Beware the Crepes of March!

[QueenQueenie]

Well someone had to do it as my last post was number 999...

NU you probably have so much less to lose than me! Have PM'd you Canada details.

I wish all coldy Crepeys better…bit of a Crepey epidemic, by the sound of it! Auriga no wonder you're suffering after singing in a freezing church!

And hope that Herbs magnesium- induced runs have subsided. Some people say that mega multi vitamins work well for low energy…like a shot in the arm. For me the only thing that works is being happy and busy. I seem to get loads of energy from that. No pill I've ever popped has made the slightest difference to my energy levels.

I'm relieved that Dylan has lived to commence tearing around again.

MrsS posh address indeed. I went to school for six months closer to Gaza than would now be advisable, (near Ashdod and Ashkelon) Then spent most of my 20's going backwards and forward from Yafo or Bat Yam at least three times per year. I rarely get the opportunity to speak Ivrit nowadays and feel sad that none of my children are fluent….even DS2 whose MFL's are so good. Maybe we'll have a little chat one day? Lama Lo?

MI, I agree with CV…there's worse obsessions that Tai Chi…what you need it one of your own…..online scrabble or something

I have just finished a mammoth script writing and organising session…arranged around breakfast where ConS has eaten me out of house and home and I had a delicious SW french toast flavoured with orange zest and vanilla…piled high with strawberries, blueberries and fat free yogurt. 3 syns per slice. We are writing a very tragic scene and both ended up crying. Felt like a right pratt. Only one (1,i) more scene left to write…

Going this afternoon to hear DS2's school, to hear the GCSE, AS and A level music exam pieces. They arrange it for performance experience prior to the actual exam. Hoping for an afternoon of loveliness.

Beachy, his love of TMATSNBN predates me by a long way. I suspect he'll be doing it into his pyjama-ed dotage. He's terribly good at it, allegedly. Teaches it and everything.

Agree with Rose about happiness and busy-ness. Although I've just finished the first draft of one project early and now must make a brave assail on the next one. Is it only Tuesday? Why do I suddenly have slightly too much work, as opposed to not enough? Shall I treat myself to a picture to reward self?

What ho crepeys.

Glad rallying is being done by MI, and loafing by CV. And bravely struggling on by everyone else!

Just met my new training class. All very nice. And my fellow trainee teachers all appear sane and normal, in a rare turn of events.

And then we had parent's open afternoon at DS's school, so a few mums sat at the back of the class, on tiny chairs, while the little dears asked their 'talking partner' questions, wrote down said questions, then frantically stuck things in their 'creative' books. Then had a brill phonics session, when Miss would hold up morphemes like 'ish' or 'tion', and they'd put them in words. Then favourite was 'tion', making them all shout 'ATTENTION ATTENTION, IT'S A CELEBRATION', while waving their hands about madly. A technique I could take with me to my literacy class maybe!

My magnesium was an attempt to stave of me monthly migraines. When I take Magnesium OK, a multi-vit with mag, I don't get the squits or migraines. I shall revert to that...

Oh, and MI - what exactly is TMATSNBN actually FOR? You can't fight with it, so is it a sort of meditation? And how is one 'good' at it?

Herbs, I believe it was originally - at least in Mr Inferior's case - for (a) standing up straight (b) Meeting Girls.

I am not exactly sure what's for more broadly. You do get to meditate. And it's sort of martial in that he has now 'progressed' to 'sword form' where you very very very slowly stab something to death. With a wooden sword. (Just the thing for a forrin-looking chap to carry on the tube at a time of heightened Islamophobia, ho yes.)

I vaguely suppose what being 'good' at it means is being practised and graceful and able to do stuff that is actually quite hard. According to the Inferiorettes, who have of course been exposed to several years of summer t'ai chi camp where they bond with other t'ai chi-ldren in support-group manner. He did once suggest I could come as well, and learn Hawaiian Swimming, which apparently enables one to swim for three days with a spear clutched in one's teeth or something. I declined, on the basis that this wasn't a life skill that I found important in Catford.

I do get pissed off when it starts impinging on his entire life. And hate to think how much he's spent on it over the years. But as it's been a central part of his life for much longer than I have, I don't really feel in a position to raise major objections. It's important to him. And after all, there's plenty else to irritate me about him, I might as well leave this one .

In Bonkers Relative news, my Dmum sounds actually quite chirpy and has been told by the physio to walk with a stick not a frame. Progress, I feel.

I snorted unattractively at your bit in your post about the wooden sword, MI.

My mother is back from the hospital, it is indeed another melanoma, but they have caught it early, so that should be that. As she said, it's the waiting that is the worst part.

I feel that TMATSNBN is not a bad deal, MI. DH collects things. Mostly records and CDs, but he has odd looking bits of equipment from when he was an "engineer", and apparently has a collection of old telephones and radios in his DB's loft. Please God let them stay there. He also has a large number of Fulani blankets, which are hideous and smell, and a lot of "art".

LOL at wooden swords and Hawaiian Swimming. I had no idea there was so much to it!

Well, I've spent much of the day asleep but still feel pretty ropy. I have a delightful red nose. And yes, Beachy, I could possibly have reached for a keyboard and done some work, but really didn't feel like it, and as it's the first day off sick I've had for maybe five years I figured they could manage without me. I really do have to go in tomorrow, though, red nose or not, as there are Things That Need Doing.

