Whilst it’s not been that long since my last blog, something I’m hoping to keep up, it’s not like nothing has happened since the last one, either. Hannah has confirmed she’s not a fan of walking, the next big hurrah with the ol’ Gang took place, and quite a bit more. So, let’s get to it.

Hannah’s not a fan of walking

If there’s one thing that’s been a real struggle, as of late, it’s been the adjustments you have to make once the work-life balance becomes very … challenging. Hannah’s experiencing some pretty dreadful shifts, meaning that we’re becoming increasingly unable to spend as much time together. Despite that, however, once an opportunity does arrive, on the rare occurrence where Hannah does get a day off matching normality, or, when she’s free in general, we can only do our best with what we have.

Such odd and strange opportunity, as this, came on a weekend, where Hannah was peckish and fancied a McDonald’s… I know, weird. Whilst, sure, you can get it delivered, this means a premium increase to the price, then, on top of that, a pathetic delivery cost. This is true of Uber Eats, Just Eat, and all of them. As a result of this, the moment and decision came to travel to the nearest and, much to Hannah’s deep regret, the decision came to walk there. Which was, amusing.

20 min for me, 1 hour+ for Hannah 😅

One of the easiest ways to travel to the McDonalds, in question, aside from road, was walking across the Greenway. The former Train line that travelled through Cleck, closed in 1965, was abandoned for many decades until becoming a Cycle track / walkway. This now currently runs from the outskirts of Bradford, and runs all the way through to Dewsbury. If you travel on a Bike, as it’s designed, you can likely make it through in a matter of minutes. If I traveled alone, I would probably be able to go from Cleck to Hecky, in a matter of 15-20 minutes. This was the description that I gave Hannah and the one, most likely, she based on the idea being a good one to go ahead with this.

The journey didn’t start exactly smoothly, especially when it was on the first few minutes walk to get to the Greenway, Hannah was already complaining of being tired. When we did finally walk on, the forever chorus of “are we there yet”, seemed to emanate very, very, repetitively. One thing that, of course, was in Hannah’s mind at all times were the multiple photo opportunities. Most of which, however, I am un-allowed to show as Hannah will only complain it’s not a good photo, and she doesn’t like how she looks because she’s a woman 😁.

What a garbage meal…

I have to say, one thing I think we were both very disappointed about when it came to arriving at the McDonald’s was, pretty much, everything. To celebrate the release of the dreadful Minecraft Movie, they had a new Green McFlurry Ice Cream, so, Hannah made the decision of getting that, alongside the other Food we’d chosen. It’s fair to say that everything was awful. The Minecraft Ice Cream tasted like shite, I got a Maltester one which was also bad, then, on top of that, even the Fries were terrible. Then, to make matters worse, a bunch of annoying Children shouting and being annoying at the other side. So, not really a worthwhile trip.

Cab back, or else 😬

After that pretty disappointing experience, it was clear that Hannah was not going to want to head back via Foot, plus, it was now getting late so the Buses were pretty rubbish. So, it was to be a Taxi back. Surprisingly, it wasn’t that much, to be honest, considering the added convenience, so, we were back in no time.

Once we did come back, it was fair to say that the decision to travel there by walking across the Greenway, was not something Hannah wants to repeat, and, she was pretty knackered so it was TV-chill then bed time. But, it was an experience and one we shared together, so, you ying where you yang, sometimes.

Dog-sitting

By far not the first time I’ve done it, but, as was agreed months back, the decision was made to look after the Dog, Rex, and, her two new cats, Darcy and Charlie. It’s fair to say it was an interesting experiencing looking after them, probably the most craziest situation that came from this was not realising, until at the end of it, that we’d been calling each of the Cats the wrong names. … Yep, we were calling Charlie > Darcie, and Darcie > Charlie 🤦‍♂️.

It’s fair to say, heading to my Sisters to look after Rex and co, has never really been a situation with the best of luck. This was the situation that ended my long relationship with Claire, and it’s not always been that great even before then. Me and Hannah have done it once before, which she got annoyed at the Dog multiple times. So, the situation was never set up to being perfect, to say the least. And, this was no exception.

Scheduling conflicts, to, pathetic excuses

Yeah, for some reason, whenever someone else is involved, there’s always something annoying that crops up when Pet-sitting. In this case, Hannah decided to, let’s just say, not have her priorities straight.

We were looking after the Pets over the course of a weekend, starting on Friday evening up to the first half of Sunday. However, when we agreed to look after them, this was before Hannah’s schedule was taken over by work and… yep, she’s working all weekend. This meant that, like me, this would begin after work on Friday. Or, so I thought.

Whilst we were undecided whether it would even be worth Hannah going up, due to work, it was decided she still would and would compromise the otherwise times, but, that wasn’t the problem. For some absolutely dumb reason, she decided to accept an invite to meet up with some Filipina friends she’s met in the UK and spent the entire afternoon and evening there instead 🙄. This was, to the point where it was 7 – 8PM, and she was nowhere to be found.

I literally had to ring her, and she was like, what’s the problem? Uhh, hello, you’re supposed to be here spending the weekend together. I was soooo annoyed. In the end, she had to get a Taxi, which, cancelled on her, but, the second attempt worked out. Then, she was brought up at, basically, night. As you can imagine, very little time on that night for us both.

