“Polly put the kettle on, we'll all have tea”

We have a very confusing little mystery and in the absence of Hercule Poirot, Robbie has been investigating. Just after Christmas I noticed that my tea had a funny taste, at first I thought it was just my imagination but then Robbie noticed that his coffee tasted a bit odd too. He insisted that the problem could be traced back to his mishap on Boxing Day when a bottle of vanilla essence launched itself out of the cupboard and spilled on to the worktop. He thought that some of the vanilla essence must have gone into the kettle, it seemed a bit of a long shot, but it could have been the cause of the trouble. After a couple of days I made a close inspection of the inside of the kettle and found that it was a bit greasy. I gave it a good clean and rinsed it about twenty times before drying it with a paper towel, but I didn't have a chance to test it before I went to work. 

When I got home from work Robbie made me a cup of tea and to my dismay it still had a horrible taste. More detective work followed which led to us replacing the kettle in case there was something wrong with the other kettle. The first cup of tea seemed a bit better but then things went down hill and the nasty taste was back. I tasted the water from the cold tap and it seemed fine, but the water in the kettle had a horrible taste so the mystery deepened. 

We had almost given up hope, but earlier this evening Robbie showed me the jug that he uses to fill the kettle. I always fill the kettle straight from the tap, but Robbie is a creature of routine and he insists that the correct way to do it is to use a jug. Unfortunately the jug that he uses is the old plastic measuring jug that I use to make gravy etc. It always gets washed up but I think it must be the jug that is tainting the water, I will replace it when I go shopping, but from now on Robbie will use a glass jug to fill the kettle. We have had two decent cups of tea since replacing the jug so we have our fingers firmly crossed. I hope we have solved the problem

Changed dimensions

Robbie has bought a new mug, and he spent most of Saturday evening holding out his mug for me to admire. It is a very nice mug (it should be at the price he paid for it!) but I can't get excited about a mug. On Sunday morning he sat down next to me to have a serious chat, he said he had measured the capacity of the new mug and as it takes more coffee he will require more sweeteners. He now requires two and a half sweeteners! I will not repeat my response in detail but I left him in no doubt that I have better things to do with my life than cutting sweeteners in half!!

“Only when the tide goes out do you discover who's been swimming naked” - Warren Buffet

I am one of those people who doesn't like hot or strong tasting food, but my son a more adventurous attitude to food. He enjoys hot and spicy tastes and one of his favourite treats is hot salsa dip. When I went shopping a couple of days ago I bought him some salsa dip because it was on offer. I was I a bit of a rush when I got home and I absent-mindedly packed it into the fridge with the chilled items. The fridge was rather full so I just tucked items in whatever spaces I could find because I knew the fridge fairy (Robbie) would rearrange it anyway - he always does!

We have a fridge freezer with the freezer at the bottom and the fridge above and I find it hard to reach  the top shelves of the fridge. I don't know why I put the salsa dip in front of the milk on the top shelf, but it certainly wasn't intended to be a booby trap. The salsa had escaped Robbie's attention on the day of purchase, but it made it's presence felt the following morning. It is Robbies habit to wander downstairs wearing 'not a lot' to make a coffee (tea for me) and to feed the cats. He opened the fridge and reached up to get a new bottle of milk and the glass jar of dip fell from a great height, smashed and splattered everywhere. Thankfully 'everywhere' did not include that sensitive spot that would probably have required a trip to casualty. However it did involve a massive clean up operation which disrupted his morning routine - I was not popular! 

Many a small thing has been made large by the right kind of advertising. Mark Twain

Yesterday evening I put a huge smile on Robbie's face - I brought home several packs of the newly released Lego Olympic Minifigures. He had been waiting for them to be released and they turned up several days early, so when I gave them to him he was really surprised. He sat down at the table with a cup of coffee and set about making his first Olympic minifigures. His little expressions of excitement caused my son and daughter to shake their heads and exchange exasperated looks. My son made two posts on facebook which supped up the situation perfectly.

