Tuesday 9 January 2018

Conquering the world next week







Messing about by the river. Don't be fooled by the sun, it was absolutely arctic out there, with a wind blowing straight in from Siberia. The littlest boy and I blasted along to the end and got blown all the way back again. Then it was home, sofa, hot water bottle. Utter bliss.

I've had a sort of flu thing for around 10 days now, and I can't seem to shake it. Nothing dramatic, just a complete lack of energy. Temperatures, headaches, that sort of thing. The boys had it over the Christmas holidays too. I've not really accomplished anything since, which is disappointing because this was the year I was going to conquer the world. I shall start next week instead, surely I'll be back at full strength by then. In the meantime I shall be sat at my laptop, clutching a hot water bottle with my head on a cushion on the table. It's a kind of 'just about to start work' position, where I'm best placed in case I suddenly feel able to string together some words.

Who still has mince pies left? We do. Plus a jar of last year's mincemeat, which I should have used first but which has inexplicably been left until last. Also one or two dark chocolate covered stollen (oh my) and some lebkuchen. Other than that we're back on ordinary fare. The biggest boy made fishcakes at school today, but only one small one made it home, so tea was a last-minute affair with eggs instead. I remember being constantly hungry at that age although I don't think I'd have dared to eat the things I made in cookery before I got them home.

The dog had a sticky eye last week. I took him to the vets' where they gave him a tube of ointment. It's almost impossible to get ointment into a dog's eye. On a par with giving antibiotics to a guinea pig I'd say. But his eye cleared up almost immediately anyway. And I am 51 of your English pounds worse off. FIFTY-ONE POUNDS! Next time I shall slather it in manuka honey first. Even at twenty-odd pounds a jar we'd be quids in. And I could eat the rest and regain my strength ready to conquer the world etc.

I hope everyone else is having a more full-on start to the year. If not, manuka honey. You read it here first.

24 comments:

  1. I am sorry you are feeling poorly and hope you are getting better soon. There is plenty of time to conquer the world, the year is only young. Did you know there is medical grade Manuka honey? I assume it is the normal product but sterilised and packaged in a fancy tube, sold at a premium. Maybe a teaspoon of Manuka honey (the supermarket variety) would work wonders with your lurgy? I have only eaten three mince pies since the beginning of December. No wonder I feel like there is something missing from my life! I have no idea how this happened. xx

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  2. i do hope you feel better soon. honey here is for the wealthy! occasionally if we're lucky we will find a farmer who would gift us a jar of this liquid gold. i absolutely love mince pies and the wonderful thing is that the rest of the tribe aren't so enthusiast about it so I get to scoff a few more that most ;)
    ps 51 pounds to the rand... eek that is the most extensive honey ive ever heard of! treasure it... lol

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  3. I'm sure you'll be tip-top soon. I got some Manuka honey.. but it does not taste good. So, there it sits. Maybe I should force myself to eat it, but I'm on low-carb and nothing sweet is allowed. I loved seeing Bertie and the youngest flying along.. oh to be young again. ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

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  4. The world can wait a week to be conquered. I hope you feel better very soon - according to the papers, there's a lot of it about. £51?! We're in the wrong business! Love the blustery photos. Happy conquering! xx

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  5. Sorry to hear you've been feeling rough. I find mince pies have magical healing properties (well, the ones here appear to; think it might be down to the rum in the mincemeat). Know exactly what you mean about costly vet interventions. One of our cats became unwell on Boxing Day. Four days later, the cat had recovered. the vet couldn't say what the problem had been and the bank account was lighter by almost 800 quid.

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  6. Funnily enough my plans to conquer the world this year, although getting off to a good start have now ground to a halt. Circumstances rather than illness but I blame the mince pies. I ate the last one yesterday so maybe today is the day! Really hope you start to feel better soon xx

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  7. I really like the title and the idea: conquering the world next week. Conquering the world...Yes, it gives me a big encouragement. Thank you.
    On nice things to eat, the only thing left is a big bag of chocolates that I eat every day after dinner while I see a film - and at that time I feel like I don't need anything else.

