellie with us. It's never too young to learn about your civic responsibility.

We did also manage to get some of the Christmas food shopping agreed, and some of the items are ordered, whilst other have been tucked away in the freezer. There's still more to get, but most of it is stuff that the Gorse Fox would prefer to select himself.

A New Light Appeared in the Heavens

It has been a desperately sad day. The Silver Vixen's cousin had sent us a message overnight to say that his daughter had succumbed after a long fight with cancer. She slipped away peacefully in her sleep.

The Gorse Fox can't even imagine the loss that they must feel losing such a lovely daughter so young. He also releases how utterly bereft her husband must feel, having only been married for four years.

The dark night of sickness and pain has given way to bright new star that has formed in the heavens.

Eleanor, rest in peace.

Hail

It was not the most auspicious start to the day. The Gorse Fox had been up and about and the Silver Vixen was getting ready for Pilates. He thought he would be helpful and went out to defrost the car. Feeling smug, he came back indoors and made a coffee for her to take with her as she left. What a good and caring husband he was. She soon left and the Gorse Fox grabbed his things for football.

Loading the car he started yup and reversed out of the garage. The car felt decidedly sluggish. He checked the handbrake. No. That was off. He puzzled a bit and carried on, off the drive and headed along the Crescent. The car was still sluggish. A sixth sense told him something was up. He looked in the rearview mirror. Behind him was a lump in the road and a trail of something indiscernible. He stopped. The lump in the road was a sack of cat litter. The trails of stuff was cat litter pellets. The sack had been on the garage floor and the car must have snagged it and dragged it along beneath. Oh dear.

At this point its dawned on the Gorse Fox that there had been three sacks of cat litter. He checked under the car. The other two sacks were there, happily spilling their contents on the road. The Gorse Fox retrieved the sacks and grabbed a broom. He then spent 10 minutes sweeping the road to clear the worst of the pellets out of the way. He left and went to football.

Luck continued in the same vein. As we gathered, the heavens opened and we endured heavy rain throughout the first half. As it happens, worse was to come. Nevertheless, at half time it was 3-0 to the Gorse Fox's orange team and he managed to contribute one of those goals. The second half started in blinding winter sunshine and finished in sleet and hail. We also conceded three goals so it ended up as 3-3.

Back home the rain had caused the errant cat litter pellets to swell and turn to mush. The Gorse Fox grabbed a brush and returned to try and clean the road a bit more. In the end he gave up, it was clearly a task that mother nature would complete without further intervention.

The afternoon has been spent working on the menus and shopping lists for entertaining over Christmas... and this evening the Gorse Fox has the football club's Xmas Dinner (heaven help him).

Perplex? No Perspex

The Gorse Fox had an unexpectedly clear day. He had got the weeks mixed up and the visit that we are expecting next Tuesday was lodged in his mind for today. Once disabused of this notion he was able to replan the proceedings.

The Silver Vixen was out with a girlfriend and would be at the afternoon session of the Embroiders' Guild. The Gorse Fox got on with various bits and pieces... Firstly there was the Christmas card list to review and update, then print for the Silver Vixen's inspection later. Once agreed the labels can be generated. Then there were several domestic chores to clear, but they didn't take too long.

The problem then became a waiting game. The Gorse Fox had been informed that delivery of a perspex sheet was scheduled. He was perplexed. Not because he wasn't expecting it but rather because he didn't know at what time to expect it. He squirrelled himself away in the study and did some filing of photos and some initial selections of photos for the next photo book he will have printed.

The perspex arrived late afternoon. IT was quickly unpacked and fitted to wall behind the bin. It looks quite smart and will protect the paintwork. At last, the Gorse Fox could get on with other things, other than the fact it was now approaching rush hour and he no intention of driving to Chichester just for the fun of sitting in traffic. He wrote off that idea. The only other plan had been to get his hair cut. A quick phone call to the nice lady at the barbers' shop, and off he went.

Out (of business)

It has been a busy day. The Silver Vixen was out with a girlfriend (this is the same girlfriend she was meeting when she broke her hip, and they are meeting at the same place - needless to say, the Gorse Fox is on tenterhooks).

While she's been gone the Gorse Fox has been catching up on various tasks: he's descaled the coffee machine; vacuumed the stairs, the hallway, and the family room; he's taken a boot-load of detritus to the tip; he's picked up some cat litter and cat food and he's tried to sort out the hinge.

Perhaps he should explain. In the en suite, we have a large bathroom cupboard with mirrored doors. These are held in place with some Euro-hinges, one of which has sheared away from the supporting sidewall. The Gorse Fox looked at the details of the hinge and found the supplier. Bizarrely, they were from Hook (where we used to live). The problem is, however, that they have gone out of business. The Gorse Fox looked for other distinguishing marks and found a brand name that seems to indicate that they came from a Swiss company. Examination of their website shows they do make hinges for mirrored doors - but not, it appears, this one. The Gorse Fox browsed the web and found a possible supplier of similar hinges. Bizarrely, they have just relocated to Chichester. He hopped in the car and went to see them. They were incredibly accommodating and tried very hard to help. In the end, the Gorse Fox forked out a mind-blowing £2.31 for a hinge and drove home, happy.

It didn't fit.

