Thank you for the kind comments. They are very much appreciated. I hope that it is a good place to stop by. I always feel honoured that anyone reads this. Thank you.
Today has been a good day. I may not have got much done, but I went back to bed after bear left and slept for hours. It was wonderful. I am still shattered going up a flight of stairs, but I have done slightly more ironing than was necessary, which is a win. My ironing pile is still visible from space, but it is smaller than it would be. I also successfully collected bear from climbing, which is a plus, as I have massively failed until last week. I am feeling smug. The climbing teacher reminds me of DH when I first met him, back in 1985. I want to snuggle with DH more than ever.
This is unfortunate as DH is feeling under the weather. There is a very good chance that he is starting a variant of what I have suffered. This is not good news. I have been very poorly. On one hand, DH doesn't suffer when he gets a cold or flu like I do. Everyone's system is different. I get badly hit by colds and flu, DH suffers from anything stomach related. On the other hand, a minor cough for me is major problems for him. My notoriously anti antibiotic doctors gave me antibiotics for my chest. I'm really hoping DH is going to miss out on that. I am standing ready with honey and lemon as DH will not be easily able to take time off as his work is not only very busy but has people on leave. I shall make sure he gets a lot of fuss.
Bear is also suffering, but he isn't poorly enough to keep off school. I have just worked out that his last session of climbing coincides with the House Drama. I am not exactly sure what is happening with the House Drama, as everything bear brings home seems to be drama of some kind, but it is important. I will let bear sort out how he is going to work out that clash. On the one hand, he is sort of committed to the House Drama but he loves the climbing. I'm encouraging the climbing as it means that bear may, at some point, actually leave the house voluntarily and go into the countryside.
We haven't been affected by the snow yet, but tomorrow may change that. I put bear in a school that is eight miles from my home and now I have to worry if there will be a problem getting him home. There are various plans in place. My brother lives relatively near the school and bear has pals who will help out and I know a parent who has family nearby, but even so, it is quite worrying. Walking is theoretically possible, but he has to cross roads that are slip roads to motorways, so not terribly safe. It is worth it, however. I listen to bear's pal, who is going to a failing school, and the added riches in bear's school are worth a lot of inconvenience. Bear has chances to get into spelling bees and drama and rock climbing (very basic stuff at a local indoor wall), and they are keeping parents updated with what homework is outstanding (I didn't tell bear, but I can see the gap between what he says and what the teacher has logged lol). There is just so much going on. Bear is very lucky, even if snow is a major issue.
I'm off for an earlyish night. If tomorrow means I have to somehow get a stranded bear back from miles away, I need to be rested. Also, thank you for the kind comments. They are very much appreciated.
Thursday, 31 January 2019
How Real?
Susan Zarzycki of Living an Ordinary Life and YumYum Crochet left a lovely comment. She said that my blog sounded homey and realistic. I felt hugged.
Then I started thinking about the 'realistic' bit.
I never needed to make stuff up. In fact, there have been times when I have toned things down when I've wittered on about my life. I said as much to the driving examiner the last time I failed my test, just after telling him the story of when psycho cat ripped the head of a mouse (while he was strictly an indoor cat and had probably had to send for the poor thing mail order) while we were watching Cinderella and paused the video (it was a long time ago) on the frame of a dancing, cartoon mouse. The driving examiner was actually quite nice, and I don't blame him for failing me, and we had quite a good chat as we went around. I don't know if that is realistic, but it happened.
In my experience, reality is far stranger than any fiction. I write novels about werewolves and vampires and I wouldn't even think about putting in some of the crazy stuff I had seen in real life. Last summer I had a scare with two separate types of cancer within a week or so of each other. It sounds so full of drama, and it did seem unbelievable to me, but it was real. To be honest, I felt in my bones that they were just scares and nothing serious, but I begrudged the appointments I had to go to at a time when I was sinking, even though they were necessary. If anyone thinks that I made up that story, I don't blame them. I would think that as well. I certainly wouldn't put it in a novel. I get that blogs don't always sound real.
I am, by nature, a story teller. Whether it's the time I put hand wash liquid in the washing machine (seriously, don't do this, the foam gets everywhere) or my fail at making ginger beer, or my trials with the sewing machine, it may not be a success, but they are good stories. I am still scared of the dratted sewing machine and if that changes then I will share - especially if there is a good story in it. That is my real life and I enjoy finding the stories in them and sharing them. If I can find the story, then I can keep going. So what you read here is me talking about my life but knowing that I look for the stories. I don't lie, but I do try and find the humour and the silver lining. And when I tell the story, it helps me make sense of things, especially when times are tough.
