Pre-Trip-Trip

In preparation for the school trip to Filey next week, I volunteered (SUCKA) to do a pre visit.  In previous years the itinerary has looked quite scant.  I have never worked in a school that requires so much information about a trip before you have even sent the letters out to parents. 

I had initially planned to go on the Wednesday, but after an action packed weekend we needed a bit of a break, and I had sodding reports to complete (2 down, 22 to go....).  So Friday morning we checked the weather app (all sunny and bright) and tootled off up the M62, following the trusty satus navigus.  I had looked on the map and it looked about an hour or so away (you know its not going to be even slightly that close).

Our delightful satus navigus  must have at some point, by me I must admit, been programmed to take the scenic route, because that is all it ever takes.  We have just left the M62 when we hit a spot of congestion.  As GO rightly mumbled from the passenger seat, "bloody weekend traffic, holiday makers all going home".  None of which I had any control over, we also hit road works, road narrowing and a whole shed load of traffic lights.  We both noted that the road leaving Filey/Scarborough was just as congested and made mental notes to go home a different way. By now we had passed, Huddersfield, Halifax, Leeds, York and Scarborough,  but we had made it, the sun was shining and we found a parking space, all be it on the top of the hill behind the grand hotels, at the cost of £5 for 4 hours.

We grabbed our gear and made out way to the seafront for our picnic, as we walked through the park past the playground, boating lake, mini race track and three putting greens, we noticed everybody else was wrapped up in jackets and scarves.  I then started to feel chilly, I had dressed for a day trip to the Northern Riviera in June, I should have dressed for a spring day by the North sea.  It was freezing, we decided against the sea front and took shelter in a pavilion on the putting green.  We/GO wrapped ourselves/himself in the picnic blanket and had our lunch.  As GO was still in recovery he passed on the coffee and just ate his roll, slowly.  I didn't want the whole day to be a bust so I told him to stay put an keep warm and I would go and take some photo for the trip.

As I strolled along the prom (prom, prom, tiddly, om, pom, pom) taking photos, planning activities for the children to do.  I realised that we would be here for about five hours, with 24 5/6 y.o's and all they had brought with them in previous years were some bats and balls.  I am planning on doing some sketching (of the beach huts), take some rubbings of the pavement (lots of shells and rocks), setting up a scavenger hunt, before running along the beach and paddling.

As I turned around making my way back to GO, I got a text message "I'm cold, going back to the car."  Bless him, he had to carry the backpack, cool box and my handbag back to the car all by himself.  just as he got himself comfy cosy I arrived and off we went, after a two and a half hour journey we had spent fifty minutes in Filey.  WE have used all of the fuel that we had put in the car (I will find out about getting that back, or maybe I should just claim expenses for it).  Mindful of the traffic leaving Filey on the way in we decided to go a different way towards Hull via, Bridlington and Beverly.  The satus navigus wasn't happy and kept trying to turn us

around.  Finally after being caught in the rush hour traffic we got home, 7 hours after we left.  This trip better be good, because I am not sure it will be worth all of the agro.  On the plus side it was a day out and I can now say I have been on the world tour of Yorkshire.

My turn to be Florence Nightingale

I'm not nervous

Two years ago I sat in a waiting room, it was the day of my ovarian drilling. I was nervous but hopeful for the future and what it would bring, not much as it turns out. Well today I sat in another waiting room as GO had a tooth extracted. We arrived early (7.30am, his appointment was at 9am) to find a parking spot. My plan was once he was in the OP room I'd sneak out to Gregg's and grab a bacon sandwich. He was called in and as I picked up my things to go the receptionist called, "You can't leave, you have to stay here the whole time". 

Oh!

He's not very good at waiting

I fiddled with my phone and just as I was getting restless I heard, "Mrs GO". It had only been ten or so minutes. I felt cold, had something gone wrong? Had they cancelled it? "Oh, he's fine" the nurse said, seeing my face. "It's all done he's in recovery."

He was so confused

She led me to a side room where GO was lying down, he looked sleepy and had cotton wool rolls stuffed in his mouth.  As he came round a bit more he began to ask questions and make jokes, which was hilarious in itself but as his mouth was packed with cotton it's was a muffled (more so than normal). It was about then that he heard the heart monitor beeping, within seconds he was trying to dance to it like some Euro Techno music. By this stage I was crying with laughter, but trying not to let anyone now as the nurse was giving me serious aftercare instructions.

Dancing to his own heartbeat

I managed to walk GO to the car and we set off back for home. The closer we got the sedation started to wear off, I nipped into the supermarket on the way home to get some bits for him. I picked up some baby food, as it was soft and packed with nutrients. 

He is now tucked up in bed, snoozing. I have the security camera set up so I can keep an eye on him.

Tucked up safe and sound

Get Well Soon Ginger One xxx

We'll See...