The Gorse Fox called Berkeley Homes and chatted with their customer services team. They asked for photos and said they would talk with their procurement team and see what they could do or where they could direct him.

With all that underway, the Gorse Fox returned to the storage solution for the utility cupboard. This still needed a worktop to finish off the unit. Thirty minutes of hand-sawing and drilling later, the unit is complete.

Sorting out

It's been a fruitful day. It started with the Gorse Fox's football. Originally it had been scheduled for 90 minutes with 3 5-man teams playing 30-minute games. We had some late drop-outs so, in the end, had a normal 60-minute game that started 7-v-6, but after an early injury, soon became 6-v-6. The Gorse Fox was playing for the yellow bibs and, to be fair, we looked like the stronger team from the off. In order to even things up a bit two of our more mobile players took turns to play in goal. Despite this, we still won quite easily. The Gorse Fox doesn't remember the final score but did contribute one goal in each half to our tally.

Back home we spent a couple of hours reorganising the storage in the utility cupboard. The Gorse Fox fixed the shelf and installed the doors. The Silver Vixen decided where everything would go and positioned everything to optimise the storage and usability. The outcome has been some downsizing. The Gorse Fox can feel a tip trip on the immediate horizon, along with a lot of reorganisation in the garage.

Away Day

We were up early. The Gorse Fox had explained to the chap from water softener company that we had to go out at midday, so arranged for the installation to start at 08:30. As the water would need to be turned off, this meant that we had to be washed, showered, and breakfasted before he arrived.

We needn't have panicked. He didn't arrive until 09:30, and then he began to chat as he surveyed the task ahead. He soon understood the pipework and the requirements and got to work. By 11:30 he was still drilling and brazing so the Gorse Fox checked. He would be another hour. We helped him re-assess his timescale. He hadn't been told we were going out. To be fair, he finished in about 45 minutes and we were only 30 minutes late leaving.

As we left, we waved to our neighbours who were also leaving home at the same time. We made our way up through Boxgrove and Petworth and were lucky to find a parking spot right outside The Crown at Chiddingfold. We were meeting with the Gorse Fox's sister and brother-in-law for some lunch. We sat down and started to chat. There was a tap on the shoulder. Looking up we found our neighbours had just arrived and were being seated at the next table to us.

We had a lovely lunch, catching up on all the family news and sharing photos of the latest events on our respective lives. Trevor, asking about our new car, also revealed that he had changed his car. He has swapped from the Avensis to a new Corolla. We had a look at it later and it really does look like a lovely car. It's a very sleek looking hybrid, and as you would expect, loaded with technology.

The Silver Vixen and Jane disappeared off to the ladies. When they came they were chuckling over the fact that yet another pair of our neighbours were in the restaurant. What's more they, like us, were there to meet with their sister from Wokingham. We agreed that next time it would make sense to run minibuses in each direction.

Empty Nest

It's been a busy day.

The Gorse Fox had to take the Silver Vixen to the hospital for a scheduled bone scan. Meanwhile, Cousteau-cub was finishing her packing and collecting all her bits and pieces ready to move out. Urban-cub arrived soon after we returned from the hospital and while we looked after Ellie, she emptied her car and loaded as much of Cousteau-cub's stuff as possible into the back and they set off into Chichester.

The Gorse Fox loaded the remaining stuff into the back of the Karoq (once he had found how to tip the seats!) and waited for their call to say they had the keys and were in. Fortunately, it was fairly easy to park outside, being mid-morning, and the car was soon empty and the Gorse Fox left the cubs to sort out where everything had to go.

It was mid-afternoon before the next call came in. Urban-cub had bought a roller blind for Cousteau-cub's bedroom but needed help fitting it. Tools loaded into the car, the Gorse Fox set off back into Chichester. The old fittings had to be removed, and the plaster wasn't too stable but he did manage to drill some new holes and get the new fittings installed. Then we cut the roller blind to size and "voila" it was fitted. The cubs had done a sterling job and the flat looked well laid-out and completely sorted. It was ideal for Cousteau-cub and Coventry Hobbit, and the Gorse Fox is sure they will be very happy there.

Now the Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen are rattling around the house, empty nesters once more.

Glowing

It was a dry but slightly overcast day. The usual domestic chores filled the start of the day but then the Gorse Fox had to go to Chichester for an appointment. In a perfect example of Murphy's Law of Public Transport, he watched a bus drive past just as he approached the bus stop, both on the way to Chichester and on the way back.

The Silver Vixen and Gorse Fox hopped in the car and headed across to LA to meet up with Urban-cub and Ellie. We left Cousteau-cub at home, sorting out her packing ready to move to their own flat tomorrow.

With Urban-cub and Ellie, we drove across country, stopping at a little park in Cowfold for Ellie to stretch her legs and have a play on the swings and slides. When she was suitably exercised we headed on to Wakehurst Place.

Wakehurst Place is National Trust location but also houses the Royal Horticultural Society's seed bank. It is a very impressive location, near Haywards Heath. AT this time of year they hold a series of events called "Glow Trail" whereby, come dusk, lights, torches, and lanterns decorate a path through the grounds. We had decided that this would be a great event for Ellie (and frankly, we were looking forward to it also).

