credit card statement

Alongside me is my credit card statement,informing me of the following.
My balance is nil.
My repayment is nil.
My repayment of nil is due to be paid on April 11th.
I must pay my balance of nil in full, or make a minimum payment of nil,a full 7 days before the due date to avoid paying interest.
An envelope has been provided for my use!!

The announcement...

Living virtually on the edge of the Peak District I come across lots of walkers and count many walkers among my friends.I met one of them this morning.I didn't initiate a conversation immediately as I consider myself to be a sensitive soul and knew she would be anxious to make the familiar 'announcement'- the amount of how many miles she'd walked over the weekend and that I don't know what I'm missing.In fact I do know what I'm missing,having trudged most of the Lakeland and Snowdonia fells in years gone by.I didn't tell her this (she didn't give me a chance)and stood,resigned to my fate, while she described every blade of grass and cowpat she'd encountered with her walking group.She didn't notice my eyes glazing over as she then proceeded to tell me for the umpteenth time that it would do me good to join -it would 'get me out of the house'!!I hesitate to tar all walkers wih the same brush but they all do need to announce the amount of miles they've walked and seem to wait for a reaction.Am I supposed to offer congratulations? I usually say 'good for you' or 'well done' Why do I say that? I've been just as virtuous doing the washing or preparing a talk! However, I do say it and I did so this morning,albeit with glazed over eyes.Ah well, that's my moan over for the day.Time to bring the washing in.

second childhood

The older I get the more childlike I seem to become,delighting in the simplest things.I still adore Rupert annuals and Beatrix Potter.I still keep a special place in my heart for Father Christmas!!I love childrens' animated films and have cuddly toys all over the house.If a dog wags it's tail on seeing me I'm beside myself with delight.Birdsong can take my breath away...I'm aproaching 67 and content with my lot so for that I'm very thankful.Second childhood? It will do for me...

bill and betty badger

I saw a dead badger by the roadside yesterday; a deeply sad moment for me as it reminded me of 'my' badgers where I lived in Fleet,NE Hants.Bill and Betty used to come every evening for the feast I'd put out for them.They came into the house,even going upstairs to my bedroom!They loved peanut butter soldiers and were happy to be hand fed with them.They also tucked into leftovers such as pizza,chips,roast potatoes and dogfood from Glen's bowl - he just sat and watched,knowing he would get some more later.Badgers don't smell at all which surprised me.They use a latrine near their sett and never do anything elsewhere so there were never any 'deposits'left in the house.While they were feeding,foxes could be seen waiting for them to depart so they could have theirs.The foxes were very nervous of the badgers and wouldn't come near while the badgers were there.Foxes are magnificent creatures with beautiful faces but much more timid than the badgers so I didn't get as near to them.They all brought out their cubs to play in the grass but not at the same time of course. It was such a privilege to watch them at play and to know they felt safe with me.Happy memories indeed.

no explanation....

We were travelling back to Derbyshire after being home to Southport and had reached the Chatsworth area.We slowed down to negotiate a bend when a car backed out of a drive in front of us.We stopped about ten feet from it,relieved that we hadn't been speeding.Immediately,we both saw that there was no-one driving it.We were close enough to have a clear view of the interior and there was no-one in the driver's or the passenger's seat.We looked at each other in surprise and decided that we'd pull in and then warn the owner that his car had 'escaped',perhaps due to a faulty handbrake.Suddenly,the car began to move forward,back into the driveway,on it's own.As we passed the house we drove slowly past,expecting someone to get out of the vehicle.No-one did,and the car remained where it was,still driverless.We've been trying to think of an explanation without success.....

when I met prince Charles...

I didn't really want to meet Prince Charles,having never been an admirer of his (I don't respect people who kill animals for pleasure and teach their children to do the same)However,he was opening the new hospital where I was a ward sister and our ward was designated as one he would visit.On the morning of his visit one of our patients died and there wasn't time to remove his body from the ward.The equerry informed us that on no account could Prince Charles visit a ward where a dead body lay behind curtains!The patients were very disappointed (I wasn't)After a while, we were told that Prince Charles was insistent that he would come as promised and he duly arrived.He wanted to know all about the gentleman who'd died and took individual interest in every patient during his visit as if he had all the time in the world.He actually had another eight venues booked for that day.I still disapprove of his hunting activities but have to give credit where it's due. I was very impressed with him that day and I'm glad I met him.

sunshine!!

It's a beautifulday!! At last,some very warm sunshine;bringing with it the real hope of Spring round the corner.The birds are starting to seek mates and there is an air of excitement in our garden!Paintpot,our regular blackbird who has a streak of white down his left side (resembling a flash of paint)has started to pay attention to his mate and is filling himself up with currants as if his life depends on it - building himself up for the paternal responsibilities ahead!The dawn chorus is a delight to hear and, as if responding to the call,the Spring flowers are making their way out of the ground to remind us that they were there all the time;just resting.All this reminds me Who is in charge...

negativity

There seems to be an innate leaning towards negativity in this nation of ours which is largely due to the media.However,the media couldn't have this influence on us if we were not so ready to see the negative side of everything.It gets me down.When I present a positive view about something my listener will often appear disappointed that I've put forward a positive point of view!I'd love a discussion on this but no-one knows I'm blogging yet and I'm a 'blogging virgin' so I might be talking to myself for some time!I'll try not to argue with myself!!