Number 33-make Gert lovely. Update.

JGS kindly donated his weekends prior to the long Jubilee weekend to rubbing down and spraying up new camper doors (as seen previously).....(if I can work out how to link to a previous post then I will do that ). Over the long Jubilee weekend finishing touches were added to the driver cab door and JGS removed the old one and fixed in the new one. This took him longer than we both thought.
It looks soooooooooo lovely. The following weekend we went camping to East Sussex so I thought I would share some photos of the lovely new door and the new home for my granny square  number 1 blanket (for the summer).

Look how pretty the new door looks. I am too ashamed to post photos of how bad the old door looked (filler was a main ingredient in the old doors) but to be fair the driver door was not so bad. The passenger door on the other hand (side) is a very different scenario. And I will post before and after photos of that event. If by any chance, anyone from Just Kampers is reading this could I possibly point out that the doors do not really fit as well I would want them to considering the cost and the fact that they are brand new.
There is obviously more paint work to be done surrounding the door.
I should probably point out that the tipping point for buying new doors came when both window channels collapsed so neither window could be opened properly. There were a couple of HOT journeys that neither of us want to repeat.

I cannot remember how much of Gert I have shared with you. I think I might dedicate an entire post once the other door is on and take you on an historical trip. But for now please check out granny square number 1 in her new home....

I think she looks lovely...................

JGS- thank you so much for your help. I hope the cheese scones I made you helped in some way. x

Crochet interlude

My sister purchased a cushion from the stalwart of the high street that is Marks and Spencer which had crocheted flowers on the front. Last Christmas ( I gave you my heart and the very next day- you gave it away. Apparently Wham are re-forming... Although I dislike the word re-forming it reminds of pubs that serve scampi and then in brackets at the side it says 'made with re-formed scampi'- shows the kind of establishments I frequent..) my sister asked me if I could crochet some flowers and sew them onto another cushion for her (as I am cheaper than M&S). Not one to seem rude/turn down a challenge I agreed. Four months, 52 cocheted flowers and 17 hours later ....

.... I am sorry that this is such a bad photo. My relationship with this cushion was one of love and creativity until I got to sewing the actual flowers on. Then the relationship turned sour and I just wanted done. When I next visit my sister I will get a better photo and one of the original cushion as a 'compare and contrast'.
Current crochet update- granny square cushions......

CROCHET UPDATE.... I found a better photo and it has my granny square cushion in it as well. Crochet cousins.

Number 24- Race for life update

This week I am into week 3 of my running plan. I can run for 10 minutes without collapsing/clinging to the nearest passer-by begging for help. I have been taking the dog with me and we are getting into a little routine (in that the dog has stopped randomly veering across in front of me in an effort to take me down with her lead). Do you know what- I am quite enjoying running- who would have thought......

Number 7. Spa break/yoga retreat

Here we have a relaxing thing on the list. I combined it in case I could only do one or the other. It appears that actually now I have done one, that I actually might also be able to do the other. How lucky is that??
I have been practising yoga for about 7 years now. My lovely friend LC is also a yogi. LC was 40 last year and one of the presents I got her was a subscription to the British Wheel of Yoga. (I  got myself one at the same time- well, it seemed rude not to). Every year the BWY ( cannot keep typing British Wheel of Yoga although I suppose I could copy and paste) holds an annual congress where members can gather and experience different types of yoga and teachers. LC and I decided to go to the 2012 Congress. So, April 13-15 saw LC and I at Warwick University for a weekend of yoga. It was good fun, yoga interspersed with crochet/knitting and wine ( well ours was. A majority of the other people there were actually yoga teachers who attend Congress to sustain their CPD). We stayed in the student accommodation.When I walked into my room I was flabbergasted. Even though I was on a different university campus and (sshhhh 18 years later) my room for the weekend looked exactly like my room in halls when I was at uni. The bed and the desk- I couldn't believe it. There was the added bonus of a bathroom/shower and toilet (en-suite sounds too grand a term) in the room. And a kettle- which was refreshed with teabags and milk EVERY DAY!!!! I did feel awful because it was the Easter Holidays and the poor student who lived in that room in term time had had to pack up all their stuff and move out for the holidays. Apparently this is common  practice- LC herself had to do this when she was at uni. I was quite tidy though.
So- as proof- please see below me in downward dog- wine had been consumed so my posture might not be 100% technically correct.

I sent this to my mum and she did not realise that I was in front of a poster (I am) and she thought that LC had balanced herself on my back (the woman in the poster in the white t-shirt) and that we were enganged in some sort of extreme yoga posture !!!!
LC and I had so much fun at the yoga congress that we might actually go to a spa as well. Result.

Number 24- run the Race for Life 2012

Excuse the rubbish photo. I have fallen out with my camera and this was taken quickly on my phone. To be honest, I could have taken a better photo and uploaded that. Maybe I will. Later. So- number 24 is RUN the Race for Life . I have always thought about running but never actually really got around to it (in my mind I am some sort of uber fit bunny).So I thought if I put something on my list that involved running then I would have to do it. So here it is. I have entered my local 5k Race for Life. I entered in February ( I think I thought there would be a rush on) and this is my race number. I doubt I am going to finish 184th......For the last 2 weeks I have been following my race plan like a good girl. So far I have run 2 minutes and walked for 1 x5 and run for 4 minutes and walked for 1 x4. I think I am getting on ok and it turns out that after waking up for endless mornings thinking 'I have entered the Race for Life, I must start running' that I actually sort of like running. I take the dog with me. The dog is not so keen on running it would seem. Twice she has veered in front of me and nearly brought me down.
I realise that it might sound trite that I have been waking up worrying about not running but I really want to do this. I have decided that if I finish 30 minutes or under I am going to treat myself. To this or maybe one of these or maybe I should actually buy a new camera........

A good thing

In the original draft of my 40 4 40 list I had 'be a better person' listed. After a few discussions with various people I took it off my list because I felt it was unmeasurable. How do you measure that you are a better person? It might be easier if you were a bad person to start with- but I am not a bad person. (I don't think). In the end I decided that the only way I could measure that I had been a better person was by getting an award - say if the Queen awarded me an OBE- then I would definitely know I had become a better person. Logically, getting an OBE in the space of year seems highly unlikely. I should probably point out that for the purpose of my list 'being a better person' involved me helping other people.
I felt bad about taking this off my list so I decided to do something else. 
Have you ever seen the charity boxes on the wall outside the toilets in service stations? They have a sign saying something like 'spend a penny- give a penny' and I think this is a genius idea- if everyone gave a penny then change (ha ha no pun intended) could happen.
There is a link- stay with me....
I have never liked handling pennies. When the 1/2p came out of circulation I was overjoyed. I gladly accepted 'rounding up' over having to handle 1/2p.My sister used to keep 1p and 2p pieces in a copper kettle (Oh dear god!!) at our nan's. Maybe she got dirty hands from handling them or something, I don't know. I JUST DO NOT LIKE THEM. So on 1/1/2012 I decided that whenever I got 1p/2p change in shops I would put it straight in the charity tin in the shop. Several times I have even asked the shop keeper to put the change straight in the charity tin therefore avoiding even having to touch the money in the first place. A GENIUS IDEA- helping me and helping others. And I can keep this up forever.  x




ps. I also don't like gold rimmed cups/glasses/plates. I don't know why.
pps. Please do not judge me on this
ppps. Happy Jubilee- 
pppps. Shop keeper??? Unsure what era I am in.