Blimey, maybe I should dust this off once in a while. Hadn’t realised just how long it had been.

Christmas came and went amidst much merriment and giving and receiving of presents. Went over to my sister’s house for a smaller Christmas dinner than usual (numbers, not food), then Steph and I managed to completely trounce my dad, brother, and uncle at Cranium.

Unfortunately, but not unexpectedly, my gerbil Nicodemus died the day after I got back to Sheffield. I was worried that his mate would pine for him, but she still seems to be eating and drinking normally.

New Year’s Eve saw me and Ness at a 70s/80s evening at a club in Sheffield. We got there a little early, and managed to sneak in through a back door out of the cold at 9.30pm. At 9.45pm, the pre-recorded midnight gongs of Big Ben sounded, and then Auld Lang Syne was played. Very bizarre. At 11.56pm, the DJ announced that there were only 4 minutes to go…and then 30 seconds later, on came the chimes again and he announced the new year. Everyone was a bit bemused, but we had a good night regardless.

Visited friends Alex and Rik on the 3rd; I went to university with them, and they later married and moved to Bristol, but Alex’s parents still live in Derbyshire. They were up visiting, so I joined them for a post-Xmas and New Year celebration. Good to see them both, it doesn’t happen often enough.

Last week was the first back at work after the holidays, and things have been madness the past week and a half, getting things ready for a launch today. I’ve come down with a cold-type bug, so whilst I was in on Monday and Tuesday to help with the volume of work, I’ve finally succumbed to the worst of it today, and I’ve taken the day off to recover. Seems to be working too, thankfully.

Just under three months, and I’m off to America for Richard’s wedding and to visit Sam and Scott. March can’t come too soon for me.