Tues, Aug 4th

Still doing my IEMA studying. And we're also still getting stressed out at work.

When I got home from work, and had eaten dinner, I called Dad to check up on his eye surgery. I was pleased to hear not only that it had gone ahead, but that his cataract operation appeared to go well.

Tonight we relaxed by watching The Killing of John Lennon. As with last night's movie, we both have a connection with New York and visited the Strawberry Fields memorial in Central Park in 1997, and the original one in Liverpool (as well as other places made famous by John Lennon and the Beatles) in 2001.

By the time the film ended, we both looked at each other and found it incredible that someone with a psychiatric record could get a gun, let alone get it from Hawaii to New York.

Mon, Aug 3rd

Back to work and neither one of us was pleased with that idea. It was busy and stressful to say the least.

Tonight we watched Man on Wire. It's the documentary about the true story of how a Frenchman (Philippe Petit) had decided to walk between the twin towers in Manhattan before they had even been completed. It was an incredible movie, and an even more incredible feat considering that he did it without permission from the authorities.

Every time we see a movie with the twin towers in it, we both thank our lucky stars that we were able to enjoy some time at the top of them together. They are certainly still there in our hearts.

Sun, Aug 2nd

Chore day again and the end of a four day weekend.

As usual, Dawn spent a good chunk of her day on her usual Sunday routine. However, I was able to unwind a little with some SG1 in between editing photos and uploading them to Facebook and Photobox.

And yes, I did some more IEMA studying, too.

We ended the day downing a nice huge plate of mushroom risotto and relaxing in front of the television.

Sat, Aug 1st

Today we did the Tesco run early because we had to make it into town for our haircut at 10:00am. We then chilled out at Starbucks before catching a train to Finsbury Park and lunch at Nandos.

The long walk along Tollington Park Road, past St. Mellitius Church and Christ the King School, helped walk off some of the food on the way to Dad's. We spent some time with him catching on everything before heading back to the station and the journey home.

Today I got stuck back into my IEMA studying again. I have set myself a target of finishing it by the end of the month. So I have a lot of work to do.

Fri, Jul 31st

We ended the month with our second day off work. And, following all the food we ate yesterday, did not weigh this morning.

After taking it easy for a few hours, we headed out to Welwyn Garden City to pick up a part to stop the leaking faucet in the kitchen. We are pleased to report that when we got home I was able to complete my plumbing task without any problems.

This afternoon I then chilled watching Spurs beat Hull City in China to win the Beijing Cup. Not really a top honour, but better than nothing.

We finished the day off with one of my favourite things - eating fish and chips from the fish shop (Carleys). Dawn loved it too. Best of all, she had very little tidying up to do afterwards.

On a negative note, we were pretty pissed off over several postings on Facebook following an online debate concerning Obama's American health care plan. Dawn's own uncle accused her of abandoning the US by coming to live in the UK with me and not having a right to voice her opinion on American politics. It was just a mirror image of a lot of conservative movements in the US, trying to intimidate those trying to get the message out there that health care is a human right, not a benefit.

Thu, July 30th

Today Dawn and I celebrated the day we first exchanged an email 13 years ago. Best of all - we were off work.

After exchanging cards, we took things easy before heading out for an anniversary lunch. Dawn found what looked like a pretty good pub in Cottered, which is about a 20-30 minute drive north of Hertford.

Well, Dawn's research proved spot on. This quaint pub in a small village littered with thatched roof houses had excellent food. Again, we overindulged. We share a salmon Caesar salad followed by a burger and chips. Then we went for the kill by ordering two desserts that we also split. Dawn got a chocolate bread and butter pudding with ice cream, while I got fruit and cream. We finished the meal off with a cup of coffee.

We still have to pinch ourselves when we think how far an innocent email all those years ago has led us to where we are today.

Sun, Jul 26th

First task of the day was to send my stepson Chris an email to wish him happy birthday. Can't believe that he is now 30.

The rest of the day went too quickly. I updated the blog, tidied the paperwork and edited the countless photos we'd taken over the last few weeks. Still need to post them to Facebook, though. Relaxation was watching Lewis Hamilton winning the Hungarian F1 while editing photos before sitting down on the couch and watching Spurs lose 2-0 to Celtic on Sky.

Dawn, as usual, did her Sunday chores. But she also spent a good couple of hours on environmental matters (working on her newsletter and also reviewing her work's sustainable food policy).

After dinner, which was an enjoyable home-made Pad Thai, I made a couscous salad for work, called Dad and Dawn received a call from Brady to hear about her cousin Stephanie's wedding.

Sat, Jul 25th

We got up and out early to do our grocery shopping before popping to the doctor's surgery. The doctor checked out my leg, hips and back and I was pleased to hear that the problem was 99% certain to be muscular/skeletal, and not some kind of blockage or ligament issue. The bad news was that I would have to put up with the aches and pains and use ibuprofen and hopefully a non-menthol ointment.

With that out of the way, we did a little shopping in town and grabbed a coffee at Starbucks. Then it was off to Westmill Farm Estate to have a wander around the stores and grab some lunch. We'd passed this place many times on the way to the recycle centre and hadn't really given the place much thought. But a recommendation from someone I work with suggested it was worth a shot.

What we didn't know until we arrived was how breathtaking the view from the Three Lakes Restaurant was. Overlooking lakes and rolling hills, the view was incredible. There was a gazebo for couples to get married and a 9 hole par 3 golf course. Not to mention a remote-control race track, art shop, garden centre and hand-made furniture shop.

As for the restaurant, the food was excellent. We had the broccoli and Stilton soup with some bread, and also shared a home-made burger with chips. Just six huge chips. Dawn also enjoyed a glass of red wine and I enjoyed a couple of cups of brewed coffee. We'll definitely be going back there again.

Fri, Jul 24th

This is getting old pretty quickly. My leg woke me up and even though I had Tiny laying between my legs, I had to get up to ease the discomfort. This eased it, thankfully.

Tonight I enjoyed watching my first football match of the 20h09/2010 football season, Spurs versus Barcelona in the inaugural Wembley Cup live on Sky. I thought we faired well to get a draw against the European champions. But then again it was a friendly and the Spanish side didn't play their stars.

Thur, Jul 23rd

Another sleepless night, and then another hectic day at the office. I thought that once I had got the BSI audit behind me I would be able to relax a little. However, this week I had loads of deadlines to deal with and needed to help our accountants with the management accounts. It was relief that I was able to get away at my normal time this evening. However, all week I have been unable to walk back to Enfield Chase (and have caught a bus) because of the problem with my left leg.

Wed, Jul 22nd

This week has been another hectic week for me. This time it's the accounts. Worse still is that my left leg is really aching now. It's into the second week and finally I gave into Dawn and called the doctor to make an appointment to see someone. I have to wait until Saturday, though. The craziest thing of all though is how it's affecting Tiny.

