The search for echinacea and the haircut from heaven

For some reason which neither of us can understand, Lord H's alarm went off at 6am today and both of us woke up not feeling remotely tired. In fact we even got up, with enthusiasm - how astonishing. Usually, on work days, I lounge around till 6.15am and Lord H doesn't surface till 7. At least. Today, however, we were up with the larks and had already solved world hunger by 6.30am and brought peace to the earth by 6.45. God, but we're good. Our job here is done, Carruthers - it only remains for the mother ship to return and carry us home. Hmm, must be delayed on the intergalactic highway ... Ah well.

I managed to be in Godalming at 9am ready to hit the shops. I've never seen the carpark so empty. I must try and aim for that time of day again sometime. And I actually managed to get everything I went out to buy, though I did have to go into every single pharmacist on the High Street - including the one I never go into because they're horrid and never have anything - in order to find my essential Echinaforce tablets (for colds, you know, though I do feel better today, thank the Lord). No, the horrid shop didn't have it. What a surprise. An additional surprise was that the alternative small pharmacist (yes, I'd already tried Boots and Superdrug by then - in vain) appears to have shut down. Perhaps they knew I was coming? Anyway, I finally found a huge bottle of the aforementioned medicine in Waitrose. Good old Mr Waitrose. Where would we be in Godalming without him?

Talking of Godalming, our death count is going up, m'dears. Hot on the heels of last week's murder, we now apparently had a dead homeless person in the middle of the High Street this week. Lordy, we are indeed becoming a hotbed of crime and tragedy and I am EVEN MORE determined to open the front door to nobody at all unless they have character references. At least. However, the slight good news about all this is I know it's not one of the two nice people who sell The Big Issue, as I checked: they were both there. Phew. Anyway, whatever next??

Back in the safety of home, I have added another 1000 words to Hallsfoot's Battle, and am now at over 52,000 words. I like the way the scene is turning out too - I'm bringing Simon into the Gathandrian Legends in a way neither he nor I anticipated, but hell it works, so I'm going with it. No doubt it will traumatise him even more, but I do need him to be angry. Because the heat will - I hope - rise in the latter half of the novel and I do need him to be angry for that, rather than terrified. Aha! We'll see anyway.

Lynda the hairdresser has also swept in with her usual charm and style, and now my hair looks pretty damn good, I have to tell you. I do like the way I'm growing it a little longer - I think it suits me and it's a softer, less serial-killer look. Hell, I'll be wearing skirts next and simpering. God forbid. Tonight, I need to do some heavy-duty cleaning and settle in for an evening's chilling. In the good sense - as my current chill levels are rather too high, and I've been wearing my scarf, fingerless gloves and Country Innovation padded waistcoat in the flat all day (on top of my usual clothes - please, people!...). Yes, the heating is on and yes it's still cold. That's the curse of living in the servants' quarters of a Victorian house, dammit. Roll on summer ...

Today's nice things:

1. Unusual energy
2. Finding the Echinaforce tablets, eventually
3. Continuing with Hallsfoot
4. Haircuts.

Anne Brooke
Anne's website - stylish and sassy, don't ya know ...