Hot chocolate and rugby

So I went to the rugby. The rain was of biblical proportions. You can see in the third photo the steam rising off of the scrum. It was a bit of a last minute idea to entertain the  French exchange student, who is a rugby fan. It rained all of the way there in the car, on the walk to the ground, in the queue to pick up the tickets, for the whole of the match and all the way home. I could hardly see going over the hill on the drive back. The biggest boy pointed out that it was the Full English Experience.

While we were waiting for the tickets I did the whole tour guide thing. Look, there's Pulteney Bridge, it's really famous. Look, there's the Abbey, it's really old. There is a lot of water going over the weir today, it is really wet. I ran out of interesting things to point out after that.

For those who might be a bit vague as to what rugby actually is, it's, oh goodness, I have no idea to be honest. I was going to sum it up in a couple of pithy sentences, but I only have a very tenuous grasp of what it is and I run the risk of enraging those of you who actually know what's going on. I was no doubt the most annoying person at the ground, continually asking what was happening. It's all very stop-start, not like football, which I can just about follow, and even explain the off-side rule if you'd like me to.

Anyway, Bath, the home team whom we had gone to see, won, so it was all good. And by only one point, so it must have been quite thrilling, although it was rather wasted on me, see not knowing what was going on above. I was also very disappointed by the amount of shiny flags they had given out to everyone. Not at all environmentally friendly. Otherwise it was all excellent. At half time we got chips, coke and hot chocolate for me (it was cold as well as wet) and tried to avoid the downspouts of water pouring through the stands above us.

The French student was absolutely lovely, and got on so well with the biggest boy. They were chattering away in a mixture of French and English the whole week and hopefully he had a great time. He ate everything and said I was a very good cook for an English which I am taking as a compliment and that the biggest boy was very lucky, which I am having printed out and laminated.

He arrived here at 2 o'clock in the morning which upset the dog no end. He was beside himself that a stranger had come to the house in the middle of the night and gone upstairs. He made his concerns known to one and all for quite some considerable time. Safe to say that five-sixths of the household were wide awake. By the end of the week it was all forgiven though and the new person was admitted to his pack. Here he is waiting at the bottom of the stairs for me. He's not allowed up, but he always likes to be as close to me as possible, so he tends to wait with his head on the bottom step.

The littlest boy and I took him for a wander and went to a dog-friendly cafe for ginger beer, hot chocolate and a toasted teacake. It was like being in an Enid Blyton book. Bertie laid on the floor perfectly aligned like a compass so that his whole body, ending at the tip of his nose, was pointing directly to the kitchens.

We are all a little tired here after a week of rushing round to events and squeezing things in. Alas the weekend won't be particularly relaxing, there are more Things to be done. A friend said she had nothing planned, and I was a tiny bit envious. There is cricket to fit in alongside football now, a party for someone and the dog has been promised a gallop over a hill somewhere. I've been feeling rather frazzled lately, that feeling when there's never enough time and I'm not sure what to do next. I know it's the same for many, I'm not complaining, it's just left me feeling rather disorganised. I think I need more lists. And maybe a new notebook. I really have a yearning to do some calligraphy, but I always feel I shouldn't while there are so many other work-related things to do. But the pens and the nibs and the ink are calling me. Maybe I'll try and sneak in a little over the weekend. Any plans your end? Wishing you a little of what you fancy, and a ginger beer or a hot chocolate too. Enjoy.