Summer Blues?

With May just around the corner, most people’s thoughts turn to the lovely warm summer (hopefully, though this is England), where they are going to go and how they are going to enjoy the summer days (and nights). Not me however, my thoughts turn to the fact that we only have 2 Argyle matches left, and 3 Liverpool league games left (4 in total – including the second leg of the Champions League, and hopefully a 5th game – the Champions League Final). After that we will have no football until the pre season friendlies which will be somewhere around the end of July and then the start of the next season around the beginning of August.
People have already asked me how I will cope. Answer: I don’t know. I will have to find things to do on Saturday afternoons. To this end I have already organised taking people to the beach (by the way Kt can you check with Nick and Ro and they are free on the 14th May and not the 15th which is a Sunday), and I will try and visit a mate in London, and have be told by my lovely sister that I am going to my parents for the Bank holiday at the end of May, something to do with her birthday I think! I am also going to be taught how to sail as well by another mate, which I am well looking forward to.
After that I really have no plans for Saturday afternoons. I hope I am not the only football fan who dreads the summer months – particularly in a year with no international competition.

Fi is the magic monkey

Only yesterday I discovered how much of a bad influence I am on my housemate – Fi the magic monkey. She admitted to me that she had sent a Wrexham supporter a winding up text about the result, and the day we went to Twickenham she set up a text alert so she could find out the Wrexham result in order to send a winding up text. She could only have got this from watching me winding up Ben (Everton and Rangers fan) Kay on a weekly – or daily basis.
She however has also been a bad influence on me as well. Most Sunday evenings after Church she has got me playing pool in the pub across the road from our Church, something I hardly ever did before (playing pool that is - pub visits are far too frequent). She also has made me more laid back about any work that I have to do – which is a very bad thing. I am also more likely to be seen in front of the TV then doing anything constructive, like job hunting, again a very bad thing.
On the good side – she has got me swimming, when we can both be bothered!

Evil Twins

A couple of my friends and I have decided that we have evil twins (basically our stupid, hyperactive and silly sides, the sides that get up to all the mischief and behave like big kids). Mine is called Francesca, my friend Ruth’s evil twin is called Rachel, and Rebekah has named her evil twin Rose. These evil twins only really come out when either two of us, or all 3 of us are together.
This meant that on Friday night when the 3 of us went out to see Miss Congeniality 2 with another friend, Judith, all 3 evil twins were bound to surface. Unfortunately for Judith she didn’t really understand and was so embarrassed to be seen with us. We were however having a fantastic time. I do however feel sorry for the poor people who were also in the cinema, so if you were at the VUE cinema in Plymouth watching Miss Congeniality 2 last Friday night at about 9pm, I can only apologise!
It’s great having an evil twin, because if you do anything stupid or silly you can just blame it on them! So while everyone else behaves in a sensible responsible way, I shall allow Francesca to run in and out of puddles (making my jeans soaking wet) to her heart’s content and generally cause as much mayhem as she wises.

Jealousy a funny thing

While at the Theatre of Greens (Home Park) yesterday, Owen “Welshy” Jones told the group of us there that on his last day in his previous job that one of his colleagues said that someone was waiting in reception for him. When he wondered through it was none other that Paul “Wottsie (as is “what’s he playing at”) Wotton with a signed Argyle shirt and another pressie! I mean talk about jealousy! Something like that better happen when I leave St Andrew’s school, but knowing my luck, it probably won’t!

Good Memories

April 24th 2004
Argyle 2 - Mickey "eats too many of the sponsors products" Evans, and David "that man" Friio!
QPR 0.
Argyle Champions of Division 2! Enough said.
While we're at it though - same day
Manure Utd 0
Liverpool 1!

Is it really true?