I tried to use some heat rub spray. But the menthol in it drives her wild. It's as if she is hallucinating. This means that I can only take ibuprofen tablets and use the spray when I am at work. It doesn't help at night though because I can't use it when the aches and pains wake me up like it did last night and resulted in my getting up at 2:30am in the morning.

Sun, Jul 19th

Another busy day for the two of us. Today we had to head into Central London for Dawn to participate in the 5k Relay for Life charity event in Hyde Park. Over the last few weeks, we had been getting sponsors to make donations and baking goodies. Well, today Dawn had to walk the walk, so to speak.

We met some of Dawn's colleagues outside the Intercontinental Hotel before making our way to the park. Just before the event, the heavens opened and it looked like we would get drenched. Thankfully a collection of rain coats, umbrellas and a tree saved us. Plus the fact that is was a shower and only lasted about 1o minutes.

As for the run, jog, walk. Sharon (who turned up late because of travel problems) did the run, which started first, and met everyone else after they had all finished. Lindsey was the second to go and jogged around in under 35 minutes. Dawn, Jackie, Laura and Marcia walked (with the majority of the other 17,000 there) in about 90 minutes.

It was a tiring occasion, but well worth it. Especially as those kind enough to sponsor Dawn helped her raise over £213 for Cancer Research UK.

With Dawn needing refuel, we stopped off at Wahaca in Covent Garden for lunch. Dawn had been wanting to try this Mexican restaurant for ages and was not disappointed. She loved the pork tacos and everything else we tried. Now Dawn can't wait to get back again to try the sampler. However, she did reiterate that it wasn't going to be conditional of any 5k walk next time. Especially as the walk to through the park before and after the event, the walk to the start line, and the walk to the tube and restaurant meant that it was more like a 10k event to her.

(from left to right; Dawn, Laura, Sharon, Jackie, Marcia & Lindsey)

Sat, Jul 18th

Woke up this morning and sent my son Paul a message on Facebook to wish him a happy birthday. I'd already got a card off to him earlier in the week. It's hard to believe that is has been 28 years since I walked through the arches of Smithfield meat market in the early hours of that Saturday morning shortly after he had been born knowing that his mother had named him after me.

The rest of today was a complete rush. I ran up to Tesco to do the weekly shopping on my own while Dawn did some chores at the house. Then we dropped into town to pick up my prescription before we caught the train from Hertford North to Finsbury Park. We stopped off an Nandos for a bite to eat before calling in to see Dad for a couple of hours. He's doing well. Over the next week or two he hopes to have his second cataract operation.

Back home we chilled out watching the film Front of the Class.

Fri, Jul 17th

The day that I had been dreading since we received ISO 14001 certification back in March. The first review audit of our EMS and review to check that we had dealt with our minor non-conformancies. Well, I shouldn't have worried myself. Apart from the fact that I was tied up for seven hours with the BSI inspector, that is - and apart from one break of about three quarters of an hour that I spent in a meeting with our accountants.

The bottom line is that by the end of the day the inspector was more than happy with all the efforts we had made and even complimented me on my efforts and enthusiasm in his report. Which I felt was nice recognition for all the hard work I have put in over the last few months.

I celebrated my success this evening by picking up some fish and chips from Carleys and opening a small bottle of Stella Artois.

Dawn on the other hand spent the day in Welwyn Garden City and Hertford doing her birthday shopping. She was a little disappointed that she hadn't been able to get everything she wanted. But was more than happy with the clothes that she found. Not to mention she had been off work for two days now and still had the weekend to look forward to.

Thur, Jul 16th

Today Dawn tiptoed a little closer to another age milestone as she celebrated another birthday. Best of all, it gave us a good excuse to take a day off work and go out to eat. On the card front, Dawn received a total of 10 cards from family and friends and, even better, a collection of cash and gift vouchers that she can use tomorrow on part 2 of her birthday - shopping for herself. Dawn also received a DVD of the film Sideways that she loves.

To celebrate Dawn's birthday, we booked a table for lunch at The Cricketers in Clavering, which is owned by Jamie Oliver's parents and where he grew up and started on the road to becoming a world famous chef. This 400 year old pub in the rural Essex countryside just outside Saffron Walden was the perfect place for a special meal, and the food was a perfect match too.

We shared all the food as usual, and for once even had three courses too. For starters, we had a prawn cocktail and a quail dish. The main course was fish and chips, and chicken stuffed with feta and wrapped with pancetta and served with vegetables. We then shared a fruit crumble with clotted cream and a chocolate brownie with Baileys ice cream. All finished off with a nice cup of coffee. Dawn of course had a glass of red wine with the meal, and I even had a nice cold glass of lager for a change. To wrap up the bill, we added a signed copy of Jamie Oliver's Ministry of Food, which gave us a nice memento to remind us of Dawn's special day.

On the way home we stopped off at the local castle in Clavering. It was originally built at the time of William the Conqueror over 900 years ago, but has been added to and changed over the centuries and looks like a church now.

We brought the day to a close with a phone call from Brady to wish her daughter many happy returns before watching the film Sex in the City.

Wed, Jul 15th

It's been a hectic for me at work the last few days with the usual issues tying up my time. Not to mention this week I have been counting down to the BSI audit review on Friday for our Environmental Management System. Not looking forward to that at all. I have also picked up a strain in my left leg. I know my age is probably the culprit, but these aches and pains are a little more intense than usual.

Thankfully I have been able to put both of these matters behind me when I get home. Already this week we have watched The Truth About Cats and Dogs and Eye of the Dolphin - both really good films in their own right and both leaving you with that nice feel-good feeling before going to bed knowing that you have another long day ahead at the office to come.

Tonight Dawn called Jim Kerr to wish him many happy returns for the day before spending a good half hour or more on the phone with her mother, Brady.

Mon, Jul 13th

Just thought I would mention that everyone in Dawn's office who was able to grab one of my blueberry cheesecakes absolutely loved them. In fact, two of Dawn's colleagues actually asked for the recipe!

Sun, Jul 12th

I think I spent the whole day in the kitchen. This morning, I made some home-made hash browns with potatoes and onion instead of using processed ones with our regular Sunday breakfast. For lunch, I made the pastry base for a home-made pizza instead of a store-bought base or pita bread. After watching the F1 Grand Prix on TV, I then made some blueberry cheesecakes for Dawn to take to work on Monday for charity. Dinner followed - this was a Cajun-seasoned salmon with green beans and a slice of bread from a home-made wholeground loaf I'd baked. Then, if that wasn't enough, I also prepared lunch for Monday and Tuesday. Some chickpea couscous salad.

