While channel-surfing the other evening I came across a programme called Room 101, where ‘celebs’ pick things and/or people that irk and annoy them and banish them to Room 101 as per George Orwell’s novel 1984.  It got me thinking about my own list of things.  For those who are interested, here it is:

Frank Skinner – the presenter of Room 101, the most irritating, unfunny bloke on TV

Cyclists

Cold callers

Scan-yourself check-outs in supermarkets

Any supermarket that charges for bags

Drunks

Mobile phone users on public transport

Incorrect grammar, especially the use of ‘sat’ instead of ‘sitting’; misuse … Read the rest »

Yesterday, as those of you who read my post Time Doesn’t Heal will have seen, I was feeling down as it was the anniversary of my Dad’s death.  Later on in the day, I opend the fridge to find myself face to face with a large pot of Onken yoghurt.  This, as always, made me smile.  Yesterday it made me laugh out loud.

Seeing the word Onken always reminds me of the time my parents were visiting me in Majorca when I was first working as a holiday rep.  Dad threw himself into learning Spanish with the same gusto and … Read the rest »

It was twenty-three years ago today that my dad died.  If you had told me then that twenty-three years on I would still miss him I probably wouldn’t have believed you.  The initial pain of his death was such that for a time I didn’t think I’d ever get over it, but inside I believed the cliches such as “Time heals”.  It doesn’t.  What time does is it enables you to live with your loss.  You get on with the business of living your life WITH your loss, rather than GETTING OVER your loss.  And sometimes a huge wave of … Read the rest »

One of my favourite sounds is that of rain against the windowpane.  I can remember as a child curling up on my bed and losing myself in a book to its rhythmic beat, conjuring up comforting memories of bowls of tomato soup and feeling warm and cosy.  As I’m writing this, the rain is pummelling against the window, but I have to admit I’m getting a bit fed up with it now.  There’s only so much wet and damp you can take, isn’t there?  The fields opposite me are completely sodden with huge lake-like puddles covering over half of them.  … Read the rest »