Reminiscing

I finally came home Thursday night (a week after my operation) yippee.  It's nice to be back in my own home although my parents have made absolutely excellent carers during my first week of recovery and while I have been feeling too sick and tired to do anything.  But now it is time to try and start getting back on my feet a little to speed up the healing process.

Came home to a beautiful bouquet of lillies from David.  He bought them last Thursday thinking I would be home that same day but they have lasted really well and still look very fresh.

We got home quite late in the evening so really there was only time to unpack, put a few things away and then go to bed.

I was worried about how we would manage to share a bed without David accidentally kicking my bad leg  as he does have a tendency to take over the entire bed but he was really good and made a conscious effort to give me lots of space.  I didn't sleep well though as my mind didn't seem to want to shut down.

I rather randomly started thinking about sugar mice and how exorbitantly expensive they are these days.  I can't remember the last time I had one, or even why I liked them but the yellow ones have always been my favourites and I decided that irrespective of how much they cost, the next time I see one I intend to treat myself to one.

From that thought I then starting remembering lots of little things that made me happy as a child:

Cherry Pop

Twinkle comic for girls

Making mud pies in the hollow of an old tree

Turning a stick and some pink toilet paper into a fairy wand

Playing 'Release' and doing drama and crafts at summer camp with my summer camp friends Katherine Dantanus and Henry French

Watching cartoons such as Willow the Wisp; Mr Ben; Mighty Mouse and Captain Caveman

TV programmes such as the A Team, Knight Rider and McGuiver

Falling asleep to the sound of my cassette of Richard Clayderman playing piano

Cooked full English Sunday Breakfast with my parents and brother listening to the same music every week.

Easter and Christmas visits from our very good family friend Peter.  Going round the house before he arrived and tilting all the pictures and mirrors to drive him mad.  Listening to Peter playing the 'dinner's late' blues or whatever was the theme for the day.  Kangaroo jumping in the car and firing air pistols at tin cans in the garden.  Going to the Marina and getting drenched by waves.  Laughing lots.

Playing spud guns with my brother Luke and my cousin Stephen

My collection of Care Bears especially my favourite Tenderheart bear

My doll Susie with the burnt thumb from where she got too close to the fire.

Cuddles the pink rabbit my parents gave me that played Twinkle Twinkle little Star when you pressed his red 'I Love You' heart

Sleeping in the cupboard or the kitchen at Grandma's house and playing with the green tree house toy

All the ladybirds in Nannan's garden and the fake brandy glass with fake brandy inside

Feeding all the kittens outside Granny's back door

Eating delicious Burmese Beef and Potato curry and Tarka Dahl cooked by grandpa Roy

Playing with my best friend Lorna and making camp in the coal bunker or the loft

Picking wild blackberries and eating them

The thrill of playing kiss chase and the disappointing fact that even when I wanted to be kissed I couldn't help being too fast to be caught.

Learning to play the piano, flugel horn, tenor horn and Euphonium

Asking to join the school choir and being told not to sing but that I could play the glockenspiel

Playing the role of one of the shepherds in the school nativity (I desperately wanted to be an angel with a tinsel halo)

Building snowmen, snowball flights and sledging with our Cairn Terrier Kim

our beautiful sibling silver blue Corat cats Louise (who only answered to the call Whoosh Whoosh) and her brother Mochka (who was too dumb to answer to anything)

My first hamster Mandy

My black guinea pig Sooty and my grey lop eared rabbit Sweep

Collecting star wars stickers for my albumn and pretty glittery stickers for swaps

Playing with a tennis ball against the school wall

Bexhill Music camp week and playing slap and other games (when not rehearsing) with my friends Rachel, Andrew and co.

Staying up late and chatting with my friend Graeme at Music camp.

My crush on Simon Wiczling when I was eight and his adorably cute blonde four year old brother 'Sebastian'

My first holiday abroad to Tennerife when I was five

Collecting conkers and acorns in the autumn

Gathering snails and making homes for them

Joining the Army cadets at the age of 13 and being the first (and for six months the only) girl in C Company Sussex.  Me and 450 boys!

48 hour exercises and 24 hour ration packs, biscuits squashed fly and exploding orange drink powder, cam cream and ambushes, firing rifles and learning Campcraft,

My Saturday job at Sally Store's sweet shop and spending my four hours deciding what sweets to spend my wages on (£1.40 an hour when I first started which increased to £1.65 when I was experienced enough to be left on my own!)

1/4 lb of Rhubarb and custard, Kola Cubes or Cough Candy Twists

Wham bars

5p crisps

Walking round school at break-time with best friend Polly 'putting the world to rights'

Summer days spent on the beach eating milky bar with Polly and dancing in the cinema aisles

Johnny Depp in 21 Jump Street

Singing with my friends on Gold Duke of Edinburgh expedition hikes.

Oh happy days!!