The one where I seem to have clawed my way out...

Forgive me Internets, for I have sinned. It has been approximately 3 months since my last confession.

The thing about a journal, is that it should be your one outlet. Your vent. I seem to have been unable to do any venting at all recently. Things happen, and then more and more things happen, piling upon each other, until you end up unable to move, due to the enormity of all these 'things' resting precariously on your shoulders. Something has got to give. And it did. I'm just not sure what it was.

Anyhow, it seems as if I'm back.

Last weekend I took the dogs out and took some photos. The creatures are rather photogenic. I recently bought and installed a child stair gate for the living room doorway. The gate closes when the dogs are in there, (yes, they have access to the garden and yes they always have plenty of water) and voila! My mail isn't chewed to pieces! People don't run away from the house because HRH isn't sitting by the front door barking when the doorbell is rung! I can come in to the house and not get covered in dog hair!





I have started tutoring two kids on a Saturday. They are the children of two of my mother's old work colleagues, and both need help with their reading/writing and preparation for English GCSE. The youngest lad, Jon, I see for an hour at 9am. He is an absolute joy - so desperate to learn. He is two years away from his big public exams, and it seems we have plenty of time to bring him up to scratch, and then some. Philip is only 2 months away from the start of his exams. He is lazy. He's very bright, but this laxity that has been cultured by the education system. It is so disappointing. Both of these boys have been let down so fundamentally by their schools and, at times, it is excruciating to watch. Philip's English teacher at school sounds absolutely horrendous. The class is given past papers, to help them prepare for the exams, as homework. Sounds good, no? But what is the point of setting that work if, when only four of the class have taken the time to do it so, you just say, "ok, here is the model answer, now do it for homework again and I'll collect it when everyone has completed it"? I was absolutely horrified. We are working so hard, going through past papers and the poetry he needs to know for the exams, and it just seems to be completely undermined. Is it any wonder kids get so disillusioned with school and education that they are, quite literally, counting down the days until they can leave?

A very old family friend from Argentina (who currently lives in Atlanta) is coming to stay for a couple of days next week, so I have a lot of cleaning to do. A lot. The dogs are moulting something chronic, so I think it's time to fork out for a Dyson.