28th November 2010 Since returning from the Azores, I don’t seem to have spent more than five minutes at home, and even then, it’s usually been to feed Millie the cat, put the kettle on, and collapse with exhaustion. Jamie is on the brink of moving into an apartment conveniently close to the railway station,… Continue Reading

7th November 2010 This entry is dedicated to our holiday in the Azores. Sue, Sarah and I had a delightfully uneventful train journey to Manchester Airport, where we were all pleasantly surprised to find our reserved seats unoccupied and our rather bulky suitcases tucked safely in the luggage racks, not what I expected, frankly. The… Continue Reading

25th October 2010 For my second refereeing outing of the season, I headed to Market Bosworth only to discover an assessor lurking in the changing room, ready to critique my every whistle. Not just one assessor, mind you, but three, all there to size up the poor refs at the club that day. With all… Continue Reading

26th September 2010 I am now, it seems, something of a land baron. Imagine my surprise when, just a week before flying to see my stepbrother David in Bulgaria, a letter from the Council dropped through the letterbox announcing that I had been granted an allotment. I cycled over for a look and found it… Continue Reading

9th September 2010 A couple of weeks ago, I was halfway through what I thought was a witty and rather lengthy blog when my PC’s screen suddenly went blue and the machine began buzzing like a drunken wasp. The hard drive had gone kaput. The auto-save feature doesn’t work when the drive turns into toast.… Continue Reading

15th August 2010 As the title suggests, our great British weather is living up to its soggy reputation. As a child, I remember long, hot, sunny days that seemed endless. I’d lie in fields of daisies, buttercups, and cowslips, watch poppies ripple across cornfields, and see farmers harvesting under a sky of unbroken blue. I’d… Continue Reading

7th August 2010 As Suraj predicted, Charlotte and baby Ellis David left Lincoln Hospital on Thursday afternoon. It wasn’t long before the phone rang with a polite but unmistakable request for the return of Lucas. We reluctantly promised to deliver him the following day. When Lucas heard we were taking him home to see the… Continue Reading

4th August Yesterday, Sue, Lucas, Sarah, and I travelled to Newark. The week’s forecast looked promising, though with rain predicted towards the weekend, it seemed wise to seize the sunshine and paint the outside of Charlotte’s house while we had the chance. We left early, stopping at Jewson’s Tool Hire in Balderton to order a… Continue Reading

1st August 2010 Charlotte is still in the hospital. Giving birth has certainly taken its toll; her lower back and legs are excruciating, making walking a real challenge. She managed to get out of bed twice today, but her legs keep going into spasms and refuse to do as they’re told. Suraj has been with… Continue Reading

31st July 2010 (Evening Update) This afternoon, Sue and I drove to Lincoln with Lucas to meet the newest member of the family,  baby Ellis David, and spend a couple of precious hours with the proud (and thoroughly exhausted) parents. Despite the gruelling ordeal of childbirth, Charlotte looked radiant, a far cry from how we remember her… Continue Reading