Oh yea, almost forgot. Before all this, I helped Dawn with her environmental newsletter for work. I'm just glad that today is a rest day.......

Sat, Jul 11th

After the week we've had, today went pretty well. My daughter Hayley popped down to see us and the three of us were able to escape our usual routines and enjoy each other's company. We picked Hayley up at Hertford East station and stopped off for a coffee and tea at Starbucks. The three of us then dropped into Waitrose (where Hayley suggested some excellent biscuits), the Co-op (where I picked up my blood pressure pills), Clintons (to get some cards), and WH Smith (where I picked up some stationary). In between all this we dropped into the Woolpack for some lunch, and afterwards popped back to the house for a cup of tea and some of the biscuits Hayley recommended before I took Hayley back to the station.

Tonight we relaxed by watching Bill Cosby in Ghost Dad. I couldn't believe that Dawn had never seen it before. We really enjoyed this feel good movie.

Fri, Jul 10th

I don't think I have looked forward to a weekend as much I did today. It's been an eventful one to say the least. But then again, this is nothing new. Hopefully I will be able to forget about work for a few days, even if it's back to it on Monday.

Dawn has had a hectic week, too. Seems to me that she spends half her time in meetings and the rest of the time fretting about her meetings. This weekend she'll be focusing on doing her environmental newsletter for Monday. Or perhaps she might give it to me to take my mind off my job.

Tonight at least we were able to escape briefly while we watched the Celebrity MasterChef final. What will we be watching next week now that this is over?

Thur, Jul 9th

Today was dentist part two. Left work around 2pm and headed back to Winchmore Hill for the second session of my deep clean. This time the anesthetic worked too well. Not only was my mouth and gums numb, but so was my chin, jaw, and cheek all the way to my eye socket. I am not complaining as it meant that I hardly felt any of the treatment. Best of all was that when I left, having paid £70 for the two days treatment, I booked my next checkup which will be in 2010.

Tonight, once my feeling started coming back to my mouth and face, I made some Thai green chicken curry for the first time and it tasted excellent. Dawn and I agreed without a shadow of doubt that we will be having this meal many more times. Dawn is even interested to taste a red curry, too.

Wed, Jul 8th

Another eventful day for the two of us. In my case is wasn't one I'd really like to repeat. Sadly I will - tomorrow. I had to leave work a little early to pay my dentist a visit. She wanted to do a deep clean and felt that it would be better doing half my mouth one day and the other half the next. This meant that when I met Dawn on the Hertford North bound train home, the left side of my mouth was dropping from the anesthetic and drooling while I talked.

Dawn, on the other hand, had a half day holiday and met Keith (an old colleague from her Schiller London days) at the Archduke near the South Bank for lunch. Dawn really enjoyed catching up with her old friend, but in my opinion seemed to enjoy watching the hoards of tourists around the London Eye and other tourist attractions by the Royal Festival Hall.

Tues, Jul 7th

Tonight we watched the Michael Jackson Memorial Tribute from the Staples Arena. I will confess that both Dawn and I got pretty emotional at various times. I think it showed just how much his family loved, and still love, the real Michael Jackson who was obviously a very personal and caring person. I got choked up most when I heard "We Are The World", which always reminds me of my daughter Hayley, as it was number one in the charts when she was born. But the final words from his Michael's daughter Paris were most heart wrenching.

Mon, Jul 6th

An uneventful start to the working week. That is if you discount the little incident on the way to the station this morning. I was happily walking along with Dawn chatting away one minute before my feet just disappeared from underneath me and I found myself hurtling towards the pavement face first. I had been taking my odd train tickets out of my wallet on arrival at Hertford North and ended up face down in the gutter. Dawn politely put me in my place, if I wasn't already there, by reminding me that I can't do two things at once while I am walking. I need to focus on where I place my feet at all times. This was of course after she had asked me several times if I was okay.

Sun, Jul 5th

I like Sundays. In fact, it's usually my favourite day of the week. After getting Dawn's Sunday Times, I had a run over to the recycle plant in Ware to drop off some plastic bottles and paper. On the way home I dropped into Tesco to pick up some carnations for my good wife.

Lunch was a nice taco salad, and for dinner we had a spicy prawn and chorizo dish with basmati rice. In between we watched Roger Federer defeat Andy Roddick 4-6, 7-6, 7-6, 3-6, 16-14 in the Wimbledon men's final. This victory gave Federer his 15th grand slam title. One more than the great Pete Sampras, who previously held the record with him at 14.

Sadly, the final lasted over four hours which meant that by the time we had eaten dinner, washed up and had some chocolate and tea, it was time for bed. Oh no, not another work week.

Sat, Jul 4th

Today is the day we quietly celebrate giving away part of North America to some of our colonies. And between me and you, based on some of the guys that had been president there, I think we were lucky to have got out when we did. Anyway, that's just today's trivia.

Did the morning run to Tesco before going into town to meet someone at Barclays to discuss our financial future. Would have been better to use tarot cards because it doesn't look too bright at the moment. They would have helped for the train journey we took to see Dad, too. At Hornsey, a lady on our carriage got so upset with someone that she got off and sat on the track in front of the train. We had to wait for the police to arrive to politely remove her and see what her problem was.

Once we arrived at Finsbury Park we stopped off for lunch at a restaurant Dawn had read great reviews on - Cats, a Thai restaurant that had won several awards. We had a red curry and Pad Thai, which were excellent. Will be back there again, I can tell you.

We then dropped by Dad's for a while to spend some time with him.

Tonight we chilled out watching Gone Baby Gone, Ben Affleck's first step into directing.

Fri, Jul 3rd

Well that's another week behind us. Nothing major to report on the work front, I am pleased to say. Did have a H&S meeting on Tuesday, but that was about it. Now we can enjoy 48 hours without thinking about work. Tonight we celebrated with some tacos with home-made taco mix and guacamole. No processed crap in our house (apart from the shells, that is), and a nice cold Stella.

Then settled down to see Andy Murray defeat Andy Roddick to meet Federer in the final at Wimbledon. Sadly, Mr Roddick played the better of the two and tore up the script. Maybe next year (again). It's a British thing. Like the footballers and winning the World Cup. Live in hope, but don't hold your breath.

Again it was a sticky evening here in Hertford with the temperature in the mid 80s in our bedroom when we called it a day.

Wed, Jul 1st

Half of 2009 is already behind us - Where is the year going?

Headline news! Dawn made the front page. Admittedly it was the CityScape. But, now that she has her face plastered all over the university newspaper, everyone will know who she is. Dawn was a little surprised at the size of the photo the students used, and its location. At least it gave her the chance to get her environmental message out to everyone.

Otherwise the mini heatwave goes on in the south-east. Tonight it was 84 degrees in the bedroom at 9pm.