"You know you're set out for a career in mental health care when your stepdad sits in the corner calling a Lego man beautiful...and you don't question it"

"I would worry when my stepdad says he can feel the difference between a weightlifter and a an athlete... Until I realise he is on about Lego men."

As far as I am concerned it is harmless, it is not especially expensive and it gives the kids something new to disapprove of, it takes the 'spotlight' of my perceived failings. When you think of it that way the minifigures seem much less irritating! 

“Friendship is the source of the greatest pleasures, and without friends even the most agreeable pursuits become tedious.” - St. Thomas Aquinas

Well we certainly chose the right week to take leave, the weather has been amazing. On Friday we planned to meet a special friend but we wanted to make the most of the day so we planned our journey carefully. We drove out towards Rugby through some of the most beautiful parts of Northamptonshire, it is always beautiful but the bright sunshine on Friday made it perfect. The next part of our journey was not as beautiful, but Robbie loved it because he was able to spot a lot of Stobart lorries - the things I do to please that man! 

Our destination was Astley Book Farm in Bedworth. I have been there several times but it was Robbie's first visit, I had told him how good it was but when he had a chance to explore he got so excited that he even took photos of the loo! I pointed out the railway section (which was conveniently close to the bus and tram section) and there he stayed for at least an hour. When I went to find him later he was sitting on the floor surrounded by a growing pile of books, he still had so much to see but I was finally able to lure him away with the promise of coffee. We went to pay for his pile of books and he talked excitedly about how wonderful the loo was (sometimes I really wish he had an off button!).

He loved the coffe shop. Our friend came to join us and we had a lovely time. The coffee shop counter is awesome, it is covered in pictures of children's book covers and i was pleased to find that I had read most of them. Eventually we had to drag ourselves away from the Book Farm and we went back to our friend's house, it was a really lovely day. Robbie went home with a big smile on his face, a big pile of railway books and he was able to do more Stobart spotting on the way home, what more could he possibly want.

A Frivolous Purchase?

I really didn't want Robbie to go back to work yesterday, but as they say, all good things must come to an end. We'd had a lovely time on Wednesday. Robbie asked to go out for a drive and surprise, surprise, the route he chose just happened to take us to the Doc Shop! We went in just to see what new stuff they have and for once it was me rather than Robbie that fell in love with a pair of boots! They were very nice and very comfortable, I would have liked to buy them but I was afraid. Afraid that I was too old for Dr Martins and afraid that my kids would not approve. The sensible 'me' took control and reminded me that I need new work shoes before I even think about a frivolous purchase. I didn't buy them, but it wouldn't take me long to go back if I manage to convince myself that I don't have to be sensible all the time!!

We drove back via Earls Barton and had coffee (or in my case tea) at the Apothocoffee Shop, they make a fantastic cup of tea. Robbie was lusting after a Hornby mug, he will have to save up for that himself, I have a pair of boots on my wish list! I did treat him to a rather apt coaster for his his desk at work. It could be based on Northampton Station, but there again there again it is not unknown for New Street to go one step further and advertise a departure from one platform and then at the last minute announce that it was now departing from a completely different platform - John Peel (Home Truths) used to call it the New Street gallop! 

Be on the alert to recognize your prime at whatever time of your life it may occur - Muriel Spark

Robbie has a birthday coming up this week, much to his surprise he is going to be 40! So after another challenging week at work, his birthday celebrations began yesterday with a trip to the Doc Shop. My mum had given him money to buy himself a pair of boots. It was a lovely drive and it was nice to have a whole day together and to be able to please ourselves what we did.

