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Friday 23 October 2020

End of the Week

 Sharon - thank you for your faith. I wish I shared it.

I'm still writing away, with some interruptions. I had a delivery from DeliFresh. I got a few bits and included some purple pototoes and some multicoloured carrots. I'll come back and let you know how I go on.

I set up most of the October posts in advance, and I'm very glad I did. Today's story is here.

Hugs and good health to all. 

Thursday 22 October 2020

Still In Haste

I am still frantically working on the deadline so nothing much to report.

Elaine - that's an idea. I'll have a look. I've had a quick look on Facebook and I've had a look on Argos as well. Previously I got one from Niceday (I think - stationery people) and bear is very unhappy with it. That's why I thought IKEA would be so good, as bear could at least try it out.

Hazel - still working on it.

Today's story here. We're two thirds of the way through October and I've found it great fun. 

Hugs and good health to all. 

Wednesday 21 October 2020

In Haste

 Hazel - THANK YOU!!!!! I'm looking into it.

Fifitr - IKEA for me is usually almost exactly but not quite what I'm looking for, but I'd recommend their bookcases to anyone. 

Sharon - I think that there has been a huge run on desks and chairs, and we couldn't get webcams at the start of this, because everyone needed them for work (and bear wanted one for his violin lessons).

I'm under a deadline at the moment (Hi Rebekah!) so I'm just popping in to mention...

Writing stuff - today's spooky story is a new one with Kane and it's here.

Hugs and good health to all.

Tuesday 20 October 2020

IKEA

It's a funny time. Bear needs a decent chair for his room. We're reluctantly allowing him to take the elderly laptop to his room so he can use the desk in there for his homework. We're trusting him to put it away at a proper time (and it is rather useless for anything except homework). The current chair is grim. I can sit on it for a maximum of thirty seconds. Bear requested a replacement.

I agreed and decided to call in on IKEA with him on the way home from school. It was busier than I would have expected, but we dashed around at our top speed and failed. They were sold out of office chairs. We decided that we would like the Millberget at £65 but it was completely sold out. I checked on Amazon and it was for sale for £174. I decided not to get it from Amazon.

With so many people working from home, and the supply chains being disrupted, I'm not surprised that it's hard to get an office chair. I shall have to have a scout around and keep my eyes open.

When I was waiting for bear, the autumn leaves were falling like snow. Most of the supermarket carpark where I wait is bleak and barren concrete, but there is a corner that is near a beck or stream, and that has a few trees around for shade. I took the picture today, and it shows that autumn has really set in.


There are plenty of leaves still green, but the corner was full of fallen leaves and it looked lovely in the sunlight (which I totally failed to catch in the photo).

Writing stuff - today's story is here.

Hugs and good health to all. 

Monday 19 October 2020

Conventional

Jean - I know we got a great fruit & veg box from a sandwich shop that normally provides sandwiches to the city centre. I'm all for it if it keeps businesses going, and the food is so much better quality than the supermarkets.

Eloise - I've found Marriner's stuff lovely to knit up and it's a great price.

Bless - today was 57F. I love seeing the differences around the world. 

To be honest, I don't know what is or isn't conventional these days. I'm very boring, I'll admit to that. I have dull clothes and don't bother with hair or makeup. Bear thinks that I'm very conventional. I am not entirely sure that he is right about that. I certainly don't follow the same hobbies and interests as the other women on the street, but it's a wide world out there. I think it's actually wonderful that you have to ask what 'conventional' means. When I was a girl that ruled out LGBTQ and living together before marriage and doing laundry on a Sunday. It's much easier to live now, though a little harder to rebel. 

Still, it felt wonderfully subversive sitting and knitting outside the very masculine garage as they tried to sort out my tyres. Apparently they can't find any reason for the lack of tyre pressure which only seems to manifest on the same stretch of the A58. I think it comes under the same heading as my gear stick which the garage can't find fault with but irregularly refuses to get into reverse, usually in Tesco car park. I wonder if I'm driving over cursed spots. Even though knitting in a 'masculine' space (though women are getting into garages and workshops as well) feels rebellious, it really isn't unconventional as so many men are showing off their knitting skills these days (which is awesome). All I know is that my brother has researched our family tree for over two hundred years and hasn't yet found one that was bothered about what the neighbours thought. 