Tues, Jun 30th

Another scorcher in England with the mercury reaching 89 degrees today. Work was pretty eventless - thank God. However, I did have a nice surprise on the walk back to the station this evening in the sweltering heat. A couple of guys were raising money for local Enfield schools. I couldn't resist when I saw the cute Yak they had in tow. The photo didn't come out too bad considering I used my cell phone. I also threw a few quid into the bucket for good measure, too.

Mon, Jun 29th

The hottest day so far this year with the Met Office showing 30 degrees C (86 degrees F). Thankfully we had air conditioning in the office. I would have preferred to open the window, but oh well.

We had a late day today because Dawn had a PAF meeting she had to attend and didn't get away from work until close to 5pm (she normally leaves 3.30pm). I left work as normal and stopped at Costa in Enfield Town for a skinny cappuccino and a scone while I did some studying.

Tonight we watched a couple episodes of The One Show that we had recorded before going to bed. There is was sweltering with the temperature in the lower 80s. Thankfully one of the first things we did when we moved into our house was install a ceiling fan. It helped, but only just. Tiny had the best spot directly underneath it.

Sun, Jun 28th

Incredibly, 31 years ago today, I started the workforce as a cost clerk at RW Munro Ltd in Bounds Green. Looking back, there are several things that irk me now. One is that I never realised then that it would lead to a career in accounts. Two and three are: how dumb I was not to make the most of my education and that it was the start of many dumb decisions.

Anyway, today Dawn and I spent the day inside the house working. We spent a lot of time working on the computers before Dawn did some vacuuming and ironing. I made some nice spicy chicken kebabs for lunch, and then later some Pad Thai noodles with tofu for dinner.

During the day I watched a couple of Stargate SG1 episodes before we sat down and watched another special on Michael Jackson.

Sat, Jun 27th

I know it's Saturday and the work week is over. But, I didn't want to refer to work yesterday. It was MJ's day. Anyway, yesterday I emulated my good wife by publishing an environmental newsletter at work.

Anyway, this morning we both headed out to Tesco and returned with more fruit and veg than anything else. We are truly getting into eating not only more healthily, but also buying less and less packaged items.

We then had a ride into town to get our hair cut and grab a cup of coffee at Starbucks. I also picked up Delia Smith's Cookery Course book at the local Oxfam at a steal for only £3.99.

Tonight we enjoyed a wonderful mushroom risotto for dinner before watching a documentary on Michael Jackson we'd recorded from Friday.

Fri, Jun 26th

Woke up this morning as usual glad that it was the last day of the week only for Dawn to see the shocking news on the front of the BBC news website that Michael Jackson had passed away late Thursday night, London time. I immediately turned on the television and watched disbelievingly as the news unfolded that one of the true legends of our lifetime was no longer with us.

Dawn and I saw Michael Jackson on his HIStory tour at the old Wembley Stadium in 1997 and although we didn't really like the venue for concerts will never forget this concert. Especially when a full size tank rolled onto the stage at the end of his Earth Song.

Michael, you were sadly misunderstood. Like Princess Diana 12 years ago, you will be mourned by millions who had turned their backs on you. Thankfully though your music will speak for itself and your legacy will live on. At least you can rest in peace now knowing that you touched more hearts and made more people happy than you could ever have dreamed.

Thur, Jun 25th

Dawn had another day out of the office today. This time she was over in west London in the ritzy part of town. As we get a pretty early train out of Hertford North, Dawn arrived with plenty of time on her hands and was able to grab herself a coffee and a tea before attending a travel seminar sponsored by ACT Travelwise in the Millennium Hotel, Sloane Street in Knightsbridge. She even had time to kill afterward, too. And she used it to visit the Natural History Museum.

This was the first time Dawn had been to the museum and she really enjoyed it. That was apart from having to navigate the halls and corridors trying to avoid the hoards of rug rats, teenage school kids, and coachloads of tourists. Dawn did enjoy seeing all all the different exhibits of animals that she hadn't seen before. Some now sadly extinct and others from lands oversea. As much as Dawn dislikes stuffed animals, she much prefers this than seeing them caged in zoos.

Tues, Jun 23rd

Seems like work for the two of us revolves around keeping our to-do list from growing. I think I succeed more than Dawn on this one. She created a spreadsheet to help her manage her endless list of tasks, but she hasn't found the find the time to list her new to-dos let alone cross off the ones already outstanding. It's a bit like treading water in a fast moving stream. You're moving with the tide no matter how hard to kick. At least I had my quality meeting today.

Mon, Jun 22nd

Good news. Dawn made it back to the dentist today and had her tooth sorted. The dentist filed the filling down several times before Dawn felt that it was okay. At least the headaches that have been bugging her over the weekend will be over with now.

Sun, Jun 21st

Father's Day. Woke up and opened two cards. One from my daughter, Hayley, and one from Dawn and Tiny.

Today we had a ride on the train up to Finsbury Park and walked to Dad's. There we gave him our Father's Day card and certificate for the trees we had planted for him. We then had a walk down to The Landseer for a Father's Day lunch. This time we all ordered a salad. Which for some reason they forgot and took nearly an hour to bring out. Perhaps the table next to us caused the confusion as they had their fish and chips returned. I was going to get that again, and was glad that I hadn't.

Then it was back home to chores and more of the usual Sunday routine. Sometimes the weekend just goes by too quickly.

Sat, Jun 20th

Started the day with a trip over to Tesco on my own while Dawn tidied up the house. We then met Hayley at Hertford East station. Hayley texted me last night and asked whether I was free for her to take us out for a Father's Day lunch today.

As we had a few errands to run in town, we went straight there from the station and stopped off for a coffee as usual at Starbucks before finishing our shopping. We then stopped at the White Hart for lunch before making our way back to the house for a little while.

This has certainly been a year I will never forget. After spending so many years in Florida, I will certainly cherish being taken out for both my birthday and Father's Day this year.

Oh yea, believe it or not, even though I had my camera with me, I forgot to take a photo while we were out at lunch. Like I keep telling Dawn - my memory is getting pretty bad. Perhaps now she will believe me!

Fri, Jun 19th

Dawn's hectic week ended with Well Being Day at CU. Again more activities laid on to oversee, along with more things to do. At least she had the chance to get her vital stats checked. All okay. No blood pressure or cholesterol problems there.

Dawn then had to leave early to drop into the dentist to get her damaged tooth sorted. The one that she broke on one of my pita chips a few weeks ago. Well now she has a gold tooth. Well, part of one. Thankfully it's a molar and mostly on top and on the inside, so it's not so visible. Sadly, the dentist didn't set it very well, so tonight Dawn went to bed with a headache as she was grinding her upper teeth against it. The dentist wasn't able to complete the job when she was there today because the waiting room was filling up and also because Dawn had Novocaine and the dentist did not want to file the new tooth too far by mistake.

