Sprinting November days

In one respect I am glad to see the end of November, it is a miserable month.  Always damp gloomy weather, the afternoons dissolve into evening with such speed, leaves fall like a snowstorm and memories flood back of the month when we said a final goodbye to my Mother.  At least this year the final day of the month is crisp bright and cheerful.

However, these galloping dates mean that December is getting ever closer and lists are getting longer in preparation for Christmas. The shops are already full of the usual piles of extra stock, in anticipation of the public response to wall to wall advertising of products we would never afford a second glance in any other month.

I need to take a red pen to the Christmas card list, I’m sure some of these people can’t even remember who we are.  On the other hand I look at some names and wish that we had more time to keep up old friendships, maybe that is something for retirement. 

My thoughts back in August of a more minimalist festive season have mellowed and we are on track for the full works again this year.  It seems there is no way of having a break from our usual Christmas Eve party, the Darlings tell me that their friends are already talking about it.  Apparently, it simply would not feel like Christmas if they didn’t join us for our jolly early evening gathering, which manages to grow in numbers as the years pass.  It started as a quick drink back here after the chaotic crib service when the girls were little.  As we outgrew the church service the event changed in character and before we knew it, our guests have planned to attend even before being invited!

No time to linger on a keyboard. I should be folding my packets of currants, apricots, figs and prunes into the warmth of excessive amounts of Grand Marnier and orange juice, so the fruits can soak for a few days and fill the house with wonderful aromas, before being baked into the most delicious Christmas cake. Aah, bliss!

I feel like a 90 year old!

Woke up this morning feeling like a 90 year old after my yoga class with a new and very firm teacher, whose mantra seems to be ‘It’s good pain’ as she pushes her foot into  my thigh.  Being a very small class she can keep a beady eye on all four of us and as we found ourselves hanging from belts secured to the barre, I imagined I would raise my head to find intrigued passers-by with their faces glued to the window of the torture class!  Although I did have to admit at the end of the session, that I have never before been able to do a full forward bend with such ease, so the stretching had worked.

Some mornings just scream at you to go and curl up with a good book and avoid the necessary work and activities of the day, especially when it starts with a full hot cup of coffee managing to empty itself across the work surface (managed to rescue my ipad in time).  However I did inadvertently discover that it is far more economical to soak up a spillage with newspaper, rather than vast quantities of kitchen paper.  It is advisable to use old paper though, not the newspaper which has just been delivered!

This was then followed by a phone call from flustered Mini Darling on a train to work, to say she had left her season ticket in her other coat.  She was convinced the Guard would not believe her, haven’t heard anything further, so she’s probably been arrested!

The rain still lashes down through the gloomy skies and soggy leaves are swirling about the garden, so I decide it is time to make some soup.   With the house filled with the aroma of carrot, coriander, cumin, paprika and a few other random ingredients, I finally get the inspiration to work through my list and make some achievements today.

Lights, Camera, ACTION!

No, I don't welcome Christmas in October.
My premature greetings are all in the name of art!

Two vans outside, a couple of cars and a pick up truck all waiting to come into our house and transform is into a Christmas scene, I am beginning to doubt the sanity of my decision to allow a film crew to take over our house to shoot an advertisement for one of the top UK retailers.

Ding Dong!  No turning back now, they have arrived.  It only takes a couple of hours for two young chaps to cover all the carpets in the house with sticky backed plastic and protect the hard floors with boarding.  There is intense activity in all areas and treasured pieces of my furniture disappear into a white van destined for a lock-up garage somewhere, allowing the art department to work their magic with new sofas and tables. Will I ever see it again?   Luckily I remember to grab Mini Darling's passport as the desk disappears out of the door, she is off for a holiday tomorrow and this furniture removal wasn't planned.

My cupboards full of fabric have come in very useful, the Art Director didn't like my drape above the front door and I have managed to whistle up a perfect piece of fabric for him to work a miracle with, I might leave it there!  Mr. Security is a little darling, offering to go back and get me something tasty from base unit when he discovered no one had offered to get me some lunch.  They are all a bunch of very friendly and considerate people, with such great attention to detail and impeccable timing.

By the end of the day the film set has been prepared, my lounge is a dining room and dining room is a lounge.  What a transformation, by positioning the sofa across the room it looks so much wider.  Even the cat seems to like the change!  

Even though we are all exhausted by the time I have prepared a tasty delight for supper there is so much to talk about, so we light the candles and sit at the dining table to enjoy a relaxing supper in what is normally the lounge.

A very early alarm call is not welcome after a night disturbed by wild winds and torrential rain.  As dawn rises, the lighting crew unload vast quantities of cases, equipment and poles, luckily Mini Darling's taxi arrives early to transport her to the airport, before the sudden noisy arrival of over 40 crew and I find myself marooned upstairs to the only room in the house which has been left for me.   I decide to keep out of the way until everyone settles down, then I am called upon to try and help with an electrical query, then we have more changes to the filming ideas and another room needs to be 'dressed'.  As I dash to sort out another query I notice two guys are very kindly cleaning my windows (so embarrassing!).  Cupboards are emptied, doors removed and more equipment is squeezed into an already crowded room.