I think I get what Susan means, though. I hope I am not putting words in your mouth, Susan, but some blogs are so full of successes that they are depressing. I have actually unsubscribed to some blogs, as I read them and felt that I could never achieve their pinnacle of perfection. I would read about their effortless budgeting, cookery and housekeeping, look around the ruins that are my living room and feel worse about myself than ever. I hope I never do that to anyone. Life can be awesome, and tough, and complicated and it's never as straightforward as a story where you have control of what happens, and hugs to anyone who is struggling at this moment. My experience is that if you can find the story and find the humour, then you can get through almost anything. When I look at those blogs that show how wonderful and perfect the blogger's life is, I wonder what story isn't being told. I wonder where the surprises and the unexpected are and, I suppose, where the reality is. Also, I usually feel a failure. Just to add - to the right you can see a list of the blogs I follow. I think they are awesome and I don't feel a failure after reading them. I thought I ought to be clear.
I'm rambling, and what I think I mean is that, sometimes there is a better story in a real fail than a fake success. And sometimes it's okay to admit that things have gone wrong and that everything seems dark. Because that means that people reading can feel that it's okay not to be perfect (heaven knows, I am far from perfect, and it encourages me to know that others also face the same struggles) and it's okay to try to keep going and it's okay to get it wrong. And when things go right, it is absolutely okay to celebrate the good because sometimes real life is good. Sometimes I get it right - my home made soup is awesome!
Some of the blogs I follow have people struggling through the most dreadful circumstances, but they keep going, they find the positive or the humour, or even the defiance that they need to keep putting one foot in front of the other. I find people like Bless and Hester incredibly inspirational, even though they have had their dark times.
I started blogging when bear was little and I was very isolated. I wanted to be able to talk about my life, and because I didn't have anyone to speak to face to face, I started this. In this blog I have made many friends, and I have had some amazing advice that has been incredibly useful and supportive, and you are all awesome. I haven't got anything profound to offer, just the stories of what happens day to day, pretty much as they happen, and I hope that I can share the humour if nothing else.
In the interests of real life, I am up far too late. Last night I worked until the early hours trying to get a fiction submission sorted, and then I was up far too early to get bear ready for school However I am currently up far too late again as I forgot to take bear's dratted kit out of the dratted washer and it doesn't tumble dry so I am keeping it near the fire to try and get it fit for his rock climbing tomorrow. I shall probably crawl back into bed after bear leaves tomorrow morning as I am still flattened by the flu. And, for the sake of being realistic, here is a blog post from 18 months ago. It tells about broken appliances and a lost grave. It is all absolutely true, some of it is unbelievable and it is a perfect example of why I never need to make anything up. I've included a pic from that post below.
It's been a rambling post, possibly due to sleep deprivation, but I want to say sincerely, thank you for stopping by and thank you for all those who have given advice and support over the years. Thank you for letting me share the real stories in my life. I am very grateful. Hugs to all.
Then I started thinking about the 'realistic' bit.
I never needed to make stuff up. In fact, there have been times when I have toned things down when I've wittered on about my life. I said as much to the driving examiner the last time I failed my test, just after telling him the story of when psycho cat ripped the head of a mouse (while he was strictly an indoor cat and had probably had to send for the poor thing mail order) while we were watching Cinderella and paused the video (it was a long time ago) on the frame of a dancing, cartoon mouse. The driving examiner was actually quite nice, and I don't blame him for failing me, and we had quite a good chat as we went around. I don't know if that is realistic, but it happened.
In my experience, reality is far stranger than any fiction. I write novels about werewolves and vampires and I wouldn't even think about putting in some of the crazy stuff I had seen in real life. Last summer I had a scare with two separate types of cancer within a week or so of each other. It sounds so full of drama, and it did seem unbelievable to me, but it was real. To be honest, I felt in my bones that they were just scares and nothing serious, but I begrudged the appointments I had to go to at a time when I was sinking, even though they were necessary. If anyone thinks that I made up that story, I don't blame them. I would think that as well. I certainly wouldn't put it in a novel. I get that blogs don't always sound real.
I am, by nature, a story teller. Whether it's the time I put hand wash liquid in the washing machine (seriously, don't do this, the foam gets everywhere) or my fail at making ginger beer, or my trials with the sewing machine, it may not be a success, but they are good stories. I am still scared of the dratted sewing machine and if that changes then I will share - especially if there is a good story in it. That is my real life and I enjoy finding the stories in them and sharing them. If I can find the story, then I can keep going. So what you read here is me talking about my life but knowing that I look for the stories. I don't lie, but I do try and find the humour and the silver lining. And when I tell the story, it helps me make sense of things, especially when times are tough.