Don’t they all look so happy to be looked after 😅

The majority of the time spent looking after the Pets was spent alone, so, I needed something to keep myself occupied. And, what better way of keeping yourself occupied by earning more money. Yeah, quite literally, I spent most of Saturday and a little bit of Sunday, doing overtime in between walking the Dog and feeding everyone.

So, whilst Dogsitting at my sister’s has certainly had a mixture of history, it’s fair to say this time was probably the most empty. Whilst it was fun getting to know the new Cats, even if we did get their names completely mixed up, it just ended up being a bit of a waste. Time will tell if we do that again…

Day out in York with the Gang

You’ll recall back in the last blog, I mentioned how the ol’ Gang was all back together, be it, just, for a night out. Whilst, it wasn’t entirely the whole Gang, it was still a glimpse and a preview into showing what I thought was lost, was still there. I had been feeling, for quite a few years now, that the connection I used to have with my old friends had died, maybe a bit dramatic… faded, is probably a better way of putting it. So, whilst that first was just a few hours out in town, it was significant as it showed that bond was still there. We’d then agreed to do something in the future … that’s what they always say … but, no really, this time. Rob created a group chat, included us all in it and, for a while, there was this discussion of us all going somewhere together. But, of course the big questions, when, and, where!

I’m not sure what led to York being a suggestion, but it was one that stuck around, then it was just about picking a day that suited the most. Unfortunately, due to most people, naturally, being more available on weekends, this meant Lee was unable to join, once again. It’s unclear why he can’t arrange a day off to spend time with the Gang, but, regardless, that’s just the way it is. Once a day had been arranged, I was rather dubious myself whether I could go. With Hannah working inconsistent shifts, it’s never clear as to when we’ve time together. In the end, due to a multitude of circumstances, it became clear that there was really no reason not to go, so, it was arranged; train ticket bought, meeting place set, done.

Heading to the Train Station

Getting to York is fairly easy and, considering how over-priced our Trains are, isn’t too expensive if you take it from Leeds. The only additional travel would be the Bus journey to and from … or, so I thought. In the end, it ended up being a combinational Taxi service from the significant others. Arriving to the Train Station, I was collected by Kai’s girlfriend. The arrival was certainly amusing, seeing a rather small Car arrive, with Kai in front, and Rob in the back seemingly trying to escape out of the window, set the precedence for how random and crazy the day was set to be 😅.

It was during this journey, it became apparent that one of the originally expected attendees was also not going to be coming. I’ll be honest, though, I wasn’t that disappointed really. Call me old-fashioned, but I much prefer when there’s a limited number on a day out, I feel like if there’s too many I end up getting lost in the crowd. This is especially true considering the one lost, was also expecting to come with a billion +1s. So, in the end, the gang was almost set; me, Rob and Kai, with Caddy expected at the Train Station. Naturally, it didn’t take us long to get there, to the point where we actually ended up getting an earlier Train. The day itself was actually starting rather early, considering it was 9AM I was in a Car to the Train Station, on a Saturday too, was certainly an adjustment.

A quick snack, wait that ISN’T Caddy?

One thing that was rather amusing heading in to the Train Station, there was just something about it, felt like we were all barely 18 again and heading out like we used to do. Just having laughs like we used to. Whilst I was warned by Hannah I shouldn’t go into where she worked with the Gang, things just went that way. Though, in the end, she never noticed anyway. Ended up getting something quick from McDonalds; Kai got some Hash Browns and a drink, Rob also a drink and I was limited to an Ice Cream as they’ve stopped Fries in the morning, something I’m not a fan of.

We then waited on the benches in the Train Station for the arrival of the final member of the group, Caddy. During this time, Rob decided to get a 4-can of Beer for the Train, which, confirmed it was going to be one of those days. However, despite the fact we’d all had none, at this point; whilst Kai pointed out that Caddy was here, walking down, Rob for some reason was focused on an entirely different person, so, the shock when the real Caddy walked in front of him, really was quite an amusing shock to him.

Aside from Rob believing Caddy had an indistinguishable clone running riot in Leeds, with us all Ticketed up and ready, we headed to the Platform. We certainly looked quite the collective, commoners with Robs 4-cans and our general natural look of sketchiness 😁. Thankfully, it was soon time to get on the Train, there was a Table free for us all to sit and we were off. Didn’t take long until we were in the land of York and ready to head out. I was very keen to point out the absolute SCAM of York’s Tour Buses, obviously, they were never going to be the destination but as a Yorkshireman, it’s always important to express historical dissatisfaction.

And we’re off… once they’re open.

Was pretty wild walking the streets of York again, in a completely different light, but, there was a problem… nowhere was open. Yeahhh, no one thought about that. We had a rather amusing moment where we walked into a Pub because the Door was open, and, was only let in because the man there thought we were going to start our Work shift. Yep, we almost ended up working in York, that would’ve sucked. So, as a general rule, if something doesn’t work out, you don’t do it again, right? … Well, we did. Although, this time, a Pub that wasn’t open yet, allowed us to be served, so, we were off. Was a pretty nice place, actually, with some clear Viking inspirations, even in the Toilet.

We ended up sitting outside as, honestly, it was quite a decent day, weather wise; not too cold, not too hot, just right. It was at this point where we’d fully settled and was able to all just catch up, really. Kai was talking about his very suspicious Government roles, Rob about his multiple travel journeys and Caddy was there as well. I’m joking, obviously, but was clear who had the most to talk about. Although, as much as Hannah didn’t want to the centre of attention during the day out, FaceTiming me, doesn’t really result in that being successful 😅. In the end, she was only calling to see how I was, but, mostly to talk about additional requirement of Shoes for work, as they’d a goody-too-shoes new Manager.