Writing stuff - today's story is here

Hugs and good health to all. 

Sunday 18 October 2020

Getting Autumn

Hazel - you are very, very welcome. Thank you for encouraging me. It's really helped today.

Today is definitely Autumn. I have no idea what the weather is going to do. We still have some flowers on the fuchsia and the honeysuckle but everything else is dying back.



I've been trying to write all day but it's been fighting back. It hasn't helped that it has been too hot. I have the central heating on as we are all over the house so I thought it's cheaper than three separate fires (and it is cold). DH was frozen in his room - which is where he works! So the heating has gone higher and higher, then he realised and bled the radiator again. It was only last week that he bled it, but there must have been a lot of air in the system as he said it was like releasing angry cats. The house's temperature is now returning to normal but it is still like a sauna in the kitchen. 

I've spent a few pennies. I've ordered some new jeans and a delivery from Delifresh as they have some lovely stuff. They normally only supply restaurants, or did before Covid, so you don't get cheap but you do get good. I'm looking forward to the delivery.

Writing stuff - today's story is here.

Hugs and good health to all. 

Saturday 17 October 2020

We Was Robbed!

I realised in the nick of time that I could watch the Liverpool v Everton match today live! For those who don't follow soccer, it's the match between two neighbouring teams, literally a few streets apart, who are both incredibly skilled, have long, illustrious histories and both have very passionate supporters, often in the same household. It is often the sort of match which can legitimately be described as 'well fought'. As you may be aware, I support Liverpool. I missed the first goal because I was fetching my knitting as the game was just starting and I missed the injury to Big Virgil as I was checking the pattern. The match was a 2-2 draw and I would argue that it should have been a slightly different scoreline. I guess that strenuous arguments are continuing all over Merseyside as I type. 

I can see me getting back into the swing of watching football, or soccer. I used to be a real fan, but that was years ago. But I always enjoyed it, even if we were robbed, and it's a great chance to crack on with knitting.

It's been a TV sort of day. I watched the first Strictly Come Dancing and I think it will be fun. Bill Bailey has every sign of being hilarious. I hope he stays in for a while. I was a lot happier about Strictly than I was about the football.

Still, between them I got quite a bit of knitting done.

Writing stuff - today's story is here. After a comment made by Hazel, I pulled together all the stories about Kane onto one page here. All I can say is that I am better at writing stories than working out how to add a page to the menu line up. It took me about forty minutes! I'm a little challenged when it comes to anything like that. But it was nice for me to re-read all the Kane stories, and I have an idea for a novel that covers him, but I don't know when I'll write it. 

Hugs and good vibes to all. 

Friday 16 October 2020

Bits and Pieces

Today has been an odd sort of day. I came straight home after dropping bear off and did some sorting out, some washing and some writing. I wasn't very good at the writing as I was waiting for the surveyor to measure up for the new door. He did so, but thinks it will be a few months before we get them. Then Hermes came to pick up a parcel connect with something DH was doing. I was just getting some stuff together when BT knocked to ask me to move my car. There was nowhere to move it to! It was firmly wedged between DH's car and their truck. There was some manoeuvring involved. 

When I got home I dropped some of bear's old books off at bear's old school. They're putting them into quarantine for the weekend. Bear is keen to get his room how he likes it. I got stuck in that car park as well. 

And then I had some unexpected extra bits for Under the Bright Saharan Sun. Now I'm not sure what I'm doing at all. I remember making dinner and washing up, but that may be a false memory.

I'm a little worried. Today has been a day scattered over a lot of things - bear, house, dinner, driving, writing, and the timetable has been shifted and rearranged as things came up unexpectedly, I used to be able to deal with that sort of stuff without breaking step. Now it throws me off balance. 

