Yay, I'm happy. One of my favourite bloggie people is back.

Loquacious Of Blog

I've been busy today too.

On the left, the beginnings of a crochet poncho. On the right an insect, I'm not sure about his wings though, but for a first attempt at wings it'll do.
Kat came round tonight and we played with beads.

I've been playing around again.

The Crafts page(s) have been completly re-done. I've added loads of pictures for all the things I've made recently, and also all the things I've forgotten about in the past.

Enjoy

I've spent the day beading, and sewing, watching the film Singles, and pottering around because staying still hurts too much. Walking is still bad, but at least it loosens me up.

I've also been planning new projects and I've ordered some larger sized crocheting hooks so I can make my poncho. I should have 5.5mm, 6mm, 7mm and 8mm crochet hooks in the post to me soon.

Bad backs are good for Crafty days, but bad for the credit cards

bored bored bored bored

Yes I know, I should go to bed, but my back is killing me, and I can't even get comfortable laid down. Last night was uncomfortable and restless. I'm hoping exhaustion takes over tonight and I sleep. I'm supposed to be in work tomorrow, but at the moment that seems far from likely to happen. I hate phoning in sick!

I can't sit in one position for very long, so my usual hours spent in front of the computer are out, and crafting is in. I've started a new cross-stitch, a cat which my brother and sister-in-law got me for Christmas, (still seems strange having a sister in law, very grown up.) At the rate I'm going I'll have it finished in a couple of weeks. I'm also on the hunt for the perfect crocheted poncho pattern. I've got some fantastic rainbow homespun wool, and I want to make a vivid poncho for wrapping my self up in when we go camping. I made a silly hat out of the same wool a couple of weeks ago. I'll have to play with the camera tomorrow and show everything off.

I hate people.
People are shit.
I just found out about the attacks in Spain.

Woohoo

It's a Toyota Starlet, and it's mine.

Saturday...March 24, 1984.
Shermer High School, Shermer, Illinois.60062.

Dear Mr. Vernon...We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it was that we did wrong. What we did WAS wrong. But we think you're crazy to make us write this essay telling you who we think we are, what do you care? You see us as you want to see us...in the simplest terms and the most convenient definitions. You see us as a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess and a criminal. Correct? That's the way we saw each other at seven o'clock this morning. We were brainwashed.

So what's happening 24th March 2004?

Okay Ormskirk kiddies.
Tomorrow is pancake day.
I like pancakes.
I am willing to make lots of them tomorrow night.
Leave me a note as to what fillings you like and I will go and buy them tomorrow afternoon.
Then come round here tomorrow night and we can eat pancakes till we're sick
(you can clean up your own sick though)
I/We could also make some kind of savoury pancakes first to reduce the sickliness if you wish.
Personally I fancy some kind of broccoli/ricotta concoction, followed by ice cream and chocolate fudge sauce, and maybe some lemon and sugar thing too, but the choice is yours.
Let me know by about 3ish and I'll go shopping, and if you haven't left a comment, don't whine if I've not bought it

This offer is of course open to Non-Ormskirk kiddies, but I'm not expecting anyone to want to travel up here for pancakes

In other news, I've been in Sheffield all week. It was ace.

R.I.P. Mr/Mrs Mouse.

The life of Mr/Mrs Mouse was tragically cut short at around 7:55 this evening by a cheese primed trap.

The remains (of mouse and trap) were bravely disposed of by myself, as Porl was rehearsing.

I feel like a cruel cruel woman

We now have 2 mousetraps primed and positioned. If there is a snap, Porl is dealing with it.
We've seen the mouse already today, so we know he's still in this room. Hopefully it'll soon all be over and I won't feel terrorised in my own home anymore.

I would take pictures of the actual traps, but on Friday someone stole Porls new coat, which had my camera in the pocket. So we're about £230 down, I'm unbelievably annoyed. My Dad bought me the camera for Christmas last year, I got my love of photography off him, and over the years he's bought or given me several very nice cameras. I'm going to see if the insurance will cover it, but as it was stolen while outside the house I'm not holding out much hope.

Grrr I hate people at times. Bloody Friday 13th

Well today has been yesterday was rubbish.

