Family successes and post Icelandic 'luck of the devil'

Wow! - another blog so soon after the last:- mainly because my partner has been away for a while: - he was lucky enough to travel out by air the first day that flights from the UK re-started after the (Ielandic) volcanic ash crisis in mid/late April...
Though there was 4 hour delay from his original departure time (2 hours of which we were prepared for), otherwise, no problems. He really does generally have fortune on his side (I am glad to say). Another odd example is that he is shortsighted in one eye and long in the other one:- this results in very little change to his eyesight in general as he gets older.
Anyway I digress. What I am getting round to saying is that his being away allows me more time for self-indulgence, one aspect of which is writing here.
I don't exactly go out on the town non-stop, gorge or drink myself silly, etc. etc., but do enjoy being able to eat what and when I wish and generally to follow my mood and inclinations.
Today wasn't as productive as I would have liked, one reason being that a trip to collect something was wasted - the item was not ready ( & I had no contact details to check in advance). However, that got me over to Notting Hill where I lingered, had a coffee in a cool cafe and chatted to a couple of stall-holders I vaguely know there. I then went to collect Eurostar tickets, yipee!, for later this month. A little shopping (food) and somehow much of the day was over before I knew it.
Now.... great news for the family:- my younger niece has been asked to go on a tour with a prestigious ballet company in June this year!! History repeating itself too, as I had the exact same thing happen to me in my 2nd year of studies at the same ballet school. I am over the moon on her behalf. And her parents, my brother and sister-in-law, must really feel that all the input from the whole family is vindicated :-though not many realise it, there is one hell of a lot of input. Neither is ballet is not the glamorous profession some believe it to be, though the working conditions and its profile is now higher than it was in my ('the olden') days. I have started jotting down some memories of my time in a ballet company and as a young student prior to that, which is quite fun to do and which could serve to unravel some of the illusions the public has - or is that a bad idea? Is it preferable to keep 'artists' at arms length? Hmm one to think about. Another angle I am thinking of would require writing a novel(ette?) in order to disguise and combine real characters.... and also might not been looked on kindly by someone close to me!
Another piece of good news this week is that my older niece got a new job which started last Thursday and which so far seems to really please her. She is very good with people and could suit the sector very well I believe:- fingers crossed on that one. It's not so easy for young people in the jobs market right now. Well, I haven't even mentioned the general election in the UK which is a mere 5, no 4 now, days away. I shall leave that to the gazillions of commentators on umpteen TV channels, radio stations, newspapers and internet sites...yawn yawn. Yes I know it's important and yes, I am going to vote of course.