A bit of an odd up and down day. Had a bad night, because I woke up having heard one of the pens or pencils drop out of the pen holder on the telephone table. How it dropped out I've no idea, but I was convinced a mouse had done it - that not being unnerving enough, I came back from the loo to find a flea jumping up and down on the bed - managed to catch the beggar and squish it between my thumb and fingernail (the only way to kill them), vowing never to let any of those blasted neighbourhood cats in again - and then dozed fitfully for a couple of hours.
Shattered when I woke up finally which was a shame as we'd planned to declutter the garden today - which we did quite successfully once we got going. Still scruffy as anything but the random bits and pieces have now been removed: bits of odd wood that were supposed to come in handy one day, a rusty bicycle, pots and planters galore, a stone column that had once been a bird table, several bags of gravel/sand/compost - all half open and spilling out their contents ...
We then headed off to Sainsbury's to pick up drink and nibbles for Lara's birthday dinner that evening - only to come back to the car to find a definitely-squidgy back tyre. Newish car and of course Dave realises he hasn't got a jack - off to Kwik Fit, but they were just closing.
So had to public transport it to Teddington - having, in all the drama, forgotten my phone, managed to use Dave's to get hold of Lara and Peter to let them know we were running horrendously late.
Made fairly good time and got there not long past 7 - for a lovely evening of bubbly, chat, artichokes, coriander couscous (a luxury as Anna who usually joins us can't stand coriander so we do without), whole seabass with fennel, a zucotta-like pudding, late birthday presents and a silly game of Snatch (word game).
Oh we like Snatch. Looks like a very tempting photo. Bummer on the tyre, and the flea, and the poltergeist (and before you lose more sleep you're too old for a poltergeist).
