What’s top of my mind: Not a great deal.
I’m ererging from that foggy week between Christmas and New Years, where everything blurs together and it’s like you’re in suspended animation. Not going to lie – I’ve been enjoying it.
Where I’m going: Absolutely nowhere.
Considering the crazy year of travel I have lined up in front of me, I’m enjoying keeping close to home and doing very little. I have around 10 library books stacked beside me bed, an overgrown veggie garden that needs cleaning up and a sewing room with lots of fabric.
I won’t be bored. 🙂
Where I’ve been: Megan’s place to help eat leftovers.
Remember Megan from the Canada/Alaska trip? She sent out an SOS after hosting her family for Boxing Day and so a group of us gathered for a barbeque and salad. It was nice.
What I’m reading: London Rules by Nick Herron.
At last!! I’ve been making my way through the Slough House series, which inspired the excellent series ‘Slow Horses’ on AppleTV. I had all the books except this one. Some selfish person had borrowed it before me. On Monday I raced down to the library because they’d finally handed it in.
I’ll be finished with this series lickety-split now. I’m loving the way Herron wries. His use of metaphor and his wry British humour is very enjoyable.
What I’m watching: The Sopranos.
Georgia put me onto this one. I know I’m very late to the party – and I also know about the very last scene in the whole series – but for some reason or another I’ve never seen it. When Georgia told me that she was watching it and thought it was good, I knew I had to see. She put me onto ‘Breaking Bad’ and ‘Better Call Saul’, so I take notice of her recommendations.
Thank goodness Binge has it.
What I’m listening to: the blackbird in the front garden moving through the leaves on the ground.
I’d swear that there was a huge animal living under the fruit trees, if I didn’t know better. The avocado trees have huge leaves and they seem to keep dropping them all year round. As I’m sitting here on the couch, I can hear it moving around and making the leaves rustle. It’s pretty loud, but it’s only the blackbird.
What I’m eating: The Christmas Ham.
I love a good Christmas ham. Every year I buy one and then slowly savour the hammy goodness on the days after Christmas. This year is no exception. With only two of us in the house nowadays, the ham lasts a long, long time.
When I get sick of it, I’ll chop and freeze the rest. But so far, we’re loving the cauliflower cheese, pizzas, ham and salad lunches, zucchini slices etc. Long may it last!
What I’m planning: an engagement party.
Tom32 and Sophie are planning a big year. They want to buy a house, buy a dog and get married all in 2025. To save money, they’re planning a very small wedding and they’re having their engagement party at my place.
I have a month to make my place look sparkling. An added impetus to this is that my ex-husband and his wife will more than likely be coming. I haven’t clapped eyes on them for a happy decade, so it will be interesting for us all to see how time has treated us.
Who deserves a ‘thumbs-up’: Mum and Dad.
Remember when I bought them each a ‘Storyworth’ gift for their birthdays last year? Basically, each week they get a question sent to them about their life/memories/attitudes and they write a response. At the end of a year their 52 essays get put into a book.
Because I’ve been travelling so much, this has turned into a series of binge sessions. They refuse to type out their answers, so I’ve been recording their answers on my phone and then typing them up.
They came over for lunch (christmas ham and salad, of course!) and we got through 10 questions. They only have 3 more questions each to finish the project. We’ll knock them over next week and then it’ll all be completed before I start my crazy travelling schedule.
I’ve learned a lot more about their lives as they’ve made their ways through. It’s been interesting.
What has made me smile: Scout.
I’ve been thinking for a while that she was 9 years old, but Facebook memories tells me that she’s only 8.
I have a bonus year with her!!!
Dad joke of the day:
Ooooh I hope you have LOTS of reasons to feel smug when you see your ex. Naturally you will hide your gloating smile while they’re there though!
A local-to-me group is going to be performing in Australia later this month (locations & dates not fully published yet) and if I see they’ll be in Melbourne I’ll be sure to drop you a comment. They play songs we know, post lyrics behind the band, and get everyone to sing along. It’s SO FUN and I think you and probably your kids would love it. Right now they only have 2 shows listed and both in NSW but I am hopeful they’ll be in your area too. Keep an eye out for Low Bar Chorale 🙂
Thanks. I will. 🙂