I think I get what Susan means, though. I hope I am not putting words in your mouth, Susan, but some blogs are so full of successes that they are depressing. I have actually unsubscribed to some blogs, as I read them and felt that I could never achieve their pinnacle of perfection. I would read about their effortless budgeting, cookery and housekeeping, look around the ruins that are my living room and feel worse about myself than ever. I hope I never do that to anyone. Life can be awesome, and tough, and complicated and it's never as straightforward as a story where you have control of what happens, and hugs to anyone who is struggling at this moment. My experience is that if you can find the story and find the humour, then you can get through almost anything. When I look at those blogs that show how wonderful and perfect the blogger's life is, I wonder what story isn't being told. I wonder where the surprises and the unexpected are and, I suppose, where the reality is. Also, I usually feel a failure. Just to add - to the right you can see a list of the blogs I follow. I think they are awesome and I don't feel a failure after reading them. I thought I ought to be clear.
I'm rambling, and what I think I mean is that, sometimes there is a better story in a real fail than a fake success. And sometimes it's okay to admit that things have gone wrong and that everything seems dark. Because that means that people reading can feel that it's okay not to be perfect (heaven knows, I am far from perfect, and it encourages me to know that others also face the same struggles) and it's okay to try to keep going and it's okay to get it wrong. And when things go right, it is absolutely okay to celebrate the good because sometimes real life is good. Sometimes I get it right - my home made soup is awesome!
Some of the blogs I follow have people struggling through the most dreadful circumstances, but they keep going, they find the positive or the humour, or even the defiance that they need to keep putting one foot in front of the other. I find people like Bless and Hester incredibly inspirational, even though they have had their dark times.
I started blogging when bear was little and I was very isolated. I wanted to be able to talk about my life, and because I didn't have anyone to speak to face to face, I started this. In this blog I have made many friends, and I have had some amazing advice that has been incredibly useful and supportive, and you are all awesome. I haven't got anything profound to offer, just the stories of what happens day to day, pretty much as they happen, and I hope that I can share the humour if nothing else.
In the interests of real life, I am up far too late. Last night I worked until the early hours trying to get a fiction submission sorted, and then I was up far too early to get bear ready for school However I am currently up far too late again as I forgot to take bear's dratted kit out of the dratted washer and it doesn't tumble dry so I am keeping it near the fire to try and get it fit for his rock climbing tomorrow. I shall probably crawl back into bed after bear leaves tomorrow morning as I am still flattened by the flu. And, for the sake of being realistic, here is a blog post from 18 months ago. It tells about broken appliances and a lost grave. It is all absolutely true, some of it is unbelievable and it is a perfect example of why I never need to make anything up. I've included a pic from that post below.
This is the old part of the churchyard, where my great grandparents are buried, taken by John S Turner and used under the Creative Commons Agreement. They made a quiet space for people to think in the place where the graves were so old that most were untended
It's been a rambling post, possibly due to sleep deprivation, but I want to say sincerely, thank you for stopping by and thank you for all those who have given advice and support over the years. Thank you for letting me share the real stories in my life. I am very grateful. Hugs to all.
Tuesday, 29 January 2019
Sort of Excited
I would be more excited if I had more energy. I have just made some soup as the men really need some good fuel in this weather (though we haven't been too affected here). When I say 'home made soup' I mean I tipped some oil in a pan, added a large amount of lazy garlic, a bag of frozen sweet potato chunks, a bag of frozen chopped onion, a bag of frozen butternut squash, some lentils, some curry powder, a couple of stock cubes and a lot of water. I left it to simmer and then DH blitzed it with a hand blender and I'll freeze anything left for later. I am now barely able to move - I'm flattened! And it's not exactly haute cuisine.
However on the bear front, he got good marks for his pizza (the egg arrived in one piece!) and some of the pizza even made it home! What is even better, he came top in the first round of a spelling bee. I am so proud of him. In the interests of being fair and not trying to present a false picture, we are glossing over a lot of not so good stuff in French, but I'm proud of the spelling bee. I'm proud of bear in general.
I need to get moving more. I nearly died of shame when the piano teacher turned up. Bear's lesson has switched to Tuesdays and I had forgotten. The house is a pit. I really need to get it sorted. All I need is the energy...
