Sunday 16 March 2014

Weekly Round-Up

It's been a typically busy week!  But it seems as if Spring is finally beginning to arrive in Northamptonshire!  We had 2 days of very dense fog mid-week, but the temperatures have been much better, and just about warm enough to go out without a coat!  I'm not currently quite brave enough to go to work without a coat (it is still March after all, and I leave the house at 7:15am.  I might think differently if it were, say, 8:30 instead), but it is just about warm enough to leave work at 5-ish with my coat tucked under my arm, or slung over one of my many bags.
  • This past week, as background noise, I've been playing our family DVDs.  It started off last Saturday night when I felt a bit sad for no reason (I've put it down to female hormones) and just needed some idle comfort.  Watching some old, well-loved clips and hearing some well-loved voices cheered me right up.  And I suspect the 2 large glasses of wine also helped.  This was confirmed when I found myself laying on the sofa, drunkenly narrating the video to some invisible companion. ;)
  • So pleased that Gogglebox on Channel 4 has started up again.  It first started up about 2 years ago, in a late-night slot (on a Sunday) I think.  It felt like no-one apart from me had even heard of it, never mind enjoyed watching it.  But it is clear that many people actually DID love it.  Because it's now back for it's 3rd run, in a prime time, 9pm, Friday night slot.
  • Did my weekly food shop early yesterday morning and went out without a coat.  For some reason, the warm sun, but slightly chilly breeze reminded me of being a child.  I couldn't really put my finger on what the memory was, but at the same time, it felt very clear.  Perhaps I'm associating this sort of weather with about the time of year I'd start spending more time out in the garden, or playing out with Melanie and Michael as I did from about age 9-11.  A lot of happy memories from the hours I spent with those two.  But that's another post for another time.
  • Whilst out at Tesco yesterday, I noticed and bought my first bunch of daffodils.  Daffs are my favourite flowers, by far, and during these short couple of months where they are available, I like to have them in my house as much as possible.  A pound a bunch, once a week, is so very worth it to me.  They are now in a pint glass on my window sill, catching the evening sun which my flat gets flooded with.  They aren't really open yet, but it seems that they open a little more every hour.  I love them.
  • Yesterday I took a little afternoon stroll over to the garden centre 5 minutes walk from my flat.  It is probably the most middle-class place on earth.  I stayed for a pleasant hour, looking at the assorted gift items, candles and books, and then had a mocha and a toasted sandwich in the Costa Coffee branch that has opened up in there.  One of life's biggest (but also smallest) pleasures is a nice coffee, in a comfy seat, with an interesting book.
  • There is a programme on Channel 4 tonight in which the International Space Station does a live stream as they go round the Earth.  I really hope the footage focusses on the view of Earth from space, rather than "chat with experts".  The programme is over 2 hours long, and could either be beautiful, or ghastly, if they get the focus wrong.  It's either watch that, or the 2nd part of the latest Top Gear special, but that is easy to catch up on iPlayer later in the week...  Because I think this space programme might lose it's magic if it's not watched live.
  • I've been disappointed with the lack of coverage of the winter Paralympics.  A 30 minute catch-up programme wasn't what I wanted.  I wanted what the BBC did for the winter Olympics, and did a 2-hour programme at the same time.  Which was perfect for me to have on in the background as I did school work.  The Channel 4 Paralympic coverage didn't fit my schedule in quite the same way, and as a result, I've seen next to none of it.
  • A strange night last night...  I'd stayed up a bit later than intended, having poured a large glass of wine rather later than planned, which I then drank rather slowly, whilst perving over Benedict Cumberbatch, my latest muse, on Pinterest.  I finally went to bed shortly after 11, and around 11:30 was disturbed by an engine running outside for quite a long time.  In the end I got up for a nosy.  Outside was a lorry, 2 men, and a car.  For some time they fiddled around with the bins, and then proceeded to transfer a washing machine and a fridge freezer from the back of the lorry, into the car.  Making them fit...  Somehow!  I found the whole operation rather strange.  Particularly as this was 11:30pm at night...  Needless to say, I did take down the lorry's number plate.  I thought it wise.
  • Continuing on the strange events of the night.  I can't have been asleep long when I was hit by something that has not happened to me for a number of years.  I can only liken it to something between sleep walking and a hallucination.  Basically, I was woken with a start, convinced I was in a hotel room, and that Andrew Scott, the actor who plays Moriarty in 'Sherlock', had broken into my room and was standing at the foot of my bed, trying to steal my duvet.  I came out of it quite quickly, and fell back asleep again.  Only to waken again later hearing someone singing a mindless tune really loudly in my ear.  I couldn't get them to shut up and couldn't open my eyes.  I had to reach up and physically open my eyelid to break out of the moment.  Both very strange.  But made perfect sense in the middle of the night.  I can tell you a few other stories of this, should you be interested.  But, like I say, this is the first I can remember of this happening since I was at university.
  • I think that's it for this weekly round-up...  Same time next week?
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