Wednesday 31 December 2014

2014 / 2015


A few thoughts on 2014
  • only three employers this year but I did work for all of them at once for a month!
  • FINALLY sold the flat in Kent
  • got all my stuff in one place for the first time in 18 months
  • got a hi-sleeper (and still keep banging my head on it!)
  • made new friends
  • became a Great Auntie
  • was in the same place as Mum and siblings twice in one month!
  • still not missing TV
  • began volunteering at a graveyard
  • walked most of the Exeter Green Circle
And some for 2015
  • eat better
  • do that thing I don't want to do but know I have to
  • be present
  • finish some of the projects that I've been meaning to do
  • carry on with the de-cluttering
  • pay off the last bit of debt (not including the student loan, they can sing for it!!)
  • do something new
  • make the most of connections
  • spend more time outside
Wherever you are and whoever you are I wish you enough in 2015


Wednesday 10 December 2014

lately - Dec 10th

  • adventuring - off to the Big Smoke tomorrow, lunch with old colleagues followed by being a tourist for a couple of hours
  • eating - Roly's seasalt flavoured fudge, leftovers, Chinese, popcorn
  • drinking - Orange juice, home made vanilla Bailey's hot chocolate, coke, tea, Earl Gray (the tea bags got mixed up at work!)
  • reading - Amy Tan - The Bonesetter's Daughter
  • watching - Babylon 5, Cold Feet, Remember Me
  • listening to - Soma FM's Christmas Lounge
  • thinking about - old age, new opportunities
  • disliking - the stupid time I will have to get up in the morning for my trip to London!
  • appreciating - days off, simple brown paper and wool wrapping, that the fault with the boiler was easy to fix
  • loving - too many goodies at Leela (including Reggie the reindeer who keeps getting up to all sorts of mischief! The pic above is him being an elephant!)

Wednesday 19 November 2014

lately - Nov 19th

  • adventuring - into the past. The above was taken in Nov 1986, I am the tender age of 9 and taking part in a nationwide fundraising tap dance for Children In Need (the dance starts at about 5:55, no I'm not on the tv but I can still pretty much remember the whole dance!)
  • eating - burgers, bubble and squeak, pasta, cherry bakewells
  • drinking - honey & almond hot chocolate, tea, mocha, squash
  • reading - Sarah Rayner - One Moment, One Morning
  • watching -  Grand Designs, Friends series 10
  • listening to - SmoothLounge.com, helpmechill.com
  • thinking about - unexpected opportunities, serendipity
  • disliking - parcelforce (still), the tax man (still), cold feet
  • appreciating - great landlords, friends
  • loving - lie-ins, the power of youtube

Wednesday 12 November 2014

lately - Nov 12th

  • adventuring - not so much
  • eating - fishcakes, broccoli, sprouts, boursin, tomatoes
  • drinking - gingerbread latte, black forest hot chocolate, toffee nut latte (the coffee shops have got their Christmas flavours in!)
  • reading - David Gemmell - the third book of the trilogy in the right order (makes more sense that way!)
  • watching -  Grand Designs, Dr Who, Friends series 8, Downton Abbey, Lewis
  • listening to - SmoothLounge.com, more random stuff on my iPhone
  • thinking about - more decluttering, my to-do list, craft projects
  • disliking - not doing things on the to-do list, parcelforce, the tax man
  • appreciating - the water proofness of my new coat, those who gave their lives for my freedom
  • loving - that the coffee shops have their Christmas flavours in (shallows I know!)

Wednesday 5 November 2014

lately - Nov 5th

  • adventuring - sunny October days in central Exeter - the pic is St Catherine's Almshouses (or at least what's left of them)
  • eating - Moroccan tagine, lumberjack cake and clotted cream ice cream, too much rubbish
  • drinking - soya pumpkin latte, raspberry crush, more rubbish
  • reading - David Gemmell (onto the second book now)
  • watching -  Grand Designs, Dr Who, Friends series 8
  • listening to - SmoothLounge.com, more random stuff on my iPhone
  • thinking about - my tiny house plans
  • disliking - being 'Billy No Mates'! ;-), the tax man
  • appreciating - my new winter coat (it suddenly got cold in the UK)
  • loving - planning to do nothing for a day

Wednesday 29 October 2014

lately

  • adventuring - last day at my Cath Kidston job tomorrow
  • eating - salmon, onion rings, chocolates
  • drinking - smoothies, squash, mochas
  • reading - the third book in a trilogy first, luckily I spotted my mistake before I got very far so now reading the first one, Wolf in Shadow - David Gemmell. Letters from the Tax Man that make no sense!
  • watching - Friends, Dr Who, Grand Designs, Downton Abbey
  • listening to - a new random selection on my iPhone including Phil Collins, Robin Thicke, Jasmine Thompson, Tasmin Archer, Tracy Chapman, Pink Floyd, Sade, Luke Jackson, They Might Be Giants, Scala & Kolacny Brothers
  • thinking about - 'Progress, not perfection' a comment from my cousin, upcoming medical tests (not mine), people that drop out of your life
  • disliking - the discovery that the mould had found my shoes again, the roadworks going on right outside my flat, it being dark so early now the clocks have gone back
  • appreciating - letters from home as well as modern communication
  • loving - old treasures finding new homes (the NatWest piggy banks above being an example and netting me £35 in the process!!)

