Little rambles

Posted on April 11, 2017 by thepogblog

One thing I’m really quite good at is rambling.  So when my friend went into a hospice I sent her the occasional rambling message to read at those times she might be on her own and need a distraction.  They were really rather boring – things I’d heard or done, or a photo I’d taken, but she said that she liked reading them.

Today was her funeral. I thought I’d write her one more ramble as I’m ashamed to say that I’d not sent her a message for ages.  I was waiting for something big enough to require a mention to happen.  And it didn’t.

But Sarah, I know you’d love the fact that today it did – and it was you, and you still managed to make me smile.

First was as I walked into the church and I overheard the vicar talking to your husband.  You’d asked for us all to wear something purple.  The vicar was assuring your husband that she was indeed wearing purple, it’s just that they were her ‘undergarments’ and therefore not on show.  I heard a slightly unsure ‘um, thank you’ in response to this revelation.

Then it was the hymn – Love Divine All Love Excelling.  Did you remember when you decided on it that unless you are a six year old boy, half of each verse is impossible to hit the notes on?  And you’d asked the vicar to tell us from you that you wanted us to give the songs ‘some welly’.  I suspect that you were probably watching us all with a smirk as we did our best, but mostly had to mime those parts.  I’m sorry.  I did try though.

And the other smile was as I went back to my car.  I’d not noticed it when I parked, but just above the wall was this:

It made me giggle.

I will leave you to rest now. Big hugs, lovely. Xxx

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Unexpected running smiles

Posted on April 8, 2017 by thepogblog

Sometimes when I run, it’s just about distance and time and getting back to work or to get stuff done. Sometimes it turns into lots of smiles though. Like knowing I’ve rescued another local worm, or replanting a bulb that has fallen out of a bank.

Or a view like this first thing in the morning:

Which later in the day when the sun is up you can sit and enjoy:

Or meeting a very excitable three legged dog….who is clearly faster than you.

Or getting to the top of a 3km hill and being shouted words of encouragement by a cycling club who overtook you a while back….and them giving you a round of applause when you gasp that you ‘did it without stopping’.

Or being shouted to over the road in the evening that ‘you can slow down, the pub is open for a while longer!’

Or a stranger just stopping you for a chat, because they want to share with you that it’s a lovely day.

Or seeing something like this out the corner of your eye and stopping to capture it:

Or seeing the start of the bluebells coming out and watching as more appear every day:

And then there is the thrill that even though you can barely put one foot in front of the other by the end,  you have done your longest run, ever:

The time isn’t great, but as this time last year I refused to run, anywhere, ever, I’m proud of me that I’ve run my first 10 miles in one go (and I was taking photos and meeting dogs etc!)

And of course, that meant that I didn’t need to feel guilty for spending this afternoon sitting in the sun :o)

Posted in Bumpkinsville, exercise, fitness, Good for you, Pog Life, Pog Pictures, running | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

People watching

Posted on April 6, 2017 by thepogblog

I do like a spot of people watching. I like imagining the connections between groups or couples and thinking up their back stories. Last weekend I went to the local shop and had two coffees so I could spend more time watching how Connie in her felt hat, tweed coat and sensible shoes, interacted with someone who could have been her daughter, career or neighbour, but who was the recipient of Connie’s beaming smile when she said they didn’t have to go back quite yet and could go and watch the boats on the reservoir instead.

I got very involved listening to conversation a group of cyclists were having about some forensic work one of them had done on a high profile criminal case recently, although I’m pretty sure he shouldn’t have been quite so vocal about it.  I decided he was probably compensating for being the slowest rider..

And I haven’t stopped wondering why the female cyclist who stopped for a coffee was in all the right gear: cycling tights, top, gloves, cleats, glasses, has topped it all off with what was actually a very pretty dress.

It turns out it’s an even better pasttime with Himself. He sees differently and sees additional things to me, and people watching takes on a whole new dimension. The couple who sat opposite us at the bar we went to last night, for example. I thought they were probably on their first date and would have left it there. By the time Himself and I had surreptitiously watched and discussed them, they were on their second date, but were probably not going to make if to their fifth. She would be the one who wasn’t sure about it all and he would be frustrated that he would have to start looking at profiles all over again (because they had met over the Internet we felt, for no good reason).

When we got to the station, I missed my strain by about three seconds and He discovered there wasn’t one in the right direction for 40 minutes.  So we sat slightly tucked away and watched. It turns out that there was never any need for me to worry what I looked like when I run, because at least half the people at the station last night were about to miss their trains and about half of them were even more three legged donkey-ish than I ever was.

There was the group of older teens, half of which ran for their train, the other half were clearly torn between missing it and remaining cool. They stayed cool. I imagine they were also late home, but they lost no credibility with their mates as a result.

