Ali on the radio!!

I had a really busy day to-day and although I was out of the office a lot, it was a good way to start off the week.

This morning, I was one of the guests of "The Coffee Club" on Annie Othen's Show on BBC Coventry and Warwickshire. Annie is a really lovely lady and a great presenter too. She makes it all look so easy and has the knack of making those women who are not used to speaking on the radio feel at their ease.

As I was waiting to go on today, I was sitting outside the studio with my fellow coffee club ladies, Kathy and Trish and as usual, we start talking about all sorts as soon as we meet so when we go inside the studio with Annie, it's just a continuation of our chat.

Kathy was the director of a local theatre company and Trish worked for the National Grid and she was telling us all how she was going down to the House of Commons later to say thanks to some volunteers who helped out with the Special Olympics.

There were various topics discussed on today's show (Annie is on weekdays 9am - 12pm) and those topics included loyalty cards, the head teacher who went back to work seven hours after giving birth and my weight loss!!!

Annie has been very supportive with my diet and whenever I see her, she's always telling me how fab I'm looking, which is so nice of her.

I really got on with Trish and Kathy and I hope I get to go on with them again on another occasion. The thing I like about The Coffee Club is that it's real women talking about real issues and having a good old chin wag over a cup of coffee!!

I always enjoy going in to do it and so whenever I'm asked, I make sure I re-arrange anything else so I can be there.

I had a meeting about Care with Dignity, a project which helps promote the care and well-being of elderly patients in hospital. The University is supporting the NHS Trust initiative with an awareness event on 25 February and I am helping with the publicity for it.

It's a really nice idea and I hope to be able to do some good work for them. I can appreciate the topic because of what my Dad-in-law is going through at the moment. Although he's being well looked after where he is, the project will help people like him to connect with their carers.

My third meeting was with one of my favourite academics at the Uni who I always make sure I find time for. He, like Annie, told me how well I was looking. Well, in his words, "stunning" and "lovely" and coming from him, whose opinion I value, it means a heck of a lot to me.

In just 8 months since he came to work in Coventry, we've become great friends as well as fab colleagues, we share the same sense of humour - well, let's put it this way - he laughs at all my jokes and thinks I'm a funny person.

Today, I was dressed all in purple and if I am honest, I was looking hot and feeling great.

When I met the Prof for coffee (it was my turn to buy) I treated him to a cake as well and although I wanted to snatch his cake away from him, I resisted the temptation to stare longingly at this lump of sticky loveliness on his plate and just made eye to eye contact with him instead of eye to cake contact.

He's a bit of a heart-throb at work. You ask any woman who comes into contact with him and they will tell you how lovely he is!!! I hope he doesn't get to read this or his head will swell, Lol!!!

By the time I'd got back to my desk this afternoon (just past three) I had emails to answer, surveys to fill in and press releases to make a start on.

It was bitterly cold going back to the office and coming home from work, so as soon as I got in, I put my leggings and sweat shirt on, put on the gas fire and fed the cats. One of them was involved in an almighty scrap this morning (1.30am) with a new cat on the block.

You know what it's like; you're in bed asleep and then you hear a rumpus out the back and it's one cat squaring up to the other. It was so loud and menacing, I made hubby go downstairs to see if either of ours were involved and when he discovered one of them was, he called him in.

Up the garden path he trotted (the cat, not the husband) looking a bit wary and, according to hubby, he was "a bit fired up and a bit shaky and just kept looking over his shoulder" but we think he came off the better of the two.

It took me a good hour or so to calm him down. I went downstairs and stayed with him a bit and checked him for bites and scratches before heading back upstairs (only to be followed by him ten minutes later) where he snuggled under the duvet with us and within minutes, was snoring his little cat head off!

When I got home tonight, both my cats were in and waiting for their tea. Let's hope we do not have to put up with round two with the strange black cat tonight. I don't think my nerves can take another rumble in the woods, Lol!!

Captain Black lives in my sock drawer!

I am the first to admit that when it comes to men, my taste is somewhat, eclectic! I can honestly say that no two men I have either gone out with or fancied, or had crushes on have ever been similar in any way.

My very first crush at school, which I have written about already, was Michael Lewis. A pale, ginger-haired freckled lad who shared his Milky Ways with me but my first all-consuming passion was someone who was considerably older than me and lived in the TV.

