Carpet Decoration

 We are deeply fond of our cat, Jasper. The Gorse Fox needs to make that clear from the start. There is, however, something deeply unsettling about walking into the lounge, first thing in the morning, to spot cat vomit on the carpet. There is something even more unsettling to realise that you nearly stood in another pile of cat vomit when you went to open the shutters. (the Gorse Fox is relieved that he had put his slippers on). Dealing with this would have to wait. Ellie was up and about and we had to get her fed, washed, dressed, and ready for school.

It was only after we returned from school and had consumed our own breakfast that the Gorse Fox fired up the spot cleaner to try and clean the carpets. It was only a partial success. It does not take a magnifying glass to spot the stain that has remained on the carpet.

Not having an Ocado order last week, nor doing a Sainsbury's top-up, we were running low. The Gorse Fox prepared a shopping list and we raided Sainsbury's. It didn't take too long and it was only meant as a stop-gap until Thursday, but we still managed three bag fulls and a bill that amounted to more than 60p.

After a bite of lunch, we had a quiet hour with our books until we had to collect Ellie. She was in good form once she had gotten over our refusal to let her go to the park(it was too cold). She hadn't been home long before Urban Cub came to collect her for supper, prior to dropping her back with us overnight.

In the swing

 We are straight back and into the normal swing of things. We were up early so that Ellie could be dropped off. It's only been a few days, but it was lovely to see her again. We gave her breakfast and the Silver Vixen supervised morning ablutions and dressing for school. It was quite chilly this morning - only 1C - as we walked to school. At least it was dry and there was little or no wind.

Once home, the Silver Vixen went out to attend an appointment while the Gorse Fox got on with his breakfast and then attacked the accounts. There wasn't too much to do until the Silver Vixen returned, showered and was ready to head back out so that we could collect Jasper from the cattery. Jasper clearly enjoyed his spa break and spent the whole trip home and most of the afternoon telling us about it at the top of his voice.

The Gorse Fox collected Ellie from school and then she spent the rest of the afternoon doing some craft work with the Silver Vixen in preparation for book day at school, this Friday.

Home Again

 

The weather sneered at us. After a couple of grey days, we woke this morning to a lovely-looking sky and the clouds drifting away. Typical!

It didn't matter. We don't holiday in the UK and expect perfect weather. That is part of the charm.

We started packing, and the Gorse Fox took the first loads to the car, stopping to pay the bill before going to breakfast. By this time, the sun was pouring in through the windows, blinding the Gorse Fox. Fortunately, the couple at the next table left, and the staff were able to close the blinds.

After breakfast, we finished packing and said our farewells to the staff and to Betty and Barney Rubble. By now the clouds had disappeared and we had a clear blue sky from horizon to horizon. It seemed a shame to be leaving but the drive home crosses some fabulous scenery that would look wonderful on such a clear day.

The journey was quite extraordinary. There were neither delays nor hold-ups for the first 130 miles. The first time we had to queue was when we got to the Bognor Road roundabout at Chichester, 4 miles from home. Even that was but a few moments.

We have had a quiet afternoon, interrupted only by a phone call from Ellie to tell the Gorse Fox that Tottenham was beating Chelsea 2-0. These are the sort of priorities that are rightly instilled in her. We have just finished dinner (only one course tonight, not the five that we have been used to).

It was a lovely break.

Sat in Sidmouth

We had a laughter filled evening in the restaurant and lounge last night. It all started with the surreptitious lifting of a Bourbon biscuit from the table and its stashing into Betty Rubble’s handbag. A nearby lady of uncertain years watched from a nearby table. She gave a look that would turn you to stone. This started our laughter as Betty tried to be nonchalant. As we left the restaurant, the Gorse Fox went “Beep, beep, beep, beep” and one of the waiters (with a huge smile on his face) asked “Have you taken something?”, “Not me” said the Gorse Fox, “It was her”… and so the laughter started again.

We had another good night’s sleep and, again, it looks promising weather-wise today. Let’s hope that it tries harder today, as yesterday turned a bit grey and cloudy.

