Happy Birthday Sophie

Happy Birthday Sophie!

Hope you have a good day.

Early walk in the snow, The Falcon And The Winter Soldier trailer and hockey catch up

We were out an about at 06:30 this morning for a nice snowy walk. It was lovely.

Ma u hours later, this is the view from my home office :)

Marvel have just dropped a new The Falcon And The Winter Soldier trailer ready for it's release on March 19th. I have to say, this is really looking really good!

The evening was spent doing a mass hockey catch up on the games from last night

Happy Birthday Scarlett

A BIG Happy Birthday to Scarlett! 12 years old today! Hope you have a great day!

Walks and snow

Today has made of two walks and a fair bit of snow. Early morning work was more sleet rather than snow but it was nice to get out even though it was pretty miserable and very cold.

Second walk later in the day was much more pleasant as we had moved from sleet to proper snow (albeit light). I love the snow and everything looks lovely.

Since the walk even more has called so it probably looks even better now. Hopefully this will continue through the rest of the day in overnight and I can get more pictures tomorrow :)

I won't post boring words about TV shows or hockey today. Instead here as some pictures of the back garden taken later in the day.

Gorgeous sky, baking, RuPaul, Wandavision and Anchorman

There was a lovely sky this morning when I got up. These photos don't do it justice...

It put me in a very good mood I have to say. Spirits lifted it was time for the weekly bread baking. These ones came out a really well and I was very happy with them. I love the smell of these baking in the oven.

After the baking I had to do a quick bought of work to complete the migrations for this weekend and then it was time to kick back and relax.

Traditional breakfast was prepared and then there we did a catch up with RuPaul's Drag Race UK and RuPaul's Drag Race. Wasn't happy with the UK elimination but the US one was fine with me.

WandaVision this week was absolutely superb. The reveals are getting bigger each week. This series appears to be the perfect platform to launch the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) Phase Four. It's going to lead into other shows and movies. At the end of the episode we had Wanda's brother Pietro (Quicksilver) appear. The twist was that instead of being played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson from the recent MCU films he as now being played by Evan Peters who had the role in the Fox X-Men movies (prior to the Disney buyout). Funny moment there was Darcy Peters exclaiming, "he's been recast" which fitted beautifully with the TV show angle that WandaVision has been taking. Have to confess that  might have got a bit emotional at that point. I wonder who else might make an appearance in future episodes?

Steak dinner and Anchorman in the evening!

Good day, a baby boy (not mine) and a Rangers win

Today has been OK. Not too stressful, not too busy. It was a great way to end the week. It was all very positive, good things were done and now I am prepped for this weekend which is our final mass migration. After that there will be two clients to move, they are standalone so will be quick and easy when we get round to planning them.

In great team news we had the announcement of a bouncing baby boy who was delivered today!

The evening was made of hockey once again. New York Rangers v Washington Capitals was a surprise game with the Rangers skating away with a 4 - 2 victory! VERY happy with that result.

Carolina Hurricanes v Chicago Blackhawks was a closer affair with the game ending with the Hurricane losing 4 - 6. BOO!

Good night everyone!

I hate Thursdays

I hate Thursdays. It's the one day of the week that is always full of scheduled meetings and then I normally have more ad-hoc ones on top of that so getting any meaningful breaks can be difficult..

On the positive side lots of things were achieved today and I have managed to wrestle my InBox back under control so it's not all bad LOL

Our evening was made of NHL catch ups. Is this getting boring yet as we do it quite a lot?
Boston Bruins beat Philadelphia Flyers in overtime so that was a big YAY! Tamba Bay Lightning beat Detroit Dead Things 5 - 1 so it was YAY all round!

One step away from Falling Down, sad news and NHL catch up

I have no idea why but the start of my day was just made of angry. Every email I read just seemed to wind me up and make me go grrr! Sometime there might have been some vague reason why I reacted like that but in some cases there was nothing. I was a couple of steps away from Falling Down! 

It wasn't a great place to be in but it did finally go away. The rest of the day was spent working through issues, analysing what was going on and coming up with potential scenarios as to why things were happening or how to resolve them. Productive overall though.

