We’re midway between New Year in New Zealand and New Year in England, having spoken to a group of friends at Midnight NZ time we may well speak to more at midnight our time (1pm New Years day in NZ)
Happy New Year to you all, wherever you are - we’re thinking of you
This morning dawned fine and cloudless so we had a leisurely breakfast before deciding to go tiki-touring, heading for Berkhamsted and Tring.
Both were quaint little towns, providing a few hours entertainment wandering around the shops and watching the locks on the Canal being operated.
We headed back this afternoon for a spot of DIY, hanging pictures and tidying up the house a little more.
More fun to be had tomorrow morning though, with a chest of drawers to assemble, completing the bedroom until our bed arrives early in the new year.
We took a drive to the seaside today, first driving through Margate (even more closed than we were expecting), then through the quaint village of Broadstairs (some nice houses on the clifftop) and stopping for lunch in Ramsgate, for a fish supper (Scampi and Chips on this occasion).
Next time we visit Ramsgate will be when we pop across to Europe on the Ferry. Return trips on TransEuropa are only £32 (£39 in the summer). With a 48 hour retun limit for this price we could squeeze in a weekend to Brugge or Northern France and plenty of time to visit the cash and carry too.
We received notification of an underpaid mail item to be delivered to our old address and was being held at Balham Post Office.
The item was underpaid by 23p and had a £1 charge levied on it.
We did what we thought was right, and jumped in the car, crossed town (literally), only to find that the item had not been postmarked or stamped at all, and we had in fact already received a copy by email.
If the mail clerk had thought to put a stamp on this item we could have had a more productive day.
Grrr. Hammonds Direct, consider yourself told-off!
Tomorrow we are off to Margate and Ramsgate for Fish and Chips on the beach. Are we mad?
Farewell 2006, no more work until 2007.
I spent the day in the office, clearing emails and manning the phones during lunchours.
2006 has been an eventful year and 2007 is shaping up to be an even bigger rollercoaster ride.
Hang on tight, we’re going in!
3 days early (thanks F2S) and I am now happily connected at 8mb (or thereabouts) and back in action for the new year.
Blogging (hopefully daily) will recommence, as long as I don’t cut through the cables when doing DIY.
We have almost finished unpacking and it is not the finer details of placement that we have to contend with.
Our new bed (delayed through incompetence on the manufacturers behalf) should be with us early in the new year.
Roll on summer, so that we have some warm weather to dry the pain on our lounge walls (that we intend to paint a nice shade of … anything but the lilac that is here at the moment!)
I must have been a really good boy this year!
Santa (well Mrs Claus at least) bought me a train set - but not just any old train set - I got a Hornby OO gauge Eurostar train, with added track packs too.
I haven’t had a train set since childhood, when I had an HO gauge Hornby train set that we purchased in Australia. I must have only been 5 or 6 at the time but I still remember playing with it for hours and hours at a time.
I’m looking forward to adding to this set over the coming months…
We’ve been busy this afternoon assembling our table and chairs for the dining room.
The new cordless drill came in handy and the chairs and table were assembled in no time.
Tonight we are going to attempt the wardrobe for the bedroom. If all goes well we will have the lounge cleared in the next 2 days.
Christmas is a bit of a non-event this year, although the tree is up and it has chilled down outside it seems to be too little too late.
We have been absorbed in the house buying process and missed out on a few months worth of planning.
Next xmas will feel a whole lot merrier.
That said, the stockings are full and presents are under the tree and we have a guest for a few days, so perhaps a few christmas spirits will get us in the mood.
Merry Christmas everyone!
Just in time for xmas…
We picked up the keys to our new home on Monday and have spent the past week unpacking, traipsing around Ikea, B&Q, Argos, Homebase, John Lewis, Waitrose and Sainsbury’s stocking up on items for our new home.
I am using dialup for the next few days until broadband is installed on 29 December (which can’t come soon enough)
Our new neighbours seem nice so far.
Blogging will resume on a daily basis in the new year now that we are back on track and work is settling down to a steady pace.
We move out at 1100 tomorrow morning, after living in boxville for the past 2 weeks.
Nowhere to go as yet, as the exchange and completion has not yet taken place
Roll on Morocco…