When we got to the Doc Shop Robbie spotted some shoes that he liked, but they didn't have his size. Then he seized upon a pair of black and white boots covered in a sort of zebra hair material (not real zebra skin!). His eyes lit up as he stroked the boots, he really wanted them, but I'm afraid that my involuntary groan of horror put him off. He already has one pair of DM's that he can't wear in daylight, so another seemed a bit excessive, and then of course there was the question of how to keep them clean........ I cant help it, I am just more practical than Robbie, but when I stopped to think about it my mum would have wholeheartedly approved of black and white Zebra print boots, when it comes to shoes (and clothes) she and Robbie are on the same wavelength!


Robbie bounced around the shop like Tigger and he fell in love with a couple of other designs, but they did not have his size and he decided against the zebra print boots. He chose to save the money and to go back in a couple of weeks when they have had more stock delivered. He likes the thought of going back again and  in the meantime he can enjoy spending the money in his head many times over.

Earls Barton Church

I let him choose what else he would like to do that day, and he chose to have lunch at the Apothocoffee Shop in Earls Barton and of course to spend a little while in the book department at Jeyes! It was a very nice unhurried day and as always it was fun just enjoying happy moments together.

Spiral Archive

Robbie was very excited about Saturday, he had looked forward to it all week, but if I'm honest I wasn't keen. We were going to the Spiral Archive, record shop which is also a bookshop. I love books and the idea of spending ages checking out all the books in this shop was very attractive. However the shop contained two of the things that I really don't like, music and coffee, so I was apprehensive. I am not good with the smell of coffee, I really can't cope with loud Robbie type music and I knew that Robbie would be in there for ages. 

As it turned out I coped better with the smell of coffee and the music than I expected. I really enjoyed sorting through the books and I found a few treasures that I absolutely had to have. I have to admit to getting bored long before Robbie was ready to go, but that is not surprising because he was there for almost 3 hours!! I think he could have easily spent our whole annual budget, but in the end he came away with a bag full of treasures and a huge grin on his face. His purchases included Hatful of Hollow, Veruca Salt (7"), Altern 8 Activ-8 (7") and Altern 8 various remix's (12") as well as a couple of 1970s Hornby catalogues. It really was Robbie's idea of heaven, a shop that sells railway books as well as a huge selection of vinyl records. 

The Apothocoffee Shop

Last Monday when I told Robbie that it would be nice to drive to the nearby village of Earls Barton to visit the chemist he looked at me as if I was mad. After all there are plenty of chemists nearer to our home, but this chemist is rather like the costume shop in  Mr Benn, it contains secrets and transports you to different worlds. So on Monday we took a drive through the Northamptonshire countryside to Earls Barton, as I parked the car Robbie spotted Jeyes the Chemist and commented that it looked  very ordinary and very small from the outside. We walked in through a very ordinary chemist shop but after just a few steps it was clear that this was no ordinary chemist. To our right was the book department and Robbie was spellbound, there were so many interesting books to look at and the shelves and cabinets around the room were packed with keepsakes of every kind, it was like an Aladdin's cave. I thought we would be stuck there all day! Another doorway led on to a room containing china and kitchen items, Robbie was instantly drawn to a very attractive Hornby mug and a couple of mugs in beautiful boxes with designs from the Ladybird books of 1960s. 


A narrow corridor led us past a display of jigsaws and other items that caught Robbie's eye, he kept touching my arm and telling me to "look" as he pointed out his latest find. Some very steep stair led us up to a different world. The first room contained all the fun of the fair, a model funfair with working models, lights and fairground music. There was so much detail and so much to see, each time I looked I spotted something that I hadn't noticed before. Robbie loved it, he walked around the room looking closely at every detail. 


The next room was the Dolly Lodge selling everything a dolls house enthusiast could ever wish for. I didn't think Robbie would be very interested but he was fascinated, it was hard to drag him away. The next room gave a fascinating insight into village history and the lives of the people who lived and worked in the village in Victorian times. Next there was a display of chemist items from the past which I found very interesting. Every display cabinet told a different story and prompted so many memories. Then we came to a huge selection of Sylvanian Families products, my daughters used to love Sylvanian Families so lots of happy memories came flooding back. It was interesting to look at the displays and see the information they have about Sylvanians through the years.


