*snipped from UKP* The Eagle Landed!
What can I say? The Xmas holidays were utterly hectic for me. I didn't know if I was coming or going half the time and only managed to squeeze two days off over the holiday period Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
Overall we had a great time. Family together as best as was able (what with Alexa away in Oz and my grandmother away with the faries). As ususal too much food consumed and too much trashy tv watched but hey... its Christmas and thats what you do right?
I was contacted at the start of December by Moonhunter who had decided that she was going to do a "world tour" and wanted to come here on her way somewhere else. So last week was spent trying to get the OH to clear out the spare room so we could have someone to sleep over! What with me and my head up my ass with family, for some reason, I thought MH was arriving on Monday. She txted me on Saturday to give me flight arrival times for Sunday!
Trust me to get it wrong.
Not to worry tho... I was ready for her.
Having heard tales of her propensity to be trailed by a clatter of gods, not the least of them Loki, I have to admit to being a little nervous and the txt message I got in the middle of the afternoon on Sunday didnt help. It went something like this.. "loki arsing about, stuck in traffic, if you can do something to help shift it, much appreciated!"
She made her flight. When she arrived, we went to the local shops and I got some stuff for food and MH went shopping for drink.
We got back to the flat, bags were dumped and we were straight back outside for offerings. I am quite sure the neighbours wondered what the hell we were doing swigging from bottles and then flinging the booze about.
Sunday night was spent stuffing our faces and drinking and talking. Talking ooohhh the talking. If talking was power we could have lit up a small village.
Eventually tho, at 04.00 we decided that if we were ever going to do anything the next day, bed was required.
The following morning we got up, got dressed, had a kind of breakfast (neither of us being breakfast people really) and then went out. The first place we went to was the Rhinka. A shop in the country in an area called Islandmagee. The Rhinka has been selling vanilla ice cream from 1921 and still uses the same recipe. Its one of those places when visiting the North, you have got to go to. MH found it all rather ammusing since it was pretty damned cold. We ordered our ice cream and sat outside in the car like Cissie and Ada licking away watching with ammusement as a Great Tit reversed its way around a car park and then ran like buggery across the road. However MH could not quite contain herself at what happened next. Up beside us pulls a swanky car. BMW whatever the latest series is, 7 or 11 or 22...
an inside are these two city types. Suits you could cut yourself on, pinstripe shirts and one in a pink tie. The passenger gets out and wanders into the shop and emerges a few minutes later carrying two 99's and looking rather pleased with himself.
He got into the car with his colleague and the two of them, looking like 5 year olds with massive grins, toodled off down the road, licking away happily. Maybe it was one of those things where you had to be there, but the sight of their faces and the swanky car and the ice creams with flakes... we fell about laughing.
Next, I took MH to Portmuck. Lovely name...
Its a very small bay, known only really to locals but quite pretty and has some very pretty pebbles, blue and white or blue and gold and we both collected some and I found some rather nice fossils.
On our way back we stopped at Knocka Monument. Its a WW monument erected to commemorate those lost in war and stands on a hill that can been seen for miles and miles. From the monument you can see out over Bangor and Holywood, right across Belfast and up the coast to Carrick and beyond. It was beautiful as it always is. However, the wind chill made it feel like it was about -5. So like the sensible witches we are, we nodded at the view, ooohed and aaahed and said, things like... "yes... very appropriate for the ancestors to be seen every day and to eb able to look down on where they are from" and then bolted for the car before our fingers froze off!
That night I cooked my Chicken Curry and we ate like the hounds of hell were behind us and followed that with some booze and some very plesant grass. Fortunately the OH was there listening because as the grass kicked in MH and I both lost the thread of the conversation several times and had to look to the OH to steer us back on track.
I tell you wot tho, we put the world to rights. Nothing quite like two witches both of the "I-know-best frame" of mind to work out how the world should be run.
Eventually at 05.15 (which I am told is a new record
) we decided that we really should go to bed. We crawled from our pits the following day about 11.00 and since MH didnt have to leave till 16.30. Launched once again into gossiping and nattering like two old fishwives.
I thoroughly enjoyed myself. MH helped me sort a wight that was causing a little havock in the house and stealing stuff. The most important of which was returned, much to my ammusement and consternation I have to say.
She also gave me the most beautiful owl pendant. Now I have to say, I am not one for jewlery. But this owl was beautiful and according to MH is an "avenging" owl, which is pretty appropriate for those that know me and I havent had it off since she left. It really talks to me this wee thing. Thank you MH.
So yeah. A fantastic couple of days with a someone who is now a really good friend. I cant wait till she comes back!