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Leeds Last Weekend

By Friends & Family, Happiness & Joy, LifeNo Comments
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Left to Right: Me, Robert & Neha.

 Last weekend I went to Leeds to visit Robert & Neha. I attended their wedding in India a couple of years ago, see My India Adventure (Part 2) – The Wedding.

Robert & Neha are two of the most gorgeous, kind and wonderful people that I know. I am so lucky to have them both in my life.

I arrived in Leeds on Friday night. We talked, catching up on the last few years, drank wine and had the most awesome handmade pizzas by Robert.

On the Saturday we had a mooch around town, visited the oldest pub in Leeds (well it would be rude not to!) and had a game of Monopoly.

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Monopoly!

I was the first out of the game, Neha had Lady Luck on her side, but in the end Robert won. We watched some of the wedding video, some Netflix and ultimately chilled.

This is what life is all about, I thought to myself on more than one occasion throughout the weekend. Spending time with people you love and care about. Having the time to converse and connect. To share good times with one another.

We’ve promised each other to do this more often. So Robert & Neha, if you’re reading this, my turn to host next time. I doubt I’ll be able to top the superb job you did. But I look forward to giving it a try and having another fantastic time.

Blog soon,

Antony

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Tuesday 16 January 2018

The Fantastic Peter Pan’s Musical Adventure at Blackpool Winter Gardens

By Friends & Family, Gigs & Shows, Life, Shopping8 Comments

Some days are special. Some days are when memories are made. Today was one of those days.

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Blackpool Tower

My mum, my brother, his girlfriend and my nephew went to to see Peter Pan’s Musical Adventure at Winter Gardens in Blackpool. We got into town early and headed to the amusements.

My mum and nephew took to the 2p machines with eagerness. They took their tubes of 2ps to the machines, started to feed them and collect tickets (that would be later exchanged for toy prizes).

Mum quickly got hooked and was like a crack addict getting their fix (joke!). At one point mum and I were looking for the others, she saw a 2p machine and made a be-line for it. Mum’s face, full of concentration and determination (to get more tickets), made me smile and chuckle no end.

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The 2p Machines.
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Mum feeding the 2p machines and feeding her habit at the same time.

Peter Pan was fantastic! Modern music, enthusiastic cast, lots of adult humour and plenty of flying. Children and adults alike throughly enjoyed the show from start to finish.

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Peter Pan Poster at Winter Gardens, Blackpool.
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Peter Pan the set (1).
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Peter Pan the set (2).

Next year’s performance will be The Wizard of Oz. Are you a friend of Dorothy’s?

Spending the quality time with family today made me feel really blessed. I am greatful to have such close relationships with my wonderful, awesome and fabulous family.

Blog soon,

Antony

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Saturday 6 January 2018

My November

By Amazon, Friends & Family, Health, Life, Pets, TV, Online Streaming & FilmsNo Comments

A lot happened in November. Some of it was good and some of it was bad. Here were the key events:

4th November 17 – I went Smoke-Free, Day 1.

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Smoke-Free Logo

 5th November 17 – I was given the cold shoulder by Dylan. He just walked away from attention to sit with his back towards me. I called him by his name and was ignored.

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Blanked by Dylan.
6th November 17 – My week made with the arrival of my pre-orders from Amazon.

 11th November 17 – I tried on silly Christmas hats!

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Silly Christmas Hats!
12th November 17 – My lovely Grandma passed away. I am sure she is missed dearly by all who knew her. I am also very lucky to have some wonderful memories with her.

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My Lovely Grandma.

 14th November 17 – I went to the GP about an abscess in my groin. I was given oral antibiotics and told if it gets any bigger I must go to A&E to see a Surgeon.
15th November 17 – The abscess had doubled in size. So went to A&E, was given a dose of IV antibiotics and eventually saw a Surgeon. They decided to operate first thing the following morning.

I had been Nil By Mouth since arriving in A&E at around 1PM and had not eaten since breakfast. They let me go home well after 9pm to eat, rest and with instructions to fast from 3am and be back at the hospital for 8am.

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Oh pink…just my colour.

 16th November 17 – The day of the surgery. All of the NHS staff were kind, compassionate and understanding. But communication could have been better.

I arrived on the ward at 07:50am and was instructed by a Nurse on the night shift to wait in the waiting room, while the early staff had handover. The night shift Nurse didn’t tell the day staff that I had arrived and meant I ended up waiting over an hour. Apparently staff had been looking for me everywhere.

After the surgery, I didn’t know whether my open wound had been packed or not, because it wasn’t documented in my notes.

It has been uncomfortable, a bit tender and at times painful. I have thanked my family and Steve who have been amazing in supporting me pre and post surgery.

The surgery and waiting for the open to heal has been very frustrating for me.

Everything has had to be put on hold. I’ve had to rest and haven’t been able to do very much apart from watching Netflix, reading and napping. A huge positive is that I have remained Smoke-Free throughout.

17th November 17 – I became super excited after watching a video clip that revealed the title of the new Fantastic Beasts (Harry Potter) film: The Crimes of Grindelwald on Twitter @BeastsMovieUK. The film will be released on 16.11.18. 22nd November 17 – The day of Grandma’s funeral, which was really a celebration of her life. The service was touching and well attended. Grandma’s family and friends came together afterwards to share memories and the many things they will miss about her.
25th November 17 – Day 21 of being Smoke-Free.

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Smoke-Free Logo

 29th November 17 – Last day working at my old job. I will miss the people and liked the work, but am excited to start my new job.

Write soon,

Antony

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Thursday 30 November 2017

Photos from Sheffield Botanical Gardens Yesterday

By Friends & Family, Happiness & Joy, Life, NatureNo Comments

Yesterday Simon and I went to the brilliantly beautiful and glorious Sheffield Botanical Gardens. The gardens have species of plants, flowers and trees from around the world. The weather was warm and dry and we even had considerable spells of sunshine.

Here are some photos from Sheffield Botanical Gardens:

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Sheffield Botanical Gardens Sign
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Sheffield Botanical Gardens – A place of Beauty.
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Most plants had a black and white signs identifying the species, like this one.
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A mulberry tree.
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One of the many different species of plant.
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There were many collections (like the above) that were filled with colour.
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A wooden structure. Close by was also a mental ant. Both works of art added to the Gardens, but my favourite has to be this one.
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A bright and beautiful yellow flowered plant, in the background are more of the same.
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A tree with the most interesting red bark.

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An inspiring and detailed statue at the centre of a rose garden.
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More plants and flowers, with the indoor botanical gardens in the background.
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Several of these flower beds (with plants of various colours) lined the entrance to the indoor botanical gardens.
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An entrance to the indoor botanical gardens.
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Indoors – Cacti (1).
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Indoors – Cacti (2).
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Photo of the glass roof, taken indoors.
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Indoors – Many plants.
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Indoors – One plant had leafs that were so ginormous, that they made my hand look tiny (see photo above).

Essential Info:

  • A beautiful botanical gardens, which include .
  • Highly recommended.
  • Admission Price: FREE.
  • Opening Times: Vary, see Opening Times here.
  • Parking: Limited. The gardens have no carpark and the streets close by are either Permit Holders Only or Pay and Display.
  • Toilets available.
  • Cafe and Toy Shop also on site.
  • Map:
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    Map of Sheffield Botanical Gardens.
    Image from & Copyright © Sheffield Botanical Gardens.

Blog soon,

Antony

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Sunday 27 August 2017
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