We're back!

Apologies for the lack of posts this week. We arrived back on Wednesday night and I have been running around ever since. The flat needs a good tidy but I thought I'd post first to let you know we hadn't dropped off the planet...though that was a close run thing on Monday as we drove through the blizzards of Washington State. More on the trip at a later date when we've got the photos together. Suffice to say, we had an amazing time. I felt that I learnt a tremendous amount though most of my best work was done as I chatted with friends and spent time writing on my own. It gave me some real space to reassess my academic intentions. I was so sad to leave. We love America and really enjoyed the West Coast vibe. Leaving our new friends behind was really hard.

And so back to Lincoln...Yesterday I reached the grand old age of 30. Crikey! Thanks for all the cards etc! D kindly pointed out that I was nearly 40! I spent my birthday muddling through my third year class (not the finest point of my teaching career!) though D prepared a lovely dinner and then we watched Ironman 2 together. This weekend is my proper birthday celebration as the family descend. Hopefully the snow will hold off long enough for them to make the trip.

I'm off to tidy our bedroom which is currently in a state of disarray! Promise to post more about the trip when D has uploaded and edited the photos. And then I'll be able to tell you about our narrow escape on Monday. It is an epic tale of snow, zero visibility and a narrow mountain path. We'll even have a picture of us outside Mars Hill for those of you who are interested in such things.

Until a later date then

CSW

Birthdays all round

Well, what a weekend we had! At 2am we were still sitting in Mum and Dad's garden after a fab bbq. The whole fam came along and it was great to see everyone, including the Warden clan. We spent a sunny Sunday on the boat.

We returned back to Lincoln with D's birthday present from his Mum and Dad - a Playstation 3. I know nothing about this sort of thing but he asked for one because it is also a Blu Ray player (eh? what? not a clue). Suffice to say that this system makes the picture better. D had bought me Sherlock Holmes so that was the first film we watched on our new Blu Ray player. It was just as good as it had been at the cinema. What a great film! Funny, thoughtful, witty sleuthing in a magnificently reconstructed Victorian London. And, of course, Robert Downey Jnr in the lead role.

And today it is D's birthday. We are going for tea at a place called Damon's. It has been recommended and the birthday boy eats for free. Bargain! They even give him a cake. I'm hoping they'll make him stand up while they sing 'Happy Birthday'. That would be hilarious!

D and I have concluded that Lincoln has been hot for the past month. Man, you get some serious weather down here. We are not used to it at all. It is just baking! All our windows are open and D was lying on the balcony at 11pm the other night. Phew!

Anyways, I am going to carry on with Virginia Woolf's Between the Acts and get ready to go out. Enjoy the evening.

CSW