The Silver Vixen wanted to pick up a gift for a friend so we headed into town. several hours later, when every gift shop had been examined in minute detail, the right gift was found. At this point Barney and the Gorse Fox took the shopping back to the hotel then came back to join the ladies for coffee. All of the coffee shops that we had thought of were full, but we found one tucked away near the seafront.

Once suitable caffeinated, we headed along the esplanade towards the mouth of the River Sid and then walked away from the sea, along the riverbank. It was a gentle stroll but very pretty - even in winter. We turned when the Silver Vixen was starting to tire, then headed back to hotel for some refreshments.

Betty and Barney headed for the spa, and the Silver Vixen and Gorse Fox settled down with our books and the online newspapers.

Brighter, briefly

It was a bit brighter this morning. The sun was trying to break through some watery clouds but it was a nippy 3c out on our balcony. As we prepared to meet up for breakfast, we still had no particular plan for the day.

Over breakfast we agreed that we would visit Killerton House. We went there in November but since then they have mounted a new exhibition of fashion - which obviously interests the Silver Vixen.

We had a good drive across to Killerton but by the time arrived, the sun had slipped back behind the clouds. At least the wind had dropped. We strolled along to the House and made our way through the rooms and up to the exhibition.

Leaving the House we nipped into the restaurant for a coffee before going for a walk in the grounds. After a while we found a viewpoint with a bench where we could sit and look across the valley towards Dartmoor. We were in no hurry, so sat and chatted and watched the view for quite a while.

Eventually, we stirred ourselves and moved on. Walking back we could see the daffodils starting to bloom and some lovely drifts of crocus. Back through the shop (where resisted any latent temptation) and then on to the car. It didn’t seem to take long to get back to the hotel. Betty and Barney headed for the spa and we made ourselves comfortable in the Lounge with some tea and a beer.

Urban-Cub phoned this afternoon; apparently Ellie has been presented with the school baton for happiness. She has a scroll and as happiness is one of the school’s key values she is invited to tell them about it next Thursday.

Good Morning

 After a good night’s sleep, the Gorse Fox is reading the news online. The Silver Vixen is in the bathroom. There is tap at the door (and several in the bathroom). The Gorse Fox opens the door to a little old lady who greets him with:

“Good morning. Oh! I’ve got the wrong the wrong room.”

She shook her head and wandered away to knock on another door. People are so friendly here.

Second Home

We started the day by working through our last minute lists: empty the fridge, switch off the heating; empty the bins, finish packing etc. The Gorse Fox had time to go around and escort Ellie to school but as soon as he got home we finished loading the car and hit the road.

The journey down to Sidmouth was trouble-free. Even though it was mid-week, we had a clear run through. Despite a “wee and coffee” stop at Bridport, we were checking into the hotel just over three hours from leaving home.

Betty and Barney Rubble pulled into the car park just as we were walking to reception. Perfect timing. We warned reception about them, but they allowed them to check-in anyway. We settled in the Lounge and chatted over refreshments and sandwiches. It was two and half hours before we stirred. We went to our rooms (we are back in our preferred room, 104) and changed, then headed out into the grey afternoon for a stroll into town. We were out for an hour or so getting our allotment of fresh air and exercise. There was, however, a chilly wind and it was nice to get back into the hotel.

We met in the bar for a pre-dinner drink then enjoyed the usual 5-course dinner before retiring to the Lounge for coffee. Just as we were finishing dinner, the Gorse Fox’s dear Aunt phoned to wish him a happy birthday and to update him on all the family news.

We are now back in our room and will reconvene over breakfast tomorrow.

Messages

There was no immediate hurry to get up this morning. The Gorse Fox could wander around to Urban-Cub's in time for the walk to school - but didn't need to worry about Ellie's breakfast. The Silver Vixen did have to get up so she would be ready for her appointment at the hairdresser at 9:00.

It was when the Gorse Fox was opening the shutters that his phone vibrated. A message had arrived. He checked. It was a Happy Birthday message from his nephew Mark. Oh yes - his brain suddenly engaged - it is his birthday, he had not given it a thought until the message arrived. From that point onwards, messages appeared on all of the social media platforms. The Gorse Fox has tried to respond to each and every one.

After the school escort service, the Gorse Fox had some breakfast and retired to his study. He has spent some of the day editing and formatting old blog extracts. 

