No work for two weeks. Took Joe to the new National Football Museum in Manchester, in the former Urbis building, which has already featured on this blog on a few occasions (amongst others, here and here). Here he is face-to-face – kind of – with Joe Hart, Manchester City and England goalkeeper. If asked however, I am sure he would claim that Ben Roche of Morecambe is better. And good for him.
Here I am at the in-laws’ for a bit. It’s the school summer vacation so Joe can stay up until late. Tearing him away from the TV or the DS is a good plan, teaching him the rudiments of cooking, with his gran Carol, an even better one. He can, at least, wield a Worcester sauce bottle with aplomb, as this proves.
From left to right: Pete, my brother-in-law, who may or may not moonlight as the lead singer of a thrash metal band of renown in certain circles; Vicki, my sister; Clare; and Daisy, my niece (aged 13). Out of shot – Joe and Tom (nephew). As this is a 21st century household, note the Mac on the table, part of the family. In the oven: a roasting leg of lamb. A good afternoon was had by all. (Except, perhaps, the lamb, and even that got treated well.)
Well, there went the first six months of 2012. So far we’ve had four nice weeks of weather (two at the end of March and two at the end of May) and the rest has been dreadful. The nostalgia freaks would have us believe that all children spent their youth frolicking in hayfields at this time of year but it’s hard to engage with that reality at the moment, when it’s raining most of the time. So here’s Joe doing long multiplication. He’s getting kinda good at it.
Got bored today and shaved my head, well, a #1 clip anyway. I do this kind of spontaneous thing now and again. Ask my wife one day how I proposed to her.
After a busy week, today was dull, spent working at home while the rain came down outside. Later on, Joe observed that he never gets to decide my photo of the day. OK, mate: go ahead. Here is his choice. I love the pegleg on this Lego pirate; a neat touch.
‘Vilvite’ is Bergen’s kid-oriented science museum. Joe’s favourite exhibit – and, except perhaps for the big artificial stream in which one could play with sand dams and watch the formation of alluvial flows, probably mine – was this big marble run with about a hundred different little channels and toys and bells in it. Took me a few goes to get this shot, but I like it a lot.
Even the keenest follower of this blog is unlikely to have lost a great deal of sleep over the fate of the mölkky (Finnish skittles) set last seen on Christmas Day. But here it is, providing an excuse to involve Joe, Clare and our neighbour Keith in some enjoyable physical activity out in the woods across the road, on another glorious evening. Better than just hanging round the pub anyway. (Which we did anyway, afterwards…. too nice to stay in.)
Grrrr. No comment necessary.
After five days swanning around Denmark, I had to put in a full day’s work today. Fortunately I could do it at home. Even more fortunately (particularly for photoblogging purposes) there were distractions.
Being 42 