HOW MUCH???

It wasn’t that long until we were moving on to the next place, which, was a shame, really, as I actually really liked that place, however, that was until we saw the Food menu!!! Look, I get it, this is York, it’s a Tourist destination so everything has a typical premium, but geez, this Pub had Chips for £6, Pies for £15, it was ridiculous. Needless to say, we won’t be going there for Food. Was absolutely ridiculous.

An oldey-worldy place

In the end, we went to quite a few places after, moving next to a very old-school feeling building. We went upstairs to find planks for chairs, and obscurities for names of Beers, so no real idea what was worth ordering or not. In the end, I ended up getting some alphabet-soup name which was a bit disappointing as it just tasted like Becks to me. The most weird thing about that one was actually the very strange looking Candles, that kind of reminded you of what you expect from some Giants cartoon thing from their snot. The place also had rather obscure narrow Toilets below the strange shop, in between.

In the midst of all conversations taking place from there, it was rather amusing watching Rob scam Kai at the price of SSDs, all of which require £5 shipping 😁. Really, you can probably find cheaper online, mate.

One thing that was becoming tradition, at this point, though he did forget at the last two, was Kai taking a Selfie of us all in each visited location. In this particular example, it had someone in the background who felt the need to join in. Whilst it was, sure, quite a butch-looking woman, that didn’t stop others in the Group chat assuming it was a guy. Them the breaks, eh.

I’m not a cocktails guy

Wasn’t that big of a fan of the previous, but, I’ll be honest, when it became clear the next destination was an exclusively cocktail Bar I was even less than impressed. To the point where, I just skipped. Nothing for me, thank you. It was also a very strange looking place, too many colours everywhere in my opinion. Was pretty cool that you could see York Minster quite clearly from where we were sat, however, there was a problem for the guys to discover, the Toilet!

Yep, for some reason, a concurring theme of things to point out, oddly, was become Toilets, but, thankfully, this is the last one… I think. Well, this time it wasn’t an issue with the Toilets, although apparently they were Unisex …yukk…, but, they were also a BILLION miles away, up multiple never-ending flights of stairs. The strange thing about all of this was, it was a pretty low-flight building. So, I’m not sure if they were hypnotised by the cocktails or they ended up entering some strange weird vortex. Either way, glad I didn’t go.

A pub with Knife Dancers… obviously

Now safe from the cocktail bar, or so it seemed, as we headed into the next Pub. Whilst it appeared to be like the rest, all until around 6 people all of a sudden rose up, knifes the size of axes in the air and started dancing. Soooo, it’s time for drinking outside I think. Once I’d paid for the or…. oh wait Caddy did it, instead…

Whilst heading outside, the topic of Food entered the conversation once again, with some overpriced Pub Fish and Chips on advertisement. Although, the thought process was perhaps not from a place with people who dance with knives. At this point, I’d already consumed some Sausage Rolls, but, it was becoming pretty clear this day was going to be a long running one, so, food for tea was becoming a new thing. Although, this wouldn’t be something relieved until later on. I will say, though, I think I made a much better decision on the first Meal of the day. Everybody else ended up going to some weird place that seemed to only sell aspects of the Pig anatomy made into pieces harder than something from the atmosphere… yeahhh, Caddy and Rob threw them away, Kai just kept mysteriously appearing with the loud crunches in the future Pubs.

Multiple pub cycles later, plus tapas?

What followed on was around 3 other Pubs, one which was a bit cramped and unexciting, another featured pretty much only Cider so had a very unpleasant drink there, then, we ended up at another Pub which allowed us to Drink outside. This was certainly the Pub of many events. Upon arrival, it became clear that the way to order was to scan the QR code at the Table and order. I’ll admit, I was a bit disappointed that it ended up being my round as I’d literally just got the last one, but, it turned out I wasn’t the only one getting something as Rob had an idea…

Rob made the very strange decision to order some bits-and-bats Food wise, which consisted of the world’s most expensive 2 bits of Chicken and rubbish extras ever. I think it’s fair to say, the fact that Rob almost spent the same amount of the entire round for the 4 of us on snacks that one filled 3 small bowls, said everything that needed to be said. But, that wasn’t the only excitement that was set to entice this visit as Rob “apparently” got spanked by a Badger… no, really, that’s a thing that apparently happened. On the way out, he alleged to show such, but, I don’t recall noticing them. But, this wasn’t Rob’s best idea that he came up with, oohhh no, because what better way to celebrate your outdoor cutlery by attempting to enjoy your Beer with a Fork! … Yes, he did that, on video, too.

It was during this Pub that the conversation actually begun about when to go home, discussions even towards how much it would be to get a Taxi, which had surprising results for the majority of them as, divided by 4, it wasn’t that bad. Despite that, we didn’t take that option, but, was a sign that this day was heading to the close. Regardless, it was time to head off, after a little “trip”, we were off to the final few.

An “actual” bite to eat, this time

Just like the Cocktails earlier, I was not a fan of the little over-priced snacks of the previous Pub, so, when we headed to the next one, which felt like a, somewhat, Wetherspoon-esc place, meaning their was a Menu of the typical Pub food at the typical Pub prices…with a slight York + premium. I’m not sure if everyone would’ve got something full to eat if I didn’t, but when I committed to getting some Fish and Chips, it set off the rat-race and we all ended up getting some probably well-needed grub. I must say, I kind of felt a bit sorry for the Family sat on the immediate seats next to us, we were definitely not quiet, that’s for sure, especially after the number that had come down at that point.