He was my ideal man - tall, dark and handsome with an incredible speaking voice and the ability to die and come back to life again. Who wouldn't fall in love with the one and only Captain Scarlet?

I just adored the man. However, his arch nemesis, Captain Black, was another matter. He really used to (and still does) scare the life out of me.

The other day, I went into my sock drawer to get a thick pair of socks to wear as I was cold. I don't normally delve right to the bottom of the drawer, but in this case I needed to in order to get to my fleecy bed socks and while I was having a good rummage, I heard a voice that sent a shiver down my spine.

"This is Captain Black - every one must die!"

Oh My God!!! I had totally forgotten that quite a few years ago, someone had bought me a Captain Black doll that spoke and I was so freaked out by it, I hid it in my drawer and that's where he stayed.

I felt that at 46, going on 47, I should at least face my fears head on and try to be adult about this, after all, he's just a doll.

I took him out of his sock grave to have a good look at him. Dark hair, dark circles under his eyes, square jaw, smart black uniform, dark eyes that looked straight through me and then I pressed his tummy and he started to speak.

I am soooo sorry Capt. Scarlet but for one brief, moment of madness, I actually thought "phwoarrrrr" when I stopped to get to have a good look at Capt. Black and started to think that he wasn't too bad after all.

How could I be unfaithful to the god-like Capt. Scarlet? I quickly snapped out of my trance and realised that this was indeed the trick of the Mysterons - they have tired to put a spell on me and so in no time at all, Capt. Black was back where he belonged; buried in my sock drawer. As I was putting him back, he kept telling me that every one must die - yada yada yada - I think he's confusing me with someone who cares.

However, after my close encounter of the Black kind, I went into the front bedroom to get reassurance and comfort from Capt. Scarlet and Capt. Blue who are both standing on the book shelf looking pristine and uber-cool in their uniforms and prodded their bellies to get some words of wisdom from them. Once I did that, I felt much better and not at all guilty that for the foreseeable future, their former colleague turned enemy was to spend the rest of his days in limbo in my sock drawer.

Years ago when I was working in local radio, Francis Matthews (the voice of Capt Scarlet) came into the station to be interviewed. When I heard that he was in the building, I just couldn't contain my excitement and volunteered to go down to reception to go and fetch him and take him up to the studio where he was to be interviewed by the presenter.

I don't know what I expected to see. I knew he wouldn't look like Capt Scarlet but I didn't expect to see a slight, wrinkled grey-haired old man waiting for me. I put my hand out to shake his and welcomed him to the station and went into the lift with him.

We were making small talk and I just couldn't look at him because Capt. Scarlet's voice was coming out of this elderly chap and it just didn't seem right at all. Talk about illusions being shattered. However, I couldn't resist the temptation to ask him if he fancied meeting me for a cup of coffee in the Cloud Base canteen later.

He laughed and said: "I wondered how long it would take you to mention Capt. Scarlet. Are you a fan?" I told him that I'd fancied Capt. Scarlet ever since I'd been a little girl and that it was a dream come true to actually meet the voice behind the man.

"Yes, but it's a real disappointment when Scarlet fans meet me in person" he said and I felt really sorry for him because of the way I felt when I saw him. I was very disappointed that standing before me was just an old man and not the sexiest puppet man on the planet.

He was a really nice bloke though and I still love Capt. Scarlet and my love for him is truly indestructible - even though he is just a piece of wood in a uniform. To me, he'll always be my first love!

Watch out for the vampire snake in Nuneaton!

Women can be just as bad at being wind-up merchants as blokes can, especially when the women out number the men in the office.

One of our male colleagues has been suffering for a couple of days now and he's getting worse.

It started off with a little bite mark on his foot and then his foot started to swell and then his toes got bigger as well.

I could tell he was worried about it and suggested he needed to get some piriton or something similar.

So on the way home from work yesterday, he stopped off at the chemist and saw the on-duty doctor there who suggested some tablets and cream to put on it and so when he got home, he took the tablets and administered the cream.

The poor chap was limping this morning when he came in and I asked him if the tablets and cream were working.

"No, not really" he replied, "it feels worse and now there's a pain going up my leg."

