YIPPIE - Weve done it at last

At last, its over. We have seen some really crappy houses, I dont know how these estate agents can even have the balls to put some of them on the market, and try for full asking price. We have seen one really run down place that needed about 20K's of work doing on it, one that had a garage with an asbestos roof that would have cost a fortune to remove, and then we finally saw a small property this morning that is very much like our current home, but with potential to extend. The asking price was only 160K so well within our budget, we bid 155K, and had to go to 156K to secure the property. At last the frustration and disappointment is over. now we can start planning our move and the new extension over the garage and around the back and front of the house. sounds a massive job, but it wont be really. Ive done this sort of extension work before and the hardest part is getting the planning permission. now at least I can relax and start packing for a move end of June time.

Damn and Blast

The stupid people, they only wanted to push us up to the full asking price for a total wreck, so we told them to go swivel. We are now looking at a nice house needing no work, on the edge of town overlooking a nature reserve, for the same price. so stuff them.

A Very Expensive Week

The past few days have proved to be very expensive ones. Firstly, on Thursday evening, I had trouble driving my car, then Friday morning, I couldn't get it into gear, so it was stuck on my driveway. A call to a mechanic and a quick inspection says the clutch has gone. Therefore as I can be called on by 'The Company' to be anywhere in the country at anytime, I had to hire a car for a week as the mechanic cant fix it until later this week. Then we booked two holidays for later this year, firstly Linda and I will be going to the Costa Del Sol. I've always had a bad feeling about Spain, its the thug'ish British thing, as that's were they all seem to go on holiday, cheap booze and loose women. Perhaps I'm a bit out of touch now, but as we will be going out of school holiday times, we shall just have to see. The second holiday is a family holiday to the up and coming trendy Bulgaria. We are off to Sunny Beach, and it better be.
Then the Biggy' I sold my little house on Saturday morning to a nice couple, first time buyers, and they had me over a barrel really, so I had to drop my price by 3K. Anyway,we saw a very nicely presented 4 bed detached in the posh part of town, and put an offer of 5k below the asking price, only to be messed around and the guy then withdrew his property from the market. Never mind, we then saw a really dilapidated 4 bed detached this morning and put an offer in 20K below the asking price, as we will need to make some significant changes to the place. This offer was rejected as we expected, but we then found out that the sellers minimum price was our absolute maximum for this property, so we should know in the morning if we have a run down old wreck of a house to move into, only to spend a few quid on doing it up into a really nice place. I try and look past the decor and fittings, and concentrate more on room size and possible room layouts. This place has really good room sizes, a fair sized garden and a double garage. So watch this space for an update.

Jerry Springer The Opera - Whats The fuss About

Last night we went to Milton Keynes Theatre to see the Jerry Springer Opera. Well we heard on the local television news, that there would be many protestors there trying to prevent people from seeing the show. Now, I am all for free speech and freedom of expression, but I don't want to be pestered when going to the theatre. Anyway, we arrived a bit early expecting hassle, only to find loads of old biddies outside the main entrance area, which is about 15 meters from the main doors, and people could freely gain access to the theatre, even by the side doors where there were no lobbyists. We went inside unchallenged and went up to the 1st floor balcony and watched them sing songs and hand out leaflets, so really all in all a bit of an anti-climax (oh er misses).
Anyway, by the time the show started there were about 100 old biddies out side, so we went and watched the show. Now, I'm by no means an atheist or a Christian, but I did have a Christian upbringing and was confirmed into the Christian faith many moons ago, so I was extremely intrigued to find out what all the fuss was about. Being a big fan of Jerry Springer back in the 80's when I watched him on Sky TV, I knew he would have gays, lesbians, transsexuals and many other types of people on his show, and hoped the stage performance would have a diverse range of characters as well.
Well, we sat down to a quiet start, and It is mostly all sung, so Opera it is (well sort of), at first I found it very hard to distinguish what was being sung, but picked up on key words, and managed to put them together to make half a sentence. I later fell into the thought train of the writer and could understand what was being said or sung. This show had me laughing from the start, all the way to the end. It was hilarious. I don't know if everybody would like it, but it is FULL of VERY strong language, and features gays, lesbians, hookers and transsexuals, the KKK even made an appearance (how funny where they! Abso-bloody-lutely hilarious).
I went to this to view it as a form of entertainment. I may not be perfect (heavens above, did I say that out loud), and can accept people laughing at me and my foibles, I can accept peoples views, but I don't necessarily agree with them, free speech and all that, and yes there is references to God and stuff, but if you take this as entertainment and not as a form of criticism or the cast slating off religion it is a very funny show.
This is after all a stage SHOW, so if you can live with very strong language for 2 hours, and I mean STRONG, then you must go and see it. It's a great laugh. I haven't giggled so much continuously in a long while.

