Tvl Milton Keynes Central

... br>Its going to be a a ******* Ball!!!!!
The Goodbye Party Organised and i think everything is sorted!
No more clothes to buy...maybe just a few xmas presents before i go.
And i have packed and unpacked my bag about 4 times already!

Its really bad i am just wishing the next few weeks away!!!

I'm sure i won't be sleeping for days before!!!!!

Only 553 hours to go!!!
Yippie!!!!

H.x

With time rapidly dwindling I went down to Banbury way this afternoon to visit my brother et famille before I leave, taking the opportunity to say goobye to two young nephews - one of whom was able to appreciate some of the implications of what I am doing, "But what if you get sick?" he asked. :-)

Back up to Stoke in the late evening. Last day of preparations tomorrow.

A quick update. Things have moved on, including us. We're pleased to report that a few days ago Brian the van was declared healthy, after some serious re-constructive surgery!

On Monday we left Norfolk and began a series of public transport journeys that would take us from Norwich to London, London to Cheltenham (to visit with friends for a couple of nights) and then Cheltenham to Birmingham to finally pick up our beloved Brian. We ...

"Whatever can go wrong at the most inopportune moment, will" Sod's law

All I had to do today was to get the laptop ready for travel: clear out old files to make space for photos, transfer my planning files with all the hotel, travel and other necessary detail; and check in.

First the laptop email chose ...

"We're leavinghome" Beatles

Leaving thehouse for three months over winter can be a bit of a worry, and besides, thehouse insurers don’t like it.

Fortuitously,Barbara and Steve will be house sitting. Good friend Barbara and new partnerSteve have both recently left failed marriages and are looking to start a newlife together. So the arrangement suitsthem, suits us, and suit our insurers.

But even so,much has to be done to get the house ...

"If you can always sit, don't stand; lie, don’t sit" Anon

Unless you’ve got first class seats, you are not going to lie, so get a good seat.

Flying is a very competitive business. Not just amongst the airlines, but also amongst passengers. Because (particularly on a long haul flight) you’ve got to give yourself the best chance of getting the best seat.

Once this was easy: just ...

"Got no bags and baggage to slow me down ......" Cliff Richard - Travellin' light.

No that's not strictly true. I may be travelling light, but Vanda's has already emptied her three wardrobes, and yesterday the kitchen sink went missing. Think that may also be in the case!

Take a lot or take a little. that has been the debate over the last several weeks.

Vanda's view is she will need clothes for every conceivable occasion, and washing and ironing ...

... lady that yes, he'll try it - really it was quite funny because I think John assumed he would make an appointment and come back some other day. "You can have your acupuncture now" the lady says, now John looks really apprehensive bless him, his face was a complete picture. Well, he'd committed to it now and the lady said that I could watch if I wanted, I'm really intrigued by this sort of thing so didn't hesitate and followed John and the doctor into a cubicle out ...

... said they already knew that (ooh err) but did I mind if they unpacked it and checked it again (I didn't) after 5 minutes every one was happy and they accompanied me back to the departure lounge I sat back down in a corner now struggling to stay awake ( it was past 4 am at this point and I had been up since 6 am the day before ) I decided to have a small nap and was just drifting off when I heard the now familiar voice of the security officer calling my ...

Well it's taken a few months of planning and many a late nights on the PC but we're now almost ready for the off. The main thing left to do is organise our leaving do. We're both very excited about the trip and looking forward to all the new experiences and getting away from work for seven months. Something I haven't done since I was a ...