In other news, I've seen some yarn I like. Did I mention that I'm seriously overstocked with yarn. It's just that it would be perfect for bear, and so inexpensive. I'm looking at the red white and black colourway here, which I would loathe but bear would love. I think I'll set myself a goal for knitting so that when I've cleared around half of the outstanding stuff, I can be tempted to the next purchase - and not until!!!

Writing stuff - October Frights is over, but I'm still posting a story, old or new, every day in October. Today's story is here

Hugs and good health to all. 

 

Thursday 15 October 2020

Accidental Win

Bless - the supermarket deliveries here aren't too bad and you can compare prices, but I know you understand food and can make good decisions about what to get so it must be hard, but I'm glad you're staying safe.

I don't have a dishwasher. I did for I time, but when it started getting creaky, I decided I needed the space more and I was no longer so ill. I wash my dishes by hand, using washing up liquid, or dish soap. 

I bought a box of Amazon own brand Presto! washing up liquid over a year ago. It was a dozen litre bottles and one of them had lost their cap at the end of transit. Very little escaped but that quarter bottle managed to cause absolute havoc as it made all the bottles, the box, the kitchen floor, table and window sill a slick, sliding menace. It was a battle. I'm finally coming to the end of it. I've still got a bottle left, after this one, but I thought I would stock up. I am determined to get the house clean, and one of the best cleaners you can get is really hot water with washing up liquid. 

These bottles have lasted ages. But you only need a very small squirt for a bowlful, and it cleaned wonderfully. A little really did go a long way, even though I'm very particular and always changing the water. It was possibly the best washing up liquid I had used, including Fairy, and of course they now no longer sell it. I'm really disappointed. 

Of course it saves me bulk buying washing up liquid when I don't need to, and the downside to the Presto washing up liquid was that it didn't smell very nice and would strip the oils out of your skin if you didn't use washing up gloves, so it's a sort of win. I'll see what's on offer when it finally runs out. 

And really, that's pretty much the story of my day - failing to buy washing up liquid. I've got plenty going on tomorrow, so hopefully tomorrow will be brighter.

Writing stuff - the last post of October Frights is a new story here. I'll still be posting through October, but this is the last time I'll be linking to the other blogs, so if you feel intrigued, check them out. 

I am friends with a lot of authors on Facebook, of course. When I say 'friends' I mean we are sort of connected and we've possibly exchanged info or shared news. And I often see authors mentioning that they are No1 in a category on Amazon or have hit the bestseller list somewhere. I feel pleased for them, especially the ones I actually know, but a little wistful as I don't have anything like that to post. Well, today, while I was looking at something else, I checked, and Out of the London Mist (with obligatory link) is ranked 149 in Steampunk paperbacks and I am bloody proud. I don't know out of how many, or how long it will stay there, but I'm wearing that like a medal.

And speaking of Steampunk, the sequel is available for pre-order on Amazon. Under the Bright Saharan Sky will be published on 21 January 2021. I am now utterly giddy with excitement.

Hugs and good health to all. 

 


Wednesday 14 October 2020

Bewildered As Normal

Fifitr - I find a lot of groceries on Amazon are cheaper in the supermarkets, and I usually stick to just getting things like vitamins and tissues that I would sometimes run out of or hard to find stuff. I used to get toilet roll from there and I may go back. I never thought of rinsing off the beans. I may try that. I'm being careful about Christmas stuff, as you are right. One bad day is all it takes to make a dent if I need a treat.

I booked a slot at the tip. It was empty when I got there, so I didn't feel so guilty. I only had a few bits, but they included four demijohns that I had found at the back of the cupboard. They hadn't been touched in twenty years! There is a sort of shed where you can put things that others may find useful, so I left them there. 

Writing - lots of writing stuff. Today I have shared and gone over an amazing review from Alison DeLuca at Girl Who Reads here, which was about Out of the London Mist and I also finished off the main edits for Under the Bright Sahara Sky, which has a somewhat different feel, and wrote a new short story for the October Frights tomorrow (today's new story is here). I've also written a few paragraphs for the medieval fantasy that is due in a few days and I'll be going back to that now. My brain is whimpering. 

