Episode 32 - The New Zealand tea room

[ComeIntoTheGardenMaud]

Well folks, here we are, beside the hot springs of New Zealand.

The tea room (with the customary distressed chintz sofa) overlooks the steaming, bubbling lake. For the bold and sporty, hiking, biking and sky-diving are on offer. Personally, I'm not planning to leave the spa.

Please come and join us for a celebratory drink and conversation ranging from the profound to the profoundly silly. The cardinal rule remains: no fisticuffs.

Tipping down with rain here - even if there's a dry period in the afternoon I'll be lucky to manage to mow the lawn as its more like a swimming pool at the moment.

Also need to walk into town - but really don't fancy it at the moment.

Sorry to hear you're all wet through over there - winter has set in here, I think, we had our first fire of the year last night. Didn't have one tonight because we went out to play badminton - it's become a whole-family occupation now!

We're all wet over here too - I just know it's going to rain forever and I'm never going to get to sit on my beautiful new patio furniture. Sob.

I'll think I'll curl up in the priest hole for a bit. Mum had another collapse today, so I've had my dad on the phone a lot worrying. And she's lost MrCmots name, along with all her friends.
S'not a good week here

Oh dear, Cmot. Have some and 10 minutes with Mellors.

::Passes you the fluffy white towels and the aromatherapy oils::

Make that an hour.

::Throws in a Diptyche candle::

(((CMot))) and positive wishes for both of your parents.

(((hugs))) for CMOTD and more or possibly - so sorry that you're all going through this. :(

((((((((HUGS))))))))) CMOT :(

How are things today, CMOT?

Sorry I haven't been around for a bit, it sounds a bit odd but RL caught up with me and I ran out of anything useful to post.

Sending you big (((hugs))) CMOT. I nearly pm-ed you on Tuesday as I went past you on the motorway but having read back I couldn't have picked a worse time. I do hope things get better, it sounds tough.

All is good here, Small Bean is doing well but is full of talk of going to 'big school' since the admissions letters came out. He might be ready for it but I'm certainly not.

Work is very busy (I drove nearly 1000 miles this week ) and I am also doing a diploma thingy (seemed like a good idea at the time) which is proving to take more time than I had anticipated so I don't feel as if I am much company.

However, it is Friday and I am having a very large ... anyone else?

I'll have some .

Soooooo... I've missed nearly all of this thread.
I've had a hard few months struggling with my "black dog" (anxiety and depression). It's a little better now. I've been seeing my counsellor again which has been good. Feeling much better.
For future reference, when I disappear from the thread, or from MN in general, that's usually not a good sign. When I'm
Not Doing Well, I run out of words. I still read most of the thread, but I don't know what to say. The words won't come. So I only lurk. It's a bit like that in RL, I sort of stop talking to people. I mean, I talk, but not about anything that matter IYSWIM.

Phew. It was really hard for me to just write all that down.
And I don't expect anyone to do anything. I just wanted to say what's been going on.

I'm away with a girlfriend in Seattle this weekend. DH has been telling me to take a break for months. He practically pushed me out the door this morning :o
It's been a really lovely day. We shopped until we were ready to drop. Bed soon.
I've missed you all.

Have a lovely weekend babe.

Mum is OK now. Still no real answer as to why this happens. It might be that sometimes her liver stops dealing with all the opioids, but no actual evidence of this.

Bean, you'd be welcome anytime.

DS and I have had a lovely morning with dpony

Cmot -you can borrow some of my (overly amply) bosom if you'd like to? . So glad to hear all is somewhat less fraught on the aged parent front . (not tearoom special] at pony. Simply can't afford it - and tbh don't know where we'd fit it in either - Sat mornings I now go to the gym whilst DH takes MC to karate.

JM, its lovely to see you. If you've been reading, you've not missed it. Its like sitting in the corner hiding behind a book (whether you're reading it or not) - you still take in a lot of what's happening even if you're not actually taking part in the conversations. Glad the Counsellor is helping. I sometimes read back and if I can't post anything particularly, hand round a cup of tea or similar. The aspidistra seems to have been flourishing notwithstanding your absence

Oh really, it's still thriving?:o

Gorgeous morning in Seattle.

at JM's trip to Seattle.

evening all.

busy tea time in chez uni. we had friends round for tea. 2 tables pushed together, 6 kids and 4 grown ups. boy nad 3 youngest visitors managed to spread a thin layer of marbles all over the house. but they did have fun and us grown ups got to have a chat too.

Seattle- nice place.

CMOT - sorry its been a rough week. hope life improves and more fun with dpony is round teh corner.

Can I pass you a dairy free choc muffin, they worked rather well. replaced the milk in recipe with cocci.

my aspidistra needs more compost.

I channelled my inner Maud and went to the garden centre this afternoon. What a hoot. Oxboy and I have pleased ourselves enormously choosing bright marigolds but I think I need waterproof plants here!,

Been working quite hard and I often just read to check on you with little to say..
JM glad Seattle is good sorry youve been bleak. I think of Nick Drake singing about the black dog
Glad to see Tea here a few bits ago
Oh look, here are the NMBs. They seem to have. Your marbles, UniS and they are balancing and rolling across the floor on them. Looks fun

CMOt don't really know what to say. Glad pony fun
X

I am on the sofa with Monty Don at this very moment, Oxeye.

::ooh err matron emoticon::

::waves trowel at Jacksmania::

::waves at everyone else::

ohhh errr matron indeed. Carry on gardening eh?

I never stop, UniS, I never stop.

careful where you put that hoe.

Don't worry. I've closed up the pruning knife.