Moose on the Move!

The birds are about, daffodils are looking glorious all over the county and the weather is beginning to warm up. We have had some brilliantly sunny days recently and we both agree that these days are good for the soul. It is so much easier to be happy when the days are long and sunny and warmer.

A few days after we got back from Switzerland we were invited to see the stage musical version of Footloose ("...footloose, everybody cut footloose..."). We drove down with friends Chrissie and Dom and two of their friends. It was a great show - lots of songs to sing along to and the dancing was great. Afterwards we went to find somthing for dinner and eneded up in a tapas bar. Chris and I had never had tapas before and had to ask for some instruction and suggestion... I guess in someways it's a little like a Spanish version of yum cha - lots of little dishes that you share with the others at your table. It was fun and delicious!

The following weekend was the Exeter Festival of South West Food and Drink (how's that for a name and a half?!)There seems to be a real pride associated with being from the south west and all that that entails. There was a huge selection of stalls showcasing and selling everything - chillichocolate, organic apple juice, fresh meat products, nettle cheese, faggots and all kinds of beer. There were also all kinds of samples for tasting! It was really an impressive display, the only problem was that because the festival (now in it's third year) is so popular that at times it was near impossible to move around the tents.

It was a beautiful day, the sun came out and so did the people. The number of people in the Cathedral Green is almost always a good indication of how goos the weather is. This day there were hundreds of people there - young goths, elderly locals, eager tourists - it always has a nice vibe when it's like this.

The week either side of the easter weekend were school holidays and so I tried to make the most of the days were sunny. On one such day I decided to borrow our neighbour Dayna's bike and try riding to Topsham. It's not all that far but it's not somthing either of us had done before. The sun was shining as I took off and it was quite pleasant. The suspension on the bike was different to my own at home and everytime I tried to pump the pedals I got a bit of rhythm going and developed quite a bit of bounce. I must have looked quite amusing.

I eventually made it to Topsham after a couple of wrong turns and dead ends and after avoiding a boggy path only accessible during low tide. I sat for about a half an hour in Topsham, watching the birds and the river flow past. The sun was glorious. The small flyikng insects that insisted on flying into my mouth and eyes on the cycle back were not.

We have decided to sell our car, Rosie, and upgrade to somthing similar but newer. We are planning a long driving trip in the middle of the year when my parents come to visit - our new car has aircon and a CD player and a few other nifty little things. We'll pick it up once we've sold our old Rosie. It's a bit exciting but also a bit sad - Rosie was good to us for the year. Mostly.

Leia came down for part of her school holidays and we walked by the river and generally caught up. With spring have come ducklings and we saw a delightful little family of them swimming up the canal while we walked. The cats in our neighbourhood have also been taking more notice of the birds recently, One that lives around the corner decided to stalk then by sitting amongst the daffodils. I am happy to report that said puss looks nothing like a daffodill and therefore has had no luck whatsoever in catching the birds he's been watching.

Over the easter weekend Leia was joined by two other friends from London and the three of them spent two nights in a vegetarian youth hostel in Dartmoor. I joined them on Saturday morning for a walk in the countryside - which ended up being decidedly longer than I had originally imagined. We were out walking for about 5 hours... although that did include a lunch break on the moor. We walked through some lovely landscape, but unfortunately it was not a sunny day and the haze prevented us from getting any really good landscape views or photos. We did get to meet some interesting people and see some genial cows with awesome hairdos!

The girls stayed that night in Dartmoor again and Chris and I went to dinner with some friends. It was our first BBQ since we left home - not including the little disposable thing we used in Bath about a year ago. It was great! The house was right on the river Exe in Topsham and the weather was warm enough for us to stay outside for ages. The BBQ itself wasn't an elaborate construction, a few bricks and a grill but it smelt just right, gave off heat in the right way and the marinated salmon tasted brilliant! The evening was topped off with a bit of bagpiping from Kate and two of her piping mates. Not sure what the neighbours thought but we loved it.

On Easter Sunday Leia and the others caught the bus back from Dartmoor. That night we went to a comedy club here in Exeter. It is a small place and there is generally a range of talent there. The first guy up was ok, the second guy was dreadful (bad timing, poor microphone manner and he was really crude and rude) the third guy was brilliant and really saved the day. I guess that is what you get for 5 pounds though and everyone has to start somwhere....

A few days later (Wednesday 19th April) was my birthday. Chris surprised me by hiding little presents in various places around the house and then sending me on silly pretend errands (like writing down the model number of the printer so we could order new cartridges) to find them. It was great fun, but meant i was looking suspiciously at every cupboard door and in all the corners. Several of the little presents were logic puzzles and the like which have been driving us all mad since.

That night we went to the Red Square restaurant in town. It is a Russian place complete with instructions for vodka drinking etiquette. The food was fabulous, though heavy. Deffinitely somewhere we will go back to. Dayna came with us and it was a lovely evening. Dayna gave me a beautiful silver pendant that she made last year. It looks stunning and is one of a kind!

My parents asked a few weeks ago what I would like for a birthday present. I thought about it and decided that a studdie holder would be a good idea. Summer is coming and so is the need to keep drinks cool. Also I thought they are light and cen be squashed for easy packing. Imagine my surprise when I arrived at the postoffice to pick up a package that wouldn't fit through the the door, only to discover that it contained a big box with not 2 or 3 holders like I had hoped for - but 12! Assorted! Cool.

This last weekend (22nd/23rd April) we were visited by Jess and Jeff down from London. We havn't seen them since YNE in London and it was good to catch up. We went to Dartmoor for lunch and a little letterboxing, we walked around town a bit and we went out with a group of friends for pizza. That was an interesting evening - we got three other couples together who hadn't met before, but it was nice. Sunday was Jess's birthday - we sang the appropriate songs and went out for breakfast and coffee before they hit the road and headed back to London.

We're still trying to sell our car - haven't been having much luck so far... a price drop might be on the horizon. So that's about it for now. School has just started back, it's the last term of the year already... wow. We're looking to extend our lease here until the end of the year and Chris has had his contract at work extended as well. It's nice to know we're going to be in Exeter for a bit longer. We're both really looking forward to the summer and the longer warmer evening. It's getting closer!! Also my parents are coming for a visit in the middle of the year and we're planning a road trip through parts of Europe, very exciting!

Hope you're well and happy. We'd love to hear how you're doing and what's new in your life. Take care!