Tour of Israel, and Tour Guides in General

Last night Linda asked me if I remembered the tour guide we had in Israel, she thought his name was Rudi, but I knew it was Udi, as I have several work colleagues and very good friends over there, one or two are called Udi.
She wanted his website for a friend at work who wants to go to Israel for a religious tour. That had me start thinking about tour guides. Since my divorce in 1999, I have taken three foreign holidays a year, and therefore have had the pleasures (sometimes dubious) of many a tour guide. Most are ok, some don't really give a shit, and to date, nobody has come close to the knowledge, friendliness and enthusiasm of Udi. His motto is 'To look is one thing, to see another. But to understand... Is an entirely different matter'
This is such a true statement, so often we only look at the surface and never see beyond that.

During this tour I was dressed in a totally girly outfit, tight shorts, and girly summer top with girls trainers, we had to cover up a little at some points as it was so hot at the top of Masada, so I covered up with an Indian style feminine top. I felt so at ease in our group.

Our itinerary for this tour was:
Pickup at the Egypt / Israeli border crossing which for me was a bit of a challenge, as I visit Israel pretty regularly, I know the drill, but this was one of the worst times I have had, also as I didn't look much like my passport picture, and wearing girly clothes...... They ask you have you been to Israel before. I said 'yes', they said 'not this passport', I said, 'I don't think so', they said, 'how about February', I said, 'Um, that's about right', but I had been asked not to get my passport stamped by my boss as it was a new passport and I was expecting to go on a trip to Saudi Arabia. That immediately raised alarm bells and both Linda and I were sent a different route to everybody else through the controls. We had been first in the queue, but where last to get to our tour bus. I wont detail what we had to endure, but if your a regular to Israel, you may have some good idea's.

Anyway, the rest of the tour was fine, except we had similar problems getting out of Israel back into Egypt. The rest of the tour consisted of:
1. Travel north along the Rift Valley till the Dead Sea, lowest point on the face of earth.
2. Lunch in a Kibbutz
2. Ascend Masada - Israel's foremost Archaeological Park, via cablecar.
3. A thorough visit gives insight to the rituals, politics and culture of the people who inhabited this desert fortress.
4. Descend to the shores of the Dead Sea for an afternoon of leisure.
5. Indulge yourselves in the mineral-rich black mud of the Dead Sea, float in its therapeutic waters or simply relax at the spa.
6. Return to Eilat at the end of the day


He takes pictures of everybody on his tours, and does not overdo the religious aspect, but does use the holy book as a point of reference for parts of the visits to help explain what was occurring at these places at particular points in time.

So if you want to see some of his recent tours, go to Udi's website and have a look around. I have no idea if his prices are high or competitive, but if you want the best, you must use Udi. To date, nobody has come close to him as a tour guide.

Lowering UK Fuel Prices

If your fed up with paying extortionate prices for your UK fuel, then you can use and register with either or both of the links below. Petrolprices.com will search for the cheapest fuel prices in your location, and pipeline.org is like a company car fuel card (without the tax implications), where they are negotiating a discounted price for fuel in the UK with a major seller. Once of the ground I hope to be able to cut my car fuel bill by a couple of hundred pounds a year, but then I do travel between 25,000 and 30,000 miles a year, so every penny helps.

TransAmerica

Oh Yeah !