Thur, Jun 18th

Today Dawn travelled into central London to attend a sustainable food seminar in an office building next to City Hall (the Mayor of London's offices), overlooking the Thames and the HMS Belfast, and with glorious views of the Tower of London and Tower Bridge.

Dawn was in hog heaven. She loved the seminar and said that the content was interesting and gave her some really good ideas regarding food. The lunch, sustainable local food, was excellent and the neighbourhood where she was (she had a stroll around before the gathering) was mind blowing. As much as Dawn hates crowds, she loves culture and good architecture. I am proud to say in my home town we have an abundance of both.

Wed, Jun 17th

Today I had a quality meeting and had to issue my monthly environmental report. Sadly, as only a few turned up, the meeting was cancelled and rescheduled for next week.

Tonight, after days of deliberating about what to get Dad for Father's Day, we paid for five indigenous trees to be planted in Africa in Dad's name. We had been racking our brains to think of what to get someone who doesn't want for anything. What could be better than to give back to the environment and at the same time say we love you?

Tues, Jun 16th

Today I took the brownies that Dawn had brought home yesterday to work with me. Not to raise money for charity, but to see them scoffed down by my colleagues and not go to waste. Or better still, not add a few inches of fat to our hips.

Tonight after dinner I was back in the kitchen again to make a lunch salad for Dawn and me based on the recipe Hayley had given us. A tuna and pasta based meal with veggies and in our case our own dressing. It was good.

Mon, Jun 15th

Just three things to say today.

Happy Birthday, Mum. Gone but not forgotten, you are always in our hearts and minds.

Today the Bike Doctor turned up at CU (as arranged by Dawn) as part of the university's Bike Week activities. All week there are activities going on to promote a better way of life. Dawn took the brownies that I made to work to raise money for the Race for Life. Sadly, others brought a load of goodies too so she brought half of them home again. Half of which she handed to a delighted homeless person on her way back to Old Street station.

Tonight I watched the end of the England - West Indies T20 match. Sadly, after a great start, we lost again. Hosts to the tournament we may be, but champions we aren't. Not even a semi-final place. Roll on Wimbledon. Perhaps Andy Murray will do us proud.

Sun, Jun 14th

Tomorrow is the anniversary of my mother's birthday. So today Dawn and I had a ride up to Dad's and took him and George with us to lay some flowers on her grave. All four of us could not believe how overgrown parts of the cemetery were. I wished I had brought some shears with us so I could trim the tall grass around Mum's grave.

From there we had a ride down to Spaniards Inn over Hampstead for lunch. As we're planning to take Dad out again next Sunday, he treated us this time, and George bought the drinks. The other three each had a salad while I tucked into some fish and chips.

When we got home, I was back in the kitchen making a couple trays of brownies for Dawn to take to work tomorrow. I also prepared a couscous salad for our lunches over the next couple of days, too. Yet another first.

Sat, Jun 13th

Thank God for weekends. Even if they do mean that the chores have to be done.

We made the usual trip to Tesco for the weekly groceries, then popped into town to chill out for a bit. Dropped into the Vet's to get some food for Tiny, Waitrose for some odds and sods, Messages and then Starbucks for a nice relaxing skinny cappuccino where Dawn read the newspaper and I read some more of Al Gore's Earth in the Balance.

Back home we did some chores and relaxed a little before I made us some Pad Thai noodles with Tofu. Another first for me. And even if I do say so myself, it came out pretty good. That's another recipe for our list.

Thur, Jun 11th

Nothing to report in our lives. However, the day did not go totally without any news. Well for football fans, that is. Manchester United and Real Madrid both confirmed that Christiano Ronaldo will be moving to the Spanish club next season for a fee of around £80 million. Unless I am mistaken, is there not something of a credit crunch going on at the moment, with tens of thousands losing their jobs and unemployment reaching figures not seen in over a decade?

Wed, Jun 10th

Today London was being held to ransom by employees of the London Underground, which (as anyone who has lived or spent any time in London knows) is the lifeblood of the city. Hundreds of thousands of commuters and Londoners were forced to find alternative methods to make it into work. Even worse, find their way to more important venues like Wembley Stadium for England's World Cup qualifier against Andorra, or the O2 Arena to see Britney Spears. Well, maybe in one of those cases it may not have been such a bad idea (just kidding). Thankfully for Dawn and me, we travel by the National Rail network, so were not affected.

As for England, for those interested, we rattled off our seventh successive win in the competitive matches. A new national record. Just one more win and we'll have qualified for the finals in South Africa next year.

Sun, Jun 7th

Here is a photo of our new household waste bin. It's so small that it fits on the counter next to the draining board. I will empty it every night when I do Tiny's litter box, no matter how much is in it. It will also save using a dustbin liner, which is also better for the environment.

Anyway, today we woke up to torrential rainfall. So I decided that I'd give the yard work a miss. That meant that it was a more leisurely Sunday compared to the last two weeks. Dawn also had it easier, too. All she had to deal with today was some ironing as she did the cleaning yesterday.

So the two of us spent the day working on our computers and watching TV. In my case it was Stargate SG1 and the Turkish F1 Grand Prix, which saw Jenson Button win his 6th race in seven. Tonight we both stayed up late to watch Apprentice Final in which Yasmina Siadatan defeated Kate Walsh to become Alan Sugar's latest apprentice.

Oh yea, in between all this the two of us also worked on our IEMA assignments and coursework.

Sat, Jun 6th

Thank God for weekends. This morning I ran up to Tesco to do our weekly grocery shopping while Dawn cleaned the house. Mid morning I drove down to Hertford East and picked up my daughter Hayley who had popped down to visit us.

We chatted for a while back at the house and caught up on what we had all been up to the last few weeks. Then we popped into town to grab some lunch at the Woolpack before picking up some odds and ends, including Dawn's dry cleaning (clothes that she was able to pack away until the winter now.)

We also picked up a new waste bin for the kitchen. As I spent half an hour tearing up cardboard boxes for our recycling bin, it crossed my mind that we should get a small bin for the household waste and empty it daily instead of trying to fill a large bin and empty it once a week or when it begins to smell. We ended up getting a tiny bin that fits on the counter. I'll post a photo tomorrow.

Fri, Jun 5th

Last day of the week and it culminated with more environmental work on my behalf. Once again, I won't go into too many details. But what I will say is that my waste management programme is off the ground now that recycle bins are all over the office and I have placed laminated notices on walls, too.

Dawn, on the other hand, had to rush off to the dentist to get measured for her filling. You probably remember reading how she broke her tooth on my pita chips and had to get a temporary filling. Sadly that came out yesterday while she was eating a salad for lunch. Anyway, at least in two weeks time she will be able to put this episode to bed.

