NOBODY HOME

On Saturday we woke up at about 10am, I would like to have said bright and early but it was not to be. Americo and I are night owls no matter how hard we try. This weekend we were with Americo’s family. Americo’s mom is going off to Portugal for three months so we wanted to see her before she set off on her travels. Unfortunately, instead of having the whole weekend with family, Americo was called into an early Monday morning meeting, in Slovakia, so had to fly out on Sunday afternoon.

I have a bit of a love – hate relationship with Sunday, on one hand it is the one day a week that Americo and I (generally) spend exclusively together. On the other, when Sunday dawns it brings with it a slight resentment that Monday is shortly to follow! Whatever my relationship with Sunday it does not divert from the fact that Sundays WITH Americo are vastly more appealing than Sunday’s without. Regardless, Americo deserted me at about 1.30pm to head off to the airport and I, in the interests of self preservation, decided to travel to Richmond and watch ‘The Boys’ play volley ball.

I arrived at volley ball to late to have any actual effect as Cheerleader, and all my good intentions of bringing supplies and feeding the starving masses fell to the wayside. However I made the effort, more so than they realise...

For me the fundamental rule of London Life is to avoid buses like the plague (especially on weekends), unfortunately, as Americo had the car on Sunday I had to make certain allowances. On the way to Ham Common I have to admit to a certain novelty enchantment, it was short lived. The return journey took almost 2 hours with the most revolting creature sitting at the back of the bus spouting forth a venomous dialog consisting, predominantly, of the more earthy expressions from the gutter.

Now I am sure you have all noticed a pattern, when Americo goes out of town I head to KFC! Sunday night was no different… There I sat, with the whole evening ahead of me and my ‘kin filthy chicken’ devoured. I looked around the disaster area we currently call home and got myself motivated.

In any good attack it is important to formulate a plan - other than hoping someone else will attend to the chaos. I started to tidy. I worked my way around the ground floor with systematic thoroughness. In the kitchen I returned salt & pepper shakers etc to their rightful cupboards before making the counters shine with pride (and a little bit of help from Mr Muscle!). I repatriated the paperwork that had illegally migrated from Americo’s home office onto my dining room table. The white flag of surrender finally appeared with the arrival of heavy artillery - The Vacuum and Mop. Yes the house has been beaten into submission, for the moment, however with Americo’s return I foresee another uprising towards the end of the week!

Now I have to work up my reserve energy to tidy and clean the 2nd and third floors! It will have to be Thursday as tonight I have my volley ball – still soooo committed! And tomorrow I am going to support my colleagues in the JP Morgan run. This will mostly consist of me sitting on the grass, keeping an eye on bags whilst enjoying a very satisfying puff gulping down Pimms and Lemonade – LOVE SUMMER!!

HOLIDAY

Last night I finished all but a few planks of decking (because I ran out of oil) just in time too as the weather has turned. With the temperature dropping, cloud building, I would say this is the perfect weekend for Whisky and Poker, failing that, junk food and movies!

I am currently counting down the weeks until we wing our way over to The States for our road trip. I know it is MILES in advance but cannot contain my excitement! When Americo and I got married we were not able to go on honeymoon due to .. getting married and buying a house. So we decided to do a ‘year of honeymooning’ this year, slightly excessive I will admit – but great fun. In December we went to Thailand, where I introduced Americo to the concept of light packing and adventure travelling.

For Americo, being a true accountant, it did not compute to arrive in a foreign country without booking any accommodation and only a vague notion of what we were going to do when we got there. Luckily I have cured him of this and he has taken to my adventurous ambitions with gusto.

Compared to our very lazy Thailand holiday, this trip will be packed full of activities, we land in Tampa, drive to Orlando – there to hit a couple of theme parks then onwards to Miami and back to Tampa on the opposite coastal road. Brilliant! Again we will be rocking up blind with no set plan, only our trusty Tom-Tom and a hire car to hand.

To some people travel is all about the exciting monuments you will see, people you will meet and memories you come away with. Americo, as much as he appreciates all of this his real joy will be of the food – if the food is good we will go there again.. if not – I will have to try better next time! ;)

To end this week is my usual tale of woe – the house has been thoroughly neglected and is once again looking like a charity store. There are more clothes in the washing basket than the cupboards and, if it doesn’t get attended to promptly, we shall have to join a nudist colony.

