Revolutionary Rants

Things are busy here, Chicken is busy at work with Dell fuses and other computing difficulties, we are all preparing to move Mum and Dad (and ourselves), to go to Dublin and I have got a job. Well, I got two this week, but one will sadly have to be turned down. Not too sadly as the one I got is absolutely fantastic and I am very happy.

So, all is good here in Devon. The business of life continues as it does.

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Floating around, bored, on the internet. Like I occasionally do I meandered over to the site of a certain ex-pat in Paris who got fired and now has an impending book. She is on about “Fate” today, and how unlikely it was that she met her current partner. “Chance”, “fate”, “maybe”… Isn’t that true of almost all relationships?

Of my “boyfriend” type people, one used to be a pen friend, one helped me fix my computer the first day I went in CSB (the library) at University, one I met online and one had worked on the Uni paper that day and came back for a cheeky pint post-cinema. All pretty chancy, really. Especially Chicken, really. My head was in a terrible place, I had an exam that day, weirdness was going on in my student house. Yet, in the midst of not looking, there he was. ‘He’s nice’ thinks a certain frizzy haired anarchist. Sadly, by the time we (Sandra and I) returned from having our tea for the night out, he was gone again. But then came “fate” – he returned after seeing X Men 2 and the only stool was next to me…

Fate? Chance? Perhaps, but I doubt it somehow. Either everything is fate, everything happens for a reason or else everything is utterly random. I reckon the latter more likely…

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Well, I said I would do a report of our trip to North and West Yorkshire, so here it is. We set off from Devon on Wednesday evening and had a stop over at the Travelodge near Tamworth (which, what with a digger working all night and the person upstairs up at 6am was very noisy!) There were a couple of problems, forgetting the computer and having to turn around at the start and the sat nav really letting us down whilst looking for the Travelodge.

Still, we got to Robin Hood’s Bay at around 12:00pm the next day. We found our B&B, Northcliff, very easily as it was on one of the first streets in the town. Northcliff was nice, we had a great big comfy bed, an en suite shower and toilet, cupboard space, tea and coffee making facilities and a TV.

Once we had settled in we headed down to the Bay. We walked down the cobbled streets and went to the Bay Hotel, the end of the Coast to Coast walk, for lunch. We enjoyed a proper Northern pint (with a head, unlike down here!) and food. Chicken partook of an amazing stake and potato pie and I had a crab sandwich stuffed full of meat. Then we walked on the beach and back up the hill the other way.

We then hopped back in to the car and went to Whitby. We parked up near the whale-bone arch, then headed down to the harbour. We explored the town and shops and walked up to the Abbey. We didn’t go in, as we were too late. I was sad as the donkeys that were there when I was a child were gone! We retraced our steps, had another good real ale in a CAMRA recommended pub, The Black Horse, and then went for our meal. We loved the fish and chips from the famous Magpie Cafe. We had a lovely meal of Haddock, chips and mushy peas (fantastic!) and returned to Robin Hood’s Bay stuffed and very, very content.

After a good night’s sleep we enjoyed a lovely breakfast before driving to Goathland. We expected it to be very ‘Heartbeat’ touristy but it had hardly any of it. The village is stunning and we went to the church yard to see the famous anchor grave. Then we walked to see the even more stunning Mallyan Spout. It was a good walk (especially back up!) but it was absolutely worth it, turning the corner to see the waterfall tumbling down the rocks.

We then visited Aunt Buz in Slingsby and had another amazing meal at a pub in Nunnington. It was absolutely lovely visiting her. When we left we went through the grounds of Castle Howard, which has inspired us to return to North Yorkshire again soon! It was a wonderful, if short, holiday.

Then we made the evil journey passed Leeds to get to Huddersfield. We arrived with Sandra and Neil at around 18:30 and that evening we all headed out for a drink at the Rat and Ratchet. Our mate Dan came over from Manchester as well, so it was a bit like old times. Very old times, now, but still!

The next day we had a trip to Marsden and up to Castle Hill, where we witnessed a fire. Some little shits set fire to a gorse bush and it went up blooming quickly. It went out but the fire brigade still rolled up. In the evening Chicks and I had a nice dinner over and Dan and Becca’s new home.

On Sunday we drove home, via Ikea, where we got some new pictures and things for our new house! It was a lovely trip, but it was also great to be home in Devon.

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We’re back. Expect a full report shortly, but for now I am stuffed with curry (my sis-in-law’s birthday) about to enjoy a last “holiday” glass of fizzy wine with my Chicken and watch Heroes. Probably be back tomorrow (expecting a busy day) or Wednesday properly. For now, ta-ra, or ciao, which ever floats your boat.

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Yesterday was hectic and very, very wet. It poured all day; grey, grotty, October actually arrived. Today it is dry again, however, but colder. It was hectic because we were very busy where I volunteer (only two of us were in, as well, so lots of beverage and sandwich making ad hoc), then I headed over to do a couple of hours painting at the ‘rent’s house.