Having lost Uncle Richard about six weeks ago I was sad to hear the news today that Auntie Robbie's mum Betty had also passed away. Whilst this wasn't unexpected as such it's just too much for Auntie Robbie to have to deal with so soon after losing Uncle Richard. My hear goes out to all of the Portsmouth clan. 

The evening was spent with delicious food, coffee and a massive NHL catch up of games from last night. Vancouver Canucks v Montreal Canadiens - Vancouver lost 2 - 5. Minnesota Wild v Colorado Avalanche - Minnesota lost 1 - 2. Carolina Hurricanes v Chicage Blackhawks - Carolina won 4 - 3 after a penalty shootout. At least one of our three teams came away with a victory!  

Coffee day, Rangers win and more hockey

Today was made of coffee. It had to be as I got called out at 04:30and then worked until 06:30. I managed two hours sleep before having to get up for the regular day. It was a bit of a rough one trying to keep all the plates spinning. Some might have dropped today but that's fine, I'll be back in the game again tomorrow. I did at least make sure that I had a proper lunch break (Sam treated me to a delivered Burger King - thank you) and I also managed to finished just after 16:00 which was a result.

After work there was more coffee and Toni and I caught up with the New York Rangers v Pittsburgh Penguins game from last night. It's about time we had a win. We might get a point for overtime but a loss is still a loss so we were hoping for a turn in fortunes. First period ended with the Rangers trailing 0 - 1. At the end of the second the game was tied 1 - 1. Final score and not before time was a Rangers win of 3 - 1.

Next up was Boston Bruins v Washington Capitals. This game was one where Washington were looking pretty strong but Boston bounced back from a 0 - 3 deficit and won the game 5 - 3.

Rounding out the evening was Vancouver Canucks v Montreal Canadiens. Could we get three out of three of our teams winning tonight? Short answer? No! The Canucks let the side down and lost 2 - 6. 

Baking, WWE, Fate: The Winx Saga, Disenchantment and Bonding

It was backing day today. Not quite sure what happened with this batch but it did appear that the tops of a couple of them went floppy. Most peculiar.......

I did a check in on some WWE stuff before everyone got up taking in the WWE Superstar Spectacle event that they ran in India followed by NXT UK. Both were reasonably enjoyable so I might yet continue my subscription.

Toni and I then started watching Fate: The Winx Saga on Netflix.

A live-action adaptation of Nickelodeon's Winx Club (2004). It follows Bloom as she adjusts to life in the Otherworld, where she must learn to control her dangerous magical powers. It's not high brow that's for sure but it is an enjoyable yarn. 

Dinner was a home made curry constructed with the base of a chicken soup and some pots of left over Indian take away from last night plus a load of cooked chicken that we already had. It was absolutely amazing. It was so tasty. 

As Sam hadn't been watched Fate: The Winx Saga we watched the first episode of Disenchantment Part 3 with dinner. Just as funny as the previous parts.

We finished the night off with Season 2 of Bonding. 

Really pleased that this is continuing and has maintained it's quirky sense of humour.

Refreshed, rain, cuppa, Drag Race, NHL, WandaVision and Tomb Raider

You can't beat a good night of sleep to leave you feeling refreshed and raring to go. A walk was a nice idea but it was absolutely tipping it down so that idea was shelved.

I made a cuppa and then caught up with Batwoman. Episode two was not as good as the first one but it was still way better then anything from season one.  It's still the worst DC TV show but it is getting better.

Traditional Saturday cooked breakfast was accompanied by RuPaul's Drag Race UK. Loving the UK queens, they are far nicer than the US ones.

During the day we did some NHL catch up taking in a couple of full games and lots of quick recaps.

RuPaul's Drag Race (the regular US edition) catch up with a very nice Indian take away.

WandaVision this week was absolutely superb. We are finally getting some good reveals based on little hints that have been dropped in previous episodes. The running time for these is too short, I want more! If you love the Marvel Cinematic Universe films then this is an absolute must watch!

Toni went and had a bath so I spent a couple of hours on the PS4 playing Shadows Of The Tomb Raider. 

