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Springing Forward

28 February, 2021 2 Comments
Posted in: Boys, Daniel, Dublin, Family, Ireland, Michael, Mr. Waffle, Princess, Siblings, Work

Monday, February 22, 2021

I continued to be crippled from my weird neck pain. My only comfort was my new top which had arrived in the post. Herself took one look at it and said, “It looks like scrubs.” And it does. I got a physio appointment that evening and though work was a bit frantic, I managed to sneak away like a thief in the night and get to my physio appointment. The physio thought my top looked like scrubs also. After some reasonably effective pummeling she sent me on my way and said she would email me exercises. On the plus side, I was home by daylight.

Top like scrubs: I’m afraid it’s only too true:

Tuesday, February 23, 2021

Notwithstanding the effective physio, I found myself walking around like a turtle with my neck stuck out in front of me. The exercises arrived by email and I vowed to open them as soon as I got a chance. I got soaked cycling home from work in the lashing rain and the fence dividing our garden from the neighbours blew over. It was announced that Leaving Cert students would go back to school from Monday along with junior classes in primary school. Herself was broadly pleased. The boys were delighted with the news that they will be the last group back on 12 April.

We also have a Leaving Cert exam timetable. The excitement. To be honest, I’ve lost track as to when this arrived but recently anyhow. The certainty on exams is making things a bit less awful for herself. I hope that it will all go according to plan.

Wednesday, February 24, 2021

The Irish Times published a Sudoku supplement. They know their readers. I recently got the hard one out for the first time. Delighted with myself. Yes, this is where I am at. Your point?

They also published the latest road map for us to stick up on the radiator. As herself said “We have road maps for countries that never existed.”

For a smart girl, herself would surprise you on occasion. She said to me, “I’ve just realised that that story in the Bible about the workers and the vineyard was a parable.” “What did you think it was?” I asked. “An example of poor labour practices,” she said.

While we were dealing with matters religious she also said, “This family has eaten 14 creme eggs since the start of Lent, is this the spirit of the season?” Indeed.

Thursday, 25 February, 2021

It was an absolutely beautiful day and we all felt cheered. Next door’s plum tree blossom is out and it is, as always, a delight.

Friday, 26 February, 2021

Another beautiful day. My wellness pack arrived from work (I know what you’re thinking). There are some issues with the masks included.

Herself and myself went to the outdoor container for tea in the park (such are the available thrills) and I fielded slightly frantic calls from work. The boys and I then sat down to watch “The Two Towers” which is pretty lengthy but we’re committed now.

Saturday, 27 February, 2021

The weather continued to be absolutely beautiful. Michael and I cycled to the nearest patch of sea, contemplated it and cycled home again.

Ireland finally won a rugby match trouncing Italy. Daniel was delighted. I talked to my sister on the phone and when I asked for her news she said not to expect much as she was “leaning in to the pandemic low news bar”. I like to think that my blog has been doing this for some time.

Following emails all week telling me to open up the email from the physio and do my exercises, I opened it. It was all very swish. I had to download an app and there were videos of my exercises and a tracking yoke. I’m now dutifully doing them. I’m largely back to normal with the occasional twinge so a win, I suppose.

We watched Detective Pikachu for cinema night (Daniel’s choice) and, ok, it wouldn’t have been my first choice but, I’ll tell you what, I’ve seen worse.

Sunday, 28 February, 2021

Yet another beautiful day. Mr. Waffle and I had a very pleasant cycle to a park I had never been to before other than to drop Daniel off to training. Signs of spring were everywhere and not a moment too soon.

On our way home, Mr. Waffle took me down a little cul de sac to show me a delightful old Protestant church I had never seen before. It’s dedicated to St. Mobhi (of whom, I expect you’ve never heard) but he was teacher to the stars including (big name here) St. Colmcille, St. Canice and St Ciarán of Clonmacnoicse; a veritable who’s who of early monastic names. Hoping to get back and get inside when things re-open.