Tuesday 13 October 2020

Doing Sums

I used my Lidl app again today. I didn't spend too much and got 74p back in savings from the coupons with the card and a scratchcard win of 25p off my next shop. I'm still not entirely convinced. However they do have the good lebkuchen and I bought a load to stash for Christmas.

I did a 'Big Shop' in Tesco. If you have their Clubcard Plus then you get 10% of two shops per month. Today I bought a pan to replace the one I burnt (which I hated) and about a month's worth of frozen breaded chicken, frozen diced chicken and frozen chicken breasts along with a very posh Advent calendar and some fancy nuts that were on a deal, together with the usual groceries. Tesco are doing a deal where they have certain items at a discount if you have a Tesco Clubcard. This included the fancy nuts. I didn't get too many, though. I'm not sure how long they will stay reduced, but I don't feel like going overboard on them so far from Christmas. I did go a little wild on the stock cubes. The reduced salt vegetable stock cubes, which are incidentally gluten free, were 40p for ten instead of 50p and marked 'reduced to clear'. I'm always using vegetable stock cubes, and I like the reduced salt ones so I decided to stock up in case they were going to vanish. They expire in December 2021, so I'm not worried about them going to waste. It's soup weather, and I can use two or three a week.

With the discounts on the Clubcard and the 10% off, I saved just under £13 (though I still spent a fortune). I'm sure I can do better.

Tonight, after buying all that chicken, we had baked potatoes and beans. I signed up for Heinz at Home, which is direct from Heinz and you can get beans and stuff. If you subscribe then you get free postage. It isn't the best ever price that you get on beans, but it isn't bad, and DH only likes Heinz. I was worried that we wouldn't get through them quick enough. I signed up for a tray of 24 tins of beans every 8 weeks, the longest interval allowed. I thought I would have to make excuses to use them and be careful to use at least three tins every week. Over the last week, with meals and quick lunches, I've used six tins. I think I'll be fine. 

Writing stuff - today's contribution to October Frights is here

Hugs and good health to all. 

Monday 12 October 2020

A New Week

I have started stocking up for Christmas. Tesco are running a promotion where some items are cheaper if you have a clubcard. I didn't pick up much today but I saved £5. The question is - would I have spent the actual money if it had been less? I'm not so sure, but I stashed some miniature toblerone bars which we all like and they were £2.50 per bag instead of £3.50. I think they are just about worth £2.50, but not £3.50. I'm not getting much chocolate in this year, but I'll get some bits put away between now and December if I see a good deal.

 The birds still haven't touched the bird table, but I was being closely watched by a magpie when I got home from dropping bear off. I hope we do get to feed the local birds. I really enjoy seeing them.

I had a bad night last night, and I had the flu jab today, so I am officially shattered. I am proud that I walked over there, though. It's real progress. I didn't see the tree with two types of apple on this time, but I was enjoying the colours. I wish I could capture the glow in the air as I took this photo, as the sun was getting low and there was a lot of cloud.


I love the colours of autumn.

Writing stuff - today's October Frights post is a new story here

Hugs and good health to all. 

Sunday 11 October 2020

Waiting for the Weekend

Kate - we have to book a visit to the tip and we are allowed two trips per household per week. They are quite picky about what they will take, but fortunately our tip is quite close. We only have cars anyway, but bear really needs a new mattress. Sorting that out will be fun!

As there is likely to be a major announcement about covid measures tomorrow, and as I live in one of the worst affected areas, I thought I would have a drive around this morning. Unfortunately the sun was seriously bright and the sun visor and sunglasses didn't help. It was the perfect angle. So I had a little walk. 



I wish I could show how glorious the sun was through the leaves today. I won't be able to walk there for a while. It's the wrong side of the traffic queues and the school run is fraught as it is. It's in a different district from my home as well (though not by much).

Lots of sorting out today. I'm sure there is lots of stuff that can go, even after today's tip run. I want to push through with knitting loads, as I love the yarn I have and I really want to knit it.

