Grumble

Thank you for all the encouragement. I'm determined to see it as a new attitude. Just want to mention Mindo talked about getting rid of things on Nextdoor.com and Buy Nothing, which are awesome ideas. Sarah has mentioned refuges and homeless charities. These are all great ideas.

When I went on the epic-for-me-but-not-huge walk on the day before yesterday, I was thinking about my female bits and that I was now probably at the end of the menopause. It felt good to be rid of all that nonsense. I'm surprised I didn't hear sniggers at the time, because that nonsense has been back with gusto yesterday and today. I am unimpressed. I am also moving much. 

Bear has been fine. School continues and bear seems to be doing okay. He was frustrated that while it has snowed all day, not a flake of it has stuck and it's still muddy looking outside. Mind you, the forecast is for severe frost tonight so I suppose it will be nice and white tomorrow morning.

Writing stuff - There will be lots of bits about writing stuff for the next few weeks as I gear up to the release of Under a Bright Saharan Sky on 21st January. For those who read and enjoyed Out of the London Mist, I believe this is a better story. It moves away from the usual steampunk stamping ground of murkey East End London and into the Sudan just after the Mahdi rebellion was crushed. I had far too much fun writing it. 

Hugs and good health to all. 

It Seemed Like a Good Idea

Cherie - I feel soooo hugged by that comment. Pass on my thanks to Tony and let him know that he's encouraged me. If you drop your email in the comments, I won't publish it but I'll get in touch with some more info (had to lose a lot of comments so haven't currently got it)

Fifitr - I think you're right - I need to be sparing in my shopping trips. I've spoken to the men of the house and DH and bear will let me know what they need so I only need to go to the shop once or twice a week. I can't in conscience get deliveries when I am able to get out. And I really want to run down the stores. The hard part is knowing that stuff is going to the tip which may, at other times, have been worth going to a charity shop. I think the charities are one of the businesses that are getting hit hard during this. 

Today I walked. I've mentioned about my complete lack of fitness, my worrying lack of strength in my legs and my inability to leave the house before I learned to drive. Today I realised that I have come on a little way. I'm nowhere near where I should be, but I'm nearer. 

I drove Red to KwikFit for a service. They have been awesome in the past, and so I felt okay leaving her with them. I decided to get the bus back home. I didn't live that far away, but further than I thought I could walk, and it wouldn't be a picturesque journey, more walking past small industrial estates but I thought that using the bus would get me more active as I walked between stops. I would have to change in Leeds. So I left the garage and walked to the bus stop. West Yorkshire Metro do a thing where if you text them the number on the bus stop, they text back with the times of the buses due. I would have to wait ten minutes for the next bus. I decided to walk to the next bus stop rather than stand around in the cold.

I got to the next bus stop, and peered ahead. I don't know the area very well, but I recognised the roundabout ahead. I could walk the few hundred yards to the roundabout, turn left and go down another road that has buses that meant I would just need one bus and a little walk. It seemed like a good idea. 

I trudged up the hill, found the bus stop and checked the wait time. It was eight minutes. I thought that I could surely walk to the next bus stop in eight minuties. If I had been on a different road or bus route, I would have managed it fine, but there weren't many houses around, just industrial units and garages, so I was fifty yards short of the stop when the bus sailed past me. 

I had a think. I could stand in the cold, with nowhere to sit or lean, for fifteen minutes until the next bus came and ride four stops (as mentioned, the stops are quite spread out, which is something). I could go on to the next stop and have the shame of riding a bus for three stops. Or I could walk home. I decided to walk. 

I checked on Google maps and I walked two and three quarter miles home. This is not actually that far. When I was a teenager, I would roam around for five miles or more without hesitation. But then when I moved away I became very wary about where I walked, and then I became even more shut in, then there were various health issues, so that by 2018 I was physically unable to walk this far. Today I walked further than I thought I was capable. And even in the industrial estates, there were still some lovely glimpses of nature.

I'll be honest, I got a taxi when I went to pick the car up. The driver terrified me and told me that Covid wasn't serious. I should have walked there. Mind you, I can't move now, so I would have been a wreck.

The service was fine, and the only extra was a bulb needed for the number plate light. Red ran like a dream as I had a quick run around but I didn't stop anywhere. 

I don't know if I'll be able to move tomorrow, but I promised bear that we would do some stuff in the garden. Please wish me luck - so stiff after such a little walk, but it's a big step for me. I'm determined not to fall back.

