A Long Day.

7.30 in the morning was cold but bright with a pretty sunrise to enjoy as I made my weary way into school.Having a scene like this filling your windscreen is so much nicer than the monotonous grey cloud of the last week. School was quieter without the Christmas Play to be fitted into the morning, a lull before the rush of the final week when as well as all the special activities you suddenly find that 1 or 2 children haven't made their card/pot/calendar/wrapping paper and time has to be found to get that done. The children will gradually get more and more excited as the week goes on and by Friday we will all be ready to drop. Chris and I had a hilarious time teaching the whole school to sing 'Go tell it on the mountain'. We didn't have a cd so had to put up with me plinking away on the piano. The music seemed pitched really high which was hard for me as I'm normally an alto and with my cold my voice is even lower. In the end we focused on learning the words and abandoned the piano and sang at a much lower pitch. If they have the words and the tune I'm sure a couple of practices with Janet will get the pitch back up. We were supposed to teach another song but we couldn't find it in the book so decided it was completely beyond us.

Sunset on the way home was even better than the sunrise. I stopped at a couple of places to try and capture the colours.



Looking down towards Barnstaple, across Appledore and out towards Hartland.

I had managed to catch the sunset because I was going home early to get ready for our staff meal out at the Fortescue Hotel in Barnstaple. We chose that venue this year because it was a (carvery) dinner dance which gave us the opportunity to spend the whole evening socialising. Once we'd had our meal, starter a bit basic - soup, prawn cocktail or mushroom vol-au-vent! , main - a carvery with a very good selection of vegetable dishes, dessert again standard hotel fare - pavlova, profiteroles or fruit salad, we then spent the rest of the evening drinking and/or dancing and generally being very silly. The music selection was a bit naff but we all managed to get up and have a laugh on the dance floor, there is nothing like a group of women letting their hair down. We finally left at 12.45 with a contingent going on to one of the town's clubs. My knee was already stinging away so I decided that was enough dancing for me. I don't drink at all and I still managed to walk past my car parked in the High Street and had a moment of thinking it might have been nicked before I retraced my steps and found it hiding between 2 other cars. I didn't have that problem when I drove a Landrover.
And finally the shoes! Everyone at work was adamant that I should not turn up in trainers,( my original plan) so as I had to go to the bank at lunchtime I had a quick look around at shoes. I've got rather wide feet and am past the stage of squeezing my feet into something that isn't comfortable. I managed to find these sandals in Evans, original price £28, reduced several times to £7 and then today there was another 20% off. Final price £5.60! I did try on nearly all the styles of boot they had in the shop but didn't find anything suitable. Considering I live in flat crocs , trainers or flip flops and it has probably been about 25 years since I wore anything this high I am amazed that I managed to walk in these let alone get out on the dance floor. But I did and without a single blister or rub mark.