What the..

Against my better judgement I read an Amy Winehouse interview. The interviewer was making a big deal about how Amy is actually a very devoted wife. To illustrate this, we're told how Amy, in a restaurant, divided her meal in 2 and gave the other half on plate to her husband. He didn't even have to ask.
WTF?! That's an example of freaky control eating. If husband wanted something to eat he would have ordered something. Ooh it feels better to write that down, I've been stewing on that all day.

It seems I got very smashed last night. Steve told me he has sorted out Esther's email address.
Me: Oh does Esther need new email?
Steve stares at me: So you don't remember the conversation then?
Me: Blimey I was pissed wasn't I?
Steve: yes you were.

Still at least when I get out of it these days the worst things that happen are I forget a conversation about e mails, seriously consider (but decide against) not bothering to take my make up off before going to bed and am sound asleep by 11.

I, Geek.

I am getting fed up with watching 'to be continued ' on Doctor Who. Really enjoyed the episode- what a twist! I'm going to check if they are any watch fobs that I haven't noticed before lying about the place.

We* were talking about the Paul McGann Doctor Who film. I always thought I watched it with Steve. I secretly think that Steve is the geeky one and I'm the cool one. But the film was made before I knew him. So I must have watched in all on my own. I think I must have watched it by myself because the little dudes hadn't been born.** I now realise that I've always been a geek! Especially as I was about 27 at the time, living at home with my parents and watching it in my bedroom. And it was probably shown on a Saturday night.

* Unless otherwise stated 'we' refers to Steve and I. I get fed up of writing Steve and I or Steve and me.
** Angela, Mum and Dad aren't that bothered about Doctor Who. Yes I don't understand it either.

Saturday

Yesterday evening Steve went over his dad's to watch the Grand Prix practice, he dropped me of Esther's on the way. Esther has recently moved and being nosy I was looking forward to seeing her new house. Esther's old house was lovely -big with a large garden but this place is really special. The garden is enormous and the backs on to fields with horses. How lovely is that? The house is big but is not over whelming, the rooms are quite cosy.The living room over looks the garden and fields. If Esther and Darren were 30 years older they would like the decor, you can tell the previous owners spent money on the place.
However Esther plied me with red wine - it would have been rude to say no, and I'm afraid I ended up rather smashed. So smashed, in fact, that when I got ready to go to bed I was seriously considering not bothering to take my make up off! Luckily I did make the effort (my pillow cases were clean on that day!)I'm amazed that I haven't got a hung over this morning - although I did get up at about 3 and took some panadol.

Ring and things

One of my hobbies is staring at Jeweller's Windows. They don't seem to mind.Last year I was looking in a shop window and saw this fabulous wedding ring. It was quite wide, gold with a triangle pattern. I'm not describing it very well but I really liked it. My own wedding ring is a gold flat band with five (tiny)diamonds. I do really like it but I've worn it every day for the past 8 years. I fancy a change. Honestly when I mentioned it to Steve he acted like I wanted to change husbands, the fuss he made. He kept saying 'But it is your wedding ring, your WEDDING ring. You're winding me up - right?'
So to wind him up I suggested that on our 10th wedding anniversary we should renew our vows and we could exchange new rings then. How Steve laughed. To be honest if it bothers him that much I won't get another one. I see it just as a ring rather than a symbol of marriage. Steve says I'm mad.

Friday

Thank goodness the working week is OVER. When we got home from work we took Tommy down to the beach (but not on the beach as dogs aren't allowed there in the Summer. It may be my city roots bit I think it is brilliant I can just walk to the beach. I love being beside the seaside.
Have just discovered JD Robb I wonder if she has got a My Space page?

Tuesday

I found a dog this morning. She was a English Bull Terrier puppy and she was running in the road. After a couple of false starts I managed to catch her.(Tip - you catch a dog by pretending you're not bothered - then they walk up to you and while they are having a sniff you can grab their collar.) By this time Steve had come back from getting diesel and was surprised to see me clutching a wriggling puppy and trying to dial the number on her collar. Steve rang for me - it was a More than number- they contact the owners. Five minutes later the owner rang, luckily they lived quite near. They were very grateful and we managed to get to work on time. It made a change to the start of the day.
Watched 'the season finale' of The Tudors and was astonished to learn that Wolsey killed himself. That aside I really enjoyed the Tudors, apart from all the sex scenes. Am I the only one that find sex scenes - well just a tad boring?

Frodo Friends

I've been reading this blog. Now I don't want to get all coy ( I hate coyness in blogs) but I'm not going to link to this blog. It read by invitation only ( and I got an invite! - I never get invited to things. My parents didn't even send me an invite to their party. Just took it for granted I'd be going.)Any how Secret Blogger (referred now to as SB) was writing about friends yawning whilst SB is talking to them. I could really relate to that blog. Now I have got a small circle of friends (and I'm related to about half of them)but when I was younger I was the victim of the yawning or even worse the stifled yawn -while I'd be spilling my guts out. I call it the Frodo syndrome. That is said friend thinks that they are the star and you are the support (ie Samwise). Just like Samwise they expect you to drop every thing and follow them in their marvelousness. You tend to hear from Frodos when things are going wrong with them. Which usually means when their boyfriend has dumped them or they thinking of dumping their boyfriend. You know when everything is ok when you stop getting the daily phone calls.
As I got older I realise friendship is as friendship does. Eff off you Frodos!

Robbo rule 1.

I really enjoyed Doctor Who this week. In fact I'd say it is my favourite, it certainly made me jump. I'm keeping a close eye on my Nao figurines.The story was so good I didn't notice that the Doctor wasn't in it much.
Stayed up very late (for me) last night. Just wasn't tired. Steve went to bed about eleven and I watched X files on ITV4. I used to love the X files. I remember when the film came out we had booked tickets to see it with some friends. We had just started to live together. On the night I felt rough so Steve went out and I went to bed. As I said this was early days in our relationship and we were still at the love struck stage. I was sound asleep and something made me wake up. The flat was in darkness and I could make out a shape in the bedroom doorway looking in at me. Reader, I nearly had a heart attack, I thought that a nutter had managed to break in to the place. The silly sod (that's Steve by the way) hadn't wanted to wake me up and was looking at me with eyes of love.
That's how Rule number one was made. When you come in always shout 'hello'. Even if it means waking the other person up.

Saturday

Took the little dudes to East beach this afternoon. They had their fish nets with them. They caught mainly sea weed. After they went home I had a bath as I was all sand gritty. Now I'm in my pyjamas, exciting times in Robbo World.

Me me me

1. My front teeth are wonky.
2. I'm scared of heights.
3. When I walk passed a dog I always smile at it.
4. I'm five foot seven and a half. I never made it to five foot eight.
5. When I like a book I'll re -read it loads of times.
6. I've got a scar on my neck from an operation I had when I was a baby. I hate having my neck touched.
7. I'm three and a half years older than my sister. Most people don't realise that we're sisters because we don't look like each other. A lot of people think Angela is older than me.(I think it is because I'm so immature rather than I look younger.)
8. People tend to think Steve is older than me.That makes him mad.
9. I haven't got a middle name.
10.When I was 6 I broke my arm playing Daleks. I was running and managed to run into a wall.

