Frosty Morning

Woo hoo... thermals at the ready... I love a good frosty start in the morning! I opened the curtains this morning to find Jack Frost had sprinkled a serious dose of icing sugar over the Mill and it feels very Christmassssssy. Chris Evans is playing great music, Eric Clapton,  and it's dad's party at the weekend, hurrah! Ok, he may have to have a webcam link from his hospital bed but we're all hoping that's not going to happen. I'm sure the hospital are hoping that too! Kati flew in yesterday from Hungary, Greg flies back from the US tomorrow for our big family bash.

My trip to Rowan Mills

I loved my trip to Rowan Mill in Holmfirth. It was a dreadful, wet drive 'up north' but there was a lovely warm welcome waiting for me when I got there. I got a chance to look at their lovely fabrics and a quick wander around their workshop area. I think everyone should cover their furniture with knitted fabrics just for a laugh - even the telephone got the knitted treatment, ha ha! I came away with lots of ideas, encouragement and a box of knitty goodies!

I couldn't resist stopping on the way home to take a shot of this reservoir. As you can see, I didn't even get out of the car, the weather was so bad! Gloucestershire lakes tend to be quite well hidden whereas this reservoir stretched as far as the eye could see and looked very dramatic. It wasn't the first stretch of water I passed, just the first opportunity I got to stop for a photo. Yorkshire a lovely part of the world, the scenery here is open and raw, so much drama for a Wednesday and lovely even in the pouring rain!

The busy girl's guide to racing..

Me and Lisa love a day at the races! The Paddy Power Gold Cup is yet another highlight in our busy social calendar though as it's chilly, it's not such a dressy occasion as the Festival in March. We were so pleased that we chose Saturday as our one and only racing day this year. The sun was shining, the temperature was around 10 degrees and we knew were would have a fab day together. First stop once we arrived was for a coffee and a piece of delicious fruit cake, mmm. That's my pre-curser to opening a bottle of champagne and saves me falling over before lunchtime! Lucky girls, we even found two seats at a table in the newly decorated and refurbished Millar bar! Watching the races on screen isn't quite as much fun as being down on the course but as it's a choice between being outside or staying in until you've finished your bottle (not allowed outside with drinks!) there's no contest.
Cheltenham racing is always great fun because there's always a great atmosphere. It's not a cheap day out by any stretch of the imagination but it's our treat to ourselves. We get real 'friends-time' and have fun in the process. By the time the last race was over we were ready to catch the bus into town. There waiting for us was a meal in Brasserie Blanc and hurrah, my old favourite, ham and cheese pancakes were back on the menu. These busy girls were even back at Lisa's to watch Strictly then X-factor! Reality tv shows are the perfect end to a crazy day's racing because they're a bit mad and crazy too!

The Magic of Motown

It's rare to go to any concert where I know nearly all the words - it must be an age thing! I was in Birmingham Alex theatre tonight with Fi, Rob, Mick, Nick and Eileen for the 50th celebration of Motown called 'The Magic of Motown'. I wasn't quite sure what to expect but I've always loved Tamla Motown and soul music so I knew I'd enjoy it. Rob said I would and that's good enough for me! Well, I didn't really enjoy it.. I absolutely loved it and we all had a fab night - the whole evening was MAGIC!

Front man, Roy G Hemmings, former member of the drifters, was brilliant, a real showman. He was the glue that stuck all the other acts together. I loved the variety. The 3 girls, The Love Supremes sang all those wonderful hits including Baby Love. The Tops & Tempts sang some brilliant numbers including 'My Girl' and they were accompanied by a 6-piece band under the direction of saxophonist Anna Brooks (my she's got a good set of lungs!) They got us up in our seats clapping and dancing and I'd certainly go and see them again!

Adventures 'up north!'...

Ainsley Lister Rocks.. !

These girls love Loch Fyne... :)

I'm a Bloodhound Babe... !

What a brilliant day! I was invited to visit the Aardman Studio, Gas Ferry Road and came across this amazing beauty stored nearby, The Bloodhound! Promoted as the biggest engineering adventure of the 21st century, the Bloodhound will in 2012, attempt to travel for one mile at 1,000mph to break the world land speed record - WOW!

