I’ve just bought my calendar for next year. This’ll be the third year running I’ve used one of these - and it’s bloody great.
We’re not the quietest of households, and we do a lot of going out and about and here and there… as you’ve probably noticed. 
So this calendar is absolutely perfect for us - huge squares to write in, big print to see across the room from the computer chair and also, stickers for the kids. 
It’s kind of my xmas present to myself.
Choosing a template.
I don’t like this one. I didn’t like the last one.
In fact, I haven’t liked the last 6 I’ve tried out. 
I can’t change font colour or shape or size - at least, not that I can see. I’ve tried!
Wordpress on my website, Kirsty said. Any suggestions?
Should have gone in the passworded bit, I suppose, but forgot to say the day started off on the wrong foot because I fell asleep again this morning.
Myf came bouncing in just before eight and asked if she could go do breakfast and put cbeebies on ‘for Piglet’. I nodded and decided to lie there and listen to the news. After that, the Flight of the Bumblebee came on, followed by some music from Lord of the Rings, and I thought, ooh, like this, I’ll listen to this.
Next thing I know, it’s 9am…
So that buggered the day up completely. And I’ve been getting to bed hours earlier than normal - it was only midnight last night! During nano it was 2am most nights. Lunchtime now - much calmer. 
Things are back to ‘normal’ now. James has gone back to work after his sabbatical, but how long he stays is anyone’s guess. Absolutely nothing has changed.
Spent the afternoon at Kirsty’s, with Barbara and her brood too, so the three of us sat around drinking tea, chatting and laughing so much we can’t breathe (what was that lap-dancing quote Barbara? Something about it being all the rage…), which the 8 children completely trashed Kirsty’s house and had an absolute blast. Kirsty disappeared to the dentist for half an hour at one point, and came back with half her face numb. So that was fun watching her try to drink tea.
I finally got home at 6.30, having left them cooking fish fingers or some such, and found glass in my extension! (not as painful as it sounds). However, one thing the builder didn’t take into consideration was the fact that our boiler vents into the new kitchen - which was now a sealed box. Therefore, I felt very funny for the first 20 minutes of being home. Luckily, I’d left the back door open and as soon as James arrived, he realised what was up and went to open the window in the new kitchen and let all the accumulated carbon monoxide out. That was a close one! Wouldn’t like to think what could have happened, especially as the only ventilation into the new kitchen that was gradually filling up with poisonous fumes was the current kitchen window that was open a crack.
My headache has gone now, which is a bonus.
Right, off to do more Discourse. Am determined to break the back of this magazine before the weekend, which will give me another week to tweak it to my heart’s content. Assuming I remember how to type and spell correctly.
Oh - education? Ok. Watching Clarkson do stuff with black powder firearms on Discovery channel this morning, some whales or some such on one of the animal channels, lego, patterns with cuisinaire rods, and, I caught her reading to her sisters, when she thought I wasn’t looking. Plus lots of socialisation and PE at Kirsty’s. Tick.
“As she staggered out into the sunlight, blinking at her surroundings, things began to look vaguely familiar. Yes, she thought. I’ve been here before. At least, I think I have. It’s been such a long time…”
Well.
I feel quite odd.
No nano. I’ve done my 50k for November. And now feel strangely bereft. I’ve been writing nonsense for years and years and years, but nothing could have quite prepared me for that insanely mad, ridiculously intense 4 weeks that I’ve just finished. I want to do it all over again.
But I think I ought to stay in the real world for a little while longer - do something along the lines of education, xmas prep and maybe get round to editing this magazine I have to get to the printers by 12th Dec. There are presents to buy, food to get, Miquon maths to start, a nearly 4 year old who needs a little birthday party planning, a kitchen to choose and buy (by Wed!), tiles to choose (by next weekend) and I feel like I’ve fallen off my computer chair into a whirling maelstrom of chaos.
Back to normal then.
50063 words, and I’m going to bed now, before 1 am for the first time in about two and a half weeks.
I am so the happy bunny. Lying in bed this morning, 7.30am, and the sound of a hammer-drill being used not 20′ from my head intrudes upon my semi-consciousness.
Yes, the builders have arrived. En masse, too. There are five of them out there - one roofer, two plasterers and our own dear builder, John, with his sidekick. There’s plasterboard going up, tiles going down and windows going in.
The fact John didn’t leave here until 9pm last night makes this doubly impressive. He was out there working with James putting up the last of the ceiling supports by floodlight. James himself shifted 3 tonne of limestone rubble, as a base for the patio bit we’re going to have. All of a sudden, things have started to move. Amazing what you can accomplish when you start sending snotty letters, isn’t it?
Courtesy of my father - you’ve probably seen it before but it amused me…
“Can you raed tihs?
I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg.
The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid ! Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.
Amzanig huh? And I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!” 
I’m quite bowled over by the number of people who have been asking for my password, both via email and the comments box. I had no idea so many actually read my intermittent ramblings.
It’s really made my day - thanks. And yes, as and when I get around to actually posting something of note that needs a password, I’ll let you know what it is.
