A Shopping Spree!

Yesterday I went on another shopping trip to Newcastle. I think I have said before that I love Newcastle, but I will say it again. |I love Newcastle, it is a great place. I was born in Gateshead, just across the Tyne, but often spent time in Newcastle, so I feel I am going home when I visit. Now I live some seventy miles north, so it's not so easy to get there, however, when I get the chance, I do make the effort. I wandered around the shops, Fenwicks, John Lewis, M&S, Debenhams - yes Newcastle has them all and more - enjoying every single moment. I also spent some money, which made the day even more enjoyable.  I ended the afternoon with a glass of wine in the M&S Cafe situated in the Food Hall, before going back to the car to return home.

Today, I went to play darts at our social club.  I should add here that I used to go regularly at one time, but was never any good at it.  However, you may be thinking that I might have developed a better aim since I was last there.  Let me put your mind at rest right now, nothing has changed. I was less than useless.  I threw my darts like a maniac possessed.  They went everywhere, except the target.  Thankfully everyone knew better than to stand anywhere near the board when I was about to throw.  Will I be there next week?  At the moment, your guess is as good as mine, so you'll have to watch this space. Right now, I am enjoying a glass of red wine, something of a consolation prize, I guess.

Hope your week is going well,

Cheers!

Drinks with Friends

Yesterday was a quiet day. I re-edited my short story and watched an episode of the West Wing.  I think I know that series by heart now. Yes, it was quiet, until around seven-thirty. That was when we put on our glad rags and went to a friend's house for drinks and nibbles.

This has become a regular occurrence. A small group of us have got together and and every so often we hold a mini 'party' in one of our homes, where we mull over all sorts of things over a drink or three. Last night was no exception and I have to say, we all had a very enjoyable evening. The conversation went from health, to politics, to tennis and the olympics We even discussed the world coming to an end in 2012!  I think the conclusion was, that if we only have a few more months left, we are certainly going to have to do some partying between now and then!

I hope you are having a party wherever you are

Cheers!

Stylish Blogger Award

How lovely to gain an award. 

I would like to thank Pat Newcombe at Thriller Writers Blog for passing on the Stylish Blogger award to me. I appreciate this award very much.

The Rules:

1. Thank and link back to the person giving you the award. (Many thanks Pat Newcombe!)
2. Share 7 Things About Yourself.
3. Award 10-15 Blogs Who You Think Deserve This Award.
4. Contact these bloggers and let them know about the award.

7 things about me:

1. I spend a lot of time writing and reading
2. I Love watching The West Wing!
3. I exercise using my Wii
4. My favourite tipple is wine or even a G&T

5. My favorite season is summer- I used to love the snow, but I have gone off that.
6. I am not keen on games, as they don't hold my interest for very long
7. I love animals

My 15 Stylish Blogs I pass this Award on to:

1.   http://thecoffeeloversblog.blogspot.com/
2.   http://akacatherinehoward.blogspot.com/
3.   http://writingsavedmylife.blogspot.com/
4.   http://toldyouiwasill.blogspot.com/
5.   http://womagwriter.blogspot.com/
6.   http://dianarubinoauthor.blogspot.com/
7.   http://teresaashby.blogspot.com/
8.   http://lynnehackles.blogspot.com/
9.   http://tillyrescuedog.blogspot.com/
10. http://theliteraryproject.blogspot.com/

Please visit some of the above and admire their blogs! 



Ups and Downs

Must get down to some serious writing today.  I seem to have dabbled at it since I came back from our few days away.  It seems to take me a while to get back into the routine.  One moment I am full of ideas, but when I come to write them down I seem to have lost momentum.

Yesterday I went back on the Wii for the first time since our break. The bad news is that I have put on 2lb while I was away. The good news is that I my Wii fit age is 33, so the 2lb weight gain didn't seem to matter too much. (It does really, but what the heck can I do about it?)  I'm not sure how they work out this Wii fit age, but while it is working in my favour, I won't knock it. I will have another go this afternoon and see how I do then.  I also watched a couple of episodes of The West Wing. (You will recall that I am absolutely hooked on that series and watch it over and over again.)

Today, my husband went to the surgery for a blood test or at least that's what he thought he was going for. It turned out it was for a Blood Pressure test. The one good thing was that he was supposed to there at all, as he had to set his alarm clock early to get there on time :-)

I sent my romantic novel off to another publisher today. It was the first novel I ever wrote and is still unpublished.  Anyway, I have received an acknowledgement of receipt so fingers are crossed yet again. People must think that I am arthritic, as I always seem to have my fingers crossed about something. But what else can I do? Once I have sent off a manuscript, it is in the lap of the Gods - so to speak.  If it would help to get it accepted, I would swing from lamp post to lamp post in our village singing the National Anthem.  (Watch this space)

Hope you have a swinging day,

Cheers!