I will say something, though, once I’d had those Fish and Chips; which, by the way, were very overpriced, very disappointing, and moderately filling; I was, kinda, ready to head off then and there. However, that wasn’t really something to be immediately expected with them, so we ended up at another two in York. But, despite this, I just had to bow out, was on the Coke for the rest of the ones. I’m perfectly aware when I’ve had enough to drink, I don’t go above it, so, that’s how I did it.

The final Bar we ended up with was easily the worst indoor venue we went to, but, we ended up going outside anyway. By this point, it was approaching 9PM, so, it was becoming apparent that this was to be the last one in York. It did have quite the distractions there though as you could hear what could only be compared to school rehearsal sounds. A base player and drummer playing recognisable tunes with a pretty barely audible bad singer trying to cover the rest. Yeahhh.

Everyone’s falling over

It’s fair to say that the day out in York was a day of trends, but, one rather confusing trend that took place was that everyone was… falling over. Upon leaving the Pub where Rob had the Badger incident, for whatever reason I just collapsed, fell over, no idea how or why. Then, Rob almost did randomly between the last Pub. Then, in the Train Station before we headed back, someone else had completely lost it. To this day, I’ve no idea how that happened.

Rather amusingly linked to this, there’s a good possibility that an open gash in my recently new Trainers was caused by such a random fall, but, I managed to return them, get a Refund and a replacement. So, winning there 😁.

Time to go

Once we’d all made the decision to head back to the Train Station, it was a pretty calm stroll to the York Train Station. We actually had quite a number of options for Trains we could take, so, didn’t matter much as to which we got. Walking through York at this time, just felt like the same old-school feels as it did at the first arrival, just with your mates again. We were back at the Station fairly swiftly, to be honest, a few nightgoers were out, as well as a suspiciously long queue to somewhere, but, as far as the Train Station was concerned, was fairly simple really. Made the decision to take an earlier Train, again, so, once again, we were set to arrive in Leeds earlier than planned.

Final trip home

Once we got on the Train, the journey back was fairly swift and most of it spent with Rob going through old photos on his phone, for some reason. To be honest, that was the kind of feeling I’d been having throughout the entire day, really. Not, let’s look through old photos, but, more how it really has been so long since we’d done this. So, felt very, back then, so to speak.

Once we got back to Leeds, the journey was immediately progressed with the arrival of Rob’s girlfriend, Jayne. So, it was yet another trip back in a very small Car with us all crammed inside, this time, plus Caddy. Once we’d arrived back, for some reason, the decision was made to have another in a Pub in Cleck. I’ll be honest, I don’t know why this was suggested as none of us really felt like another, however, there was more to the one-last, than meets the eye.

Whilst I didn’t think much of it, at the time, their was a moment where Rob asked the name of Caddy’s girlfriend, which, didn’t seem like it meant anything, but, all of a sudden made sense as the moment we walked into the Pub, invites galore for us all. One for Caddy and his girlfriend, Kai and his, and, of course, me and Hannah. What for? Well, surprise surprise, Rob’s going there. I never thought I’d ever see the day, but, next year, he will join me and Hannah in the world of Marriage.

So, the day started crazy and mad, it continued with such a welcome old-school feel and a laugh, then, ended with a surprise too. Have to say, I really enjoyed the day, whilst I’m not much of a drinker, spending the day was really awesome.

Trip to Knaresborough and Mother Shiptons

On one of the rare occasions when we both had a Saturday free, I knew we had to go out traveling to make it special, but, the question was, where do we even go? Over the last few years, since Hannah started visiting the UK, we’ve pretty much covered all of the indoor and outdoor areas I could think of, so, we needed some suggestions from others. Whilst at work, I have been recently sitting next to a Chinese woman, who’s recently been helping Hannah, introducing her to M&S Food as a good option for her to try oriental Food, and, she’s a fan, so, it was time for her next recommendation and that was, Knaresborough.

I’ll be honest, I’ve never even heard of Knaresborough, though, the moment I mentioned it to my Family, everyone had exactly the same response… Ohhhh, I remember going there, it used to be nice. … OK, so, is it now? Well, one thing that has changed since everyone went there, things that were free are no longer. But, that was not going to stop me making sure we had a good day. So, let’s head off.

Slightly delayed start, but, we made it in style

As typical from every time we plan to go out, the getting ready and otherwise, took slightly longer than would be ideal, but, nothing a compromising Taxi can’t fix. Was a pretty nice Taxi, to be honest, ended up getting a Tesla which was nice. Spent most of the journey checking out the huge screen covering the journey. Basically, checking out what we’ll never have… so sad. Maybe, one day.

Didn’t take too long until we made it to the Train Station, where it was time to get a quick Snack before so we ended up heading to the McDonalds, before having a quick nip in to Sainsbury’s. Ended up being very disappointed at Sainsbury’s; not only are Chocolate Oranges over £2 now, ridiculous, and, also, where’s the regular Strawberry Laces, we had to compromise with the Fizzy ones. McDonalds was a very up and down experience, for some reason they buggered up my Coke by not fitting the lid correctly, and, Hannah was most disappointed not to be given a napkin, I know, end of the world stuff. Was pretty awesome to see an old work colleague there, ended up catching up and seeing how he was getting on.

