Axe murderers with very small axes....

I went to a sort of mini-blogmeetette yesterday evening - I was invited by the lovely Miss Mish, who I have been involved in on-off email correspondence with for some time. She's a star, and a very funny lady. A massive Stranglers fan - and she told me that she had been texting JJ Burnel that very afternoon! Plus other stuff she may not want me to repeat here. Saltwater bar in the Cornerhouse in Nottingham was the venue. I met Argy Bargey, whose exploits in China and particularly his nasty accident I have followed with interest. Also a hairy chap answering to the moniker Hantsbear. Plus Phil, Mark, Ruthie - I didn't pick up whether or not they were bloggers. Nice folks all, an interesting bunch.

I also had a gander at the book, Shaggy Blog Stories, to which Michelle and James have contributed - looks great, so I've ordered my own copy today.

And the heading - I had been reasonably vague with Keith as to who I was meeting for a drink after work, and Michelle asked if I was going to tell him about them now that I knew that they weren't a bunch of axe murderers - I said I'd tell him that they only had very small axes.

Granada

We had a short trip to Granada last week - cheap flight from EMA courtesy of Ryanair. We stayed in a brilliant little hotel called Casa Morisca (Moorish House) which was recommended on Tripadvisor - this is actually the view from our bedroom window, pretty hard to beat anywhere in Europe I would hazard. You could sit in the bath, sipping on a glass of chilled cava, and gaze out on this lovely scene.

Loved it, as did Keith.

The Alhambra - beautiful...

We went to Granada last week.... me in an Alhambra doorway

Keith got his early retirement....

Yay!!!

Life has been pretty tough since Keith went off sick from work at Christmas time 2005. Not financially, we're reasonably secure, but Keith has felt poor since he stopped work even though he had 6 months on full pay and six months on half pay. Initially he was really ill, but lately its just been more of a general malaise and a overall feeling of low self esteem etc.

However betwen us and with the help of a lovely lady from the NUT, we've managed to chart the tortuous waters of claiming for ill health early retirement from the Teachers pension scheme. Sounds boring but its crucial stuff. And talk about semantics.....you have to have the wording in the letter from your doctor(s) just right, if they give any glimmer of hope that you'd be fit to work before age 60 then you've got no chance.

Anyway the gloom has lifted, the weight has been taken off his shoulders, and he's reinvented himself as Mr Garden Man.

Guess I've got to plod on for a few years more. Thats OK. And I'm just glad that I'm fit and well. Touch wood.

P.S. Jim is home from Uni as well at the moment which is great. We booked stuff re his graduation in July last night - academic gown hire, photos, lunch. Some folks out there are making a lot of money from proud parents.