The event runs a timed-entry system and we were scheduled on the first intake of the evening. We queued briefly for the gates to open but were soon on our way. Ellie was able to choose a lantern to carry and she trotted off with the three of us behind her. Various lanterns lit the way at knee level, but others, shaped like woodland creatures and birds, festooned the branches of the shrubs and tree. It was really quite magical.

As we wandered down along the paths, various glowing dioramas opened up. Particularly beautiful was the area by the lake, with floating lanterns shaped like large water lilies and sundry other water plants. With their reflection beneath, it quite took the breath away.

One pathway took us past a number of trees which had had willow sculptures threaded through and round them. These were lit in ghostly white and the atmosphere was quite ethereal.

Looping back past a second lake, this one decorated in stars and a huge moon, we headed down through a series of withy tunnels, lit from the outside. The light penetrated through the withy structure and gave a dappled light within which changed as the colours of the lights changed.

Next was a field of flames (the Gorse Fox's description, not an official name). This led us down a path which took us past a collection of specimen trees. Around each tree was a "fairy" circle of burning lamps. As the wind caught them they would dance, first one way, then the next.

The path led us up to a walled garden. Within the formal planting of the walled garden stood further lamps and various items of nature-related sculpture. It was really quite beautiful and the gentle "New Age" music playing in the background made it immensely peaceful, despite the number of visitors.

This was an event to put on the calendar and re-schedule for next year; it was a brilliant evening.

We stopped at The Cowdray Arms for some dinner on the way home. It was a lovely little place with charming staff, and the food was delicious.

Frosty

There was another good frost overnight. The Gorse Fox had to go out to de-ice the windscreens on the Silver Vixen's car before she could head off to Pilates. She commented, on her return, how nice the heated steering wheel had been. The Gorse Fox thinks we have a winner there.

He followed her out. He was heading for Worthing and football. Resting the knee yesterday gave him some confidence that, with a knee brace, he would be all right to play today. As the teams were selected, the Gorse Fox (in a fetching yellow bib) commented to Barry that it looked as if Krakatoa Jack had decided he wanted to be on the winning team today. There seemed to be a propensity for more of the talented and mobile players to be allocated orange bibs (like the one that Jack had already tucked into his waistband).

We had no available goalies today, so the Gorse Fox played in goal for the first half. He had to pull off a number of saves and blocks but eventually conceded. Fortunately, our forwards were passing the ball about well and picking off goals such that the half-time score was 6-1 to the yellow bibs. In the second half, the Gorse Fox came out on the pitch and played in his usual centre-back position. We had the defence pretty well sewn up and could allow the forwards to continue to pick off the odd goals here and there. The Gorse Fox got in on the action with a powerful drive from the edge of the centre circle which curled beautifully into the bottom left-hand corner of the net. In the end, we won handsomely with 11 goals to the odd 2 from orange.

Back home, the Gorse Fox continued to work on the new storage units for the utility cupboard. The top unit now locks neatly (and tightly) into the bottom unit, without requiring any fixings. The rails which will support the vertical partition are cut to size, and the vertical partition itself is cut to size. The garage, whilst temporarily a workshop, has reverted to a garage and everything is ready for the next stage of the installation... once we have decided what that will be!

The Gorse Fox took the Coventry Hobbit into Bognor Regis to purchase a mattress for the new flat. Reynolds seems to be the only place that has stock which can be delivered on Friday when they get their keys. A mattress is a personal choice, so it was important that the Coventry Hobbit tried it before committing. He's gone straight on to work from Bognor, so the Gorse Fox doesn't know if he decided to go ahead.

We have also heard from Urban-cub today. Ellie is unwell and had been prescribed a course of antibiotics. Hopefully, it will work quickly and she will soon be feeling better.

Unintended Consequences

It was another perfect day; cold, but gin-clear.

The law of unintended consequences had kicked in. The location of the water softener has meant we have to rethink the storage in the utility area. We don't have much space with which to play, so in the end it came down to finding something we could adapt or the Gorse Fox building something. He favoured the former. While the Silver Vixen went shopping in Angmering, the Gorse Fox spent a couple of hours on the web looking at cabinets. Then he went to Wickes and B&Q to see what they actually have and whether there were any sensible baskets or drawers that could be installed in a standard unit. Eventually, he thought he had a solution, but that would need to be discussed with the Silver Vixen.

Back home, the Gorse Fox fired up Sketchup with a view to checking that his ideas were viable and could be easily illustrated to the Silver Vixen on her return. They could, they were, and they got the seal of approval.

We grabbed a bite of lunch then headed out to Wickes. Two base kitchen base units were appropriated after an exchange of coins, and the Gorse Fox spent the rest of the afternoon putting them together, then stacking them. It is looking very promising. He still plans to build a vertical partition on the lower cabinet to allow separation between the water softener and the laundry storage. He will also need to scribe the back so that it fits all of the pipes and paraphernalia that blesses this area. Finally, he will decide how many drawers and shelves are optimal for the things that the Silver Vixen needs to store there, then hang the doors. A successful, if expensive, afternoon.

Tattoo

Another cold but bright day. In fact, there had been quite a frost overnight and the Orangery roof was completely opaque.