You could tell he was concerned about it, although he told me he was annoyed with it more than anything. The girls in the office were very interested in our conversation and wanted to know all about it, so he told them that he thought he'd been bitten by something and that this bite had caused two little prick marks to appear on his foot and his foot and toes to swell.

"It's a vampire" said one women. "It's a snake" said another, then one of the other blokes piped up, "it could be a vampire snake. I'd heard that one was on the loose in Nuneaton" and everyone started to snigger because that's where my friend lives.

By this time, he was getting a bit sick of being the centre of attention, especially as he was not only worried about his foot, but he's a shy lad and did not like being the butt of all the jokes, either.

I told them to back off but he didn't make matters easier for himself when he asked everyone if they thought it could be malaria.

"Malaria, in February, in Nuneaton??" - shouted one girl and that started a whole lot more laughter in the office.

Then more suggestions came flying his way as to what it could have been that bit him - his girlfriend being one fo the suggestions!

Now everyone knows I have a soft spot for this chap as when he first came to work with us, I took him under my wing and showed him where everything was and we became good friends from that day.

He may be a tasty geezer, but I draw a line at sinking my teeth into his foot! Lol!!

I told him that if he was that concerned about it, then he should try and get to see his doctor.

It was sad sitting opposite him, seeing his little face dropping with every quip about his foot so when he got up to get his coat to go to the other office, I gave him a reassuring hug to let him know that it was all in jest and no-one really thought there was a vampire snake loose in Nuneaton!

Or so we think!!!

As soon as he'd left and limped his way out of the room, the attention then turned to me and my new haircut. It caused ripples of laughter when I told them that someone had told me that my new cut and colour made me look like Clare Balding - the racing expert on BBC 1!

Now as nice as Clare is, and I'm sure she's lovely, if I was going to be compared to anyone, I would have liked someone like Angelina Jolie, not a butch (but smart) woman who is an expert on horses (animals that I actually have a slight fear of!).

Oh well, at least it could have been worse, I could have been told I looked like the back end of a horse!

I didn't get to have a lunch break today, so I left a bit earlier as I needed to get home and set up the video recorder as one of my other colleagues was being interviewed on Central TV and on Sky about the problems with the Toyota cars.

Just as I was leaving the office, my friend Lisa asked me if I could possibly give her a racing tip!

Monkeys!!!

I muttered something about Shergar and then left to go home to set up the video. My colleague didn't make it to Central TV as he was stuck in traffic (there was a big hold up on the A45 as there had been an accident) but he did make it to his Sky TV interview, but they put the wrong caption up for him!

I have noticed that TV stations are doing that a great deal these days, putting up the wrong caption or worse still, interviewing the wrong guest. Who can forget that poor chap, Gus something, being interviewed about Apple and music file sharing, a subject he knew nothing about, but he carried on regardless, bless him. He was actually at the BBC TV centre for a job interview! I wonder if he got it?

Just like the question of whether or not there is a vampire snake in Nuneaton - I guess we'll never know!

I promise that this is the last you will hear from me on the subject of Cadbury for a while as I know I have gone on about it a bit over the past few weeks and now the deal has been done, there’s nothing else to say.

However, I was listening to the radio this morning and a reporter from one of the local stations in Birmingham had done a report on the trip to London by Cadbury workers. They went on a march in order to lobby the Government and get them to try to get some kind of promise from Kraft about the security of their jobs.

Jack Dromey was there representing the Unite Union (for those of you who don’t know Jack Dromey, he’s Mr Harriet Harman) and there were hundreds of Cadbury workers marching through London.

Amongst them was a man (Eric we discovered was his name) dressed in a Gorilla suit holding a snare drum. A reminder of the classic drum-playing Gorilla ad used by Cadbury a couple of years back playing along to a Phil Collins song. Magnificent. Anyway, I digress.

The reporter was talking to a lot of the workers and then she turned to “Eric the Gorilla” and said:

“This is Eric and he’s playing the role of the Cadbury Gorilla today. How are you feeling?”

(Thinking he was going to say something along the lines of ‘I’m gutted that Kraft will be taking over Cadbury and feel so strongly about it, that’s why I wanted to join the march to show my support" – well, that’s what you’d expect him to say)

So when the reporter said: “How are you feeling?”

