She makes me a better person,
By lifting me when I slip,
She makes me a better person,
By reminding me to do the dishes.
She makes me a better person,
Because she loves me; warts and all.
She makes me a better person,
Because her love is worth changing for.
Our half-day adventure in Didcot was surprisingly pleasant.
In fact, the day even reminded me of the time when I had considered living in Didcot. However, I’m glad it was only a consideration.
One cannot argue against the economics that dictate the conditions we live under. Moving from the North back to the South of England gave us a terrible fright when I saw rental prices. Didcot was a serious contender.
“Babes, I think living in Oxford is beyond our means – how about Didcot? It has quick access to London and is only one stop by train to Oxford”.
“Great! Mark that as another town to check out”.
As we approached Didcot, the thought of living in a town over shadowed by a bellowing power station killed all preconceptions we held whilst in the North. We didn’t even drive into Didcot.
Sitting in Cibo restaurant with Babes and her colleagues was a lovely experience. I have to admit, it was very tasty food for a franchise.
It also happens to be a lunch organised to promote breast cancer awareness - the pink theme was reflective of everyone’s mood.
Babes was also given a half day off from work for all the long hours she has given in the lab. I’m so very grateful that she works for a company that truly respects and appreciates the time she devotes to her work.
To be honest, we struggled to envisage how we would spend those precious hours in Didcot. Even though we had already bought tickets to Pixar’s “Up” we still had just over an hour to kill and with so little to see in Didcot and lunch ending sooner than expected – the hour looked daunting.
But none-the-less we found our way into a coffee/bistro and talked the time away.
“Up” was what made Didcot memorable. I haven’t felt so moved in a film for a long time. The old man was someone to admire. His life was fulfilled by the love he shared with his wife. Those short scenes - a collection of memories really – were evocative and so well paced that as a viewer I felt a true connection. The relationship encapsulated my definition of what true love really meant. So much was told with such precise detail. Not a single piece of dialogue was needed.
As for watching it with Babes, I couldn’t help but wish we will have the same adventures.
To me, Up was a fantastically told narrative. In my eyes, the best Pixar has ever achieved and a model which I endeavour to accomplish in my own writing. Precise, succinct, well paced narrative. Powerful and lovable. Every character added just the right amount to the story.
If you haven’t seen ‘Up’ I thoroughly recommend it – and if you live near Didcot, why not hit two birds with one stone? If you’ve got a few hours to burn, it’s not such a bad place to visit…once in a blue moon.
Babes recently found employment at a private biotech firm in Oxfordshire. I believe their main goal is to develop new cancer therapies. Regardless to say, Babes was informed she needed to buy safety goggles before working on the bench.
I had the preconception that they were simply lab goggles with prescription lenses attached to the inside.
I was wrong.
The adventure started with a journey to visit a friend in Birmingham. He was nursing a broken ankle. In my multi-tasking approach, I had suggested we book a sight test in Birmingham as well.
All went well until we drove home. Again, endless cones on the British motorway waylaid us by stopping traffic needlessly. Surprisingly, we had an irate driver pass us by. She made verbal gestures suggesting we needed our eyes tested. We just had them tested that day!
With Babes receiving a new prescription for her eyes, the second phase was to find appropriate safety eyewear.
Into Oxford we ventured. Oxford is a crammed, over touristic town with very little to see other than old buildings which could be found in better condition in Cambridge.
And as Shakespeare once wrote “what’s in a name?”
Really, never does Juliet’s comment ring louder than when I am in Oxford.
Babes has a work colleague who visits Cambridge once in a while – I really wanted him to buy me a Cambridge top so I could wear it around Oxford. He laughed nervously and gave me the “are you serious” look.
Of course I am serious! He never bought the top.
Damn the British politeness.
Where was this politeness when Babes and I were stuck on the M “whatever” heading out of Birmingham?
So there we were, Babes smiling beautifully as she always does and me being pissed off with the crowd of mindless consumers that walked this Earth. We ventured into every optician in town. All of them had the same frames – big and ugly.
Despairingly, we went for coffee and headed home. Pushed into the corner of resignation Babes accepted the fate of wearing the world’s ugliest glasses possible. We rehearsed in our head the Dr Nerd and Mrs Babes story.
How can one simple accessory change a person’s appearance so dramatically?
Heroically, as Babes is a hero to me, she continued to pursue a better alternative.
Abingdon, a small town about 10 minutes drive south of Oxford held the answer. The answer that took us to Birmingham and back was literally around the corner.
In the end, Babes is still a babe at work. Her glasses are currently being fitted with safety shields and I realised, sometimes what you need is really just outside your doorstep.
NOTE: The glasses Babes settled for are not on display
I don’t really know how Babes deals with it. Men and Direction. I haven’t met a man who doesn’t get defensive over the topic.
Babes and I constantly talk about going away on road trips. The reason we talk as opposed to "do" stems mainly down to the fact that I’m not very good on dealing with being lost or being stuck in traffic. Even after purchasing the TomTom not all road trips we embark upon ever end up perfect. Usually, one or several of the following occurs:
A/ I get lost and shout at the TomTom for misguiding me - why does it say “left turn ahead” when it doesn’t actually want you to take the turn?
B/ I speed up because we think we are lost (but I don’t say anything). Speed upsets Babes “Sweety why don’t you slow down?”
“I am!”
"want me to get out the TomTom?"
"No! I know where we are going..."
C/ In my excitement I whisk babes away to a funky restaurant somewhere in the middle of nowhere.
“Have you got the address? Want me to punch the postcode into the TomTom?”
“Babes, its all in my head – don’t worry. It’s a surprise”
…Several hours later we’re home and eating take-away.
D/ sitting in traffic I fume "should have taken that last exit - I just knew this was going to happen - stupid TomTom". It's as though heavy traffic only occurs when I'm driving.
As you can see, it’s not picture perfect and I don’t know why I get so defensive about directions. It’s as though admitting I need assistance getting from point A to point B robs me of my masculinity. Yet, many if not all my male friends have the same issue in their relationship.
Men, women and directions is simply not a good mix
