Snow, snow, quick, quick, snow

Monday 19^th January.

Trying to swim 100 lengths when you haven’t done any real swimming for almost a month is a major shock to the system. We made a valiant attempt but after 60 we gave up, feeling pretty knackered. We had a long gossip with Sarah after our showering and drying and she seemed really pleased to see us again. I told her about our month in the Lakes and how we’d done very little to stretch the muscles. She thought it was funny. I couldn’t see why. She loved the idea of the lilac room with a rainbow motif. I didn’t go into the LGBT idea behind it.

At University I was greeted like a long lost friend by Felice and then, almost immediately afterwards, accused of dobbing her in to the Uni Authorities over her skiving at the end of December. She has received an informal warning about her attendance from HR and seemed to think it was my fault. Hello? If you take off almost a fortnight before the official vacation dates, then expect the shit to hit the fan but don’t blame me for it! I told her this, in a more diplomatic manner. I was able to convince her that I, and probably the whole of the History Faculty, weren’t responsible for her getting grassed up. In fact most of the faculty don’t even realise she is attached to it in the first place.

Modern Foreign Languages was more likely to be the source of her trouble. Mainly (and maybe this was a bit racist) because they seemed to be a very back-biting sort of bunch! She had to agree that some of the members were openly hostile to other disciplines with in the faculty. I think she was persuaded of my innocence in the matter. This is good, as we have to work together for another year and a half and I AM innocent.

We caught up on each other’s news and then worked out a schedule of what we needed to get completed by Easter. This took most of the remaining morning. As though to emphasise there were no hard feelings she treated us both to a bite in Inox, which was a treat. We usually go somewhere cheaper!

After lunch Laura and I decamped to XXX & Y where we went our separate ways in the huge building. (Huge for a solicitors’ that is, the University Campus dwarfs it!) I had a long catch up with Mrs B about our holiday and learned all about hers too. She went to escape the winter weather. I explained our this week’s schedule and she wondered how we managed to do it – I sometimes wonder too! She was dead keen to hear about the pay as you go concert and phoned up the Crucible there and then to book two tickets. (2p)

I had an embarrassing chat with Christopher who greeted me like a puppy greets its owner. Erm, please! I am certain he still has the hots for me. He is OK but a bit boring really. He doesn’t realise that the more he behaves the way he does, the less likely I am going to be kind towards him at all. Why are men such duffers at relationships?

This evening we started seeing our school students again. This is a great source of fun for all concerned. I think it was great project to sign up for and it gives us a little extra cash too. Trevor is quite funny (apart from the comedy name); he is like a little lapdog towards Laura. I think he has a massive crush on her. I haven’t told her of course, she would be so embarrassed if she realised.

I did some background reading to the Rubens exhibition we are off to on the 31^st of Jan and also looked up what we could see that was new at the Brit Mu as well. The Ancient Lives: New Discoveries exhibition sounded fascinating, so I have bought us tickets for that too. It is on the way back from the Royal Academy, to King’s Cross Station, so it seemed a logical stopping off point. We have decided to avoid the big department stores until our after Christmas bank statements have shown we are back in the black! I

I was amazed how tired I was by 10.15. I just let Callie into the back field and then after our shower we hit the charp. Sex was in our minds but I just couldn’t perform with anything like the commitment it needed, we decided to just snuggle up and set the world alight in the morning.

Tuesday 20^th Jan

Having set the world alight, I walked the dogs and then we both attempted 100 lengths but managed only 70. Still we’ll be back up to 100 by Friday, weather permitting. The radio forecast for the weather was pretty grotty. It has not been good while we were away and there is more snow forecast for the night tonight and then during the day tomorrow. However, I have begun to take all the official weather forecasts with a huge pinch of salt as they seem to have started to exaggerate the severity of the weather to cover themselves against criticism. Maybe I am just an old cynic, but I am sure that is the case.

Sarah at the pool was in total agreement. She thinks they are doing the same. If two of us think so, it must be right. Right? Laura thinks I think about stuff too much. She is quite happy to go with the flow. I just get angry at being lied to by people who should be telling us the truth. I find that the Tory party in this country seem to be the biggest liars on the planet.

For example, look at George Osborne (I know, he’s not a pretty sight, even to a blind person). This hypocritical twat claims to be cracking down on tax evasion, yet his own family’s company hides 15% of their profits abroad just to avoid paying tax on it! I am sorry but if our c*nt of a chancellor can’t be trusted to do the ‘honourable’ thing with his tax, what f*cking hope is there for the rest of the tax which is owed to HMRC to ever be claimed back?  What is even more galling is this information is the in the public domain, why don’t people who interview the snivelling little shite ask him about this all the time? I would if I was in the media and had access to him. He needs pressuring on this all the time so it becomes a fixed issue in the public’s minds.

That is just one example, however, there are lots more, and they make my blood boil. In a way I can see that Laura is right. I should just ignore all of them. Maybe I should become a politician and stand in Nick Clegg’s constituency. I could be a female Dennis Skinner. I’d be an awkward little, female, sod who asks questions that the politicians don’t want to answer because it will show them up for the liars and cheats that they really are.

Back to reality. Full day at Uni and a new round of meeting my Tutees was on the cards. I managed about six (OK, seven) I am sure in some of the cases my efforts are completely wasted on them. Still, I can offer my help and support, it’s up to them if they choose to take it or not. Mandy (Miss Scothern) my second year student and former limpet, is doing really well. Her last couple of assignments achieved Firsts so she was really pleased. It is so good to see the timid little wallflower of 18 months ago blossom into a confident and successful young woman. I am not claiming it was my doing,I just think she needed a little shove in the right direction.