Once we’d got our Snacks, it was time to book the Tickets and head to the Platform. I think this is the first time I’ve ever gone on such a low number Platform, never gone to 3a before. We waited for the Train and… unfortunately, Hannah was not as prepared as I would have hoped for getting on the Train, meaning, most of the journey was spent on a Table with others. But, thankfully, the way home was more successful in that regard.

The sights of Knaresborough

I’ve never been to Knaresborough before, so, honestly, this was all new to me. It’s only a relatively small Village-like area, so, it’s doubtful you’re going to get lost. The Train stops right at the top of the Town arriving on the above standing viaduct. Once we’d, basically, just followed the first people we could see to try and get where we needed to, we made it to the bottom. Whilst it did say online that there’s an Ice Cream shop at the bottom that’s really good, one; I’m just not a fan of Scooped Ice Cream, and, two; for over £5+, you can get lost.

The sun was shining, the sky was blue, and with the River and landscapes, it’s fair to say that Knaresborough was putting out all the stops to be very picturesque for a few photos. But, this wouldn’t be where most of the photos would come from. We explored, pretty much, the entirety of the Town whilst there, but, initially, just checked out the upper levels.

Of course, the sights of the rowing Boats made Hannah wonder how we’d get on, but, we’ll have to see on that, later on. But, before she could even consider us doing that, it was time to head to Mother Shipton. I knew, in reality, something like that needed to be done first as I thought we might be in there a good hour… in reality, though, quite a bit more.

Mother Shipton’s Cave

Mother Shipton’s Cave is a pretty staple choice when it comes to things to do in Knaresborough. It’s the biggest Tourist spot it’s got, though, despite the fact that everyone was talking about how good it was when it was free… as with everything, it’s not free anymore. In fact, I think I was scammed a bit more than should be. Was charged £32 for the two of us… geez.

Despite this, however, I actually think, from the experience we both had, it was worth it in the end. Even if it should’ve been, I think, £3 less. I’ll find you woman who scammed us… although, when we left there was no one else inside and the Gates were locked and she unlocked them to help us out so… thank you, at least, for that 😁.

The sights

As soon as you head in to the Mother Shipton’s Cave area, you pass the Car Park area, and quite a collection of walk ways. In general, there’s quite a decent walkway throughout the place, but, sights are immediately taken by a small waterfall following back from the side passages of the River with the Rowing boats.

As you walk through the Shipton’s area, you pass countless monuments with historic biopics of the legend of what the place stands for, as well as some absolutely random things which lead to things like this;

It’s generally a very strange place, covered in quite a pleasant walkway with a combination of sights, forestry and, of course, a mock-up hanging place, because, of course there is!

This is also a good time to let you know that, yes, that woman who scammed me at the beginning, also made us get a £1 Guide Book which, I’m sure, some, use whilst looking around, however, for us, it was more something that was annoying to carry around. Although, it’s fairly useful for keeping things in-line for this blog, so, there’s that.

One thing was pretty cool about the whole trip around Mother Shipton’s was, actually, the everything else. You enter expecting to essentially walk towards some Cave, yet, in the end, you find yourself being far more captivated by the surroundings around you than anything else. Plus, you find yourself just finding the completely unexpected, from the hanging earlier, to wooden sculptured Horses.

Then, they went one step further;

A very unexpected Alice in Wonderland area!

Yeah, I must say, as none of us looked up what to expect before going, it was quite the surprise to see, not just a slight, but, an entire recreation of the Alice in Wonderland set. This led to even more photos taken throughout the Trip, and, whilst I’m not particularly a fan of the Alice in Wonderland books, or, Movies linked to it, you can appreciate the effort that’s been put into the place, and, the details.

Whilst most photos were solo photos, with very unconvinced dual-Selfies, two women were browsing at the same time as us and ended up being one, of two, instances where we were able to get some decent photos together with Hannah. Whilst Hannah wanted to do some TikTok whilst there, because, of course she did, I, like always, was not keen to. So, instead, more photos, mostly Hannah taking herself, much the vanity that comes natural in all Filipinas, before we resumed to the main event, the ohh-so-amazing Cave.

The very disappointing Cave

Yeah, let’s talk about that “Cave” shall we. The area that we’re visiting here is, literally, branded, Mother Shipton’s Cave, so, you better believe there’s going to be quite the insane Cave at the end of it, right. Ohhh yeah. Well, before you get there, you head down to the most southern part of the area, with a pretty cool water feature with, what I think are, witches hanging down from it. On closer inspection, looks like they are.

Then, you’ve two choices. You head behind the water feature to the wishing well, which, apparently, you’re supposed to put your hand into and make a wish… we, didn’t get that memo and didn’t do anything as you typically put Coins in a wishing well and … we’d no change. But, before you say anything, there was quite a few Coins in there, so, we’re not the only ones who made that assumption.

But, let me just say it now, let’s get it out of the way, that “Cave” is NOT a Cave. I’m going to be honest, by the time you get to where the Shipton’s Cave actually is, it’s actually right at the end of the entire area. But, because of how the landscape surrounding it looks, and it’s intentional shadowy feel from a distance, you get the very inaccurate feeling that this is just end of part 1, and this is where the real adventure is… but, no!

I’m literally renaming it, Mother Shipton’s Miniature Cavern. It’s literally a small tiny Cave opening. Inside is a crude rock creation of Mother Shipton herself and some Speakers to give you a very unrealistic sense of lacking immersion. Not impressed.