What has this got to do with me you might ask? Well when I first arrived, I had little idea what Bloodhound was about but as is the case with these things, as the plans unravelled, I realised it has everything to do with me. In fact, with every one on you too! It's an all inclusive adventure that's been ingeniously plotted and planned to appeal to all ages and I love this project. I can guarantee, it will be what everyone will be talking about in the next couple of years. It's amazingly exciting and the guys leading the team are so passionate about it, the feeling is infectious. The project is led by the infamous Richard Noble who by his own admission, specialises in developing high risk ventures. His most famous being Thrust2 programme which brought the World Land Speed Record back to Britain in 1983 and the ThrustSSC first ever supersonic land speed record programme. Most interestingly the project is about engaging the public in all countries of the world and exciting the population in a way to highlight and encourage new engineering talent. The big global manufacturers have recognised that they are going to be seriously short of engineering talent in the future. That's why they're backing this bid to encourage the youngsters of today in particular to join in the fun that is the Bloodhound adventure. Take a look http://www.bloodhoundssc.com if you'd like to know more...

There's a massive amount of support and sponsorship already in place and although the Bloodhound will eventually be built in Bristol (this is a full size model!) this is a global project. I love cars, fast ones even better so yes, of course this is definitely my kinda adventure!

Just to test the theory, I stepped into the simulator in my red lady shoes to attempt the world record. I don't do simulators so it was definitely a 'Ginger moment'... one of those times when my inner Ginger says to me 'Go on.. I would!' and I think, yes I can too! So on my first test run I scored a poor 650mph but I was keeping my cards very closely to my chest. Ha ha.. that's rubbish really because actually I had no idea which buttons to press to fire my rockets! I'm a girl... !! And if there are 3 buttons on each side of the front of the steering column, I'm going to press those first - not the ones I can't see which are on the back! But following a whisper in my little, shell-like ear by Tony to say... "Don't wait for the instruction through the headset, fire the rocket earlier"... I was fully prepped for my attempt.

The task is to keep the car running as close to the thin blue line as possible. There is a marked mile right at the centre of the course and that's where the speed will be recorded. For the actual record, there has to be two runs, there and back, with both beating the previous record for the record to count. My task was to keep the car steady, listen to instructions and just floor it and fire my rockets to beat my poor first run. Well, girl power did it! I beat the record with an amazing 1018mph and managed to stop by the crew vehicles which would mean in real life, they can refuel in the very limited time of 60 minutes, to send the car back for a second run.

I was triumphant! Just imagine what speed I could have reached in my trainers! I now think they need to change the colour of the Bloodhound to a more girly colour - pink!

Christmas card making...

Lunch at the Wheatsheaf at Oaksey

Look at our yummy lunch.. ! We started with appetisers : a delicious duck scotch egg, some devils on horseback (prunes wrapped in bacon), olives and bread with olive oil and balsamic. 

Lunch was roast beef with delicious roast vegetables and yorkshires. The staff were lovely, the pub perfect and lunch was one of the tastiest I've eaten in a long time. 

Autumn trees

Royal Highland Cows

 There are so many bonuses to living here! This area is teaming with wildlife both large and small. It's not everyone that can say they opened the curtains this morning to see HRH's Royal Highland cattle roaming by the lakeside, woo hoo. I might be mistaken and they could belong to another local farmer but I know Gatcombe are breeding these cattle so it's likely that they decided to go for a stroll and just wandered over from the estate.

Without a cow-care in the world, they munched and Mr Hairy Coat decided our 'Private - no fishing' sign would make a great scratching post - there must be a mini wildlife sanctuary going on under that hairy coat! News always travels fast on the Minch airwaves so it wasn't long before two farmers had arrived, one with his forked stick, to direct them home. Why do all farmers carry a forked stick? It wouldn't be my weapon of choice to try to round up these four beauties. Strangely enough, the farmers appeared to be standing watching the lake - did they think they cows had gone for a swim - ha ha.. I spied the four lovely creatures having a good nosey in the bins at the front of the Mill. Old farmers are very wise so I presumed that they knew though they didn't appear to be in any hurry. I wouldn't like to be driving the car that came face to face with this hairy bunch of four-legged mutts! I hope they've gone home to their princely beds now :)

My anti-bucket list of 100 things I don't want to do...

