Miscellaneous And Random

So I'm back after a week's R + R in the motherland. It was good, with a capital S, but this monsoon business is a bit of a dampener isn't it? Grey skies and rain should be banned, does anyone actually like them?

There's much to tell you. Firstly I can't believe that it's Thursday already, that last Thursday I was in Colombo thinking my week was about to end. Time never passes as we think it should. I've come to conclude that it always feels quicker or so much longer than we think it should be. We spend much of our lives saying that something rushed by or that it seems like only yesterday that it happened. Rarely does anyone say "you know what? It was two months ago and that's exactly how it feels to me."

I caught a chest infection last week, quite possibly I caught it in London, but it reared its head in Colombo, who knows?

But, I enjoyed the self medication aspect of Sri Lanka, steaming down to a pharmacy, buying antibiotics as if they're only available with a Doctor's note here in the UK, then promptly dosing myself up with it all. And I bought supplies to keep me going in the future. Bargain. But, don't tell my Mum.

There was also THE conversation that I had. It was big. Not long, just big.

LD's often talked in her blog of how people have remarked on the rather sexy huskiness of her voice but, despite all of that, I wasn't prepared. I immediately adopted my best Jason Statham impression, which was somewhat spoilt by my spluttering and coughing every ten seconds or so, and tried to think of interesting things to say.

It is weird to speak to bloggers. I've done enough and never have got used to it, when you feel as if you know them really well from their written words, then hear the voice and think the total opposite. I hope that I'll get to meet LD at some point, ideally with DQ, though I'll be apprehensive about the cakes, cats and dogs that DQ will have her.

But, it was quite a thrill to finally speak to the legend that is LD.

Seeing the girls last night was lovely. I bought them each a little silver tuk tuk and they loved them ( I think), as well as a small armful of friendship bracelets that they never seem to be able to get enough of. Our evening was filled with its usual and lethal mixture of arguments, laughter, fun and farts. All good.

My Dad's progress continues at a pleasing pace. He's so much more like his normal self than he was a few months ago, which brings its own set of "issues" too. All though is looking good and, were I a religious person, I'd probably be thanking my God or Gods.

I've got a new car too and have been having fun with that, mostly with the gearbox. I think I'll write more about that another time, but it's a steptronic one, so I've been mixing it up a bit with the flappy paddles, pretending I'm Jeremy Clarkson on the test track in a properly fast car. There have been a few awkward moments when I've hit the wrong paddle or found that it's quite hard to operate them when in a corner. The rest has been good.

And I'm getting increasingly pissed off with that retro ring tone, you know, the one I've got that you've got too. I never used that "famous" Nokia one, but now everyone's got the retro one, with the result that you hear it in public and see just about everyone scrambling around to see if their phone is the guilty party.

It's so right and oh so wrong.

That's it really, I'll bid you a good weekend and jot some thoughts down next week.