While I was on the way to Twickenham on Saturday, I was listening to one of my Christian CDs, and one song in particular, which is far too familiar to me. However, for some reason I really got thinking about the words, and also thinking, is this really true, is this really my prayer for myself?
The song is called All for Jesus, and it goes like this:
Jesus all for Jesus
All I am and have and ever hope to be
Jesus all for Jesus
All I am and have and ever hope to be

All of my ambitions hopes and plans I surrender these into Your hands
All of my ambitions hopes and plans I surrender these into Your hands

For it's only in Your will that I am free
For it's only in Your will that I am free
Jesus all for Jesus
All I am and have and ever hope to be.

After listening to it, and thinking that it was not my prayer at the moment, I decided that I really needed to make this my prayer for myself and my Christian friends, as it should be the prayer for every Christian.

Sha la la la la la la la la, we're gonna hammer Bedford

Does anyone know what 4 am on a Saturday morning looks like? Well, yesterday morning I discovered! I had to be on the coach to leave Home Park at 5.30am, so in order to be properly awake etc 4 am was the time to get up. I did make it to the coach in time, but not as early as the rest of the guys I was travelling with. You might wish to ask what hugely important event I was travelling to – and where this event was taking place. The answer is that Plymouth Albion, our local rugby side, were taking on the Bedford Blues in the final of the Powergen Shield at Twickenham. Our game kicked off at 12 pm so we needed to make sure we would be there in time, hence the stupidly early departure. We spend most of the journey sleeping, or at least trying to. Many pictures were taken of various people sleeping.
We did unfortunately lose the game, by 1 point, and that was due to the fact that 5 minutes before the end Bedford scored from a penalty, during which I was hiding behind the guy sitting next to me. Throughout most of the game alot of the Albion fans were singing “Sha la la la la la la la la, we're gonna hammer Bedford.” (to the Tony Christie song – Is this the way to Amarillo).
Having watched our game, we could stay and watch the actual Powergen Cup final, and we (the Albion supporters) were supporting Bath, who also lost.
After that game, we all headed back to the coaches and back to Plymouth, again tying to sleep on the coach on the way back. We arrived back here, at about 10.30 ish, tired and without any silver wear, but all having enjoyed the day and our visit to the home of England Rugby.
As you might imagine, a nice lie in would have been just great this morning, but being Sunday, it was up at 7.30 in time to get to Church to ring the bells and be at Good News Club. If it wasn’t for the fact that I was giving my mate Helen a lift into Church I probably would not have gone in.
Given the lack of sleep it is very surprising that I am as hyperactive as I am! It will probably catch up with me tomorrow!

Hillsborough

Two days late I know but RIP the 96. You'll Never Walk Alone.

Even more stupidity

Hands up all those who, during their holiday were helping at a holiday club for 70 primary school kids? Oh, that would be me then! I have had the most tiring week of my life. I was at the Abbey Hall (basically our Church Hall where the holiday club was being held) by 8.15 every morning from Tuesday to Saturday to rehearse the drama, which I got conned into doing as someone else chickened out of doing it. I am now giving him evil looks at making him feel really guilty!
The time of rehearsals required that I leave my house at 8am – which is a time I am not that familiar with during my holidays!
My costume for the drama consisted of a white lab coat (as I was a scientist) and (just so I was “different”) a truly heinous blonde wig!
As the club was only for the mornings, I spent most of each afternoon practicing my lines – which were cheese on toast – including “come on team its time to go” and “do you think you can do it? Will you be brave? Are you ready for this dangerous expedition? Will you join the Xpedition force?”
I also sorted out the props ready for the next day – which did include stuffing rolled up newspaper down an old pair of tights to make some “sheep intestines”. It’s probably best not to ask!
We also had games, which usually involved running around, and also “fitness training”, and one morning “aerobic training”, which due to the fact that I was giving the person doing it some simple moves to do while the overall organiser was watching, I ended up doing it on the stage in front of all the kids there! Not fun – thanks Andy Bowden! We also watched a cheesy dvd and did some songs, most of which had actions, and as I know most of them due to the amount of kids work I do, I got called up to the front to show the kids them – again not fun - thanks James Nash!
The main point is that the kids had fun and learnt more about Jesus, which was the point of doing it – so that makes it all worth while. Now, I have a day off tomorrow to recover ready for the start of term on Tuesday.