Tuesday February 22nd 2022

16:30 I sit down to write up my blog for the day as it stands so far, and I think, "How many things have we done today that we haven't done for 2 years or more, due to the pandemic. You would not BELIEVE haha!!!!

For Lois and me, this is the 6th full day of our stay in Headley, Hampshire, with our daughter Alison, son-in-law Ed, and their 3 children Josie (15), Rosalind (13) and Isaac (11)

The day starts quietly at about 9 am when the so-called "Orelly men" (copyright Fawlty Towers), aka the cowboy builders, come to dismantle the car-port that was wrecked a few days ago by Storm Eunice.

I greet the so-called "Orelly men", who have

come to dismantle the car-port wrecked by Storm Eunice

Alison and her daughters are not in the house this morning. They have another school day today - they left the house at 8 am. Josie and Rosalind have lessons, and Alison works part-time as a teaching assistant. 

Ed is in his so-called "office", doing his high-powered legal job online. Isaac, our grandson, is off school this week for his half-term. Schools in Hampshire are off this week, while schools in Surrey had their half-term break last week. What madness it is!!!

At 9:30 am Isaac goes off to spend the day go-karting with 2 of his school-friends, followed by a kick-about football session somewhere in the neighbourhood, which is nice.

11:00 Lois and I drive off to have coffee and cake in the bar of a local hotel, the Frensham Park Hotel, next to Frensham so-called Pond - really a small lake haha! We haven't done anything like that for 2 years or more.

What madness!!!!  

we have coffee and cake in the bar of the Frensham Pond Hotel

- what madness !!!!!!

after our daring snack in the bar, we go outside,

and I showcase the hotel's iconic horses and wagon statue

Then we go for a walk round the so-called "pond". We watch members of a model sailing boat disporting themselves on the lakefront at the local Sailing Club.

12:30 We drive to Squires Garden Centre near Churt, and although hoping to eat lunch on the tables outside, but it was raining slightly so we had to be brave, and sit and eat inside the cafe. Ali joined us there. Lois and I have a BLT with salad, while Ali has a brie and avocado ciabatta with chips.

After the meal we buy some pot plants for Ali and one each for the children, to keep in their rooms.

When we come home about 2:30 pm, we find that the electric company, Scottish and Southern, have started to remove the tree blocking the road outside Ali and Ed's house, which is nice to see.

Lois showcasing the plants we bought for the children -

in the background you can see some of the tree-guys

discussing their strategy for clearing the fallen tree

later I check the tree-men's work. As expected

they have cleared away the tree, apart from the

bits of it that lie on private property each side of the road

What a crazy world we live in !!!!!

16:30 Ali goes off to pick up Isaac from his go-karting and football experience. His friend's father has meanwhile sent us a picture of the 3 lads in their go-karting gear, which is nice.

the three go-karting friends: Henry, Sean and Isaac

The picture showcases the three friends. What a day they have had! And what a day Lois and I have had - we don't be able to sleep tonight for excitement, that's for sure !!!!!!

You may not think it was a very exciting day for us, with 2 café-bar inside food and drinks - our first for 2 years - but don't forget we went to a public loo twice: once at the hotel and once at the garden centre! How's about that then haha!!!! Plus we shook hands with Ali and Ed's neighbours, Virginia and Charles. How's that for dangerous living !!!!!

17:00 A minor disaster - we discover that Sika, the family's Danish dog has been rolling in "fox poo", one of his occasional hobbies. So he has to be hosed down outside in the dark with "eau de cologne" to mask the "merde de renard". It's canine madness, I tell you!!!

Sika's "merde de renard" is hosed down in the dark 

with "eau de cologne" - it's canine madness !!!!!

19:00 We have dinner - jacket potato, cheese or tuna, with baked beans: yum yum! Then Lois disappears into our bedroom to take part in her great-niece Molly's online yoga class on zoom.

Lois's great-niece Molly, Lois's online yoga teacher

21:30 This is, for Lois and me, our last full day staying at our daughter Ali and family's house in Headley. Tomorrow we've got to drive back to Cheltenham.

Everyone is tired. This picture shows me and Alison plus a sleeping Isaac and Otto the cat.

Lois and I go to bed a bit early - tomorrow we've got to get up early, because we need to say goodbye to Ali and the girls before they go off to school, plus we know that squads of "Orrelly men" are coming to do jobs outside the house - what we don't know at this stage is that, also, squads of "painter guys" are coming inside the house to do some of the upstairs rooms.

Luckily we find out about the painter guys, and we manage to dress and wash before they come charging up the stairs with their masking materials.

What madness !!!!!!