Midweek Grumbles

Bank Holiday Monday turned out not to be so bad after all; after hours of working on the accounts we decided to treat ourselves to a Thai meal in the Orchid restaurant at the Jaipur. Steve & Jan had been for dinner and didn’t rate the service but when we arrived for lunch the restaurant was empty with only 2 other tables occupied plus our table of 2. We went for the cheapest set menu for 2 people(still expensive) and the food, when it arrived, was delicious and plentiful. The service was a bit OTT, I hate over service nearly as much as I hate bad service. But I guess they were only doing their job and it would possibly have been different had the restaurant been packed. There was so much food left over that we had to ask for a whole load of doggy bags so we could take our food home. I bet the staff wondered what kind of low-life clientele they had in their restaurant but we didn’t care and we did give them a good tip. Full up to the gunnels, we drove home and spent the rest of the day in front of the telly. Very bad but very enjoyable.

I made it to the gym on Tuesday morning for the first time in a million months and it wasn’t too painful. Phil declined to come with me, making the excuse that one of us had to work on the accounts, which I suppose was true. Harriet phoned and asked us to pick her up and take her to IKEA so she could get an occasional table from IKEA. She’s a new customer to IKEA and doesn’t know her way around the store, unlike me and Phil. It was a shame that her table wasn’t in stock but at least she knows where the aisle is now and can pick one up another time. She was keen to show us the new Wii console that she had brought. Phil seemed excited about it but personally I can’t see the point of it. Why not just go out and play tennis or bowls or golf?? I must be getting old.

On Tuesday evening Phil and I went to an OU MBA alumni networking event at MK Stadium to listen to a presentation by Pete Winkleman, the chairman of MK Dons. Although not football fans, it was interesting to see actually inside the new stadium. We had a plate of chilli (very nice too) and some wine and then settled down to listen to the presentation. Pete Winkleman was a very good speaker and came across as a genuine and inspiring guy; he obviously has a passion for music, football and especially for Milton Keynes as a city. It was nice to see some old OU colleagues and felt like I’d never been away from the OUBS team. Funny that. Phil had a thoroughly good time. So thanks and well done to Christine and Janet for organising a great evening.

Phil is desperate to go on his snail trail but we haven’t been able to go on the hunt yet because we haven’t had any rain. Apparently the snails come out after a rainfall and you have to catch them early in the morning. Yesterday I went to the gym and left Phil studying his Evolution book. He wasn’t home when I got back from David Lloyd because he was out at Harriet’s flat showing Ian around so he can give us a quote for the double glazing. If the quote comes in at what we have in the budget, the plan is that we are going to get both Harriet’s and Aiden’s windows replaced. Of course, it’s very much dependent on the kebab flat sale going through. It looks like its all moving ahead, but we’ve been caught out before and experience tells me not to count my chickens before they are hatched. It’s difficult though, I am itching to pack the boxes and get ready to ship out before the boat sinks but I am willing myself to be patient. Not easy.

After lunch I went to meet Jan for a walk around the OU as we didn’t get much of a chance to chat at the MK Dons event. The sun was really warm and it was a pleasant walk although there were midges everywhere, which were very annoying. The rest of the afternoon was boring. I did some paperwork, washing and ironing and took the hoover back to Currys. It’s less than 6 months old but it’s not working property. I never have much luck with cheap hoovers and normally I would simply replace but this was one cost 70 quid and I am not letting them get away with it this time. Because of doing the accounts I was lucky and found the receipt quite easily. Not sure what we have planned for today but tomorrow we set off to see Rashmi, our accountant in Maidenhead. An appointment I always approach with fear and trepidation but it generally pans out okay with no major errors and we celebrate afterwards with a lunch on the company. One year ends and then another begins all over again.