YSP - fat girl walking

One of the trips in my half term hotlist was to visit the Yorkshire Sculptue Park.  I have started to use Instagram as a sort of tourist information.  I check into a place and then see who else has checked in and look at other places they have been.

One person had checked themselves into Haworth and an exhibition with what looked like a ginormous miserable Mickey Mouse.  It turned out to be by an artist who goes by the name KAWS, a Newyork native who is currently touring the world.

I was intrigued, and have to admit that my first thought, on discovering that the exhibition was being held at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, was oh my gosh that would look so cool on my Facebook page. Sad I know, but, well...  I was right. 

As well as KAWS the YSP has pieces by Andy Gormley, Henry Moore, and Ai Wei Wei (we saw an exhibition of his at Blenheim a couple of years ago).

It was a great day, less than an hour away and completely free.  Alright you have to pay to park, but for what you get to see I think that it a small price to pay.  I loved it and will definitely be going again, soon.  Particularly as we hadn't even looked around the indoor exhibits.

Sculpture Trail - Fat Girl Walking

I'm really getting into the hill walking round here.  I was saying to GO just the other day, I remember complaining about how steep Ladder Hill in Wheatley was, but compared to some of the "mountains" round here it was a "molehill".  I find that I can walk for miles and miles on the flat but the minute the gradient goes up I start to struggle.    This is why I have tried to incorporate lots of hill walking into my repertoire.  They are difficult, they are killers but they are always worth it.  None more so then the Pendle Sculpture trail we went on this past weekend.  It was a warmish, sunny day.  I had picked up a few walking books and leaflets from the Tourist information Centre in the middle of Tod and had seen the Sculpture trail leaflet, I had seen it a few weeks before and I decided to check it out.

http://letswalkinpendle.btck.co.uk/thependlesculpturetrail

"The Pendle Sculpture Trail has ten ceramic plaques. Each has its own unique symbols which represent each of the Pendle people who were hanged 400 years ago in the biggest witchcraft trial in this country."  

We downloaded the guide, parked at the suggested car park in the village of Barley and set off, the get to the trail its about a mile through the village, past the green and two very full pubs.  I did feel sorry for the villagers having all of these ignorant tourists descending on the weekend of the bank holiday.  I have to admit that I did feel slightly smug, as I have just left Oxford where the bank holidays mean that you, a local/resident, can not do anything with out having to queue or barge through groups of tourists.  We carried towards the trail passing by the two reservoirs, over looked the entire time by the Pendle Hill.  "One day..."  I muttered to myself.  I have decided that one day I will ascend that hill, not by car, by foot.  I know it won't be a quick journey but I am determined that it will be under my own steam.  Just got to do a bit of research on the walk first.  For warned it fore armed and all that.

As we walked through the village and then off towards the trail, I thought I'd better phone home, just in case I didn't get back in time to Skype.  "The guide book says it takes three hours to complete the trail, we'll probably take four hours, if you don't hear from us by then we're lost".  We all laughed, (it turned out it only took us just over two hours and we stopped for a snack break)  only the day before I had heard in the news about a lady who had gone of the path on the Appalachian trail to pee and got so lost, that she wasn't seen alive again.  It made me think, its never a bad thing to let people know where you are.

We made it the start of the sculpture trail, we both knew it was in the woods on the hill, but neither of us had thought about what that would mean to two slightly unfit walkers.  I strode off at speed, I am obviously the more experienced walker, I made it  about 100 yards when I had to stop and catch my breath.  In my defense.....  It was a hot day, in fact the hottest I have ever experienced north of the M25.  I gathered myself and set off at more of a leisurely pace, and soon we have made it to the summit and so began the treasure trail.  The sculptures were clearly plotted on the guide, but what they looked like in 2D and what they looked like in real life made quite difficult to determine whether we were looking at a sculpture or a dead tree, some were obvious, others were so well hidden we couldn't find them.


Quaker Tree

Witch Finder

Ceramic Column

Reconnected 1

Reconnected 2

The Gate Way

Life Circle

Living wall

Two bats (look up)

Tree Roots

Spirits of the Wood

Spider on the Web (couldn't find)

Sleeping bat (look up)

Three Bats in Flight  (look up)

Owl

Then the

Definitely too soon

I didn't get a job I didn't want, ah well

I was pressured into applying for a job recently, it was a managerial position and I didn't get it.  It went to a candidate who is currently working in the role in her school.  I didn't really want the job, I had managerial roles in the past and ended up in an operating theatre having a procedure I didn't really need.  The email I received asked candidates to prepare an assembly from a different country, take part in an inbox/date activity, do a 10 minute presentation and then take part in a formal interview.  I was expecting to be done and dusted by lunchtime and to teach for the afternoon.  I by chance mentioned something to the office staff who told me my day would start at 10am and I would be finished by half past two.  I would also have a two hour gap between the first two activities and the presentation/interview.  I prepared myself, sort of.  I had a discussion with one of the ladies in my class, telling her I wasn't sure I wanted the job but that I would give it a go, just for the interview practise. 

