Winter Thrills.

It's so cold. I want it to snow again and settle and be a winter wonderland but instead it's just freezing and rainy. It did snow (quite violently) for about 10 minutes earlier.... then it turned back to rain.
Today I went for a long walk punctuated by a pub lunch and a trip to Sheffield's finest chocolate shop... "Cocoa". The violet cream was, as ever, the most delicious of all chocolates and I made it last me three bites! Yum yum!
Hope this picture warms you all up.

Seasonal illness.

I woke up at 3am and thought "jeepers... my throat sure is dry.... oh wait, I can't swallow.... and my eyes are dry as a bone. How lovely!"
I had a Strepsil and a Lemsip for breakfast.... no use! I had some cold and flu tablets..... no use! I think this bad boy is here to stay!
I thinkI should eat some healthy food but instead today I gorged on the three main food groups... pastry, pastry and PASTRY! Oh dear.
I promise I'll try better tomorrow!
Working in a shop these past two days has been HORRENDOUS! Are people that desperate for a so-called "bargain" they are happy to turn into dribbling, incoherent imbeciles? I was praying for snow so they'd all panic and crawl back under the rocks they surfaced from!

Ho hum.

Today is my least favourite day of the festive period so far. Mainly because I know I have to go to work tomorrow..... Thanks to the collection of chumps who work at our place my fun Christmas has been hindered by their "I can't get into work my train's cancelled/ it's too snowy to drive/ I'm a div" text messages... firstly.... I was "off" work therefore tell someone who is in..... secondly.... thanks alot, I'm now worried about under-staffing and offering my services on my much anticipated days off. Thankfully I was not taken up on my offers. Yet it now feels a bit like I've not had time off due to worrying about their crap.
Had a nice time though but now the dread of work/sale upsets me deeply.
I just want to sleeeeeeeeeep. Or watch a Disney film.

It's all over!

I had a splendid day yesterday and we had a veritable feast on our hands! There's still so much left so it looks like bubble 'n' squeak until January now!
I woke up really early (I was excited to see is Father Christmas had been! Haylee said she saw him!) and watched a very emotional episode of Only Fools and Horses. Then it was time to get ready and look my festive best!
We had a little bit of breakfast then opened all the presents (he had been!!!) and I slaved for hours in the kitchen!
Thanks to my brother and sister-in-law who got us a lovely oven to table cookware set in turquoise...... or we wouldn't have been able to cook our dinner!
I pretty much spent the rest of the day lounging and sleeping and playing The Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks that Joe got me.... its soooooo good. In fact I'm going to get another cup of coffee, have a shower and play it somemore!

Christmas Eve.

The same as every year I wake up ridiculously early on Christmas Eve. I will be really sleepy on Christmas Day and not want to get out of bed. Yet, there's something about Christmas Eve that makes me all excited!
I woke up at 6 am and it is snowing a real treat! (The buses may be cancelled though so I am rather worried about having to walk to work!)
I'm having a coffee and cooking some pasta to make pesto salad for my lovely work colleagues as today is buffet day where everyone brings tasty food and we all share it. How Quaint!
Its fancy dress today for the chance to win a £50 voucher...... and I gots my eye on some sparkly shoes! I'm going as a snowy Ice angel and am debating busting out the blue wig...... but I am the only one trained to deal with angry customers who are idiots therefore I feel the wig may anger them! We'll see!

Christmas shoppers.

Are idiots.

Tesco Schmesco.

Yeeeesh. Went to do our Christmas food shop (pretty much consisted of an array of treats and some Quorn scotch eggs that are already gone) and it was hell on earth! I can imagine it is only going to get worse! Luckily we are going to get all our veggie goodness from the nice man at Sharps down the road.
I keep veering from excited about Christmas to pretty much p**sed off about it. I think that mainly comes from the upcoming shifts at work and severe lack of days off until Christmas day. It may also have something to do with the repeated hangovers I've had this week from nights out. Bleck! I'm getting old and need to not drink mucky beer.
It's family Christmas on Sunday before my Mum goes back to Australia. Looking forward to that but after a day of crazy children and an even crazier Grandma I'll be ready to hide in my bed.

boo

My pyjamas really ripped. They were a pyjama skirt.

Boohoo.