By the time we went downstairs again Robbie was in a lot of pain and I was tired so it was time to follow our noses through the shop to the Apothocoffee Shop for a nice pot of tea (and coffee for Robbie) and hot buttered toasted teacakes. It may not take the pain away but it makes life seem a whole lot better! Robbie was very interested in the displays of preserves etc he looked longingly at a jar of real ale mustard. After a nice sit down and a snack we felt refreshed and ready to explore the rest of the shop. They had a lovely selection of cards, then there was the toy department to explore. Robbie's inner child was very much in evidence especially when he found a whole section devoted to Thomas the Tank Engine in the next room! After a last look at the books we made our purchases and left, it had been a really good experience and Robbie said that he hoped we could go there again very soon.

He Got The Call!

It has been almost a week since I last wrote the blog. Robbie and I have had time off work together and it has been really special, we have had such a good time that the blog just had to wait! So I have a bit of catching up to do...........


Saturday
I was determined that I would not let the day slip through my fingers as so often happens on a Saturday, so I set my alarm to wake me up at a reasonable hour and I made my mind up to enjoy the day to the full. The alarm went off and as soon as I popped my head out from under the covers I knew that it was distinctly chilly. I managed a brief dash to the bathroom before retreating back under the covers. It was nice to sit in bed snug and warm with my laptop while listening to the radio. There is something very special about the luxury of time and the freedom to do whatever floats your boat. In my life, time is a rare commodity so it is extra special to have days of total freedom stretching ahead of me. Robbie made good use of his time - snuggled under the covers exploring the land of nod!


After a very enjoyable morning and a lazy lunch the phone rang and Robbie's eyes lit up when he realised who was calling. It was the optician to tell him that his new glasses were ready for collection. I have never seen him move so fast, one minute he had been trotting around the house in his 'smalls' Homer style, the next he was 'fully booted and spurred' and ready to go and collect his glasses. We rarely go to town on a Saturday (I don't cope well with crowded places) but it was a very pleasant couple of hours. Robbie's choice of glasses was fairly reserved by his standards, both pairs have a little hint of the unconventional, but you have to look carefully to spot it. Once we'd collected the glasses we had time to visit the bookshop and then enjoy a visit to Costa. 

On the way home Robbie spotted a sign for a shop that sells vinyl records. The excitement was almost too much for him, it was too late to visit the shop that day but it is high on his 'to do' list for the week ahead. 

An Emergency Coffee Cup

Mornings in our house have a nasty habit of starting too early and even when we are up on time (5am) it only takes one thing to go wrong to mess up the whole day. That was the case last Friday, everything was going well, Robbie dressed only in pants and socks trotted into the kitchen clutching his trousers to flick the kettle on before vanishing into the lounge. He emerged 'suited and booted' a couple of minutes later and headed back to the kitchen to make his coffee for the train. He took the milk from the fridge, reached for the coffee and then stopped in his tracks. There was a missing ingredient - his travel mug! Suddenly the tune Yakety Sax began to play in my head as Robbie jumped into fast forward mode (Benny Hill style), darting around the house in search of his mug. It was not there, and now Robbie was running late. I chased him out to the car and drove him to the station as fast as the speed limit would allow. He was devastated, his favourite mug was gone, probably left on the train the night before! He dashed off into the station with just enough time to console himself with a quick visit to the coffee shop before boarding the train. 


Later that morning as promised I set out in search of an emergency replacement mug. I managed to get one just like the missing one, it was the last one in the shop so he was very lucky. Robbie has checked, but the other mug has not found it's way to lost property. Perhaps it got bored with travelling to Birmingham every day - I certainly would!