I was led to believe that it would be a walk in the park and that I would be pretty much guaranteed the role, this made me very unsettled.  By the morning of the interview I had a flash of realisation I did not want the job.  G.O and I moved here to start a family, we had made enquiries to various local agencies and had a meeting booked for the end of May.  I couldn't take on an all encompassing role as a key stage leader and try to start a family, it was ludicrous. 

I left a message on the supply teacher network, explain this and how to calm my nerves.  The response was overwhelming and it really changed my mindset.  This was not an interview where they would choose me, it was an interview where they would have to convince me to give up being a supply teacher (a role I have come to love) and join them.  I carried out my task safe in the knowledge that I didn't want the job and used the interview as a way to get a few things off my chest.  There are areas that are lacking in the school, that they need to address particularly in light of the changes to the curriculum and the way the Little Green Men conduct their inspection these days.  On the surface it is a glossy school with lots of potential, but scratch the surface and the fundamentals just aren't in place.  It is a big job, one that thankfully I will not have to worry myself with. 

The following day I contacted my supply agency who have already found me positions in schools that require a long term supply.  Sometimes it really is a blessing in disguise.

Bronte Falls - Fat Girl Walking

I'd heard about it in the staffroom, I'd seen it on Instagram, I'd driven past it on my way home from work nearly everyday.  Today I decided to go an visit the Bronte Waterfalls.  GO and I hopped in the car, we didn't really take anything with, on a normal walk we'd be laden down with backpacks, wet water gear, and other such supplies.  This was only a quick walk, it was just off the main road.....

"I intended to have written a line yesterday, but just as I was sitting down for that purpose, Arthur called to me to take a walk. We set off, not intending to go far; but though wild and cloudy it was fine in the morning; when we got about half-a-mile on the moors, Arthur suggested the idea of the waterfall; after the melted snow, he said it would be fine. I had often wished to see it in its winter power, so we walked on. It was fine indeed; a perfect torrent racing over the rocks, white and beautiful!"

Charlotte Bronte, November 29th 1854

Well it seems, dear reader (I'm getting a bit carried away with the Bronteness of it all), I am the Arthur of this family.  I knew there was a waterfall, what I didn't know was just how far away it was.  2 miles, that isn't far.  It isn't far at all, but over hill and dale it can get a bit tiring.

I'll walk where my own nature would be leading: It vexes me to choose another guide. Emily Bronte

We walked past meadows and over the tops in the most glorious sunshine, there was the ever present cloud looming and multiplying over head, a constant reminder that I had dared to hang out my washing on a Sunday, but it was an idyllic day.  We/I wasn't really sure where we were going, as is the norm, I had googled a bit, but I was basically following two hiker shaped objects in front of us.    I wouldn't acknowledge GO's concerns that they had packs and supplies and we had a camera and my handbag.

We made it and it was, while glorious might be too grand a word, lovely.  I have read on the website (that I discovered on our return) that he best time to visit falls is just after rainfall, as they look spectacular.  When we arrived the area was full of hikers and families enjoying the sunshine and tucking in to their very British picnics.  As we didn't even have a bottle of water (I know, I know), our feelings of annoyance may have in actual fact been feelings of jealousy.

We made our way back, planning to one day return and to attempt the Top Within' trail, we seem to always decided to try another trail on the way home from a trail we are on.  Promising ourselves that the next hike we try would be well provisioned.  There is nothing like a cup of coffee and a biscuit that you have lugged all the way from home in a stainless steel cylinder.  We enjoyed the walk back to the car, we didn't have the feeling of anticipation that you have when you head out somewhere new, but we had the joy of knowing that this glorious, wonderful countryside and all of the epic scenery around us, was only ten minutes from our front door.

Facebook profile - of course

I found a spot to chill

It's a shame, but he didn't fall in, I didn't even try

Plans for the future

Posers

Biggest sky I have seen in a while.

I will tell you the tale of this sheep and her lamb, one day.

More info about Haworth, The Bronte's and just a brainy quote or two;

http://www.haworth-village.org.uk/brontes/places/bronte_falls.asp

Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/e/emilybront385392.html

Happy Mother's Day Mamilein

Alles Gute zum Muttertag. 

 Du hast mich immer gelehrt, mich beschützt, mich ermutigt und mich so geliebt wie ich bin. 

Ich werde dir immer dankbar dafür sein.

Ich Liebe Dich Mamilein

Flashback to our wedding on Huffington Post

Was chatting with GO and I asked whether he knew that we were featured on the Huffington Post wedding site as one of their weddings of the week.  He had no idea, which made me think how was he supposed to know these things if I don't tell him, here is a screenshot or you can click the link above to see for yourself.