My favourite pyjamas ripped.

bleak Sunday.

It was the work Christmas party last night and I am feeling the burn today. Ugh. Naughty old rum.
I did, however, put my Christmas tree up today and here is a picture of my lovely dove friend who lives in it.
Haylee enjoyedthe tree and thought it was a really good game.

Dinner time!

I took a bag of stuff to the charity shop yesterday and ended up coming home with this! I got the whole lot for tenner! Now I'm really excited for Christmas day because I can use all my set! I'm thinking of all different sauces I can put in my bowls and jugs! The meat platter seems a bit excessive since we're vegetarian but I found some veggie sausage-meat in Holland and Barratt and when Charley's mum made it it was real nice! So Maybe I'll do a faux meat platter! I can;t wait! (ignore the mess and fruit bowl full of medicine!)

Mr Grumpy....

... I feel really Grumpy this weekend. Maybe its a pre-Christmas anger brewing. Or maybe it's because I've had to work all weekend and the general public are just ridiculous. In any case I feel like the grumpy little doggy here.
I just want to go to bed and turn the lights off and sleeeeeeeeeeeeep.

All I want for Christmas is...

... a Cherry B.

December cometh.

It's on it's way. I love December because you get a chocolate treat every morning!
Today I received the good news that my sister in law's waters broke in the night! This means there will be a new baby within 24 hours! They've kept it a secret like last time so I'm excited because I really want a niece and because I can finally finish my Christmas shopping knowing who I can buy for!
Today is the craft fair so I am going walk through the treacherous conditions (rain) and go see my little Charley selling all her cute wares!

Joy to the world! lalalala!

I'm starting to feel quite festive. My body is telling me its Christmas soon by way of strange cravings. Baileys, Brandy hot chocolates, After Eights, Bubble Baths, Ferrero Rocher, Pyjamas, Movies, Lovely Jumpers, Making Christmas Cards. I want it to snow! I want to go to the countryside and walk in the snow then go for a nice winter dinner in an old pub with a warm fire! I want to wear glitter on my face and bows in my hair! I want to wear hat, scarf and gloves all at the same time! I want my friends to come over and serve them mince pies and warming beverages. We would eat Pretzels and fruit and nut mix and chocolates off the tree! We would all wear red and green and sparkles and our noses would be red and our cheeks rosy!
I want to live in an old Christmas card!
(*this is a photo of a gingerbread house my Mum baked and iced when I was about 5 and it was on display in the dining room and I used to steal bits of icing or just stand and sniff it. It smelled so good!)
Christmas was so fun when I was small! Mum always put her best dishes out with tasty treats and there was wine (with lemonade in for me!). the cat had the giblets out of the Turkey and thought it was the best day ever! My Grandparents came over with their dog and we would undoubtedly dress her up. Grandad would always hide a £1 in our Christmas pudding.
I miss those Christmases. I think when you are small you are excited for Christmas because you get something out of the ordinary. Presents. Seeing your family. A strange day that seems nothing like any other of the year. Then when you get older you just miss it and think back to how good it was and it will never be again!
Sniff. Bummed out now.

A great day out!

Had a day off today and it was much fun (excluding the blood test that the evil nurse botched and the fact I had a massive headache).
Best bit of today was Joe spotting this in the Mind shop. I never look through records!

She works hard for the money!

A week in the new job.... feels no different to before. Think I need to see my increased pay check before I feel like I'm doing anything different. I think the fact I feel no different just proves I was doing far more than my previous role entailed!
I'm starting to feel a bit Christmassy! Working in Retail makes you this way. You feel Christmassy really early (Christmas window display tomorrow!) then you get to actual Christmas and you just HATE IT!

Goodbye Hallowe'en.

Gone again for another year. Now I probably have to wait until Christmas to dress up again. I've had a lovely week off from work. Very uneventful, plenty of naps and alot of food. Start back at work tomorrow in my new promoted position. Maybe I'll wear a power suit and red lipstick.

Film Star.

My lovely friend told me I looked like a film star!

Hallowe'en funtime!

We went out last night to an art exhibition by French. I like his stuff because its scary skeletons
and skulls! I had great fun dressing up as a Pierrot clown and I liked all the Sailor Jerry I got to drink.

