grandad kit

Thank you for reading my blog. If you have difficulty seeing your grandchildren, or have any views about my situation, I would welcome your messages by e-mail through this blog site. If you wish, just use a first name or a nickname and your identity will be protected, like mine – “Grandad Kit.”

Dear “Tom”

Catching the ferry

I am you other grandfather, the one you have never met. You are three years old, and although I have never met you, I love you dearly and always will. You are my flesh and blood, and always will be. We will meet one day, I am sure. I am writing this daily "blog" to you to make up for the fact that I can't speak to you right now. I hope that one day you will be able to read this.

This Friday, Nana Ann and Grandad are going to catch the ferry to the Isle of Wight. We've never been there before, so we're really excited. We stay one night, Grandad has people to see, and next day we might have a bit of time to ourselves.

You know the London Eye, the big wheel by the River Thames? Even if you've been on it before, that's the first thing Nana and and Grandad will do if or rather when wee get to see you - take you on the London Eye. When it gets to the top you can see for miles around,, even as far as your own house. Well, let me tell you that the clever people who built the London Eye (they're a husband and wife who are both architects) are going to build the talklest viewing tower in Europe, but the sea at Brighton. They tell me it'll be finished in two years time, when you're six (Grandad is writing about it of course, that's how I know). This great big tower, bigger than Blackpool Tower or the Eiffel Tower in France, will cost twenty million pounds> But they reckon at least half a million people will go up it every year, so I suppose they'll get their money back. We'll take you on it, never fear, maybe for your sixth birthday!

Nana Ann was not so well today. She had a bad day at the office, and a difficult journey home. But when she tells Grandad all about it over the phone, she feels a whole lot better.

It's the last athletics meeting for the "old gadgies" (that's the old men like me) at the Athletics Stadium tomorrow night. Our club is leading at tghe momenent and we should win the league for the third year in a row. Although Grandad had a one-point lead in his age group, there is one man who's bound to beat me tonight if he turns up, so it looks as though I won't win my individual age-group trophy. But never mind.

Love from

Grandad Kit and Nana Ann

Thank you for reading my blog. If you have difficulty seeing your grandchildren, or have any views about my situation, I would welcome your messages by e-mail through this blog site. If you wish, just use a first name or a nickname and your identity will be protected, like mine – “Grandad Kit.”

Dear “Tom”

Aaarghh!

I am you other grandfather, the one you have never met. You are three years old, and although I have never met you, I love you dearly and always will. You are my flesh and blood, and always will be. We will meet one day, I am sure. I am writing this daily "blog" to you to make up for the fact that I can't speak to you right now. I hope that one day you will be able to read this.

You've guessed it - Grandad had to go to the dentist today. Well. actually I should have gone on Wednesday last, when I first felt the ache. But is didn't seem to bad, and although it flared up a bit the next day (Thursday) it wasn't consistent, so I didn't bother. Then on Friday it was bad at first but then it seemed to fade away a lot (but I don't notice it when I'm working, which is most of the time. The, promptly at 5pm on Friday, which is the time the dentist closes, it came on really bad. Typical!

So I over the weekend I had to kewep busy to keep my mind off the ache, and then on Monday morning it didn't seem so bad and I was particularly busy but fortunately I did remeber this time and went to the dentist. Not the nice kind lady I usually get but a young bloke who was ok I must admit. He took an x-ray and said yes you have an infection. So he gave me some pills - antibiotics - to kill the infection. Then I'm booked in next week (with the lady dentist) for a raelly big session, a root filling. I'm not looking forward to it.

I didn't get much written today because I've been doing all sorts of paperwork, letters, accounts and so on. But a nice big cheque (well, a medium sized cheque) arrived and Grandad was hot-foot down to the bank to put it in - just in case something goes wrong. I gaven't had to ask Nana Ann for any money for quite a while, so I have to keep the cash rolling in.

Nana Ann and I have talked about whether or not I should contact your Mam again, but soemhow the time doesn't seem right. I sent you a postcard recently, but that hasn't produced any response as yet. Trouble is, we don't know how your Mam and dad (and you) are getting on. It might be that your Mam is having a tough time at the moment. So we'll wait a little longer, I think. But we think about you every day, and spaek about you often.

Love from

Grandad Kit and Nana Ann

Thank you for reading my blog. If you have difficulty seeing your grandchildren, or have any views about my situation, I would welcome your messages by e-mail through this blog site. If you wish, just use a first name or a nickname and your identity will be protected, like mine – “Grandad Kit.”

