Back again

OK, it's time to get back to blogging again after a break of a month. That month has been busy. In the last 2 weeks I have been at home for dinner twice, and one of those dinners was yesterday. It has been a mix of business and pleasure, with the highlight being my trip to London to visit Carolan, Ian and Andy.

Merton Abbey Mills area is lovely, and the market near their flat is nice and peaceful for a wander. Everything you need is nearby, and there is still some green space. I was very impressed by the cycle lanes and facilities in London and hope C and Andy get good use from them. This time of year isn't the best for getting started, but then summer may be too hot. Cycling in the dark is the hardest part, though London is lit by street lights in most places.

I should be out cleaning up the garden today as it is dry. However, it is very cold and I'm feeling like doing very little. I've got washing done, and shopping, and some cleaning, but now it is time to just curl up with newspapers and a book. The guy who cuts the hedge is finishing off the work he started last week and has lopped a very large amount off the hedge between ourselves and the Murphys, at our request. This should allow my greenhouse to get more sun.

Next week will be an exciting one. Will Obama win? I hope so as the alternative is too awful to contemplate. Everything ends up being a double-edged sword, though, as he is likely to find some way of stopping American companies making tax-efficient profits from their overseas operations. Most multinationals are in Ireland due to the tax deal, and my employers are no exception.

The dogs weren't very happy last night. There were less fireworks than in previous years but they still cause distress. Leavy is particularly hyper about them. I'm not sure whether she just gets excited, but I think some of it is distress. We were grumpy old so-and-so's yesterday evening and turned off all lights in the front of the house so that we didn't get trick-or-treat visitors. Nobody even rang the door bell, so it worked!

The cold weather seems to have caused a small stone-spot in my windscreen to extend all across the windscreen so I have to get a new windscreen. The car insurance company organises it, and pays for it, so it is easy to get done. This is the first claim I've had on my car insurance in over 30 years of driving, and I hope it is the last.

On Wednesday evening we went out with Joe and Nicki. It was Nicki's 50th birthday. She wasn't expecting us to be at the restaurant so I hope it was a pleasant surprise for her. Then, being the really sociable people we are(n't) we went out with Pat and Jackie to the new restaurant in town, The Hamptons, on Thursday. The Hamptons is full every day, not showing any signs of the recession. It is a middle of the road restaurant in terms of pricing and seems to have become the cool place to be in a very short space of time.

Yesterday was Dell's end of quarter. They let about 500 temporary employees go, and one of their suppliers is making 150 permanent employees redundant. While they always let temporary people go at the end of the quarter it isn't normally in such numbers. We're all expecting further announcements from them, though some point out that we have been expecting their closure for the last 15 years.

Right, back to my book ("Portrait in Sepia" by Isabel Allende).