Thu, Jun 4th

Today I was finally able to carry out the privilege of voting for the first time since Dawn and I were married over 12 years ago. In fact, the last time I voted was actually on our wedding day. But that is another story.

Anyway, tonight when I got home from work I raced over to the Hornsmill Community Centre to vote and was welcomed by just two officials sitting in the nice cool building. After showing my election card I was handed one piece of paper listing the 4 candidates in the local county council election, and a long roll of candidates (about three feet long) listing the 15 parties for European Member of Parliament elections. I won't say who I voted for. But will say that I won't be on Gordon Brown's Christmas card list this year.

Wed, Jun 3rd

Well it's Wednesday and nothing of substance to write about this month yet. Well, nothing publicly that is. Dawn and are both pretty busy at work especially on the environmental front. Last night Dawn had to spend some of her own free time after she had eaten her dinner to respond to an array of questions from a student writing an article for the University news rag. Oh yea, I thought I would take the opportunity to show everyone how the old GE building site is coming on. As you can see, not very far.

Sun, May 31st

Woke up and watched an episode of SG1 before dishing up our usual Sunday fry-up. Then it was out the front again and back to the weed pulling and tree trimming. Both of these I can cope with, because I am not really what you would call an avid gardener. However, when it comes to pulling up roots for plants that don't seem to want to come out the ground, I am not so good. I did win though. After a couple of hours' toil, the front yard was unrecognisable. But there was a price. My hands and back really ached. It meant that the rest of the day was spent on my backside watching television, editing photos and writing, or in the kitchen where I prepared lunch and made some salmon patties and mash for dinner.

Dawn did the weekly ironing again and then decided that she wanted to make room in the drawers and cupboards by putting away the winter stuff.

After dinner we chilled out in front of the television watching the film Once, both of us trying not think about about the upcoming week at work. When are we retiring to Cornwall? I think after we win the lottery. So not any time soon, no doubt.

Sat, May 30th

Dawn came with me to Tesco for the first time since our holiday in Cornwall. Over the last few weeks she has always had chores she wanted done at the house so missed out on getting stressed out as the local grocery store gets more and more crowded.

After a little break at home we then headed into town to drop off some clothes at the dry cleaners and did some shopping for odds and ends. One thing we were delighted to find out was that we can get eco washing up liquid, laundry detergent and clothes softener refills from The Hertford Natural Therapy Centre. This will cut down on some of the plastic bottles we current use.

We then stopped off at the Woolpack for a light lunch. As it was so warm and sunny we sat outside by the river, which was nice.

Back home I then watched the FA Cup final between Chelsea and Everton from the new Wembley. I was delighted when the Toffees took the lead by scoring the fastest ever cup final goal in just 25 seconds. I wasn't so happy that Chelsea came back to win 2-1.

Tonight we stayed up late to watch the last episode of Reggie Perrin followed by the results of Britain's Got Talent. We had already watched the final earlier and were blown away by the amount of talent there was, and the sincerity of the people competing. It made me proud to be British (again). Dawn felt good too when the dance group Diversity beat out Susan Boyle for the title.

Fri, May 29th

Even though this was a four day week, we were more than happy to see this one out. No problems for me to complain about. In fact, I spent today working on the company recycling programme. Dawn, however, was a little late getting out because she had a meeting with TfL. Thankfully we had already planned for this and stopped off at Carleys in Sele Farm for some much loved Fish and Chips.

Dawn is really turning into a Brit. She now loves drinking tea and rarely has a coffee, unless it is a cappuccino. She loves baked beans, Cornish Pasties, and of course fish and chips. But don't worry. She still loves grits as much as she always has. And greens or any veggies are always her favourite given the choice.

Wed, May 27th

We have been back to work two days and are already looking forward to the weekend. I am now reading Earth in the Balance on the train to work in the morning, and the IEMA Environmental Management in Organizations handbook in bed at night. If I could only get back into my studying.

Tonight we gave reading a miss. I watched the first half of the European Champions League final (and ten minutes of the second half) between Barcelona and Manchester United before turning over to watch The Apprentice. For those interested, United lost 2-0.

Mon, May 25th

Bank Holiday Monday with a clear up job. I had to get the ladder out and remove some fast food cartons, empty drink cans, and other rubbish that had been thrown on garage roofs that we can see from our bedroom. Then I settled down to enjoy the third day of the weekend.

Watched some SG1 on television, made a large pot of chili, edited some photos, updated Facebook and our blog and then ordered a ton of photos that we'd taken this year from PhotoBox.

Dawn worked on her course work and did some ironing before we settled down for the evening. That was after we'd had a delicious plate of spicy chicken and vegetable casserole.

Sun, May 24th

God's day of rest. But as it was a gorgeous sunny day, a bank holiday weekend, and as our front yard was being taken over by weeds that would make Kudzu proud, I decided to do some yard work. In the process we found out that we have two tiers out front that would be ideal for some flower beds. After filling up our 14o litre garden waste bin and three dustbin liners, I realised that this project will take a while.

With my joints reminding me how old I am getting, I relaxed by watching the Monaco F1 Grandprix and Newcastle United being relegated from the Premier League.

For dinner I then made some chicken and mushroom risotto for the first time. It was pretty good.

We then relaxed in front of the television watching Dan in Real Life. It was a nice feel good movie and a nice way to end the day. Although to tell the truth I ended the day by reading a book on Environmental Management in Organisations in bed.

Sat, May 23rd

The start of a nice weekend began with a run to Tesco to do the weekly grocery shopping on my own before the two of us ran into town to get a haircut and pick up my blood pressure pills. Then it was on the train into London to visit Dad, stopping at Nandos for a chicken wrap, some olives, and half a chicken between us. The latter was free because of the number of stamps we had in our appreciation card.

At Dad's he got out an album full of slides of photos that he had taken the best part of 40 years ago. They certainly brought back memories: standing on a rock with Dad in Hayle (1968), holding the 7-a-side trophy won with Grafton School (1972), and my first day at Holloway school (1972). There were plenty of Dad and Mum back in the early 70s too. I of course asked Dad if I could have the slides to make copies. But he said he would do it for me.

For dinner I did some pan seared scallops with asparagus. It tasted delicious.

Tonight we watched a recording called Strange Days from the National Geographic Channel that showed just how much mankind is destroying our planet. The coral being killed off Cancun was bad enough, but the sight of plastic found in the stomachs of dead albatrosses in the middle of the Pacific Ocean was worse. The two of us both decided that we needed to eliminate buying any products that come in plastic containers some how.

Fri, May 22nd

Another week behind us and we celebrated with a fish sandwich washed down by a couple of bottles of beer.

Then tonight we stayed up very late (for us that is) to watch the American Idol results show. Dawn wanted Adam to win. But, after the show last night, I wanted Kris Allen. As usual (I've lost count how often), the performer I thought would win did. It was even better when it was the one I preferred.

