What’s Today?

Two people asked me today if I was enjoying my Sunday.

It’s Saturday! Don’t confuse me!

I was up early to work for Adoring Husband. The work is easy. The getting up early is the hard part.

I returned home with our morning coffees and AH thanked me for doing his job. He drank his coffee and fell asleep in his chair. An hour later, he woke up, thanked me for doing his job and asked if I’d forgotten to buy coffees.

Duffer.

So we drove to the shops and got more coffee.

I prepared some breakfast for AH and we decided to go for a swim before he lay down with the TENS machine.

Needless to say, he fell asleep for another couple of hours. Sleep is good for healing!

I had a few things planned for today, but motivation escaped me ... how unusual!

I did some more doodling with lead pencil...

... not impressive. I think I prefer pen for doodling and I prefer silence and solitude. Sitting beside AH and in front of the TV is not conducive to creative, imaginative artistry.

AH and I binged on some Greys Anatomy tonight. Series 14. We probably should have started at series 13 because it was tricky at the beginning to figure out what was going on.

I get to sleep in tomorrow *happy dance* but because I was so lazy today, I will have a lot to do ... like wrapping a stack of Christmas presents to send off on Monday morning, getting the pool area ready for visitors for Monday morning coffee and doing a touch of overdue housework.

It’s already after 11pm so I’m off to bed.

Nite all.

Record Breaking

Another early morning start for me - day nine of Adoring Husband being out of action due to his back.

He is on the improve and could possibly be good to go in a couple more days.

We drove into The Bay this morning arriving at the school zone at around 9.30am.

We had most of our Christmas shopping and some grocery shopping to get done today because we don’t plan on another trip in until the new year! We need to visit the fish markets on Christmas Eve to buy our seafood but we’ll avoid the main part of town over the holidays.

At 1.15pm we had completed our task and were purchasing our favourite coffees via the drive through on the way out of town!

I think I spent more money on myself than I did on everyone else. I purchased a new hand made wallet which I absolutely love. It fits my phone, all my cards, spare business cards, cash and still closes comfortably. She had so many different colours and designs to choose from, but this one was my favourite.

It’s the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland, with the words “We’re all mad here”

I’ve removed 8 garments from my wardrobe to make room for the 8 new tops that I found today. I got a lovely pair of Diana Ferrari shoes on sale - like walking on air - and perfect for work.

I caught up on my collection of Greys Anatomy series on DVD. Time for some binge watching!

This weekend will be spent wrapping and packaging Christmas presents ready to send in the mail. It’s the first Christmas in a long time that we’ve put so much effort into gifts. I’m not sure why. I hope we’ve made some good choices though.

We received a nice drop of rain this afternoon as a big storm passed by and we got the edge of it. We need a lot more of course, but it was nice to hear that unfamiliar sound on the tin roof.

I decided to not go to the club tonight and because we skipped lunch, I prepared a very early dinner. We are both exhausted and I think I’m ready for bed. I’m not sure if I’m working at the shop tomorrow or not. I’ll go in anyway.

Happy weekend to you.

Nite all.

Another Quickie

Ha! I worked two jobs today!

It was a slow afternoon in the shop, so I started doodling and ended up with this ...

It turned out a lot better than I expected.

Adoring Husband was capable of driving into The Bay to check out the Harvey Norman sale today. Our DVD player died a while ago so he purchased a temporary replacement until we can find out if our main system can be repaired.

Hopefully he will be capable of driving tomorrow because there is more stuff to do.

Even though it was a stinking hot day, I didn’t swim in the pool. I tested the water and it was almost luke warm. Perfect for AH who prefers a warm bath over a cool swim.

Well, gotta clean the kitchen before bed so I’d best get moving or it’s going to be a late night.

Happy Friday!

Nite all.

Just Quickly

It’s late and I’m working tomorrow, so just quickly, our plantation shutters were fitted today and we love them!

They are in our bedroom and the lounge room.

I did a quick piece of art ...

... because I was feeling crappy.

Today was not a good day for me.

Thursday will be better.

Nite all.

Tuesday Tantrums

Adoring Husband is still out of action.

At 6am I was pedalling to work on his behalf and from there, I rode to order our morning coffees.

When I got home, I took my coffee to bed where I enjoyed a lazy hour watching YouTube videos of art, until it was time to get ready for morning coffee with the girls.

Even though there were a few missing, it was still a good morning with the girls with some laughs, some whinging, some confessions and some holiday stories. We all visited The Happy Abode before going our separate ways.

I stayed for a little while with The Motivator and we talked shop for a bit, but I had a ‘to do’ list at home that I had to attack, so I did some grocery shopping and rode home to prepare some some lunch for AH.

After lunch, I cooked up the next three days worth of dog food for the psychotic dogs and batched it up.

The plantation shutters are being fitted on Wednesday so I had to clean the five front windows of the house in preparation for the fitting. I did not enjoy that job at all.

I hung a load of washing on the line and filled the machine with a large load of AH’s clothes.

I fed the dogs and then we drove to get our afternoon coffee.

I tested the pool water and strongly considered jumping in but chose not to.

I sat with AH until it was time to cook dinner.

The kitchen is still waiting for me to clear the mess so I shall sign off. It’s already 10pm so it will be late by the time I hit the hay.

I might get to play in my studio tomorrow 👩‍🎨

Nite all.

Triggers Galore!

I couldn’t sleep last night.

I simply wasn’t tired!

My essential oil blend of ‘sweet sleep’ didn’t help. That’s only the second time in 2 years that my oils were ineffective.

My sleeping meditations didn’t work - also the second time in a year.

I felt very awake and energised and couldn’t wind down until 2am.