Our school students arrived again tonight, on schedule, Laura had moved Bobbi to tonight as well so we arm wrestled for use of the study and Laura won. (We didn’t literally arm wrestle, we just looked at the calendar where we have a little note of who has used it last on the nights we clash. I did last time, it seems.)

Olivia was feeling more hopeful about her GCSEs. She has just got her marks back from the Mcok Exams they did just before Christmas and she has got grade C or  better in all of them. She got an A in Eng Lit and B in Eng Lang which I am chuffed about, but again (like Mandy at Uni) this is down to Olivia’s efforts really, not me.

We waved the two schoolies off at 9pm and then had a swift snuggle on the sofa, which ended up being a longer snooze. I was awakened by Laura stroking my cheeking telling me it had just turned midnight! I took Callie for a swift run in the field, rather than a proper final walk and watched the first few snow-flakes come spiralling down out of the huge cloud bank overhead. We decided to be dirty cows and forego the shower as it was just so late. We were also dirty cows in bed.

Wednesday 21^st Jan.

Snow, snow, snow. It was a good covering from overnight, when we woke up. The good [or bad, depending on your point of view] part was it was continuing to snow. I walked Callie up the lane to see how effective the gritting had been, whilst Laura wiped the snow off the car and then drove up to Hilltop to pick us both up. The Old Manchester Road was a bit slushy but passable and the carpark at the pool was covered. I messed about in the carpark, making the car skid, until Laura told me to stop it as I was scaring her! I had no idea! Bloody typical insensitive baggage, that I am.

Inside, Sarah said she was on the point of coming out to get me to stop until she realised whose car it was. I then had to explain how Dad had taught me all sorts of driving tips for when I drove in Cumbria in bad weather: stopping without brakes was the first one he did and we did all sorts of life saving techniques culminating in the fun of handbrake turns. You can’t do them very well in my front wheel drive Cee’d but you can play about making it spin. I know it’s not a very lady like thing to do, but hey, since when have I done anything lady-like anyway?

While we were swimming the snow continued to fall although the local farmer, who uses the pool regularly too {Christy} turned up with his tractor and cleared the carpark; which was good of him. There were four cars parked and one tractor when we left and the pool itself was almost deserted, it was almost as though it was our own private pool! After an omelette breakfast we decided that catching the tram from Middlewood was probably our best option. This was a good call because the higher up the slopes towards the University we got, the deeper the snow became.

Traffic was very slow moving but none of it seemed to be blocking the tram lines.

Uni was very quiet, really. XXX & Y had a snow filled car park and a lot of people had come in using the tram (arriving more of less on time) or the bus (arriving up to an hour late). We whizzed off at 5pm when the snow had stopped and traffic was getting back to something approaching normal on the main roads. The side roads were still looking a bit Arctic as we went past them in the tram. We decided to use the tram to get to the Crucible tonight for the show we’d booked instead of driving.

Grounded. Mmmm… Not sure I’d have gone if the synopsis had been more detailed. I thought it was going to be about motherhood impinging on the protagonist’s life, it turned out it was more about drone warfare and remote control killing. It was very well done and for a one hander it was pretty gripping stuff. I suppose it did open our eyes to all of the items I have mentioned above but having the character being a woman shifted our perspective quite cleverly. It didn’t last very long and was quite thought provoking.  It was loud and startling with its images and it made you think about a variety of usually unconnected things, war and motherhood being the most striking. I found it unbelievably gripping and though I was initially dismayed by what we were getting I can honestly say that it’s a must see production. Laura was very moved by it too. I think it was the way she went from being a proud and ‘decent’ female fighter pilot to being a mere computer game player, where the people she was killing were actually real, that was the most striking thing about it. That and her portrayal of her disintegration as the reality of her unreality took over.

After the show we didn’t hang about but walked back to the tram stop and zoomed home again, hoping to avoid more snow.

Thursday 24^th Jan

Not as much snow at lower levels today, according to a friend at Hollow Meadows though, it is still pretty deep there, off the main road. That probably means we won’t be going out for a walk on the weekend, if we can’t get the car though.

We trammed again today after our swim (80 lengths) and breakfast. It was a bit more like normality at both work and Uni, although side roads still looked a bit dodgy as the tram swept past. We spent an uneventful day in both locations and I whetted Mrs Briggs appetite for the Ensemble 360 concert on Saturday, even more, by telling her what the programme was. She Loves the Richard Strauss [Till Eulenspiegel ­ einmal anders] and so was thrilled that it would be played, as this variation is quite an unusual variant on “lustige Streiche” – assuming the weather doesn’t unskittle our plans. As 360 are a Sheffield based ensemble it shouldn’t!

Our students made it through the weather to our little house. OK the only dodgy bit is the lane which runs off Cockshutts and that is gritted by one or other of us as the weather turns. (There is a council grit bi provided for that purpose.) Jenny-Leigh and Sally were keen to get things done on time though, in case the weather turned again. Understandable I suppose. This time I had the study and Laura the kitchen. We got a fair amount done in our two hours and J-L left feeling as confident as she can be about her forth-coming practice exams.

We attempted the circuit up to Hill Top Woods and down Lumb Lane for Callie’s last walk and the temperature was dreadfully low. Lumb Lane doesn’t get as much grit as Cockshutts, so it was very slippery in places. This time it was the Lollster who had an abrupt call to sit down and my turn for the schadenfreude. I didn’t give her marks for technical merit and artistic impression though. I did offer to rub her gluteus to make it feel better. It is hard to keep your hand in place when there is such a temptation before you.

We almost tore each other’s clothes off as soon as we got in and she repaid the favour, forsaking the shower (at first) for swift and satisfying sex.