Normal Service has been Resumed

After our trip to the Warley Model Railway Exhibition we went to Birmingham New Street and caught a Cross Country Service to York. I always enjoy travelling on Cross Country services despite their inability to make a drinkable cup of tea, but when we joined the train I was shocked by the state of the first class coach. I have never seen such mess, there were dirty cups, food wrappings and crumpled newspaper everywhere. The were not many people in first class, but it was impossible for us to find a seat with a clean table. Robbie put down his bags and rucksack and morphed into a tornado as he whisked through the carriage cleaning each table, and carrying all the rubbish to the bin in the vestibule. Before long first class was restored to order and Robbie took his seat. The lady in the seat behind was most impressed and asked why he did it. He told her that he was proud of working for Cross Country and he hoped that any member of staff would pitch in to help if they saw a mess. He didn't tell her that the train manager had watched him open mouthed as he cleaned the carriage, he didn't even say thank you.


I enjoyed the journey, but I struggled to stay awake the early start and the busy morning at Warley were catching up on me. I tried to read my new book about the railways around Newquay but my eyes kept closing and I couldn't concentrate. I decided to look out of the window instead, even a brief stop at Sheffield station brings back many happy memories of my time there. It was a very long time ago but I loved living there. 


As we moved on towards Doncaster the 'trolley dolly' put in an appearance. The first people that she came to asked her for a tea and a coffee and she rudely told them that she was not doing complementary drinks she was only doing the retail trolley. She spoke to them as if they were naughty children. When she got to the couple sitting behind us they asked for a tea and a coffee, again she said that she wasn't doing complementary drinks. The man said that they were so desperate for a drink that they didn't mind paying, but she pushed the trolley away without further comment. In due course she came back and provided complementary drinks for those that wanted them, but at best her attitude was graceless and she made the people who wanted a drink so badly wait until last. Maybe she'd had a bad day, but it left me feeling disappointed because most Cross Country staff are not like that, they are very good and she had let them down. 

Photo by David McCormick

I enjoyed spending time at York station, we went to have a coffee and watch the world go by at the old signal box. Or to be more exact we watched the trains go by, Robbie was so busy jotting down information that he almost forgot to drink his coffee! Our journey back couldn't have been more different, the train manager was very good at his job and the Retail Service Manager was exceptional.
By the time we got back to Northampton I just wanted to curl up and go to sleep, but we'd had a lovely day.

'The Norfolk landscape sends a shiver through my soul....' - Raffaella Barker

Our holiday in Norfolk had been planned long before our recent woes and despite the huge black cloud of worry hanging over us we decided to go and make the most of the peace and freedom that we always find in Norfolk. These things never work out as planned and before we could pack and get ready for our holiday we had to address the pressing issues that were crowding into our week. Robbie had important deadlines to meet at work, but he also needed to see the GP urgently, and just to confuse matters further he had to take time out of a very busy week to deal with three totally intelligible letters sent by CMEC/CSA which no one dealing with his case could explain. They couldn’t even tell who had sent the letters or why, I in these days of austerity I can’t help wondering why a government agency would send out three different letters to the same person on the same day in three different envelopes and then waste hours of staff time responding to frantic phone calls from intelligent people who are totally baffled by the correspondence. What I wonder has happened to plain English and what on earth has happened to customer service?



Robbie arrived home from work at 11pm on Friday evening; I was tired, frustrated and still packing. Robbie was so tired that he was like a zombie and so challenging that if I hadn’t sent him upstairs to sort his clothes out I might have harmed him! It was heading towards 3am when I went to bed and Robbie was even later because he was dealing with final bits and bobs of work that had to be done before we could go on holiday. I knew that would fall asleep but I was too tired to wait for him, in the past Meg would have woken him up and sent him to bed when she got sick of his snoring, but now he had a stark choice, find his own way to bed or stay put.