Thu, May 21st

Dawn called our dentist, but could only get an appointment for Friday. At least she has an appointment sorted and won't have to sit in the waiting room not knowing when she will get seen.

As for me, a lunch date I had was cancelled. Maybe another time.

On the way back to Enfield Chase (I've walked every evening this week), I stopped by the New River and took some photos of the cutest little baby geese. They could be another bird, but the point is they looked so cute in their furry coats. No feathers, just a fine brown tuft. Check out the photo above.

Tonight I called Dad and made arrangements to go and see him Saturday and then got comfortable on the couch to watch the American Idol Final. We've been watching the show since Kelly Clarkson won the very first series. This time Dawn is pulling for Adam. She thinks he is out of this world. However, she would still be satisfied if she could have Leon Jackson in her pocket so she could get him out to sing for her when ever she wanted.

Wed, May 20th

Boy when it rains it pours. Hopefully we can win the lottery or something. Already we had to fork out some much needed cash on the car bill this month. Now we have a dentist bill to look forward to also. Dawn was enjoying a bowl of my home-made chili when she gave me a strange look, followed by the words, "I've just broke a tooth."

Now I know that you probably think that those beans must have been undercooked to do this damage. But it wasn't the beans that did the damage. The tooth cracked when Dawn bit down on a pita chip that I had baked. They taste really good. I get a pita bread, cut it into pieces and then dredge it in olive oil, cayenne, garlic powder and salt. I digress though.

Now Dawn has to contact our dentist to see if she can fit her in on Thursday. Even if she can, she'll have to go back again if she can get a cap fitted. Follow this thread later to see what happens and how much it sucks out of our bank account.

Tues, May 19th

Tonight when we got home from work we received a sad email from our very good friends John and Phyllis in Florida. Sadly they had to break the heart-wrenching news that their 19 year old kitty BeBe was no longer with them and had gone ahead to our maker. I won't deny that reading of BeBe's passing brought a tear to my eye. Losing her after so long must have been truly painful for them, as well as Princess (their other kitty). However, on the bright side, BeBe had a long and happy life with John and Phyllis and was truly loved. Our heartfelt thoughts go out to the two of you. We are both so glad that we had a chance to meet BeBe while we were in Dunedin. P&D (and Tiny, too).

Mon, May 18th

My apologies if you were unable to read our blog over the weekend. The good news is that it's back now. You'll be glad to know that you didn't miss anything. We live pretty boring lives over here in Hertford. Thankfully we're just happy with each other. Although we would be a lot happier if we were living in Cornwall. But, we're not complaining.

Sun, May 17th

Woke up and as usual did the usual Sunday morning stuff, like getting the paper and doing a big fry up for breakfast.

Dawn did her chores and after lunch had her video call with Brady while I tried to chill out with some SG1 on the television. I then decided to sort out Facebook and removed several friends.

Dinner was a great plate of salmon, jersey potatoes, carrots and cheese sauce on broccoli before we chilled out together in front of the television again. Then it was off to bed and ready for another stressful week at work. Strange as it may sound (for our friends in Florida especially) Dawn was still in awe of how bright it was outside while she was laying in bed reading her Shakespeare book by Bill Bryson. Wait till it's really the summer and it's bright out gone 10pm.

Sat, May 16th

Another weekend and we had plenty to do. I ran out to Tesco while Dawn put on some laundry and tided up. Then it was off to Stevenage to pick up litter for Tiny.

We did have the pleasure of a great lunch at the Tilbury in Datchworth. We shared some fried squid and leak and asparagus soup, then some fish and chips and a mushroom risotto. Now Dawn wants me to make it at home.

Back in Hertford we stopped off at Riverside to pick up some pots so Dawn could re-pot some plants. Back at the house we chilled out as best we could.

Thur, May 14th

Another special day for me. I met my daughter, Hayley, who took me out to for a birthday lunch, and also gave me a birthday card and gift, too. Incredibly, priceless is the only word I can think of to describe the meal. And that is one word I never thought I would use to describe a Pizza Hut Hawaiian pizza and Diet Coke. However, I will admit that the company and the occasion will make the meal one I will cherish for always.

Wed, May 13th

My birthday. Didn't go to work today because I had to take the car to the garage to have the engine emission warning light dealt with. It came on when we were driving down to Cornwall. I picked it up around tea time and had to part with (or my credit card did) £276 for the repairs. Now that that's been put to bed, I can get back to my holiday.

On the way to the garage I picked up some USB speakers for my laptop from the post office. I ordered them at the weekend and these were my first gift of the day (I'll use the cash Dad gave me). I then met Dawn in Starbucks. Dawn was doing a Jimmy Neal (buying me some presents at the last minute). Back the house she wrapped them so I could unwrap them minutes later. In addition to a pair of jeans and top Brady and Jim gave me, I got two cookery books, two badges, a "I love Spread Sheets" mug, and a sheepy bank. Just look at the picture for this. That will explain all. Dawn also had to explain what a Spread Sheet was. I'd forgotten!!!

We then had a baked fish sandwich for lunch and then spent a couple of hours chilling out. During the course of the day I got more birthday wishes: Katie in Florida, some work colleagues who found out it was my birthday, and later Kelly (my sister-in-law).

Tonight Dawn and I then headed into town for an Indian birthday dinner at Dil's Restaurant. It was excellent, but we left bloated.

The icing on the cake for my birthday was a call from Dad to wish me happy birthday, and several texts from my daughter Hayley wishing me happy birthday and arranging to meet me tomorrow.

See, now you can see why even the cost of the car repair couldn't dampen my spirits.

Tues, May 12th

Tomorrow is my birthday, but the I started receiving birthday wishes today. Friends on Facebook primarily being those who had remembered. A special thank you to Christina (from Landseer Ct), Sam (Bowers), Paul (Ms).

Oh yea, I beat Dawn at Scrabble on Facebook, too. She was not a happy camper. She kept on bitching that I was getting ALL the big letters. Makes a change.

Sun, May 10th

Today was laptop day for me. I spent most of my spare time editing photos or loading photos onto Photobox. In between I had the Spanish F1 Grand Prix and two premier leagues on the television. That was in the background, of course. Dawn had her weekly video call with Brady. This was the first in three weeks thanks to our holiday and the communication problem last weekend.

I spent lots of time in the kitchen, too. I did our regular Sunday fry-up of potato waffle, baked beans, mushroom and egg for breakfast. Then made some spicy chicken kebabs with flatbread for lunch, and then a chicken roast with peppers, cherry tomatoes, carrots and new potatoes for dinner.