Wednesday 22 October 2014

Lately

  • adventuring - into the boxes still stacked in my room (and no sign of the spider!)
  • eating - tomato & chilli pasta, cheese scones, a box of chocolates, corned beef & home made chutney rolls
  • drinking - orange juice, tea, coffee, coke
  • reading - a testimonial on the Bikers Against Child Abuse Facebook page (post from 20th Oct), Starting Over by Marcia Willett
  • watching - finished Star Trek Voyager and now gone back to Friends (start of series 7), Dr Who meets Victoria Wood
  • listening to - too much 80's music, guided meditation app
  • thinking about - naming my tiny house 'Breakers' because of the picture above from The Last Unicorn,
  • disliking - vivid heart-breaking dreams, the 11-3 'hungry' shift, cold feet
  • appreciating - unexpected days off and the time to de-clutter some more
  • loving - plans for meeting friends and drinking good coffee, the new arrangement of stuff in my room

Wednesday 15 October 2014

Lately


  • Adventuring - finding my feet in my new job, planning a walk for a day off
  • Eating - too much Chinese takeaway, Lindt chocolates, cheese scones, last years homemade chutney
  • Drinking - tea, mocha, Luscombe hot ginger beer, Beechams hot blackcurrant
  • Reading - more Donna Leon, The Definitive History of the West Wing, my favourite blogs, employees handbook
  • Watching - Dr Who, too many YouTube music videos
  • Listening to - 181 Awesome 80's, those YouTube music videos, SmoothLounge
  • Laughing at - the me that had all her hair shaved off for charity!
  • Thinking About - lost little ones
  • Disliking - the snuffling and sneezing
  • Appreciating - when the rain stops
  • Loving -thoughtful friends, planning birthday/Christmas surprises

Thursday 9 October 2014

Lately


  • Adventuring - into a new job - Goodbye Cath - Hello Seasalt
  • Eating - microwave meals, grapes, breakfast biscuits, chicken and leek bake
  • Drinking - tropicana, mocha's, squash and too much coke!
  • Reading - finished 'Full Circle' and now onto a Donna Leon
  • Watching - Downton Abbey, Dr Who, Voyager and Chasing Shadows
  • Listening to - 80's internet radio stations, internet Chill station, my iPhone on random
  • Thinking About - how to get to my minimalist wardrobe, what to do with the fabric swatches I have
  • Disliking - working three jobs at once, colleagues leaving (yes I know I am too!)
  • Appreciating - the good guys
  • Loving - my new handmade bag (yes I bought the one I showed you a picture of last week), being in the position to be able to buy said bag!

Wednesday 1 October 2014

Lately


  • Adventuring - not so much doing as planning!!
  • Eating - salad, Indian takeaway, the Charcuterie, chocolate
  • Drinking - Glorious hot chocolate (again!), Crabbies
  • Reading - Michael Palin - Around the World in 80 Days, Pole to Pole and I've just started Full Circle
  • Watching - Downton Abbey, New Tricks, Dr Who, Voyager, and intending to catch up on Grand Designs
  • Listening to - 80's internet radio stations, internet Chill station, my iPhone on random
  • Thinking About - the future, writing
  • Disliking - the boxes I'm still living with (and the spider that's hiding between them!), awkward situations
  • Appreciating - access to clean water, electricity, books (Palin went through some really poor areas)
  • Laughing at - my complete inability to not buy books
  • Loving - the bag above (the shoes are gorgeous too), the nice clear area in the bedroom that I sorted out this afternoon

Wednesday 24 September 2014

Lately

I've pinched this from Leslie at A Simple Life Afloat - although she says she can't can't take the credit!!  I'm going to try and make it a weekly thing - it will depend on how interesting my weeks turn out to be!!

  • Adventuring - wandering the graves at Higher Cemetery and wondering about the lives (and deaths) of those buried there.
  • Eating - too many microwave meals, Nākd bars
  • Drinking - Glorious hot chocolate
  • Reading - Penelope Lively as loaned by my landlords, catching up on my Feedly feed
  • Watching - Chasing Shadows, Downton Abbey, New Tricks, Dr Who (not bad for someone without a TV), Voyager, Emma Watson's speech
  • Listening to - Genesis - We Can't Dance (purchased just for Fading Lights), 80's internet radio stations, Michael Jackson - Invincible
  • Thinking About - if I'm going to get to The Ice Cream Shop on the Beach before they close for the season
  • Disliking - having to go to work on my day off, cold feet
  • Appreciating - fab landlords, good friends
  • Laughing at - one of the girls at work accidentally calling a colleague 'old' she meant 'senior' as the colleague is in a senior position!!
  • Loving - being sent pictures of my great niece

Thursday 18 September 2014

Books - Part 3

I did a two part book thing in 2013 so decided to just track my reading throughout the whole year for 2014 and as I will be having too much fun to be thinking about blog posts on 11th thought I'd post it now!!!