Museum and VERY OVERPRICED Shop

Once you’ve completed the journey through Mother Shiptons, like with everywhere Touristy, you end with a rather crude over-priced Gift shop and, well, this wasn’t entirely much different. To make up for visitors to the Gift shop, they built into in it, a Museum, which, like the Cave, is much smaller and less impressive than the Title would lead you to believe. It was rather annoying that whilst I was trying to take pictures next to some of the old-style structures, there was a completely out-of-place VOLTARE gambling machine 🤷‍♂️.

There was quite a few things that actually took Hannah’s eye in the Gift shop, that was, of course, until she saw the price. Yeah, pretty much everything was ridiculously priced. When you’ve a Gift shop with Pens over £3 each, you can imagine that no one was really going to be customers. They even had the infamous £1 Guide Book there too.

The end… means, walking through it all again

Yeah, it’s fair to say that if you’re the kind of person who’s not big on walking, saw the ending Gift shop and thought, “ohh, least all the walking is done”, well, no. To get out, you’ve to literally turn around and walk through it all again. The only, slight, benefit, of that, was that we were able to get some photos of places that were occupied by others. I don’t think either of us realised the time, whilst we were walking out, we were very close to when it was set to shut. We’d already arrived much later than, in reality, we should’ve done, but, in the end, I don’t think it would’ve been much better if we came earlier, in reality.

I will say, one thing that I really enjoyed about the Mother Shipton in reality, was really just walking and spending time with Hannah with very little distraction. It’s so easy to go places and just be distracted, taken up by unimportant things, wasting time on your phone, etc. We did none of that, which is always the key to making a much better time together.

Avoiding the boats, then, heading home.

Once we finally headed out, it became rather suddenly apparent that there’s actually, very little else to do in Knaresborough. You can go to one of the Pubs and eat basic food you can get anywhere else, you can have the over-priced Ice Cream we’d already said no to, or, you can go on the Rowing boats…

If that was a sign, I’m glad we didn’t 😅

We ended up having a sit next to the Lake, and checked out the sights for one last time before heading out. Whilst it was fairly dead in the Mother Shipton’s, it was clear where the crowds were, outside. The weather was very warm, so, makes sense. If it wasn’t already approaching 6pm, the possibility of going on a Rowing boat, may have been different, or, less avoidable, you could say, but, saved by the bell I think I was. But, not before a new reason, and moment, took place.

Whilst we were watching others on the Boats, there was a moment with an asian couple and, I must say, I really felt for the guy. It was clear he was trying to be the impressive alpha-male and treat her to a romantic Boat ride. Trouble is, he’d never been on a Rowing boat before so, had no idea how to work it. … Yeah, I, too, have never been on a Rowing boat before, and, I, too, have no idea how to work one. So, watching this guy getting mocked by onlookers, his Gf/Wife looking down in shame, whilst the instructors were getting frustrated, that was enough for me to be like, yeah, we’re not, Hannah, sorry 😁.

NOT the best journey home

We headed up to the Train station, up top, and spent quite a bit waiting for the Train to come. Unlike when we set off, Knaresborough is not the first stop, so, it was always going to be more riskier to get a Seat. Whilst we did have one, for about two seconds, we then were sat close to a bunch of women moaning about their men, and other bulls**t those type of people do.

Once we got to Leeds, I think we were both just ready for off. Unfortunately, we’d missed the Bus, so, ended up having to head to the Bus station. Got something to eat at Greggs, Hannah got a Coffee (can’t remember the type), which she’d end up regretting, then, after a billion years, it was time for the Bus home. But, not before a frustrating hold up.

There was this guy, at the Bus Station, causing a ruckus, who, of course, had to be using our Bus. He ended up getting on our Bus, and didn’t Pay, so the driver refused to set off. Then, to make the situation more annoying, their was some absolutely idiot kids at the front with this glasses wearing twat that thought he was the absolute sh**, when in reality he was just a nob. They would continue to be annoying the way home. As for the guy, eventually, two Transport Police got on the Bus to get him off the Bus, so were able to get home.

So, what a contrast. The journey there, a nice comfortable journey in a Tesla. To, this. Needless to say, was very happy to get back home. Whilst I know, nothing happened, this is one of the main reasons I always want Hannah to let me know when she’s heading home from work, or, whenever she’s out alone, when she’s coming back, or, that she’s safe. Because, you just never know.

A disappointing Bank Holiday back in Skipton

After a collection of Bank holidays where she was forced to work, it was time to get one booked off, at least. So, now Hannah’s free, where are we going to go? Well, frustratingly, the Weather had other ideas so we were actually far more limited than we anticipated. The Weather was, literally, perfect, when we went to Knaresborough, but, for Bank Holiday, it just couldn’t be bothered. This ended up being very annoying as this was one of those rare occasions where we could be driven anywhere outdoors, yet, in reality, we didn’t really have much choices. Hannah wanted to spend the day with me and my parents, but, after discussing with Family, we ended up really with two choices of places we’d been to before. It’s debatable whether we would have been better if we had gone back to Cleethorpes, but, in the end, we ended up going back to Skipton, instead.

Last time we went to Cleethorpes, it rained all day, so, it would be, quite literally, rinse-repeat, Weather wise. But, last time we went to Skipton, the Weather was decent and the Cherry blossoms were in bloom. Unfortunately, for Hannah, both of those were in fairly short supply this time. I wasn’t really chuffed that Skipton was where we were going. I mean, think about it, we’d already visited the Castle, so, no point going there, especially with bad Weather, and, everything else is rather boring, so… guess how the day went? Exactly.