As we were cycling home, we ran into a friend of mine from Monday night bookclub and her husband out for a walk. They had Covid 4 months ago and he still can’t taste or smell and she still looks a bit wan to me (that could be endless winter of course). He’s English and his elderly father in Sheffield is due to get his second jab next week so relief all round (and a certain amount of envy at the efficiency of the British system but, really, a good British vaccination system is very good for us too).

I had my Sunday bookclub which wasn’t bad but the novelty of online bookclub has really worn off.

When I got off the call, I found Michael in the garden reading his book. He was outraged when I informed him that while this met part a of my demands (fresh air), it failed to meet the threshold for part b (and exercise). He and Dan played some basketball but it’s fair to say he was pretty unenthused.

We gave away the boys’ old bikes via the street whatsapp group. I cannot tell you how nice it was to see children from the road cycling off on them. I am delighted with the space in the garage as well. Still no one wants the complete sets of pristine Junior Cert Irish language text books and past papers in the shed awaiting a forever home. Alas.

We finished up our week of adventure with a zoom call with the relatives. The Londoners actually have real news, they’re moving house in March and my sister-in-law’s new novel is nearly finished. Busy lives. My sister-in-law in Dublin had us all in stitches describing how my nephew’s online mock exams for the Junior Cert nearly killed them all. It was the combination of the technological challenges and the descriptions of the hopping parents’ whatsapp group that made it all worthwhile.

An email has just arrived from the school saying that they they look forward to welcoming the sixth years back in the morning. It adds, ominously, that assembly will be held in the new outdoor classroom and the children are advised to wear coats.

And how was your own latest lockdown week? Any news?

Weekly Round-Up

24 January, 2021
Posted in: Boys, Daniel, Dublin, Family, Ireland, Michael, Mr. Waffle, Work

Sunday, January 17, 2021

Our friends from the other side of the city cycled round and had tea in our front garden. It was nice to see them. They had cycled to the beach that morning and gone for a swim. What is this madness? Not one, but two people in my book club are swimming daily in the sea. So is my sister-in-law. Mr. Waffle saw his first dry robe in the wild the other day when our neighbour hopped out of her car sporting one having been off for a swim in the sea. To clarify, it is freezing here. We’re all going crazy.

I discovered sea shanty tik tok and I am now driving my family bananas by insisting that we sing the Wellerman all the time. My menfolk have very deep voices and it sounds amazing. They are not amazed.

We had a zoom call with the Mr. Waffle’s siblings and spouses which was successful. We might even try again. Is it too early for the zoom quiz 2021?

Monday, January 18, 2021

I have recommended this diary anthology before. The other day I came across this entry from Noel Coward on September 3, 1939:

Six years ago today was was declared. Now we are starting again with officially declared peace and the world in physical and spiritual chaos. History in the making can be most exhausting.

Fair, Noel, very fair.

Tuesday, January 19, 2021

Virgin came to see why our wifi remains unsatisfactory. They put in a new cable. Spoiler alert, it remains intermittent. Sigh.

A former colleague sent flowers for my father. This is my father-in-law’s birthday, he died in October 2018 which doesn’t seem a very long time ago. The children have been steadily shedding grandparents since and only my poor mother-in-law is left and she is, alas, not very well. Maybe I will do a post on ten years of decline. Do you know what? Perhaps I won’t.

Wednesday, January 20, 2021

I was stopped by the guards on the way in to work. I’m not sure that they were any more convinced of the necessity for my physical presence in the office than I am but I had my letter and was waved through. As I sat in my office later surveying my empire (not a soul on the floor), the arm fell off my chair. Is it a sign?

When I got home, a new phone which my kind husband had bought me was waiting for me. Updating was spookily easy. I’m waiting for the arrival of my new protective case before I actually take it out of the house.

Michael made dinner which was very satisfactory. V excited about involving the children more regularly in dinner production.

Thursday, January 21, 2021

I got a puncture on the way into work. A pain.

