Why is it always the radiator...

Since I passed my test in March 1994 I have owned 7 cars, both here in the UK and in Pakistan and out of those 7 fine automobiles all but the first one, has had some sort of problem with the cooling system!! The car I am driving at he moment, kindly provided by Bill and Gwen, has had a trip to see Paul, my mechanic, this week. So it came as no surprise at all when I was told ther ewas a problem with the cooling system. Thankfully, this was only a minor problem with a hose, as opposed to the heater matrix which needed replacing in car number 6 last summer!

I have had a very productive few days. Almost all the things that need doing for SUbmerge have been done, in fact, all that remains is to plan the sessions that I am leading, which I shall do in the next few days.

I had a lovely time in Belfast and was very impressed at the speed in which I was able to get to and from Belfast. On the way there my alarm went off at 5.30am and by 9.30am I was sat on the sofa in their sitting room. The way back was even quicker this time it was sofa to sofa in 3 and half hours!!

We did have a little fun on the Sunday evening. David had gone off to church and about 6pm it started to rain. Katey pointed out the torrent of water pouring down the road in front of the house and we went to the kitchen window to look at the back garden and there was a fair amount of water falling off the garden on to the path. A few minutes later we realised that water was trickling in under the back door. Katey donned her wellies to go and unblock some drains and I went toput on some shorts so that I could start mopping up the water.

When I returned downstairs I was greeted by water seeping in under the front door onto the hall carpet. I spent the next 30 minutes valiantly trying to stop the water from entering the sitting room. I am pleased to report that I was successful and only the hall carpet needed to lifted so that it could dry.

I have just had some texts from Karachi to say that the rains have started and all teh streets are running like rivers!! Andrew tells me that the visibility is about 20 feet and all the drains are blocked!

Tonight is Quiz Night at Stalybridge Congregational Church (my mum's church) and I am in charge, the things we do for our mothers...

It's like I've never been away...

I have been back in the UK for 12 days and have not spent more than 3 days in any one bed!! It's been great being back and catching up with all my friends.

The flight from Abu Dhabi to Manchester was fantastic. After a delicious lunch I was able to put my chair in its flat position and have a well earn rest. After my nap I was able to order afternoon tea and enjoy that whilst watching my selection on the video screen.

On arrival at Manchester I was met by a driver with a nice car(no idea what it was, but was very comfortable with lots of gadgets) and he delivered me safely to the Music Box.

Since then I have been flying around the country seeing various friends and enjoying catching up. I have also been able to move my 34 boxes from Dave and Jayne's loft to Meg's garage! The boxes have been reduced in number considerably, mainly by dumping my video collection. I was a hard decision to make, but when I thought about, I don't have a video player and am unlikely ever to own one again. The number of boxes did come as a bit of a surprise as I had forgotten how many had been put up in the loft. It actually took me two trips to Darlington to effect transfer of the total number of boxes.

My time in Darlington was spent planning the programme for SUbmerge with Meg and we are now confident we have aworking document that will be altered and ammended as necessary throughout the week of the holiday.

I had a lovely weekend in Finningley with Neil and Catherine and the family. They all seem very settled and happy in their new parish which was great to see. Neil is throughly enjoying his role as chaplain to Robin Hood Airport which included 'playing' on the fire trucks on Monday helping to put out the practice fires.

Tomorrow is more planning for SUbmerge tomorrow with Andrew and then dinner out with Jonathan to celebrate his new job. Then Saturday morning I am flying off to Belfast for a few days to see David and Katey and whilst there one of the things we will do is go through the menu for SUbmerge. I will also be able to celebrate the glorious 12th once more in the Province remebering the victory of William of Orange at the Battle of the Boyne.

It is really weird at the moment, as the last 10 months feel like a dream. I know that I have been in Karachi but it really doesn't seem real! Also I slipped back into life here without any problem at all, it really is like I have never been away...