Mad

I feel wiped out today. Steve was doing his hospital radio show straight from work. He told me to take it easy when I got in. So what did I do? Didn't listen to Steve, that's for sure. I did all the dusting/polishing as soon as I got home - before a cup of tea and didn't even change out of my work clothes. Obviously my hormones dictated that the house needed an emergency clean. Then I changed into my jeans and put the kettle on. Tom came in to the kitchen and I decided he needed a walk. Coming home after walking him I realised I had forgot to do my flies up. Bloomin' hormones.

The Road where I live

I was interested to read Hannah's comments on her blog , about being unhappy where she lived. Steve and my first home was a one bedroom flat. Despite the lack of space we were very happy there ...until we had a drug dealer and his prostitute girlfriend move in downstairs. It is horrible feeling unsafe in your own home. We were lucky that we were renting so didn't have to worry about selling it. We bought our house in 2000, back when houses were affordable. We are very lucky that all our neighbours are , well neighbourly. I'd feel comfortable knocking on their door if I needed anything. I don't take this for granted though, after my experience in the flat I am only too well aware it only takes one bad apple...
I don't think neighbourliness (is that a word?) is about money. I have friends that live in a very desirable road and her neighbours don't even acknowledge her. Then again my parents live in Thorpe Bay which has a reputation for being stuck up, but Mum and Dad feel very at home there.
My heart goes out to Hannah , stuck some where she hates. I think it is everyone's worst nightmare.

Well this is the last quiz I'm doing ..

Slow and Steady

Your friends see you as painstaking and fussy. They see you as very cautious, extremely careful, a slow and steady plodder. It'd really surprise them if you ever did something impulsively or on the spur of the moment. They expect you to examine everything carefully from every angle and then usually decide against it.

How Do People See You?

Looking on the brightside, I like her haircut.

Horror fans

It is my Dad's birthday today and we all met for a meal last night. Very nice it was too. I was sitting next to the Little Dudes. Angela, being a clever Mummy bought them felt tips and a drawing pad to keep them entertained. Reader, they spent the whole time drawing sharks eating people, the Scream mask, evil weapons and Jason of Jason v Freddy fame. Angela said that red felt tips always run out first because of all the colouring in of blood that they do.
Me: Can't you draw anything nice?
Little Dudes: No!
They wanted me to tell me what happens in Scream 2. As a responsible adult I wouldn't. So dear reader, they lie. Joe said 'You might as well tell me. I've seen Scream 4' The Little Liar!

Geeky Gina

Okay I admit I moaned about last week's Doctor Who but I really enjoyed last night's episode. Especially the bit where Joan tells the Doctor where to get off. The actor who played Baines was excellent - how did he get his face to look like that? Russell T Davies has been saying that the next series will be the last because of the heavy work load. (does Russell really mean that, or are they in pay negotiations? A heavy work load never seem to have bothered Joss Whedon.) I think the way forward is one off feature length episodes. Talking about Joss, The Doctor seems to have followed the Buffy formula of a Big Bad for every series. Big Wolf, New World, Mr Saxon. (Mr Saxon must be the Master - I can't wait)
The only reservation I had about last night's episode (I'm such a geek -see how seriously I am taking all this) is that it had a narrow definition of love:get married, have a family. Where traditionally the message has been love is where you find it and one size doesn't fit all. For example the episode with Peter Kay and Marc Warren, Love and Monsters. When ever I see Marc Warren on telly now I always think of Elton. Although both episodes had the message that meeting the Doctor messes up your life one way or another.

By the way I'm eating fish again. I know all the reasons I can give you are excuses not reasons, but I didn't want you to think I don't eat fish, when now I do.

Be Warned....

You Sometimes Hold a Grudge

You aren't exactly vengeful, but you're not going to forget when someone wrongs you. And while you'll forgive the small things, you don't hand out too many second chances to people who really screw up.

Do You Hold a Grudge?

These things are addictive!

Monkey magic

You Were Born Under:

Full of spunk, you are the original party animal. You bring fun, activity, and stimulation to any event. Self-control is not one of your strong points; you have been known to over indulge. Cheerful and energetic, you can turn the most boring thing into something fun. You are most compatible with a Rat or Dragon.

What Year Were You Born Under?

The Grudge

Ruthie came over last night and we got to talking about scary films. I think the scariest film I've ever see is The Grudge. I won't say what happens in case you haven't seen it - and it is well worth seeing. Apart from the first five minutes I watched the film from behind a cushion. There is no let up - there aren't any 'you can relax now it won't be scary in this bit' bits. At one point I foolishly let my guard (and cushion) down and SCREAMED. I made Steve and the dogs jump.
I'm still a bit scared of stairs. I'm glad my house hasn't got stairs in the living room. Stairs that are situated behind my settee. Where I would be innocently sitting watching telly or reading or knitting. Unaware of anything coming down the stairs. Yes, Ruthie, I am very glad indeed...

I love my phone

This is my phone
I love it.

Plan b

Those of you who read Steve's blog will know that he is not a fan of changes to plans. Yesterday we had planned to meet my parents for Sunday lunch. It is their birthdays next week. Mum rang me today and said that Angela had invited herself along (well she didn't put it as rudely as that, I'm paraphrasing.) Angela works Sundays, so instead of lunch at the yacht club, we are all going to the Rosalyn at 7. Which is nice that we will met up (as 'Angela' is short hand for Angela, Dave , Joe and Aaron). Now all I have to tell Steve we are on plan b.
Me: You know we're going for lunch on Sunday.
Steve (suspiciously): yeah
me: Well, Angela is coming now so we're going to Rosalyn instead. In the evening.
Steve: But I was looking forward to lunch.
me (in a get over it tone): Well, yes.
Steve: It won't be late will it?
me: No, the boys have got school the next day.
(Now I don't know if they have got school the next day - but they are 9 and 7 - how late can it be?)
Steve (resigned) Oh ok then.

I sometimes feel that I torment the poor man.

Veggie Dog

I'm getting a new mobile phone and it is the exactly the same as Steve's! I get 500 minutes for 15 quid a month. It should be delivered tomorrow. I'm excited. One of the many things that is great about Steve is that he will set all up for me, he enjoys stuff like that.
I hear that some people think I am being unfair or even cruel to Tommy giving him vegetarian dog food. Please bear in mind the standard of meat found in dog food. I'm not depriving him of the finest meat. It is nasty, cheap cuts of 'meat' that isn't used for human consumption. Happidog is a vegetarian dog mixer food. But Tommy isn't living a complete veggie life style - he has pig ears and sardines. He is very partial to quorn mince. He eats our leftovers. Steve's parents always bring cooked bits of chicken when they come over. He has a varied diet.

Happidog

It was a nightmare getting Happidog. That is the vegetarian dog food Magnus suggested we buy. There was a place in Wickford that was supposed to sell it, but they said they didn't any more due to lack of demand. So we ordered off t'internet and the bag was waiting on the doorstep when we got home from work. Added some tomato sauce to it (don't ask - Tom is a very fussy eater) and Tom has eaten most of it.

