Nigel …. Finally Off To London To Meet The Queen!

To say that Nigel had packed and unpacked his suitcase for his London Adventure a million times it would be a tiny weeny understatement!!!

We have just left him to it as it has kept him occupied …. and we as we can hear him constantly running through his very precise list and robust packing routine, even we know that he has packed EVERYTHING and nothing has been forgotten ….. from his bespoke suit and top hat, his clean pants (in triplicate), his new black socks, his pj's, his toothbrush and tooth paste and his Lynx body spray ….

….. to his invitation to the Queen’s Garden Party, fully charged Oyster Card …..

……. train tickets …..

….. and his passport which must be presented at the Palace Gate as proof of his identity! 

Each night,  before going to sleep he has also studied the London Underground map with meticulous attention to detail ….. making certain of the route

…….it would look most rude if he turned up on Her Majesty doorstep even just one minute late!

This morning he was sat on the stairs waiting to be picked up at 5.30am, even though he wasn’t leaving until 11.00am…..

It’s safe to say that several manly tears were shed as we said our goodbyes  …… If only we could be with our little Nigel to share in this momentous occasion,  when perhaps,  after conversing with him for just a  little while,  Her Majesty may perhaps become so smitten by his charm that she might decide to whip out her sword and “dob” him ….. …. reciting those immortal words……

…………………  “Arise Sir Nigel … I knew him well!”

Find A Penny ….

Nigel couldn’t believe his luck when he found two pennies lying willy nilly and abandoned at the bus stop yesterday morning ….. 

Naturally, he waited around for a little while to see if they were claimed but after three hours he reasoned that such an occurance was by then  doubtful and so trousered picked them up and claimed them as his own, claiming that “….. possession was nine fifths of the law!”

And, as he has been diligently putting every spare penny he has away to put towards his spending money in Last Vegas, two more pennies is a very welcome addition ….. especially as he has set his heart on making a considered purchase of a Tootsie Roll!

Tenby Toffees With A Hint Of An Adventure To Come …… ?

The GCSE Geography girls brought me back a box of Tenby Toffees from their residential field trip to Broad Haven after I had helped with a few of the arrangements towards while things were a bit slow in the Food Dept., where I can usually be found.

It was so very kind of them,  I was quite overwhelmed and said that I would take them home to share with Darrell and Nigel ……

…. as we are all very partial to a toffee, especially when we are watching Britain’s Got Talent.

I could have predicted in a Derek Acorah  type way that Nigel would plump for the liquorice ones …. as he has a propensity to cover his front teeth with them pretending that he has accidently swallowed one or two of them  …. followed by showing us his hideously black tongue after sucking on one rigorously …. what is he like?

Darrell opted for a treacle toffee, followed by a rum and butter then pretended he was drunk ….. again sooooo predictable!

….. And I settled for a plain “normal” one, also a very predictable choice according to Darrell and Nigel …..

We then took to studying the pictures of Tenby on the box, it certainly looks a very nice place to go  and somewhere we have never been despite our extensive holidaying curtsey of Sun £9.50 holidays ….. which put me in mind of a comment I’d received on Facebook from Mrs. C,  The Lady What Teaches Geography ……

…… ..... now there’s an idea, after our holiday of a lifetime holiday to Last Vegas in the summer ….. things can only keep going up ….. so perhaps it will be a case of Tenby here we come in 2014!!!

…. Pulling Out All The Stops!

Darrell had noticed in recent days that the tulips planted in what appears to be the new flora epicentre of our village were sadly past their best …. …. and had wondered what new developments, if any, would ensue in regards for our community pursuit to become Staffordshire’s Best Kept Village.

Well, it seems that there has been some robust planting afoot while we have been at work…..

….. because two clumps of pansies and what we believe to be is a Hosta (?) ….

….. are now in situ at the foot of the newly erected centrepiece hanging basket feature. …..

…. not only that,  but set at diagonals to each other a small bush and a conifer have also been planted strategically …. all bodes very well …

Darrell says it will be an “absolute travesty” if we are not awarded the trophy and the aforementioned title of Best Kept Village, and if not questions will be asked in Parliament!

What is he like?

A Rather Disappointing Confectionary Review

We were all robustly excited when Darrell bought home some of the new Magnum chocolates he found on the shelves in our village Tesco Express  as we are all rather partial to a Magnum ice cream on a hot summers day as an occasional,  if slightly prohibitive, cold comestible treat ….

….. and the thought of experiencing the pleasures of a Magnum but in the guise of a chocolate and without risk of an ice-cream headache held us in thrall!