Writing stuff - today's story is here, and don't forget to check the links for other stories in the Blog Hop, as well as the free stories in the Giveaway.

Hugs and good health to all. 


Saturday 10 October 2020

Sort of Okay

I didn't manage to follow the plan very well today. I've not done well all week. And today I didn't even do the dishes. Mind you, it's been an odd sort of day.

DH is going to the tip tomorrow and we are trying to clear stuff out. I think we all feel the need to have an emptier house. I'm embarrassed to admit that DH and bear feel it a lot more. Bear put a bird feeder together this morning so that the packaging can go to the tip, and I dragged out boxes and rubbish from all over the house. DH really wanted a full car. 

Bear also started clearing through his books and we had a pile around two foot deep covering his bed. Charity shops aren't accepting stuff near me, and it would take me years to eBay it. DH is going to check out the book bank at the tip. I'm trying to think of other places that may like the donations. 

I thought I would have a dig in a corner cupboard in my room that was hidden by a pile of stuff because I thought there were old sheets in there and I might as well get rid of them. That's when I found a leak in the pipe. I may have said some rude words. 

It hasn't been going for long. The carpet near it is dry, and there isn't any mold on the walls near it. There were a few very damp sheets, which I binned, so it could be worse. When the boiler was installed, over ten years ago, a thingy was installed that was supposed to keep the gunk out of the pipes. I think it may have sprung the leak when I repressurised the boiler. It's going to have to be a plumber.

It may be a while before we can get hold of a plumber, so we all went to B&Q for leak stop. It's been months since we were all out of the house at the same time, so it felt a little odd. I drove as DH's car was filled to the brim. I'm going to have to clear out my room which is overdue, but I could do without doing it this week. I have realised how much yarn I have now, and I need to get knitting.

Writing stuff - Day one of the October Frights blog hop. My first contribution is here, and at the end there is a list of other blogs taking part, together with a link to the giveaway of stories on Story Origin which does not include me as I didn't get my act together. 

Hugs and good health to all. 

Friday 9 October 2020

Not Bad

I confess to not particularly following the plan, but it's been an okay sort of day.

Jean - it is a pretty awesome bag and lovely and sturdy

Sharon - I'm sort of a cheap date. I don't go for things like fancy bags and shoes, but I am a complete sucker for a bargain.

Fifitr - I'm trying to make carrying the bags back to the car part of my routine, because if I don't, I'll end up with even more and there's a mountain of them already! I can't resist good bags for life, and Tesco have great ones. As for notebooks, I have stacks around. I'm always noting down bits, like rows for knitting, word counts, etc. I don't expect the shopping list book to last long. I am about to suggest something naughty. Donate unused notebooks that you don't fancy using and get something brighter. There are some lovely ones around, but they are not inexpensive. There are some cute ones in supermarkets these days and I've mostly resisted, but, if you are watching the pennies, do not check out Peter Pauper notebooks. I think that they are an American company, but they sell over here through Amazon and their notebooks are stunning! Also, not cheap. Not at all! I haven't found an excuse for another one yet, but I will.

I've may not have stuck to the plan, but I've been busy. I've finally done the complex calculations for bear's school photos. Biggish one for the main room (if bear permits), slightly smaller ones for DH and I to have on our desks, then enough of the 'reasonably big but not too big' for family and friends. It was a complicated calculation as the different packages didn't cover everything and I had to go down to the small print.

I also spent some time re-pressurising the boiler. It's a task that's slipped from my mind over the last few years. The DH realised that his room wasn't heating up as it should as his radiator, on the top floor, was almost entirely air and so was the radiator in the junk room! After I've finished this post, I'm going to start a sheet with monthly tasks on, that don't really fit in a day but should be done intermittently, like bleed the radiators. 

