Poor planning

I found out yesterday that I wasn’t needed to groom for the Norfolk today. I was at a bit of a loose end. Well till a client asked if I could do a site visit to Essex.

I set off early to beat the heat, in shorts no less and windows open. The downside to the Comedy Car – no AC. I was making good time till an accident on A12 stopped my progress. My Sat Nav took me on a bit of a scenic route. You know the type where you feel like you’re getting further away from where you’re heading. It also kept telling me there was a faster route. Which seemed to add more time! Work that one out.

Still I got to my destination, did what I needed to do and headed back home. It was only when I was nearly home that I realised I’d been about 20 mins away from Ingatestone Saddlery.

So that was poor planning on my part. Probably better for my wallet though. I will get there one day.

Cloister

I went to a wedding today. It was held in Norwich Castle. I love a castle. And Norwich Castle is pretty special. So that was rather cool. Ironically it was like the bowls of Vesuvius inside.

But the venue for the reception topped it though! It was held at The Great Hospital on Bishopsgate.

I had no idea it was there. My gosh it’s stunning. They have the smallest cloister in England. It seems I love a cloister. It was like something from Harry Potter.

Originally built in 13th century for retired clergy and church staff, it’s now sheltered housing. Still run by a charity, it’s got great event spaces. The food was lush. The staff on point. The downside to being in Events is that you can see things others don’t. This was wonderful.

I took so many photos of the grounds and buildings. Just stunning.

Sausages

I met a friend for brunch this morning. I might have mentioned I’m a fan of brunch. Especially when this is the view.

Decided to push the boat out and have more than just a breakfast bap. I had ‘The Greenhouse’. Yes it was mostly veggies. But I swapped the vegan sausages for proper ones.

I don’t eat much meat, but I’m partial to a sausage (insert your own jokes there). I only ate one, opting to split the other one between my friend’s dogs. They were very happy with that deal! I has eyes bigger than… Let’s just say I didn’t need much for dinner.

1 tog

The weather has warmed up considerably over the past few days. That’s resulted in a few broken nights’ sleep as I’ve been overheating. Even with the summer duvet.

I’m not a fan of sleeping uncovered. Last summer I found I was getting cold under an empty duvet cover (call me Goldilocks). So a new lightweight duvet was needed. Just the one tog!

Watch the temperatures plummet and a new ice age decent on the UK. I apologise now…

Tour

Supersub was called into action today. This time for a tour of Norwich City’s Training Centre. We arrived in good time. Only to be informed that there were players and coaching staff there so we couldn’t do the whole tour. Then the heavens opened and we had to wait it out. Finally the tour was underway. And everyone has left, so we got to see everything. Well the bits we were allowed to see. Lots of bits off limits for various reason.

Still it was a fun outing. And not something anyone can do apparently. Sadly Aviva Lemur wasn’t on the Legends wall. There were lots I’ve met though.

They have a wall with every player who’s ever played for the club. Even if it was a 5 mins appearance. It was quite the list. Interesting to see who next to be added…

Good

I saw this and it kind of sums up my week, not just my day. I’ve done lots of things this week that have made someone’s day just a little bit better.

It’s amazing how simple things can make a big difference. I helped a friend move. I took another friend’s horse to the vets. I went with her to collect said horse. I made people feel seen and heard at the chiropractors. I listened to people in my life who needs to vent. I’ve been there for others.

It’s been a good week. I will sleep well tonight.

Gardener

I came across some photos from when I moved into my little house last night. It seems like a long time ago now. Well it was over a decade ago. The garden looked so neat, tidy and manicure – a far cry from the lived in version now. I know I’ve let things grow a bit too much. It’s gotten quite out of hand. I love gardening. But in recent years, I haven’t had as much time or inclination to get out there and keep on top of it. I’ve prioritised other things I guess too.

The photos were a stark reminder of how bad it has gotten. The former owner is probably turning in his grave at the state of it. So this afternoon I made a start by mowing the back lawn. I’m going to try and spend a bit more time out there. I really need to weed my driveway. It’s more grass than gravel.

Having new neighbours is a bit of an incentive too. My garden won’t ever look like a Chelsea Show Garden. I’m not that good a gardener. I do prefer the more natural look. I do think it needs some more hard landscaping though so thinking about that.

I spent a fortune on my last garden. I absolutely loved it. I was gutted to see that the people who moved in had ripped it all out.

Still today it was Lawn 0 – Pip 1. Which was a better result than the football. So glad I rushed to get everything done before kick off…

Bosch

End of an era Chez Langley. This washing machine has served me well. But things don’t last forever. I inherited it when I moved in over 10 years ago. I had no idea how old it was then! So it owes me nothing.

Like us as we age, it started having bladder issues and I’ve found a few accidents. The irony being that once I’d used a few tea towels to mop up the puddles, I needed to wash them.

That and it’s been prime drying weather these past few days.

So I started looking for a new one. It must be a good 18 years since I bought a new washing machine. Things have moved on massively. The bewildering array of functions is slightly overwhelming. As are some of the prices! For the money, I’d want the machine to fold and put the clothes away too.

So I went old school and popped to a shop. Had a good chat with the man there and a new shiny Bosch washing machine is being delivered tomorrow. Bye bye Bosch, I bought a Bosch.

Ragwort

Two exciting things happened today. This was one of them. It’s by far the best thing I’ve found for pulling ragwort and weeds. It can be a quite onerous job. But this makes it so much fun! I think I was having too much fun. Buddy was very interested and followed me round the field.

Definitely didn’t fire the ragwort into the barrow like I was loading a shotgun. Almost certainly didn’t do my own sound effects. And my horse most definitely didn’t canter round his field…

Might have got a bit carried away when I got home too. Let’s just say my ‘lawn’ looks more like Swiss cheese after my efforts.

Is it a measure of how dull my life is that this makes me very happy?! Good job I can laugh at myself.

The other exciting thing that happened was that I trotted Buddy under saddle for the first time. Just to see how he felt. He was a bit tense for the first few strides – as was I! We both soon relaxed into it. Now I know he’s feeling more level again, I can slowly increase it. Slow and steady wins the race!

Aesthetic

An early start for me as I needed to be at Easton College for 7am this morning. It was Carleton Riding Club’s show. After a morning on the laptop scoring dressage tests, it was time to set the course for the afternoon jumping. Much more fun than wrestling an excel spreadsheet.

The practise jumps has mismatched poles. This bothered me as it’s not a great aesthetic. Grateful that my friends know me and understand my desire for co-ordination. The poles were soon matched up, making me smile.

It’s a good job I’m not a demanding diva or anything…. I think they still love me after making them change them.

It was another great show. I love being part of such a supportive, friendly club.