Eric replied in his best Brummie accent:

“I feel grite. Everyone keeps woiving at moy, eets bostin'!”

Priceless – at which point, Eric started banging his drum fast and furious before being caught and bundled into a van. He was last seen heading off down the road to London Zoo!!!

I was talking about the Cadbury products that I like a few blogs back (thanks Siobhan for your reaction to this!!) and I remembered something that one of my friends did at work once, which made us all gasp in horror and utter disbelief.

My friend Lisa has an unusual way of eating her Cadbury Crème Egg. Unlike most people who think that the lovely chocolate and the gooey fondant is more than enough; she bites off the top of the egg and dips her cheese and onion crisps into it!!! Noooooooooooooo – that’s just not right.

However, was Lisa actually ahead of her time?

Cadbury have been taken over by Kraft. Kraft are known for their processed cheese slices, so maybe the next step for them would be to combine to two and bring out a cheesy chocolate egg?

With Lisa dipping her cheese and onion crisps into the egg, it made me wonder whether or not she had stumbled across a new idea or did she know that this was a taste of things to come?

If indeed she is good at predicting things – maybe I should ask her for Saturday’s lottery numbers? Just a thought.

Hair, weight, Cadbury and the cat!

It is a sad day indeed. Cadbury shareholders have caved in the sold out to Kraft.

If our chocolate now starts to taste like cheese, then don't blame me. I've been dead against the takeover - as my mate Dave says in virtually every interview he does on the subject, most takeovers fail.

I hope he's wrong, but he's not been so far.

The ex-girlfriend of footballer, Wayne Bridge, used to be a big fan of the endless bars Cadbury chocolate he used to buy for her, but now apparently, she prefers Terry's! Groan.

I have been struggling these past few weeks with my weight loss. Although I’m feeling much better and doing a lot more exercise, the weight isn’t coming off as quickly as it was in the first few weeks, in fact, it’s slowing down a great deal.

My clothes are feeling looser and all the time, I’m finding I have more energy and my get up and go is getting greater by the minute but the pounds and ounces are getting harder to get off, which is of great concern as I still have so much more to do.

However, when you consider where I was 14 weeks ago, I’m three and a half stones lighter, so that isn’t to be sniffed at. I always make sure I’m looking good, however I might be feeling and I always try to coordinate my wardrobe to make sure most of my colours match or complement each other.

I am not your classic slob, I do try to look nice in whatever outfit I wear and chose colours that suit me – mainly purples and blues with a black or grey skirt and matching boots.

On Saturday, I went to get my hair done. I decided that I was sick of being grey like John Major (former Conservative PM for those not of these shores) so I opted to go for a subtle hair colour.

Seventy pounds later, it was so subtle no-one noticed!

My husband dropped me off at the hairdressers before making his way to the football. I’d had my hair cut and coloured and then went to do a bit of shopping before heading back home. I re-applied my make-up and looked rather stunning (I always have had a high opinion of myself, Lol!!)

I sat on the settee watching the shopping channels (I have been buying stuff again – mainly jewellery but a couple of handbags too) when the front door opened and it was hubby.

I sat upright and beamed at him with the biggest Cheshire Cat grin I could muster and said "Well?" (thinking he would notice my new glamorous cut and colour) and he said:

"We drew one all" – not the response I was hoping for. After a little bit of prodding and much pointing to the old barnet, he decided he liked it and came over and gave me a reassuring hug and a kiss.

As far as I’m concerned, the jury’s still out on the hair cut. I like the colour but I’m not too sure of the cut. I told one of my friends on facebook that my hair looked like an ill-fitting wig on a spud! One of my friends posted that I looked "very comely" and that the style is "very fashionable in Santiago!"

However, "blondie" is one of my new nicknames. I can live with that. They do say that blondes have more fun, so I’m hoping my new hair will give way to a new fun-loving me!

I was very tired at work today. Even though we both went to bed early (any time before midnight is early for us) I had to get up at about 4.15am and when I got back from the bathroom, there was a little furry being sat in my spot waiting to be picked up and fussed.

At that time of the morning, I wasn’t too keen but he’s so hard to resist when he starts to purr and he puts his little paws in the air just like a child who puts his arms upwards waiting to be picked up.