I was enjoying a very sound sleep and even though Adoring Husband swears he turned off his alarm last night, it went off loud and long and clear at 4.45am waking me with a jolt and it took him so long to turn it off, the adrenalin, anger and resentment welled and I began my day in a very negative state of mind.

I certainly let him know how I was feeling before I left for work hoping to make him feel as guilty as possible.

I didn’t want my entire day to reflect how it started so while I was pedalling and working, I remembered that I have control over my own thoughts and I cleared my anger and changed my thought processes. I let the bad stuff go, released my anger and focussed on how great my day was going to be from that moment forward.

After I got our coffee, I returned home, changed into my swimmers/togs/bathers and fell into the pool. I swam some laps, did some stretches, and while I floated I imagined my happy place. Surprisingly, my imagined happy place is not as great as our pool area!

I gave myself plenty of time to get ready for the retreat with The Gypsy, washing my hair, selecting my clothes, applying my make up, choosing my ‘intuitive’ jewellery, preparing the container of fruit, remembering TG’s light bulbs for her salt lamp and my thankyou card with a long letter of gratitude for her to close the year.

The Motivator was to pick me up at 8.55am. This would get us to our destination with ten minutes to spare, as requested in our acceptance email.

But she didn’t.

This triggered some stuff in me.

I am in control of my own thoughts ... clear that s&$t and let it go! Ugh 😩

We arrived with no time to spare and the retreat began immediately.

It was an amazing morning full of meditations, drumming, crystal singing bowls, qigong, sharing and offerings of gratitude.

Everyone has a story and there were 15 stories in that room all with varying degrees of emotional trauma and all from people practicing amazing coping methods successfully.

Sitting in that room with those 15 people, I would never have imagined the dramas that they were currently being challenged by.

The morning passed so quickly and it was over before we knew it.  We had all brought a plate of food which we spread over a large table and we all got know each other a little better over fresh vegetarian platters.

I couldn’t believe how hot it was when we left at 2pm. TM and I picked up AH’s and my afternoon coffees before she dropped me home.

Adoring Husband had spent a couple of hours in the pool while I was gone, but I wasn’t in the mood for swimming and plonked myself on my lounge chair until it was time to reset the outdoor Christmas decorations, which I had put off from the night before.

I prepared duck breast and salad for AH’s dinner followed by home made GF chocolate brownies with coconut ice cream.

I watched an art show on the Smooth/Art channel which was a portrait competition in the UK. Talented artists from four different areas competed to be selected in the final four to go to Paris and receive tutoring/mentoring from some highly esteemed artist (to be named next week). Very interesting show and the different methods used by the 18 artists competing was so varied.

My favourite won tonight. I would like to be tutored by him!

Anyway, I plan to catch up on some much needed sleep so I’m signing off here.

Looking forward to coffee with the girls in the morning.

Nite all.

Day Of Rest?

At 9.30am, Adoring Husband could not wait any longer and came into the bedroom asking if we could go get coffee.

Under normal circumstances, he’d have driven to to the shop at 6am and bought two coffees - one for me to reheat upon waking.

When we returned home, I received a phone call from Vegan Chickie and we chatted for about an hour.

AH’s need for lunch then had me in the kitchen cooking up some chicken and preparing a salad with a dish of fresh pineapple for dessert.

I went out to the pool area to make sure the filter was clear and picked up all the Bali grass that was lying around - and there was a LOT! These strong winds have been breaking the grass off the roof and making a huge mess!

I cleaned up the kitchen and while emptying the bin, the plastic bag burst open and I ended up with sloppy trash all over the floor. After much loud swearing and cursing, I cleaned up the mess and mopped the floor.

Ugh.

I put a load of washing on, cleaned some dog pee off the floor (psychotic dog Ruby can’t see well enough to find her way outside anymore, so she just squats in random places on the tiled floor) and I mopped up the hallway and a large area of the family room while I was at it.

At this point I decided to go for a swim. I knew that if I didn’t stop doing “the things” I would start feeling resentful, so some ‘ME time’ was necessary.

Before I could swim, I had to get all the lounge cushions and the throw cushions out of the outdoor kitchen (where we’d put them in case the storm hit yesterday) and set the lounge area up for use. It was also the only way I could get to the sound bar in the kitchen so that we could listen to music.

I didn’t get a lot of time in the pool and AH joined me, which was excellent for his back.

Ruby was crying loudly at the gate but ran away every time I opened it to let her in.

Frustrating!

Eventually, I noticed that her eye was a mess and she was scratching the back of her legs, so I left the pool and took her into the laundry to bath her with the special anti allergy soap and clean her eye. I figured while I was there I should bath psychotic dog Colli too.

After that, I hung out some washing and put on another load.

AH then appeared asking if we could go get our afternoon coffee, so I found something to cover my swimmers/togs/bathers and we drove to the shops where he then asked me to purchase some snacks aka fruit.

This annoyed me because all I was wearing was a sarong over my togs, my hair was wet and I had no make up! I was prepared to order coffee and hide quietly in a corner until it was ready. I was NOT prepared to walk through the supermarket for all and sundry to see me looking so disheveled!

We drank our coffee outside under the Bali hut, which was lovely. AH moved inside and I remained there for about 45 minutes until it was time to prepare dinner.

I had to set AH up with the TENS machine first.

More chicken and salad for AH and mushroom soup for me.

AH wanted me to set the Christmas decorations back up after we’d pulled them in yesterday when the storm was threatening, but I declined - they can wait til tomorrow!

I cleaned the kitchen and prepared dessert.

I need to get some decent sleep because I have to work for AH early in the morning and tomorrow is a half day retreat at The Gypsy’s house in Torbanlea, which I am really looking forward to.

I might even have a swim between work and the retreat.

Nite all.