My Month in Numbers 2012: May

Hello, aloha, ahoy. Hi.

As today's the last day of the month it's time to summarise the last 30 days in Julie-World in numbers ... if you'd like to join me the full details can be found here.

17 degrees C = the temperature we had here on Monday ... 

But, as I type, it's raining here this morning, so May seems determined to bow out in disgrace despite bestowing a few glorious [rare] days of sunshine upon us recently. In fact I grabbed this next photo on one such sunny day [those of us under British skies become opportunists like that don't we? Snatching photos of everything and anything while there's bright light ... just in case ... ]

3 quilts + 3 boxes filled with art + craft supplies = the number of items I dropped off to a charity appeal for a special needs school in Zambia [thank you Jo and Katy for your contributions, I dropped them all off together]:

I began the quilts years and years ago, for something else, but they've been sitting in a box in my craft room, unfinished, ever since. They only needed a quick bit of sewing together and they were good to go.

20 years = the length of time James and I have been together, since our first official 'date. [You might have seen the not-wedding anniversary-because-we're-not-married anniversary card I made for him here earlier in the week].

It would make me happy if you just took my word for it that our first date happened when I was 4 years old. It's not true ... but it would make me happy ... ;-)

4 = the colour of the dye I used on my hair this week. Over the years I've used dyes with some extremely exotic names, the last two being Iced Coffee and Frosted Mocha ...perhaps they've run out of names now because this one's brand new and called ... Brown. Just Brown.

Here's me with my brown hair and new haircut:

5 = the number of times the trainee hairdresser washed my hair during my appointment. He washed it twice at first, then conditioned it - so far so normal. Then, when my hairdresser was cutting it she said she could feel conditioner residue ... and called another stylist over to have a feel too ... then, as they both agreed, she instructed the trainee to 'give my lady another rinse'.

When I sat down at the sink she asked the trainee which conditioner he'd used: 'OK' she said, when he told her which one, 'just promise me you didn't use the white one'. He promised he hadn't.  Twice.

But who knows ...

... and what was in the white one???

Once he was suitably chastised, he began re-rinsing my hair. Rather thoroughly. 3 more times. With shampoo.

My neck almost withered away leaning back over that sink by which point I was beginning to think that he had indeed used the 'white one' ... and was frantically trying to get 'it' out ...  

Lather, rinse, repeat ... repeat ... repeat ...

And, just in case you're thinking, 'she only ever uses photos of herself where she's all clean and shiny' ...

4 = the number of hours spent in a hot garden giving the borders a much needed tidy up. After which the plants looked nice and tidy ... while I looked like this:

262 out of 717 = the number of pages I've read, so far, in the 2 new books on my bedside table this month:

 0, 1, 2, 1, 0 ,1 = the significant stages of The Great Big 'Bring Up the Bodies' Farce of May 2012. Here's how it went down:

• 0 books = I didn't pre-order the book online thinking I might find it cheaper in 'real life' somewhere.
• 1 book = James secretly pre-ordered a copy for me, saying only that 'If a parcel comes this week, you can open it, it's for you'. It never crossed my mind that it would be the book ... and so ...
• 2 books = I changed my mind and ordered it for myself ! Then, a few hours later while listening to Hilary Mantel in a radio interview I discovered James had ordered it too [I detected him getting shifty and had to ask if that's what his surprise was ... then confess I'd ordered it too] and so ....
• 1 book = I rushed to cancel my order, leaving me with only 1 book on the way ...
• 0 books = ... but the one he ordered never came and when he checked - a week later - ... they were out of stock! So finally ...
• 1 book = he just went out and bought one from a bricks + mortar bookshop! Hurrah.

As I write, I'm on page 73 and I'm absorbed already. Reviewers keep talking about what a terrible, hard, ruthless man Thomas Cromwell was ... but Mantel makes him so, so charismatic and human I just can't see his failings. Yet. [I've got 334 pages left to change my mind].

The other book is a memoir from Jenny Lawson [of thebloggess.com] and it's fabulous. If you're easily offended or put off by swearing ... it's not for you. I'm neither.

It's one of those books where you find something so funny you have to read bits aloud to whoever you're with, except you can't really manage it because you can't keep a straight face or make sufficiently accurate language sounds come out of your mouth. Very, very, funny.

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So, that was me, all sunshine-grabbing, book reading and hairy. How about you?

You can join in by leaving a comment on this post about your own noteworthy numbers for May. Or, if you'd like to join the growing band of number bloggers ...

The full details can be found here, but I've copied over the key points for you:

The Month in Numbers 'etiquette':
If you write a post and want to leave a link for myself and others to visit and/or pin to the Month in Numbers Pinterest board please bear in mind it has a shared experience aspect to it.

• When you swing by my blog to drop off a link to your Month in Numbers post - please leave a comment for me while you're there. Not because I'm needy ... but because it feels fair. Reciprocal.
• Please link to my blog in your post. As much as I'd like to think that everyone who reads your blog already knows what 'My Month in Numbers' means... the truth is, they don't. So unless you explain where the idea comes from and how your readers can join you in doing the same next month, they are none the wiser.
• Please take time at some point in the month to visit and comment on a few of the other posts too.

 I look forward to reading all your statistics this month and seeing what's been trending amongst you this month - there's usually a few things which lots of us seem to have been doing at the same time!

Now go ... count up your May.

Julie :-)