These total strangers now know all about my life, the food we eat, the books we read, the amount of dust behind sofas, the look of  family and friends from the photos, and anecdotes of my life from the long chats I have exchanged with various crew members with time to spare. By the end of the week they will be out of my life, never to be seen again!  Have just given approval for them to use a close up shot of a family photo of ours, perhaps should ask for some royalties!

Lunch time arrives and the mini buses turn up to whisk everyone back to the base for lunch.  The house suddenly falls eerily quiet, the scene is utterly chaotic to my eyes, difficult to believe this is where we live. 

Even the utility room has been taken over with sound equipment (I discreetly removed the cat litter tray for him!), the office was originally earmarked for storage but the digital man has his computer and monitor set up in the tiniest  space left clear and a gazebo on the patio has a mini catering stall with drinks and snacks ready for everyone.  

I have a very tasty Thai curry lunch delivered back to me by a polite Runner and an even tastier hot chocolate pudding, the film crews certainly do very well when it comes to food.

The poor young guys hang on to the massive light deflector screens in the front garden, despite the torrential rain and stormy winds, it certainly requires dedication to work up through the ranks in this business. Such a contrast to the Green Room reserved for the client and agency, which has been made very comfortable and supplied with plenty of reading matter to keep them occupied during the very long day.

Surprisingly filming finished on time, as darkness fell I could sense a feeling of pressure to make sure the day did not drag on for too long.  I had been warned that it could go into up to four hours overtime, so was very pleased when I heard the clapping to the words 'it's a wrap'.

I was persuaded by the family to agree to a pizza takeaway, it took all my strength to eat after such an emotionally exhausting day, with the thought of the art department returning bright and early the next day to 'strike' the set, it was by no means over.  I'm into all this jargon now!

A week later, the house is now back to normal, all the glasses and china which had to be packed away have been unpacked.  We did take note of the way the stylist had used the space in our dining room and have changed our layout, which makes the room look much bigger.  The most surreal experience, is the only way I can describe our recent encounter with a film crew.  I think the jury is out on whether I would agree to this again!

SHINE London 2012

I don't know if it was nerves or excitement that woke me at dawn on Saturday, or the hacking cough which has followed an untimely heavy cold this week.  Whatever the reason, there was no going back to sleep and when the brilliant sunshine streamed across the room, I was able to admire my shining sparkling nails, specially painted for the SHINE London 2012 Marathon night time walk around London, in aid of Cancer Research UK. 

Plenty of mozzi repellent in the form of Avon Dry Oil Body Spray (yes, it really does work and no nasty smell, it's a pleasure to use), as we were walking along the Thames for much of the route.

Clothes, accessories, plasters, drinks and snacks were all packed up and a supply of several layers of warmth as the forecast promised a clear night, which was good for no rain, but meant a fairly chilly night.  We felt quite privileged to have the brilliant light of a full moon to guide us around London.

The last couple of hours before leaving were the most difficult, we knew we should be resting but nervous energy was keeping us occupied with last minute fiddling about so it was good to be finally on our way at 5pm.  Only to sit in a massive traffic jam for the next half hour, when the Darlings decided to eat their supper, just like a couple of kids!

Battersea Power Station is a vast and spooky building and as the entrants gathered in the open area below the chimneys, dusk fell and lasers lit up this iconic landmark, making us all look so tiny and insignificant.  However that was not true, we were all geared up to show how committed we were to raising loads of money to further the work of Cancer Research UK.

Not quite the comfortable conditions which we had enjoyed last year at the O2, here we were out in the elements on a cold and windy evening, so we joined the very friendly queue for the only hot drink stand to get a warm drink inside us before setting off.

I had signed up for the half marathon and was due to leave at 7.30pm, although this is never actually the leaving time as it has to be staggered for safety reasons. The Darlings had to push me to go and join the leaving crowd.  I suddenly felt terribly emotional and it was a role reversal of their first day at school, especially when I came running back to them five seconds later saying that I didn't think I could do it!  Deep breaths all round and I walked off and didn't look back.  We all admitted later that a few tears had been shed at that point.

 As the evening light faded, the industrial buildings took on a soft glow and with the people dressed in the craziest outfits all determined to have a good time and raise awareness of the charity, this turned into quite a bizarre scene.

                                               

We had a much more interesting route this year, setting off through Battersea Park and over the beautiful Albert Bridge to head back along the Victoria Embankment, then over Lambeth Bridge and down to Bermondsey.  

                                                   

The first pit-stop was in the grounds of the Imperial War Museum with energetic volunteers offering sports drinks, water and energy bars and a chance to pack away my gloves and scarf, having worked up quiet a heat.