Where Are The Short Stories?

Has anyone noticed that magazines have been slowly cutting short stories from their pages?

Why is this happening? I'm sure that there are a great number of people out there, who enjoy reading a spot of fiction in Women's Magazines. Yet, short stories are continuing to disappear. 

Back to the Grind!

We have been away for a few days.  We went to Nidd Hall near Harrogate in Yorkshire; it is a hotel for adults only and is very nice.  We relaxed most of the time, but did enjoy everything that was going on around us.  We loved the mini plays or Vignettes, as they call them. These were played out in the Drawing Room and lasted about ten or fifteen minutes. We also enjoyed the afternoon play, Double Death, which lasted about an hour in the Hotel Theatre.  I understand that the play was written by Simon Williams of Upstairs, Downstairs fame.  The evening were great, too.  Lots of dancing, singing and even a comedian.  As you can tell we had a great time.

Now I am back at home and things don't seem to have stopped since we walked through the door.  Washing, and ironing played a large part yesterday.  However, this morning we went to the Borders Book Festival, as the Borders Writers Forum, of which I am a member, were putting on an hour of entertainment to advertise our new Anthology called Border Voices on Border Ruins.  This afternoon, we have been invited to a drop in to celebrate someones birthday and tomorrow my husband has an appointment with the dentist.  I must also finish the short story to send to a magazine and I really will have to get back to my novel, Divorcees.com.

No doubt a few other things will crop up before the week is out.  But it is certainly better that wondering what to do next.

Hope you are enjoying the weekend.

Cheers!

Strange Thoughts!

When I awoke this morning, I lay for a while deciding whether I wanted to get up or not.  Suddenly, I heard the sound of my pulse.  It was a pulse beating in my ear!  Do we have a pulse in our ears?  Anyway, back to the point.  On the positive side, it was a good steady rhythm, which I was delighted with considering, until I thought it missed a beat, before starting off again.  Then it did it again.  Still lying there, I put my fingers to my neck to check out my heartbeat, but I couldn't feel a thing.  So I lay there and thought about it some more.  There had to be an answer.

Could I have passed away in the night?  Should I shake my husband and ask him whether I was really talking to him or not?  Or - this one is good - when I got out of bed, would I turn around and still see myself lying there?  Eventually, I realised I was letting my imagination run away with me and got out of bed.  Nevertheless, I did turn around and give a quick glance at where I had been lying.  Of course I wasn't still there.  All I can say is that while these thoughts were running through my mind, I didn't panic - on the other hand, what on earth would have been the point? 

As you can tell from the fact I am writing this, I am still alive and kicking.  I am also writing this with a glass of wine at hand.  Yes, life is hard, but wine certainly helps.

There has got to be a story in there somewhere.

Have a good weekend.

Cheers!

Moans and More Moans

I still haven't been to Newcastle.  How sad is that?  I love looking around the shops in the city, but for one reason or another, I haven't been able to make it.  Hopefully I will get there soon otherwise the whole city is going to wonder where I am!  They have got to be missing me darting around the shops trying to fit everything into one visit.

I am trying to re-edit another story to sent to Take a Break.  I have a few submissions there at the moment, so my fingers are crossed.  However, knowing my luck, they will all come winging back together.  I have read several copies of the magazine, and I have re-read several copies of the magazine, and I still don't know what is so different about my stories to the ones they publish.  However, there must be something, as I am still trying to bend the Fiction Editor's ear.  But I haven't given up yet.  It is such a shame that The Lady stopped publishing short fiction, as I had been writing for them in a freelance capacity for some time.

My husband still hasn't managed to control his diabetes.  He has to keep ringing the Diabetic Dept giving his readings, and they then up the dose, but so far he still has a problem.  No doubt it will sort itself out soon - but when??

Yesterday I had another session on the Wii and I think that is the only positive thing in my life this week, as the results are getting better.  Truthfully, I quite enjoy it, so I think I will go and have another try now.

Take care all and have a good day.

Cheers!

The Week So Far

We had a very pleasant afternoon on Sunday.  We were invited to a neighbours house to carry on from where we had left off the Friday before.  Therefore there is no need for me to tell you that the wine flowed at an alarming rate.  This time, as the weather here had cooled considerably, my swollen feet had reduced in size, so I was able to wear shoes.  

