Nanny Fifi

It is so easy to find things wrong with our lives, be unhappy with what we have or with what we think life has dealt us. The grass is always greener etc etc…..I watch those UK property programmes on TV, thinking I would love to live in London or Edinburgh, or one of those cute villages, or the windswept Highlands.

Nearly three weeks ago, three of my grandchildren, who have always lived within a few kilometres from me, moved 180 kilometres away, to the city where my fourth grandchild lives. I miss all four of them terribly but I am trying to find the positive, and look forward to the special weekends and school holiday times we will have. It will be a different relationship – instead of being like a second mother, I will just be Nan. That could be nice.

Quite some time ago I decided I would find three things every morning I was looking forward to that day, and three things I was thankful for at the end of the day. At the moment there are quite a few things I am very thankful for, here are just some of them;

I have a home. A warm house that is all mine. On these cold nights I am so thankful I have a warm home and can afford to heat it.

I have a job. A busy job that I enjoy, but happily look forward to the weekends – which seem to come around very fast! and the school holidays which seem to come round even faster!

I live alone (technically) (most of the time) – except when Arahi calls in for a meal, a shower or the internet. His visits can be anything from one hour to five days, that’s what comes from living in a bus. But it does mean that most of the time I can please myself, eat what I want, watch what I want and go where I want. It takes a bit of getting used to but I think I quite like it.

I can indulge in my hobbies (even during the day!! without feeling guilty). That took some time believe me!

I can regularly visit the fantastic local library, where I spend many hours with my ridiculously long list of “books to read”.

I can manage my small section and even still grow some veges.

And I live in an awesome city that has everything I could possibly want, with all my family only two hours away.

So thankful xx

It’s all very well having several WIPs (works in progress), it means you can work on what suits you at the time – and how much or little you need to concentrate, but it also sometimes feels like nothing gets finished. Here are a few examples…..(and that’s only the knitting).

So this weekend I made a point of staying with one project until it was finished.

A cowl for the coming cold months.

Unfortunately the jobs around me, at home and at work, suffer the same fate, trying to cover too many things at once so either the jobs are rushed and/or not finished completely. My goal today, this week, this month, this life…to try and work on one (okay maybe two) things at a time. Work through my list and finish each job before going on to the next. This will probably be impossible at work but I will try and streamline things there too.
First off, lets see if I can actually make that cup of tea that I have boiled the jug for several times and got waylaid with something else……………..

I recently finished The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde. It wasn’t a book I would normally choose, although I did have his name as a suggestion on my very long “To Read” list.

I was in the library with Baillie, my 8 year old granddaughter and as we were leaving I decided to choose something quickly to see me through until I could get to the library next (never mind the 8 books next to my bed borrowed from a work colleague, I just can’t seem to leave the library without a book). The author’s name looked familiar so I grabbed The Eyre Affair.

I started the book a little dubiously, not really my thing all this…time travel, fantasy stuff, but it is about books and that’s what kept me reading. I loved it! I know I didn’t get a lot of the “inside jokes”, but the ones I did were very clever and funny.

Thursday Next is a female Literary Detective with Special Operations, the New York Times review described her as part Bridget Jones, part Nancy Drew and part Dirty Harry, and that pretty sums her up.
Thursday is on the heels of the baddy (Acheron Hades) who is the mastermind behind the kidnapping of Jane from the novel, and she is also hoping to rescue her Aunt who has literally got lost in Wordsworth’s daffodils poem, meanwhile dealing with bureaucracy by the name of Jack Shitte. Jane befriends Edward Rochester and enters the novel to save the day. This isn’t a spoiler – it’s all on the back cover!
In her private life Thursday is dealing with the break-up from her boyfriend Landen Parke-Laine, and so it goes on. Very clever and very funny.

Here by accident

I have always wanted to write a blog. Not that I have anything profound to say, or that I have an exciting life, but I just like chatting. I decided to have a look and see how to start a blog, and here I am by accident.

I belong to a couple of social media sites, and get together with “real people” two or three times a month, and I keep a diary, but I still want to chat….so please just humour me (and be patient while I find my way around this site!)