I've got a stinking cold, which has gone straight to my chest, doing wonders for my asthma, and making me cough up thing which really shouldn't be in a humans lungs.

This means I'm at home missing To Amy with Love, and the Shirokuma single launch party, you know, that little event that we've been building towards for the past year.

So what have I done instead?

Well I was planning a quiet night in, sulking and listening to girlie music. I watched 'Once More with Feeling', was looking for something else to watch, when Duke came in with a present.

An alive mouse.

So I've spent the past hour and a half trying to catch it. The cats have helped. But we're all rubbish and have failed.

So the room is a mess... nothing is where it should be, but there are less mouse sized hidie holes. I suspect that the mouse is in the alcove behind the telly which is the one area where a girl with a bad back should not go hunting. Or I'd be severely shouted at by a boyfriend who isn't around when he's needed.

I'm waiting for them to phone and say how the gig went. Then I'm getting out of this room, shutting the door and going to bed. My bedroom door is curently shut with a towel across the bottom of it in crude mouse prevention style.

It's not that I don't like mice. I think they're great. When they're in the wild, or as pets in a cage which don't run or jump as quickly as this one did. But a wild mouse in my house is not good. It's very very bad.

And just for the record I always sit with my feet on top of my computer case. Okay I rarely wear shoes in the house and I never tuck my trousers in my shoes, but they're very baggy trousers and I didn't want to trip over them whilst mouse hunting.

Why did I say earlier that Friday 13th has never worried me? Stupid girl tempting fate!

Life is pottering along in the usual way. Very busy, but I can never think what is worth talking about, a few highlights though.

Following the house valuation the other day we've sat down with Porl's Dad and worked out a plan of action about buying it off him so that we can then sell up and move to Manchester/Stockport. It's complicated, and scary. I'm not sure which bit I find most scary though, the fact that I will have a house and a mortgage, and lots of grown up responsibilities, or the fact that before moving we're going to have to have a massive sort out and chuck out of lots of junk that we've acquired. Porl just seems scared about how the cats will cope with the move.

Last week were the Shirokuma warm up gigs. Wednesday at the Barons had multiple hiccups, but Thursday at Edge Hell went wonderfully. The Record Label were there and they were very impressed. Future plans are now being re-negotiated and it should all be much easier from here on in *fingers crossed*. The official single launch is on Friday at Amy. The single "Moonlight in the Afternoon" is released on 16th February, on Faith & Hope Records, go, find, buy.
The record label were also extremely happy with the website, so I'm a happy little bunny. I'll be even happier when the pay negotiations have been done and I know what I'll be getting.

I've also started getting some physio for my back. One of the perks of working for the NHS is that following a visit to Occupational Health waiting lists for physio can suddenly drop from 13 weeks down to 2 days. It seems likely that when I hurt my back when I was 18 I cracked a disc in my lower back. The pain I have now is nerve damage from that injury. I've also got a wonky pelvis because I'm holding myself strangely to try to relieve the pain. So I've been given a bunch of exercises to do, my favourite one involves sitting on a table and swinging my legs. I've also got to strengthen my Pelvic Floor muscle, and she's recommended Pilates Classes. So today I bought myself some new comfy gym clothes, because the ones I bought earlier in the year are far too big for me now! Yay for weight loss!!! I'm wearing them now and they're exceptionally comfy, so I might have to buy myself another pair for lounging around in.

Now I'm off to spend the rest of the night doing boring coursework, broken up by interesting more family tree research.

Ahhhhh..... Ahhhhh......
Wooo! Shock Woooo!

We've had the house valued.

I'm not very good at valuations.

We're having the house valued today. It's tidy, clean, and smelling of air freshener.
He's supposed to be here at 3.
He's late.
I'm nervous.

The syndicate thing didn't work. If anyone has an Idiot's guide to doing it I'd be very grateful.

Other news... where have I been hiding? My posts went through a stage of being fairly regular, so why has there been a 2 week break?
Well I've been busy. Very very busy.
I can't be bothered giving a full run down of it all in my usual rambling style. Also, let's face it there are more interesting things to read online. So I'll attempt to do a brief list, and try to keep it to one line per item, but there may be pictures.