Then there was a tyre issue. I suspect that there is a slow leak going on. Once again I was driving along when a tyre pressure warning came on - and I hadn't hit anything or had a jolt. There was nothing I could see in the tyres, but the rear tyre on the driver's side felt off when I was driving. I asked the Citroen garage who recommended a tyre place that was a tricky drive. It was foul to turn into, with a tiny opening and nowhere to park and lots of men hanging around looking busy. Bless them, one of them parked red for me, because I couldn't, and they had a little check. One of the tyres, the rear tyre on the driver's side, was a little below pressure, and they added a squirt of air and wouldn't take money. I think that it is likely to happen again, and I should be able to work out how to put air in at the petrol station, if I have the courage to try.

Writing stuff - today's story is here. And don't forget - tomorrow is the start of October Frights and I'll be linking to all the other blogs taking part in my posts from 10th to 15th October. 

Hugs and good health to all. 



Thursday 8 October 2020

Not a Win

 Sharon - thank you for the kind words and encouragement. I really appreciate it!

I got three hours sleep last night, so I decided that I would just do my best and take what I could as a win. Also, deadlines continuing. 

I got a few little bits done, and I managed quite a chunk of writing. Bear assembled a light before school (it was delivered yesterday) and I remembered to get the right bulbs and the crumpets due to shopping notebook, so that was a win. I also dug out a diary and grabbed a bag.

I shouldn't have bought the bag. It was 60p in Tesco and I have absolutely no need for it. I have dozens of bags for life. I just couldn't resist the design. So here is what I am calling my survival pack. 


Ignore the curtains at the back. That was father's choice and I need to get a new rail before I get new curtains.


This is the folder with all the lists on. I'm looking for a sturdier file, though.


Here is the trusty shopping notebook, which hopefully will follow me around.


And this is a sort of diary. I got it from Wish, and it was relatively inexpensive. Inside you get a few pages for notes and lists and lots of double page spreads for weeks.


You fill in the month and date yourself.


It has a little box where it has the numbers 1-12 and I've circled 10 as we are in the tenth month, then you put in the dates next to the days of the weeks. I plan to keep a record of all sorts of stuff and I may use highlighters to code for medical, deadlines, appointments etc (my writing is appalling and I'll be adding more details now I've taken the pic)

It has month sections for overviews and blank pages for jottings and I hope to make it all work.

I'll add a pencil case with some pens and highlighters in, and that should help a lot.

Writing stuff - Today's post is here, and I took the pic myself a while ago.

Hugs and good health to all. 

Wednesday 7 October 2020

Not a Fail

Not much housewifery got done today, but I'm not taking it as a fail. 

First thing this morning we had a phone appointment with someone medical for bear. It wasn't serious, but was at a tricky time, so I drove to Heckmondwike, had the conference in a car park and then chucked bear into school reception after about an hour of discussion. Then I called into Tesco for an afternoon snack for bear (which he later refused) and while I was there got another phone call from one of bear's medical thingies. I still remembered the washing up gloves, so I'm taking that as a result.

By the time I got home I felt somewhere in the region of terminally bewildered. I still managed a few hundred words, though, so that's something, and I chased up a few more bits and pieces.

I picked up bear, then got home, booked a flu jab and was settling down to work and I heard a massive buzzing. A bee had flown into the window where she had got stuck. I spent the next twenty minutes on edge and hoping that she would see the HUGE gap where I had the window wide open. Their eyes can see a massive range of colours and have an amazing field of vision but they still can't see the dratted fresh air! I was so desperate, I was even considering squashing her, and I hate hurting bees, but I managed to coax her out.

I did an easy dinner and now I am back at my laptop. I'm against the clock on a deadline for a medieval fantasy, I'm begging for reviews for Out of the London Mist and I'm working with the Three Furies editing the sequel set in Sudan. Also, I need to up my horror game and get set up with some new stuff.

Writing stuff - Today's post is another old favourite of min - 'Just in Case'. And don't forget, in three days time there will be the October Frights Blog Hop. 

Hugs and good health to all.



Tuesday 6 October 2020

Fail Today, Try Again Tomorrow

I'm feeling the fail. I feel very ashamed. I got some bits done, and everyone ate home cooked food but I've left the dirty dishes. My washing up gloves ripped apart and my hands are too sore to wash up without them. No dishwasher. 

I called in on the farm shop on the way home as bear wanted a snack. I got a sort of pic of an emu.


