It’s that time of year again, the apples are falling from the tree, there’s a chill in the air, and kids across the land have been donning their uniforms for the obligatory pose in front of a door (our own included).
Yes… Summer’s done, and it’s back to school for the Littlest Voiceover and back to work for me.
After 6 weeks of flying solo, Ian is looking forward to me getting stuck back into the family business and helping out with his hefty workload. But I must admit, I’ve been struggling to get my head back in the game.
One thing that’s been distracting me has been apples. Because when I say the apples are falling from the tree, I really mean it, our little apple tree in the back garden has gone crazy, and when I walk out to the studio, every day I could make 4 family sized crumbles with the fruit that’s fallen and paves my way.
Whilst Ian thinks I’m back in the saddle, getting on top of the invoices and Q3 projections,
I’m actually sitting here thinking about apples.
Now I like a good crumble, but I can’t eat 28 of them in a week. So I’m googling apple recipes (Apple Crunch sounds good). I’m sneaking out trying to give bag fulls away to neighbours and friends. I’m ordering tupperware for stewing and freezing them. I’m even considering giving some to Amber to take to school (an apple for the teacher ? you can’t get away with that kind of sucking up these days. The only apples the teachers are seeing, are the electronic ones they’re confiscating).
Truth is after 6 weeks of keeping a 6 year old entertained, I’m not ready to get straight back into it.
I want some time to get the house clean, I want to sit and enjoy a cup of tea before it goes cold, I want to watch Netflix, I want to lie in bed eating biscuits. But I can’t, I’m indulging myself with a mindless morning of googling apple recipes and making the apple crunch, but then I have to get back into it.
Because the Summer has been very busy for both of us, in very different ways.
While I’ve been fielding each day’s unanswerable questions en route to whatever activity we had arranged…
Why does a Manx cat not have a tail ?
Which planet is nearest to a black hole?
What does infinity mean?
What is gravity ? (something to do with an apple falling from a tree?)
What is gravy for ?
Ian has been holed up in the studio. As well as making our regular podcasts, he’s been voicing radio commercials including national ads for Pets in a Pickle and CEF, he’s done an audio tour guide for Holker Hall in the Lake District, done in store commercials for ASDA, NISA & SPAR, and traversed the UK doing commentary for British Speedway Network. And alongside that he’s had to do all the back end work that I usually do.
We know we’re lucky that running our own business means I could dedicate that time to being with Amber in the holidays, but now I need to get back to work.
So pushing the apples to the side (both literally and metaphorically), first on the agenda is to help promote the new Speedway podcast Ian is producing and featuring on, “Tatum Talks” with British Speedway Legend, Kelvin Tatum.
“How’s it doing?” I ask … “It’s launched at number 2 on the Sports Chart”.
“Which Sports Chart?” “Apple” he replies …
