Hazy.

Well, that's it - the official end to the summer according to both meteorologists and the school year. And what a lovely summer it has been. None of those miserable grey days that characterised the last few years. Even the rainy days usually had spells of sunshine. For me it has been a relaxed summer. Right at the beginning I wrote out a page of 'things to do' and a number got done, mostly the easier ones and some things might have to wait for the next holiday. I was most pleased with my overhaul of the kitchen, sanding the worktops, cleaning out most of the cupboards and changing the cupboard handles. It is a good feeling to have it all so tidy. My summer house mirror should be finished with a couple more sessions and the garden is looking fairly good. I didn't play the piano as much as I intended but there was plenty of time to read out in the sun. Peter and I went for a number of walks in between him going off to various regattas. My birthday was made special with so many messages from friends and family and we finally got to have a curry on the beach. We ended the summer with a visit from Sam, Kate and Alex going for long walks and eating plenty of good food.

The children don't start school until Wednesday but this morning we were all in for a general catch up meeting where we shared our summer adventures. While a few went away on exotic holidays most of us had spent the time enjoying being at home and taking advantage of our local beaches. One lucky member of staff had the magical experience of kayaking in the company of Dave the dolphin  twice at a local beach. I might just be tempted to drive over there later this week though he may well have moved on by then. We were treated to lunch at the Barnstaple Hotel and then I had to rush off for a hydrotherapy session. With the air being a little cooler it felt like getting into a warm bath. There were only 3 of us in the group with 2 physiotherapists. We had a really good workout and afterwards the physiotherapist looked at my foot which has been getting odd pains; a half numb big toe and a seized up Achilles tendon. It's probably due to a big bursa below the ankle but not a lot can be done about it. Afterwards I had to go back into town and have a new tyre put on the car. After accepting the job they found they didn't have a budget tyre of the right size so they put on a better one for the same price.