As we are going away for a few days, Jasper needed to spend some time in the Spa. Even though we had not varied our morning routine, nor retrieved our suitcases from storage, he somehow guessed. He buried himself under Ellie's bed in the most inaccessible place he could. In the end, we had to send a text to the Cat Whisperer to say we would be late. Jasper finally emerged and strolled into the kitchen with a proud swagger. "You couldn't get me, could you?" he seemed to be saying. The Gorse Fox shut the kitchen door and he was trapped. He knew it. He started his yowling, which continued until we dropped him off at the Cattery.

Back home, we had some lunch and then retrieved our suitcases. Everything is now ready for a prompt start in the morning - the plan is to leave around 9:00.

Intervention

 The Silver Vixen and Cousteau-Cub went across to Portsmouth last night in order to see Giovanni Pernice's show. The Gorse Fox was left as butler to both Ellie and Jasper. Jasper was not amused and he took himself off to our bedroom where he sulked until the Silver Vixen returned. Ellie, despite threatening mischief, went straight to bed and was asleep within seconds. The Gorse Fox retired to the lounge and watched TV while keeping an eye on the Silver Vixen's location. This proved interesting when she left the show. She followed the Satnav but found access to the Motorway was closed and ended up headed west towards Fareham instead of east towards Chichester. A quick about-face at Fareham saw her heading back on the correct road and, after dropping Cousteau-Cub and Chichester, she was home before 23:30.

There was an intervention in the Gorse Fox's dream. The patter of tiny feet and a nudge from Ellie was followed by "Grandpa, how long is it until my clock turns yellow?" Grandpa looked at his watch. "Ellie, it is 5:39, there are 50 more minutes to wait. Go back to bed and go to sleep" and, to be fair to her, she did.

Ellie was eager to get to school today. She was up and ready in plenty of time and she was among the first to rush in when the doors opened. The Silver Vixen and Gorse Fox strolled home and had some breakfast. The Silver Vixen got on with various chores during the morning. The Gorse Fox caught up on the accounts and then returned to the formatting and editing of blog extracts.

After lunch, we sat down with our books until it was time to collect Ellie. She had had a good day at school and had several stickers to show for her efforts. When we arrived home, she sat down to do some homework. This was all going well until she had to write a sentence terminating with a question mark. She went into a meltdown. She claimed she just can't do question marks and ran off crying. The Gorse Fox asked her to write the number 2. Then the number 2 without a tail, but with a dot under it. He pointed out that this was a question mark. Not good enough, apparently. This was a battle we were not going to win tonight. It was about this time that Urban-Cub arrived to collect her, on her way back from work.

G-Force

 It has been a while since we have had a full G-Force day. Urban-Cub was working all day but Ellie had an Inset day (where there is no school for the children). She was dropped off at 7:30 and has been with us throughout the day.

During the morning, the Gorse Fox popped out to fill the Skoda with petrol and put it through the car wash. It was filthy! Whilst the queue at the petrol station was negligible, the car wash was a different matter. The Gorse Fox joined a queue with at least 8 cars visible in front. Despite that, it didn't take too long and the car looks pristine again.

Since lunchtime, the Gorse Fox has been playing some phonics and word games with Ellie. This was at her prompting. She is getting really good at reading and rarely needs help.

This evening, the Silver Vixen is going out with Cousteau-Cub to see Giovanni Pernice at the theatre in Southsea. The Gorse Fox is now in charge and is sure that there is mischief to be had, if only we could think of some. Ellie is washed, her teeth have been cleaned and she is ready for bed. Currently, she is playing on her tablet, but the Gorse Fox will go and read her a story in a few minutes. She has been an absolute treasure all day.

Early Celebration

It was a quiet morning. The Gorse Fox didn't have any football scheduled because the Silver Vixen had arranged a family lunch to celebrate the Gorse Fox's impending birthday.

We met at "Fino's" - the Gorse Fox, Silver Vixen, Cousteau-Cub, the Coventry Hobbit, Urban-Cub, Ellie, and Darren. As usual, the restaurant was quite busy, but we had a lovely table reserved so didn't have to wait around.