Further on down the road we had pockets of bemused people starring at the sight of brightly lit walkers, briskly marching down the street, the drunks were lovely and offering the greatest encouragement!  The Shard was partially visible, emerging from the surrounding buildings and this is also a beautiful sight to turn the corner and see.

I will always associate Tower Bridge with bananas now, as this was the snack I chose from the pitstop, and a very welcome nibble.  Along the Southbank was the busiest part of the route, with tourists trying to understand whether this was a normal Saturday night in London and the audience from the Globe Theatre spilled out in front of us, from one magical story into another surreal situation.

Under one of the footbridges a young lad was strumming a guitar and wailing very badly, but he suddenly started ‘singing’ ‘keep on walking, keep on going, keep on shining all you brave people’!  At that moment, to my ears he sounded just FAB.

                                  

With the London Eye behind us, I emerged from the tunnel under Waterloo Bridge at the exact second that Big Ben started chiming 11pm, that was magical and I had to stop and take in the moment!  I think the out of focus photo had something to do with tiredness at this stage!

The final stage from Vauxhall Bridge, along Wandsworth Road was not the most scenic part of town and I made sure I stayed with a group of people around me as it felt very quiet and lonely.  It was at this stage I felt my legs were getting quite tired, but when we turned off towards Queenstown Road I realised we had been walking up quite a steep hill!

Finally we had crossed the road and the Power Station was in sight, after less than 4 hours mile 13 was ahead, slightly out of focus!  The volunteers were all around the pathways to lift spirits for the final few steps, into the tunnel of stars and a warm welcome and medal to cherish.  

As I made my way off to find The Chief, I spoke to The Darlings who were near Buckingham Palace, halfway through their 26 miles and were on their way up to Notting Hill, Regents Park, Holborn, over to St. Paul's then down to the Embankment and all the way back along the river to Chelsea Bridge and then over to Battersea.   I felt so guilty heading off home to shower and sleep for an hour or so before we returned to greet our exhausted, but proud girls who had finished in 61/2 hours !

We all felt that it was much more manageable this year, perhaps because it was a more interesting route, perhaps because we had done more training than we thought as my pedometer appears to under record the miles!  I actually felt that I could have carried on at 13 miles, perhaps they should start a ¾ marathon!And, I am very pleased to report that the idea of spraying our feet with John Frieda anti-frizz serum worked, absolutely no blisters or sores!

Yet again, it has been a wonderful experience and we are just so happy to have been part of such a big fund raising event for a charity which has touched so many lives.  We have so many generous supporters who encouraged us through the pain and have helped us raise over £1,000 for Cancer Research UK, and still counting.

Pavement Rage

This maybe how the three of us will feel by the early hours of Sunday morning!

We did our last long walk at the weekend before the real thing, now this week it is a case of a good brisk walk every day.  I know the week will fly past and I'll soon be faced with Friday complete with self doubt, nerves and sheer terror.

I sometimes ask myself whether some householders ever walk out onto the pavement outside their houses.  How is anyone supposed to get around giant bush?

And another moment of pavement rage, do the council ever check trees?  This pavement is impassable to anyone with a pram or in a wheelchair, and you have to step into a main road to get around it.

We drove past Battersea Power Station at the weekend and I had not realised just how enormous a building it is and how dismal, spooky and gloomy it looks.  I do hope they manage to make the venue look a bit more welcoming on Saturday.

I am having a complete ban on any fancy fashion shoes this week to make sure I preserve my feet from any damage.  I may look a bit silly, but comfort is the order of the week if we are going to succeed.  The support we have received from family and friends has been tremendous and the knowledge that the money we have raised will do so much to help advance the work of Cancer Research UK, will keep us walking through the night on Saturday, no matter how much pain we may be feeling we will keep on going to reach our goal.

http://shine.cancerresearchuk.org/events/london-2012

Any donations to www.justgiving.com/LOLmum

10 Days to go

Less than 10 days to go until the SHINE2012 London overnight marathon raising funds for Cancer Research UK

I've been very good at leaving the car behind and walking whenever I have enough time.  It quite amazing just how much more you can see from pavement level and being the curious person that I am, I feel I am discovering a whole new neighbourhood, getting ideas from people’s front gardens and noting the variety of architecture around the local area.  It's also quite relaxing having the chance to be alone with my own thoughts and no distraction from driving, or the car radio.

I did another long walk at the weekend with the Darlings and we decided it was better going out early afternoon as all the eager beaver joggers and cyclists have already been and gone, leaving the riverbank rather peaceful for us.  We’d love to know what this is, any ideas?

It is now time to seriously look after the feet, no high fashion shoes for the next two weeks and we have discovered a great new use for the John Frieda Frizz-Ease Serum  

Simply spray onto feet and toes and it forms a barrier to protect against rubbing shoes and blisters forming! Added to that, it makes your feet lovely and smooth.  Thank you Mr. Frieda!

Anyone who would like to make a contribution to Cancer Research UK by sponsoring me can do so at:
http://www.justgiving.com/LOLmum