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It's been ages since I've done a proper update. Stuff has happened but none of it has been very interesting.
I have a new great-great cousin who has been named Noah. I like the name but I fear he will quickly tire of people mentioning arks. I know this snippet of info as I went to an extended family party last Saturday night. The party was to celebrate the Ruby wedding anniversary of a cousin of my dad and also his wife's 60th birthday. My dad has roughly 20 cousins on his mum's side of the family (she was one of 11 kids and almost all of them had a couple of kids) so I find it near impossible to remember who everyone is and who they're related to. Anyway, the party was held at a golf club in the village of Bletchingly, Surrey. We were really early so dad took us to the Church of John the Baptist in Briarly Heath which is where my grandparents were married. It is also where my nana's parents are buried but we couldn't find their gravestone. My dad had been there as a little boy and could remember it being beside a path but that didn't help as there were lots of paths! I was a bit hopeless at searching as I hadn't been expecting to wander around a graveyard and was wearing totally inappropriate shoes. My sister did better and managed to locate the grave of three of my nana's siblings who all died young. Her two oldest brothers were killed in the second world war and one of her older sisters died of TB at the age of 26. We also found the grave of a cousin of my dad's who died as a baby. Additionally, we found the name of one of my great uncles on the village war memorial. We're not sure why the other one wasn't on there. I was pleased to visit the church and would love to go back one day and see inside. My nana actually grew up in South Godstone, Surrey. I hadn't been there before last weekend and now wish I'd been with her before she died. She often went down there visiting relatives but we never went with her. It really is a lovely area. There are still working farms with animals, little villages shops and people playing cricket on the green. Very different to the very urban environment of Richmond where nana moved as a teenage domestic servant and lived for the rest of her life.
The party itself was quite good fun. It started fairly badly as we got stuck with my uncle lecturing us. He seems to feel like a bit of an outsider at family parties even though he has been married to my aunt for 45 years and in my opinion should really know her cousins by now. My mum has been part of the family for a similar length of time and seems to get along with everyone. Anyway, he managed to upset my sister by saying bad things about my grandad (who died in 2006) and going on at me about wanting me to find a man so I could 'be happy'. He also told us about being shot whilst in the army as usual. Oh well, you can't chose your family. After the buffet (which wasn't that great, I could've done better) the dancing started. Mum, sis and I completely humiliated ourselves by doing YMCA, Saturday Night, The Macarena etc. I drew the line at The Birdie Song though! The DJ rewarded me for my efforts with a pen! I guess it's better to embarass yourself when none of your peer groups is there. Most of the other people on the dance floor were under the age of 10!
I've been mad busy at work. My working life has not been helped by it taking five minutes to walk from our office to the new Reception area. Of course, since this has happened I've had loads of visitors. At least it's keeping me fit I guess.
Tomorrow I'm going to Lovebox with my sister, her fiance and lots of her fiance's trendy friends. It is in Hackney. I am already panicing about how I'm going to get back from Hackney after 11pm. Which ever way you look at things I'm going to have to leave early. The last train home from Waterloo leaves at quarter to midnight. It's times like these I need a friend who lives in Central London. Hopefully, we'll get to see some good acts. I'm really hoping to see Roni Size as I've wanted to see him for 10 years. And I have the day off work on Monday. Yay! I can't remember the last time I had a non-Bank Holiday off work.
On Friday I'm attending a 'night out' with some people from work. It's meant to be a joint leaving do but now one of them isn't actually leaving. Oh well. Can't complain about being invited out I guess.
I have a new great-great cousin who has been named Noah. I like the name but I fear he will quickly tire of people mentioning arks. I know this snippet of info as I went to an extended family party last Saturday night. The party was to celebrate the Ruby wedding anniversary of a cousin of my dad and also his wife's 60th birthday. My dad has roughly 20 cousins on his mum's side of the family (she was one of 11 kids and almost all of them had a couple of kids) so I find it near impossible to remember who everyone is and who they're related to. Anyway, the party was held at a golf club in the village of Bletchingly, Surrey. We were really early so dad took us to the Church of John the Baptist in Briarly Heath which is where my grandparents were married. It is also where my nana's parents are buried but we couldn't find their gravestone. My dad had been there as a little boy and could remember it being beside a path but that didn't help as there were lots of paths! I was a bit hopeless at searching as I hadn't been expecting to wander around a graveyard and was wearing totally inappropriate shoes. My sister did better and managed to locate the grave of three of my nana's siblings who all died young. Her two oldest brothers were killed in the second world war and one of her older sisters died of TB at the age of 26. We also found the grave of a cousin of my dad's who died as a baby. Additionally, we found the name of one of my great uncles on the village war memorial. We're not sure why the other one wasn't on there. I was pleased to visit the church and would love to go back one day and see inside. My nana actually grew up in South Godstone, Surrey. I hadn't been there before last weekend and now wish I'd been with her before she died. She often went down there visiting relatives but we never went with her. It really is a lovely area. There are still working farms with animals, little villages shops and people playing cricket on the green. Very different to the very urban environment of Richmond where nana moved as a teenage domestic servant and lived for the rest of her life.
The party itself was quite good fun. It started fairly badly as we got stuck with my uncle lecturing us. He seems to feel like a bit of an outsider at family parties even though he has been married to my aunt for 45 years and in my opinion should really know her cousins by now. My mum has been part of the family for a similar length of time and seems to get along with everyone. Anyway, he managed to upset my sister by saying bad things about my grandad (who died in 2006) and going on at me about wanting me to find a man so I could 'be happy'. He also told us about being shot whilst in the army as usual. Oh well, you can't chose your family. After the buffet (which wasn't that great, I could've done better) the dancing started. Mum, sis and I completely humiliated ourselves by doing YMCA, Saturday Night, The Macarena etc. I drew the line at The Birdie Song though! The DJ rewarded me for my efforts with a pen! I guess it's better to embarass yourself when none of your peer groups is there. Most of the other people on the dance floor were under the age of 10!
I've been mad busy at work. My working life has not been helped by it taking five minutes to walk from our office to the new Reception area. Of course, since this has happened I've had loads of visitors. At least it's keeping me fit I guess.
Tomorrow I'm going to Lovebox with my sister, her fiance and lots of her fiance's trendy friends. It is in Hackney. I am already panicing about how I'm going to get back from Hackney after 11pm. Which ever way you look at things I'm going to have to leave early. The last train home from Waterloo leaves at quarter to midnight. It's times like these I need a friend who lives in Central London. Hopefully, we'll get to see some good acts. I'm really hoping to see Roni Size as I've wanted to see him for 10 years. And I have the day off work on Monday. Yay! I can't remember the last time I had a non-Bank Holiday off work.
On Friday I'm attending a 'night out' with some people from work. It's meant to be a joint leaving do but now one of them isn't actually leaving. Oh well. Can't complain about being invited out I guess.