The Gorse Fox was presented with some cards and asked if they should be opened immediately or kept until Wednesday. The consensus was that they should be opened immediately. He must say that he has done well. They presented the Gorse Fox with tickets to go to TV Centre and watch QI being filmed next month and in April they secured tickets to go and see Elkie Brooks at the Anvil in Basingstoke.  

It was a lovely lunch and there's nothing quite as wonderful as having all of the Gorse Fox's girls together in one place.

In addition to an early celebration for the Gorse Fox's birthday, today would have been his Grandfather's 121st birthday, so we raised a glass to him and his memory.

Grandpa was very honoured. Ellie had made him a Birthday Card. (Ellie had woken up this morning, crept into Urban-Cub's bedroom and asked "Mummy, can you wake up at 7:00 instead of 8:00" and then declared that she "needed something to wear for Grandpa's lunch. Can we go shopping?" So it was that at 10:00, Urban-Cub and Ellie were standing outside "Next" waiting for them to open. A new outfit was selected and she looked as pretty as a picture.)

Excursions

 As mentioned yesterday, we had a Zoom call with J&T last night. We examined the various excursions that are available during our cruise this Autumn. With a couple of exceptions we had come to a similar list and so agreed to go ahead and get them booked. Young Trevor did it immediately and the Gorse Fox booked ours this morning. It's nice to have that agreed upon and nailed down.

This morning the Gorse Fox had his usual cousins' call. Today was cousin Helen's birthday so she opened her cards live, on air. She's a year younger than the Gorse Fox.

One item on the "to-do" list was to fix Ellie's doll's cot. This has never stayed together very well and as it has flexed the bottom has dropped out on many occasions. It was time to fix this. Some strips of wood, some Gorilla Glue, and a handful of clamps soon created a lasting solution. (At least that's what we hope).

Most of the rest of the day has been spent formatting and editing the blog extracts.

Edit

Jasper can be a pain. Sometime during the early hours (the Gorse Fox could not be bothered to look at his watch) he started to walk all over us and meow to make sure that he had our attention. We ignored him for so long, and then the Silver Vixen ejected him, somewhat unceremoniously, from the bed. Enough was enough.

Jasper went off to sulk and we didn't hear from him again until we were eating breakfast.

During the morning, the Gorse Fox applied the latest updates to our Apple Watches, iPads, iPhones, MacBooks, and iMac. It took a little while but was still much quicker than the old Windows updates had been.

Once that was finished he returned to yesterday's research into possible excursions for our forthcoming cruise. We've now narrowed it down and will discuss it later with J&T. The rest of the day has been spent editing and formatting the 2018 blog extract. This took a couple of passes because the Gorse Fox decided to change the way in which photos were included. For consistency, he now must go back through 2019, 20, 21, and 22. That won't be quick! (He is thinking of adding a Table of Contents and an Index at the same time but dreads the amount of time that will take).

Round, round, get around

 It. had been wet overnight. When the Gorse Fox got up, it was still drizzling, it was great and the forecast suggested it would stay like that for most of the day. We had a quiet breakfast and awaited the usual Ocado delivery. We still had the Sainsbury's top-up to complete, but first, we had to retrieve the Silver Vixen's coat.

We headed across to Angmering. The traffic was malignant, with long tailbacks at every set of roadworks and most roundabouts. The coat was waiting for us in the office, and we got straight back into the car to head back. We would not sit in the traffic on the way back. A different route was needed. The A27 was a no-go as there was a long tailback at Crossbush. We took the A259 then switched up towards Ford, across to Yapton and Barnham and finally back down the A29. It may have added 5 miles or so to the journey but it was certainly quicker.

We stopped off at Sainsbury's. It seemed to be full of frail zombies who were blocking the aisles while having a chat with all and sundry. They were totally oblivious to the gridlock that they were causing and the Gorse Fox actually did an about-turn and walked around the long way in several trolley jams.

Back home the Gorse Fox caught up on the accounts and was glad to see that a book that he had pre-ordered last year had just been charged and delivered to his Kindle library. Talking of deliveries, the Gorse Fox had ordered some new chinos. They too turned up today and seem to be a very good fit.

