So busy have I been meeting up with people and organising things that I haven't had time to write the blog. Not good time management I hear you say but its the only excuse I have. I will have to improve though as there will be so much to write during our travels that strict adherance to the blog is necessary. It will take me all day to write things up if I skip a few days then.
So let me recap to fill in the gaps. Last Sunday we met up with Dean and Linda and they brought along Linda's son Matthew as well. We went to the Fox and Hounds in Englefield Green which is a lovely location near to Great Windsor Park and the food is lovely there too. We had a lovely time, ate lots AGAIN and said our personal goodbyes to them. They will come to our leaving do on Friday but this was our last meal in the UK with them for a while. Pictures above.
On Monday I had a day of shopping, sorting out at home - scanning more documents and catching up on emails. Then on Tuesday I had the pleasure of a mammogram (at least thats another thing out of the way) after which I visited Ann and we went out to lunch together. Ann and I go back to 1997 when we both arrived in St. Peters Hospital to work for the Home from Hospital team. We both have Irish mad mothers and English fathers, we are the same age and have birthdays in the same month. We have always remained friends as well as colleagues and I sincerely hope that will continue to be the case. Ann has had a rotten few years receiving treatment for cancer but she remains strong willed, positive and with a healthy sense of humour. I am in awe of her strength of character and really want her and her husband John to come out to Cyprus and stay so that she can have a chance to relax and enjoy for a change. We went to the Red Lion Pub in Chobham and had another practice Cypriot lunch that lasted over 4 hours.
I got home just in time to change and go to my yoga class after which Pat and I tried out the Cricketers Pub for a bar meal and the pub quiz. The meal filled us was all I can say and I hope the cold buffet that they are laying on for our leaving do is more appetising. The pub quiz was entertaining but we performed miserably - too many football and celebrity questions for our liking. Thats when you need a larger team, including men, to answer some of the questions that we can't. So what a full day I had on Tuesday and ate out twice! Please don't make me eat any more food!!
On Wednesday I rode Steves bike (the one he kept at work) to a bike repair shop in Chertsey so that they could attempt to repair the gears. I walked back so that was my exercise for the day. The bike will be put on ebay to sell after we get it back. Then I put our VERY important documents (birth certs, marriage certs, divorce papers etc) in an envelope to post out by recorded delivery to Ruth and Lionel - our Cyprus next door neighbours and now good friends. They will take good care of them until we arrive. I also completed a redirection of mail form to take along to the post office, giving Pats details as a "care of" address in the UK. They require all sorts of proof of identity for that process so I took passports, utility bills etc in a plastic wallet to the post office.
I parked in Chertsey and walked round the corner to the post office where I stood in the obligatory dream in the queue. At one point I rechecked the plastic wallet and realised there were no passports in it. Silently cursing to myself thinking I had left them at home my mobile phone suddenly rang. It was Steve jokingly accusing me of trying to sabotage our planned trip by cunningly disposing of our passports. He then went on to say a passerby had found them on the pavement and handed them into Barclays Bank!!! - round the corner form the post office. I don't need to tell you about that awful hot and faint feeling you get when you see your life flashing before you do I?
So I hastily legged it around the corner to the bank and saw the teller who had the passports. He grilled me with lots of personal questions to ensure they were ours. Luckily Steve and I purchased ISAs from Barclays last week and so they had our personal details on their system - how lucky was that?? After I started breathing properly again I returned to the post office and continued with my task. I can't bear to think of the extra hassle it would have caused if that kind passerby had been anything other than honest. I don't know who he was but thank you my friend!
On my return home I got changed again and went to meet Judith for lunch at Fego's in Sunningdale where we met up a couple of weeks ago. We had a lovely lunch again and a long chat. I really like her and we have a lot in common. She will also visit us in Cyprus and is looking forward to it.
The car started playing up a bit on the way there - and it isn't the first time either. It will have to be looked into before we leave - we can't afford to leave anything to chance. It seems to be an electrics problem - lights flashing on the computerised dashboard system and various pings along the way for no apparent reason. Over the last few weeks it has been a bit temperamental - windscreen wipers not working at times and the doors not locking. Then it will suddenly pass and be ok. Yesterday was the last straw though - to the garage it goes.
That brings me to today. I have had a morning of housework. The letting agents are showing a prospective tenant around the bungalow this afternoon and I don't want them thinking we are messy and dirty - I have my pride. I will make myself scarce during that time and I hope the bungalow gets a nice new tenant to look after it when we have gone. So - better get changed again!
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