The alarm woke us at 6am and ‘sleeping beauty’ reluctantly plodded off to make a cup of tea. Within half an hour I was up, washed, dressed and packing the car. I wanted to be on the road by 8am, but Robbie trotted around in a state of undress and showed a marked reluctance to get himself organised. He still had to finish off some bits and bobs at work and this was delayed further by computer problems. The clock ticked on, 8 o’clock came and went and by 10 o’clock a near naked Robbie was still messing around with work matters and I was finding it increasingly difficult to keep my temper. I finally chased him off to get ready and at 10.50am I went to sit in the car to wait for him, at least I could listen to the radio while I waited. At 11.30am he came out to announce that he was on his way before scuttling back in to do a few last minute jobs. At 12.OO I was parked outside Marks and Spencer’s waiting for Robbie to buy himself a coffee and a breakfast baguette. Then at long last we were on our way.


Considering the late start we had a reasonable journey and made good time. Before we had even left Northampton Robbie did his usual trick of squealing with delight at something that he had seen from the car. This time it was not a train, it was two traction engines in the car park of the rugby club, he was very disappointed that I refused to stop for him to take a closer look. One day he will cause an accident by shouting out like that. I got my own back on him later when I told him that I had caught him out in a bit of mischief (yet again), it is one of the few occasions that I can recall Robbie being completely speechless. He should know by now that I don’t miss much!


We arrived at about 3pm and began the exhausting process of unpacking and putting everything away. I was exhausted and all I really wanted to do was to make the bed and crawl into it, but suddenly we were thrown into panic mode – it seems I had forgotten to pack the coffee! Robbie was very good, he managed not to stamp his feet, but the arms were folded and the bottom lip was sticking out as if he was a sulky toddler. So, before the unpacking was completed we had to get back into the car and head for Tesco in order to find the correct brand of coffee. By then I was far too tired to contemplate cooking, in fact I wasn’t even sure I was awake enough to eat anything, but Robbie’s rumbling tummy led us to the fish and chip shop. I found that I was hungry after all and I managed to clear my plate before sleep finally caught up with me.

For a Man to Truly Understand Rejection, He Must First Be Ignored By a Cat

I think after recent events Robbie would be delighted to be ignored by our cats. He is the one who usually feeds them so you would think that he would be their favourite person in the world, but cats are fickle. They leave Meg the dog to look adoringly at Robbie while they  give him aggravation  every time he is late feeding them - it serves him right for teaching them to tell the time!! If Robbie does not get up on time Oreo meows outside our bedroom door demanding to be fed, and if Robbie stops off at the bathroom on the way downstairs Oreo head-buts the door demanding instant attention. This usually results in a stream of abuse emanating from the bathroom!


Meg adores Robbie, she has been a good dog, but now she is old, frail and more than a little senile and she does some crazy things sometimes. Robbie had bought a big bag of Starbucks coffee for a friend of ours. He had even had it ground to be used in a cafetiere, but he made a mistake and left it near his chair in the lounge. I came home one morning to find the house smelling like Starbucks and the lounge covered in coffee. It made her violently sick, so when I had cleared up the coffee, I had to clear up after her - thank goodness we don't have carpet! A few days later she stole a bag of flour from the kitchen and trailed flour all through the house, she looked like a ghost - and she almost became one when Robbie saw what she had done! Clearing up flour is harder than it sounds, especially when most of it is on the dog!!


The cats don't like to be outdone and one of them decided to go one step further with some tactical vomiting! Robbie insists on displaying his Dr Martens on the stairs, a pair for almost every step. It was just too tempting, not content with covering the front of his favourite purple boots the fat, furry feline (as Robbie called him) vomited into his blue boots. Guess who had to clean it up - I get all the best jobs!!

The Way To His Heart

This week has been difficult for both of us; for me because all my attention has been taken up with a DLA renewal application for a family member, for Robbie because he is very busy at work and he is in so much pain from his back and legs that coping with everyday life is almost impossible. I was so worried about him on Thursday evening because he could hardly move, but Robbie being Robbie, he wasn't going to give in. It took a superhuman effort, but he headed off to work bright and early on Friday morning.