Me too, MrsS

DH doesn't collect anything (apart from piles of paperwork), but is just as addicted to footy as your DH is to his TMATSNBN

I had a call from my friends mum who is DM's neighbour to say that DM was getting very worried about the numbers on her fridge-freezer..... Friends mum couldn't really fathom what DM was worried about, but managed to reassure her a bit. She gets in a tizz over stuff - particularly seems to be numbers/technology related.
When I finally spoke to DM she seemed a bit calmer, but also agreed that perhaps she might need some help/care/someone checking on her occasionally at home, and agreed to go to see the doctor with me when I go up at Easter. I want to get her checked out and find out what help she might be able to get. I am also going to ring Age UK and some places who provide carers in her area. Does that seem like a good plan?

And Herbs, I love the description of DS's lesson. They do a similar thing at secondary, and it was such a good lesson (History) I had to be restrained from putting my hand up and answering the questions.

Wow, CV and Herbs - those teachers must be mega-confident when inviting the critical MC's in (who are all experts on teaching, because they went to school) - fab that the lessons were so engaging. Like mine

MI your post made me snort too..

Here the third (tres expensive 7 year guarantee) light has gone in the bathroom - I am seething - dp will be ON IT

I forgot to mention the extendable sword (fnar) that he bought over the Interweb (this is actually true) for the purposes of travelling abroad to t'ai chi courses in the Netherlands and - sigh - the US.

I have finally got my act together and found DD2 a sax teacher (school couldn't provide both a sax and a trumpet teacher for her) by the simple method of asking friend for the details of hers. He is both pricey and apparently very good. She'll get all enthused and do even more music stuff. Has just asked again if she can quit the school orchestra, though, which I am inclined to agree with as she does so much already, it means she gets off to a late start on Mondays because it starts at 8.30 and eats into assembly etc (I can sympathise with her a lot on this) and above all it is ear-splittingly terrible. The swing band, otoh, is terrifically good fun. They play the Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy enthusiastically.

Certainly that's progressMI!

Tilly Yes, good plan. I guess the best way is to engage this kind of help before the need gets urgent. Unfortunately this never happens with my Dparents…they pay a lot of lip service to it, but when push comes to shove, they resist like mad!

How are CV, Auriga and other virus ridden Crepeys this morning?

I am not working today. Have dispatched DS2 on a school coach trip to Bristol Uni. He is in good spirits after a lovely A level recital evening last night. I have stupidly managed to record it in SLO-MO on my phone, and am trying to find out how to put it in normal time so I can post his performance. We gave a lift home to a friend of his who lives locally….child of friends whom have gone a bit weird and we rarely see them now. They don't come to see her performances (she's actually a very good singer and musician)…last night she was the only one with no one there to cheer her on. And she actually said something about it into the microphone before her song . I wanted to give her a big cuddle. She and DS2 have been in the same class since nursery school.

Is it as simple as something else clashing, Rose? I only ask because if you only knew me through DD2's performances you'd think I was really really not interested - in reality it's because my own choir meets on a Thursday, when every concert is, and it's not something I can miss if humanly possible. DP does usually go, though.

BTM, do ask if I can be of any help on all this too, re mum.

No MI they never come to anything. She's always left stranded when transport is needed as well..DS is always asking if we can take her here and there. ( we live quite far from the school) They don't support her music, even though her dad plays in a band himself ( jealous? She's loads better than him) but there is quite a big story behind this family...not for print but happy to fill you in at a meet up! There's an older sister who is the golden girl, and DSs friend is definitely the least favoured. Clashing is always a problem but one of us always tried to pitch up and it is generally one rather than both of us! Its easier now I've given up teaching choir on tues nights tbh
but I miss it

Oh, that is grim. Even DP, who is not great at supporting school activities, steps up to the plate and often rather enjoys it in the end.

I do feel bad when neither of us can go to something, but it does happen.

I woke up this morning covered in spots so thought better of going to the office. I am doing a little gentle work from the sofa.

CV Is it chicken pox/shingles do you think?

Rose, that's so sad.

Nah... just a virus.

Oh lord Cv what kind of spots?

How do you know it's a virus? Hope you're not working too hard!

I an having lunch in a cafe before my third meeting of the day and praying DH manages to accompany DD to a sixthform interview (favourite but very oversubscribed) and contemplating what to replace my dead PC with

I did more parent open spying this morning, one in his maths class and one in literacy. They do such amazing stuff at such a young age. These year1 children had to write sentences, using three adjectives, with commas between, and the words 'because' and 'when'. I'm sure I didn't do stuff like that until I was about 8. I blame Gove.

I also discovered that there is a G&T reading group, but DS isn't in it! My inner competitive mum reared its head. One does wonder, if he's reading Roald Dahl and Horrid Henry to himself, yet isn't considered a G&T reader, what the blazes are those children on? Shakespeare? The FT?

In S&B news, I rather fancy a pair of those highly colourful Nike trainers the young people are sporting with skinny jeans or leggings. But not sure I could pull it off. I wonder what you have to do, to avoid looking like an American tourist.

Find out Herbs!

I stick to black or fairly low - key trainers - I have noticed a number of women (younger and slimmer than me) around my area in the neon brights and feel that they may be better left to the youth. Though my two seen to stick to black and white!

Herbs, DD1 was a free reader at 4, reading stuff like Olga da Polga and Magic Unicorn, other shit like that. She was in the G & T group too. Now she's 16 and her grades are distinctly average (well they run from A to F in every subject, but she averages a B or C). So a place in the G & T reading group at this young age may well be the kiss of death!

Herbs, my DS is also year 1 and is reading much the same sort of stuff as yours, coupled with copious amounts of Beast Quest and the Minecraft Handbooks (er........). He scored "as expected" in the end of YR reading test, which I thought was a bit odd. We don't have a G and T group in year 1 though. I would definitely follow it up to see how it has been assessed as it may be a lot more random than is desirable.