Diets

I did 1 1/2 hours over time today. In Gina terms that is a huge amount of overtime. I feel very worn out. In fact I was so exhausted I just realised I put the wrong amount of over time down on the signing in sheet. I under charged - I'll sort that out tomorrow.
Have you heard of a diet system called Lighter Life? One of my Mum's friends has lost 4 stone on it. I was impressed until I found out what the poor woman was allowed to eat. She was allowed 800 calories a day. This was served in the form of a thin soup. Eight f'ing hundred! F'ing thin soup! How can any one survive on that? I think it is a huge testament to her will power that she managed to stay on the diet and lose the weight , but I know I could never do that. I would be too miserable. I think it would turn me evil. I'm grumpy enough before dinner, it doesn't bear thinking what I would be like knowing I've got thin soup and a supplement to look forward to. I would look with eyes of hate at people eating. Steve would have to move out for his own safety.
What is thin soup made up of anyway? water and a bit of flavouring? And to think I used to disapprove of Slimfast. ( 'I'm even eating real food' indeed!)

Personality test.

I told you I was bored so I did a personality test:

clean, self revealing, open, organized, outgoing, social, enjoys leadership and managing others, dominant, makes friends easily, does not like to be alone, assertive, hard working, finisher, optimistic, positive, likes to stand out, likes large parties, respects authority, practical, high self esteem, perfectionist, dislikes chaos, busy, not familiar with the dark side of life, controlling, high self control, traditional, tough, likes to fit in, conforming, brutally honest, takes precautions

At least it is official - I'm clean.

Bored

Rained all day. Nothing to watch on TV. No new books to read. Read everyone's blogs. Googled myself (blog name and real name). Changed blog template and colours. Think I'll go and torment Mr Robbo now.

BTW -spoke to Joe, my 9 year old nephew who LOVES Dr Who and he didn't like last night's episode either.

I got a reply from G A McKevett!!!!

G A Mckevett has a MySpace page and I sent her a fan email as I love her Savannah Reid books. She replied and as I'm such a geek I'm posting her reply here:

Hi Gina!
Of course you can call me G.A. But my real name is Sonja (Sonja Massie) and you can call that, too. :)
How sweet of you to write to me. I do appreciate you taking the time to do that. People are so busy these days!
I'm finishing another Savannah this week, and after that I'm going to get some myspace lessons. A friend of mine, Melinda, set it up for me, and she swears she'll teach me how to use it. Let's see if we can teach an old dog something new. ha
Anyway, thank you for reaching out. I hope you enjoy your books. Let me know if you do. Don't tell me if you don't. I might be PMSing and I'd cry. :)
And I know exactly what you mean about reading books over again. I love re-visiting a good book, like an old friend.
Okay, break's over. Gotta go write.
All the best,
Sonja
(G.A. McKevett)

What a nice lady.

Doctor, Why?

I met Mum and Dad for lunch along the sea front yesterday. It was very over cast which was a shame as the Airshow was on. You could just about make out the Red Arrows through the clouds. I say this every time I see the Red Arrows - how on earth do you practise being a Red Arrow? There doesn't seem to be much room for error.
When I got home Steve was beside himself with excitement.I thought he was happy to see me but the the excitement was because he could watch some American car race. He went upstairs to watch it and I watched my Rosemary and Thyme DVD. I lit my candles , snuggled down on the settee and munched too many bags of Walkers crisps and had a few glasses of wine. I'm very sad that the series has been discontinued.
This morning I got up and drew back the curtains. STILL raining.

Was very disappointed with the recent Doctor Who episode. Why didn't the Doctor give Martha the watch to look after as it was so important. When funny faced boy opened the watch why didn't John become the Doctor? But most importantly why have the writers made Martha so love sick for the Doc? It is a boring story line (come on this is a children's programme) and makes Martha into a drippy character. The only thing I did like about it is it explains why Barbara referred to the Doctor as her grandfather.
PS -tickled pink with the title on this blog. I'm really very good.;0)

Grand Prix

It is raining today. The Grand Prix in on this afternoon and Steve's Dad is coming over to watch it with Steve. They will be watching and using MY laptop to keep super up to date. The TV will be blaring so that they can hear the gear changes. (wtf..)I'm going out.

Silliness

I can't believe I took the time to sit and read this cobblers.

Mix and match.

Steve wears a gold wedding ring and a stainless steel watch. I commented the other day that it was a pity that I hadn't got him a platinum wedding ring so it would tone in with his watch. Steve looked at me as if I was mad. Real men don't have matching jewellery (apparently). Graham -from -work also wears a stainless steel watch and gold ring. I was was talking to him about it and he said funnily enough his wife offered to buy him a new platinum wedding ring so that it would match his watch. He turned down her kind offer. I asked him why and instead of telling me to mind my own business and to let him get on with his work, he replied it was because he didn't care. It seems we girls do care about mixing gold and silver.
After all these interesting chats I found myself sharing a lift. I noticed that my companion wore a stainless steel watch and a white gold/platinum wedding ring. And do you know what reader - Steve is right - it did look gay.
I also learnt something about myself - I compulsively check out what jewelery people are wearing. And I judge them on their choices.

A Warning

Never ever ever ever go to Sainsburys lunchtime. It is horrific.

Gay Crushes

Well readers who could turn your corner for you? One of Steve's friends (and no its not Steve he wouldn't admit to a gay crush) although a heterosexual bloke is strangely drawn to Steve Gerrard. I felt a bit 'funny' when I saw K D Laing live.
Talking queerly it is great to see that some many young people are out. There are quite a few openly gay people at work. It strikes me that they feel (quite rightly) that they have nothing to be ashamed of. When I was younger it was more of a secret-some one might confide to you that they were gay but ask you not to tell anyone else.
Any way - who are your gay crushes? Come on don't be shy!

What I meant was..

Just re-read the post below. I meant that I was sad that Heroes has finished. Not 'sad heroes' has finished. (Altho I thought Nikki was sad - she was such a wimp and I didn't like how they all made the name Jessica sound like Jessika.And am I only one that think Americans make the name Claire sound like Cleere?)

Steve now has the lurgy. Will RobboWorld ever be free of this lurgy-ness?

ho hum

Sad Heroes has finished - but surprised at how neatly it all fell into place. Too scared to write too much in case you haven't seen it. If you want to know what happens look here

Store cupboard

Where I had been poordy last week I haven't been shopping. Yesterday I used the last of the washing tablets. This made me feel uneasy- even though I don't intend to be washing in the next few days. I bought some more after work. This got me thinking of things that I make sure are always plentiful in Robbo World:
tins of tomatoes
pasta
kitchen roll
(spare*) loo rolls
(spare ) washing up liquid
washing powder
conditioner
(spare) soaps
tomato sauce
mayonnaise
tea bags
kitchen foil
milk

*spare denotes where I wouldn't feel comfortable just having one of these items. These items are so fundamental to Robbo World - there must be an emergency back up at all times.

Horse burger and chips please.