In no particular order

• I've done my back in... again. But possibly to a more serious extent this time.
  
• I now have a desk.
  
  
• Porl and I both have proper office chairs (instead of a chair salvaged from a skip and a pile of cushions.)
  
• I'm on a waiting list to see a physio.
  
• I seem to have traced my Pettifer family roots back to the 1600's.
  
• We've had a (really good) random offer on the house.
  
• We're moving to Manchester in the next few months.
  
• I'm crocheting myself some trainer slippers.
  
• Dave and Sarah have been down for a Shirokuma filled day.
  
• We have 3 gigs organised for Shirokuma.
  
  
  
  • The Barons in Burscough, 4th February
    
  • Edge Hill SU, 5th February
    
  • The Retro Bar, Manchester, 13th February
  
  
• The Shirokuma Website (as designed by me) is launched.
  
• Shirokuma's debut single will be released on 16th February on Faith and Hope Records. Buy It!
  
• I've had a HUGE tax rebate without even having to claim.

I'm sure there's plenty more but I'm too tired to remember it all. The next fortnight is looking like being even busier than this last fortnight. Starting with a day blitzing the house tomorrow, ready for the Estate Agent people coming on Thursday to give us a valuation.

Life is suddenly extremely busy, exciting and scary.

I'm trying to get a syndicated feedy thingy to work... Fingers crossed, wish me luck.

Should I be worrying about the fact I have to look at the clock on the computer seveal times a day to remind myself what day it is?

The flu has gone, I'm back at work, but my bodyclock is still a bit more skewed than nomal.

I never make New Years Resolutions, being disappointed in myself is a bad way to start the year. But one of the Resolutions I haven't made this year is to get a sleep pattern. Ideallly getting up at no later than 10 o clock. Rather than an hour before I start work, even when I start work at 4pm! The other non-resolutions involve the normal things, get fit, go on holiday, generally improve life.

Befoe Christmas I was saying I needed a new hobby. Something a bit more of a challenge to get the brain cells whirling. Nothing in my life involves much thought, I can feel myself getting stupider.
Well I've found the new hobby. During the last few days of my illness I started researching my family tree. It's something which I've wanted to do since I was a kid, but it has always seemed to be something which involved funding, and travel.
When we were emptying my Grandparents house in 2002 we found a lot of old photos and certificates that my Grandad had saved. These have given me a really good start. That and the fact i asked lots of questions when I was a kid. My memory is terrible so I can't remember any of the answers, but my Mum has a great memory. Especially for dates.
So far I've got back to 1825, and my GGG Grandfather. I've also found a distant cousin who's been doing some research too, we've got the same GG Grandparents, so between us we've filled in a lot of gaps, and put some names to the faces on the pictures. Fingers crossed we'll find out more soon.

The down side of this is that I've discovered that just a few generation back I'm a southerner!

Bad flu!
Go away!
Now!
Please?

As the New Years Eve posts hinted I wasn't feeling too great. By New Years Day it was pretty much official. The flu has got me.
Between now and then I've been pretty much in bed the whole time. I had to check the calender thingy on my computer today to find out what day it was I've lost track. My sleep patterns have gone even more erratic than ever (like 18 hours a day asleep), and I think I've had 2 meals in 4 days. I am beginning to feel slightly better though. I still hurt, I'm still shattered, I can get downstairs now, but if I have to go straight back up I run out of energy halfway.
I have watched lots of films during this illness though, including Meet me in St Louis, The Breakfast Club, which is my favourite film ever, What Women Want, Speed, Broken Silence, A Cut Above, Billy Madison, Elizabeth, Bedazzled, Sabrina Goes to Rome, The Sound of Music and Grease. Not bad for someone who doesn't really like watching films. I think I must have been really ill to watch some of them though. Yay fo getting ill during the holiday season when telly is slightly better than normal.
I've also done a lot of cross stitch, although not on the Indian which has been cast aside in resentment again, in favour of "Collecting Shells".

I wanted to go to Sheffield next week. I want to celebrate Christmas with my parents some time this side of Easter. But that is out now.

Flu, Go away. Please!