I Like Who You Are

One of my (many) peculiarities is that I have the ability to recall dates.

Not just Birthdays, wedding anniversaries (although I DID managed to forget my own last year ;) and other important events, but the little things, insignificant to others maybe, but things that mean so much to me.

It's a bit of a double edged sword, a bitter sweet gift if you like.

It's started today and there are a whole host of them looming and I'm struggling just a little to know how I'm going to handle them.

Not too well I suspect ...

I've had a pretty good week.

Last Saturday I went to Saunton and Croyde.

a little reminder if you missed the post

On Wednesday I went to Honiton.  A beautiful, mostly Georgian town famous for it's lace making heritage.

Almost every other shop is full of lace, antiques or curio's, I could lose myself for days.

However!

After a brief stop for tea in the Boston Tea Party

This is MY kind of tea room :)

We headed off to Beer, a small working fishing village where the boats are winched up onto the beach and fresh fish is available from a little shack all year round.

We didn't make it into the man made limestone caves carved into the cliffs  used by smugglers this time round but we did sit on the wall to watch the fishermen bringing in their catch chased by a flock of noisy seagulls.

Then on Wednesday evening I had a call from my lovely Mr O who was passing by and wanted to know if he could take me to dinner.

Oh, go on then ;)

Dinner at Brazz, part of the famous Castle Hotel where chefs such as Phil Vickery (who was sacked from there;), Gary Rhodes and Kit Chapman have plied their trade.

It is a lovely place to eat but maybe a touch pretentious for me on a daily basis, I much prefer the Sanctuary.

So, what else have I been up to this week?

Well, of course it was Valentines Day on Monday.

A day to remind those of us who are single just how unlovable we really are ...

I know, commercialised crap :) and the truth is, I don't really buy in to it. 

It can be a sweet tradition and a time to reinforce your love for someone with thoughtful gestures and reminders of why you are together but hopefully that would be something not just saved for February 14th.

I wasn't expecting anything so to get 4 cards came as a bit of a shock really.

Slightly cringe making is the thought that they might have been sent by those who feel sorry for me!

Reassuring was the fact that none of them were sent by my Mother :)

Two with London postmarks and two hand delivered.

Just to put things in perspective, last year I had nada and the year before one. 

This is unprecedented.

Well, I now know who one of them was from but the others .....

On Thursday I decided it was a great idea to say that BOTH the children could have sleepovers.

I know, I'm certifiable (and obviously my recall doesn't take into account the times I've said never again!)

So, there I was with 4 hungry teenagers demanding food and my bloody oven blew up!

All I need now is for my washing machine to stop working and I'll have a full set of completely useless kitchen appliances!!!

Surfer Dude was (as ever) my knight in shining armour and rode to the rescue (aka, the supermarket) for ready cooked chicken ect AND he has a friend who will hopefully be here later today to either mend my oven or, as is more likely, condemn the wiring in the whole of my shitty house.

He also took me over to the farm yesterday, the source of my lovely free range eggs and Bramley apples so I could cook the crispy duck the kids missed out on (their loss, my gain:).

Where I helped him build a bonfire.

I love a good bonfire :)

the fire reflected in the farmhouse window

 And took a look at his latest project.

Could you even imagine a better name for it :)

So, although there may be things right now that make me incredibly sad, they are things that I don't have the power to change.  God knows, I would if I could.

I do have many good things in my life, I guess I just can't have it all.