I picked him up in my arms and both of us snuggled up under the duvet and the purring got louder and louder. I was lying on my side and so was the cat and we soon adopted the spoons position with my arm around him tickling his tummy.

In no time at all, he was fast asleep and snoring! The two men in my life were fast asleep, warm and cosy under the duvet while I was still wide awake!

I kept watching the clock until the alarm went off at 6.10am. By this time, the cat had vacated his warm spot and gone to sit in the bedroom window. It has been a full moon these past few days and the bright silver casts an illuminating glow over the garden and the woods at the back. I’m told by people that know these things that this is ideal for night hunting for cats – thankfully, both of our cats stay in at night, so the little creatures of the woods can rest easy – well, from our cats anyway.

As soon as the alarm goes off for the fourth time, it’s all action stations. Hubby gets up, goes downstairs and puts the kettle on and feeds the cats. While he’s going through his routine, I know I have at least half an hour left to snuggle back down and then once it’s my turn to rise and shine – I spring out of bed like Tigger and start another day.

I would say that 80% of people at work have not noticed my hair but I honestly don’t mind – as long as I feel better (and I do) then that’s all that matters.

My deviant brother has a deviant septum

I didn't think my brother was anything like my Dad - in fact, they are poles apart - or so I thought until this evening.

My Dad was a one for bearing grudges and so it seems is my little brother. He'd been to see the Doctor today as he's been having problems with his breathing and when I asked him how he'd gone on, he told me that he had got a "Deviant Septum" and the Doctor asked him when it was he broke his nose?

"I didn't know I had!" said my brother. However, it turns out that indeed he did about 35 years ago and according to said deviant little brother, it was ME that broke his nose!!! Me???

Throughout our childhood, I was the perfect big sister to him. I shared all my toys with him, I sheltered him from harm, I looked after him at school, cooked him food, gave him my sweets, bought him treats - you name it, I did it for him. So to find out that I was responsible for breaking his nose has really, really upset me!

How on earth can I ever get over what I have done to my little brother? I'll tell you how. I will deal with it like I do at every other time he has told blatant lies about his lovely big sister - IGNORE THE LITTLE SOD!!

I know why he's suddenly dragged this gross accusation out of the closet and that's because I outed him as a chocolate egg thief! Yes, so outraged was he at having the finger of fudge pointed at him, he has made up this incredible lie about someone who worships the ground he walks on!

How could he?

Thirty five years ago, which is when this alleged beating up happened, I was an innocent, loving eleven-year old who used to play in perfect harmony with her little scamp of a brother. I could never have lived with myself all these years if I had known that I had broken his nose.

I put it to you M'Lord that this is indeed what happened 35 years ago.

My brother (who was 9 at the time) came home from school early - in fact, he'd bunked off for the afternoon intending to watch TV and eat crisps and ice lollies (what's changed, Bro???) He let himself in the house with his key for the back door, but what my brother didn't bank on, was the fact that my Dad was at home picking up some paperwork from the Welsh Dresser.

Fearing he'd be rumbled for bunking off school and getting a clip around the ear from my Dad, my brother hid behind the kitchen door. However, my Dad went into the kitchen to get a glass of water and opened the kitchen door fully and it went all the way back and hit my brother in the face.

He didn't yelp or anything in case he was caught, so instead, he put up with the pain and only cried out when Dad had gone out of the house at which time, he let out an amazing scream.

He went into the fridge and got himself an ice lolly and momentarily placed the ice lolly on his sore nose, thus bringing down the swelling. My brother then spent the rest of the afternoon watching his favourite TV programme (I can't remember which one it was but I know it was very popular with young girls) and scoffing crisps and left over chocolate Easter eggs that he'd nicked from me.

Thirty five years later, when his nose is the subject of much discussion at the Doctors, he comes up with some cock and bull story about how his doting, devoted sister was the reason he has a deviant septum - all because he couldn't find it in his heart to confess to bunking off school.

And that, M'Lord is the truth and that is the case for the defence!

If my brother reads this - come on, Ash. Tell the truth for once in your life!!!

Deviant Septum? Deviant Brother more like!

Watching football has just become more interesting

This is the picture I have on my screen saver at work. It's the Manchester City FC manager, Roberto Mancini.