Dear “Tom”

Red sky at night

I am you other grandfather, the one you have never met. You are three years old, and although I have never met you, I love you dearly and always will. You are my flesh and blood, and always will be. We will meet one day, I am sure. I am writing this daily "blog" to you to make up for the fact that I can't speak to you right now. I hope that one day you will be able to read this.

I'm looking out of my window right now and the sky is all red. That's because the setting sun, which is red, is shining onto the underneath of all the clouds. It looks quite wierd. You must know the saying "red sky at night, shpherd's delight, red sky in the mroning, shepherd's warning." That means that if there's a red sky in the evening, it'll be fine the next day, but if there's a red sky in the mroning, it's going to rain that morning. Well, we'll see.

Nana Ann has been getting birthday cards for two of my sisters - they are your graet aunts - who have birthdays next week. All my sisters are youger than me, because I'm the eldest. Also, I ws the onyl boy in the family. You are the same, in a way. Although you are the only child of your Mam and Da, you must be the eldest and you must be (so far) the only boy. But I would be very surprised if your Mam and Dad had another baby, a brother or sister for you, but you never know!

Grandad has been workign really hard this wekend, and there's three more days of hard work to coem. So going to the Isle of Wight with Nana Ann this next wekend will be a real break, although (as always) it will include a fair amount of work. I like travelling, but travelling with soemone else is always better than tarvelling by yourself although I enjoy that too.

Love from

Grandad Kit and Nana Ann

Thank you for reading my blog. If you have difficulty seeing your grandchildren, or have any views about my situation, I would welcome your messages by e-mail through this blog site. If you wish, just use a first name or a nickname and your identity will be protected, like mine – “Grandad Kit.”

Dear “Tom”

Shopping can be fun

I am you other grandfather, the one you have never met. You are three years old, and although I have never met you, I love you dearly and always will. You are my flesh and blood, and always will be. We will meet one day, I am sure. I am writing this daily "blog" to you to make up for the fact that I can't speak to you right now. I hope that one day you will be able to read this.

I go shopping once or twice a week, and I see kids being dragged round by their parents. But we could make a game of shopping. I'm sure you already help your Mam and Dad in the supermarket when they want you to get something off a particular shelf. And of course there's always the chance for you to get the things you want - but I hope there's not too many sweets and choccies (as much as I like them myself!).

Nana Ann rang early tonight, I don't know why. Maybe she wanted to watch a particular television channel. I might have to send her railway ticket to the Isle of Wight in the post, as I may have to go on a different train instaed of the same one. We both love travelling by train. In fact, Nana Ann will not go up in an aeroplane - she always takes the train. Before the Channel Tunnel was opened, she used to cross the Channel or the North Sea by ferry rather than fly. Now you can get anywhere in Europe by train.

Travelling by train is great because you can move around and more or less do what you like, provided it doesn't annoy the other passengers. And if you sit at a table, you can play all kinds og games, read or draw. And there's toilets and the refreshement bar for long journeys.

Remember Grandad nearly went to the right town in the wrong county? Well, today I raed about a man who did just that - and put it in a book! The trouble with making a mistake in a book is that it's there for everybody to see, for ever, at least until the book is re-printed, but even then the original mistake is still there in the first edition. That's why we all try and get things right the first time, but we are only human and mistakes do creep in!

Love from

Grandad Kit and Nana Ann

Thank you for reading my blog. If you have difficulty seeing your grandchildren, or have any views about my situation, I would welcome your messages by e-mail through this blog site. If you wish, just use a first name or a nickname and your identity will be protected, like mine – “Grandad Kit.”

Dear “Tom”

Grandad (almost) does it again

I am you other grandfather, the one you have never met. You are three years old, and although I have never met you, I love you dearly and always will. You are my flesh and blood, and always will be. We will meet one day, I am sure. I am writing this daily "blog" to you to make up for the fact that I can't speak to you right now. I hope that one day you will be able to read this.

It's not fair. You would think that every town in the country had a different name, but not so. I know there are two Newcastle, for example, but one is Newcastle upon Tyne and the other is Newcastle under Lyme. Don't ask me why one is on and the other is under, but at least you can tell which is which. But what when tow towns have exactly the same name?

Grandad was making arrangemnets to go and see a man (as I do all the time) about one of my books. This man lives in Hythe. Now I thought that was Hythe in Hampshire, but no, he lives in Hythe in Kent. If he hadn't had spotted it, I could have gone to the wrong town altogether, at leats a hundred miles away. Never mind.