I had a great chat with a colleague about family camping holidays in France in the 70s/80s. We were both complaining about how we never went to restaurants even when they weren’t very expensive. My father used to say, “everything multiplied by five is expensive” (I now know that to be true, actually). We went to France for a month every summer (lucky us) and we went out for dinner once at the end of each holiday. I remember in the early years, my mother didn’t order on the basis that she would eat what the children left over (always lots). My colleague whose father was in the army reminisced about how one night when there was heavy rain, his father got out in the middle of the night and dug a trench around the tent. I vividly remember camping in Liechtenstein (on our way to somewhere else) and the rain hurtling down as we put up the tent in a sea of mud. Then we all crouched over the little primus stove while my mother heated up packet soup. It was a low point. That which does not kill you etc.

I got home to another flower delivery from a colleague. I was really touched. The flowers were beautiful but quite funereal. They’re in the hall as I write making our house feel vaguely like a funeral home.

We got news from the nursing home that my mother-in-law has been vaccinated. Good news at last.

Friday, January 22, 2021

I was cycling home from work on a Dublin bike (my own still with the bike shop) and eating a sandwich while cycling – not optimal, I concede – and I got the wheels stuck in the tram tracks at the bottom of Grafton Street and fell off. Many anxious pedestrians rushed to my aid and I was absolutely mortified but unhurt aside from cut knees and wounded dignity. My sandwich, alas, did not make it.

I swung by the bike shop on the way home and picked up my bike with shiny new tyre. €50 people. Honestly, the cost of bike repairs.

Herself and myself cycled to the park to check out a new coffee van (this is how our thrills look now) and test my bandaged knees. Both knees and van were fine.

I’d ordered a fancy dinner from a city centre restaurant. It was pricey and, to be honest, fine cuisine does not really lend itself to assembly at home. Are we downhearted? No, we’ll try somewhere else next week.

Saturday, January 23, 2021

Mr. Waffle and I cycled out to Chapelizod. At the start of lock down one when I first discovered Chapelizod, I thought it was a charming and delightful little village and I said that after lock down the five of us would cycle out there and have lunch. Honestly, at this stage I feel if I never saw Chapelizod again, it might be too soon. That said, we went for an exploratory wander to the former Guinness houses at the top of Knockmaroon Hill and they are worth a look. The houses are on either side of a busy road linked by an ugly concrete walkway above the road (it replaced the original walkway relatively recently – the original could not have been worse). One of them is an arts and crafts pseudo Tudor yoke and the other is an enormous Italianate thing that dominates the approach road. Both present their backs to the road but interesting all the same. They have, I imagine lovely views out to the Dublin mountains and the larger of the two (the Italianate one) has huge grounds sweeping down to the river which I could see by hopping up on the wall. Who knew that there were still things to see within our five kilometres?

For cinema night, we watched “Fight Club”. Daniel selected it and assured us that it was certified 15s. The first half is both horribly violent and quite dull. I was in despair. It picked up in the second half but I still wouldn’t call it a family film.

Sunday, January 24, 2021

It snowed in the morning and Michael ran out to explore but, alas, it did not stick.

Out for a mild walk (met loads of the neighbours- we all see a lot of each other these days) and some frisbee playing, a trip to Tesco to pick up supplies and then home to watch “The Devil wears Prada” which has held up pretty well actually.

And how was your week?

Gradual Return to the Salt Mines

16 January, 2021
Posted in: Boys, Daniel, Michael, Mr. Waffle, Princess, Siblings, Work

Tuesday, January 12, 2021

Herself has decided that she might like to go to college in the UK. I am a bit ambivalent but there we are. The process which she undertook and organised on her own was arduous and lengthy: a personal statement; predicted grades from her school; a reference from a teacher; a piece of corrected work from a teacher; an entrance exam; and two interviews. Anyway, after all that, she got offered a place on her preferred course, subject to getting excellent results in her Leaving. I told my sister. She said, “So, basically, she’s just done the equivalent of filling in her CAO form?” Sadly, yes. She’s going to apply through the CAO as well and, in the end, may stay at home, but she might go too.