It rained all day, with very few exceptions. In between those times we ended up going to the very disappointing Fish and Chips shop again, this time the one near the Boats, where we all had some very average Chips, paired with some Sandwiches my Dad had brought, which went down pretty well, actually. What didn’t go down well was my Mums Coffee which, despite the additional of more Milk, was darker than Coal. … Yeah, Bizzie Lizzie’s are still terrible. My Dad was convinced both the Fish and Chips shops were not by the same chain, but, they are.

Getting Hannah some shoes

You know the day is exciting when the highlight of the entire day is the search for a new Pair of black formal Shoes for Hannah. Despite going to multiple Charity Shops and exploring around, Hannah was very disappointed to find out that she would have to buy some new.

She’d previously purchased some pretty rubbish Shoes for the cheapest price in a discount shop and… as expected, they didn’t last. In the end, we ended up going to Clarks and what took place was a very amusing moment of dread as Hannah had to pay nearly £50 (around ₱3,500) for a pair of Shoes… I know, heartbreaking.

Time to go, without the Train…

…Yeah, maybe I should explain. As we’d already gone to Skipton previously, I had made it clear that it might be a bit boring to go to as, well, case in point.To make up for it, my Dad was planning on us going to some miniature Railway place nearby. But, in the end, not only was it supposed to be pre-booked and by the time we were thinking of going they were all booked. But, also, everyone thought it was too much.

It’s fair to say that once we’d all got back, the mood from the day wasn’t exactly high. I’m going to be honest, the day would probably have been better if we didn’t go. Yes, we got Hannah some Shoes, but, big deal, as that was surrounding a bit of a worthless day.

What follows is separate from the blog, in that, this isn’t a journey we’ve been on, but, instead an update on the situation in our relationship.

Inescapable frustrations

If the downer of the second, less successful, trip to Skipton wasn’t enough to get the blog down, this, unfortunately, will. So, if you’re not in to that, you can skip this part as this does conclude this blog.

PETTY ANNOYANCES

I don’t know what it is, I don’t know if this is just the norm, as many have have told me with Filipinas… but, no matter what happens, Hannah always has a problem with everything I do, and, sometimes, even, don’t do. To the point where she’s becoming someone who is literally actively seeking, almost obsessively, something to be annoyed about.

Are they big things? No. Are they major things? No. Are they what any normal person would be unhappy about in a relationship? Well, no, again. We’re literally talking, last week, she wasn’t speaking to me, was moody for a couple days because… wait for it, I didn’t hold her hand when crossing a road. Which is amazing as I can’t even remember us ever doing that unless it was incredibly busy. But she made it such a huge deal, like I’d literally had sex with everyone in the neighbourhood, but no, I didn’t hold her hand once 🙄. It’s that kind of pathetic nature that’s just getting too much to handle.

Then, despite the fact we eat completely different Foods and completely different times, she’s now, all of a sudden, mad, that we don’t always eat together. Ohh, but, Ben, your parents do … they don’t. But, of course, let’s not let facts get in the way right.

LACK OF CONTRIBUTION

I remember when first getting to know Hannah, she has always been someone who has her own pride, someone who’s always liked to be, and strived for, her own independence. This is something to be admired, and, I would argue, those who don’t strive for independence are just incredibly immature people. This was actually one of the many things that drove me towards Hannah as, let’s just say, that’s certainly not in the realms of the Filipina stereotype…

The Filipina stereotype is to do absolutely nothing, have responsibility over nothing, find any sub-par looking, or greater if they’re extra lucky, gullible idiotic man who can pay for everything, and that can be ANY man, even if they’re even elderly, especially, with a nice upcoming or ongoing pension.

Then, of course, that man must also then do everything, whilst the Filipina sits on her ass doing nothing, take a billion photos and TikTok videos, likely flirting with others whilst simultaneously moaning at that gullible idiot pathetically how they don’t get enough until the next pay check.

Yeah, it’s an ugly stereotype, but, unfortunately it’s one that’s most certainly real! That’s not even including the manipulation from family. It’s important to set that record straight very early, as I have.

Whilst, thankfully, (you shouldn’t really need to be assured about it, but just to be clear) Hannah is NOT that Stereotype. Despite that, however, there’s certainly been some frustrating incarnations of it appearing, most recently, though. Which is certainly NOT a good thing.

For context; It’s no exaggeration to say that the journey to get Hannah to the stage of living here in the UK is long, tough, expensive and stressful. It also meant that, for a limited time, she was also unable to work so that she could be ready, at a moment’s notice, to get that journey done. It was then, following this, agreed, from the beginning, that once she could, (settled, earning etc) Hannah would then start contributing. Makes sense, right. Especially when, for the future we’re aiming for, this will become something paramount.

But, instead, now we’re in a situation where she… all of a sudden debuts a world of excuses, moaning and, honestly, pathetic childish avoidance. I can’t really express in to words, how absolutely annoying, more disappointing, really, I think, that this is. To be clear, this is nothing about me being unable to afford, in fact is completely irrelevant to the point. In the same way, I don’t care if I earn more than she does, or, if she earns more than me, it’s just basic principle! We’re no longer in an early relationship, we’re Married, living together, contribution is everything to making that go smoothly. You, generally do everything together, so, naturally you also invest together, and grow together. But, that’s not, currently, what’s happening.