Watched the F Word this morning. Janet Street Porter was promoting horse meat - it is healthy, low fat, tastes like beef and is free range. Janet went to a farm in France and chose her horse. She said that she found this very difficult. Now although I don't eat meat I do admire people that do but also face the consequences. That is for me to eat this , this animal/fish has to die. If you have to eat meat the least you can do is make sure that the animal that has been reared for food as had a pleasant life and death. I think that is the JSP /Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall school of thought. I used to advocate not eating as much meat but paying more and ensuring it was ethical. However when I realised I couldn't kill an animal to eat it-nothing could ever taste that good that it warrants me killing it - I realised I couldn't eat meat any more. And lets get one thing straight - I don't not eat meat because I don't like the taste. (Just as few people give up smoking because they don't like smoking.)I'm not a vegetarian in a bid to lose weight either. I'm not a vegetarian because Steve is. I'm a veggie because it makes me feel better about myself.
However being a veggie is something else to feel guilty about, if I stood my ideals I should be vegan. I do admire vegans - their resolve and discipline is awesome.Also Tommy is not a veggie dog - I buy dog food which is (probably) made up of poor animals who had cramped nasty lives and horrendous deaths. If I was a good person I would buy expensive free range meat and cook it for him. Tom would love that.

Not that I believe in this...want to have a go?

You are The Moon

Hope, expectation, Bright promises.

The Moon is a card of magic and mystery - when prominent you know that nothing is as it seems, particularly when it concerns relationships. All logic is thrown out the window.

The Moon is all about visions and illusions, madness, genius and poetry. This is a card that has to do with sleep, and so with both dreams and nightmares. It is a scary card in that it warns that there might be hidden enemies, tricks and falsehoods. But it should also be remembered that this is a card of great creativity, of powerful magic, primal feelings and intuition. You may be going through a time of emotional and mental trial; if you have any past mental problems, you must be vigilant in taking your medication but avoid drugs or alcohol, as abuse of either will cause them irreparable damage. This time however, can also result in great creativity, psychic powers, visions and insight. You can and should trust your intuition.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

Waffling to a stranger.

As I'm feeling better today I did the "first time for days leaving the house" walk. My Dad drummed the importance of this walk into me from an early age - as sometimes you can just feel better because you haven't done anything for days. On occasion you can go on this walk and come back feeling like shite and realise with a sense of dawning horror - you are not actually better.
I took Tommy with me and we had a stroll to the Beach. A lady asked me if she could stroke Tom and I said "yes , but let him sniff your hand first". Not because Tom would bite but he has a habit of backing away from strangers. Note to readers - always let a dog sniff your hand before you try to pet it. It's polite.
'I did have another dog but she died a few weeks ago.' I told the lady.
Now why did I tell her that? Its not like she asked me if I had any dead dogs. As I walked home I thought about why I said that (especially adding that Penny had died a few weeks ago) I think it is because I still think I've got 2 dogs. Also I didn't want Penny to feel left out. Mad I know but there you go.
BTW - when I got home felt slightly out of breath ( as I can't breathe through my nose at the moment) but otherwise fine. I passed the walk test.

Better Gina

Haven't been sick since yesterday afternoon - Hurray!! Still blocked up (nasally)but can breathe easier. Anyway enough of my health.
We were meant to go to a Quiz night last night , but as I was FAR too ill, Steve went with out me. Steve and Ruthie went together and are both vegetarian. When they were tucking into their halftime dinner someone said to them :"it must make it easier you both being vegetarian."
"WE'RE NOT TOGETHER" blasted Ruthie.
Come on Ruthie, he's not that bad...

Sad Gina

Am getting fed up of being poordy. I've had a heavy cold and "tummy problems". Then yesterday I started to throw up- still feel very sick. How do people who are properly ill cope? Holly who mans the work sick line told me that other people have called in with cold/diarrhea/sick combos. I blame the comfort cooling it just recycles all the bugs. I'm going to stop typing now and go and hug the toilet...

Poordy

I am very very poordy. Struggled into work , as the share price will collapse if I'm not there.(well you would think so for all the fuss they make about sickness levels) Am going to have a very hot curry tonight and blow those germs away.

2 Conversations over lunch

We had a family lunch today at the Yacht club today. I was sitting near Joe and Aaron.
Conversation 1
Joe is talking to Steve:Mum and Gina were really drunk last night.
Me: No we weren't!
(Note to reader - we really weren't drunk. We were pacing ourselves as we knew we had to clear the hall at the end of the evening)
Joe: Well you and Mum danced like you were drunk.
Me: Women in their 30s dance like that.
(note to reader - lots of hands waving -hands in the air.)

Conversation 2.
Me: Aaron aren't you going to eat your mange tout?
Aaron: No it tastes like diarrhoea.

Party, party

The party was fab. There may have only been two helium balloons but there were massive. People laughed at the right bits in the speeches. There was enough buffet. it all went far too quickly. My feet ache from all the dancing.

Don't read this if you're squeamish

Came on today and it is a real stinker. Every time I "powder my nose" I have to change my "protection". Its nothing like the adverts - I don't feel full of confidence and its not blue.

Balloons

In case you were wondering what Tommy did when Steve came in - he sulked, (Tom that is not Steve.)
One of my party chores is to get the balloons filled with helium. Mum said that I've got to go in to Clinton's with the deflated balloons and the receipt and they will do it for me. Had visions of being crammed in the car amid loads of balloons.
Me : How many are there?
Mum; 2.
Me: 2!!!Whats the point of 2? All this trouble for 2 balloons!
Mum: Well there are seven pounds each. I couldn't get them with "40" on so I got a "4" and an "0".
Me:So if you could have got one with "40" on, you would have just got one balloon?
Mum (lying through her teeth); No.

So then I ring Angela.

Me: Guess how many balloons Mum's getting for the party?
Angela; No idea - how many?
Me:2
Angela: 2!!! How she's been going on I thought she was doing a balloon bridge!
2!!!

Still won't have to worry about getting them all in the car.

Tommy

I have got a very sadly dog resting at my feet. Steve and I normally come in from work together. However tonight Steve is at hospital radio and I came in by myself. It must be the first time we have done that since penny died because Tommy is freaked out. Readers I am sure you are aware that when you get in from work you have things to do: empty the washing,put the washing away, put the kettle on, do the dog's dinner. All the time I was doing this Tom was crying and barking.(Making it very hard to concentrate on my chores) When I sat down he laid his head across my feet - he never does that. (As you know dogs have a keen sense of smell and my feet whiff at the best of times.) I think Tom thinks Steve is dead. Funnily enough Steve has just rang.
Steve: How are you?
Gina: I'm ok, Tom thinks you're dead though.
Steve: Oh!

Imagine how pleased Tommy will be when Steve does come home.

Elementary, my dear Watson.

Watched Midsummer Murders tonight. Guessed who it was half way through . Not because he had motive - just thought if he wasn't the murderer what was the point of the character?

Thanks for all the fish

Ive decided that I can't justify eating fish any more. As if I ever could really justify it. I 'only' eat fish when we go out for a meal/get a take away. This is me being mean- as a lot of vegetarian options on menus - well I cook better myself. Now have (finally)realised THAT IS NOT THE POINT. Could I go fishing and eat the fish I caught? No I couldn't. No more fish for me.

Weather with you.

I've got a confession to make. I don't like hot sunny weather. I think it is a bit presumptuous when weather reporters refer to hot weather as good. That is judgemental assuming we all like it hot. I'm one of those people who would be rather cold than hot but I've also noticed it is so much quieter on cold days. I love walking along East Beach on a winter's day. I don't care if it is raining . It is like having your own private beach, no one is there. So this morning I took Tom for a nice long ramble undisturbed by kiters and irresponsible dog owners. I've got nothing against kiters but Tom is scared of kites (why? - no idea - he is a lot better than he used to be but it still stresses him out). It wasn't even that cold it just looked like it might rain. Another thing I like about cold weather is that it makes your house all cosy. I put the stove on and light some candles - lovely. I like cool summer evenings when we have the patio doors open till we go to bed.
Talking of weather reports - I never listen to them I just look out of the window and see for myself. It makes me laugh (in an evil, nasty way) when people are dressed too hot/too cold because they listened to the weather report - and it was wrong.

