Christmas is over, 2011 is here

I'm back home again, back to work on Tuesday, so I've a day at home to straighten things out, then a short week at work.

The social side of things started to quieten down a little after Tuesday, as family  members had to leave. On wednesday I did some experimenatal cooking - I thought it might be nice to make a pie from some of the left over ham & turkey - and was a little surprised, on checking my mum's supply of cookbooks to find no recipes for ham and turkey (or even ham and chicken) pie. So I made one up. And also made a pie with a hot-water pastry crust, which I've never made before. it turned out very well, to my pleasure and surprise! I may have to try a real pork-pie soon, to see whether I can do that.

By Friday I was the only one of the 'children' still at my parent's house. On New Year's Eve we went to the sea side around mid-day; first to a little bay where one can sometimes find cowrie shells. We weren't expecting to find many, as the tide was coming up, but to our surprise there were 100s. -  and not just in the rock-pools and the nooks and crannies att the bottom of the cliffs, where they usually are, but right at the water line. Between us, my mum and I found over 200, in less than half an hour. This made me happy. The shells are, of course, completely useless, but they are pretty, and they remind me of my grandmother, who liked them.

We then went for a short walk along Woolacombe beach, which was bleak and breezy, with lots of dog-walkers and one or two hopeful surfers, despite the total lack of surf!

Later, we used up the last of the christmas turkey in a rather tasty curry, and, havung no parties to go to declared Midnight and the new year at 11 p.m. and shared a bottle of (rather nice) prosecco to celebrate the past year and toast the new one. Not the most exciting New Year's Eve ever, but nice, in it's own quiet way

I spent most of New Year's day curled up with cramps and a selections of books-of-my-childhood. I hope that this is not sn Omen for the year ahead. I'm chosing to belive it isn't. (and I suppose that if one has to put up with such things, doing so at a time and place where you don't actually have to do anything, and where other people bring you occasional cups of tea, and make meals, is not a bad plan...)

I decided not to make any New Year resolutions, as it is just depressing when they get broken, and this time of year, and cold weather, are not conducive to new stuff, at least for me. I could perhaps stick to a resolution to snooze more, or something similar, but that doesn't seem very worth while!

I was a little jumpy this morning, preparing to drive home, seeing it start to snow again, but  fortunately none of it settled, and the drive home was uneventful. And waiting for me were two parvcels - one containing my copy of Rigor Amortis (direct from one of the authors!) and the other containing Vol 1 of The Absolute Sandman (which was totally anonymous, but which I suspect is part II of my Christmas present from my brother,  much as the idea of a secret admirer may appeal,  don't think that's a likely explanation....)

I like parcels containing books. They make coming home after Christmas much less dreary! So does finding a box of chocolates that I apparently didn't send to anyone for christmas, and will now tragically be forced to eat, myself :-)