Ilkley Photo 1

Dad and Beth getting on famously.

Ilkley Photo 2

Liz, Nicola and Simon entertain Beth.

Story Time

Auntie Rosie and Beth reading stories. Nice dinosaur.

Boxing Day 2

Boxing Day was spent at Rosie and Matt's house in Manchester. More
smashing food and lovely presents and Beth and cousin Nat getting to
know each other a liitle better.

Boxing Day 1

Granny B and Nat enjoying themselves.

Christmas Presents

Beth and Parkes open presents on Christmas Day. We have had a lovely
day, smashing gifts and too much food. All good.

Domestic Chores

Beth gets to work with her new vacuum cleaner.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Nothing beats a good afternoon's snooze.

BJM

New Brian Jonestown Massacre album in January. Looks like it will be a good year after all.

First Class

Beth on the train to Macclesfield with her supersized cup.

Monday Morning

There's nothing like being stuck at Chartham on a Monday morning in freezing conditions. Fortunately my hot boffs kept me warm. It took me five hours from leaving my house in Ramsgate to get to Chartham, then get a lift back to Canterbury bus station with a lovely couple in a convertible BMW with a shitsu, then an hour wait for a bus, then home. I won't bother getting up on Mondays. South Eastern are appalling.

Crimbo @ Grandad & Grandma's

We had a lovely lunch and tea in Herne Bay with grandparents and uncle and cousins. We received lovely gifts and Beth was smitten with her new baby doll as per the picture. I'm feeling rather fat now.

Snow Cometh

A snowy day. Snowball fights in St Luke's park.

Eat And Be Merry - Age & Sons

Well, a couple of Saturday's ago, Strings and I frequented the Monts for a couple of ales then hot footed down to Age and Sons in Ramsgate. When you first walk in, you encounter the kitchen right in front of you, all the chefs looking busy and sweaty, if slightly stressed. We were shown to our table upstairs which again was a lovely building, exposed old brick and wooden rafters. The order was taken for our booze, a nice 2005 Chablis, then we were left for about ten mins to peruse the menu- which was limited, but in a good way. I chose the Carpaccio and Strings chose the cuttlefish risotto. But it was 45 mins before we ate, which was ok as we were having a lovely time and enjoying being out drinking together. The starters were delish, I really enjoyed the raw beef, also the risotto was very delicate and light. Another bottle of wine later (this time a Sancerre) the mains arrived, belly of pork for me, Dover Sole for Strings, both were divine, extra sides of veg and creamy mash was also devoured. All in all a lovely restaurant, food was A1, service slow, but don't let that put you off as it is a great place to spend a few hours. Be advised to book as it was busy that night (might explain the slow service). I would recommend this place but not for a quick bite!

Parkes out and about

Post Post

I am not sure what has happened to our post. Every day the only thing coming through our letter box is an assortment of take-away menus. Has our postman resigned? Is there a strike which I am unaware of? Is it just us?

Freezing Temperatures But...

...nothing can beat a rice cake.

Activities

I've just spent a lovely, relaxing weekend at home. On Saturday night I popped over to the Silk residence to watch stuff with Kaiser Keith and enjoy a breath-busting Garlic Chilli Chicken curry. On Sunday we went to Westwood Cross to get some Christmas shopping done. I spent the rest of the weekend playing "skipping" and pretending to be asleep with Beth. Her playing and conversation is coming on leaps and bounds since she started at her new nursery school.

Slow Train Mental Disintegration

Getting the slow train to Ramsgate is tough given the effortless
journey the High Speed service presents.

Pen & Ink

I moved into a different department this week at work. It is really nice to be busy but I seem to have gone from doing absolutely nothing to not even having time to use the toilet. Last night I left the office at a quarter past midnight and had to stay at a hotel in Fulham. Although I showered this morning and put on deodorant I am starting to stink a bit. It just proves that turning your underpants inside out doesn't work.

Southwark

The South Bank has changed dramatically since the days in the 90's when I used to work and knock around there. Southwark Street now has funky eateries and shops where there used to be dirty old pubs. The Tate Modern has certainly brought focus to this part of London and The Shard promises to make the South Bank something special. It is due to be completed in 2012 and will be the tallest skyscraper in Europe.

Walking across the wobbly bridge on my way from Southwark to Cannon Street.

Weekend Past

It was a mixed weekend. The weather in Thanet was goooood. The Saturday night beers and meal were excellent (Parkes' Age & Son restaurant review to follow). The Sunday hangover wasn't the best. And Beth wasn't well and had a high temperature.

Beth wearing her angel costume.

Weekend Activities

This weekend can't come soon enough. This evening I will be having an intercambio over Skype with my friend Juan in Madrid. On Saturday night Parkes and I will be having dinner at Age & Sons. I have heard good and bad things about this restaurant so it is time to find out for ourselves. On Sunday we'll be having a pub lunch with Dean and Sarah in Faversham. During the daytime there will be plenty of playtime with Beth.

The Royal Exchange. Apparently the food was rubbish and the service was disorganised and slow. We won't be going back there in a hurry.

Sea Minus

If I owned a boat I would not be silly enough to sail it anywhere near any of the following; North Korea, Somalia, Iran or the Isle of Sheppey. Silly boys. You can put kids through public schools but you can't teach them common sense.

Gobble Gobble

Tonight I will enjoying a good meal with my colleagues, as it is Christmas party time!!! We will be dining at the Royal Exchange near Bank tube station and hopefully the food will be tip top. However, this year will be dry Crimbo party as I do not want to repeat my exploits from last years bash (sleep walking around a hotel in my pants, vomitting, missing work the following day etc).

This morning I took the 07:05 train from Ramsgate into town which meant I travelled on the tube at around 08:30. I gave me a reminder of how overcrowded the Underground gets at peak times - it really wasn't built for that many people. It is the perfect way to start your day off really badly.