And there was the man and lady who seemed to be holding each other up. He thought the man was drunk. I thought it was her. Within a few minutes it was clear I was right, but what wasn’t clear was whether they were a couple, or colleagues, or worse….could he be her boss? We went through the scenarios for the next morning for each option. We watched as he tried to get her to drink water and she tried to stay upright while clinging to his coat sleeve…

I’ve not been sad when my train has arrived on time before. I wonder if anyone was people watching us doing our people watching, and what they had made of us…. :o)

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Enter: Spider-Pog

Posted on April 2, 2017 by thepogblog

If you read my last post, you will know that to day was the day: the day that Spider-Pog had to do her thing. And do her thing she did. But not without learning a few things in the process. Like…

– When measuring up for nostril holes, your  Mum can trap you by your hair in a Spider-Man suit, release you, then trap you again with such an enormous chunk of hair that you can’t move your arms to work on the zip and have to shout for Dad. Who then has to find his glasses before he can help, giving you just enough time to wonder how the hell this got to be your life on a Saturday afternoon.

– you can burn holes in a Spider-Man suit without it going up in flames, despite it being 95% polyester. I can’t see how that will be a useful piece of information to anyone, ever, but you never know.

– Spider-Man must have special powers when it comes to sight. I could see that there were children in the room, but I couldn’t tell who was who, who wanted to play and who was utterly terrified. I imagine the utterly terrified child I chased under a table will get over the trauma as some stage before he hits adulthood though….

– For the same sight reasons, Spider-Pog did what could be considered a bit of stunt work by carrying in a cake, complete with lit candles, for the birthday boy to blow out.

– Silly string might not make the best webs, but three and four year olds aren’t bothered

– Never wear mascara when you are spidey-ing. Or contact lenses. I couldn’t see through the outfit but I couldn’t see when I took it off either. I realised later this was because the mascara I sweated off somehow managed to get under a contact lens.

– A Sister 1 is required when it is all over to dry you / your hair with paper towels. A Sister 2 is required to inform you as she kisses you goodbye that ‘your face smells really peculiar’.

It was a different, very long 30 minutes (because despite feeling like a few days, I think that’s all it was) but there were a few things that made it worth while:

I’m told Little Pea’s face lit up when he saw Spider-Man / Pog. I couldn’t tell you myself as I couldn’t blimin’ see him.

Even the traumatised child high-fived me before I left. A lot.

All the kids hugged me goodbye. So cute.

And one child told me later that ‘Spider-Man was here and it was awesome, and we watched him go back to where he lives in outerspace…’ (actually, I just walked out one door and into another to change back to Being Auntie Pog in the toilet) …’and he had a REALLY loud voice’ (I didn’t speak at all as I knew that would give the game away). That made me smile lots.

So if the day job ever goes wrong, maybe I have a back up in Spider Pog :o)

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Are you sitting down?

Posted on March 31, 2017 by thepogblog

Are you sitting comfortably?  Then I will begin.

Earlier this week Sister 1 posted on Facebook that she had been let down by Spider-Man.  He was due to make an appearance at Little Pea’s birthday party on Sunday, but she now had a Spider-Man outfit, but nobody to fill it.

I did what any Auntie Pog would do:  I checked to see if any wall climbing was involved, disengaged brain before I could think things through further and offered up my Spider-Pog services.

When I got home from work last night, the outfit was waiting for me.

The following picture of dawn yesterday morning is provided to give yourself time to prepare.  Please remain calm and remove any choking hazards from your mouth…

….and meet Spider-Pog!

Now the slight flaw with this outfit (other than the fact it’s so clingy it highlights that 1) Spider-Man clearly went commando and 2)  that this Spider-Pog has a set of DD’s rather than man mucscles) is that it is 95% polyester.  Couple that with the fact that you are completely encased by it and it has a similar effect on me as scuba diving does (that is, I can’t breathe).

Tonight’s activity will be cutting nostril holes into the face to rectify the situation (Dad thought we could burn some holes in, but I think it might go up in one big flame).

I also can’t see a thing through it, but this seems to stop all inhibitions.  I might have got a bit carried away last night and stood outside Mum and Dad’s house waving in a Spider-Pog way at passing cars.  I might try it out again tonight, with those breathing holes in place.  I might quite like the idea that I could be a superhero on the side…

Or maybe I’ll just stick to hoping Little Pea believes this is some sort of incarnation of the real Spider-Man.  And very definitely not his Auntie Pog :o)

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My weekend: show and tell

Posted on March 26, 2017 by thepogblog

This weekend  I:

  • learned that there might be a morning and evening tea towel, but the morning tea towel should actually be used until 6.30pm, at which point swapping to the evening tea towel is essential. There is an element of confusion over the exact time of this swap on weekends when the clocks change, when the time is moved to 7pm.  I think.
  • rescued another earth worm on my run that had thrown itself from the bank only the road and then got in a pickle. This happens a lot up here. Frankly, I am concerned out the mental health of the local earth worms.  I also ran in the shape of an elephant, kind of:
  •  went for the biggest afternoon tea ever, for the Mummies in the family:

(There are the remnants)

  • let Norman outside, under strict supervision. I think he actually laughed:
  • took some more photos to practice with my new camera (and enjoyed spring while I was at it)

  • and made beef cobbler. Which wasn’t a Mary Berry recipe. Which is probably why it wasn’t entirely successful; punishment for defection….