Related: Herself tells me that the New York Times predicts that by 2030 two thirds of identity theft victims will be people whose parents posted too much about them on the internet. Alas.

In other exciting local news, the Council has decided after much local debate that bollards at the end of the road are to be made permanent. I cannot believe how delighted I am. My middle-aged soul rejoices.

The return to home-schooling has been a bit fraught as there were some teething problems but definitely better than last time.

Due to my extended period of leave and with Mr. Waffle at work and the children at school, I am fully up to speed on domestic admin. In what I can only call, a triumph, I managed to open new bank accounts for the boys online (their old ones are in a Cork branch and don’t come with a bank card and, at this stage, they need one and a Dublin branch). Another middle aged thrill, I can tell you.

Wednesday, January 13, 2021

This was my final day of leave before returning to the salt mines. It felt like the ultimate Sunday night.

I bought an antique mahogany coffee table online using my father’s Christmas cheque. I bought it online even though I know that I have to see things in the flesh before I buy them or things go very wrong. It turned up. I was not delighted. It reminds me of one of those low tables in a pub. I can see in my mind’s eye, people struggling across to it clutching pints and packets of crisps. It’s handier than what went before and it’s growing on me slightly. It looks much better in the picture than it does in real life which is why I bought it in the first place, I suppose. Mr. Waffle bought the tulips which fill my aged, wizened heart with joy.

Home schooling went much better. The new app the children are using lets them see the day’s schedule for online classes and homework assigned and due dates. “We are on top of this,” I think joyfully. Like, I have to ask, why does the universe always slap you in the face when you think this?

Thursday, January 14, 2021

The return to work was absolutely exhausting. I returned home drooping with fatigue. Happily, Daniel made dinner.

There appears to have been an “incident” with online schooling. Someone gave out a link and someone unpleasant turned up and shouted at a teacher. All quite nasty. The principal sent out an email saying that online classes would be suspended while they looked in to upgrading security. Sigh.

Friday, January 15, 2021

Delighted with myself that I decided to make my first week at work a short one. We had a fancy assemble at home Mexican take away for dinner. It was alright but, to be honest, not as nice as the burrito which my first born makes from time to time.

Saturday, January 16, 2021

A Saturday after working part of the week is infinitely better than a Saturday on holidays. I bounded out of bed full of limitless enthusiasm and slightly exhausted everybody with my tidying and planning. And here we are, half way through January already lads.

Cristesmæsse*

12 December, 2020
Posted in: Cork, Dublin, Ireland, Siblings, Work

Work has been very, very busy this past week. One night I found myself cycling home in the small hours of the morning – I could have got a taxi but I didn’t fancy it – and Grafton Street was all lit up and quite deserted and it was absolutely beautiful in a way that this photo doesn’t quite convey.

One night I had to go back to the office building about 8 in the evening and with Covid and everything else, the building was empty and dark except for the emergency lights. When I stepped into the downstairs reception in the dark (doubtless a health and safety hazard) I was overwhelmed by the smell of pine and sure enough, by the light of my phone, I saw a real Christmas tree in reception which was lovely and a lot of effort for the few of us who are left in the building.

My sister bought me a box of 24 jams and chutneys in small jars as a very welcome advent present. I deployed the raspberry jam today to make an apple and jam toasted sandwich for herself who was flying out to her applied maths class. She ate it in the car and she said to me, “You know, this is delicious.” This filled me with joy because, cooking is not one of my core skills and my children are rarely enthused by my offerings. Also, I used my mother’s toasted sandwich maker which she bought in France about 40 years ago and which she would love to see still in regular use.

We’re still sticking cloves in oranges. Note fancy patterns.

