October 2014

About 2-3 months ago I noticed I could no longer read close-up. I thought it had happened suddenly, however when I went to get my eyes tested a couple of weeks ago the optician told me I was typical for a woman in her 40s.

I have wanted glasses since I was three years old, when my best friend and next door neighbour at the time, Julie McKie, had to get glasses after crashing her face into a glass table in our house. The two events may not have been linked but in my childish mind they were, and for a time afterwards I wondered if I too could get glasses by colliding with the table. I didn't test my theory.

Hagos came with me to the optician, and photographed me trying out lots of different frames. I was beginning to think the perfect frames may not be out there for me, but then I tried on the above pair. As soon as I put them on they just looked right.

Also - PURPLE and GREEN! My favourite, and default, knitting colours. These glasses are so meant to be. My reading has increased as a result of having the glasses, which is great. Reading had become a strain. I still have to master reading-in-bed-with-glasses.

We held a Great British Bake Off final party. I thought I had photographed the table full of cakes, breads and fudge, but could only find the above cake my friend Lynsey made. I don't remember the name, but it is the torte that the bakers had to grill, layer by layer. I was so impressed. It was a fun night, lovely to have all the kids over and excited about baking, and everyone brought a bake. Sadly my attempt at macarons went awry and I had to quickly whip up a batch of chocolate pistachio fudge on the night.

We also had Cider Day weekend before last. I started picking apples at 10.30am and stopped as the light faded at 6pm. I really enjoyed it. Initially I thought the boys had the easy part of staying in the kitchen drinking tea :) but changed my mind when I saw Hagos's black hands from prolonged apple juice contact and realised the scale of how physical the job of macerating and squeezing the apples actually was. I went to bed around half ten; Hagos and Will were in the kitchen until a quarter to midnight.

Hagos bottled half of the cider a couple of days ago and I think we got almost 40 bottles, all looking lovely with green bottle tops. So impressive. 

At the end of October/beginning of November I love the anticipation of winter and Christmas. I go through a brief nostalgia and want to watch Christmas films (above: Meg and I enjoying Elf), read Christmas magazines, look through M&S Christmas food and drink brochures and daydream about my ideal Christmas time. Usually by mid-November I feel a sudden repulsion and revulsion for the gluttonous aspects of Christmas. The over-spending, over-eating, over-drinking, generally over-consumption. At work I introduced the Make-it-Yourself Secret Santa, where we make a present for someone. I used to do this when I worked for Norfolk Constabulary. It's a surprisingly great thing to do and I have to say my new(er) colleagues have taken to it with relish and have been incredibly inventive over the past couple of years.

I've been off work with a sickness bug this week. I can feel I have more energy today than the rest of the week. I hate being ill. I am always busy either with things I have to do, or things I want to do. And being ill means I can do neither. I can't read, or knit, or sew. The TV becomes a noisy annoyance. So, I'm looking forward to feeling healthy again and having energy to do stuff.