I did a few other bits too, but that will do :o)

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Bruises and bath mats

Posted on March 24, 2017 by thepogblog

As you know if you visit me here often, I’m staying with my parents at the moment while I attempt to buy Pog Towers 2*.  I expected some learning curves.  I expected to become more aware that Mum and Dad are getting on a bit.  What I didn’t expect was to be the one that got in the bath to have a shower and to slip, fall out the bath and take the shower curtain and shower rail with me.  My parents may have almost 30 years on me, but it seems they are more spritely and able to stay upright than me.

To rectify the situation (me falling out the bath and ending up covered in bruises, not the fact that Mum and Dad are so spritely), I have bought a bath mat.  I did think I’d end up doing a few things like this when I moved in.  I didn’t think they would be to benefit me though….

* I say ‘attempting to buy’ because after some chaos that emerged yesterday things are not going to plan. I know in the big scheme of things house buying stress isn’t all that big a deal, but it is really getting to me at the moment, so if you have any spare positive thoughts floating around with you, could you send them this way please, before I go pop?  Thank you :o)

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Four days, three beds, one birthday

Posted on March 21, 2017 by thepogblog

Last week was a roller coaster week…..again.  But it ended on a high :o)

Thursday was my birthday and I was whisked away by Himself for cocktails:

Birthday cake (I’d specifically requested a Marks and Spencer trifle and that was exactly what I got – complete with candle):

And He gave me a camera.  A real one.  Because that time in December when we got up at dawn to take photos of the sunrise, I only had my iPhone.  And that’s great, but I’m hoping a proper camera will be even better. (Although right now I’ve not got past the ‘auto’ setting as the dials and numbers scare me….).

And on Friday I finally, finally got the call that my solicitor had received the papers they needed to kick off the process of buying Pog Towers 2.  It’s been weeks of daily phone calls to get to this point and it’s only the start, I know, but at least it has started now :o)

After that, we had a bit of a wandering weekend including a night at Gorgeous Godson’s parent’s house.  In Pog style, I cooked – at my parents – then transported dinner down in the car.  Thanks Mary B.  Once again you did me proud and everyone survived to tell the tale (although Gorgeous Godson’s Mummy did cover herself well by telling me before we even arrived that she wasn’t very hungry….!)

Saturday and Sunday night we stayed at Sister 2 and her boyfriend’s.  Not only did we get snuffles from the gorgeous Bertie:

But our towels were folded into an elephant!

This caused me  problems as I obviously couldn’t unfold the elephant, but happily I’d taken our own towels, so elephant got to sit on the window seat and survey the garden, indefinitely.  We also got chocolates on our pillows.  It was like a posh hotel.  I’d quite like to do a write up on Trip Advisor, but I’m not sure it would go down well if people started turning up.  For the record though, not only do you get snuffles from a lovely old boxer, animal shaped towels and bedtime chocolates, you also get fruit and yogurt snacks and lunch of avocado, salmon and poached eggs – freshly laid by the chickens in the garden, no less.  It’s really rather special.  So should you find yourself on the back of beyond Bumpkinsville (because yes, it’s REALLY out of the way), and spot an elephant made of towels staring out of a window and chickens roaming in the garden, you might want to pop in… ;o)

And here are a couple of photos I took to practice using my new camera.  Thank you to all of you lovely people who made my birthday a whole weekend long.  It made me a very smiley Pog :o)

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Fly high

Posted on March 15, 2017 by thepogblog

Two new angels have grown their wings in the last few weeks.  I’ve tried to make sense of it, but there isn’t any sense to be found.

At one memorial service today, this was read:

I think the words are lovely. I hope they are as true of me when I grow my wings as they are of both of my friends.

Fly high, ladies :o) x

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Meals on wheels….almost

Posted on March 12, 2017 by thepogblog

I know I often bimble on about Bumpkinsville countryside and wildlife, but Mum and Dad’s Bumpkinsville is a whole different level to what I have been used to.  The other morning two deer ran out infront of my car , closely followed by….a duck. But even by their standards, things got surreal last week.

On Thursday morning Dad thought he could hear a tapping sound from the front of his car. A close inspection relevealed….a pheasant stuck behind the grill.

Mum and Dad took the car to the garage and Mrs Pheasant, despite being sat against the radiator since at least the Monday – as Dad managed to work out, wasn’t cooked….in fact she seemed pretty much ok:

She was taken to a nearby bird loving lady who planned on getting her over her trauma and releasing her back to the wild.  Slightly strangely, Mum and Dad can’t work out how she got in there.  We assume she wouldn’t have climbed in voluntarily, and neither of them remember hitting a bird (and surely you would, wouldn’t you?) It will have to remain a Bumpkinsville mystery….:o)

And here are a couple of other spring Bumpkinsville pictures:

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