Let the holidays begin...

Ah the summer holidays! Today is one of my favourite days of the year because I have nearly 6 weeks stretching out before me during which I'm not bound by time. I love not having to look at the clock very much at all. Today I was up relatively early because I was taking Mum to the hairdresser's and then on to Dad's grave to tidy up and lay fresh flowers. Today would have been his 74th birthday.

We called at a local supermarket (of the German variety) to buy some flowers. When I came out there was an officious looking man with very bad teeth and a luminous yellow jacket standing near my car with a pad and pen in hand. I spotted a slip of paper under my windscreen wiper.

What's this?

"You can read it."

It was a preprinted notice with my car registration number and the date and a tick next to "not parking within the marked bays". I looked at my car. The wheels must have been a whole millimetre over the white line. I'm not the best parker in the world but I'd done it because the car next to me was taking up nearly two spaces. There must have been ten cars in the whole car park. It wasn't even 10am yet.

You've got to be joking!

"It's only a warning this time. It it was busy I'd have given you a £70 fine."

It takes a certain kind of person to do that job. How petty! I rang the manager of the supermarket to express my feelings. I don't really want to shop there in case my wheels trespass a millimetre over the white lines in the parking bay and it costs me £70. She was most pleasant and promised to have a word.

Back to nicer things. I have this inbuilt desire to clean, tidy and sort as soon as the holidays begin. So I began on Anni's room. Whilst tidying I found an unopened gift of two sundae dishes with lovely ice cream toppings, so Tom and Anni had ice cream sundaes for dessert. Now we're going to relax and watch Anne of Green Gables ~ The Continuing Story. I'd like to live in Green Gables. No parking officials there...