[This one is a bit of an essay, sorry, lots to catch up with!]

It's been a funny few months and only now do I have a spare few moments to sit and write about it. First, the sad bit, just before Christmas my Grandad was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease. Before this I had never fully appreciated what a rubbish illness it really is. Basically it's the kind of thing you get and then you die. There's no treatment, no way to prolong life, no hope, your body starts to shut down around you, not painlessly, and there is nothing you can do about it. It has been a harsh six months watching a relatively young man (by today's standards) have his life taken away from him bit by bit. In the end him passing was a blessing as the pain he was in was unbearable not only for him but for all of us to see him go through. It doesn't make it any easier to accept that he's no longer around though. I think myself lucky that I've had a childhood with grandparents and Rose and I both enjoyed many a holiday with both him and my grandma creating memories that we will forever cherish.

It seemed rather a fitting shot back at Grandma's after we'd said farewell one last time to Grandad. A pigeon enjoying a sup of water (pigeon racing was his biggest passion) and his empty chair outside the garage where the bike has been built.
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One of Grandad's wishes before he left us was for my dad to rebuild his old gold flash, a bike he'd had forever but that has spent the last thirty odd years in bits in a box. This has resulted in pretty much every weekend since Christmas with my dad travelling up to Sleaford to try and get what turned out to be quite a cantankerous piece of engineering running. It's not been easy, but it's been fascinating watching it take shape as we've gone up to visit. The pleasure it has brought Grandad has been fantastic and it was a proud day when dad reported to have had it running. It will now stand as a tribute to Grandad when it is entered into shows later in the year. Dad's just got to persuade Mum to let him learn to ride!

The Bike Dad's been re-building.

In between all of the family stuff work has, as usual, gone from the ridiculously busy to the practically insane. It was decided a couple of months ago that the school brochure needed to be updated. Companies were brought in to bid, and to cut a very long story short, I ended up getting the job instead. Now, as you well know, my expertise (and I use that word loosely) is in the web application side of life, at no point have I learnt design (I don't think GCSE Art counts!). It has been a very steep learning curve as I've entered into the world of illustrator (and later indesign as the brochure spurred the shout and planner redesign). Lots of fun has been had holding photo shoots and putting together the pages with a reign on what it looks like with, thankfully, very little design by committee. I’ve certainly put my photoshop skills to good use and have been very glad of all the mucking about I did last year with cloning! Now, as we head ever closer to September, the summer will be spent putting the final touches together and sending the design to the printer. It’s quite exciting, and also a little scary, to think that my design will be one of the first impressions many people get of the school, let’s hope it does the job.

Along with the brochure I’ve had to fit in everything else, especially the Learning Platform which is going from strength to strength. We’re looking to have fairly solid usage by some departments in September which is great, the hard work is all starting to pay off. Still tonnes of work to do on it though as its usage evolves and the exciting upgrade from Moodle becomes a stable release. I’m looking forward to a good year ahead as staff begin to see the benefits of delivering some, not all, of the curriculum through the platform. I also take on a new role in September to help with assessment manager. A new challenge that seems very daunting at the moment but will hopefully keep my brain active. There’s certainly never a dull moment at work right now!

At home we’ve been taking part in our usual gardening spurt. This year, top of the agenda are cherry tomatoes which have just begun to fruit. I’m also having another shot at pumpkins and have been cheered at their much better growth so far this year. The usual peas and Dan’s potatoes appear to be doing well. I only wish I could say the same for the courgettes and onions which, yet again, appear to be failing. I think next year I will go back to growing them in buckets as the pottage really doesn’t appear to suit them

The first tomtats of the season.

A couple of key purchases since I last wrote too. Firstly I am now the owner of a Nikon D40, a lovely little camera which came up at just the right time and confirms my belief in fate After all the photo sessions at work I had been speaking to Dan about the greatness which are my bosses Nikon cameras and how I’d love to own one but would never afford it. The very next morning one of Dan’s colleagues decided to sell his at a reduced price to me if I promised to love it. I do It’s lower spec that my Sony and definitely a very different camera. I am enjoying having them both in my life and the different lessons they are each teaching me. Now toying with the idea of doing a course so I can learn all this stuff properly, I’m acutely aware of my amateurism in this field.

Seeing what I could do with my shiney new camera

The second purchase came this weekend in the guise of a new (well to me) car. As much as I love the Mondeo it was sadly heading for work that I can’t possibly do to keep it on the road. The decision was taken to look for a new car. Ideally it should be smaller, cost less tax and insurance and reduce the amount of petrol I’m burning through. In reality the one I’ve gone for costs the same in tax and insurance, is defined as a truck in America and will burn just as much fuel but, I really really really like it We’ve all agreed that it’s a lovely little car that certainly suits my style of driving and will, fingers crossed, keep me quite for a good few years. It even means Dan can get a smaller car so perhaps we’ll be saving money by proxy

My lovely new car, a Chrysler PT Cruiser - like marmite, you either love it or hate it

So all in all a busy few months which have brought with them a mixed bag of emotions. Now, onwards and upwards as the busyness looks set to continue through the summer and into the new academic year.