And you ask, why would I write a list of things I don't want to do. Because one way or another, it makes me think of things that I would love to do. There's always a balance of equals and opposites and ruling out the horrors that don't interest me or frighten me witless, will help me think about what I really want to do. When someone asked me this week "If you could ask one question, have one thing, what would it be?" I was dumbfounded. My life feels great but it's often too local, too day-to-day. Other people dictate what happens in my life and there's not enough 'it's out there' thinking. Most of us live our lives that way until we encounter someone who lives their life the other way.
I like people who challenge my thinking. People often say they don't know where the last week, month, year has gone and you know why they say that...? It's because they have forgotten to create those milestones and special memories along the way that make every second count.
So what's first on my list of things that I don't want to do... that would have to be bungee jumping! The thought scares me silly and I really don't trust elastic that much. Remember when for no apparent reason your knicker elastic went slack.. mmm see, what I mean!
So here's the start of my top 100 wish list of things I want to do...
Snorkel the great barrier reef
Learn to dance
Walk the great wall of china
Explore and map my family tree
Visit Disneyland
Write a book
Take 3 month sabbatical and do something with it (vague I know!)
Go on a cookery course
Ride a gondola in Venice
Have a new career
Walk the length of Brooklyn bridge
Go to an opera in Verona
Put all my music on an ipod
Spend a month on a painting course abroad
Be a grandmother
See the Northern Lights
Visit the Taj Mahal, India
See the cherry blossom in Japan
Live a year in Provence
Learn how to cook an Indian meal from scratch
and more...

Happy smiley faces

Little faces, big dramas! I've had a busy weekend. I've had my bathrooms 'done out' with towel rails, mirrors, shelves and they look fab! I look at them and wonder why I left it so long. I've driven miles, been to a football party, entertained Lilia and the boys, cooked supper, refused apple strudel and generally had a good time. I just need a rest now :)

A Question of Sport LIVE

I love it when something I've planned exceeds my expectations. Here we were in the audience of the very first night of the first ever tour of A Question of Sport Live - wow! I had bought the tickets as a gift for Nick's birthday so I had high hopes of the evening. We had dinner first, all pre-booked as part of the package, and then took our seats in the arena. Seeing Sue Barker in the flesh, so to speak, is like you've known her all your life. She's like the girl next door who's swallowed a sporting encyclopaedia! Admittedly, she does have all the answers in front of her but she can't have hosted this show since 1997 and not know most of the answers! Celebrating over 40 years of the tv programme of 897 episodes, it is officially Britain's longest continuously-running game show. That's what you call a British institution!

We were treated to a night of fun and laughter with sporting heros and team captains, Matt Dawson and Phil Tufnell joined by Dennis Taylor, Kelly Sotherton, Alex McLeish and Ashley Giles. With all the usual rounds including the picture & buzzer round, it was an excellent night of entertainment and as there's a waiting list of over 5 years for tickets to the live tv show, I felt quite privileged to be able to take part in the new, unique format.

 I find it an interesting fact that many sporting heros, unlike any other type of celebrity, are actually quite funny. The camaraderie off the pitch so to speak shined through tonight as the team captains took to the stage as if it were the first night of panto! They made us laugh & revealed some of their great achievements along with some of their embarrassing ones.

To appear on a show like this you have to be or have at one time been top of your game. And though being a great sportsman or sportswoman doesn't guarantee that you'll have a great personality, it certainly helps! The difference between sports people as opposed to regular tv celebs, is that they are actually massively talented and can't bluff their way to the top. What you see is generally what you get. There are far too many plastic celebs, particularly on tv, who have achieved fame and fortune with surprisingly very little talent and even more surprising, just half a brain cell - and that's between them! It was great to listen to genuine 'stars' who have earned their way to the top through sheer hard work and persistence. 

I'm a Lincoln Lass

I've had a lovely time in Lincoln. The trip was short and sweet but lovely. I've been scrapping at Hucklow with the lovely Ginger and the crowd from her scrapping group. I started the weekend in Derbyshire and ended it in Lincolnshire coming over to a concert at the engine rooms on the Uni campus. I wasn't sure what to expect from 'Plan B' but they were tremendous. Their rendition of 'Ain't no sunshine' was brilliant and would make an amazing single. I often find concerts, particularly when I'm standing, can be too long and I get a bit fidgety but I'm pleased to say this concert was just the right length. The music was great, loud, lively and much more enjoyable than I expected it to be. Today has been a quick, whistle stop tour of Lincoln's pretty streets and cathedral before dashing back, via another Sawday's gem, to pick up my car and drive home. I love adventures... :)

It's the ric-rac challenge.. !

