Morning. (or afternoon to be more accurate) Sunday 27 Apr 13:05



That’s what happens when you spend the morning in bed listening to the Archers omnibus & Desert Island Discs. Now pleasantly comfortable, ensconced in front of the pooter, in a quiet house with the soundtrack of Lord of the Rings on the CD, courtesy of the Big Guy. Speaking of whom, go to sleep – you are night duty for goodness sake.



Yesterday morning I got a call from Lindsay to say there was mail for me with IEPUK stamped on it (International Exchange Programme) he knows by know that any mail from them is V.IMPORTANT & to ring me & open it “NOW, NOW, NOW & READ IT TO ME” rather than forward it to me.



It was my application for my Visa & always assuming it comes back with no hitches they have marked down a working date of 12th May for me travel. For some reason it hit me really hard. I went immediately to Bookham to collect it then I sat in Henry trying to read the questions over & over. But it was impossible to make sense of it. You know when you have waited for some news for a long time & when it finally comes you can’t get your optic nerve to slow down long enough to focus & read ? That’s how it was yesterday.



Up until yesterday it seemed like I couldn’t quite digest the fact that I was going. It seemed like tempting fate to think about it for any length of time. However, holding the visa application made it seem suddenly real. It showed my date of return for the UK as 11th May 2004 & I thought …”That seems a long way off”



So this afternoon after going to buy more plastic boxes (bliss) & going to the garden centre (to surprise Di by doing some window boxes for the front of the house, don’t forget to say “ooh” when you arrive for the bash) I will apply myself to the form to get it off by courier tomorrow.



The paperwork I have to do now is



1. Visa application.

2. Insurance form to cover my stay (mention of cover for hi-jack worries me not a jot)

3. Open an NZ bank account (if I can do it from here)

4. Import certificate for BM.

5. Decide what to do with Henry ? Either MOT him now with extra expense which I could do without & carry on the insurance so that he remains roadworthy or take him off the road for the year & risk him being manky when I return. If anyone knows of a garage space going unused for a year, let me know ?

6. Book a flight. Prices are encouragingly low at the mo, £529 to Christchurch as opposed to some £800 which Queenie paid, but then he travelled during the Americas Cup.

7. Change my driving license to an International one. This is easier than it sounds. I am told by IEPUK that you go to any AA shop & pay about £4 to get it done.

8. Write to everyone in England to tell them where I am going.

9. Decide upon a final date for the bbq. Please get your replies back to me pronto if you haven’t already. If you have, thank you.



Does this remind you of all the paperwork & running around you had to do during our week in Cyprus, Trudes ?



Had a very relaxing day yesterday, more golf. This time with Stuart at Pine Ridge in Frimley. He had managed to negotiate 9 holes free after last Friday when we played an incredibly slow 9 holes on a course which was engulfed in flames & smoke. I was really looking forward to it after the Society day & sure enough scored par on the 1st hole of the course. Stuart looked at me in disgust & said he wouldn’t have lent me the money when my purse got stolen had he known I was going to spend it on golf lessons.



Good news on the purse theft front, the Nationwide have come up trumps & credited my account with all the stolen money even before they have commenced their investigation. It would be a real result if the Halifax did likewise.



Back to golf & I thought that for only the 2nd time ever I was to come close to beating Stuart. However, he unleashed a previously unrealised talent for being able to drive the ball a comfortable 230yds of just about every tee. More distressingly for me, they were going STRAIGHT off the tee.

I can usually rely on the fact that Stuart spends a large proportion impersonating David Bellamy by wummaging awound in the undergrowth hunting for his drives. Not so yesterday, he ended up beating me by a clear 20 points. Still, I played well, scoring 2 pars, which I have never done in 1 game before & finishing 1 over my score on the Society day.



Then back to Leith Hill for a huge dinner, a hug with the mogs & Barley, a roaring fire & about 10 minutes worth of Lord of the Rings on video before I fell asleep. I think I actually saw more of the film than 10 minutes but it was certainly shorter & missing the odd fight scene from what I can recollect when I saw it at the cinema.



It was very strange to look at the scenery & realise I would be seeing it first hand in a few weeks. I can vividly remember the impact the film & it’s scenery had on me when I saw it at Christmas 2002. I said then that I would love to see New Zealand, purely on the strength of the film. Guess what ? I only went an’ bleedin’ did it !



Funny incident during the drive home last night. Came upon what looked like an accident in Wootton (pretty village nr Dorking) Was flagged down by a distressed looking man in the road standing next to another man who was sprawling in the road & had apparently been knocked off his pedal-cycle. I hesitated about stopping, as you do when you are nasty & cynical & have worked for the police. When I did stop, it was a safe distance away & I wound down my window & asked if everything was ok ? The standing bloke was completely incoherent & just smiled in a slightly soft-focus way. The chap who was on the road entangled in his bike had a very important question for me. “God bless you for stoppin’ darlin’. Could you tell us where the nearest pub is ?” Classic.



Made me giggle all the way home.



Right, off to the promised land now aka B & Q.



Have a good Sunday.



Carol x