The Gorse Fox was on a mission. First thing, he called the water softener people. One answered and was invited round to give us some advice, the other didn't answer so won't get the business. Then as the clock ticked up to 10 o'clock the Gorse Fox accessed the website for the Edinburgh Military Tattoo. The tickets would be released on sale at 10. Needless to say, he found himself in a queue so had to remain on the site until his turn popped up. Time started to tick by.

The Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen had to go to Chichester, the phone maintained his place in the queue as we walked to the bus. Time ticked by. His phone maintained his place in the queue while we travelled into Chichester, and while the Gorse was in the dentist's surgery. Time ticked by. The Gorse Fox went and met up with the Silver Vixen, who was shopping, and the phone maintained his place in the queue. We made our way to the bus, travelled home, started cooking lunch, and still time ticked by, and still, the phone maintained the place in the queue. Then suddenly, it was the turn of the Gorse Fox to book his tickets.  We decided on the day (our Wedding Anniversary) and the Gorse Fox decided on the seats. It all took about 10 minutes and we were done. The ticket queue had lasted about 2 hours 40 minutes, but we had got the tickets we wanted.

With tickets arranged, the Gorse Fox's next task was to arrange the flights. We checked for flights from Gatwick and from Southampton, but in the end, the Southampton were at more convenient times. Flights are now booked, so the short break planned for our Wedding Anniversary is now sorted.

The chap from the water softener company came round late in the afternoon. We had cleared some space to show the possible locations of the device and discuss its installation. He was a young chap but seemed very knowledgeable and competent. In the end, we collectively decided the device had to be installed in the utility cupboard, but that would mean some reorganisation of the existing storage to make room for it. All agreed, he suggested that it could be installed before Christmas but would phone to confirm a date in the next day or two.

The Gorse Fox received a "WhatsApp" from Agent Mulder. He has confirmed that they have booked their trip to Jamaica next May and will be with us for a week while we are there. This was excellent news as we so thoroughly enjoyed our holiday with them this year.

The Gorse Fox has decided that he won't play football tomorrow. His knee is a bit unstable again today and as he has already committed to play on Wednesday, he doesn't want to overdo it.

OTG

Another very cool morning, but again it was bright.

The Gorse Fox was up and raring to go. There was some football to play, and he was fairly convinced that, with the help of the knee-brace, he would be all right to play. So it was that he headed across to Ford and met up for 6-a-side with the lads. The teams, this week, seemed very well balanced. There was some lovely passing and some slick football. The Gorse Fox was playing for the yellow team and by half time he had managed to grab a hat-trick. This pushed him past his goal for the year of 100 goals. He didn't manage any further goals in the second half, but he is now satisfied with his 101 goals for the year; that doesn't mean he won't try and score some more in the next few weeks, but he is "On Target Goals".

The final score was 9-8 to the yellow team, so it was well balanced overall. The Gorse Fox is still a few hundred metres short of his 500km target for the year (while playing football) but, again, this should be achieved in the next few minutes of the next game.

Back home, the Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen have been looking further at the options for an induction hob. There isn't a special "Black Friday" or "Cyber Monday" deal available from John Lewis, but we are in no hurry and it could be that we wait to see if anything turns up in the post-Christmas sales.

One of the problems with kitchen waste bins can be the propensity for scrapings to miss the bin and hit the wall. The Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen decided that there was a solution to this. We have ordered a sheet of perspex that can be attached to the wall by the bin. Then and errant scrapings can be easily wiped off without damaging the walls.

Now we need to consider whether we can solve the hard water problem with a softener. (Well, strictly speaking we can solve the problem, the issue is where on earth we can site the device).

Makhani

Another cool but dry day. As the bin fairy took the overnight rubbish out to the bin he commented on how damp and cold it felt. The Silver Vixen's weather app confirmed that it may be 6C but would feel like 3C.

Though the Silver Vixen's sister was no longer visiting today, the Gorse Fox had decided to stick with the original menu. Urban-cub and Ellie were still coming, and Cousteau-cub was at home. Because there was so much chicken to cook, this couldn't all be done in a single Instant Pot session. The Gorse Fox would have to do the chicken, then do the rice separately. The first thing on the agenda, though, was to make up some garam masala. With the spices he had ordered from Amazon, this turned out to be beautifully aromatic and far more subtle than the shop-bought mixture. Once the garam masala was made, he started on the chicken makhani (buttered chicken) recipe. Once ready, the chicken was removed from the pot, the sauce was blended with the stick blender, half a block of butter was added with half a pot of cream and some coriander. Then the chicken and sauce were put in the oven to keep warm while the rice was cooked. Overall, it was a great success (though Ellie didn't eat it).

Ellie and Urban-cub stayed for a couple of hours in the afternoon, then went. The Gorse Fox spent some time researching water softeners and induction hobs. We are in such a hard water area that a softener seems like a sensible investment. The problem we have is determining where we could put it. As for the induction hob, it was a recommendation by our new energy supplier. Certainly, we will look into it, but the Gorse Fox does like cooking on gas.

Out again

It was another dry, cool,  and bright day. We had things to do.

Expecting guests over the weekend, the first order of the day was a trip to Sainsbury's to pick up the various comestibles that were required. This was fairly straightforward, but as we paid our bill at the smart checkout, the Silver Vixen received a text message to say that her sister was in bed with a dreadful cold... and they may have to call off the visit. Nothing we had bought will go to waste so we packed it all away knowing that it would get used over the next few weeks.

