Wednesday 19 October 2011

A family affair

We're off on holiday next week, I can smell the irony as I write from the veranda of our holiday home (Alan Partridge-esque static caravan in Warsash). The plan was to take this, probably, final opportunity for all of the family to spend some quality time together and, as this year was our 20th wedding anniversary, for Emma and I to renew out wedding vows. It all seemed so simple, so straight forward and for once a Gledson plan appeared to be water tight and foolproof. HA! As usual I left the arrangements a bit late and there were those who doubted the possibility that I could organise a venue, registrar and trappings within a week. Nope, that was not the problem, I have spent most of my life leaving things until the last minute and generally getting there by the skin of my teeth (where does that phrase actually originate? Must find out...Wikipedia!!). Barbara, the lovely registrar in Kendal, was only to happy to help and the arrangements for her colleague to officiate at our ceremony took a few minutes. Likewise, the staff at Langdale Chase Hotel were splendid, an intimate setting was arranged and I smugly sat back and basked in the glow of self-satisfied smug, smugness. What could go wrong? Emma and I planned to travel up to Carlisle from Center Parcs near Penrith next Tuesday, the 25th, to buy replacement rings. The holiday was comfortably arranged and neatly put to bed.

New paragraph to emphasise shock and change of emotion!!

And another. Sam and Bill have diligently, I use the word relative to their normal approach of course, been seeking employment. Bill, so far, has scored more with two days in a terrible sales job that have mentioned in previous posts, and is still sending out applications when he remembers. Sam, on the other hand, has a more specific approach to job-hunting. If he had lived a few tens of thousand years ago and was relying on his method to catch and kill food, he would have spent a few weeks lying in his cave, on a pile of animal skins, awaiting the KFC monster to present its carcass and, in all honesty, slowly and sleepily starved to death. But then, to my admiration and surprise, the one very well thought out and presented application to the local ASDA yielded a result. He was invited to an open day and interview next week...(say slowly) when-we-were-on-holiday!!

I, more than anyone I guess, see that without his first sojourn into the real world Sam would spiral into apathy, lethargy and a whole host of words ending in 'y'. Emma was, as usual, pragmatic, suggesting that this was more important than his presence at our ceremony. I agreed, but, annoying though he is, I am going to miss him.Nearly as much as when I watched his tiny body, clad in a thick, white baby duvet-jacket, and held up by Emma on the esplanade (?) wall at Millbay as I sailed off to the West Indies weeks after his birth. Standing at-ease in full dress uniform I watched as the tiny speck that was my first child was lost to view and we drifted through the gap in the sea-wall that separated The Sound from the English Channel. I doubt that Sam will ever understand that feeling but it is something that will never leave me.

Anyway...at the caravan tonight with dad. A few pints and a casserole, simple pleasures but pleasures none the less.

1 comment:

  1. I can't wait to marry you again - thank you for making it happen... but like you I will miss My Little Big Man, but at least he's with Tom and going for interviews - WHOOP! xxx

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