Day 194 – Happy Birthday to me!

So, here I am, another year older and none-the-wiser.  I can’t believe how much my life has changed over the past few years.

At the end of 2016 I quit my job, sold my house and backpacked halfway around the world.  Four years on and I am living with the love of my life, I have a daughter, I enjoy exercise (mostly), I am still working at my “temp” job…and I can bake(ish)! That’s really just the tip of the iceberg, but you get where I am coming from.

But what a year this has been so far….

We are living through a pandemic and the country been in lockdown.  Our Prime Minster contracted a life threatening illness and society has had to learn to adhere to numerous and ever-changing guidelines, bubbles and even curfews.  Some people have been paid to not work and others have, sadly, lost their livelihoods.

It feels as if I am in some futuristic dystopia

But this weekend it was all about me.  And I’m not going to lie, I loved every minute!

The Sunday before my birthday was a Cornwall trip, and thankfully it was quieter because most of the holiday makers (note: I don’t count myself in this group as it is basically our second home) had left.  There was far more physical space around us and I felt like I could breathe a little easier.

Whilst in town, I asked Charlotte if she was going to spend her pocket money on me and she laughed…I took that as a no.  However, she did say she would help Daddy choose me a special present and subsequently pointed out a variety of potential gifts, including a ceramic fairy and a fancy sparkly skull mug.  We mooched around for a while and I popped in to Superdrug for some face serum (time to keep the aging skin supple) and then we walked up to the arcade.  Here, Charlotte spent 20p on a machine, won the jackpot and swapped her tickets for a giant cuddly troll. What a result!

Before dropping Charlotte home we treated her to a McDonalds and yet again, I questioned why there are no KFCs in the area. I munched on chicken dippers and Darren slipped Charlotte something beneath the table, which she passed to me, grinning.  I felt totally overwhelmed as I unwrapped a beautiful silver shell on a delicate chain.  I hugged her, then Darren, thanking them both.  Charlotte looked at me in all seriousness and stated “you don’t have to thank Daddy, it’s from me”.

Brilliant.

*****

On my actual birthday I was treated to breakfast whilst I opened my cards and prezzies, and followed this up with a brownie (obvs) before we drove to Cheddar Gorge.  It was too cold to hang around, but I really enjoyed seeing the steep cliffs and wonky goats

Spot the goat

We stopped off at a local shop and I ran out to buy some cage-aged cheese whilst Darren loitered in the car (£5 to park? I think not) and in my rush I managed to trip up in the middle of the shop and hit the deck with an unladylike thump. Rising from all fours – and with the cheese intact – I hobbled to the counter and paid, then lolloped to the car. We investigate the graze and it was quite bad, Darren felt so sorry for me injuring myself on my spesh day, but I patched it up with a sanitary towel (no plasters to hand) and we made our way to Weston Super Mare.

It was so nice to be near the water, albeit the murky Bristol Channel, and we had hot, salty chips and a battered sausage each and walked around the town. It was a bit grey and somewhat like a ghost town, being out of season and a school day, but that made the whole day very peaceful. Plus, there were only two occasions where I had to hold my breath because someone walked too close to me.

I was knackered by the end of the day, but enjoyed all the fab cards and lovely messages and felt thoroughly spoilt and loved. We even managed to cram in a delicious dinner with friends, including pud, but my last gin tipped me over the edge.  Let’s just say I slept well…

The rest of the week was food related – naturally – including a Japanese lunch, an indoor BBQ (bloody rain!) and lots of cake. Oh and brunch, Chinese food and chocolates.  And more cake.

*****

Totally unrelated, I will leave you with my chosen statement of the week:

“There are three ways to castrate a bull and I can do all three”

Darren’s Dad, 22.09.2020

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