Sat, May 9th

A day on the go today. I went to Tesco on my own for the weekly groceries so Dawn could get a head start on the weekly chores. Then it was in the car and off to Hertford North station again and a train ride to Finsbury Park to see Dad. As usual now, we stopped at Nandos for a quick bite on the way.

Dad seemed a lot better than he had been in weeks. Last week he actually went out three times. Once to the hospital for blood tests and twice to Morrisons at Nags Head to do some grocery shopping. That can only be a good sign.

One other highlight of the day was that I finally finished reading and editing Dawn's holiday journal. Editing may not be the right word. I think I should say adding omissions. This time it's Dawn's perspective of our vacation instead of mine. Anyone interested in reading it please don't hesitate to drop us a line.

Wed, May 6th

The week got better and better. Well for Dawn it did. She had an appointment with her dentist and thanks to the lateness of her appointment we didn't get home until three quarters of an hour later than usual. What's 45 minutes you may ask? A considerable amount of time when you have been up and on the go since 4:15am that morning. I had it slightly easier than Dawn as I stopped on the way to the station to grab a skinny cappuccino. It's just 64 calories, so doesn't affect my waistline too much.

After watching the United-Arsenal semi-final last night, I couldn't resist watching the second game between Chelsea and Barcelona. What a shame that Chelsea conceded a goal two minutes into injury time to prevent a repeat of last season's Champions League final.

Tues, May 5th

Well our holiday was well and truly over today. We were awake again a little after 4am and caught the 6:25 train from Hertford North. I will say about what followed was that we both felt totally miserable and exhausted by the time we had met again on the 4:21pm arriving at Enfield Chase. Tonight, I stayed up to watch the Champions League Semi-Final match between Manchester United and Arsenal. As a Tottenham fan for over 40 years, all I can say is that I felt sad that the Gunners ended another season without a trophy...

Mon, May 4th

We had a nice lie-in and took it as easy as we could today. Dawn of course did several washing loads. However, we did get out of the house. We popped into town and had lunch at the Woolpack. We ordered a minestrone soup, but it looked and tasted more like a bolognese sauce. I also spent forever loading our holiday snaps onto Facebook so our friends could check out what a great time we had.

Oh yea, I also made a huge pot of chili which we can have over the next few weeks with some pita chips and salsa. Not every day of course.

Sun, May 3rd

Thankfully we had a long weekend to recover from the long drive home from Cornwall. Or more appropriately, Dawn had an extra day to do the laundry and her chores. I called Dad to tell him about our vacation, check that he was okay, and thank him for contributing towards our anniversary picture.

Sat, May 2nd

Well the holiday is almost over. Tiny woke us up at 12:30am with the sound of her throat heaving. I think we had upset her with all the packing we did before going to bed. She had been laying on the bed with me, but ended the night on the chair in the other room.

Anyway, we were up and out early. Well, earliesh. We left The Old Haven chalet around 7:45am after we had downed an authentic saffron fruit bun and cup of tea for breakfast. The sun was in the sky and the forecast was for no rain. If only the drive could be as easy as the one down.

We left Hayle along the A30 which would take us all the way to Exeter in Devon and the M5. I tuned the radio into easy listening on Radio 2 and got into cruising mode around 60mph. Tiny though was unsettled and wandered around the car. Dawn again had to love on her and I had to pull off the road and move the framed picture as she wanted to sit on it.

That done, we continued on the drive east. All went well. Several pee breaks and more for Coca-Cola kept up the progress home. In fact, we hardly even stayed stationary for long. We just enjoyed the sight of thousands of sheep and hundreds of cattle as we passed farm after farm. We did stop a little longer for lunch. We picked up a sandwich once we had reach the M4 motorway and had less than 150 miles left to go.

Sadly, the good time we made on the road wasn't to last. As we got closer to London we saw several signs warning of congestion on the M4 between junctions 4 and 6B. Worse still was that there was worse congestion on the M25 (the way we were going) just after our exit onto the M25. After almost coming to a standstill on the M4, I decided to stay on the M4 and get home via the North Circular and M1. That too proved problematic. Here the volume of traffic was even worse. We crawled along the road from one traffic light to the next. Eventually we reached the M1. Signs telling drivers to use the North Circular to get to Westfield, the largest shopping mall in London, did not help.

To cut a long story short, Dawn suggested that we stay on the M1 and go via St Albans rather than the M25 which we did. This meant that we made it home around 4pm after over 8 hours driving. The whole holiday we had only done 809 miles including the trip to and from Cornwall. Not too bad for these two environmentalists. Best of all is that we both agreed that it was the best holiday either of us had ever enjoyed.

For those of you interested in checking out the photos we took, go to our Facebook and see them there.

Fri, May 1st

Today we celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary just as we had our first, in St Ives. This time we had a ride over with the hope of finding a framed picture of Hayle to commemorate the holiday and as a gift to ourselves. However, I am getting a little head of myself.

After exchanging cards, receiving a anniversary text from my daughter Hayley, a shave, bath (no shower), and breakfast, we headed into town to get some photos before the so called rains came. We also wanted to have a drive around the residential part of Hayle, after I'd grabbed some photos of the Parish church in Phillack that had been there since 500AD, and The Bucket of Blood pub, to get a better feel of the place. That took all of five minutes. Like Dawn said, it's a pretty small town. But for those who visited Dawn in Oriental, NC, nothing as remote or isolated. This is bustling in comparison.

We then drove to St Ives and parked the car so we could check out the art gallery for a painting or print. Dawn went first and found some she liked. When I went I had to plump for the panoramic print of Godrevy Lighthouse from the beach at Hayle. It cost more than we had hoped, but we put the money Dad gave us for our anniversary towards it so it didn't break the bank.

The ride back to Hayle was the scenic route and with the windscreen wipers moving back and forth. As predicted, the rains had come. Thankfully after we had picked up the framed print. In town we stopped and picked up some more ice cream from Mr B's and a couple of pasties from Philp's Bakery. They had only been in business since 1958, so they weren't as good as Warrens. The ice cream was for dessert after dinner.

The pasties were so filling that I decided to go for a walk on the beach even though it was raining to lose some weight. Sorry, an excuse. I wanted to photograph some windsurfers on the waves. The wind and rain certainly brings them out. Then it was back to editing photos while Dawn did the journal again.

Our anniversary dinner was some really good fish and chips from Loggans Fish Bar in town. We spotted it when we went for a drive earlier in the day. It was so much better than Hubbard's. And, all things considered, an appropriate anniversary meal. Especially with the Ferrero Rocher and Cherry Ripple ice creams with chocolate flakes for dessert.

I did the washing up for the first and only time while Dawn went for one last walk along the beach. This time she headed towards the dunes just north of us and ended up along the clifftops. She arrived back exhausted and totally thrilled by the views from the clifftops. Another fitting end to our anniversary.