Writing stuff - getting nearer the publication date of the sequel to Out of the London Mist, which is called Under the Bright Saharan Sky. It's a little odd as while I run around trying to do the right thing in the run up to publication, I'm also working on a fantasy novel. 

Hugs and good health to all. 

Still Shopping

Bless - all good wishes for you in the New Year.

Sharon - scary, scary times. I just hope that there's a good take up of the vaccine.

Today I got a lot of ironing done. There's still a significant amount left, but it's the size of the foothills of the Himalayas, rather than K2. I pulled out quite a few bits that bear had outgrown (where does the time go?) and bundled it up ready for the clothes bank. When I went to make dinner, we were out of the breaded chicken that I had planned. I still had other stuff so we had mince and mash. As I have a car service tomorrow, and I am a little wary about what happens to engines if they are fiddled with, I thought I'd nip out after dinner and pick up some frozen chicken and a few bits while I was there. I get the clubcard discount of 10% twice a month, and I had both left and time running out, so I thought I would grab a few bits. Pot Noodles were also on sale - 50p if you had a clubcard, instead of a lot more, and bear will sometimes eat them when he won't eat other stuff. They last for ages, so I was happy to stock up. I bobbed into Aldi as well for some cola.

Panic buying has struck. The pasta section at Aldi looked like this.

There was also no tomato ketchup at all, for some reason. They may have been restocking, as there was some in Tesco. Tesco had no Pot Noodles left in bear's favourite flavours, which is unsurprising with that deal, but there were a few gaps in the rice and oil sections as well. 

I'm sort of surprised. Most people will have stocked up before Christmas (which I did). Many will have stocked up over Brexit fears. I stocked up before Christmas because I was worried about bad weather. Apparently a lot of it is because people are putting an extra pack of x or y into the trolley 'just in case' and suddenly there are gaps. What is also a little unfair is that I don't think that the supermarkets had any warning of the lockdown so they couldn't batten down the toilet roll. 

I wonder about how long it will take for the pasta mountains stashed in cupboards all over the country to be reduced. 

The most annoying part is that I had the clothes ready for the clothes bank and the glass jars ready for the glass bank, but I forgot them and I'm trying to reduce the amount of times I leave the house. They will have to wait. I also managed to get some writing done, and now I am heading for an early bed. 

Hugs and good health to all. 

Hard News

Wherethejourneytakesme - I bet it was a moment to remember! A party full of Scousers has a very good chance of being epic! I hope the test went well. I know that there are all sorts of roadworks around, so I hope you got there and back okay as well! Sending good vibes. 

Pam - it is a song that goes right for the emotions. I don't think I've ever heard it without a lump in my throat

Libby - Anfield really is something special. I heard that when Fenway Group took over, they were considering knocking down the stadium, or perhaps just part of it, and rebuilding. Then they attended a match and knew that it wasn't possible. They're extending where they can, but it's still Anfield. I last went there in around 1983 or 1984 when we were beat by Wolves who were relegated that year, but even in defeat there's something about the place. After posting, I went back and watched the highlights from the  Barca game from last year and that was a thing of beauty. It's wonderful seeing them soar again! (I'm also looking at things and asking myself, would I take these if I moved house? and it's helping me thin stuff out)

Sincere apologies for those who don't support Liverpool FC. It must be a little weird finding them in a mum blog. On the other hand, all sorts of stuff ends up here, so I suppose anyone here regularly will be used to it.

I called in to IKEA to pick up a mattress for bear. I'm glad I did because I suspect that IKEA will be closed now after the news of another tough lockdown. Bear will be happy, as he gets a later start and will go straight from classes to computer games without an inconvenient journey in between. I worry that he will be missing people, though. 

I'm sort of not surprised, though. I called in to Tesco for the stuff that I forgot yesterday and to put some clothes in the donation bank, and it was full. Then I called into IKEA and it was heaving. And social distancing was impossible. I was glad to get out!

I managed a little ironing and we had chicken with pasta for dinner.

Writing stuff - Monday's flash fiction is here. And in the interests of an experiment, here is the video that accompanied Out of the London Mist (I hope!) The sequel is out on 21s January and is called Under a Bright Saharan Sky. If you are planning on picking it up (and thank you if you are!!!) then try and get it at the pre-order price which is currently 77p instead of over £3.

Hugs and good health to all. 

