Glasgow Showers (literally)

I'm tired (and just starting to get a little grumpy) after a night on the sleeper back from Glasgow ...

Had a great weekend with the Murrays on Arran - wind, rain and midges galore! Despite the trials and tribulations there was much fun and games, food and wine, laughs and bad jokes - I'm so lucky to have a friend who shares her family and their holidays with all the little London orphans!

We topped it off with dinner at The Wee Curry Hoose last night with Karen '1 week to go!' and Scott. What a lucky, lucky girl I've been over the past 4 years to have made friends like these.

The highlight though was my heavenly shower at Glasgow Central Station. After cleaning the house in the morning before we left I was feeling a little grotty, and 8 hours later as I got off the train from Ardrossan I contemplated having to make it through today at work with unwashed hair and no shower ... and I wasn't too keen. Thank goodness for the fabulous station services which, for a mere £3, provide me with towel, soap, shampoo and hot running water in an enormous wet room. If that wasn't enough, they even have a hair dryer. And so, a mere 20 minutes later (I had to dig around the suitcase for some clean clothes!) I joined Del and Nick in a pub for a well earned beverage in a cleaner, nicer smelling, vastly improved state.

Glasgow Central Station RULES!!!

Hello!

I've had a lovely week.

On Friday I celebrated the 30th birthday of a very good friend. A great dinner with friends of his and his girlfriend, followed by a trashy night out that took a full day of recovery. The photos are still slowly emerging ...

On Sunday I found myself behind the wheel of a car again! Another day trip to Kent lead to another sunburn - seems summer hasn't quite gone after all!

I also received an invitation to my Great Uncle's 90th birthday in a couple of weeks. I'm really looking forward to seeing all my grandfather's family again ... it's so easy to lose touch over time and as an only child, family is very important to me.

But the highlight?

As I walked to work on Monday after dropping the car off I took the time to enjoy the sunrise, appreciate the quiet streets and admire the landmarks of London that I take for granted. As I neared the office, people started to appear - joggers, people heading to work ... and a young family taking a morning stroll. The parents moved slowly to allow their young son to keep pace as he explored the world around him and watched the passersby.

"Hello!"

It's amazing how a simple salutation from a copper-headed toddler can make a day great. As he looked me in the eye and bellowed his greeting I wondered why moments like this didn't happen more often. I wish they did.

Make those bodies sing!!!

Another old favourite today ...

life doesn't get much better than this!

On a slightly related note ... I've had vitamin C the past couple of days and everything seems to be a little better with the world ... very odd.

Late July ...

and I'm still thankful for Steinbeck (I'm nearing the end of East of Eden).

I'm also thankful that while my eyes are all too often bigger than my stomach, at the same time I'm not particularly fussy about what my food looks like. Over the weekend I made some baba ganoush which resembles the contents of a baby's nappy. Tastes gooood though!

Thanks of deliciousness!

This week deserves bonus gratitude because today I had one of my favourite lunches ... one which I probably haven't had for 5 years or so ...

Beetroot, Red Onion, Cottage Cheese.

... all squished together on a white bread roll.

Sesame seed rolls are quite exciting. The tiger roll I had today was even better - sure didn't have those when I was a kid! Pink tinged goodness makes me ever so happy!

Forgetting to be thankful ...

I didn't quite forget last week ... I just looked at it and couldn't be bothered. I'd be eternally grateful if I could be bothered about things in general more often.

So right now I'm grateful that the day is over. I'm grateful that Erin sent me such lovely photos of Hannah and Sophie that I can nearly forget that I'm not there. I'm grateful that my parents miss me if we don't talk for a week. I'm grateful that my lovely high school friend cooked an amazing brunch for the girls and I on Saturday. I'm grateful that I finally have an excuse to go to Legoland (on my half-birthday no less!). I'm grateful that I thought of something for a friend that she considered to be "a lovely idea". I'm grateful for the beautiful writing of John Steinbeck.

I'm grateful for the knowledge that so much love exists in my life & the lives of my friends in so many different ways. It may not always be the variety I'm yearning for at the time, but it's always there. Not everyone has that luxury.

More gratitude ...

I've gotta work out how this is going to work ... it's going to be quite dull if I post every day. Perhaps a weekly summary of all the things in my life I have to be thankful for.

I should be grateful, for my health as well as being grateful for my health.

Let's start with an obvious one - I'm grateful that I have lots of friends having babies that they can send me pictures of ... perhaps more appropriately ...

I'm grateful to have friends who are happy to share the joys in their life so openly with me.