At lunchtime, we met up with the Sonning Crew and made our way into Chichester. This was the official Sonning Crew celebration of the Silver Vixen's birthday.

We wandered into the Giggling Squid (which is rapidly becoming one of our two favourite haunts in Chichester). We were shown to "our" table and settled down for a couple of hours of chat and good food. We started off with some Prosecco, which was a complimentary bottle provided against a long-expired voucher that Old Bill had claimed. The food was, as we have come to expect, excellent and the service was impeccable.
We had a lovely time, as we usually do, and in the end, decided that we would return for lunch on Christmas Eve. We booked there and then. So that's sorted.

After lunch, we all had different things to do in Chichester, so we split up and went our separate ways. The Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen made our way to a couple of shops where the Silver Vixen was hoping to find suitable gifts for some of her friends. The quest was only partially successful, but we have to return on Monday for the Gorse Fox's dental check. The Silver Vixen did, however, manage to buy a lovely, full-length, knitted dress.
As we wandered back towards the bus station, we noticed two distractions, the first was an Extinction Rebellion protest, the other (on a more cheerful note) was a chap in plus-fours riding a penny-farthing.

Meeting up

It was a dry day. This is worth mentioning as we seem to have had a spate of wet weather recently. It was a bit cooler, but it was dry.

During the morning we had the usual domestic chores to keep us busy, but at lunchtime,  we headed into Chichester. We took the bus (which, unusually, was a bit late), hopped off at the Cattle Market and wandered in along East Street. The Gorse Fox needed to drop in at the bank and pay in a cheque from the DVLA - a refund on the road fund license for the old Qashqai.

We then met up with some old (some might even say ancient) friends from the early years in Starfleet. They were down on Hayling Island staying at an hotel for a "Turkey and Tinsel" break.

We had a lovely time with them over lunch at Zizzi's. Like true "old friends" we just seemed to pick up where we left off last time we saw them. We chatted about old friends, family, health, technology, politics, and everything in between. We were there for hours, but we weren't being rushed in any way as the restaurant was quiet.

We finally paid the bill and made our way along to the bus station, where we parted until next time. Their bus headed west, ours headed east. Theirs would take 90 minutes, ours took about 15. `It was lovely to meet up and now we look forward to next time.

Meanwhile, back at home Cousteau-cub told us that a new position has arisen at work and she has decided, after a fair bit of thought, to apply for it. It all sounds very exciting, so we are hoping that she succeeds.

Studs

It turned into a day of epic rainfall. Local animals had started to queue up two-by-two and they kept checking on where Noah was. Needless to say, the Gorse Fox had picked today to return to football. Fortunately, he had a nic waterproof training top that he could wear, but that didn't stop his legs from getting soaked.

It was a good game, with the sides quite evenly balanced (or at least, so it seemed). The Gorse Fox was wearing his knee brace and trying very hard to take things carefully. We started to make progress. We were well organised at the back and were able to play the ball forward without too much trouble. Slowly, we started to get the odd goals. By half time, we were 4-0 ahead. Krakatoa Jack decided that we needed to swap a player, donating himself to the orange team and give us (the yellows) Peter the Vague. Despite this, we continued to control the game and the final score was 6 or 7 nil. The Gorse Fox failed to score.

Back home, it has been a quiet afternoon. The Silver Vixen, who had been to Pilates, stopped off to see Urban-cub on her way through. Then once she was home and had had some lunch she went to a couple of neighbours to drop off Xmas presents from Mark the Cat Whisperer to their cats.

As the Gorse Fox writes this a ragu is bubbling away on the hob. Now he just needs to decide on the pasta.

Beware

It was a bleak, wet day. A day for staying indoors and that is exactly what the Gorse Fox did. (The Silver Vixen, however, had a quick trip for a doctor's appointment, and both Coventry Hobbit and Cousteau-Cub had to go to work).

Staying in, the Gorse Fox got on with several of the household chores and started to think about a menu for Saturday, when we are expecting some guests. Menu is still not decided, but the nice man from Amazon will be delivering some spices tomorrow which can be hard to find in Sainsbury's.

The phone rang. It was from a mobile number that the Gorse Fox did not recognise. He answered and there was a brief pause. Then the call kicked in. "This is a call from Ofcom to inform you that your internet will be disconnected unless..." The Gorse Fox hung up. Yet another scam call. Ofcom do not provide the Gorse Fox's internet. They have no direct control over his service. The best they could do would be to ask his internet provider to block the service (and he doubts very much that they would comply without some form of court order). Obviously this will all change if Comrade Corbyn gets in and nationalises the internet. Then he can choose to switch it off if people criticise or start to organise against him... but what do you expect from a totalitarian Marxist. The Gorse Fox still shakes his head in disbelief at the young followers of this cult. They clearly have no concept of how bad things were last time the UK had a hard left government.

The Gorse Fox has completed another draft of his notes for Mrs Tiggywingle regarding Google Photos. He added some extra information and tidied up some diagrams. He is now feeling moderately content with Apple's "Pages" app, particularly as it works seamlessly across desktop, laptop, iPad, and iPhone.