I've just watched a trailer for a new film TransAmerica. This looks like it could a roller coaster emotion ride. Its about a guy who becomes a woman, and meets his/her son and goes on a road-trip with him. Obviously, the son finds out. I cant tell anymore about it, but I think its got to be a 'must see' film when it comes out to the far flung reaches of the UK.

film preview

Jury Service - Coroners Court Update 2

Boy am I glad that's over. Hearing the evidence can have an affect on you as at times it could be quit graphic. We had an exhibit of pictures this morning, fortunately all were of the location so easy to deal with. We all then went off to deliberate the outcome, and that was a very interesting discussion which I cannot reveal to anybody. However, it was good to see people from different walks of life and with different life experiences offer their viewpoints, but at no time was anybody pushy or driving us towards a specific verdict. It was all very civilized.
Anyway. That's an experience I have had now, and to be honest. I would do it again. Coroners court is very different from the Crown court, but still as important that the evidence must viewed and analyzed with the same degree of thoroughness to obtain the verdict. I have yet to be a juror on the Crown court, and to be honest, that does hold a degree of trepidation for me, as I would hate to send an innocent person to jail.

You may have heard that it is expected that 1 in 4 people around you are transvestite / crossdresser. Well in our group, I was obviously 1 crossdresser, and looking at the others, I suspect there may have been 2 more. That made our group exceed the average numbers.

That said. I will speak no more of this civil duty, and this chapter in my life is over until the next time.

Jury Service - Coroners Court Update

Oh boy, oh boy. Day 1, and I realize I've chosen the wrong job. We arrived at court in the afternoon, and we're on our way home just after 4pm. Now that's the timescale I like to work too. Anyway, we had to swear an oath, then we heard some witness statements. As I said previously, I cannot comment on this case, but will only detail my feelings. As this is a coroners court, then obviously somebody has died! that's a given right? So we hear statements from family members, friends, and emergency workers. This must be so hard for them having to re-live the experience again. I felt very sad for all concerned and just wanted to go and give them a big hug, but we couldn't. We have some legal beagles asking questions, and we can even ask questions, but what can you say really ! The case has some interesting details and I think we may be hearing from 'expert' witnesses tomorrow. The only way I am dealing with this is to try and forget it whilst I'm not in the courts. Well that's not too difficult since my memory is shot to pieces, its been overloaded with techno garbage for my job, so I have over 25 years of techno rubbish ingrained, that occasionally something bubbles to the surface that is of no consequence anymore, and leaves me wandering where the hell it came from. Anyway, must dash, its dinner time.

Jury Service - Coroners Court !

Hi folks. I have been especially chosen by her Royal Madgeness to sit on a jury at the coroners court. I have to sign a form to declare that I am a suitable candidate, well, I do watch ALL the CSI episodes going, I loved Rumpole of the Bailey, Crown Court, Monk, Quincy and others, so I think that makes me qualified.

I'm off to court and have no idea what to expect, I have been to crown court twice before, once as a member of the public in the viewing gallery, that was with my mum back in the 1970's, now that was an experience, and the second time, I was in crown court as the plaintiff, and won my case. Now that's a really scary experience.

I am obviously not allowed to discuss the case as both myself and the person I tell would be in contempt of court. So don't expect any details here. I will tell you of my experience though.

The First Picture of Baby Callum

Here is the first picture of baby callum taken minutes after he was born on Monday, on my sons mobile phone. Such good quality.

The Good News And The Bad News !.

Here's the good news - I'm a granddad.

Now here's the bad news - I'm a GRANDDAD.

Well that's it folks, according to my children, I am officially OLD. My son has today 13th March 2006 produced what we believe to be his first child, its a BOY weighing in at nn 8 lbs 4 oz, and is called Callum, and was born at 16:40.

Now I have to find a way of not making this sound as if I'm so old (I'm only 46 for gods sake!), so how about Grandpa, grandpops or has anybody any other cool sounding names that I could adopt for this purpose.

this is the 'old codger' signing off ! na no na no

And as an aside, I just found the Mork and Mindy website where you can even get a yourname@ork.net email address.