We are heading off to Whitby tonight. We are stopped at Travelodge in Tamworth to break the journey. The whole journey will take about six and a half hours (according to the ever optimistic google maps) so we are doing just over half tonight, before continuing on tomorrow. I can’t wait to be in Robin Hood’s Bay. Chicken had a meeting so started early today, which is good because he can leave early as well.

So, don’t expect anything from me for a few days, and a trip report when we return!

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Twenty years ago today Michael Fish rather mucked up his career in weather presenting by denying that a hurricane was heading toward Britain. Twenty years ago tomorrow the “big wind” came to the South of England. We went down to Essex the day after the storm and I remember the tree I loved in my Nan’s garden had been blown over; a great old oak that I mourned at the time. Now, as an adult, you are grateful the tree didn’t fall the other way, in to the house, where Nan was herself. Essex was quite a frightening sight in general.

Living in the west of Ireland we lived through quite a few gales, which were bloody scary. We had roofs blowing off barns, goats killed by said roofs, trees going down, no electricity – and they were only winds with gusts of around one hundred miles an hour…

In other, more recent but less troubling, news the caravan is cleared out and the painting and electrics of the new house are going well. We did a lot of sleeping, a bit of Warcraft and did a roast dinner. We also did the fruit bit of the cakes.

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Mum and I spent most of yesterday going round Focus (evil capitalist DIY shop) and Homebase and B&Q (also evil capitalist DIY shops) getting paint, light fittings and other odds and ends for the house.  In the time between 15:00 and 18:00 we made a pretty good start on the sitting room, getting almost all of it painted. It is in a colour called “cookie dough”, which is a lighter brown, and looks brilliant. The whole room looks so warm now, I kept imagining the ‘rents settled in there cosy and warm over the winter – not to mention a lovely Christmas day!

Today: just about to head out to help sort out the caravan, which is being sold back to the people who sold it to us. We will miss it, but we hardly seem to get up there now we are moved, and as the other main users were Simon and family it doesn’t get much use in general now. It is so tempting to be lazy at the weekends, sadly…

Also, we are hoping to get going with the Christmas cakes. I am currently stewing some apples to this end. Better sort them out as we need to head out…

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Mum and Dad’s kitchen is now a rather nice shade of green, whilst their bedroom is a vivacious red. Mum and I together did a second coat upstairs and a first down, and today I did a third on the bedroom and a second (of one coat “guaranteed”) coat in the kitchen. It has really cheered up the house (which has been in neutral “sell, sell, sell” colours before now) and is very much in the character of the cottage and its era.

Not a lot doing other than that. Still looking forward to our trip to Robin Hood’s Bay loads, and the weekend as well. We’ll be helping out (me painting and Chicken leccy stuff) at the new house and perhaps if we have time baking the Christmas cakes. Yes, already that time of year again… Scary. This year has shot passed, really.

We have decided that Thursday are not funny, as BBC2 claims, having sat through an hour of dire “comedy” last week. A bit sad French and Saunders don’t have that Ab Fab magic anymore, though, and Peter Sten-er-whathisfaceshould stick to bit-part comedy as well. I am keen to see who wins The Restaurant however. I bloody hope it is not Jeremy and Jane, the hideous weepy-marine combo but I bet it will be… Them versus the twins in the final and they win out.

Anyhoo, 17:13, time to think about doing some tea, I suppose…

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Someone said to me yesterday that many people would find it frightening to be married at my age. I must admit, I never imagined I would get married (except, of course, to James Dean Bradfield – a quiet registry office do, me in a bottle green trouser suit, champagne and off to Italy for the honeymoon, not that I spent any amount of my teenage years fantasising, you understand…). Being married is just piece of paper given to us by a state I don’t believe in anyway. We had a nice party and now we get better car insurance quotes. Surely these days the only thing that really commits people is having a child? Now, there is something we are not ready for!

Chicken and I are together and “committed” and I don’t think any of that has changed since May. Sometimes, as an anarchist-feminist I get annoyed with myself for getting married, but, hey, the insurance called us… Being married isn’t frightening, really, it is just another label, another “important piece of paper” in the “important pieces of paper draw” but the thought of bringing another person in to the world – that’s scary!!!

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Just to say:

The sofas have just arrived (sitting room is currently rather full)

It has been pouring rain all day, but there is some blue sky out there now

Good on Radiohead, what a fantastic way to make a point.

Typical that it should be Radiohead and not – for example – a so-called socialist band like my beloveds that does it… Typical…

Training and volunteering went fine – but involved peeling apples today. Random.

Hooray for the sofas! Hooray!

And, I cannot wait for my holiday to Robin Hood’s Bay or to move…

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