Monday, November 06, 2006

Leeds Castle and Whiz Bangs...

A very nice if somewhat peculiar day occurred on Saturday. I mean apart from the usual horrendous loss by Manchester City, I don't think I can recall a Saturday like it. I woke up at my usual sort of time, 7am, and pottered about a bit. I then loaded the car with my Henry gear and headed up the old A303. I was off to Leeds Castle in Kent - again! But this was with a slight difference from normal.
The journey to Kent was easy and I soon arrived at my sister's house in Stockbury, near Sittingbourne, and had a nice cup of tea and a chat with her and her husband, Julian. She cooked me a lovely lunch of chicken enchilladas, a quick tour of all the house work they are having done and then I was off over to Leeds Castle itself. I was to help out at a Fireworks Party being held in the main castle. A large company had hired the castle and had invited various clients and their children for a days entertainment, culminating in a firework display attended by the general public as well - and there were 1,000's of them there already when I arrived! I got changed in the estate office as usual and was then whizzed in an open top golf buggy up to the main castle. This was the most frightening part of the day as the man driving me obviously reckoned he was Michael Schumacher and I had nothing to hold on to, including my dignity. My main job at the do was to meet and greet people at the front door of the castle as they arrived. After battling past me inside was a veritable Aladdin's cave of goodies and fun for the kids. There were rows of Sega car and motorbike racing games that the children could play for free, face painting and henna hand designs, oodles of good food, a cool jazz quartet in the old library and an amazing magician and balloon artist. I started at 2pm and was allowed to go by 4.30pm as the children and their families were off to watch the main firework display. Therefore, after getting changed I was on my way back to Somerset by 5pm and home by 7.30pm. It didn't really feel like I had been to Kent and back at all!
I had a nice relaxing Sunday, pausing only to watch Torchwood and throw buckets of icy water over my wife everytime Captain Jack Harkness appeared on the screen, and so on to this week. Tomorrow (Tuesday) I drive to Essex to stay with my parents. On Wednesday I am at St Theresa's School in Basildon in the day and in the evening I am at 2, Temple Place for a corporate do. Thursday I am up bright and early and off to Robert Kett Junior again in Wymondham, and on Friday I am at Wickford Junior in...er...Wickford. Exhausting and fun. Which is how my wife reckoned Captain Jack Harkness might be.

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