Speech

Written my Dad's speech. Its short but I like to think to the point and I don't think Dad wants reams and reams he has to read. I hope he likes it and I hope it gets a few laughs. Anyway as I'll be in the audience I can always laugh loudly at the funny bits. Well funny-ish bit.

The little dudes are obsessed with Jaws at the moment. They kept talking about Bunny Jaws. I had not idea about what they were going on about, so they showed me the website. It is really funny - obviously we only looked at the child safe ones- but they are very funny. The little dudes were annoyed that I wouldn't let them watch Bunny Texas Chainsaw Massacre or Bunny Freddy v Jason. Kids of today, eh?

Grumpy Gina

I'm in a grumpy mood this morning. I'm I the only one that gets it? Take that stupid 'I'm not a plastic bag' Anya Hindmarch thing. Ooooh it by Anya Hindmarch. ooooh she is a designer. Oooh a designer bag for a fiver. Ooooh I'll buy loads and sell in on E Bay. Didn't Sainsburys see that coming? Of course they did but it is a good way to get free advertising isn't it? I'm not a plastic bag my arse. If you're that bothered buy a bag for life and re use that. Yes, just like I do.
I was reading Telegraph money the other day. To be honest I only read the article where someone famous talks about what they do with their money. This woman said she had bought a pedigree dog for £600, when she got have got a second hand dog from Battersea for about £70. A SECOND HAND DOG WTF?!!!! Dogs aren't hand bags or shoes they are living things. I bet she has got 'I'm not a plastic bag' bag.

Ah! Strange feeling of calmness descends after rant.

Worn out

Worn out, had the little dudes over this afternoon. Surprised that this PC still works ..

I hate MySpace

I've just re-jigged MySpace profile, in a shameless attempt to get more readers to this blog. I hate MySpace even more than I hate Windows Spaces. When people pimp their page it makes it very difficult to read.

Voting

Voted yesterday. I love voting. Walking down to the church hall, saying hello to people - it is all so civilised. I'm with Mr Robbo in that I think councillors should be local. I was tickled to see that I actually knew one of the candidates. However as said candidate always treats me like something they found on their shoe, they didn't get my vote.
We went on the train to Southend this afternoon. The station is by the college - what is this fashion for having your bum bum hanging out of your trousers all about? It must be a tad cold -unless they are wearing pants under their pants, if you see what I mean. And it just looks so stoopid.When I was their age I wore black all the time and had most of my hair shaved off (and the little bit left was dyed black). My parents must have been so proud.

Thursday

My Mum and Dad are coming round tonight. Steve always finds my family a little ...headachey. To give you some perspective I'm the quietest one of the family.

Outfit relief.

Got the 'outfit' for the party. A pair of black linen trousers , a sparkly top and peep toe shoes. The shoes mean I've committed myself to painting my toe nails. I haven't worn going -out trousers for years, I usually wear skirts but I thought I'd try something different. I'll ask Mum if I can borrow her fab 70s charm bracelet, I'll think it will finish it off. I don't think she will be wearing it as she favours diamante.
The relief of finding the outfit is enormous. I don't mean to be sexist but I think it is a female thing. I'll probably have outfit remorse next week - when I try it on again (to check it still fits) and think it looks rubbish. It has already happened to Mum with her outfit, we all had to calm her down. I think outfit remorse is definitely a female thing.

Started to work on Dad's speech, looked up a few things that happened on May 13th 67. Yep that's right my parents got married on May 13th. I think they walk under ladders as well.

Speech!

Dad has just asked me write his speech for the Ruby Wedding party.

Ho hum. I can't really say no can I?

Steve

I was reading Hannah's blog and she did a list of all the things she loved about her husband. Here are my thoughts on Steve:

1. He is the only personwho can say to me 'Look you' and I'm still friends with him.
2. When I'm shopping for books on Amazon Steve always puts an order in. the book is always hardback and always expensive. This is the conversation we always have:

Me - I'll get it if you'll read it. I'm fed up of buying books you don't read.
Steve (general performing and huffing)- I will read it, but if you don't want to get it - fine.
Me - Ok I'll get it. Stop going on. You'd better read it though.

So the books are delivered and Steve doesn't read the book. So far he hasn't read the John Peel and Raymond Baxter autobiographies (among others)

3. Steve makes me a cup of tea even though the smell it makes him feel sick.
4. Steve made my desk. He hated doing it but he knew I had no clue.
5. Steve encouraged me to take the OU courses even though the money could been used for other stuff. (like holidays)
6. I never know what he is going to say next.
7. He helped me give up smoking by sheer nagging.
8. When we got married he had tears in his eyes. I like think that they were tears of joy..

Dogs

It will be a week tomorrow when Penny died. I think it was good that we took Tommy with us, because he hasn't looked for her. Tonight when I got in from work he went mad doing his 'play - bow' and running around. He is more like the old Tom. We can take him for longer walks now which he loves. As for me and Steve - well never under estimate the benefits of a bloody good cry. It helps to talk about her. That dog would race anything. When I went upstairs Pen would sit at the bottom until I was 2 steps away from the top - and then in a mad burst of energy- run to the top of the stairs beating me.

Sunday

Tidied and cleared the downstairs cupboard.
Weeded and tided front garden. it is now looking bare and will need to get more plants.
Walked Tommy to Potton island.
Cooked dinner.
Did 2 loads of washing.
Watched Joey - am I the only person who thought Joey was funny and it is a shame it was cancelled?

Shopping

It is my parents' Ruby Wedding Anniversary party next month so I went clothes shopping today. I want to look fabulous. I was in Monsoon and had picked out a skirt and was wondering what the hell would go with it, when the assistant approached me. I explained I liked the skirt but wasn't sure what would go with it. The skirt was a size 16, so you can imagine my amazement when she comes back with a size ten black top.

Me: That's a size 10!
Her: oh is it?

Was she hoping I wouldn't notice? I'm not a weird triangle shape- skinny on top blossoming out to a wide bottom. It is very unlikely the assistant looked at me and thought 'She is a size 10' I'm big all over. I'm not crazy about being a large lass but I'm not going to beat myself up over it either.

I'm off to Lakeside next week I'm sure I'll get something there.

Blogging Stamina

Last Saturday Alan and Ruthie came round. One of the things we talked about was blogging.

Alan : I don't have time to blog every day.

Ruthie : No I don't blog every day.

Steve: Me neither, I don't have time.

Gina: Annoyed silence.


I think they're just jealous of my blogging stamina.

The wrong Andrew Collins

Southend Library is having a series of authors' evenings. We booked for Billy Bragg and Andrew Collins. We thought we were booking for this Andrew Collins but it is for this Andrew Collins.
So we'll be spending an evening listening about how cosmic rays effected our evolution...but we do get free wine and nibbles. At least we realised our mistake before the event.
BTW I'm not using the Royal We - I mean me and Steve .