The Gorse Fox spent some time looking through the various excursions that are available during the cruise we have booked for the Autumn. He's made a preliminary selection but we plan to have a Zoom call with J&T tomorrow in order to nail this down.

The afternoon was spent with our books.

Undercoat

 There was a bright start to the day, though some clouds had lingered from overnight. The Silver Vixen and Gorse Fox donned our gear and headed onto the highway. For the Silver Vixen, it was Pilates, for the Gorse Fox it was football. The clouds disappeared and we had a lovely sunny day. 

Jack had chosen the teams, as usual. As usual, he had picked a blatantly unbalanced squad.  We were under the cosh from the start. Having said that, we held out for quite a while before conceding. We kept trying to respond but just didn't have the players. The Gorse Fox had four or five shots stopped and managed to get the ball in the net once. That, however, was disallowed for an earlier infringement. Not too sure what the final score was, but suspect it was 7-0.

Leaving the sports centre, the Gorse Fox drove back to Angmering to collect the Silver Vixen. We loaded up the car and set off home. It was only as we arrived home and started to unload that the Silver Vixen realised that she had left her coat on the back of a chair at the Community Centre. A panicky phone call was made, the coat was located, and it was tucked away in the office for us to collect tomorrow.

The afternoon was spent lapping up the sun in the Orangery while reading (and in the case of the Gorse Fox dozing).

A Day Out

The forecast was good but the morning had started with a thick mist. We planned to go out but had not decided on a destination. The Portsmouth Historic Dockyard was our first choice but when trying to book the tickets the earliest availability was tomorrow. That doesn't help us today! In the end, we decided on a trip to Nyman's at Handcross. 

We finished our breakfast and prepared Jasper's lunchtime feast. Hitting the road, we drove up through Fontwell, Amberley, Storrington, Cowfold, across Plummer's Plain and on to Handcross. As we left the A29 and dropped into the Arun Valley the sunshine gave way to thick mist and the temperature dropped from 7C to 2C. It remained misty for most of the drive. This did not bode well for Nyman's. As it happened, the mist lifted just as we approached and it didn't trouble us again.

As we entered the grounds we took the route that led us around the perimeter of the gardens. It was lined with wonderful specimen trees and looped along a ridge that afforded brilliant views across the slightly misty Weald.

We were in no hurry so we made the most of the views and made our way, at a leisurely pace, to the more formal gardens in front of the skeleton of the ruined house.

Skirting around the ruins, we made our way to the small restaurant. We sat and enjoyed a coffee and the Silver Vixen had a lovely bowl of soup. The Gorse Fox made the mistake of selecting something simple - a Ploughman's Lunch. He finds it hard to comprehend how it is possible to make something so simple taste so bad. The cheese was nice. The bread was nice. The apple was tolerable. Everything else: pickles, jam, and salad was deeply unpalatable.

We moved on, stopping to look at a mediocre set of paintings in an exhibition, then back to the ruins themselves.

The ruins always inspire the imagination, reminding the Gorse Fox of old Gothic novels or 1960s horror films. We wandered back and forth, looking at the ruins from every angle and photographing most of them.

Eventually, gothic-ed out, we made our way out through the walled gardens to the NT Shop, then on to the car and home.

We were home in under an hour and spent the remains of the afternoon in the Orangery, soaking up the warmth and finishing our books.

Steam

 It was a grey start to the day but as time wore on, it brightened and the sun burst through. After a lengthy breakfast, the Gorse Fox stripped the kitchen then vacuumed and steam-cleaned the floors. The Silver Vixen went to the local pharmacy to collect her meds.

Later, the Gorse Fox returned to his editing on the 2018 blog extract. This occupied the rest of the morning. It made interesting reading as he got the chance to reminisce over Kim's brief trip home from Thailand, our first trip to Jamaica, a family wedding, and Ellie's second year. There are a further few months to process, but there is no hurry.

After lunch, the Gorse Fox sat in the Orangery, soaking up the warm sun, and finishing a book. The Silver Vixen went out to do some tidying up in the garden.

That's it for today. A gloriously uneventful day.

Brief Appearance

 The Gorse Fox snuck downstairs at 7:00, hoping not to wake the Silver Vixen. Unfortunately, Jasper had left an odorous parcel in his litter tray which demanded immediate attention. The Gorse Fox was as quiet as he could be, but suspects he disturbed the sleeping beauty.