Better day, good luck Sergejs and New York Rangers win

Today was a much better day. Woke up feeling good and work was quite relaxed over all. That's not to say there wasn't some irritating bits but I didn't feel overwhelmed in any way Things got done, things progressed and my involvement in a task kept a client and colleague sane while other people 'helping' proved to be more of a liability LOL.

In less good news we said goodbye to Sergejs today. He's been with us for a couple of years but has now moved on to run a business with his wife. So now that's two holes I need to plug.

We caught up with the New York Rangers v Buffalo Sabres game from last night. First period started well and ended 1 - 1. Second period saw the Rangers take a 2 - 1 lead. Third period ended with a 2 - 2 tie so we were overtime bound. 19 years old Alexis Lafreniere scored his first ever NHL goal and the Rangers won the game 3 - 2. It's been a while since we had a good win!

Weird day

It's been a weird day. I am feeling kind of fried at the moment. Too much garbage at work and too many people giving crap answers to things that should no better about. It's just draining trying to cut the bull and get things moving in the right direction when you feel like you are fighting with the people who are supposed to be helping. It's just embarrassing. 

Blackadder lightened my spirits a bit and I had a much needed early night

Walkies, relaxing day, Rangers loss and Bruins win

Today started with a nice walk with Toni. It was great to get out for a bit of fresh air. The plan is to do this more often. Plans are great but...... LOL

My working day was much more relaxed and laid back today. It was a really pleasant change to not be feeling under pressure or harassed and stressed all the time. Saying that, I did spend far more time on the phone than I would have liked which did restrict my productivity a little. Still, there's always tomorrow to catch up right? 

NHL catch up with the New York Rangers v Buffalo Sabres game from last night. First period started well and ended tied 1 - 1. Second period the wheels started to come off a bit and the Rangers were down 2 - 3. Things didn't improve and at the end of the third period the Rangers lost 2 - 3, FFS!

Next up was Boston Bruins v Pittsburgh Penguins. We were hoping the Bruins would fare a little better than the Rangers did! This one was tied 2 - 2 at then end of the third so it was into overtime. With ten seconds of overtime left the Bruins came up trumps and won the game 3 - 2! Phew!

Beautiful sky, crap morning, American Gods, The Blacklist and NHL

This morning there was a beautiful sky when I got up. Had to capture it.

It put me in a good mood which I needed as I had already been called out at 03:30 for a work issue. My good spirits didn't last too long though as everything just seemed to go to crap after that, for the morning anyway. Things did settle down a bit in the afternoon which was a relief.Even managed to finished work at 17:00 which doesn't happen very often.

Cheeky Tuesday meant 20% off an order at Just Eat so we indulged in an Indian for dinner and the latest episode of American Gods. Next up was the latest episode of The Blacklist. This might be the final season but they aren't letting up on the storytelling. 

The rest of the night played out with some NHL catch up.

Good day, shredders Independence Day and a Rangers loss

Early start today but thankfully it was the least stressful post-migration Monday so far. looks like we might have finally got good at this thing LOL, just as it's over! That's not to say that there weren't challenges but it never felt like I was out of control at any point.

Musical accompaniment today was an assortment of guitar shredders and new-classical metal such as Joe Stump, Marty Friedman, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Yngwie Malmsteen and Paul Gilbert etc.

Guilty pleasures came into effect for our dinner movie as we enjoyed the sci-fi cheese of Independence Day. Totally ridiculous film but so much fun!

We finished the night off with the New York Rangers v Pittsburgh Penguins game from last night. It was a good start for the Rangers and they were leading 1 - 0 at the end of the first period. Second period ended with the Rangers still ahead but now 2 - 1. Third period went a bit wrong and the Rangers lost the game 2 - 3. Arse!

Snow, Blown Away and NHL catch up

Today we finally had some snow. There wasn't a lot but it was nice while it lasted. I'd have preferred a proper blizzard and a decent layer but I'm happy there was some.

It was so cold that we even turned on the fire in the living room, first time we have done that all winter.