Tuesday was Haircut Day!  My husband is looking neat and tidy again.  Last week it had to be postponed, as he wasn't feeling at all well, but yesterday there were no problems and the afternoon went off well.  His hair was cut before my friend had drunk too much - if it is left till later in the afternoon, the scissors take on a life of their own and things can happen that weren't meant to.   (If you see what I mean)

Today I was going to go to Newcastle, but I didn't get up early enough, so it has been put off until another day.  Instead we might pop into Berwick.  Not quite the same, but it will have to do.

Later I think I will have another crack at the Wii.  I am getting better, but not quite good enough to take on the world yet.

I think that is all at the moment.

Enjoy your day

Pleasant Evening

On Friday evening we went to a gathering in our friend's garden for a few drinks.  It had been a very hot day, so I think everyone welcomed the cooler evening.  I certainly did!  My poor feet had swollen during the day and by the time it came to get changed, I found I couldn't get any shoes on.  Nothing would fit.  Anyway, not to be miss out, I went to the 'do' in a pair of slip-on slippers.  At one time, they were rather nice, as they have golden coloured sequins on the upper.  However, they are getting on a bit and some of the sequins are missing now.  Not to mention the stains of several liquids that had been spilled on them.  Oh! and the soles are drifting apart from the uppers!  Nevertheless, I wore them to the do.  They must have gone down okay, as we are invited to another do this afternoon!

Might have a trip to Newcastle tomorrow.  I'm not sure at the moment, as it involves getting out of bed a little earlier; the city is some 70 miles away from here.  But I do love going there, so I might be swayed.  Wait and see!

Well I guess I had better get back to see what my divorcees have been up to, while I have been playing around with another short story for a magazine.

Have a good day!

Cheers!

Another Hospital Appointment

My husband had another hospital appt this morning.  We had to be there for 9.45am, so thankfully it was at our local general hospital, because that is not a good time of day for us. We both like to break into the day gently, rather than take a headlong dash at it.  On the other hand, having an earlier appt meant that we got a parking space quite easily.  There was none of the usual driving around waiting for someone to leave and the dangerous act of nosing your way into the spot before someone else gets in first.  Also, the seating at this hospital is much more comfortable than some we have been to recently.  I have to add that the staff were very thorough.  We were there for about three hours while my husband underwent several tests.

It is another hot, sunny day.  Two days in a row - that has got to be a bonus.  This evening we have been invited for a relaxing drink with our neighbours in their garden, which sounds very nice.  In the meantime, I am going to try to keep cool.

Hope your day is filled with sunshine,

Cheers!

Red Hot June!

Okay, yesterday was absolutely freezing and I said so on here.  However, today is the complete opposite.  It is warm and sunny, just as a June day should be.  It is the sort of June day I remember when I was a kid.  Hopefully it will last more than one day, but you never know in this country.  Therefore I think we should all make the most of it.  So what the heck am I doing sitting here writing this when I could be out there wallowing in the sun?

Went to the hairdresser today for a cut and blow dry, so I am looking very smart around the head at the moment.  Later my husband and I called for coffee at out local garden centre, before doing a little shopping.  The town was packed.  The lovely sunshine must have brought out all the people.

The town has a new one way system, which is designed to keep the traffic moving.  Usually it works very well, but today is recycling day for the shops, so the traffic was held up while the guy collecting the cardboard etc, loaded his lorry or whatever it is they call it.  The line of cars stretched back up the road and snaked around the corner.  There is the same problem if one of the shops is having a delivery - still, I suppose you can't win them all.

Perhaps I might get the chance to sit out on our garden swing.  The weather turned bad shortly after we bought it, so I'm afraid it hasn't been used very much. We should take the opportunity today in case the sunshine doesn't last.

Perhaps I should mention that I am getting better on the Wii.  Perseverance does the trick.

Hope you have sunshine wherever you are.

Cheers!

Freezing June!

Is it just me or is it really cold this morning?  I would have expected some warmer weather by now, yet today is the 1st June and it is freezing! What is going on?  Has someone out there been messing with the calendar?  Is it only February and I have somehow got lost in the mists of time? 

A neighbour has just knocked at the door with some flowers.  I had ordered something for her on my computer, so brought me flowers.  How lovely.  It has quite made my day.

I don't know whether the postman has been yet, but if he has, then there isn't anything for us.  Perhaps it's just as well, as it seems to be the time of the month for bills to drop onto the mat.

Nothing else going on at the moment, so I will have to leave it at that.  Should something turn up, then I'll be back.

I hope your day is going well.

Cheers!