Hallowe'eeeeeeen!

I'm so excited for Hallowe'en..... because
I have Fiendish Fancies.

Hallowe'en costumery.

Today has been a very strange day. I cried pretty much non stop from the minute i woke up at 8 am until about 1.30 pm. The smallest thing set me off. I saw a little boy fall off his scooter and bang his knee. When he cried, I cried. Like a baby. his dad looked terrified of me, but then I don;t blame him!
I went for a wander with my friend which cheered me up a touch and then I walked home through the Cemetery which is so peaceful. I saw a squirrel running with a nut in his mouth. I like squirrels.
Anyway, because I am skint and am going to a Hallowe'en party I need a costume. I need a costume that i can make out of what I already own! Firstly i thought aha! Something Dead! But then I think everyone will be a Zombie and the milkmaid dress I wanted to wear is a big tight and uncomfortable. So then I thought CLOWN! Big scary IT style colourful clown. but then I had a better idea... A Pierrot! I can't wait to dress up as Pierrot. I've done a pumpkin with a crying clown face to match me! I've been sitting making wool pom poms for my dress... though I've been attacked my Haylee Cat many times as I have the wonderful wiggly wool.
I liked this picture of Pierrots.

This is Hallowe'en.

I'm excited for Hallowe'en! I want to dress up as a zombie anything and Haylee can be a Zombie Cat... just like this lil fella.

Bus Strike.

I was at the bus stop this morning (I know! Being a lazy bum!) and a lady came over and said "are the buses striking today too?" I was so scared! I'd not got enough time to walk to work and I was the only manager in to open up! Luckily they were not on strike and I got to work safe and on time. Phew! They are, however, on strike tomorrow. Boohoo!

Mucky Beers.

Last night I had a few beers with my workmates and have spent my whole day feeling horrendous for it. I must be getting old. It's 24 hours since I had the beers and I still feel icky. All I wanted to do was eat eat eat, drink pop and sleep. Thankfully everyone else who went out felt ill too so I didn't have to struggle alone.

Yowzers!

Been a tough two days at work, due to be a tough one tomorrow too.
I'm thinking that I need to get a hobby. Something useful, fun and rewarding. I spend too much of my time working so when I get home I just spend it couch-potato style. I visit the gym occasionally and like to go on walks but of an evening I usually just get in bed! I need something I can do at home! Knitting! Story writing! Just got to stop sleeping!

10th October.

The worst day of my year is today and there's nothing I want to do less than go into work on a Saturday and deal with hoards of angry people with wierd shaped feet. What I want to do is wrap up warm and go out for nice walk, stop by a pub for some dinner then walk home and get in bed and go to sleep.
As is usual with this date, every year, I wake up really early (about 5am) and can't sleep. I am stuck in some sort of strange awake/dream hell and I roll about and my head hurts and I feel incredibly tired in the body but awake in the mind. Then when it is actually time to get up I feel like I'm living inside a big black cloud and I just want to stay there, not get up.
In some ways I'm grateful that things have changed over the years and I'm not the same crumpled up mess lying in bed sobbing for hours but then being on Prozac for over a year is possibly having something to do with that. Oh why oh why did I not book this day off weeks ago. Bloody Saturday rule.
Think about it this way.... in 10 hours I'll be back at home. Jack Daniels in hand.

J H Lynch.

Today I got a Tina painting by J H Lynch. It was £20 (of with I still owe Joe a tenner......) It was in the local charity shop a couple of weeks ago at £120... "that's how much they're worth you know" I was told by the quite nice, if a little know-it-all lady who runs the shop. Yes my dear... perhaps in mint condition, this one however has a scratch in her eye and a couple of marks... therefore is not worth £120..... Then it got reduced to £40... still a bit pricey for me! Today I went for a look and said "maybe if Tina is £20 I will buy it" And it was! It was! Now Joe has hung her above the stairs and she is oh so pretty!
I've heard stories that she is haunted and I took picture of her and there were orbs all around! (Joe says they are dust.... sceptic/ scaredy bum.)
I'm glad I have a Tina painting finally..........

memories.

This week is a sad week for me and I have been going through childhood photos. I really like this one because I can remember going on holiday every year to the same place and we'd go to Jimmy's Bodega every night. Every year we'd go back and Jimmy and his wife always remembered us.