At 9:00 the Gorse Fox headed off to the Arena for football. We had a new player today. The Gorse Fox had been warned that he was very good so he accommodated that in his team selection algorithm. We had a 6-v-5 turnout. Paul, the new guy, was allocated to the team with 6 players. The Gorse Fox made sure he was on the team with 5. The game started and it was clear that Paul was good and would fit in nicely with the Sunday crowd. After about 10 minutes the score was 3-3 and Paul was looking dangerous. Then, in the blink of an eye, he pulled up. He had pulled a hamstring. That was it. He went off and spectated for the rest of the hour. We changed the teams a bit at halftime, but the Gorse Fox's team still managed a 15-10 win. The Gorse Fox scored at least 3 of our goals (that's all he's claiming, but he thinks he got a 4th in the second half).

Back home and showered he settled down with the editing and formatting of the 2018 blog. He has only done the first three months of the year so far. Other than cooking the Sunday roast (pork), he spent the rest of the day reading, while the Silver Vixen got on with some sewing.

Condensed

 A gentle start to the day saw the Gorse Fox wander downstairs at 7:30 and put the coffee on. There was no agenda for the day. As he contemplated the meaning of life over the life-affirming coffee he delved into the day's news. There was movement upstairs. He switched on the kettle. The Silver Vixen would be greeted with a fresh cup of tea when she came down.

At 9:00, the Gorse Fox had the cousins' call. Whilst we had the usual banter, it was good to hear from Chris. He's a few hundred kilometres from the epicentre of this week's earthquake, and they could feel their apartment block shaking. They decided, for safety's sake to relocate to a country cottage for a couple of days but are now back home.

When the call was over, the Gorse Fox cracked on with the editing and formatting of the 2019 blog extract. This has taken all day but is now complete. It was easy to get up and leave it, then come back to it as various interrupts occurred. One such interruption was Darren. He came over to look at the vent in our bathroom. This has, on two occasions, dripped into the bathroom. The Gorse Fox concluded that it was the moist air extracted from the bathroom, condensing and dripping back into the room. This seemed likely as it had only happened on two days when the external temperature was well below zero. Darren made his way across the joists in the loft and examined the extractor. Sure enough, the vent pipe wasn't adequately insulated, and the ceiling vent was not a tight fit. The former problem was solved immediately by redistributing some of the loft insulation. The latter problem will need some silicon sealer and will be done later.

While Darren was in the loft, he noticed that a vent pipe was not connected to the roof vent. In fact, the roof connection was hanging upside down and not connected to the roof. He fixed that while he was there. He's a good lad!

While all this was going on, the Silver Vixen has been doing a blitz-clean of the Orangery. It has taken her much of the day, but she's finished now.

Young Love

Ellie was dropped off soon after 7 o'clock this morning. She was very excited, today was the last day before half-term and there was a Valentine's Disco after school. She had chosen her outfit and she was ready and eager to get to school.

 As it was quite icy, the Gorse Fox took Ellie to school. He didn't want the Silver Vixen to risk a slip on the pavement. When we got there, the Gorse Fox started chatting with one of the mums. Meanwhile, Ellie had been presented with a red rose, by one of her classmates. Another had given her a heart-shaped lollipop and an envelope containing some chocolate. Only Ellie and her friend Bonnie were selected for this sort of treatment. What it's like to be popular!

Back home, caffeinated and breakfasted, we realised that we were suffering from withdrawal symptoms, after yesterday's reckless change of habits. It was no good. We had to get our fix. We grabbed the bags and headed for Sainsbury's for the top-up shop. There wasn't much to get and we were home again in 45 minutes.

Once home, the Silver Vixen did some laundry while the Gorse Fox did the accounts. He then started formatting and editing the 2019 blog extract, until lunchtime. After lunch, we both retired to the Orangery with our books until it was a) getting a little chilly, and b) time to collect Ellie.

Ellie had clearly enjoyed the Disco and wanted to linger and go to the park. We, however, needed to get her home and give her dinner before Pistol Pete turned up to collect her.

She's with Pistol Pete now for the half-term week.