Cooling down

Father in Law has been ensconced in the sitting room during most of the time he's been here. This is good because I find it hard, if there are people around, to concentrate on important things that I ought to be doing. Like letting Barney do lots of cooking and tidying up after him. But it's bad because FiL likes warmth. well let's be accurate here. He likes HEAT. The fire lit, the central heating on and the door tightly shut against stray draughts and any kind of air movement.

So we all fell asleep after dinner, watching Benny Hill (No, I had nothing to do with this choice of viewing) and I'm really not sure if it was the hot airlessness or the tepid humour which sent us all off. But it was nice having a little doze and even nicer emerging, opening several windows and having a large drink of water.
Well, so I'm waiting excitedly for my new lap top to arrive and fill up lots of happy hours trying to make it work and connect to the internet (I can't wait for this bedtime blogging - at one point when Eldest and I were discussing various options and Eldest said well that one's £900 which is £100 saving on that one and Barney said...as well he might...£900??!!! What do you want this lap top for??? Somehow I didn't think that blogging in bed would make him feel all cosy about lap top buying. No, we didn't go for the £900 one :)
I'm also waiting excitedly for Photoshop CS2 to arrive so I can play with the beta version of CS3.
And then, after New Year, when there's a bit more time, I can go and have my free lesson with my NEW SEWING MACHINE....(nearly as magnificent a present as the lap top) and then do some sewing.
In fact there's so much excited waiting going on here I may expire from the sheer...erm...excitement! But I mustn't do that before New Year as we've invited lots of people for the festivities. Sadly, not the bloke we invited last year who proved a bit over-excitable about fireworks and erratic in directing them...such that a rocket passed between Eldest and the person he was talking to. Between, in fact, their two faces. Inches to spare I gathered afterwards. All unaware that he's regarded as a danger to life and limb, this person has been angling for a repeat invitation with increasing lack of subtlety for the last month...a further indication of unsuitability.

Other things that have made an impression in the last few days include a set of plates we bought. Well, Barney bought them actually, together with new cutlery. I'm not quite sure why he wants matching sets (I thought we were perfectly happy with the random assortment we've had for years but it seems we aren't) but they are very nice though also VERY BIG square white plates. Too big to go in the dishwasher and so heavy that you risk wrist strain every time you pick one up. The shop was three short of a set when we bought them so we ordered the rest and quite predictably, they didn't arrive. After a number of phone calls to complain (made easier and more effective by the fact that I personally don't care very much if we don't get another three very heavy plates to handwash) we ended up with abject apologies and, somewhat unbelievably, a free set of slightly smaller plates! I mean free! (these plates cost as much as they weigh).
When the manager made this offer I was so stunned I made fish noises for a minute or two (bloop blopp gurgle gulp) and had to restrain myself from saying "You're joking...Oh no really there's no need to go over the top...I don't want the plates that much honestly...where's the catch".
I think the moral of this tale is, if you want something a lot and it doesn't happen, get someone else, who couldn't care less, to complain for you and they will be rewarded on earth (I guess none of us will be rewarded in heaven) on your behalf.
Or, all sorts of things come to those who get a good and disinterested intermediary to complain.
Or, Camp Hops are jolly good people and they really care about our custom.
Or, Barney did thatch Mr Hops' roof a few years ago...can they be hoping for a better rate when he needs patching?
I feel a bit of a fraud really. It's not as though we often spend lots of money there. I think we once bought an armchair cheap in their sale. sometimes I wander round the expensive clothes section and drool a bit. Now and then I buy a packet of safety pins or a bit of elastic in the haberdashery department. And I really don't think we're going to follow up our plate buying with any other major purchases. (I did vaguely mention that if only they'd told me the plates weren't coming before Christmas I could have got them at Bentalls...did that hit a nerve?).
Oh enough of this rambling. I need to clear up dinner and have now cooled down so much that I also need to get tucked up in a warm bed. And it's nearly time to start panicking about NYE. Or even thinking about it.
I'll post some pictures tomorrow :)
Goodnight.