Another year

Yesterday I celebrated the passing of another year...

I've now been driving longer than I haven't!

But more worryingly, I have now entered the costliest year of my life, according to a recent press article!

And so it was that I took yesterday off work in celebration - starting with a bacon sandwich lovingly prepared by my wife, and ending with a lovely meal at Barn under a Wandering Star, possibly my favourite restaurant in Newcastle at the moment...

Prizes for the day included a couple of Casting Crowns CDs, a new coal bucket (this to match the new fire tools and guard I got for Christmas), packets of flour, yeast, and, oh - yes, a bread-maker (still to arrive via amazon...) I can imagine the smell of the fresh baked bread wafting up to the bedroom even as I write this... mmmmm

Crisp and clear in Edinburgh

A beautiful sunset behind the castle and the Scott Monument...

Who am I?

Not because of who I am, but because of who He is and what He's done...


by Casting Crowns

Craster to Dunstanburgh

Mrs D, doglet and I went for a lovely walk from the little fishing village of Craster yesterday...

We set off with a light wind (OK, it was quite blowy, but just enough to blow the cobwebs away...) and blue skies - perfect for an afternoon walk.

Doglet enjoyed trying to chase the sheep, oblivious to the fact that just when she got near, the flexi-lead came to an end abruptly, almost decapitating her every time.

The waves were crashing, the birds were soaring, and all was right with the world!



Then we turned round to go back to the car... that's when we realised we were in trouble! The sky was black behind us - not a dark grey, but a pitch black... the wind picked up... the rain started - fine at first, becoming heavier and heavier... mixed with sleet... smacking into our faces with the full force of the wind.

Not pleasant!

Doglet at one point refused to go on - she sat down, head away from the wind, eyes closed. As if to say, 'You must be joking if you think I'm going any further in this!' We managed to coax her into continuing! By the time we got back to the car, we were absolutely drenched. Not just a wee bit wet around the edges - but soaked through to the skin!

So much for a relaxed afternoon stroll by the coast!

More ghastly food combinations

I thought I would treat you to some more of the ghastly food combinations we have been exposed to recently at Kidz Klub.

All have been used as variations to the more popular children's game 'dooking for apples'...
Just try and eat these with your hands behind your back.... yeuch!

Banana, ice cream, squirty cream and hundreds & thousands...

Hot dog placed on a disposable nappy and covered with brown sauce...

Possibly the worst hotel, ever?

The new year found us in sunny Birmingham (OK, not so sunny...) with me accompanying Mrs D as she attended a conference to do with science teaching. We had booked (through the conference organisers) into what we had thought would be a lovely hotel, centrally placed for the station and other amenities... The hotel website gives an impression of what we were expecting...



Sadly, the website does not give a true impression... I won't include the gory details here - many before me have added their thoughts on tripadvisor.co.uk...

It really was that bad!