Republished as the comments option has dissapeared

Amsterdam - What A Place.

Well folks, we had a fantastic time in Amsterdam. We arrived mid afternoon at Schipol airport, caught the train into Central Station Amsterdam, then managed to find our hotel, just a 5 minute walk from the railway station. This was a tricky walk for anybody who knows the area, you have to dodge the bicycles, cars, buses and trams. What a nightmare. Anyway, we arrived safe and sound, and checked in at the hotel. I had been flustered all morning as my nail polish was ruined almost from the time I put it on, so wasn't best pleased.
We went for a walk later, and the weather was shall we say, winter with a touch of summer. Basically it was freezing cold, but sunny. Sunday, we had snow and slush everywhere. We decided to walk everywhere as it only takes about 20 minutes to go to anywhere. We walked up to Dam square, did lots of window shopping, stopped in the occasional cafe for a hot chocolate and visited the sex museum, then returned to our hotel for a mid afternoon nap. My feet were killing me, I only had my 2inch heels with me, and walking on cobbles all morning was killing me. Vanity, maybe one day I will learn that the look isn't everything. We had tapas in the evening, and then back to the bar for a bear, here I had a woman falling at my feet, I thought 'hello, that's a bit forward', but then I realized she had blacked out, so demanded a medic for her. We managed to bring her round after a few minutes, but it was a little scary. I forgot all my basic first aide, as I hadn't used it for years.
Monday, we strolled around the red light district, and took a river boat trip around the canals, also went to Anne Frank's house and the Jewish Museum.
Most of the houses in the area were built in the 16, 17 and 1800's, yet they appear to be in really good condition.
Monday evening, we decided to indulge in a space cake, and got off our heads for few hours. We both had a very strange but powerful urge almost at the same time, and it just had to be accommodated, which lead to an hours most exhilarating fun.
I spent the whole four days in female attire, and loved it, including make-up. I never took a skirt as it was so damn cold, but my trousers, shoes, tops and coat are all from girly shops. I got many a quizzical look, but just carried on with whatever I was doing.

I will post some pictures when I have time, but am a little busy at the moment catching up with work stuff.
Speak again soon people.
Update - Pictures added to Webshots, so take a look a the bottom of this blog page for all my photos on Webshots.

Technical Help Required

Well, being a bit of a technophobe, even though I work in IT, I have no idea how to accomplish the task I have set myself. Sometime in the future, I would like to make my blog, use RSS. I have myself an RSS reader, and have subscribed to various sites, and this works great. I would like to open this feature up to my readership, such that you can subscribe to my RSS feeds, but have no idea whats required, or how to do it. I have reviewed a couple of sites around this topic, and boy I just get so confused.
Anybody have any ideas or point me at some links that explain this in plain simple noddy English !

A confused Essex Girl !

A Lots Happened Recently

Well folks, its been a while since I posted, but I have been extremely busy with work, preparing for visitors from abroad and preparing to run a seminar for 50 of our customers, so you can guess its been a bit hectic. We ran the seminar last Thursday, and had a full house. I arrived home at 10:30pm Thursday evening, and slept like a log, then back to work Friday, and when I returned home again, I was asleep all evening after dinner.
I have also subscribed to a search engine to find the cheapest fuel in my location. This is really good and has already saved many pounds as I do approx 35,000 miles a year, the savings will soon stack up. If you want the cheapest fuel, then go to http://www.petrolprices.com/ or locate the logo at the bottom of my blog page.
Also our house has been on the market now for three weeks, and we have had one viewing and one that failed to turn up. I think we wont be using this agent again, and will renew our contract with somebody else.
This coming weekend we are off to Amsterdam for a long weekend. Here 'she who must be obeyed' will be experiencing one of Hollands notorious food stuffs, and we will both be very 'happy' for the evening. I havent had much of a chance to dress up properly recently, but will be spending the whole of our long weekend away as Michelle. I cant wait til Friday evening to do my nails etc... and pack our case. I will report back when we return, and may even post a few pictures for you all.