The weekend could so easily have been a disaster, Robbie was in pain and frustrated because it was stopping him from doing most of the things he wanted to do. We were in no hurry to get moving on Saturday, but Robbie decided that if he had to miss out on some of his usual weekend activities he wanted to ride on trains instead. So at midday we were at the station ready to catch the 12.17 to Birmingham, there was just one problem - it was cancelled! I'm not sure if was that or the tepid coffee that upset Robbie most, but I was treated to one of his rants. He soon calmed down and before long we we were heading to Birmingham on a blue train and Robbie got his favourite seat, so he was happy again.

I suggested that we should have a look at some of Robbie's favourite shops in Birmingham. It was very brave of me because I don't cope very well with crowds and I am not keen on Birmingham, but I wanted him to have a nice day. We went to the Ian Allan bookshop, a record shop and lots of shoe shops because Robbie had his eye on some new trainers. I saw the most amazing pair of Dr Marten boots in Cloggs - I want them so badly but they are too tight across my foot where the lace up bit starts. Robbie bought himself an Animal T shirt and I bought him what he refers to as 'railway porn' - a Quail map (a book of track maps).

There was a loud and very scary parade on New Street. I couldn't see much because of the crowds, but there was a dragon and some dancers and a whole gang of men in kilts making an excruciating noise with bagpipes. I had to go and hide in The Works until it was all over - I bought a couple of books in there too. Robbie wanted to have a coffee in Costa before we went home, it was a bad decision, it was crowded and far too noisy so neither of us enjoyed it, but I guess it prepared us for the journey home, some football fans decided to serenade us and they kept up their chanting all the way to Rugby. If that wasn't bad enough the moron in front decided that the whole train had to listen to his music, it made me feel quite violent. Surprisingly Robbie was quite chilled he was in his own little world, lost in the detail of his Quail map! It was worth making the effort, we had a really good time despite the wild men with bagpipes and the problems on the train.

Being Anal

I was reading a thread on a forum the other day about the things that people are anal about, it made me laugh out loud because the very first post could have been describing Robbie.


"....he emerges from the bathroom holding the toothpaste asking who has failed to squeeze from the bottom of the tube!"


As I read on I realised that so many of the posts could have been describing Robbie. Someone wrote about their partner driving them mad by constant checking and commenting on railway and bus timetables. Surely there can't be anyone else as bad as Robbie for doing that - or do all train planners take their quail maps to bed with them?


Another common theme was having to have tea or coffee made in exactly the right way. Robbie is impossible about the way his coffee has to be made and he criticises me every time I make coffee for him, so I find it easier to let him make it himself.


Robbie even has strong opinions about the loo roll! According to him it unrolls more efficiently if the end is on top rather than underneath. I don't think I even notice which way round it is, why would anyone obsess about anything so trivial?


In the interest of fairness I should perhaps admit to the one thing mentioned that I am obsessive about - black ink! Blue ink should never ever be used, black
looks so much nicer. Robbie is into pens in a big way, especially Parker pens, he could talk forever about all the different designs - and if anyone borrows his pens it is a hanging offence!


When I first met Robbie I thought it was odd that he counted the stairs every time he went up or down, but I soon realised that was mild, Robbie counts everything. This evening I caught him counting the increasing revs on the washing machine spin cycle, he could tell the speed just by listening to it and when it reached the maximum speed of 1400 he got so excited - seriously weird and more than a little autistic!

Passions

Tuesday was already planned out for us by Robbie. He suffers withdrawal symptoms if he is away from trains for too long, so we had to indulge his passion with a trip to Norwich by train. He kept a running commentary about each different train that he saw, but I was really well behaved and smiled indulgently as he jotted down numbers. Usually when he does that I pretend that I am travelling alone but I just happen to be sitting next to a random weirdo! I even stood quietly and waited while he took endless photos of trains when we got to Norwich.