I hope this changes, I really do, but, unfortunately, what I was hoping would happen simply has not. The huge task of moving Countries, finding work, adjustments galore, I really thought would’ve made her more mature. But, I guess not…

SEARCHING FOR EXCUSES TO BE MAD AT ME

And, finally, the big one. It’s no secret that me and Hannah’s relationship has had its ups and downs. Mostly, at the beginning. Like all really, there’s been frustrations, we’ve made mistakes, I’ve made many, due to my past, and others in between. I’m not here to bring those back up, the past is the past and we should always move forward from that. That is, unless you’re Hannah. That’s always been a recurring issue.

But, now, it’s not about the past (as much), it’s about trying at all costs to find something new. Here’s the big one; Despite locking her phone from everything, to the point where she’ll be hiding the screen at all instance of anything being seen, because THAT’S not suspicious, right? I’m expected to have mine completely, not only, opened up to her, which, honestly, I couldn’t care less there’s nothing to see, but what follows from that is what just gets really pathetic. She will search, scower, fingers under old rugs in the living room, scraping the barrel, however you want to word it, to the point now what she’ll LITERALLY make up some story, some mad theory of undeniable consequence, because what Hannah theorises must be right, even when lacking credible, even logical, evidence. This can stem from anything. A search done weeks ago, a Like from 3 years ago, an Email that doesn’t make sense to her, no matter what it is, it’s the Ticket she’ll use to cause drama, create division and, in general, f**k everything up.

Because it’s not what she find that will be what is the problem, it will be the story she invents in her head around it. Because you did something completely normal, that must mean, cue the internal scripts to the maddest scenario ever and there we are. This will then result in days ruined, moods between us, and, me, generally feeling depressed, whilst she cockily acts like the better party, even accusing me of lying for calling out the absolute absurdity. And, why? Well, because Hannah just likes a bit of drama, clearly. Regardless of the consequences.

Potential long-term impact ❤️‍🩹

Contributing more, that’s something that will come in time, as I stated, with maturity. But, it’s the everything else. The childish needs to create problems, create arguments out of dust, accusations out of the air. When does such nature stop? It needs to. Because, I’ll be honest, such bull***t is becoming so common place now, that it’s getting to the stage of being unsustainable.

If I do something wrong, I don’t mind being blamed for it, obviously. That’s my wrong, such consequence that concludes would, also, be mine to own. Same in reverse order. That’s not the problem here. It’s the pathetic nature that Hannah’s become with me. An insane situation where I, instead, do nothing wrong, but, get treated worse than if I did. If this is to become what a relationship with Hannah is, it’s not too late for it to be ended, and I’m sure many reading this would be saying that would be the best next step if it doesn’t stop. I ended my relationship with Claire after I’d reached the point where I simply couldn’t continue. It set the boundaries for me to make countless further mistakes following that, but, that’s beside the point. My biggest regret was I left it so long, to take that step. Believe me, you learn from that, I will NOT to make that mistake again!

The worse thing, for me, about all this, is how it makes me feel, directly, about Hannah towards me. Not only is it incredibly disrespectful, but, it’s also insulting. Long term relationships are hard, every day isn’t perfect, no one is always happy, we have bad days, struggles. But, never, have I ever experienced such mind games, such deliberate manipulation for literally no reason other than to divide. It’s so disrespectful and shows absolutely zero care towards me and the relationship as a whole. I’m now, no longer, confident in Hannah’s care and love for this relationship. You don’t insanely assume the worse, especially make up the worse, for someone you actually love and trust. The fact she is, puts both of those in doubt. Bigger than if any of it was even close to being right.

Look, I don’t enjoy writing these blogs. I don’t enjoy having to state how bad things are. I would much rather end it, on the positive day at Knaresborough, then blame stupid idiots for the rubbish ending, then, joke at my Family for not thinking of anywhere else but Skipton, and, with the fun day out with my Friends to boot. Sounds like a great blog, I’d say. But, I just can’t generate a facade that everything is a-ok, when, it’s not. My commitment to this blog is about being honest. There’s areas, of course, that respectfully get hidden, until able, but, I’ll never pretend things are what they’re not.

We’ve serious issues, and they all stem from Hannah. I don’t know if there’s any hidden untold frustrations internally Hannah has that are leading to her finding a distraction to take irrelevant things out on me, instead. I don’t know. I just know that I’m f***ing done, with being the scapegoat, the punching bag to her pathetic attitudes, jealousy, and more. This must stop now! Otherwise, what’s the point.

I’m getting to a very dangerous state, in our relationship. A state I never ever thought I’d seriously get to, with Hannah. We’re married, we’re living together, we’re progressing as such; we should be happy. None of us have done anything that betrays our relationship, we’re, supposedly, open about everything. So, what’s the problem? That’s the thing, there isn’t any. Other than her own selfish attitude she’s using to create problems, out of absolute hearsay, rubbish, and, worse, fantasy, in her own mind. And, the dangerous state I’m getting into, as a result of this? … I’m getting to the point where… I’m not happy in this relationship.

Hannah’s aware, I’m sure, she has to be, she’s the one doing it, what impact this is having. What absolute wasteful impact this is having. This needs to stop very soon. Because, if it doesn’t, I can’t see “us” lasting the year. I don’t like this feeling. I hate feeling this way. And, only she, can change that.