I'll be brighter tomorrow.

Writing stuff - today's post is here, one of my favourite poems, 'First and Third Saturday'. I'm seriously considering trying it. 

Monday 5 October 2020

Not Brilliant, But Could be Worse

Today was not a brilliant start to the cleaning campaign. Part of the problem was that I left the house at 7.30am with bear (who finished his homework about thirty seconds before he got into the car) and by the time I had called in at Tesco, Aldi, WH Smiths and Wilkos, it was 10.30 before I got home and I had to leave again at 1.30pm. By then I had called a man about replacing the doors and written a thousand words as well as various bits on the cleaning list. 

I've done some of my checklist. I washed some sheets, and I did manage a little clean. I didn't get anything done in the garden and I didn't clean the mirrors (on Monday's list). Still, we are all fed, there are clean clothes for tomorrow and it could all be worse.

Tomorrow I'm supposed to concentrate on the kitchen. I may make a small dent.

We are getting the front door and porch door replaced, along with the porch windows. They are the next on the list of things that need replacing. Bear is keen for me to re-paint the porch once that is done, but I'm less than enthusiastic right now. 

Writing stuff - Steampunk Explorer have been kind enough to add me to the list of steampunk authors. There are some incredible names on that list, so I'll have to work on living up to them.

Today's story for October isn't the new story I planned, but a snippet from 'Across a Misty Bridge' - Waiting. I hope you enjoy.

Had a little formatting issue, so the photo should be credited to Irena Carpaccio on Unsplash.

Hugs and good health to all. 


Sunday 4 October 2020

Changing Direction

I write about what I'm doing or what I'm thinking on this blog. If I'm doing a lot of knitting, then knitting pops up on these pages. If I am doing a lot of writing, then writing it is. When you read about 'How to Blog' and 'How to Make Money Blogging', it's always about writing what you know and having a defined brand. I've failed at that for years. I have the attention span of a kitten in a feather factory, and I'm afraid my posts reflect that.

Normally, when I post that I am going to do something, the next post contains a few paragraphs about why I couldn't and what happened. But today I'm taking a risk, making plans on here, in the open. I'm feeling fairly determined, though, so wish me luck.The week just past was a fail in housewifery, and so I'm starting again tomorrow. I thought I had better warn you. There may be long monologues about cleaning products.

Years ago, I had a lever arch file and I wrote everything down. I mean, everything. What I spent (too much on yarn), what I did, what I needed to do and when to do things. At the time, I was severely depressed and barely able to function. Writing things down was a lifeline. I'd even break a phone call into separate steps (1. Find number 2. Pick up phone. 3. Find pen & paper. 4. Dial number...). I was in a very bad place. I've decided to try that method again, as it can't hurt even if I'm not in quite so dark a space. I'm buying a new file as the old one is falling to pieces. Also, let's be honest, I like shopping and it's an excuse.

First of all, I'm using the ideas of the Secret Slob, but playing around with them a little. I have a long checklist of things I need to try and fit into the day. I won't fit them all in, but that's okay. I'll just do my best. Second, I've got a separate diary and shopping list (as I showed in poor photographs a few weeks ago). Third, I've a list of things I should really get around to, but I can just add to when they occur to me and I can cross off when I've done them. It's a sort of rolling to-do list but I'm trying to avoid the guilt trip.

I'm not posting 'before' pics, because I'm too ashamed. Besides, the 'before' pics in the 'how to clean' blogs always look a little staged and are something like my home on a good day. I may post 'after' pics, depending on how things go. I doubt that it will be a 'I decided to do good cleaning and now, without any hiccups or issues, my house is clean' type post. I'm just promising myself that I will try and that I will post on here to keep myself honest. 

Also, I will try and find the story in things, the fun and the humour, because that's the best bit of life. 

Today has been a good day. We hung out and watched Shaun of the Dead and it was a wonderfully relaxing afternoon. We had the soups for dinner and icecream. I'm going to aim for home made soups from now on, at least until Christmas. I intend to get a few Aldi soups in over the Christmas holidays for easy dinners.