I bought gold and silver aerosol spray paint last week. This week I deployed it in the shed. Delighted with myself. I sprayed everything. Behold two pine cones which I stuck on top of the Aga. The corner of instagram I inhabit shows amazing Aga decorated for Christmas content but, I am unconvinced. If you deck your Aga or around it in foliage, it will soon be desiccated foliage. I am pleased with my minimalist solution.

I have taken the Christmas ware out of the press in the utility room and brought it into service.

Presents are flooding in. Gratifying. I moved spare school books from under a table to create room for the presents. I went to put them in the press in the hall only to find it full to the brim of Junior Cycle school books and past exam papers (some still pristine in their cellophane wrappers). As the children are all past Junior Cycle now, I decided to give them away on freecycle. I wanted to give them all to one person rather than have a stream of people coming to the house so, to discourage time wasters, I stipulated that whoever took them would have to take them all. That was a week ago and nobody has messaged me. I appear to have significantly over-estimated the potential popularity of Irish language Junior Cycle materials.

Yesterday was the centenary of the burning of Cork by the Black and Tans. I can’t help thinking about my Cork city relatives and how shocked and angry they must have been. My granny died when I was 12 and I don’t ever remember her mentioning it. I must ask my father and my aunt what she thought.

I finished my online Christmas shopping today. The relief. It meant spending much of the day sitting at the computer on a weekend which feels a bit too like work for comfort but it is done. Christmas cards tomorrow, if I’m feeling strong. And the Christmas tree. Online bookclub Kris Kindle tonight. One of those presents from under the table will be opened anyhow.

For those of you here for Gategate updates, all has gone silent. Alarming.

*Herself has got really into old English recently. This is the old English for Christmas she tells me. Apparently there are only 30,000 lines of old English extant and she is planning to read them. As a jumping off point she has bought herself a book from which she keeps quoting. I am irresistibly reminded of the elves in the Lord of the Rings films. Apparently I’m a philistine.

Covid Thoughts

24 November, 2020
Posted in: Reading etc., Work

Things I will not take for granted again, that I did not even know I was taking for granted.

Libraries
School
Travel
Mass
Crowds
Parties
Proximity to other people

We’re probably going to go back from Level 5 to Level 3 on Monday. To be honest, Level 3 feels pretty much like normal life. And the knowledge that the vaccine is coming makes it all feel much more bearable. Even on a wet and wintry November night. I was soaked cycling home from work – my “physical presence” in the office, is, alas, currently indispensable.

I’ve got nothing this evening.

Saturday Miscellany

7 November, 2020
Posted in: Mr. Waffle, Princess, Work

I have subscribed to Apple Pay: very exciting. We’re getting our excitements where we can. We’ve turned on the Aga, delightful though I am slightly dreading the bill in due course.

Mr. Waffle picked up what I hope are the last of the apples. These have fallen after the pickers came and took 83kgs and the gardener pruned the trees. I mean, how many can there be left?

I met the next door neighbour while clearing up in the garden and he says they’re going to get their scullery extended. Since we share a sloping scullery roof, it probably makes sense for us to do ours at the same time but I’m not sure we can a)stand it or b) afford it. Food for thought.

I have completely abandoned the cleaning rota and decided that we can live in squalor for the duration of lockdown. Perhaps a mistake but I’m willing to give it a go.

Do you remember that over the summer I wrote about the two girls on paddle boards who were rescued after 15 hours at sea? It was such a nice news story in all the Covid gloom. A local fisherman had worked out where they were likely to be and he and his son went and found them. Apparently the fisherman drowned during the week. Isn’t that just awfully sad?

I have an interview on Monday and as part of it I have to give a presentation. I practised it on herself and she said that she had seen a new side to me. Pause. “Actually no, it’s the person who makes me put away my laundry.” That is certainly the vibe I am going for.

Between interview prep and work, today has been underwhelming, however, cinema night tonight, rejoice. And I see Joe Biden has won the America election. It could all be worse.

Updated to add: We had “The Martian” for cinema night. It was Michael’s choice and we all enjoyed it very much. He’s delighted with himself.