Girls what a week  you have had whilst I have been away from blogging; BPG has been to Paris without too many mishaps which is reassuring as she is off to Burma soon, Ellie has been campaigning to stop bullying, Grace has been extolling the virtues of BIG knickers though on this point I have to say that recently my daughters saw a pair of my knickers and thought they were huge whilst I thought they were really quite skimpy!! Then Grace climbed a hill and found herself panting, as I do every Tuesday morning when I go Nordic walking with my friends which I can highly recommend, Grace, for improving lung capacity and giving the old bingo wings a run for their money. Find a good instructor, preferably a friend as I have done, and strap on the specialist poles and off you go – apart from the obvious health benefits nothing cures the blues quicker than walking up a hill on a crisp, sunny Autumn day in our gorgeous English countryside. However if you want to double the results then wear some seriously big knickers called Zaggora’s which a fellow Nordic walker friend of mine recommends, and I understand that the fat simply pours off her. I have to say that that is one step too far, not only on the ‘big knicker’ front but also my body temperature soars whilst Nordic walking so a pair of these figure hugging pants would probably make me combust however my friend swears by them and she is looking very svelte! (For anyone in the Henley-on-Thames area try one of my friend’s classes – Now Nordic).

My Other Half has been in China for the last week and what with the time difference, he is 6 hours ahead of us, and the really dodgy internet connection, I have hardly spoken to him which has been strange as we normally speak about 4 times a day. Weren’t the Chinese meant to give us internet connection on our London Tubes as a gift for the Olympics? I can understand why that didn’t happen as all week OH has struggled with internet connection of any sort let alone underground.

Meanwhile he has also put himself on a self-enforced diet as his travelling companion, and business partner, warned him of some of the delicacies that have been served to him in the past in China; one tale that he related, just before they embarked on this trip, was during a banquet he was served some little round things floating in a sauce and after he had chewed one for some considerable time but not made any headway he asked what exactly he was eating and was told……wait for it….a pig’s arsehole!!!  My OH felt that this tale was quite enough to turn him vegetarian and being Jewish was a double reason as this would probably get him struck down or off (not sure what happens here – maybe a bolt of lightening from heaven). So I am expecting a very slimmed down OH on his return and if he has partaken of the forbidden meat then a good scrub and mouthwash before he comes near me. Just a side note on this subject – who came up with the idea to cut out a pig’s arsehole and marinade it and then fry it with a little soy sauce just to see whether it was a tasty dish??? I shall be cooking some of Grace’s delicious chicken soup to welcome the OH home as I know he will then wish he had never left!

I have a secret to confess, I am addicted to all the CW Style items that Ellie and Grace have been putting up on our site and have succumbed to a pair of those Hunter sneaker high tops and as I sit here, with the rain bucketing down outside, I feel I can justify the purchase – I will let you know how I get on though to be honest I think flippers would be more practical. Even my dogs refused to go out last night for their final wee!

I am now going to curl up on the sofa, too much rain to go outside, and read a book written by BPG’s grandson who has Aspergers which I felt was very topical as this week Gary McKinnon’s mother won her battle to stop her son being extradited to the USA for computer hacking and Gary also has Asperger’s syndrome. I recently went to our local cinema with my friend (Nordic teacher – yes we are still talking even though she puts me through the wringer every Tuesday) to watch a live broadcast from the National Theatre of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and was completely blown away not only by the brilliant and innovative production by the NT but also I learnt so much about children and adults who have this condition, how clever and how very special they are. BPG’s grandson wrote this book, Jake and the Pre-Historic Island,  and made a lot of money for the Asperger’s Syndrome Foundation which I think is more than admirable as it just shows what one can do when one sets one’s mind to it, Joseph was 9 years old when he wrote this book and I know a little boy who has a birthday soon who I will be buying this for, plus a little nephew who is dinosaur crazy!! Click on the link to find out all about this book and how to buy it.

As a little aside perhaps Gary McKinnon can now focus his very brilliant skills on raising money and helping people with Aspergers to adjust and play a fulfilling role in our world today and not hack into any more computers. Just a thought!!