Most Stupidest Conversation About Heroes Of The Week.

Gina (excitedly): So Mr Bennet has got a super power as well.

Ruthie (puzzled): What do you mean?

Gina: He was doing all that telepathy.

Ruthie :That's not a super power - he was just thinking loudly.

Gina: What do you mean 'just thinking loudly' You can't do that in real life!

Ruthie (sheepishly):Oh yeah. I forgot.

Penny

Penny was put to sleep this morning.

Nanny Sarah

Something really spooky happened today. I can't quite find the words to explain it. I've never believed in mediums talking to the other side. Why can't spirits/ghosts or whatever you want to call them, talk to their loved ones direct?
Today Angela went to a clairvoyant and the lady said 'Sarah's here..'
Sarah is our Nan, our Dad's Mum. Angela felt as if Nanny Sarah was there with the things that were said. Angela didn't want to leave the room. I don't understand it and I don't know what to believe.

Stuff that gets on my nerves

People telling me that they are on a diet and they don't feel hungry. If one only ate when one was hungry one wouldn't need to lose weight in the first place.

People that say that they wish they were vegetarian, but its too difficult. That's just silly.

Smokers.

People who say 'That's my personality' Like they have nothing to do with it.

Getting spots. At my age.

Putting on a new pair of tights and manging to ladder them.

When I'm cooking and I open the oven door my glasses steam up and I can't see a thing.

Flies in the house.

Women referring to their partners as their life. As in 'He is my life'

Periods. It's been nearly 30 years now, the novelty has worn off.

Steve's insistence that Hoover is a brand name, and pretends not to know what I'm talking about when I refer to the vacuum cleaner as a Hoover.

A finger nail breaking.

Poking my eye out with the mascara ward.

Loud, blaring music. Unless it is my loud, blaring music.

Famous people wanting you to feel sorry for them. It must be so hard having all that fame and money.

People telling me what I actually meant when I have said something.

The size zero debate - who cares!!!

Rose Tyler.

I Hate Housework

Today is Saturday, that means housework morning. AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!
I effing hate cleaning it is so effing boring. I try to kid myself :This is my lovely house that I have worked hard for and these are all my lovely things that I care for. By cleaning I am honouring the house.
As my nephew would say:Yeah, Gina yeah!(in a very sarcastic tone)
Its the sheer repetition that gets me. How many times have I polished that frigging table? Getting on my hands and knees to clean round the back of the loo -what a charming way to spend my time. Steve does the housework as well but he hates it as much as I do- in fact I think he hates it even more because he feels I'm judging his standard of cleaning. He is right, I am ( I know I'm a terrible person - I can't help it.)
Then there are the bigger issues - really all the paint work needs renewing but neither of us can face that. The Robbos are not natural decorators. We need a new carpet for the hall way and stairs but there is no point while we still have the dogs.
The sad thing is I can't not do the housework because a dirty house makes me fidgety. I just wish I could afford a cleaner.

Morning

You will all be pleased to know that I haven't watched telly this morning. I'm drinking my cup of tea and caught up all on the celeb gossip on Oh No! instead. A much more enjoyable way to start the day.

Plan

In Robbo World we don't buy third world babies, we sponsor them. We sponsor through Plan . Your money actually goes to the village , but you can send the child letters and they write to you. You can also send little presents -although there are strict guidelines concerning this. The reason why I'm writing about this (the Robbos like to keep a low profile regarding their charity work)is because there was a segment about Plan on GMTV this morning. Ho hum. I had been really good about not watching that rubbish anymore - but today I got caught off guard. I even thought - this should be interesting. I'm an idiot. Kate Fadeway prattling on to Kevin Whateley that it is a good thing to do especially if you have children. It is a good thing to do full stop whether you have children or not. Poor Kevin looked embarrassed. Still I've only got myself to blame, I don't read tabloid papers so why do I watch tabloid TV? I had been so good as well, I hadn't watched it for the past 2 weeks.

Angela gets Broadband

Steve has gone over to my sister's to install broadband. At last! Angela only caved in because Aaron was fed up with slow dial up. Aaron pointed to the PC and said in a very sad voice :Its very slow, Steve.
Angela -you will have wished you did it ages ago -and it will be easier to read me! Who knows you might even become a blogger yourself.

Took the dogs for a walk tonight. This is a friendly place and people often make a fuss of the dogs and give them tidbits. We walked past someone we didn't know and the dogs really bogged at the poor man. I think they were wondering why he hadn't given them a treat.

Formula One Podcast.

Steve and Mark are recording their Pod Cast tonight. As Mark is in Boston, it is all very clever. As English isn't Mark's first language (it is American) there has been a few misunderstandings. When he referred to himself as a Homer, it got a bit confused our end. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but Mark is married to the lovely Lucy. A homer is supporting the home team, apparently. Anyway if you're into Formula One you may want to listen.

My husband, the writer

When I'm writing I don't like to be interrupted. Especially if I'm writing a story. As Steve and I share a study, he'd often come in (like he owned the house or something) and put the radio on. As Talk sh!t waffled on I'd lose my train of thought, so I'd shout at him. But Steve just didn't get it.
'But I always used to do my home work with the radio on.' he'd say. So what!
But now I think he gets it. This evening I walked into the study prattling away and he shouts 'I'M TRYING TO WRITE MY BLOG!!!'
Ah, my husband the writer.

Sunday

Ho hum, totally addicted to CrimeSpace. If you like crime books, you will love this. I'm totally geeking out, sending out invites to some of my heroes. it is a charming mixture of published authors, readers and pre published authors. I love that term pre published -its so positive.

The tablets are not improving Penny's condition as much as we hoped. The vet said that she would be able to climb the stairs and she still can't. We can only take her for short walks, poor old Tommy is getting fed up.

My Penny

I've tried to write about Penny but can't. Still doesn't a picture paint a thousand words?

But I'm Innocent part 2

I received a letter this morning.
'It looks like its from the library.'said Steve.
Grimly I opened it, thinking it was a reminder. It was an APOLOGY. I love you Southend Library.

Separated at birth?

Was just reading Mrs Miggins and her interesting facts. I tried to post a comment but I couldn't get in. (Stupid Spaces).

I pick my toenails! I can't drive ! I read 4 books a week! I'm vegetarian! I love Lush!I'd rather be too cold than too hot! Sunbathing is my idea of hell!

Mrs M - do you think we were separated at birth?

If you haven't read Mrs M you'll have no idea what I'm talking about, but you have learnt some new facts about me -Lucky you!

Penny

Penny has been limping a bit since the weekend. Steve took her to the vet today and they are 90% sure it is bone cancer. If it is bone cancer we will need to put Penny to sleep. We have to take her back for a check up on 3rd May. The vet isn't optimistic.

I can't believe it. I was going to write about what a great dog Penny is, but I can't at the moment. It feels like I'm writing her obituary when she is still alive. Steve and I are devastated.

Life On Mars - was I right?

Well I was right (wasn't I?)

But I'm Innocent!

I have been mildly worried over the last few days. Last Thursday I went to the library, I was really pleased because the Library Fairy was there. I got out loads of books. You can imagine my horror when the Librarian said that according to their records I had an overdue book. An overdue book! one of things that I am secretly proud of is that my library books are never overdue. I have an unblemished record. That must be some mistake, the book in question -Mother Of God by David Ambrose (v.good by the way, David Ambrose books always have a terrific twist) I had taken back weeks before. The Librarian was very kind, told me not too worry. She would let me check out my pile of books and look in to it for me. She was sure it was a mistake. She told me several times not to worry. I think I must have looked very worried.

