tell someone they are awesome

Today started badly, and then worsened as the day went on, much the same as the weather really. I certainly felt a deepening 'ridge of depression' descending on me, which was totally independent of the storm clouds looming above.

It didn't help that I still had two cottages to get ready, for guests arriving 'any time after four' - and as anyone in the accommodation business knows - if you are not ready, it is pretty much guaranteed that your guests will arrive early (one of those unspoken sod's law things).

Added to this, our freezer decided to give up the ghost completely - with everything in melt-down, and needing to be thrown away. I didn't know, but Henry had valiantly saved the ice creams the night before, by putting them in one of the cottages freezers. I, unfortunately could not share his enthusiasm for this fact, thinking ahead to children's menus made up of only magnums and soleros in various flavours.

One hour to go before guests arrival, I discover the bathroom in the studio has a water leak and is flooded in a fairly major way. I decide to close the door, put a note on it, explain to holiday guests, and deal with it at my leisure (there's another interesting phrase.)

Part way through cooking tea (a simple affair involving eggs and bread, bread being the only thing, other than the ice-creams, that was salvaged from the great thaw) there is a hefty storm and the power goes off. This means that after I have pacified children that their survival chances without play station, computer or TV, are surprsingly high, I have to dash across the yard to the cottages, with reassurances to holiday guests that this kind of thing happens all the time, and power will no doubt be resumed (reasonably) shortly. Fortunately it is. Holiday people then dash across the yard to me, to tell me that I have forgotten to put towels in one of the cottages. Soon rectified, but it's just one more thing to apologise for !

The alpaca shearers, a team of guys over from Australia, phone to say they are coming tomorrow - even though the weather forecast is bad, and we have virtually no forward notice of their arrival. I inform them wearily that we have had the alpacas in for a couple of days, hoping shearers would turn up, so all fleeces are dry - no worries there. The voice at the end of the phone says to me that is 'awesome' - and my whole day changes immediately. Not 'that's fortunate' or 'that's good' but 'awesome'. I can't explain how amazingly positive it feels when something you have done, however simple, is described as 'awesome.' Try it out some time... speak out ... but be warned, this is a high impact word!!