Groove

Today we slotted back into the groove of normal life. There were chores to complete and admin to get done. On top of that, we had to collect Jasper from the cattery. Nothing exciting, just the normal groove.

The Gorse Fox got things underway with a trip to Sainsbury's to collect some essentials and to fill the car up. He was delighted that we had managed the whole Devon trip on a single tank and still had the best part of 100 miles left. This was unexpected. He had assumed that we would need to refill while down there.

Back home, the Silver Vixen was wading through the piles of washing. The Gorse Fox retired to the study to deal with various items of paperwork that had arrived while we were away - most importantly, the insurance documents for the car. Duly scanned in, they have been filed away in case they are ever needed.

The afternoon saw us collect Jasper. He had clearly enjoyed his break with Mark at the cattery and insisted on telling us about it, very loudly, all the way home.

There and Back

There had been entertainment and a dance at the hotel. We could hear it from our room, but it wasn't troubling and quietened down after eleven. It was a our last night in the hotel and we slept well.

The Gorse Fox got up first, made the tea, and then got things underway with respect to packing up. By the time we were ready to go down for breakfast, he had already taken one load down to the car. Breakfast itself was the usual sumptuous choice and impeccable service. We had decided that we would eat well then grab some dinner when we got closer to home, and not bother in between.

Once we had finished the packing and loaded the car we checked out and headed out onto the Queen's highway. Our first port of call would be Exmouth, where the Silver Vixen had lived for a while as a child. We headed west over Peak Hill. The rain of the last few days had left debris all over the lanes and at one point we were confronted with a section of road that was completely flooded. As we approached a car came in the opposite direction. The Gorse Fox pulled over to allow him through and to assess the depth of the water. Content that it was not too deep, we moved forward and emerged unscathed at the far end.

Exmouth was much bigger than the Silver Vixen had remembered it. We found the road on which she had lived. This area has clearly been completely redeveloped and is now a marina surrounded by up-market apartments and homes. Not what she remembers at all.

There was no real reason to stay, so we plugged the home address into the SatNav and followed the nice lady's instructions as she led us back up to the A30 and then eastwards along the A35, A31, and A27 towards home.

We stopped off in Chichester for Sunday lunch/dinner. We had planned to go to "Cote Brasserie", but they had a 45-minute wait for a table. We wandered down South Street to "Trents". We got a table immediately but still had a bit of await for the food, but it was tasty, and it was just what we needed. Sated, we would not need to eat again today. We returned to the car and drove the last few miles home.

Cousteau-cub was in, editing some photos on her computer. She had been out earlier with Ellie. Pistol Pete had brought Ellie over and she and Cousteau-cub had gone to the cinema to see "Frozen 2". It was Ellie's first time in a cinema and she clearly loved the experience. (We did manage to have a video-call with her later in the afternoon).

As ever, it was nice to be home, but we had enjoyed a super few days away and we would certainly return to that hotel in the future.

Out and about

It rained. In fact it rained in Biblical proportions. The maintenance man at the hotel had started building an Ark. We would decide on today’s schedule after breakfast.

With more people staying in the hotel, there was a gentle background hubbub in the restaurant over breakfast. We watched as the clouds rolled in, then cleared a bit, then rolled back, then cleared a bit more. The Silver Vixen decided that there was some Christmas shopping that was needed and we could stroll into town and shelter as we hopped across the puddles from shop to shop. While we were in one of the shops we overheard one of the locals bemoaning the fact that several of the roads into and out of the town were completely blocked by the torrents running off the hills. Clearly, staying put in Sidmouth was the right choice today. Sidmouth does have a certain Edwardian charm.

We were out for several hours and made a number of purchases. As we made our way back towards the hotel, the rain had cleared so we diverted along the Clifton walkway that runs along under the cliffs. We had to dodge torrents of water that were cascading down across the path in places, but it saves visiting Angel Falls in South America!

At the end of the walkway we made our way up the ramp to the Connaught Gardens to take in the view. On a sunny day it must be lovely. Today it wasn’t bad but the grey of the sky flattened all of the colours.

We made our way back to the hotel The road (Peak Hill) was completely awash and we had to watch for traffic to ensure we didn’t get completely soaked.

Back in the hotel, the Silver Vixen spent some time reading and the Gorse Fox tried to get to grips the the “Pages” app on his iPad. He is intent on providing some clear documentation for Mrs Tiggywinkle and this seemed like a good excuse to learn a new word processor. It was a slow process at first, with all of the tools being accessible, but accessed differently from the traditional word processors he has used. Most frustrating, at present, is the fine placement of illustrations or pictures. He is sure he will crack it, but it is slow going. We interrupted our afternoon challenges to go down for a cream tea (well, you have to, don’t you?), but carried on with book and word processor over tea.

It was good to see an opening win for Jose Mourinho at Spurs today. Let’s hope he can revitalise the team and get the results pouring in once more.

Good friends

Yesterday’s dinner was another very enjoyable affair. The Gorse Fox had a starter of smoked gurnard,  a palate cleanser of whiting, and a main dish of roast sirloin. Exquisite. A small jazz combo provided the musical accompaniment and a table of four harpies with voices like screech owls tried to drown them out. Fortunately, the Silver Vixen and Gorse Fox were far enough away that it wasn’t too troublesome.