Next weeken Nana Ann and I are going to the Isle of Wight, which happens to be near Hythe in hampshire (that's why I wanted to go there too). We'll catch the train from London and them go across the the isalnd on the ferry. That's the sort of trip you would like. It would be great if you could have come with us. We're just staying one night and then coming home.

Love from

Grandad Kit and Nana Ann

Thank you for reading my blog. If you have difficulty seeing your grandchildren, or have any views about my situation, I would welcome your messages by e-mail through this blog site. If you wish, just use a first name or a nickname and your identity will be protected, like mine – “Grandad Kit.”

Dear “Tom”

Hurry up, baby snails!

I am you other grandfather, the one you have never met. You are three years old, and although I have never met you, I love you dearly and always will. You are my flesh and blood, and always will be. We will meet one day, I am sure. I am writing this daily "blog" to you to make up for the fact that I can't speak to you right now. I hope that one day you will be able to read this.

Grandad went for a run this evening. It'd just been raining, the air was wet and clean, and it was lovely. I was running along this path when I saw a whole load of snails, little baby snails, going across the path. Obviously snails can't run atall and can only crawl along very slowly, but I told them to hurry up or else the birds would come and get them. I guess the snails wanted to get at the grass on the other side of the path.

When I cam back along the same path, most of the baby snails had got over the path, but now there were a few bigger snails. I guess these bigger, older snails had been waiting a little while to see if any birds would come and eat up the littel snails. When the birds didn't come, the older snails wouyld reckon it was all right to cross the path. I di see snails my front path in front of our hose from time to time, but I also see a lot of empty snail shells. The birds do get them sometimes!

Nana Ann doesn't like snails and she absolutely hates slugs - the slimy balck things like snails but with no shells. But Nana Ann will not kill any living thing, not even a fly. So she gathers up all these snails and slugs in a pail and takes them a long way away, too far for them to come back into her garden! I wonder what they thing when she lets them out? Where are we?

Love from

Grandad Kit and Nana Ann

Thank you for reading my blog. If you have difficulty seeing your grandchildren, or have any views about my situation, I would welcome your messages by e-mail through this blog site. If you wish, just use a first name or a nickname and your identity will be protected, like mine – “Grandad Kit.”

Dear “Tom”

Uncle Norman wants to come to London

I am you other grandfather, the one you have never met. You are three years old, and although I have never met you, I love you dearly and always will. You are my flesh and blood, and always will be. We will meet one day, I am sure. I am writing this daily "blog" to you to make up for the fact that I can't speak to you right now. I hope that one day you will be able to read this.

You remember your Uncle Norman. You went to see him in the home where he lives with a lot of other people who have difficulty walking. He's in a wheelchair, and you played with his toy cars in his room. Your Uncle loves cars and I bet you do too. Anyway, I went to see Uncle Norman today. He was just comeing out of the home as I was going in. He was off to the pub, so I went with him and we both had a glass of red wine (his favourite). Although as you know Uncle Norman needs a machine to help him say things, he told me he wants to come to London to see Nana Ann. So I hope we can arrange it. I'll take him down on the train, and we can see a show and maybe go on the London Eye - I know he's like that.

This would be a good chance to ask your Mam and Dad to come into London and see your Uncle Norman, and it would also be a chance for me and Nana Ann to see you! So we'll have to discuss it with your Nana, Uncle Norman's Mam, and see if she agrees. That might not be too easy! I think I'll have to get a job with the United Nations!

Then I went to a party with some friends who came over from Germany. We've been visiting each other for many years, thirty years in fact, along with quite a number of other people from her and from Germany. It's called "Town Twinning" and I started it 30 years ago. We had balloons and streamers and of course a birthday cake. Well, actually two birthday cakes. There was a lad there who was having his eighth birthday, so he had to have a cake as well. But I only ate one piece - even though I love cake.

I'm sending Nana Ann all the things from the party about our visits over the last 30 years, beacuse she's been on some of them and she used to live in Germany, so she's very interested. They weere flying the german flag in the Market Place - but that's only fair, because, if you remeber, I flew the Union Flag of Great Britian in germany when we went there earlier this year.

Love from

Grandad Kit and Nana Ann

Thank you for reading my blog. If you have difficulty seeing your grandchildren, or have any views about my situation, I would welcome your messages by e-mail through this blog site. If you wish, just use a first name or a nickname and your identity will be protected, like mine – “Grandad Kit.”