When unwrapped they did indeed look like itsy bitsy miniatures of their namesake ….

However ….. though the chocolate was generous in it’s thickness  …. it was a little bitter for our admittedly very sweet taste ….. ….. and there really wasn’t enough vanilla filling to satisfy ….. we all felt it lacked the substantiality of a satisfying portion if we are to be brutally honest …. and thus was lost in the density of the chocolate …..

In short …. there was an air of great disappointment around our confectionary testing table ….. what promised so much did, for us, not deliver ….. and so sadly we feel we can only award new Magnum chocolates a non-nomtastic 2 noms …. sorry!

A Move Sideways …. To Exciting Times Ahead.

It seems that my “extra curricular duties” in the Admin Office while things have been a bit quiet in the Food Department but hectic in Admin have not gone unnoticed and as such, yesterday I was called in to the main office …..for a “little chat”…… Believe me,  my heart was pounding robustly in my chest and my mind raced to all sorts of conclusions as I wondered if I had done something untoward … maybe I had booked a bus with a company with a disreputable reputation or had displayed an unfortunate telephone manner at a moment of great import  ….. but no, ….it seems that with all the new developments in school at the moment,  it was felt that my prowess for all things of an organisational type nature could be better put to use in Admin …..…. rather than in a tea towel/flour dredger/rolling pin distribution type capacity.

I confess I was a little taken aback, but without any hesitation I accepted this sideways move and the challenge of organising trips of a home based and foreign type nature, amongst many other exciting duties,  it also means that I would once more be working in the same office as Darrell …. who is, at present the schools current Confidential Document Shredder Operative. …..

I felt honoured to accept my new purple admin pen as my badge of honour and pledge of allegiance ….

…. and immediately set to work on getting the assembly record sheets in order, a little hesitant I admit,  for these are early days ... but I know there are some very exciting times ahead!

Tom and The Laura’s Wedding Breakfast … But At Tea Time …..

There was unbridled joy thronging robustly through Castle Greysquirrel yesterday morning when our invitation to Tom and The Lovely Laura much anticipated nuptials finally plopped onto our doormat ….

….. and although we had been there at the very forefront of their creation,  in our Front Room on a Wednesday night,  it was still very much a poignant Hello Magazine type moment for us all.

We are not ashamed to admit that tissues were required as tears flowed ….. in a very manly way ……..
….. for our family fairy tale of love and betrothal will finally come true ……

….. when Tom and the Lovely Laura will stand before us and be pronounced man and wife amid a flurry of doves tossed from baskets, the chiming of church bells throughout the land, a ten gun salute, the launching of lifeboats and a fly past by the Red Arrows ...or something along those lines ………

And, if we are this emotional now,  goodness knows how emotional we will be on the actual day.

Once we had all regained our composure we were able to look at the other contents of our matrimonial envelope …. to wit … the wedding breakfast menu …. except that it isn’t a wedding breakfast ….. because it’s at out tea time, which we thought was most considerate of Tom and The Lovely Laura, as they know how we like to stick to a rigorous meal time regime.

As I read the details out to Darrell and Nigel, Darrell got a little confused when he heard what he thought was the word “canopy”,  remarking that Tom and the Lovely Laura were being very forward thinking and practical by having a tent erected at their wedding venue ……… for shelter,  just in case the weather was precipitous! What is he like?I was then forced to explain that the “canapé”  in question was in fact a small, posh, single-bite food, that is traditionally made with a base of a small piece of bread with some sort of topping …… for which we would not require a plate or knife and fork!….. All this bought us finally round to the perusal of the wedding menu from which Tom and The Lovely Laura had asked us to choose from ……

I knew that this would not be a simple task …..  and got out my notebook and pen to write our considered selections down which I could e-mail them to the betrothed couple ……

I knew it would be a nightmare and it was, giving Darrell and Nigel too much choice is never a good thing,  especially where food is concerned! Every time they made their definitive choice and I wrote it down, they would then say they weren't sure and go through the whole choice again ….. pondering as to if they would like truffle croutons, what did celeriac taste like and was chicken liver parfait the same as chicken liver pate?  After one hour and forty five minutes we hadn’t gone beyond the starters,  so it may be a little while before Tom and The Lovely Laura receive our final choice.

Being a pudding person,  I bypassed the starters and the mains and headed straight  to the sweet options ….. it was a no brainer …… lemon and lime cheesecake every time, however, I am hoping that I will be sat next to someone who is having the brioche and chocolate pudding, who would be up for exchanging the odd spoonful with me!