After a day of crafting, it's chill time. We've got through a couple of bottles of Prossecco, some lamb curry which was a bit of a curry/sweet & sour mix but lovely, and we are now playing at being X-Factor judges! We've watched some of Strictly Come Dancing and now it's the time for the young pop stars to get the 'Altringham Crop' verdict! I've made... 4 cards, a notebook and some felt flowers and enjoyed the journey. This weekend is not about content, it's about being creative, enjoying the company and just taking time away from work. I love being here. I feel part of something which is real. It's fun, it's a bit bonkers and it's a group of genuine people who just enjoy crafting. It's amazing what comes out of the mess in this room!

Look what I made..

Here's my gorgeous goatskin notebook, handmade by yours truly at a fabulous book binding workshop at the Cheltenham Literary Festival. I realised a bit too late that the festival was approaching so I sat with the catalogue and found a whole day of events to entertain me. I love trying new things and although book binding has never been at the top of my must-do list, I knew I'd enjoy learning a new skill. It was fascinating to discover how books used to be made and be given the chance to make one myself. All the materials were provided and just ooooozed quality. Beautifully dyed goatskin, smooth paper, strong linen thread and lots of concentration! Our lovely tutor, Sue Crossley gave us just the right amount of tuition, allowed us time and space to try out what she'd just demonstrated, it was just perfect. The right balance of challenges and new skills which we could put into practise and I'm so pleased with my new notebook, I can't tell you how happy it makes me :) after a challenging week, this was definitely one challenge I was happy to take on!

Just for you MOM!

I know the thought of seeing those little quails eggs again was just too much for you... ! I'm here in darkest Derbyshire with the crazy crafters. They're chatting and I'm blogging so I know I'm not missing much :) We've had lasagne for supper, though perhaps it's called tea when it's served at 6pm? I have my couple of metres space on the table and a long night of card making ahead of me. Oh dear, sounds like they're planning a quiz.. crikey, I wonder if they'll notice I'm on wiki.. :)

Lounging in Ludlow!

My fascination with quails eggs...

Tonight, I was looking for something different and spotted 12 tiny quails eggs already hard boiled, peeled and packaged with a tiny silver foiled bag of celery salt. Okay, I admit they're seen as a bit of a delicacy and not what I'd usually pick up in the supermarket but they are truly delicious. Yum... !

Are women really that shallow.. and men that predictable?

Stuff happens to me. And maybe it happens to you too in which case you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. I took the lazy route home this evening because I was in a chilled mood. I listened to the end of Mr Blue's speech at the CP conference, pondered on the fact that my day could be split into 'what I need to do' and 'what I want to do' and then went to the supermarket. Three sausages in my shopping basket, two ripe figs and a piece of raspberry and amaretto pie and I was ready to go through the till before setting off for home. I drove up over the common and dawdled down the other side because the cows were in the road, again! My bing, bong "You're getting low in petrol bell" was binging its head off so I pootled out of Nailsworth and pulled onto the garage forecourt.
At this point I'm pretty oblivious to what's going on around me because I'm dreaming about my delicious dinner. I'm innocently filling my car with fuel when a guy, waiting to fill up behind a blooming great bus which is parked alongside decides he wants to chat with me. Now I'm always polite and don't mind stopping for a chat particularly because what else am I going to do for the 3 minutes it takes to fill up. People can reveal such a lot in the space of 3 minutes. I learnt that his ex has split from her boyfriend, he regularly uses this petrol station and bingo.. it's his birthday! You can guess what's coming next... yes, he asked me if I'd like to go on a date with him tonight. "I'm sorry I have a boyfriend" seemed the politest answer to give him to which he replied "He doesn't have to know!" - needless to say I batted that one back and got the question "Well can I ask..., is he on his way out by any chance?".. cheeky man or what! I left sniggering to myself and as I got home, I met my friend Ali. I told her my story and her first words were "How old was he and did he have a nice car?!"... which made me laugh. It's great to be back.. !

Dinner for five!

I've had a lovely weekend with Fi & Rob with little interjections from the lovely Ginger! I renamed Saturday night our Spanish night and we had a gorgeous dinner of Spanish chorizo chicken followed by cheese and biscuits and some of my lovely Taylor's port.