Home Thoughts Weekly

‘Let’s go for a Chinese!’ says Tom in a true triumph of hope over experience. There’s only one Chinese restaurant anywhere near us and both the decor and the menu are seriously in need of a revamp. However, with our long-serving Dyson becoming the latest victim of the appliance apocalypse sweeping (or not in the case of the Dyson) through our house, we feel in need of, well not a treat exactly, but a change of scenery. No surprises at the restaurant; everything about it is reliably dreary, although the evening livens up when the man on the table behind us does a runner. That is, he fumbles for his walking sticks and hobbles slowly out the door without paying. Having tasted the sweet and sour pork I can understand why. So, it seems, can the staff because it takes several minutes before a waitress sets off after him. Although the meal’s a little less than bog standard, there’s nothing wrong with our pot of jasmine tea which arrives with a couple of fortune cookies. I’m a bit wary...

'Your Cat' magazine is a must for cat lovers. It's full of practical advice - this month's issue features money-saving tips for cat owners, for example - and there are plenty of entertaining and informative articles on all aspects of cat care. The March issue , also contains my short story, 'Charm's Way' in which a boatyard moggy helps a materialistic go-getter discover life's true treasures. I was really interested to see how my story would be illustrated and was delighted, when my copy came today, with what the artist had done. Your Cat magazine is available now in newsagents and supermarkets.

Thursday 3 February Mobile again, we decide to take the little car, aka The Biscuit Tin, to do all the things that are stacking up in the south. The Biscuit Tin whizzes along impressively, although high winds make it skitter a bit which is interesting. Arrive at Ma’s to find her glowing with health (apart from the obvious injuries). She’s had to walk everywhere and looks reinvigorated for it. My sister, by contrast, is out of hospital but looking very thin and pale. Friday 4 February Tom and I both to London to catch up with old friends and former colleagues. I begin in Holborn and have a rare old time catching up with a dear friend from my trades union research days. (And, John, you can be sure I won’t forget now that the quote was from ‘Boys from the Blackstuff’!) John then points me in the right direction to join Tom at a restaurant in Earlham Street. Alas, as some of you will remember, being pointed in the right direction in London doesn’t mean I’ll end up in the right place...

Today I'm blogging over at Choc Lit Author's Corner about love tokens and Choc Lit's special Valentine's offer.

Goodness me, those posh chocolates are a dim and distant memory now. Hopefully, thanks to those generous folks at Appliances Online , some of you will shortly be wallowing in recipe books and chocolates galore. Just remember though that if you get a washing machine I’ll be a bit miffed as mine’s still on the blink. After a traumatic December I was hoping for a period of calm, but January’s been just as tumultuous... Ma , feisty old bird that she is, has coped amazingly with having one arm in a sling. Her delight when she managed to put a bra on for the first time was only marred by her dismay that she’d put it on inside out. At this stage, I’d have thought ‘What the heck’ and left it, but Ma went through the whole laborious process again! The hospital lost her follow-up appointment (you knew they’d do that, didn’t you?) but she’s now back in the system. All things considered she’s been a real star. My little sister was rushed into hospital last week with chest pains and treated...