Bert Trautmann..what a fella....

Just watched an amazing documentary on the goalkeeper Bert Trautmann. He was a German goalkeeper who played for Man City in the 50's and 60's. He fought in the war until he was captured by the English and made a POW. Then he turned his hand to football and ended up playing in goal at Wembley. A match in which he subsequently broke his neck during a vigorous tackle without knowing it!! He carried on playing even making more brilliant saves and they won the cup. He was patted on the back by the fans after the match unaware that one hard pat could've killed him.

About 2 weeks later he had Xrays and they discovered this injury and he underwent the available procedures etc and mada full recovery and even went on in the future to play again. What an amazing story and a great goalie. Whats even more amazing is that loads of English supporters absolutely loved this German, bearing in mind that this was a time when we were at war with Germany. Incredible.

The horror, of parents evening....

                                                                             

Ok, so it's that evening that many a parent fears...parents evening. Ok, maybe I'm being a tad melodramatic but it's not the most comfortable of situations. Our last one involved the head teacher and our son's y6 form teacher too. Our 10 year old had to present to us a powerpoint presentation about his work and we have to sit there looking impressed while we are really sitting there getting  really embarrassed and trying to not let my grumbling  tummy noises disrupt the merriment. We want to complain that he doesn't do his homework well enough, doesn't write neatly enough, doesn't get enough homework, doesn't focus enough but no, we sit there and gush and say how positive we feel about it all. Reminds me of story about two parents about to go into a parent consultation with the head,
Mum-'Well, what do we ask ?'
Dad- 'We just ask if they feel our son is coping well with academia'
Mum-' I think he copes better with cashews'' Enuf said......

An inflatable bowel....

Today at the Harlequin centre, Watford, I had the unenviable option to actually walk through a gigantic inflatable bowel to highlight the dangers of bowel diseases. I decided against venturing through this pit of doom...unsurprisingly.

Red Nose Day Again....

Here we go again...minor comedic personalities and K list celebrities?Nobodies doing such humorous antics for Comic Relief day. Must admit I did quite enjoy the Let's Dnce competition which James and Charlie won with their tap routine, quite good really rather than funny. Very entertained by Russell Kane as Beyonce and Noel Fielding as Kate Bush,both were frighteningly good,a bit too good in fact,they both looked very much at ease in the guise of these women.Wasn't overly amused by the slightly too portly looking Ade Edmondson recreating the dying swan (seems that the swan should've swam a few more circuits of the river before he carked it)
My kids school wanted us to dress up the kids in something funny today, I suggested they consulted my other half's alarming wardrobe, that contains many a funny item....instead we chose the easier route of Tiger with an expertly marvellous looking face painting job by myself and a Red Cross on the head of my 10 year old..not bad eh??

I miss my tennis....

Having played the great sport of tennis since the age of 9, I come to the conclusion that I miss it terribly due to a very annoying back muscle problem that seems to keep afflicting me.

lets just go to the bar.....

I'm no Ivana Kopalotover or whatever the name is or the brilliantly named Elena Smashnova! but i could darn well hit a ball well when I wanted to and have won many a trophy and tournament over the years.
So, back to the back, it hurts. Thats about it basically, because I don't want to get all ailmenty on you because I'm sure there are far more interesting things you'd like to hear. Have to admit though, these inter club matches that I have played over the years are sometimes a very big chore and personally not very enjoyable. Some of the old Grotbags,nutcases,menopausal maniacs and stroppy 16year old madams that I have come across make me feel like running for the hills in terror but alot of the time the women are ok,,they sneer and spout poison on the court, but when the match is over they can't do enough for you. 'Can I buy you a drink?' they'll lovingly enquire, my response, 'yes, I'll have a quadruple vodka and orange and ten bags of cheese n onion please'...oh, was I meant to just have a diet coke? Well, it takes that amount of alcohol just to obliterate the fact that you just pummelled me on the court and laughed while you did it, but hey, all's fair in love, war and tennis, just make it Smirnoff not some cheap rubbish!!

The Clock Stopped..

Oops, so the Olympic clock gave up did it?? Not the biggest tragedy in the world if you compare recent events but even so, a bit of a blooper  for Seb and Boris. What would we say to Usain Bolt say if the timer on his 100m dash decided to not work? ..'oh sorry old boy, can we just do that one again?' don't think so sunshine. So Boris's response was, 'we don't need a clock to tell us how long it is until the Olympics' if that's the case then why have we got one in the first place?? Funny really, just remember people..Keep Calm and Carry On...

Love the old style of advertising

Praying for sunshine.....

Summer

Summer to me is to simply slow down,

Roll up my sleeves and lessen that frown.

Recline in my garden and take a short nap,

Prawns on the barbie and Scrumpy on tap.

Summer to me breaks the cold Winter’s chains,

Idyllically calm where tranquillity reigns.

People get kinder and anger subsides,

There’s a magical remedy that Summer provides.

Memories are made when the sun pours his rays,

His radial warmth creates Halcyon days...

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Black Bangers

On the barbie my dad is the best,

He cooks in his old string vest.

He cremates the bacon

Not wearing an apron

And singes the hairs on his chest!

Watching him cook is such fun,

His burger I eat with my bun.

He sings while he sizzles

the flames they all fizzle

It’s lucky we like them well done!

Our summer is never complete,

Until dad starts to burn all the meat.

He gets lots of flack

cos his bangers are black

But my dad is the best and so NEAT!!!!

A while ago my partner and two young children and I were en route to Dawlish in Devon for our summer holiday. Half an hour from our destination we broke down on the motorway. After waiting what seemed quite a while for motorway recovery our son Ashley, who happened to be celebrating his 6^th birthday this very day was getting very distressed at the thought of missing his birthday meal and cake.

Not wishing to disappoint him and after our long wait, his daddy and I dove into action.

We pulled out our travel tin foil barbeque and some sausages and kebabs from our cool bag and proceeded to fire up our mini BBQ on a lay by off the M4!(which incidentally, sat just next to the toilets)

This impromptu action was greeted with much delight from our chuffed children who enjoyed the sights of the scenic motorway and the most unusual birthday party ever...Glamorous it was not...spontaneous, just a tad....

Thought this was funny....

A New Day

Well, no sunshine this morning which is a shame. I've missed the sunshine so much more than ever recently. I feel the cold as I get a little older, my insides shiver and shake and I crave some warmth. Maybe I have SAD and need to sit under a lamp, hope not, plays havoc with the skin tone.
The news is filled with the Japanese earthquake and how it's not only a natural disaster but a nuclear one too with all this excess radiation that is now leaking. Terrible. There seems to be so many of these tsunamis/earthquakes /floods in recent years. Maybe they've always been occuring but with all our modern technology and stuff we just are better informed than we have ever been.Sometimes I think we forget that this earth and all of it's natural occurences have been happening for alot longer than we've ever existed. We didn't discover much and we are merely renting here for our 70 odd(presumed) years of life.
Lots of talk about Midsomer Murders on LBC. Quite liking Midsomer Murders now,I am getting old. Nothing like a bit of John Nettles, agood murder and a chocolate Hob Nob of an afternoon..followed by Escape To The Country..now where are my slippers?

Smiling does come quite naturally

Smiling does come quite naturally, to a proud working mum just like me.

My children they take up all of my time, 'Cos one of them’s 5 and the other is 9.

I smile as they charge down the beach in the rain, they laugh as dad drops his ice cream down the drain!

I smile 'cos they're happy with their lives so carefree,

But I smile the most ..when they smile right back at me.