Ear Muff weather.

Dark nights, drizzly rain..... Ear muff weather is here!

Cats are pernickity things.

This is Amelie who hisses at Haylee and smacks her on the bum. This is Amelie sleeping in Haylee's house. Yet the kitten who is polite and friendly got hissed at and growled at by Haylee..... Must be a pecking order thing.

the kitten.

poor old kitten who cannot live with us.

What a week!

Well, it's been a week of ups and downs! Terrifying hospital appointment where the most unsavoury happenings occured. A night in with my chums, a buffet, homemade blackberry wine but no board games. Still ill from that dreadful bug. A night of 12 hours sleep. Going charity shopping. Then I borrowed a kitten....... to see hoe Haylee felt about a little friend...... she hated it..... she hissed..... she growled...... noises I never thought she could make. In the end the kitten hs returned to his mummy. I cried alot but already Haylee is a happier little girl and the kitten got a little lick off his mummy and doggy friend. Sigh. Haylee will be an only child. I had an extra strong Jack Daniels to stop the tears.

Mondays.

A day off on a Monday is a rare and beautiful thing. No paperwork for me to deal with. By the time I get to work tomorrow it will be all gone! Hooray!

Happy Birthday to you!

It's Joe's birthday today. Old man! We went out for tea and drinks last night but I was ill and went home to bed and he stayed out partying till all hours! (midnight! heehee!)
Then it was present giving this morning now we're going out to do something. He has a hangover, I have a bug. Can't see this going too well myself!

Thinking of the days gone by.

Days gone by, when I was thin, I went to Australia to stay with my Mummy. Here I am looking out at the 12 Apostles at Apollo Bay.

Poorly Sick.

My 9 hour shift today felt like 9 days. I felt sick, my throat hurts, I have a serious headache and my eye is twitching. (sure sign of a migraine). Thinking I'd get a bit of sympathy at work.... WRONG! Three other people apparently have the same thing. So it was a day of pain and snivelling. This cute little nursie cheers me up though! Thanks little nursie!

Already excited for Hallowe'en.

The nights are getting darker, the wind is blowing chilly. Leaves are falling off the trees and people are starting to wear boots! Oh yessss! This means one thing... AUTUMN IS HERE! And that means HALLOWE'EN! I love Hallowe'en. Scary films, making a pumpkin face and using the inners to make a tasty soup, Sweeties but best of all..... DRESSING UP!!!! Yipyip! I can't wait! I've booked the whole week leading up to Hallowe'en off from work. It's going to be, like, soooo American! Paper bats, skeleton hands, black cats.
Then it's Bonfire Night... ACK! I hate it! I like the food very much, (veggie varieties only though!) Jacket potatoes, veggie hot dogs, veggie burgers, cinder toffee, toffee apples. yum yum yum. Buty I hate the fireworks. They frighten all the poor little animals. And fires are dangerous. FACT!

Cat city.

This is Amelie. She is the old lady next door. She is Haylee's cantankerous friend. Sometimes she chases Haylee, sometimes she sniffs Haylee. Right now she's had a handful of biscuits and is sitting on the settee with me and Joe. Haylee doesn't care, she's too young for sitting around. She has spiders to go look for.

Nostalgia.

I'm up and ready for work well in time to walk there but I just don't want to. Instead I'm sitting here wasting time.
I'm nostalgic for my fun days working with Charley. We didn't start till 10 which was a plus point straight away. We had access to Cappuccino for 75p (Albeit rubbish cappuccino! One was ALL foam, one was ALL milk) but it was 75p non the less. Most mornings we'd have a cheeky breakfast with it.
We could dress manequins up in pretty outfits and do their hair and play with all the pretty things.
I'm just bummed out cos now I now have to go and not do anything marginally creative. Just drudgery and sweating.

I love this stuff!

Sigh. This photo makes me smile. All the fun stuff in one place.

I love days off!

I moan that I hate work, but if I didn't work I wouldn't get days off. It's all well and good saying "I wish I was off everyday" but then I'd have no money and could not play. If I won the Lottery however, now that would be a different story all together! I could happily do my own thing everyday! Bake a cake, go for a walk, do something nice for charity, play with Haylee. I'd enjoy that.
Today was a nice day off. Nice sunny day, going to Botanical Gardens with my chum..... then the day turned bad when I saw a cat get hot by a car. The driver never even stopped. Bastard. The cat ran away. I tried to find him to check him but he was gone. I hope he is OK.