Then when I got home last night there was an automated ansaphone message from the library. Stating that I had a book over due. I knew I had been right to worry. Kind Librarian lady had fobbed me off. This morning I rang the library and explained what had happened. I was going to pop in lunchtime but I was too worried to wait. The switchboard lady said that I had dispute marker on my account, but not to worry (my voice must have sounded worried)she would get some one to call me. Now I need to make something clear - it is not the money. Once Tommy ate one of my library books I bought a copy and explained to the Librarian what had happened. She was a bit taken aback and said if my dog ate any more books just tell them because I would be charged a cheaper price than a book shop price. No what worried me was that my unblemished record would be blemished. Worse still they might think I was lying. That was what bothered me.
The lady rang back, said that there has been a mistake, the book was removed from my record, and not to worry.
And I replied, 'Oh I wasn't worried...'

Study.

Paula commented on the previous post that she is thinking of doing an Ou course. The OU is brilliant in that you don't have to study for a degree you can just enlist for a course that interests you. The courses are divided into level 1, level 2 and level 3. Each course has a certain amount of points. To complete a degree I think you need 330 points. I have completed a level 1 and a level 2 and that has earned me 70 points. Courses range from 12 weeks to 9 months. I was very apprehensive when I first received my course book and study plan -it is a bit overwhelming. Luckily you can e mail/phone your tutor for support - I always e mailed mine as I felt phoning was a bit intrusive. It does take over your life and it can be one more thing to feel guilty about, but I miss it now I've finished. Go for it Paula!

Changing the subject - last Life on Mars tonight! I think Sam is going to die, but then I'm cheerful like that.

Writing

Tried a different way of writing a story yesterday. I've had this story on the go for a few weeks but nothing much was happening. So taking advice from Tess Gerritsen (not personally I read her blog) I decided to not worrying about writing in a linear way, just get it all down and then work on it later. I normally write very tidily A to B and then fine tune a little bit. Tess's way is much more fun , I wrote key scenes, character studies- the time flew. I'm in the rare position of writing more than I will probably use. I've nearly got the bare bones of the completed story. Its odd but I was a bit scared of trying something different, now I wish I did it ages ago. The Open University will be offering a stage 3 creative writing course next year that I want to do. If any of you enjoy writing and want to take it further I do recommend the OU courses.

Last night Christopher Eccleston leaned over to me and whispered 'Take me to paradise' And I woke up. Even in my dreams I'm faithful.

Easter

Graham-at-work told me he much prefers Easter to Christmas. I hadn't ever thought about it before but now realise I agree with him.

- From a religious aspect it is the most important celebration. And it is celebrated around the time of year it actually happened.
- It is a four day holiday, so you have more time to visit friends and family. At Christmas it feels more like a rush to fit everyone in. Also Christmas tends to be booked up a few months in advance.
-Easter isn't so commercialised. I'm not worrying about how much money I've spent. Christmas is expensive and there is a lot of pressure to make it perfect.
-If you end up spending Easter Sunday by yourself it is no big deal. I bet the suicide rate is lower at Easter.

Talking of religion the Robbos met up with Ruthie and Alan for a meal last night. We had a heated but enjoyable debate about religion.
If you look here you'll have a flavour of what we were arguing about.

Five and a bit Things

While I've been browsing through blogs (oh the addiction) I've noticed that they are a lot of '5 things you didn't know about me' memes. BTW what is a meme- what does meme stand for? Any how here are five things about me that are not common knowledge. Unless you know me very well.

1. Between the ages of 23 and 30 I was a smoker. There was then a hazy period of 2 years when I called myself a social smoker (like my poor lungs could tell the difference). I can't imagine ever smoking again. Double yuk.

2. I don't dye my hair. For some reason a lot of people don't believe me and think I've had secret hi lights. Why would I lie about this?

3. I first met Steve a year before we started to date. There was a group of us in a pub and he knew my friend Esther. "Whats up with her. She's miserable" he asked Esther. "She's just been dumped" said Esther. We didn't see each other again until the following year.

4. In the privacy of my own home I use a lot of bad swear words.

5a. It has taken me a long time to grow up. I think I've finally managed it when I was 33.

5b. I'm left handed.

House Beautiful

It takes me three steps from my bathroom door to the loo. We have got one little bathroom, there is room for the loo, the sink and the bath. Its the next big spend really - its needs re tiling (Steve painted over the tiles when we first moved but the paint is peeling now)and a new floor. Sharon has got a lovely big bathroom. true, she did rip out the original when she first moved in. She had a dark brown suite - ugh! But now she has got a bright room with lots of storage space for her bits and pieces. her posh Molten Brown bottles are displayed on a glass ledge. I'm jealous of her bathroom, but that is okay because Sharon is jealous of my kitchen. My kitchen is quite big and 2 years ago we had a new kitchen put in. I love my kitchen,lots of storage, some where to sit and I have a display cabinet. A display cabinet - get that! Sharon's kitchen is small, although she has done a good job with it and has cleverly designed it so it looks bigger than it really is - I prefer my kitchen. I just wish I had a bigger bathroom.Ruthie has got a bigger bathroom even though her house is smaller - how jealous am I? Perhaps next time I'll take smaller steps to create an illusion of space.

I have to remind myself of when we first moved here. We never thought we would ever be in a position to buy a house like this and we were so happy. I still am happy, its just occasionally I need to remind myself how lucky I am.

Robbo's Reads.

As you know I live to read books. I meant to write love instead of live but perhaps that is nearer the mark. I always go to the crime section of the library/book shop first. I find that a lot of non genre books deal with middle class issues and as a working class gal I can't really relate to it. I'll give you an example:I was reading a Joanna Trollope book and the heroine had fallen on hard times and got a job as a school secretary. The heroine viewed it a come down and her friends felt sorry for her. I think being a school secretary is a good job, so I couldn't relate to her predicament. The exception to the rule for me is Jilly Cooper but that may be because she writes about upper class people and she is a very funny writer. As I can't have children books with babies are a no no as well, they upset me - so the whole Yummy Mummy books are off limits.

Crime is such a wide genre from the explicit violence to a cozy. All that they have got in common is a dead body. Writers can have a lot of fun twisting expectations, as Agatha Christie did making her "Watson" the killer. Ruth Rendell's "The Water's lovely" is a stark reminder that life is not fair and good things happen to bad people. I've just discovered G A McKevett's Savannah Reid series and am gorging on them just as Savannah gorges on her favourite truffles. I get a big thrill when I discover a series I love, I've got a feeling I'll be going on Amazon later.

Mapping great

Do you see my map? Its down on the right- see all those red spots- how cool is that? It takes a little while to kick in (that's why I haven't drawn you attention to it). If you want one like it on your blog double click on on it and it will take you to the web site. Who cares about comments when you can have red spots?

Poorly Robbo.