We retired to the peace and tranquility of the lounge for some after dinner coffee. A young couple came in. The Gorse Fox recognised the girl as one of the folk that was booked in to the spa for a facial. He commented to the Silver Vixen that she had wasted her money. He got kicked.

The harpies wandered in. One commented how lovely and quiet it was, and they settled down nearby. The peace was shattered as they held forth on showers over baths, heated towel rails, surplus furniture, mobile phones, selfies, and 101 other topics that nobody else had any interest in, but they were intent on sharing. We retired to our room.

This morning we had a quiet start, wandering down to breakfast just after nine o’clock. The forecast was wet, but the rain hadn’t yet started. We had plans to go and see Mrs Tiggywinkle and Badger. We gathered our things and got on the road. We stopped en route in Ottery-St-Mary in order to raise Sainsbury’s, but soon got back on the road. B and Mrs T live in Wellington so it wasn’t too far. We pottered up the M5 and arrived in time for a nice coffee and a chat. Badger was busy preparing a wonderful lunch, but was still very interested in the new car, as they are thinking of a change next year.

Lunch was a lavish affair with a choice of past with duck ragu or rice with garlic chicken. Well it all looked so good that we tried both. It was delicious. For sweet, Mrs T had prepared a fabulous cheesecake that just melted in the mouth. We were seriously spoilt.

During the afternoon the Gorse Fox helped Mrs Tiggywinkle with her digital photo management across devices. (When he gets time he’ll write this up and send her a copy). He also tried to sort out her over-capacity “OneDrive” but was too rusty on Windows to get to a satisfactory conclusion. He’ll have to try it out on a Windows machine at home (if he can find it) and see if he can come to a sensible conclusion.

It was late afternoon before we left. It had been a wonderful few hours. It is always so nice to catch up with true friends. We got on the road and headed back south to Sidmouth. We were back in the hotel within the hour. We got changed and headed to the bar before dinner. The harpies were there picking over some corpse or other (though it might have been an amuse bouche). The pitch of their collective screech seemed to have risen another octave... but still not quite enough for them to be only heard by dogs and bats.

Dinner was excellent again. The Silver Vixen and Gorse Fox both started with a ham hock terrine and then she had pork loin cutlets, while he had venison. He noticed that the restaurant was very busy compared with last night. There seemed to be a lot more bodies about, and most of them were still young enough to have a pulse. There was a real buzz of chatter over the background pianist.

After dinner we, again, retired to the quiet of the lounge. We sat by one of the huge picture windows and were quite mesmerised by the rain as it blasted against the window. After a tea we sat in the peace and quiet, but as the harpies approached we made tracks for our room. Even now, back in our room, we can hear the banshee howling of the wind and clatter of the rain as it blasts in from the sea. We cannot, however, hear the harpies. It’s nice to be in the warmth and comfort of our room.

Birthday

Well, today is the Silver Vixen’s birthday. We woke with a cup of tea and a pile of Birthday cards to wade through. They are now standing on every flat surface in our room. We reflected on yesterday evening. We had gone down to bar for a drink and enjoyed an “amuse bouche” with our tipple. Slowly the bar began to fill up with some of the people from the tour. The Gorse Fox concluded that they were kept in special rooms within the hotel. The beds probably had headstones as opposed to headboards... and there was the heady aroma of lavender mixed with embalming fluid as you enter that wing. One old dear called out “Have you had a nice day, dear?” To her friend. The reply was “Well, I’m still alive!” So the Gorse Fox assumes that’s what constitutes a good day for that tour bus.

Dinner was superb. It was 4 courses and followed by tea or coffee in the lounge. A pianist titled away on his ivories in the corner of the restaurant and there was a pleasant hubbub without it being too noisy. The Silver Vixen started with melon and then a black current sorbet before enjoying the pork belly followed by coffee parfait. The Gorse Fox had a sea bream terrine followed by monkfish before tucking into pork belly followed by cheesecake. A nice bottle of Merlot accompanied all of this.

Today we had a good breakfast down in the restaurant and then headed in to town for a stroll around before the forecast rain set in. The wind was, again, really bracing and it was blowing foam off the sea and across the road. We stopped off at Boots again. The Gorse Fox decided some ibuprofen would be sensible for his knee. Certainly it seems to have improved during the day, since taking it.

When we got back to the hotel a big bunch of flowers was awaiting in the room. This had been arranged by Urban-Cub and Ellie. That was a nice surprise. We had a chat with her and Ellie before getting changed and heading down to the pool and spa.

We started with a swim. It wasn’t a big pool, but it was lovely and warm and we were the only two people making use of it. We glided back and forth for while. The background lighting was a deep blue, and “New Age” music was playing gently over the speakers. It wasn’t so much exercise, as relaxation.  Eventually we decided that we had swum enough, and headed for the sauna. Again, it wasn’t big, but plenty big enough for the two of us. It’s a long time sine the Gorse Fox has had a sauna. He had forgotten how much he enjoys them.

Properly roasted we then headed for the relaxation area. Here, shaped stone seats provide a comfortable place to chill out. The stone seats are actually heated, so you sit there on a warm griddle slowly cooking. It was delightful (particularly when we had finally got the second of these seats to heat up properly).

