Early Doors

Thats the Prof's ' happy face'

Here, in Britain, there is a pub phenomenon which is known as " Early Doors".
Early Doors refers to a time when people pop in to the pub, namely in the afternoon to very early evening to sink a pint or two and chat.
It is sometimes a favourite time for the elderly to middle aged drinkers who don't like the " crowds"  of an evening bartime, the after work brigade, the newspaper readers and of course the hopeless. alcoholic.
The Prof is still on holiday today so I took him to The Albion in Conwy for an afternoon drink. I was driving so had a few large coffees, he had a few of the guest ales and a pork pie.
Mary had a bag of crisps!
The mid afternoon clientele was a quiet bunch. Mainly old men with sticks perked up by a middle aged drunk woman who slurred her words from the get-go. I reminded the Prof not to catch her eye. There is nothing worse than a latched on drunk when you are sober.
I don't do early doors, anymore.
One of the last times, I did,  was over  a decade ago when I got so pissed in All Bar One with my fey sidekick John 'Bel-Ami', I eventually fell down two flights of basement steps into a firedoor, broke my spectacles and gave myself a black eye.....and never felt a thing!

Hey ho.

When were you most scared?

For the whole of the Easter Weekend I have been either sleeping or working, and the night shifts have been busy ones.
The Prof has been pleasantly sanguine about the ruination of his one of all-too-few holidays, a fact that I put down to chocolate and some downtime with the children.
Mrs Trellis dropped off a couple of Easter bunnies too, which was nice of her, she asked if the Flower Show had indeed been cancelled this year as per village gossip.
I assured her that it had not, and promptly conscripted her in the boiled fruit cake class.

Over the weekend one of my patients likened his admission to intensive care to one of the "most frightening experiences of his life". The " most" as it turned out, was a time when he was attacked by a lioness in Africa, a story that unfortunately we were unable to catch up with throughout the shift.

But it got me thinking.....what WAS the most frightening experience I have ever suffered? 
HUMMMMM.....

Well, my answer must, thankfully,  be very few indeed, !
Anything to do with heights really freak me out,so the time I found myself alone on the observation deck of the Seattle's Space needle in a rainstorm would figure high on this list.
The time I was attacked by a Russian terrier ( the leader and most aggressive member of a pack of nine housedogs) still brings shivers to my soul when I think about it, as does the time I was first attacked my a psychiatric patient whilst on duty.
But these are just minor scare times compared with a man facing down a lioness in the African bush!

So tell me!
What was your most frightening experience EVER.
I'd be interested to know.

sleeping in the bath

I've just fallen asleep in the bath
My fingers and toes look like miniature crinkly testicles
God knows what my actual testicles look like
Night shifts all over Easter
They are trying to killme before I retire!

Happy Easter

New York

How lucky we are, in May we are off to London again, June we go to Spain, August a seaside break in Kent and in  November we have booked our trip to New York.
It's been a few years since we went, my goodness for many years we visited the city annually, so I am so excited to be returning .
I am reminded of a quote from Woody Allen from the movie Manhattan

" He adored New York City. He idolized it all out of proportion........no make that: he romanticized it all out of proportion. Yes, to him, no matter what the season was, this is still a town that existed in black and white and pulsated to the great tunes of Gershwin" 

Another Year, Another Flower Show

With another level head on the Flower Show committee in the shape of Trelawnyd Val, we thrashed out the 2017 schedule in record time.
There was a bit of a debate over schedule layout, some lively talk about who will open the show ( we are toying with a Mary Berry lookalike named tantalisingly as Mary Cherry, but we may be in muddy legal waters here. Meirion & Daphne know someone from Coronation Street so we may have a real celebrity on the cards! If we don't I'll ask the newly elected counsellor for our area.......the local elections are just about to start!

The pub tv was playing quietly in the corner, so I was mindful that my Nemesis Terry was paying too much attention to a video of a Macarena rather than the strenuous conversation over the differences between a pie and a tart!
We all missed Auntie Glad's kitchen!
It's Gladys' 98 th birthday on Tuesday...I learned today that the village Male Voice Choir had planned to call on her to sing her happy birthday. They called in to her old care home to sing carols to her at Christmas which was a delightful tribute I thought. ( Gladys had provided refreshments to the choir for many many years)
Anyhow I am going to propose that we have a new cup " The Auntie Glad Cup" for a baking category in the show. I forgot to mention it tonight, the pub was rather busy and it slipped my mind.....
The food in the restaurant looked fab, I must admit.....
As I sipped my diet coke!
Hey ho

A Kid In A Sweet Shop

If you are ever " down in the dumps" I suggest you call around here. Pick Winnie up in the back seat of your car and drive, quicksticks, to the local pet superstore which is located just five miles away.
You know the sort of store I mean.
Spotless shelves with every feed, medication, plaything and grooming implement known to man , nose to nipple with bunnies in glass fronted enclosures, azure blue fish tanks and green smocked sales people smiling sweetly at you from behind the tills.
This is Winnie heaven.
I first found this odd fact out a year ago when she accompanied me into the store when we were picking another dog up from their in-house groomers.
Wide eyed with wonder she investigated every box, packet and snack carefully eyeing up anything that she thought different or interesting and practically wet herself when she turned a corner to see thirty feet of selected balls, squeaky toys and rubber " things" all neat and tidy in their containers.
Their selection of rubber chickens practically gave the old gal an orgasm on the spot and I had to put her on the lead again to prevent an over excited incident from occurring.
(I didn't have enough dosh on my to pay for any damages) but generally she behaved herself, sniffing the boxes, tins and packets with a smile on her big fat face.

As I recall we ambled on.
Carefully and over some time, the guinea pigs were watched and then the ratty things and gerbils in their boxes were given  the a serious once over, then the vet's receptionist had to be greeted as she yawned behind her desk.
To Winnie the store was a place of wonderment, to be savoured slowly like a good wine.
She didn't want rushing!
And so I let her march around, enjoying her enjoyment of such a simple activity.
Her happiness is incredibly infectious .
Remember that if you are ever down and you are in North Wales
Just call around and borrow a bulldog for an hour or so.

This morning in the garden with Mary

" Get away from her .....YOU BITCH!"

I'm sat in the vets.....it's going to be a long wait as there are two labs, an old spaniel with a bad heart,
and an RTA before us.
So I'm playing on the old ipad.
It stops people chatting to me, I hate small talk at the vets

A few years ago I found myself walking around the corner of Bloomingdales New York and I  bumped right into a tall, chic looking woman wearing a tartan coat.
She said " Pardon" and floated on.
I squeaked like a girl.
The woman was Sigourney Weaver! 

We are going to New York in the Autumn ( instead of Australia) 
I wonder which famous bod I shall spy there.....
We have not been for a few years and I'm already excited

Who is the most famous celebrity that you have met, albeit briefly!??
I'd be interested to know