Waiting

Fifitr - I have the tip run tomorrow and bear has been unrelenting. My car is stuffed. I will be inching along, terrified of stopping suddenly and having bags of kid's tat walloping into me from behind. There is still a roomful of black bin bags. There doesn't seem to be another slot going this week, either. Skips are looking incredibly attractive.

Wherethejourneytakesme - I like the idea of the clear out and feel that as soon as bear's bags go, there will be some of mine joining them. 

I'm waiting to find out what is happening with bear's school. I have a feeling that the headmaster is also wondering what on earth is going to happen. We have been told to get particular tests, but they aren't happening in our local authority so no doubt we will have to rock up to school for them anyway, depending on the decisions made. Bear's school has already decided to make tomorrow a training day, and then they'll be remote learning. It's so much easier for bear as it's secondary school. 

As I mentioned, bear has thrown a great deal of stuff out, and I've left him to make the decisions. He isn't donating much, but, to be fair, most of it is kid's tat. I have a few more bags of books to sort out and split. I donated a load to the school in the last sort, but I may take Sarah's suggestion and see if I can find something like a refuge that would be glad of them. I would only pass on the good stuff.

Sad to hear that Gerry Marsden has passed. He recorded the version of 'You'll Never Walk Alone' that was sung on the Kop at Liverpool FC and became such an anthem for them. It even became part of the campaign for justice for the victims of the Hillsborough Disaster - YNWA96. It is so much part of the club, that when they finally won the Premier League last year, and had to celebrate in a near empty stadium, the team (include manager) still lined up to sing it to the Kop, just as they do when the Kop can sing it back. And as I was wondering about linking to a video of the Kop singing their anthem, I found that I can add a YouTube video to the blog, which is awesome! I apologise in advance for the amount of YouTube videos which are going to happen over the next few weeks. 

Hugs and good health to all. 

Scary White Stuff

 Wherethejourneytakesme - sending good, relaxing, quiet vibes.

Sharon - and good wishes to you and yours, especially in your snowy part of the world.

Eileen - good wishes to you and yours. If we only had two trips a month, we'd have to get a skip. To be honest, I'm keeping an option on a skip.

I nipped out for some fresh veg and forgot the margarine. Actually I also forgot the couscous that bear request and only remembered as the conveyor belt at the till started to move and I had to repack the basket. Fortunately I'm still writing everything down so it helps me to resist temptation and I didn't have much to bung back in. On the way home I saw at least half a dozen flakes of snow. I can hear those in chillier areas, and those in places like Canada and the US sniggering as I write this, but I was worried. Actually I felt more like I ought to be worried rather than really worrying as it was very fine, didn't affect the road and didn't even splat on the windscreen. 

The house is full of black bin sacks. I don't really want to put them out into the garden as they will be horrible and wet and slimy when I put them in the car. My boot is currently jammed (another reason why I didn't buy much) and there is a heap in the living room that obscures the tv. Bear is having a serious clear out. This unfortunately doesn't include the stupidly large panda that uncle gave bear when he was tiny. It's about a metre tall, at least half that wide and grubby. I loathe the thing with a passion. It takes up too much room! Still, it belongs to bear and that's all there is to say about it.

I think if we keep clearing out like this, we will need a skip. 

Hugs and good health to all.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

 Jean - and also to you and yours!

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE!!!

I was writing next Monday's flash fiction as the clocks chimed midnight last night, and I hope it's a good precendent for the coming year. 

Today I did very little but DH and bear have been sorting out bear's room. My boot and the living room is full of black bin bags. I have a tip run booked on Monday, but then I will have to make sure that I'm keeping up the bookings. We are only allowed two tip runs per household per week, and I can see a lot of sorting out happening. Bear is now a teenager, and the miscellaneous scraps and bits that younger kids accumulate aren't important to him anymore. 

I went out for a quick drive to stretch my wheels, trying to get the courage up to go on the motorway when it was quiet. It wasn't that quiet. In fact, the roads were busier than I expected. They weren't actually busy in an absolute sense, but I was far too nervous to try the motorway today, especially as there were still plenty of patches of frozen snow around. I was surprised that so many places were open!

We had a gammon joint for dinner with roast potatoes and peas followed by a spare Christmas pudding with brandy butter and brandy cream. Now I am so full that I can barely move. 

Hugs and good health to all

AND A HAPPY, HEALTH AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR!!!