Back in our room it is clear that the rain has set in for the rest of the day (as forecast). The Gorse Fox suspects that afternoon tea is next on the agenda.

Travelling, but not far

The Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen are off travelling again. Only for a few days, but after all, she has a Birthday to celebrate.

We loaded the car and set off mid-morning. Google said the journey would take us 3 hours and 11 minutes, but we were in no hurry. We pottered westbound in the mid morning traffic. The Gorse Fox marvelled at the ease with which the adaptive cruise control dealt with the journey. Indeed, he drove from Chichester to the outskirts of Bournemouth without touching the brake or accelerator - just reading the road and adjusting the speed to match the speed limits. By Bournemouth we had averaged of 50mpg. Outstanding!

We stopped a The Crown Inn at Bridport to break the journey. It’s just over 100 miles from home and it was time for a comfort break, a coffee, and a snack. It turned out to be a super little find. The coffee was good and their sausage and onion baguette was extremely tasty.

Back on the road, the last part of the journey took about 40 minutes. In all it had taken just a smidgeon over 3 hours and we had averaged 48mpg. The car had been quiet, roomy, refined, very comfortable, and economical. What more could you want?

We checked in to the imposing Victorian pile that is “Victoria Hotel”. It is like something out of a film set and, at any moment, you expect Miss Marple to wander by with her knitting in one hand and bottle of gin in the other. It is very special.

Our stateroom is rather plush with views out over the bay. It certainly looks as if it will be very comfortable. We unpacked and made ourselves comfortable before heading out for a walk and chance to have a look at the town itself.

As we left a coach pulled up. It was the first time the Gorse Fox had seen Perry Mortem Tours for many years, but the doors opened and and the chronologically-challenged spilled out to make their way to reception.

We headed down the drive and walked along the promenade towards the town centre. There was a brisk wind and the waves were really stirring up the beach. The water was stained red from the underlying red sandstone. It was really quite exhilarating. We wandered round the town and the Gorse Fox stopped in Boots to get a knee brace. His knee is not getting any better and today feels decidedly troublesome. As we headed back, the sun broke through the clouds to west. It was the perfect end to nice brisk walk.

Back at the hotel we settled down in the lounge for afternoon tea and now we are back in our room having a quiet hour or so before dressing for dinner this evening.

Consumption

It was a cold night (outside). Jasper was not in the slightest bit interested in taking his morning stroll. Oh no, he went and perched on his throne in the living room. The Gorse Fox left him to his own devices.

Pistol Pete was having his car serviced today. The Gorse Fox had volunteered to go and collect him and give him a lift home. Fortunately, the timing was such that the worst of the rush hour traffic was gone and the Gorse Fox just sailed through to the garage in question. Pistol Pete hopped in and we headed back to LA. He seemed to like the car (which is just as well because we're not changing it now). Over the journey to Chichester, back to LA, then home the Gorse Fox managed to achieve over 42mpg. This is well over the official target figure and given that it has the aerodynamic qualities of a brick, and has an automatic gearbox, that's pretty good.

The Gorse Fox downloaded some new drivers for the printer in his study. Catalina hadn't given any trouble for basic printing, but the Gorse Fox found that the scanning function wasn't working properly (requiring a restart of the software after every scan). The new drivers seem to have cured the problem.

The afternoon saw the usual game of "hide and seek" with Jasper. Eventually, we managed to dig him out from under the bed and deposit him in his carrier. He meowed all the way to the cattery but settled immediately when he arrived. Knowing he's with Mark, at the cattery, is a weight off the collective mind. We know he is happy and will be well looked after.

Now we can get out the suitcases and start to ponder what we will need for a few days.

Preparing

The Gorse Fox and Silver Vixen are preparing for a short trip. As a result, it has been a day of bits and pieces.

It all started with a trip to Skoda to see if the Gorse Fox could get to the bottom of the DAB radio tuning. A nice engineer came and sat with him and in a slightly condescending way explained how it worked. The Gorse Fox said, ok then do it. It didn’t work. Much head scratching began and a random selection of buttons and settings were altered. Nothing. “You’ll have to book it in so I can put it on the probe” said the confused engineer. Another random button was pressed. The Gorse Fox agreed to set it up. At that moment the missing national stations on DAB appeared. Now the engineer was really confused. “But I haven’t done anything” he wailed. The Gorse Fox responded “Whatever you didn’t do worked perfectly. Thank you”. He drove home, a happy man.

Next there was some shopping to complete. This took longer than expected as the coupon that the Gorse Fox was spending (and expires tomorrow) wasn’t being accepted by the automatic till. A nice man came to help. He pressed some buttons. Nothing. He called a nice young lady. She pressed some buttons and concluded the Gorse Fox need to spend a few pound more to exhaust the value of the voucher. This, indeed, worked.

The Silver Vixen has gone out with Lady Penelope this afternoon. It’s an opportunity for her to explore the new car a bit more as the Gorse Fox has done most of the driving so far.

In preparation for the short trip, the Gorse Fox is planning to use his iPad instead of his usual Lenovo Tablet. This then is a test of how practical it is for blogging and how easy it is (or isn’t) to include photos.

If all goes well, there will be a photo of Cousteau-Cub and Urban-Cub when young, embedded in this post.