Season 2 of Blown Away has dropped on Netflix so we binged our way through that. Who would have thought that glass blowing would be compulsive viewing? If you haven't seen it before it's well worth a watch. Such a wonderful art form and great to see it getting such a push, thank you Netflix.

In the afternoon we caught up with the NHL results from last night. We watched the hole of the Boston Bruins v Philadelphia Flyers and Montreal Canadiens v Vancouver Canucks games. Bruins won their game 6 - 1 which made us happy. Sadly the fortunes of the Canucks were not so good and they ended up losing their game 2 - 5. 

Baking, work, Drag Race, Rangers loss, WandaVision and American Gods

The usual Saturday routine was in full effect today. Got up and got my baking groove on which I really enjoy doing. 

I then had to embark on another load of migration work which has been a regular part of my weekends for a long time, The good news is I have next weekend off and then one final weekend and that is it all competed for now. Phew!

A much needed breakfast and the latest episode of RuPaul's Drag Race UK was the perfect way to chill. This was a brilliant episode, I really love their Rusical musical shows.Staying in the Drag zone we moved on to episode four of RuPaul's Drag Race. 

Hockey time came around as we watch the New York Rangers v Pittsburgh Penguins game from last night. First period ended with the Rangers down 0 - 1. Second period was better with the Rangers taking a 3 - 2 lead into the third period. With the game tied 3 - 3 at the end of the third it was into overtime. 3 - 3 after overtime and then Rangers lost the shoot out and the game 3 - 4.

Dinner viewing tonight was WandaVision. Litlle by little this show opens up with little hints of what might be coming but there are no answers to the question.

We then started on Season 3 of American Gods. 

Really enjoying this and can't wait to see how the story unfolds this season.

Walk, clusterfuck and NHL

Today started off quite well. Toni and I got up early and went and had a nice little walk. This had me feeling refreshed and ready to tackle the day ahead. It was jut sas well really as it turned out to be a bit of a clusterfuck. 

If it could go wrong, it did go wrong. Staff, software, hardware and clients were in the mix. A stressful and depressing turn of events with a resignation thrown in for good measure. It was a very long day too, just to add insult to injury.

Next week will be seeing a VERY different me and I shall be have some serious words with people!

When I did get a chance to kick back and relax it was NHL time. Boston Bruins took on the Philadelphia Flyers. Tied 4 - 4 at the end of the third meant it was overtime time again. With no winner declared it was on to a penalty shoot out. Thankfully the Bruins pulled it off and won 5 - 4.

Next up was Vancouver Canucks v Montreal Canadiens.  This one was a total blowout in the end. 2 - 2 at the end of the first. Game ended with the Canadiens winning 7 - 3, ouch!

Batwoman, busy day and NHL night

This morning was surprising. I got up, had breakfast and a cuppa and watched the first episode of Batwoman Season 2. Season 1 was awful and I hated Ruby Rose and despite loving Batwoman I couldn't get to grips with the show at all and her Kate Kane/Batwoman portrayal. Now that Rose has gone and Javicia Leslie is taking on the mantle of Ryan Wilder/Batwoman I wanted to give it a chance. First episode was not bad at all and was far more entertaining than the show had been before. Hopefully they can keep this going. It was broken so hopefully they can fix it!  

It's been a busy old day. Loads of meetings, loads of troubleshooting, loads of things getting sorted. Oh there was also loads of stress too but I am used to that!

It was a hockey evening tonight. We started off with the Vancouver Canucks v Montreal Canadiens. This was a high scoring back and forth game. At the end of the third the game was tied 5 - 5 and so it was into overtime. Overtime gave us no winner so it was on to penalty shots. Vancouver won the game 6 - 5 after 4 rounds of penalty shots. 

Next up was Minnesota Wild v Anaheim Ducks. Sam was less than impressed that we were routing for the Wild over the Ducks. Another back and forth game but not as high scoring, Minnesota won the game 3 - 2 so we were happy.

Talking of DC TV shows, the latest trailer has just been dropped for the upcoming Superman & Lois series. Not sure if I am looking forward to this one or not. Guess I'll give it a go and see what comes out.