Thursday 2nd February 2023

Groundhog Day!

Ain't that the truth, campers?

We had a quiet start to the day, Jools had no swimming or yoga, so we laid in bed until half five, maybe later, before we got up.

Soon, at about six, the first signs of dawn could be seen away in the south east, and there was clear skies above, not the cloud frecasted, maybe, just maybe, this was going to be a good day?

Jools left for work, and I had some toast and another coffee, then got ready for work.

Work was the same, a two hour department meeting in which we discuss progress, and there was actual progress.

Which is nice.

I had two hours before my afternoon of more meetings, so wth a migraine building, I went for a walk.

I was intending to mainly look for wild flowers, but the walk would certainly do me good. I felt boots were no longer needed as the ground was getting firmer every day, grabbed a camera or two and walked out of the door.

I walked in shadow along our street and the track at the end of it, but into sunshine as I turned up to Collingwood before turning down the small dip towards Windy Ridge, then taking the first long track on the right, which would lead me level with the track the other side of the wood on Windy Ridge.

Plenty of flowers to be enjoyed: some nice double snowdrops, Common Field-speedwells and lots of Annual Mercury. As well as daisies, dandelions and the usual early spring suspects. The Winter heliotropes are now nearing their end, with petal edges turning brown as the warmth takes its toll.

The tracks were muddy in places, but I was able to get by, horses looked at me passing, mournfully hoping I would have a sugarlump or some other treat.

The climb past the farm made my back complain some, but we can't give into it, can we? Or we'd end up just like my Mother.

Precious.

Back home there was time for lunch of cheese on toasted cornbread, before I had three hours of meetings with my boss. The meetings are what I should have had when we joined the company two years and two days ago. But finally our new boss listened and made sure all of us have the training we should have.

In a couple of weeks, after mapping what we actually do and what we know, our jobs might be reassessed and we are hoping to be moved up the corporate ladder, which should mean a pay rise, but really that's wishful thiking on our part.

But we shall see.

The day ended and turns out I was pooped. 9,000 steps and five hours of meetings had taken their toll.

I had a coffee to pep me up, then got round to making dinner; breaded chicken, curried rice and creamed spinach. The main task was to turn the sack of spinach into a cricket ball-sized handful of mush, so it could be chopped and added to the which sauce when mixed.

Its a bit of a palaver, but worth it.

We eat, we drink.

A quiet football-less evening spent sitting on the sofa with Scully who had demanded it.