Laser Treatment Update

Just a short update on my laser treatment. I have been going now for some months as you may recall. The treatment has 6 week breaks unless you catch the sun, then you have to wait a bit longer, so during the summer I had to extend the period between treatments. Anyway, its going really well. I have almost completed my under arm treatment. Underarm hair is almost totally gone, so far I have only found 1 very fine hair. The girls at the clinic tell me I should expect some fine hair, and that I can have 'maintenance' treatments whenever needed, but it would be easier to tweeze them out. I started having my nipples done as well since they were good and thick hair, and they have run-a-way and hidden as well so I am almost hair free on the chest as well. Luckily I wasnt particularly hairy in the first place.
Is it painful? well the first couple of times, I had to have them stop 3 times on each armpit, but these are supposed to be the most sensitive part of the body, the nipples I could accept the whole treatment the first time. Now, since the thick hair has deminished, I can accept the whole treatment under arm with no stopping. I read that it feels like somebody pinging an elastic band on your body, and I think thats the best description really. They apply Aloe Vera afterwards to help reduce the heat. I usually have my treatment in the morning between 9 and 10, then by lunchtime the heat and pain has pretty much gone. By evening, I have no after affects at all. If you dislike body hair as much as I do, perhaps you should
consider it. I can thoroughly recommend bodilight in Milton Keynes, I have turned up in semi girl mode everytime, all the clothes I've worn are womens clothes, but ususally tight jeans and pretty tops. They dont bat an eyelid, they are used to treating transexuals so they tell me, so to have a TV in the premises is not
big deal. I love being there, as I can be the real me in public.

Our House For Sale

So we've put our house on the market, and here it is, if anybody's genuinely interested, get in touch at graham.harper@btconnect.com

Our House

Its Been A While - House for Sale

Well folks, its been a busy couple of weeks, We had a few days off, and spent the weekend striping and repainting the garage door, I broke many nails and totally ruined my nail varnish. Then we spent the next 2 days having a massive throw out time, we binned loads of old stuff, and stuff we've never used, and took it all down the rubbish dump. Yes, we did as much recycling as possible. Also sorted some clothes and other odds and ends, and deposited them at the cancer research shop. Then after three hard days work, we treated ourselves to watching 'Memoirs of a Geisha'. A very moving film, I got a but weepy, but I think it was more because the star of the show ages throughout the film from about 6 years old to probably mid 20's. In her earliest form, she was the spitting image of my eldest daughter when she was 6. It was terribly spooky.
We also had a couple of estate agents in to value our little abode, and then we went and looked at a very large house, that is within our price range, and only because its in quite a bad state of repair. We both said the house is just ideal from room sizes and the number and location of rooms, its just we would have to spend a good few days clearing up the grime of the previous occupiers before we could start to live in a Couple of rooms. Then I am guessing it would take at least 6 months to decorate the place to make it more homely. There is some superficial exterior work that needs to be done, but nothing I couldn't get organized (I don't do heights, so somebody else can so that).
We also went to a new restaurant in Northampton called Occo on Derngate. A very nice Moroccan and Lebanese restaurant. We didn't really now what to have, so fortunately, they provide an 'experience dinner' where you get lots of samples of the food, it was absolutely great.

Whales in London

no thats not the country ! I had heard the the river Thames was supposed to be really clean now-adays (I wouldn't drink from it though), and that they had seen fish in the river, but today, the BBC report not 1 but 2 BIG whales had been spotted in the Thames. Apparently people have been flocking to the bridges over the river to catch a glimpse of these magnificent creatures. And its not April 1st yet either.

How Boy'ish or Girly are You ?

I found this earlier today, and it tells me i'm 60% girly. Well as if I didnt know that already !

You Are 40% Boyish and 60% Girlish

You are pretty evenly split down the middle - a total eunuch. Okay, kidding about the eunuch part. But you do get along with both sexes. You reject traditional gender roles. However, you don't actively fight them. You're just you. You don't try to be what people expect you to be.

How Boyish or Girlish Are You?