Started January 11th 2014

Raymond E Feist - Rides a Dread Legion (1st book Demonwar Saga)
Raymond E Feist - At the Gates of Darkness (2nd book Demonwar Saga - there are only two books to this saga!)
Raymond E Feist - Jimmy and the Crawler (4th book Riftwar Legacy)
Camilla Lackberg - The Ice Princess (detective novel) 
Nick Harkaway - The Gone Away World (post apocalyptic weirdness!)
Jane Harris - The Observations (Victorian era maid story) 
William Gibson & Bruce Sterling - The Difference Engine (steam punk like plotting)
Raymond E Feist - A Kingdom Besieged (1st book Chaoswar Saga) 
Raymond E Feist - A Crown Imperiled (2nd book Chaoswar Saga)
Raymond E Feist - Magicians End (3rd book Chaoswar Saga and last book of the 30 book series!!!)
Raymond E Feist & Stephen Abrams - Midkemia, The Chronicles of Pug (a companion book written like a diary)
David Hewson - The Killing (Danish police whodunnit)
Richard Ford - Wildlife (not entirely sure what this was meant to be!!)
Marcia Willett - Postcards from the Past (Cornwall based family tale)
Michael Ende - The Neverending Story (Fantasy) 
Kate Mosse - The Winter Ghosts (Ghost story)
Jodi Picoult - The Storyteller (Forgiveness and war)
Ken Bruen - Headstone (crime thriller)
Stephen Marley - Spirit Mirror (mystic goings on in ancient China - I used this book as the basis of my GCSE Open Study, having reread it I have no idea why!!)
Barack Obama - Dreams from my Father (His story of trying to find his identity)
David Gergen - Eyewitness to Power: The Essence of Leadership - Nixon to Clinton (His account of what makes a good leader from working in four Whitehouses)
George Stephanopoulos - All Too Human (His account of his time in the Clinton White House)
Jennifer Worth - Shadow of the Workhouse (Stories of life in the workhouse)
Jennifer Worth - Farewell to the East End (more tales of midwifery/district nursing in the East End)
Jennifer Worth - In the Midst of Life (Her thoughts/stories on care for the dying)
Ken Follett - Whiteout (Family secrets and potentially deadly thefts)
Donna Leon - Death at La Fenice (Detective novel set in Venice)
Coming Up Roses - Cath Kidston (The story so far!)
Trudi Canavan - The Magicians' Guild (Rogue magicians, first in a trilogy)
Trudi Canavan - The Novice (Second in the trilogy)
Trudi Canavan - The High Lord (Last in the trilogy)
Duncan Whitehead - The Gordonston Ladies Dog Walking Club (All is not as it seems in the sleepy Gordonston suburb!)
Trudi Canavan - The Magician's Apprentice (prequel to the above trilogy)
Donna Leon - Death in a Strange Country (more murder in Venice)
EL James - Fifty Shades of Grey (thought I'd see what all the fuss was about!)
EL James - Fifty Shades Darker
EL James - Fifty Shades Freed
Donna Leon - Friends in High Places (more murder in Venice)
Donna Leon - Willful Behaviour (even more detecting in Venice)
PC David Copperfield - Wasting Police Time (stories from a PC) 
Denise Welch - Pulling Myself Together (autobiography)
Guppies for Tea - Marika Cobbold (getting old is no fun!)
Donna Leon - Blood From A Stone (more detecting in Venice)
Donna Leon - Through A Glass Darkly (Venice again)
Penelope Lively - Moon Tiger (One womans 'History of the World' as it pertains to her!) 
Penelope Lively - Heat Wave (Perceptive tale of a summer in the country)
Michael Palin - Around the World in 80 Days (The book of the TV series)
Michael Palin - Pole to Pole (The book of the TV series)
Michael Palin - Full Circle (The book of the TV series)
Donna Leon - Suffer the Little Children (more crime in Venice)
Donna Leon - The Girl of his Dreams (and some more)
Marcia Willett - Starting Over (Life and love in the West Country)
Donna Leon - A Question of Belief (some more crime in Venice)
David Gemmell - Wolf in Shadow (Book one - post apocalyptic messing with the space time continuum!!)
David Gemmell - The Last Guardian (Book two)
David Gemmell - Bloodstone (Book three)
Sarah Rayner - One Moment, One Morning (how one moment can change lives)
William Horwood - Skallagrigg (currently reading)

So I'm on my 58th book in a year - eek, that's more than one a week!!!

I have also decided that it's OK not to finish a book. I had this thing with myself that if I started a book a had to finish it even if I didn't really enjoy it. Life's too short for that!!!