Had a week off this week from one job, in order to do one of my other jobs - my self employed job. What joy. Monday started at 7.30am (see, putting the clocks back has its uses) an action packed day of ........doing the VAT. Was persuaded out of the house though by 2.30 with a trip to town and ended up spending 50 quid on a coat in TK Maxx. Well that was an expensive afternoon out - it is for me anyway.

This morning - a later start of 9.00am saw me doing the quarterly screaming tantrum, head exploding, rage inciting task of trying to submit a VAT Return on line. The Revenue have the worst website ever built, and whoever is responsible for it should be shot. Actually keying in the info and submitting takes ooh about 3 minutes. Finding the page takes about half an hour, and then when you find it, it's not working. YAAAAGH. Anyway after busting a blood vessel shouting at the computer, and giving myself a headache I finally had that done by 10.00am. By 2.30pm I was off out again (well it is supposed to be my holiday) this time a cheaper option of cycling along the canal. Didn't even get out of breath - been (still on 2 to 3 per day) stopped smoking now for 49 days and the benefits are showing (especially on my bank statements), although the HMRC website episode this morning drove me to smoke. In fact their stupid website should carry a health warning:

"Visiting this site could adversely affect not only your financial health, but also your mental stability, browse with caution". Bunch of bummers.

So what of tomorrow. Well I finally get to start what I had the time off for in the first place, to do the annual accounts and tax returns. Oh, what bloody fun. If I get through the next few weeks trying to get that done, do my other two jobs, plus stupid Christmas, stupid shopping (grrr - don't even get me started on Christmas), without turning into a chain smoker then I think I will be able to say I finally quit.

For someone who finds riding pillion the 50 or so miles from home to Blackpool bum-numbingly uncomfortable, I cannot imagine what it would be like to cover 15,000 miles on a motorbike through some of the most hostile environments in the world.

Tonight I will be watching the first in the series of "Long Way Down" on BBC2 at 9.00pm, when Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman do just that - ride 15,000 miles through 18 different countries starting at Johno'Groats and ending in Cape Town.

Back in our "summer" (well, the months of May and June) Chris Moyles of Radio 1 chatted to Ewan and his co-rider Charley by phone as they made the journey. I remember them travelling through Sudan and talking about the searing temperatures (about 40 odd degrees) they had to endure and the difficulty they were having in keeping their bikes upright trying to ride along sand swept roads. It sound like it will be good, but if it gives my husband any ideas take it from me, he'll be riding solo.

Meet the team for more info.

According to my statistics I have had 83 page views today, but only 26 visitors. Most of the time I don't pay very much attention to the stats but I just happened by them today for some reason. I don't really understand them. Why would I have 83 page views but only 26 visitors, does that mean someone keeps looking at the pages over and over again? - weird.

It's been a gorgeous day, and on my day off too. Did some work this morning, then went out this afternoon to walk round the lake as I'm sure we can't be lucky enough to have weather this nice for much longer. Promised to work tonight instead, but never quite got round to it. Oh well, I suppose I could get up really early tomorrow and do my invoices before I go to work.

It made me think how lucky I am to be able to just go out and take advantage of the good weather. We may not have been on holiday this year but I think of everyone who has had their annual holiday in the sun and is now stuck in an office all day to pay for it. Having two different part time jobs and self employed certainly makes the weeks fly by, soon be summer then, just hope its better than this year.

Wow. I'm impressed. It's the in thing at the moment for business to be able to say its "reducing its carbon footprint". So Tesco have taken a step back in time in order to do their bit for the environment.

On Thursday they began the first of three shipments per week carrying around 600,000 litres of wine along the Manchester Ship Canal by barge from Liverpool to Manchester to a local bottling plant. This takes around 50 HGV's off the road as the wine used to come via road from various ports in the South.

So well done Tesco. It's good to know that all the work that went into building canals almost 200 years ago isn't going to waste. And as for the environment - well, every little helps!!

My husband is watching football. Must be absolutely riveting cos he's watching it with his eyes shut and snoring loudly - Plus, even though he has never taken any interest in rugby - ever, he had to watch the rugby earlier on - why? If it's not a sport you normally take an interest in why is it so watchable just because it's England in a world cup. Anyway they lost, shame, do I even look bovvered I watched Robin Hood - much more exciting.

As it was such a beautiful sunny day today we set off for Blackpool this afternoon. Never actually got there though. The motorway was blocked, full of people off to see the illuminations. Sad. So sad when the only thing we can all think of doing on such a lovely day is to all drive to Blackpool to see the lights. So we ended up at some country park - Witton Country Park. It was OK. They had a pets corner and had this dirty great rabbit there. Apparently it was a Giant British rabbit!! So big in fact, that if you were to make a pie with it, it would probably feed the whole street. Not that I would ever eat rabbit. I remember having duck once and apart from it being disgustingly greasy, both me and my daughter couldn't help but think of little fluffy ducks swimming on a pond and said we would never eat it again. Aww

Much better mood today. The sun shone this afternoon - typical, I was at work, still never mind it was nice to see the sun and because I wasn't at work til afternoon I got my washing hung out and it was dry when I got home. Yay!!

One little teeny weeny moan about the weather though, just watched the forecast and it shows that the coldest temperature over the whole country will be where I live tonight, colder even than Scotland, set to be zero by 5 in the morning which means we must have the highest pressure. So unfair - why do we get the highest pressure at night in October - why can't we have it in the summer during the day.

I'm off to bed now. Reading "Getting Rid of Matthew" by Jane Fallon. S'really good, much better than the last book I read "Baggage" by Emily Barr, as all Emily Barr books, it was a bit depressing and took me forever to read.

In really bad mood today for no apparent reason.

Bin to Docs re swollen feet. As is always typical they weren't nearly so bad as they were yesterday and Friday, so Doctors never get to see megga, massive ankles that stop me even getting my shoes on

Didn't come up with much except water tablets so suppose will give them a try. I think overactive thyroid thing is playing up again. For some reason stopping smoking seems to set it off. What a good excuse to start again So going for blood test next week to see if its that.

Such a bad mood though, everythings getting on my nerves and I feel tears not far behind. All this happened last time I stopped smoking. It's 35 days today since I stopped, well nearly stopped as I still keep having two or three a day. Haven't cried yet, so doing much better than last time, but last two or three days have not been good especially being in such a bad, nasty mood. Actually yesterday wasn't so bad because I was at work all day. Maybe its not being deprived of smoking thats making me ratty, but more the house which is so untidy and just a total mess that I don't even want to be here. Plus has anyone noticed bloody adverts on TV. DFS and Argos actually playing Christmas music in October !!! You'll see me in the newspaper soon when one advert too many finally pushes me over the edge and I go on the rampage in DFS throwing sand and buckets and spades everywhere to remind them that 1. I am still waiting for summer and 2. It is not sodding Christmas yet.

Soo depressed today. Bad time of the year, mind you all year has been a bad time of the year. It's been a grey, miserable weekend weather wise, with only more of the same to look forward to. I think I need one of those light box things, oh and if anyone has a soundtrack of waves crashing on a beach and seagulls that would be appreciated.

Not been on holiday this year - the weather was so crap. I've been looking on Flickr because I'm bored and found a lovely set of photos. I tried to pinch one - just to cheer myself up but I just ended up downloading a blank square - serves me right I suppose. Here is a link to the album instead. I don't know the person who they belong to, but they are pictures of Dorset and I love it there. I know the exact location of every single photo on there. Apart from the grey one with the brolly in the rain - that could quite easily be anywhere, but most probably where I live. What with rain, grey and umbrella all rolled into one, that's a real home from home.