Baby fever.

My friend had her baby two days ago. It's been fun to go from watching her bump develop to it being an actual baby! It doesn't seem real when its in there, then when you see it you're like WOAH!!!!!!! AMAZING!!!!
I never really used to like babies... well, I wouldn't say I didn't like them.... I was mainly indifferent and a little bit scared. But I picked my friend's baby up all by myself and her head stayed on and everything! I felt very proud of me and my friend!
Now I'm extra excited for my new nephew or niece due to arrive in December! Now I know I dare to touch them!It makes me feel all maternal though I've been told my my friend not to do it! She had to have her lady's front bit cut open so the baby could come out. Ack! She is very brave!

Hayle HEART Tony.

This is Haylee with Tony. Tony is her toy mouse and she loves him so. So much so, sh brought him upstairs at 4.52am and when she couldn't get into our bedroom proceeded to cry and yowl to be let in with Tony.
Joe was having non of it and threw Tony down the stairs so Haylee just came upstairs, got on the bed and became a pumping drooling purring mess. But I still love her! Naughty lil tyke!

Exhaustion.

Wowzers. Working the bank holiday is a strange thing. Shorter days yet they feel like they just drag on forever!
Glad to be home now though but little Haylee just don't wanna play with me!

The other day I had this sleepy lil tike on me! Michael the kitten, soon to be called Death. She will always be Michael to me!

I hate getting up for work.

I just want to stay home and play with the ponies.

Pottery animals.

Lovely lovely animals.

Same day, different cat.

This one, I think, was the mummy. There were three young'uns there too.

Knee Nipper.

This cat bit my knee one day. Not in a bad way, he just gets carried away.

Hurricane Bill.

Sometimes people tell me things and I think they are making things up. I guess I'm feeling a bit paranoid today though. Like everyone knows something and I'm not allowed to know. It makes me feel really tired. My feet feel a bit numb and my left eyes feels heavy and I just want to take in big gulps of air.

Retail therapy.

I work in retail.. Fact.
I need therapy.. Fact.

bad days.

Cut out alcohol... no wine for me.
Lose weight... no cheese no chocolate no chips for me.
Exercise... no rest for me.
Hey ho, what has to be done has to be done.
On plus... rambling!

Waiting for September.

This summer has been a total wash out. Far removed from the bright sun, occasional light breeze, ice lollies and beer gardens. Closer to no air, sticky rain and grey clouds.
Bring on September.... the changes begin!
I love Autumn! Reminds me of the first day in a new class at school. New shoes. New pencil case. New school bag. Getting crisp new books for each subject and putting your name and class on the front in your bestest writing. Walking home as the nights darken earlier and shiny conkers plop out of the trees!
Yeah yeah! I know, I'll be fed up by the third week of September but it's nice to get excited about stuff!

Everyone thinks cats are a superior animal....

... but my cat, Haylee, licked my feet after a nine hour shift at work. Sick kitty! Don't know what must be worse for her. That or the tinned tuna my boyfriend fed her. Ack!
Today was a really loooooong day. Generally populated by complete assholes who are unable to say the words "please" or "thankyou" and who I am convinced think my main aim in life is to serve them things they don't want or that will not fit them. Sorry dude! I just want a cup of tea. To be honest, I'd rather sip on a cup of acid than deal with you much longer. *sigh* The bills must be paid, food must be put on the table (or in the cat bowl).

Let me re-introduce myself...

So I started on here just under two years ago. Back in the days living in Vincent Manor with BigShoes, working with the greatest chum ever in a vintage shop run by charlatans and nazis and generally tootling around.
Then the world changed! I moved in with a BOY!
My world became a heady cocktail of washing, ironing and other good housewifely chores (heehee, I jest!)
In reality I've spent my absence from here collecting My Little Ponies, dressing up and playing video games. It's a nice life really.
Well, welcome to my blog. I promise I will try to pop by regularly with little anecdotes, fairytales and photos of cats.
X McBean.