Writing stuff - This is also sort of exciting and if I had more energy I would be a lot more excited. The vaguely exciting news is that I have volunteered to be a very minor part of OWS CyCon. You may not have heard of this, and that's okay, because until last week neither had I. There is a big cyber convention of authors and readers every year (this year it's May 17th-19th 2019), where wonderful, convention-type stuff happens. It looks like there will be discussions, giveaways, and all sorts! And it's all online so those who can't travel much, for whatever reason, can mingle with authors and readers, even those from different continents. If you are interested in this, the website is here, but I will be posting snippets as it gets nearer the time. I know the people at Our Write Side who are running it this year, and they are awesome and I can't wait to see what goes on.
And what is exciting right now is a guest post on my writing blog by Jennifer Zamboni about her journey towards writing 'Beauty is a Beast' (and she's a knitter, which is also awesome).
I plan to be back tomorrow with more energy to be excited!
However on the bear front, he got good marks for his pizza (the egg arrived in one piece!) and some of the pizza even made it home! What is even better, he came top in the first round of a spelling bee. I am so proud of him. In the interests of being fair and not trying to present a false picture, we are glossing over a lot of not so good stuff in French, but I'm proud of the spelling bee. I'm proud of bear in general.
I need to get moving more. I nearly died of shame when the piano teacher turned up. Bear's lesson has switched to Tuesdays and I had forgotten. The house is a pit. I really need to get it sorted. All I need is the energy...
Writing stuff - This is also sort of exciting and if I had more energy I would be a lot more excited. The vaguely exciting news is that I have volunteered to be a very minor part of OWS CyCon. You may not have heard of this, and that's okay, because until last week neither had I. There is a big cyber convention of authors and readers every year (this year it's May 17th-19th 2019), where wonderful, convention-type stuff happens. It looks like there will be discussions, giveaways, and all sorts! And it's all online so those who can't travel much, for whatever reason, can mingle with authors and readers, even those from different continents. If you are interested in this, the website is here, but I will be posting snippets as it gets nearer the time. I know the people at Our Write Side who are running it this year, and they are awesome and I can't wait to see what goes on.
And what is exciting right now is a guest post on my writing blog by Jennifer Zamboni about her journey towards writing 'Beauty is a Beast' (and she's a knitter, which is also awesome).
I plan to be back tomorrow with more energy to be excited!
Sunday, 27 January 2019
50ml of Milk
Darn it to heck! One of the ingredients bear is taking in for this dratted food tech is 50ml (@ 2fl oz) of milk.
DH asked, very sensibly, why we just didn't get a carton of milk and he could drink or pour the rest away (except neat milk makes bear throw up). This is the best idea, and bear is taking in small jars of garlic and garam masala rather than a small pinch of each in a bag. However today is also the day of double games, so bear is carrying in football boots, shin pads, shorts, jogging bottoms, two types of top and the school's special socks. I'm trying to keep the load light. Adding another half kilo with potential to spill everywhere in quantity is not top of my list. I put the milk in a small bag, inside a small glass jar that used to hold Morrison's Italian Herb seasoning, inside another bag, and hopefully that will limit any damage.
The egg is in a small plastic box which has been well padded with kitchen roll. The small box is in the bigger box along with the cheese, flour, garlic, tomato paste, margarine, coriander, red onion, milk etc and it is a snug fit. Hopefully it won't get too bashed around. I am going to call the office and ask that they consider getting a 'class jug of milk' for situations like this. There is just so much potential for things to go wrong. Mind you, I suppose it's a learning experience - the trouble is, it's me who's learning how to pack 50ml of dratted milk.
DH asked, very sensibly, why we just didn't get a carton of milk and he could drink or pour the rest away (except neat milk makes bear throw up). This is the best idea, and bear is taking in small jars of garlic and garam masala rather than a small pinch of each in a bag. However today is also the day of double games, so bear is carrying in football boots, shin pads, shorts, jogging bottoms, two types of top and the school's special socks. I'm trying to keep the load light. Adding another half kilo with potential to spill everywhere in quantity is not top of my list. I put the milk in a small bag, inside a small glass jar that used to hold Morrison's Italian Herb seasoning, inside another bag, and hopefully that will limit any damage.
The egg is in a small plastic box which has been well padded with kitchen roll. The small box is in the bigger box along with the cheese, flour, garlic, tomato paste, margarine, coriander, red onion, milk etc and it is a snug fit. Hopefully it won't get too bashed around. I am going to call the office and ask that they consider getting a 'class jug of milk' for situations like this. There is just so much potential for things to go wrong. Mind you, I suppose it's a learning experience - the trouble is, it's me who's learning how to pack 50ml of dratted milk.
Saturday, 26 January 2019
Fusion Food!