    I do like the idea of being on the sofa with a hot water bottle, I know well how it is, I do it on saturdays late afternoon. But I must add that I have also a cup of hot chocolate and a book - that's my idea of happiness, that and to have my children around me.

    Thank you for your posts, I always read them.

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  8. Bog standard honey works just as well and at £3.50 a jar won't crucify your pocket either. I use chamomile tea (cold) for the dogs eyes here. Vet's fees are exorbitant, aren't they? Like plumbers. We currently have a blocked sink and I am doing all in my power to sort it out myself. It's a smelly job though :o(

    Sorry you're under the weather. That bug lingers, everyone I know seems to have had it for weeks. Rest up and keep warm, massage your kidneys twice a day and the area under your jawline (lots of lymph cells located there). It might be painful at first but it will help boost recovery.

    I've still got mincemeat here and have requests to make more pies, otherwise we're all back to normal.

    Bertie reminds me of the Honey Monster...

    Get well soon, chick XXX

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  9. My sympathies, and I hope that you feel better soon. As always a nice read and good pictures. xx

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  10. The honey isn't a bad idea CJ, doesn't even have to be expensive honey like that. Any unprocessed honey has antibacterial properties (wouldn't go with that grocery store stuff from China). Hopefully his tongue can't reach as far as his eye... And a teaspoon several times a day would be good for you too!

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  11. Welcome to the world of vet’s bills. Do you have pet insurance? Funnily enough I’m trying Manuka honey on my eyelids to see whether it helps my blepharitis. Holland and Barrett had jars at half price for Black Friday.

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    1. Yes, expensive pet insurance. It's all quite shocking. I shall look for Manuka honey in H&B next time I'm passing, thanks for the tip. CJ xx

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  12. Poor you it does sound as if you are in need of some honey! No I'm not surprised with that bill, we all forget to tell you how expensive a visit to the vets is! Hope that strength returns soon and you can start the New Year properly! Sarah x

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  13. I hope you are gaining strength and health as you read this. I promise you that it will all be there to conquer when you're feeling better. heh. Just get healthy! We've been rather uninspired with cooking since the holidays. It's not bad, we've done well to use up our meal ends and ingredients, work through some additional things in the freezer. (I still have a lasagna and Japanese curry in there that has been neglected...)The main thing left over is chocolate, which will be handled in time. Your Bristol City boys gave my MCFC a good match! Well done! I hope you all get promoted very soon.

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  14. Sorry to hear you have been poorly CJ. There's a lot of it about at the moment isn't there. My hairdresser was coughing on me today so I may be next!
    We have some panettone in the freezer, I think that's about it.
    I can recall eating the crust off a pizza I made while waiting for the school bus...it was a cheese scone base :0)
    Jacquie x

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  15. hope you're feeling better soon. x honey and rest sounds like a good plan to me x

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  16. I'm a big fan of manuka honey. I do hope the energy levels rise soon. It's sometimes hard to believe you'll ever feel better isn't it. x

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  17. Oh no :( on vets bills and feeling poorly. Hope you're ready to conquer the world soon.

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  18. When I was in New Zealand last year someone was telling me that as a kid he and his siblings would visit grandparents and come back with a large tub of their manuka honey and complain bitterly about having to eat it.

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  19. Get well soon. I made bread and butter pudding with the end of the mincemeat jar in it and it was awesome. Your dog is the cutest. Jo x

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  20. Arctic or not, I bet your blast along the beach made you feel slightly better for being in the fresh air. At least if feeling poorly in winter, you can justify cosy blankets, hot water bottles, and a hot toddy or two. I like to add lots of garlic and onions to meals and ginger and lemon to hot drinks at this time of year. It all helps. Hope you're soon ready to conquer the world! xx

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  21. Minus being sick, this outing and following couch time sound superb! I don't know how to exactly describe this, but this post is so uniquely British, which I love! From the pictures to the meat pies, hot water bottles and fishcakes. I hope you are on the mend, back to conquering the world soon! Happy New Year!

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