Body Pumping, Mothers Day and Chewed Glasses!

Weather: Sunny and Warm
Mood: Happy
BP: 148/93
When a friend of mine (and I use that term very loosely indeed!), suggested I join her at Aerobics at the Tennis Club, I thought "What the hell, why not indeed, I could do with a bit of knocking into shape, or should I say, getting some shape to my mis-shapen poor body. So, off I went, to the first session with eldest daughter in tow. "Why have they all got towels with them?" says she. "It will be OK Mum, we won't need them". HA! Who was she kidding! Aerobics - not - Body Pumping YES! I had forgot where some parts of my body were and what they actually did - after 1 hour and 15 minutes, my poor body had been pumped, jumped and exhausted. So, today, I have attended my 3rd class, yes, yes, I am sticking at it. What a great group of girlies they are, all with their own painful bits and pieces, but we only do what we do, with a bit of extra pushing from Jan, our beautifully toned instructor - (there's no way she has got two grown up children - so not fair!) I have now even taken to walking, yes, you heard, walking to the Tennis club, there and back. So, am I feeling good today and chuffed with my little self? - you bet I am.

Hubby has had so many enquiries in the past week for his products, it's quite wonderful! Everyone keeps on telling him to carry on, push for what he wants to do, so slowly, slowly, he will get there, because he wants to. He believes in what he is doing, so much. His enthusiasm is extraordinary and the effort he puts in, even in these strange times is immense.

He has been trying out his new bit of kit and smoking a bit of cod, haddock, more Salmon and Duck Breast. Last week, he got an email from the local branch of the Rotary, in it they have asked him to do a presentation at their next meeting in April at a really posh restaurant on the Algarve! Get him! Twenty minutes talking about what he loves doing the most - smoking fish! They will have to gag him after nineteen minutes - otherwise he will be there all afternoon.

Why do things always seem much better when the sky is blue and the sun is warm on your face. It doesn't make your problems disappear but they sure blend into the background a little while you concentrate on what is important to you.

As it was Mother's Day on Sunday, we took Mum out for late lunch. Me and Mum had a jug of Sangria sat in the brilliant sunshine just at the top of Praia da Rocha beach, before sauntering along to a restaurant for tea. The Menu wasn't brilliant, but the food was good and we had a lovely afternoon.

I decided to plant some more herbs and try my hand at growing strawberries - that's if Zara doesn't eat them all before I have to chance to pick them, she chews everything else. Did I tell you, she ate my glasses, my beautiful bi-focal glasses that go dark in the sun that cost me £265 last year, she actually ate them. Silly me for leaving them on top of my lap top on top of my dining table, I should have known she would jump at the chance of grabbing them off the table and having a good old chew. Ha!

Bit windy today!!

Weather: Sunny but v windy
Mood@ Cross!
BP: Yikes! 154/101 (think I need to watch this a bit!!)

How rude! Not posting for 5 days, but, sorry I have been just a bit busy OK? Trying to sort out bloody nagging banks! Look, we havent got any money OK? Stop bugging me! When you haven't had a job for 9 months, you tend not to get an income - get it? The fact that you keep charging stupid pounds bank charges is NOT HELPING! And of all the banks for me to bank with, I chose you, albeit zillions of years ago, before the days of credit crunch and government bail outs. But I have a question for you, as I am now a major shareholder in your bank, why do I have to pay you anything, because I class that as paying money to myself, which I cant afford anyway, so I may as well keep what I haven't got. OK? save yourself the postage.

Hubby has now wound the company up, cost 250 euros - wherever you go, whatever you do, there is always a charge - no matter how big or small - you get charged for just about ruddy everything. So damned annoying.

Not a good day to do a post today, will just end up ranting about everything so before my BP escalates even further, I am going for a cup of herbal tea.

Friday 13th March 2009 - Red Nose Day

Weather: Blue Sky, beautiful warm sunshine
Mood: Pensive
BP: 150/97

Hubby has today gone to wind up the company that was set up last year by him and his ex partner. Sad that it has come to this but there is no other way out of the situation that he has been put in. The last few months have been a series of tough hills to climb - you get to the top, then someone knocks you off your feet, so you get up and start climbing again, only this time it is a bit harder - but you are a bit tougher, you see the time wasters and demons before they see you.

On top of this, we gave up booze for Lent! I really don't know whose idea that was! This is when I say, Hi, my name is suziebear, I am an alcholic and it is 13 days 11 hours and 45 minutes since my last drink. Only I would be lying! Ha! OK, OK, I weakened - only a little bit, last night. I could really blame Hubby - it was his idea to go for a "7 euros" - a little local restaurant who do a 2 course meal, with bread, wine or beer, coffee all for 7 Euros. So, being all inclusive as it were, it would have been rude not to have the wine offered wouldn't it? The fact that Hubby had water (going for Sainthood I think) - still didn't make me feel bad, in fact just the opposite - their house Vinho Tinto tasted sooooo goood, I savoured every rough and ready dark red drop! I didn't have the usual Coffee and Maciera though, give me some credit.

Anyway, back to business. This hill we keep climbing - at the top is a level playing field, waiting to be used by our team. Our team - all wonderful, patient, kind, passionate people, are all waiting on the sideline, for the Alex Ferguson of Smokin' to blow his whistle. Once that whistle is blown, our team will use our playing field to become The Winning Team of the Premier League. There will be no stopping us.

Meeting up with some Girlies at lunch today in Alvor, for a coffee and chat, putting the world to rights and all that. But, just found out that all my texts I have sent are not actually going anwhere, my phone says they have gone, but I can assure it that they haven't gone anywhere - so what have you done with my messages eh? Where have you put them? Am I to be sat all alone at 1.30 in Alvor because you haven't sent my messages to my Girlies? I think not! I will now have to go and ring all said Girlies.

9 Months later - Life is certainly not boring!

Weather: Blue Sky. Warm Sunshine,
Mood: Busy
BP: 174/91

Hubby and I have a game, bit silly really, but it's our game. Anybody can play it, but you need blue skies and good knowledge of direction and geography - (which I haven't got but Hubby has), which is why it is a game for two. During our first nine months here, there have been times when travelling around or just sitting watching the waves crashing on the rocks or sat having a coffee in between appointments when you look up at the sky. Can't help it really, it is just so blue! Every so often, a trail of white marshmallow will appear, high in the blue sky, following a dot in a very straight line - this is where the game begins. I say, where's that going then and where's it come from. This is where the geography and direction comes in - it can't be anywhere boring, like Faro to Manchester - he has to use his imagination, but get the direction right or else I would definitely know he was telling fibs. So, he will say, "OK, that is going to Kiev from Sao Paulo" - the more extreme it is, the better. Because, then you think about the people who would be on that journey and why would they be going? It's our game and the reason we play it, almost daily is quite simple. We work together, always have done and usually our conversation revolves around work. It's not that we don't have anything else to talk about, it's just that whatever we talk about, it usually, it somehow leans it's way into work, which is damned annoying. By playing our Blue Sky game, work can't interfere and we end up making up stories about this little dot in the sky with its expanding marshmallow waistline, by the time we have ended our story, it has gone further on its way to where ever we have decided it is going to - and it hasn't cost us a cent.

Before you think - is this it? is this is how they spend their sun-filled days, let me tell you a little story about smokin' fish and other stuff on the Algarve ..........