Bear has decided that the pizza he is making on Monday in Food Tech (or whatever the latest name they use for basic cooking) has to be 'innovative'. If he just slaps on some cheese and a few slices of pepperoni, he doesn't get a good mark. Bear cares about getting a good mark. So he decided he is going to make a pizza based on Indian cuisine. Then he sits back and looks at me expectantly.
So we are going with the pizza base recipe that is given in the booklet which is flour, milk, egg and butter. Then bear is going to add tomato puree with garam masala, garlic and possibly some pizza herbs with the topping being chicken tikka slices, red onion, fresh coriander and cheese. I don't think it's very authentic, but it's very British and it's relatively light for him to carry, especially once I persuaded him that olives weren't common in Indian cuisine.
The big issue is whether we have a box big enough to carry the dratted thing home. I ended up adding a plastic box to the Morrisons order and I'm hoping it will all fit. I told bear that if the pizza was too big for the box he could eat around the edges.
No snow here, but cold and wet. I'm feeling a lot better but staying strictly indoors. Bear and DH went out to meet with DH's friends and they brought me back yarn. That's a man who understands me!
So we are going with the pizza base recipe that is given in the booklet which is flour, milk, egg and butter. Then bear is going to add tomato puree with garam masala, garlic and possibly some pizza herbs with the topping being chicken tikka slices, red onion, fresh coriander and cheese. I don't think it's very authentic, but it's very British and it's relatively light for him to carry, especially once I persuaded him that olives weren't common in Indian cuisine.
The big issue is whether we have a box big enough to carry the dratted thing home. I ended up adding a plastic box to the Morrisons order and I'm hoping it will all fit. I told bear that if the pizza was too big for the box he could eat around the edges.
No snow here, but cold and wet. I'm feeling a lot better but staying strictly indoors. Bear and DH went out to meet with DH's friends and they brought me back yarn. That's a man who understands me!
Friday, 25 January 2019
Meh Continues
I think I can call it flu. I'm over the worst of the yeurk and the cough has died down. I've finished my antibiotics so I'm going with honey and lemon for now. However, as most people do, I feel like I've been hit by a truck. It's not serious, but it is inconvenient. I'm taking the rest of the day as a pity party then I'm getting on with things.
Apparently the people next door (who are utterly lovely) have seen rats going into my kitchen. I'm working up the energy to go into the kitchen and start sealing things up. From what I have heard, the only truly ratproof supplies are tins, but boxing stuff up won't hurt. There are no traces and I have those rat sonic things plugged in, so they may only be getting in so far, but I'm so unimpressed. It's a great boost to clearing everything out, though.
Also I need to scrabble around as I need to find a container for bear to carry pizza in. I checked with bear and he said he needed to be creative. I have no idea what that means, and neither does he, but I imagine it's going to be fun. One of the things I need to send in is an egg. One egg. In a backpack that is going with bear onto a bus full of kids. What could possibly go wrong?
Good things do happen for me, though. DH has some friends visiting from the Netherlands and they sent me a lovely hat and scarf set and some gorgeous gluten free cookies. I'll share a pic when I'm fit to take one, but they have definitely made up for this week!
Writing stuff - I have a guest post on my writing blog coming up on Tuesday, by Jennifer Zamboni. She is pretty awesome, and a knitter like me. I'll link when it comes up.
Monday, 21 January 2019
Meh
Bad cold continues.
Here's some info from Cherie that may help on the generic front The active ingredient has a registration number and this will be printed on the packaging... It is an identical number whoever makes it. If the number isn't the same then it won't be the same... we saw that on TV last year and have saved a small fortune.
Here's some info from Cherie that may help on the generic front The active ingredient has a registration number and this will be printed on the packaging... It is an identical number whoever makes it. If the number isn't the same then it won't be the same... we saw that on TV last year and have saved a small fortune.
I am feeling fully meh, and I will be glad when at least the cough has died down.
Writing stuff - keep an eye out next week as I will be hosting a guest on my writing blog, Jennifer Zamboni, who has recently released a novel, Beauty is the Beast, which I haven't yet read, but looks awesome.
Gretchen is a 24-year-old-hairstylist with secrets: She likes to chase squirrels and howl at the moon. She’s also not really 24. When one of her coworkers turns up dead in the salon, she suspects that the murderer isn’t entirely human. When another stylist is murdered, and then another, she goes on the prowl. A circus with a secret side show catches her attention, as does her former pack, and a group of visiting vampires. Her only outlet is her music, but that will only keep her wolf on a leash for so long with a killer on the loose.
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