Writing stuff - I got a really great review from Red Haircrow Review. I felt quite nervous approaching them about a review as they are very educated and deal with difficult subjects and content. They have been awesome, however, and really kind. 

As it is October, here is a story on my blog that I've posted before, but I think it is still a good read. 

And brace yourselves for more. October Frights Blog Hop is coming up and not only will I be posting some old and new stories, but there will be a lot of spooky stuff going on. I'll link it here and on my writing blog.

Hugs and good health to all.

Saturday 3 October 2020

Feeling the Fail

 Bless - I love the pic of the kitty. Sometimes I go to Unsplash and just enjoy the pics. I do that on WikiCommons as well. I really respect and admire people who can take great photos (Sharon, I'm thinking of you as well as others here). I love it when I have an excuse to look for a pic. I had a sneak peak just now and found this. It's in the public domain and I could just print it out and put it on the wall. I'm quite tempted.

At the moment, I'm feeling the fail. I don't seem to be succeeding at housewifery, budgeting, cooking, time management or negotiating parenting a teenage. I'm even failing at knitting. DH and bear are currently preferring Aldi fresh soups to anything I make. 

Last week was a housewifery fail, but I'm trying to get back on track. I need to clear out a lot of stuff but charity shops are currently reluctant to accept stuff. I'm considering an eBay binge, though I don't know if anyone is buying. DH took a car full of literal rubbish to the tip this morning. Most of it was cardboard. There is a downside to ordering so much from the internet. The packaging is out of control.

On the bright side, bear is doing pretty well with his homework at the moment - at least, according to him. He's putting a lot of pressure on himself, so I need to keep an eye on that.

Writing stuff - Today's post is here, a small, spooky story. 

Hugs and good health to all

Friday 2 October 2020

The End of the Week

 My internal workings are not playing nicely. I skipped most of my shopping today and instead spent a lot of time in supermarket toilets. I'll be glad when it settles down. This meant that today was spent grumbling and not very productively. 

I was on edge all the time I was waiting for bear, and I think that the dratted yarn is making my hands itch. They are both getting sore. 

Otherwise it could be a lot worse. Bear is currently being incredibly organised with his schoolwork. I am watching from a safe distance as it seems to involve a lot of things like making flash cards and filling lever arch files. This evening he was watching something about mathematics and Kepler, which he seemed to be enjoying but made absolutely no sense to me. I don't know whether it was physics or maths homework, but it was head and shoulders against the rather limp slideshows we had when I was at school.

Writing stuff - Day Two of October, and I've written a short story which is here. I think Kitler is a great name for a cat.

Thursday 1 October 2020

Knitting Time

It's been a quiet sort of day as I have been working on writing stuff. I left to pick up bear just before 2pm. It takes around 25-30 minutes to get to Morrisons at that time of day in normal circumstances and bear doesn't leave school until 3.15. I take the wait as knitting time (coming along quite nicely)


By the time I got near Morrisons, the queue of traffic was ridiculous. More parents are picking up their kids. There aren't enough bus seats, and even if they kids do get a seat, there is a heightened risk of infection. This means that Heckmondwike is gridlocked at school drop off and pick up times. I'm going to have to get there a lot earlier.

This potentially means more knitting time, but I can also take along a laptop for writing, and I will probably have to reschedule my walk to fit between my arrival at Morrisons and bear wandering up. I can probably fit quite a lot of shopping in as well. 

For some reason, the morning run isn't quite as bad, so I can usually drop bear and zoom off to Tesco, Aldi, Lidl etc before coming back and calling in on Morrisons and possibly a few charity shops and a Poundland type store while waiting for bear to finish school.

Or I can go straight home after drop off and sit with laptop/knitting while waiting at pick up. I still need to keep social distancing and appropriate restraint in shops in mind. 

Writing stuff - Today is the first day of October and so I've put up a slightly spooky post here. It's a poem that has been seen before, but I hope you can still enjoy it. There will be a new story tomorrow.

Hugs and good health to all.