Mr Robbo is ill and has taken to his bed. Penny is sitting at the end of the bed looking at him. I think she is worried about him. It is quite hard to relax when a dog is bogging at you. Penny means well. I'm cooking a chilli stuffed with vegetables. I do hope he will manage a few small mouthfuls. Good job we got those wills sorted out. When we first got married it freaked me out that he could turn off my life support.

Had some interesting comments from why people chose Windows Spaces - mainly their friends had it or it was the first one they tried. I tried MySpace first and couldn't get on with it. After talking to Alice I managed to find my page ...but I still can't get on with it that well. There is too much emphasis on friends for me. (yes I know that's because I haven't got any...)Also one of my pet hates is blogs with adverts. It just seems so rude. I'm not keen on accompanying music either. Apart from that I'm very easy going!

Why oh Why?

Why is it when there is a short week at work, the week seems to drag, even though you v busy trying to fit 5 days work into 4?

Why does the phone ring when I'm upstairs and forgotten to bring the phone up with me?

Why doesn't the phone ring when I remember to take it with me?

Why is it only ever me that uses the last bit of the bleach -and there is only the tiniest bit left?

Why does the rain only seem to rain at lunch time?

Why do people say "Yeahbut" when they mean "no"?

Why don't drivers indicate?

Why haven't I won the lottery yet?

Blogging Exciting.

A funny thing happened today at work. In the ladies loos I bumped into Alice. Alice and I used to work together.
"I saw you " began Alice. Alice lives locally to me and I thought she was going to say "I saw you walking the dogs." BUT what she said was "I saw your MySpace page. I posted you a message but I noticed you haven't logged on since November."
So I explained how I found Blogger beta (ha! ha!) and that I would link this on My Space and I would look her up. When I got home MySpace was down so I'll do it later. But you wouldn't believe the excitement of 2 people who know each other discovering that they are fellow bloggers. Or perhaps you would.

Lipstick Hell

For my birthday I got a couple of Max Factor Infinity Lipsticks. These lipsticks stay on all day which is great for me because I don't want to be faffing with my make up during the day. I'm a wash 'n go kind of gal. To my horror this lipstick when applied to my mouth turned deep brown. I looked as if I had been at the chocolate or (gulp) that I'm sexually adventurous. I tried wiping it off- the advertising is true it does stay on all day. I just had to get on with it, and try not to look in the mirror too much.

Watched The Quiet American last night. It is a brilliant film, I do recommend it. Brendan Fraser was really good in it - it such a pleasant surprise when actors can act and are prepared to take unsympathetic roles.

Deeply enjoyed Doctor Who last night. Scary straws!

Blogs

Just been checking other people's blogs (for a change)and I would like to say how much I hate Windows Spaces. They takes ages and ages to load, they often cause my system to crash and there are have been too many times when I've tried to add a comment and it wouldn't take. If you've got Windows Spaces I'd be interested to know why you choose it over Blogger or MySpace. I'd really like to know the benefits.

For instance I like Blogger because it is easy to use - template changes , adding photos. It is easy to browse other blogs through "next blog" or "random blog". Unlike MySpace the onus is not on all the friends you have. I've got a MySpace page, thank God for Tom because I'm a right Billy no mates.

Clever people like Mark create their own space that is easy for a reader to load and navigate, why can't Windows Spaces?

Little dudes

It is so much easier baby sitting the little dudes now that they are older. As long as you keep throwing food and drink at them they are fine. I played a few hands of Top trumps with Aaron. I'm sorry to say it but I think he is a cheat. We watched The Weakest link , Doctor Who Special. That shows how much I must love Joe and Aaron - its the first time I have watched The Weakest Link - and the last. I drew the line at EastEnders though, they watched that in the other room. When it was bedtime they got changed into pants and dressing gowns as they are too cool to wear pjs. BTW the definition of babysitting is looking after other people's children. It makes me laugh when Dads (and I'm sorry but it is always Dads, but not all Dads) refer to looking after their own kids as babysitting.

A note to some of my readers - vacuuming in the corners is not pouffy. A lot of women find that an attractive quality in a man.

Don't forget Doctor Who starts tonight. Digital Spy will be busy.

Rushing, rushing

The Robbos are rushing - we're late back from work, the dogs need sorting and we're baby sitting. And this is poor little entry is just so I don't miss a day. I'm getting quite anal about these daily entries.

My Name is Gina.

I went to Sainsburys before work this morning. I prefer going before work as it is not so busy. I just needed to get some olive oil. I go to Sainsburys quite a lot and there are some cashiers I try to avoid, like Mute Man and Evil Cheese Lady (she laughed when I didn't see the two for one offer on cheese.) However there is a cashier called Gina (according to her name tag) she is always pleasant. For ages I wanted to have the Gina conversation but felt too shy. Anyway we had the Gina conversation today. When 2 Ginas meet we always say:
"My name is Gina too!" -Me
"Is it Gina or Georgina"- other Gina (this is important - Georginas are not real Ginas. And don't get me started on Geena)
"Its Gina"- me
"Me too!" other Gina
"There's not many of us about!" both Ginas chorus.

Routine

Steve was saying how much he likes his routine. That made me think. Every morning I make myself a cup of tea and watch GMTV. I hate GMTV, bleeding tabloid TV. Why do I watch it?

Car

The car went in for a service today. Steve and I kept telling each other how we weren't worried- if work needed to be done, work needed to be done. It shouldn't be too expensive. We weren't worried. One of the Robbo rules states that if we are going on about how unworried we are, we are in fact worried. The car did need stuff doing to it but it came to under £200, so we needn't have worried.

Yin and Yang

Still feeling nicely chilled after my break. I'm trying to see work as a necessary yin (or it is it yang) to my yang (or yin). If I didn't work we wouldn't have all our nice stuff. it is good to earn your own money. That's what I keep telling myself.

I was reading the Cozy Chicks blog and they were talking about what fictional people would you like to have at a dinner party. Here are my four:

V I Warshawski - we could talk crime and politics whilst she cooked some great Italian nosh.

Rupert Campbell Black - before he met Taggie obviously. I don't normally like fox hunting Tories but I would make an exception for him.

James Bond - although I think he would get fed up of me saying " Go on say it, say it!" all evening.

Mrs Bloxby from the Agatha Raisin series- because she is kind,perceptive and would do the washing up.

End of Holidays

I have really enjoyed the past week off work. I feel refreshed. Had the last of my birthday treats last night. Steve, Angela, Dave and I went out for the evening. We went to the casino first for drinks. It was very busy. Apparently a footballer had been gambling £500 chips. Then we went to Tiffins, a new Indian restaurant. It was very tasty. I got a bit (bit!)sozzled though. I got up in the early hours and took some panadol and had a big glass of water, so I didn't wake up with a hangover. When I woke up Steve greeted me with the words 'You all right Piss head?'

Things that we have learned

Every one's comments on their life lessons were interesting. I still can't get over someone blitzing their face with hairspray (second lesson - keep your eyes closed.) Hannah's comment about life being too short to do a job you don't like struck a nerve. I'm not that crazy about the job I'm doing now- but the pay and benefits are good. I've always viewed work as something I do to fund my real life. I want to be able to leave the job at work when I go home. Now I am wondering if that is enough. What I would really like to do is to work part time. Perhaps one day...

On a brighter note - Doctor Who starts next week. Hurray! That wil keep me going til Heroes is back on. I don't know about anyone else but I couldn't bear Torchwood.