Luckily I have found the perfect answer to anyone who arrives and walks into the chaos that is our life..

IT'S PINK!

The other night Americo did a load of washing. As a red pair of fisherman trousers we got in Thailand would be included I reiterated that no whites, whatsoever, should be involved… You can see the impending doom.. I transferred everything from washer to tumble dryer and guess what I found? Americo’s once very manly football socks were now a lovely shade of salmon, along with his ankle guard and some other choice items. I have to admit to a little chuckle of amusement seeing my husband rushing about trying to get his gear together with pink ankle guard on one foot and a jaundiced expression directed at the socks.

I have not always been the ‘demi-domestic goddess’ you see before you. In fact when I came to the UK my kitchen skills consisted of nuking a potato in the microwave and not much more. I remember one boyfriend’s mother saying ‘She is lovely darling.. but I don’t think she can cook!’

My second home in London was a houseshare on Fladgate Road. I was living with a group of friends from Zimbabwe along with my brother and his wife. Being so far from home we were more a family unit than a typical shared house. Everyone had a duties partner and each ‘couple’ had their chance of cooking a proper meal once a week. However, as I could not cook my partner would only allow me to watch and clean. The one day, seeing me wielding a knife, he removed the danger from my hands and asked me to please sit out of harms way.

To return the kindness I offered to iron his shirt whilst he cooked dinner. All I can say is it seemed like a good idea at the time. It started off so well, that is until about half way through when the iron got a little sticky and I lifted it to find a newly inserted hole. After this episode not only was I banned from the kitchen but my washing duties were limited to putting the washing machine on where upon magical little Fairies would descend, transfer them to the tumble dryer and onwards to my bedroom all neatly folded! Oh how I miss those days!!

This weekend is a busy one for us, we have my cousin’s 40th birthday party which is themed fancy dress. Americo has been inspired, suggesting he will be going as .. himself! Hmmmm. I on the other hand intend to make just a little bit more of an effort within what we have at home. Do you think I could put my wedding dress back on and go as Julia Roberts in The Run Away Bride? No? I didn’t really think so either. Undoubtedly something will spring to mind between now and tomorrow.

Sunday we are walking with friends round Henley on Thames with a little picnic at some halfway point – lets hope the weather stays as beautiful as it is today. Finally, as Monday is a bank holiday, we are off to the park for volley ball. After much beating of chests last weekend we have a tournament of some description going ahead. My money is on Americo and Bob, mostly because the are brutal and hate to loose!

Tuesday is my op so I will probably be out of commission and off the blog until the following Monday.. Until then!

WASHING ALERT!

After yesterdays debacle, I am wearing my glasses – can’t say they have made me any wittier but I can certainly see better!

I have now, mostly, settled back into the swing of things.. I have remembered how to type and log onto my computer without expiring the password, and most importantly that payday arrives on Friday.

When Americo & I arrived back on Sunday he diligently loaded up the washing machine and cleaned all our laundry, neatly heaping the dried mounds in anticipation of my folding expertise. I on the other hand took one look at the growing chaos and ignored it. Unfortunately acknowledgement will no longer be denied. Our house is fast becoming a classified zone, resembling Oxfam on drop off day. We have more clothes sitting on our sofas than we do in the cupboards. This is posing a slight problem as all clean ware is in the lounge and the once neat stacks of laundry, after being raided, are beginning to resemble an attempted burglary.

Oh well, on to other things. This morning I woke up to Americo’s alarming alarm going off at the usual 6am slot. Amazingly, he actually got up, well.. More like fell out of bed so big was his surprise. I must admit to a sleepy chuckle at my drowsy husband tumbling to the floor. For retribution Americo stood over my dreaming form, put his nose on my nose and stared. A more uncomfortable way to be woken I do not know. He would not relent until I opened my eyes which proved to be rather difficult as one eye remained resolutely shut. And so we were, Americo grinning like a monkey and me blearily blinking back – owl like.

Yesterday was the 2009 Budget Report, exciting stuff. Basically if you eat, work and pay taxes your chances of getting shafted have greatly improved. Here, here to Labour!