Random Thoughts

1. I can't get onto two of my favourite sites. Apparently it's a problem not with our server but with the NZ server. When I spoke to the technical help they mentioned that it was an international problem. That sounds important. All I want to do is get onto my prayer board so that I can read the requests and pray. :(

2. After reading a lot online about T-Tapp I decided to give it a go. Just fifteen minutes a day to see a difference. It sounds too good to be true. What they don't tell you is that if you're naturally uncoordinated like I am, it takes fifteen hours to sort out the exercises. A day. Still, practice makes perfect and I've got a colleague's wedding coming up and I'd really like to look half-decent for that without having to resort to baggy clothes and innovative camera angles.

3. I've felt flat since Christmas. I guess it's the natural anti-climax after all the rushing around and getting ready and now suddenly it's all over. I may not have felt so bad had someone managed to take one decent photo of me but in all the photos from Christmas day I look old. Really old.

4. Which brings me to the next point. Lately I've been having this reoccurring nightmare - except that it happens when I'm awake and coherent - that I sound just like my mother. On Christmas day and again at my granddaughter's birthday I opened my mouth to speak and out came my mother's words and voice. How did that happen?

5. DH left the following message on our voicemail: "What's the point of leaving a message if you don't have voicemail." Huh? If we don't have it, how did we hear your message?

6. I haven't heard from the publisher since I sent off my MS in September. I guess that's a 'No'. But it would be nice to hear one way or the other so that I can make plans. DH thinks it's funny how the communication business (publishers, editors, etc) are so bad at communicating. I just think it's frustrating.

7. I'm trying to decide what plan I'm going to adopt for the next year or two for reading through the Bible. Will I do what I've done these past two years and read right through the whole Bible plus repeat the New Testament and Psalms? And if so, do I want to read it in chronological order again or some other order? And what version? The choices are endless it seems but I only have a few days to decide.

8. I played the flute in church on Christmas day. Scary. But I think it went okay. Somehow it's easier to play in public when I don't know anyone than it is in a [small] churchful of people that I do know. I wonder if I'll ever be game enough to play in front of DIL#2? (She plays so beautifully.)

9. I was given a mortar and pestle for Christmas - in granite to go with my new bench tops. The Most Adorable Granddaughter#2 loved it. Of course DH had to try it out and since the closest thing on hand was whole almonds, he threw them in. As he ground them down to make almond butter, The Most Adorable Granddaughter#2 would add more ... and more ... and more. Sadly, the mortar and pestle were dusty (having not yet been washed) so we didn't get to enjoy that almond butter. I was also given a lovely cake stand by DIL#1's mother. She said that she didn't have a nice kitchen to enjoy it in ... but doesn't every woman enjoy lovely things whether their kitchen is lovely or not? I felt sad when she said that but it hasn't stopped me from admiring the cake stand with its full blown roses and cornflowers. (See, even managed to sneak some blue in there.)

10. Can anyone tell me what paeonies/peonies are? I started a quilt block that's been given the name of that flower and I had to go online to see what they actually looked like. I don't think I've ever seen them in real life. Or if I have, I had no idea what they were. I wonder if our local nurseries stock them? I might have to get some for the garden especially since I'm really liking how these blocks are turning out.

11. I'm still enjoying my new kitchen. It doesn't seem like a chore to do dishes or cook meals but fun. Apart from the novelty of having my first new kitchen ever, I think I really enjoy being closer to the family rather than closeted away as I was before. Okay, perhaps not closeted because the old kitchen was definitely ten times bigger than any closet, and it couldn't be closed off either, but it did feel as if you were away from the family and what was going on when you were way out there. Now, whether the family's in the dining or living, or out enjoying the veranda, they're still close. Plus, it is so much easier having everything closer to hand rather than forever walking back and forth between the pantry or refrigerator and the hotplates and oven. And of course I'm enjoying that wonderful stove even if I can't claim that my cooking has improved greatly since acquiring it.

12. I finally seem to have come to terms with the colour of my hair. I always liked my hair colour until it started getting silver strands. For a while I used herbal henna to try and camouflage the silver, but after a while I felt it looked fake. I could turn to permanent colour but I've always been reluctant to go down that route. Sitting for any length of time with a toxic cocktail of chemicals on my scalp has never appealed. Let alone the cost, the upkeep, the damage to the hair, etc, etc. So the other option was to accept the colour I now have but it's taken me a few years to get to this point. I think now that the henna has all faded out has helped me like it better. Although, when I go to work and see all the gorgeous women around - or even just when my beautiful DILs come over to visit (you would think my sons would be more sensitive and choose less gorgeous brides), it's hard not to get depressed and think that I really should do something about my hair. But past experiences have taught me that whenever I try to do something with my hair - whether it's cut or perm or whatever - I end up regretting it. Seems that I'm missing some vital genes here. However, since my shedding has increased again, it's possible that my long hair days are almost over. Who knows? Perhaps I'll be the next person sporting a bob with a cunning mixture of highlights and lowlights?

Comments

winterwren said…
Jules, this was such a funny post to read, especially the part about your DH and the voicemail...hmm...

I love peonies (and gorgeous old fashioned garden flowers in general) but I have never grown them myself. Our state arboretum has a beautiful peony collection and my husband always jokes about picking one and sticking it in my hair. Which, besides being wrong, would get a person banned from the arboretum for life. And they are not small small flowers, so you *would* get caught. For some reason my DH finds the idea hilarious.

Hope you feel better. I have the post Christmas blues, too (but on the bright side, last December 26th DH tore his carotid artery, so things could be worse.)

I am very jealous of your kitchen! And your cake stand.

Be well.
Ohtawen said…
Oh, Jules... I'm afraid you're being too critical of your appearance on photos. You look great! And your hair is beautiful, too. I really hope you're just kidding about that bob with highlights... It would be a crying shame to cut off all that lovely hair. Please, try not to worry about the shedding. You will stress out yourself even more by worrying.

Alas, no help from me in the flower department :( Peonies (called "peonije" or "božuri" in my language - go figure) are very beautiful, but I have no idea about their proper care and feeding.
SchnauzerMom said…
I hope you don't cut your beautiful hair. Hopefully the shedding is temporary. Sounds like you got lots of goodies for Christmas. I'm glad that you're enjoying your new kitchen.