We have been back home, in our own beds (nothing quite it!), since mid-afternoon last Thursday (24th October) and it’s good to be home despite it being a bit chilly! 🥶

Friday was a bit of a shock as we woke to find that we had been engulfed in fog which didn’t shift for the whole day… It was the kind of day the Scottish word “dreich” was invented to describe… dreary, bleak & miserable 🤣 Despite this, between washing machine loads, we still managed one of our favourite local walks – along through the village and down the road which leads to the farm with the turkeys (funny that you only see them at this time of year..?! 🎄), past “Bottoms Farm” towards “Slippery Ford” – we have some great place names around here! It was a nice walk and good to stretch our legs properly after being cooped up in a car or ferry for a few days, even if the weather was dreich!

Friday also marked our Lee’s 50th Birthday… happy birthday “young” man 🤣🤣🤣

Saturday was a completely different day as we awoke to bright sunshine and temperatures reaching around 17 degrees… It was like being back in Spain for a bit 😎 well, the last couple of weeks of our Spanish trip where temperatures had averaged around 19 degrees… nice!

Following a quick walk along the canal at Silsden, Pete dropped me off at The Raikes so I could visit Mum whilst he went to take a look at the allotment (& collect our pumpkins ready for Halloween!).

The Raikes had their Halloween party for residents which was hilarious as usual… ever tried playing “pass the parcel” with a group of elderly ladies, half of whom have dementia (sadly), or are extremely hard of hearing? Combine this with a dodgy internet link and an equally confused “Alexa” with questionable streaming capabilities (who knew ABBA had so many Halloween hits – hehehe 🤣!)… the term “herding cats” springs to mind but, as usual, the organised chaos of it all was very entertaining for a couple of hours! Oh, and Mum was on good form… although it maybe took her a bit longer to clock that it was me when I arrived and, as bro Steve had said after his recent visit whilst I was away, the words she speaks don’t always make much sense! I can always tell when she is getting a bit tired too as she usually starts asking “where did Lynne go?” 😂 It was nice that staff mentioned bro Andy’s recent visit too (thanks you guys… maybe I will see you next time you visit as it’s been too long – or feels that way anyway!)

Today, after the extra hour in bed (although, never feels like it!), British summertime is now officially over… if you’re wondering why the clocks go backwards in October, t’internet says that the move “was made during the First World War to help conserve fuel and has endured ever since, despite the fact that there is no real benefit to lighter mornings and longer evenings”… so it seems there is no real point to it – perhaps it’s just one of those enduring British quirks?

It has been another sunny day here in our part of Yorkshire and we have made the most of it with a walk (you couldn’t have guessed that right? 🤣) along the canal between Kildwick & Bradley, and some time spent in the garden (for Pete anyway! He’s been desperate to get the lawnmower out!). It’s very autumnal out there at the moment… lovely!

Pete and I have quickly reverted to our usual home routine of mornings in bed with coffee & iPads, followed by a walk after breakfast and then a bit of allotment / gardening or some other “admin” job, followed by din-dins, bit of telly & bed… might sound a bit boring to some, but am loving it at the moment!

I am trying to sort out my LinkedIn profile for when we get back from India. I find it quite a challenge to write about myself but I will keep trying to do a bit every now and then… I only just worked out how to put my qualifications on 🤣🤣 – the question is, how far do you go back with these? Just stick to what sounds most impressive or do hirers want to know about my GCSE in Art!? I doubt it 🤣🤣🤣. I am hoping some of my ex-colleagues will write some nice things about me too🤞! You know who you are! 😁

We have a number of bits and pieces to sort out for our trip to India starting with Visas, International Driving licenses so we can hire a scooter when we get there, transfer to our accommodation from the new airport in Goa (Jane F – if you are reading this, expect a call from us soon so we can tap yours & Dave’s brains about some of this!), airport parking at Manchester etc. We have exactly 5-weeks until we leave the country again and we are away again at the beginning of November when we head up to the North York moors for a few days to celebrate my birthday, so it feels like time will rush by and I like to be organised!

Well, that’s all for now… It’s only just gone 6pm & it’s fully dark outside – think it has been for at least an hour? Winter is definitely on its way… I am glad to be home as I love the autumn & plan to make the most of the next few weeks here in the UK – hope everyone out there is well! Toodles 😘😘