Why are men fascinated by B-B-Q’s?
Well, I hope you are all coping with a hot British Summer!
The practice has been a bit toasty at times, but I am pleased to say the air conditioning has done us proud. There have even been a couple of days when Jess and Claire have worked without their jackets on -that’s when you can tell it’s really hot!
The great thing about a hot Summer is spending more time outdoors particularly at weekends. That in my mind, equates to a good B-B-Q.
I am pleased to say Matt is in total agreement with me and it was this which provoked a very enlightening conversation yesterday.
Matt phoned yesterday to say that later in the month he and Miriam were coming home from London for a weekend. He suggested having a B-B-Q on the Sunday afternoon so he could catch up with Jenny and Jevon and have a really nice family afternoon. “Great idea,” I’d said to him “….and it will save Mum having to cook.”
I came off the phone full of enthusiasm for the idea and said to Maria, “Great news we are going to have a B-B-Q when Matts home, so that will make your life a bit easier.”
I was met by an incredulous look on her face and a stony silence.
“Do you really think it makes my life easier?” she said
“Yes, I do” I said, “…. because Matt and I will do all the cooking.” “No,” she said, “what you really mean is you and Matt will stand around the B-B-Q drinking beer, listening to the cricket on the radio and talking sport. You will successfully manage to cremate the sausages, under-cook the burgers and its pot luck what happens to the chicken!”
She went on to say, “Let’s just think about what goes into the Sunday afternoon BBQ…….
Who buys the food?”
“You do” I reply.
“Who prepares the meat?”
“You do” I reply.
“Who prepares all the salads?”
“You do” I reply
“Who does all the washing up while you and Matt sit around congratulating yourself on another great family BBQ?”
I didn’t reply to this one, as even I could see there was a definite trend to my answers!
And so, my illusion has been cruelly shattered.
Matt and I ‘cooking a B-B-Q’ is not the great burden easing on Maria that I thought it was.
I have promised her that this time we will do a lot more to help and that will be absolutely fine…… unless there is some exciting cricket on the radio. If there is, I can probably guarantee it will be back to the normal family BBQ arrangements!
UV Protection
On a slightly more serious note, with such a hot summer our professional bodies are asking us to remind all patients; adults and children, to make sure they are using sunglasses to protect their eyes when there are high levels of UV around.
UV radiation damages your cornea and is a catalyst for macula degeneration so, to give yourself the best protection possible, please ensure you wear your sun-specs. If you want any further information or advice about this or wish to see our sun-spec ranges please contact the practice and a member of the team will be more than happy to help you – and don’t forget sun-specs can be manufactured to your prescription.
Sleeping Dogs
I must say that the hot Summer has made a bit of a difference to our dog walking habits. Leo and Willow can’t cope with such extreme temperatures and so we have modified our walking times. We have been going out at 5.30am in the morning and then 10.00pm at night when it is much cooler – that’s been great for them, as they can sleep during the day, but it’s just about killing me.
So, I will be pleased when it’s a bit cooler and we can get back into a more sensible routine.
Maria is also having a summer break from dog training classes. Leo being 8 years old is a bit of a pro but Willow missed out on a lot of classes due to COVID. Anyway a few weeks ago (before it got hot) we were up at Wallington Hall having a walk and Maria was keen for Willow to practice her ‘sit and watch’ command. “I’ll do it” I said “…and you can take a picture and send it to the dog trainer to show how well Willow is doing.”
So, we picked a suitable spot and I gave Willow the command. As you can see from the first photo Leo got it spot on first time however with Willow, we had to have two attempts. According to Maria it wasn’t Willows fault it was the instructions I had given her and as you can see from the second picture when Maria gave her the command it was perfect.
I don’t think I need to add anything to that!
Matt and Miriam
The other lovely thing about this Summer has been Matt and Miriam getting married. We had a wonderful weekend in the Lake District in early July for their Wedding Celebration. Even the weather was perfect, although we were slightly concerned, right up to the last minute.
On the Friday night we had a typical Lakeland – torrential – down pour, not conducive to an outdoor wedding! The weather had brightened up by the Saturday lunchtime when the guests started to arrive and we had a beautiful trip around Lake Windermere on the afternoon and a B-B-Q (cooked by the hotel – not us!) in the evening, all in glorious sunshine.
The Sunday morning was overcast but by the time of the service, in the afternoon, it was back to wall-to-wall sunshine. Everyone had a fabulous time and Jenny even put up with me ‘Dad dancing’ with her on the evening!
Thanks to everyone for their encouraging comments about my triathlon back in May. I am hoping to fit another one in, probably in September, provided this old body stays injury free.
And finally…. Jenny has asked me to inform everyone that we are now much more active on Facebook, so if you are a social media whizz, please follow us to keep up to date.
Well, I am off to try and find a book on how to become an expert at B-B-Q cooking! Wish me luck……
Hope you have a great summer. See you soon.
Best wishes,
Stuart.