We had a lovely time in Norwich, except when we went to Boots. Robbie needed hair gel and I needed the items that I didn't get at Tesco the day before. There was more choice at Boots which caused Robbie to be more vocal about what I wanted, he knew I was embarrassed but he was determined to tease me. I chose quickly and hurried him away as another shopper gave him a very disapproving look. A couple of minutes later we were selecting a different product when the same customer passed us again. She gave Robbie a withering look that was completely wasted on him. He announced (too loudly for comfort) that she was jealous and she probably wished her husband was just like Robbie!

Robbie is a man of many passions, trains are perhaps the most obvious obsession, but there is much more to him than that, so we set about indulging some of his other desires. What could be better than Costa Coffee in Waterstones? It was wonderful sipping coffee (from a mug that was so big that I could hardly lift it) while surrounded by books, the anticipation of browsing was almost as good as the experience itself. We finally managed to drag ourselves away from Waterstones, but t seemed that he hadn't had enough pleasure for one day, so he steered me in the direction of PaperChase. As he looked at all the products he became so excited that I thought he would explode, he was like a kid in a sweetshop. I love stationary too, but I manage to be a little less vocal about it than Robbie!

It was a really enjoyable day out that was only spoiled by the rudeness and poor service of the station staff at Norwich. It used to be a really nice station to visit, but over the last couple of years it has really slipped.

Cold Feet

Robbie went back to work on Friday, but he was still not back to normal (not that he could ever be described as normal) he was still feeling cold and still off his food. In fact he is still finding it hard to eat, it is almost unheard of for Robbie to leave food on his plate, but this weekend his eyes have been bigger than his belly! It seems to be taking a long time for him to get his energy and appitite back. The oddest thing is that he has gone off coffee, he just can't face it. He has also been suffering from very cold extremities, so we have had to come up with some unusual solutions to keep his feet warm, it is harder than you think because one of his feet is four sizes bigger than the other. I have been forbidden to discuss the solutions we tried, but it involved pink polka dots!

The Morning After

Not surprisingly Robbie wasn't keen on getting up on Saturday morning, in fact opening his eyes seemed to be too much effort for him. Eventually after several false starts and copious amounts of coffee he managed to face the day. It took a little longer to to work his way back into my good books but I can never stay cross with him for very long. He really redeemed himself on Sunday, he cooked us a lovely dinner.

Emily went back to university on Saturday after her very long Easter holiday, it feels strange without having her around. Unfortunately they had a break in at the house while they were away, not much was taken but it is unsettling to think that someone has gone through the house. Emily said that the police were very good, they have taken finger prints and they have identified where the intruder got in, so that has all been secured now.

Pants and Pasta 10.01.08

Robbie's new boots arrived yesterday, I struggle to get over excited about shoes of any kind but Robbie was on cloud 9, I dread to think what he would be like if something really exciting happened. We had a bit of a fashion parade, he tried on his new suit and his new boots, he looked great and he was very good at the hand on hip pose and the twirl as he walked across the room and turned to come back again. If he hadn't built his career in the railway industry he would probably have made a very good hairdresser!

This morning Robbie took his foot to the doctors, he insists that it was his boots rather than his wayward leg that caused him to fall this time, but he is still awaiting some tests and the GP said he would chase up the appointment. I guess should expect Robbie to have disobedient feet, after all every other bit of him is unconventional to say the least! Hopefully we will soon find a way to keep him the right way up - and pavements everywhere will breathe a sigh of relief.

After the doctors appointment Robbie had almost an hour to wait for his train to work, so he bought me a coffee (well, tea in my case). We rarely have time to ourselves like that so it was nice. Robbie dominated the conversation with a discussion on the relative merits of different brands of mens underwear. He provided a detailed description of his favourite pair of pants, and his second favourite pair, and the advantages and disadvantages of sports underwear. I was spared any more detail because he had to check the time. He only had a few minutes before his train was due, plenty of time for another little gem. He asked if I knew that Morrisons were the fresh pasta retailer of the year!? I don't know how I have coped for so long without knowing that! Where has all the romance gone?