You must admit ladies, that he's very easy on the eye! I have decided that he's definitely someone I am going to be keeping my eye on in future and will watch Manchester City's games with interest!


I told one of my friends this morning that I had got Mr Mancini as my desktop background and his reaction was:

"What are you like? Lol!" Well, he should know what I'm like by now as it is well-documented that I appreciate the opposite sex - and yes, even though I am happily married, I tell people that just because I don't cook anymore, it doesn't mean that I can't look at recipes! Mr Mancini is certainly one dish I would be pleased to have, lol!!

I wasn't feeling too well this morning. I got up and immediately felt a bit light-headed and as they day went on, I started feeling sick and this carried on for the rest of the morning until it got so bad, that I just had to come home. While I was making my way back to the car, I saw a colleague who told me that other people he worked with had also complained of the same kind of symptoms and so I thought that it must be something going around.

The feeling of dizziness, however, was something that I didn't like because for a split second, I didn't know where I was (this only usually happens when I've had a bit too much to drink, Lol!)

When I got home, I put my PJs on and went to lie down on the settee with a blanket and in no time at all, I was joined by the cat who couldn't believe his luck that his Mum was home. The feeling of wanting to be sick only went away when I took a couple of paracetamol and then fell asleep on the settee.

I don't like being ill but if I had got some kind of bug, the worst thing I could do is be at work because one of my colleagues is 8 months pregnant and the last thing she wants is to catch something which could potentially hurt her and the baby. I felt bad about leaving work, but it was the right thing to do.

When my Mum was alive when I was little, she used to look after us really well when we were poorly and made sure that we were comfortable and loved. She used to make this lemon drink which she would give us when we had colds. It had some kind of syrup in it which made it sweet but it seemed to do the trick. I am sure it was more in the mind than anything else, but we knew that when Mum made it, she meant business!

Also when I was little, I remember getting chicken pox at Easter and I was feeling that poorly that I couldn't even face eating my chocolate Easter eggs - crikey, I must have been bad. My little bro wasted no time, however, by snaffling his own and mine. I wasn't happy but I was too ill to kick up a fuss.

Yesterday, I had a meeting over lunch with a lovely male colleague from work. He's such a top bloke. The kind of person you really want to have as a friend because he's witty, wise and interesting and time flies when you're in his company. We hadn't had a good catch-up session for ages because he's always very busy but when our diaries allow and we both had the opportunity to meet up, then you grab it.

The Herbert is the unofficial external meeting room for most people that work in Coventry City Centre - you see a lot of Council people in there and as I used to work for the city council, I often see someone I know and say hello to.

On the way home today, I saw this really lovely English Bull Terrier that was tied up outside a newspaper shop waiting for his owner. The English Bull Terrier is the one with the square face and the small eyes - the breed of dog that played Bulls Eye in Oliver.

Now they are not every one's cup of tea. Some people think they are scary - in fact, there's one that lives next door but one to us and he doesn't get on at all well with the dog next door to him. I often hear them having a spat over the fence and the English Bull Terrier two doors down is a bit intimidating when you see him on his lead taking his owners for a walk.

Anyway, this one that was waiting outside the newsagents was making a heck of a din and I mean a heck of a din. He was howling in a high pitched dog voice and as I had a rotten headache, the dog's noise wasn't doing anything for it.

I went up to him and let him sniff my had and I said to him "ay, ay , ay, what's all the noise?" He sniffed my hand initially and then started to really growl, bark and snarl at me..... his owner came out and said "ooh, don't worry about him, he's deaf. He can't hear what noise he's making. He probably things he's saying hello!"

Well, if that was his version of saying hello was, I'd hate to hear him say "sod off!"

I've always liked dogs and even though when I was about 8 I got bitten by two dogs at the same time, it didn't really put me off them. It was my own fault for walking in between two dogs just as they were about to have a go at each other. Instead of biting each other, they both took a chunk out of my leg and I have the scars of 32 stitches in the back of my right leg to prove it.

My leg looked horrible for a long time after that attack my it also knocked my confidence a bit, but when you're 8, you soon bounce back and I was stroking dogs again within a couple of months.

Oh well, I'm about to take a couple more paracetamol and have a cup of tea. I'm hoping I'll feel a bit brighter tomorrow morning. We shall see.