Dear “Tom”

Squeaky brakes

I am you other grandfather, the one you have never met. You are three years old, and although I have never met you, I love you dearly and always will. You are my flesh and blood, and always will be. We will meet one day, I am sure. I am writing this daily "blog" to you to make up for the fact that I can't speak to you right now. I hope that one day you will be able to read this.

Do you know, Grandad drove over a thousand miles last weekend! Whether or not that affected the car, I don't know, but I do know that since I got back the brakes on my car have got very squeaky. That means they've been worn down and need new ones. So I'll have to takethe car into the garage tomorrow to get those brakes fixed. Otherwise I could easily have an accident.

My boxer friend - the one I'm writing a book about - is going to Cuba next week. The reason is that he is freinds with people from Cuba who are involved in boxing. You know that in the year 2012 (when you will be nine, not ten as I said theother day) the Olympic Games are coming to London. You and I are definitely going to go! But also, we are hoping that the Cuban boxing team will come to the North East in the few weeks before the Olympics to traina nd to get used to this country. That would be great, and I'd have a chance to meet them. I've already met two of their coaches who will be helping to train the Cuban boxing team. The Cubans have produced a lot of very good boxers and boxing coaches over the years.

You will have seen all the flooding that's still going on in various parts of the country. But here it's been very warm and dry today with very strong sunshine. I went for a run and I found the sun far too hot for me - I ran very slowly, even more slowly than usual. But there's one more round of the track league to go, and I'm hoping that my team will be the winners for the third year in a row.

If I do contact your Mam, I think I'll write a letter rather than telephone. With a letter, you can choose your words very carefully. If you're speaking on the telephone, one word out of place can spoil the whole thing.

Love from

Grandad Kit and Nana Ann

Thank you for reading my blog. If you have difficulty seeing your grandchildren, or have any views about my situation, I would welcome your messages by e-mail through this blog site. If you wish, just use a first name or a nickname and your identity will be protected, like mine – “Grandad Kit.”

Dear “Tom”

Talking on the telephone

I am you other grandfather, the one you have never met. You are three years old, and although I have never met you, I love you dearly and always will. You are my flesh and blood, and always will be. We will meet one day, I am sure. I am writing this daily "blog" to you to make up for the fact that I can't speak to you right now. I hope that one day you will be able to read this.

You've probably talked on the telephone to your other Nanas and Grandads - how I wish I could talk on the telephone to you! - but that is just two people talking to each other, one on each end of the phone. Now imagine a whole lot of people talking together on the same telephone. What would ahppen if they all talk at once? No-one could hear anything.

This happened today. Instead of having a meeting with people having to travel from all over the country to London to meet in a room, as usually happens, this time we all stayed at home and had our "meeting" on the telephone. We all ring in to the same number, then everybody can hear everybody esle - provided only one person speaks at a time. So we had to take it in turns to say something. It worked pretty well, but I found it quite difficult deciding when to "chip in" and say something.

I'm coing donw to London again the week aftre next, and I'm thinking about asking your Mam if Nana Ann and me can come and see you all. That would be quite difficult, as the last time we saw your Mam and Dad was when they got married, and that was before you were even thought of. So we have to go carefully.

Love from

Grandad Kit and Nana Ann

Thank you for reading my blog. If you have difficulty seeing your grandchildren, or have any views about my situation, I would welcome your messages by e-mail through this blog site. If you wish, just use a first name or a nickname and your identity will be protected, like mine – “Grandad Kit.”

Dear “Tom”

Long car journey

I am you other grandfather, the one you have never met. You are three years old, and although I have never met you, I love you dearly and always will. You are my flesh and blood, and always will be. We will meet one day, I am sure. I am writing this daily "blog" to you to make up for the fact that I can't speak to you right now. I hope that one day you will be able to read this.

Today Grandad had to drive all the way back home frm Wales, but first I had to put Nana Ann back on the train to London. When she came the previous day, she had to stand all the way because the train was really crowded and there were no spare seats. This time the train was not so crowded, but even so Nana Ann was lucky because a lot of raileay lines have been flooded and therefore the trains can't run on those lines.

Grandad went home a different way, to make sure I wasn't stuck in any floods. It took a lot longer, and I didn't get home until very late, but it was worth it. Thousnads of people still can't get back into their homes because of all the floods - it's terrible. When that sort of thing happens, you realise just how lucky you are, living at home and sleeping in a nice wrm bed, your own bed.

Back to work tomorrow, and Grandad is having a meeting on the telephone! Maybe I'll get a phone call from you Mam, but its been quite a while now so I think she's decided not to phone. I'll give it a few more days.

Love from

Grandad Kit and Nana Ann