It's ages since I blogged. I'm working on overload and I don't like it at all! Work. House. Kids. Cat. Friends. Stuff. In short, the solution to many of my woes is simple: work less and/or get help in the form of a cleaning lady/angel/fairygodmother - whatever form this necessary being takes, just get one!
The first one I am figuring out. Balance takes a while to manage but I'll get there eventually. To obtain the second one, I have to do the post-painting declutter. Number one job after painting is always 'get rid of the motham'!
I am up to day five of five days off and not one of those days - all with this declutter aim in mind - has gone as planned. I've reached the too-tired-&-overwelmed-to-sleep stage.
The weekend (after a great night out celebrating a friend's birthday) was ear-marked for house chores in preparation for the youngest princess's return on Thursday. You know how it is: you paint and then you put your house back together before you lose track of where everything goes.
With the arrival of our new bed just after breakfast on Saturday, we were ready to move everything back to where it belonged. We prepared for the big event by hiring a skip to take the junk away. The skip did not turn up. It will be here next week. Pffft! Really useful!
We enjoyed Saturday greatly even though it didn't go as planned. We ended up having two unexpected visitors; one welcome, one not so welcome. Our friend, H. came over about noon and stayed for lunch. Goodbye to cleaning out the fridge! The three of us shared a vegetarian pizza and a bottle of shiraz. Farewell to Saturday afternoon housework! After H left, I sorted through piles of papers, then a pile of cross stitch magazines and filed all whilst sitting in front of the television. One after the other, Paul put on some videos: 'The American President', 'Dave' and 'In and Out'. These films have long been faves of mine and now they are Paul's. When the papers were done, I worked on my cross stitch project. I'm the queen of multi-tasking.
I can't remember the last time we sat and watched tv together. It's a nice way to while away a drizzling Saturday afternoon - some together time after a busy fortnight and so much more important than vacuuming the Princess's bedroom.
The second visitor arrived about dinner time or should I say that Gyspy brought a 'friend' home for her hopeless-at-hunting parents. Eeek! I'm not sure whether that creature was intended for dinner or entertainment. I think it became a bit of both. I hope so because the last thing I want to contemplate is that somewhere out there is a mouse ...
Sunday, I spent part of the morning using the gray water from my washing machine to water the garden (this drought is no fun at all but is as useful as the gym for gaining strength by carrying buckets of water here and there). More unexpected visitors stopped by for lunch - the Crown Prince and my 'fourth daughter', his girlfriend. It's a good thing that I keep the makings of one really good meal in my fridge at all times for just this sort of an emergency. No shiraz this time, but another half a day written off. Decluttering momentum did not pick up pace at all; however, it didn't stop. Inch by inch (or should that be piece by piece?) decluttering's a cinch.
Monday. I had an 8.30am appointment across town and, of course, on the other side of the mother of all Monday-morning traffic. At one point, I decided I was not going to make it on time so rang and let the other party know that I would be late.
"I'm sorry Madam, we don't seem to have you on our list of appointments today."
Was that the gasket in the car or my brain that came close to blowing? I stopped at nearest shopping centre, bought some bread and some greens, posted a couple of letters and returned home. I made another appointment for Tuesday for same person but at another venue not so far from home, and this time I made it for after peak hour traffic. I then spent Monday doing some of what I had to do on Tuesday but the worry of Tuesday was on my mind.
I felt spiritually low on Monday evening. By that stage of my days off I was wondering if it was worth the hassles of the runaround or easier to stay at work and not do what has to be done. I have a theory that this is how most of the world operates these days. Living a full and interesting life takes too much effort for a lot of people. Sad, huh?
The first one I am figuring out. Balance takes a while to manage but I'll get there eventually. To obtain the second one, I have to do the post-painting declutter. Number one job after painting is always 'get rid of the motham'!
I am up to day five of five days off and not one of those days - all with this declutter aim in mind - has gone as planned. I've reached the too-tired-&-overwelmed-to-sleep stage.
The weekend (after a great night out celebrating a friend's birthday) was ear-marked for house chores in preparation for the youngest princess's return on Thursday. You know how it is: you paint and then you put your house back together before you lose track of where everything goes.
With the arrival of our new bed just after breakfast on Saturday, we were ready to move everything back to where it belonged. We prepared for the big event by hiring a skip to take the junk away. The skip did not turn up. It will be here next week. Pffft! Really useful!
We enjoyed Saturday greatly even though it didn't go as planned. We ended up having two unexpected visitors; one welcome, one not so welcome. Our friend, H. came over about noon and stayed for lunch. Goodbye to cleaning out the fridge! The three of us shared a vegetarian pizza and a bottle of shiraz. Farewell to Saturday afternoon housework! After H left, I sorted through piles of papers, then a pile of cross stitch magazines and filed all whilst sitting in front of the television. One after the other, Paul put on some videos: 'The American President', 'Dave' and 'In and Out'. These films have long been faves of mine and now they are Paul's. When the papers were done, I worked on my cross stitch project. I'm the queen of multi-tasking.
I can't remember the last time we sat and watched tv together. It's a nice way to while away a drizzling Saturday afternoon - some together time after a busy fortnight and so much more important than vacuuming the Princess's bedroom.
The second visitor arrived about dinner time or should I say that Gyspy brought a 'friend' home for her hopeless-at-hunting parents. Eeek! I'm not sure whether that creature was intended for dinner or entertainment. I think it became a bit of both. I hope so because the last thing I want to contemplate is that somewhere out there is a mouse ...
Sunday, I spent part of the morning using the gray water from my washing machine to water the garden (this drought is no fun at all but is as useful as the gym for gaining strength by carrying buckets of water here and there). More unexpected visitors stopped by for lunch - the Crown Prince and my 'fourth daughter', his girlfriend. It's a good thing that I keep the makings of one really good meal in my fridge at all times for just this sort of an emergency. No shiraz this time, but another half a day written off. Decluttering momentum did not pick up pace at all; however, it didn't stop. Inch by inch (or should that be piece by piece?) decluttering's a cinch.
Monday. I had an 8.30am appointment across town and, of course, on the other side of the mother of all Monday-morning traffic. At one point, I decided I was not going to make it on time so rang and let the other party know that I would be late.
"I'm sorry Madam, we don't seem to have you on our list of appointments today."
Was that the gasket in the car or my brain that came close to blowing? I stopped at nearest shopping centre, bought some bread and some greens, posted a couple of letters and returned home. I made another appointment for Tuesday for same person but at another venue not so far from home, and this time I made it for after peak hour traffic. I then spent Monday doing some of what I had to do on Tuesday but the worry of Tuesday was on my mind.
I felt spiritually low on Monday evening. By that stage of my days off I was wondering if it was worth the hassles of the runaround or easier to stay at work and not do what has to be done. I have a theory that this is how most of the world operates these days. Living a full and interesting life takes too much effort for a lot of people. Sad, huh?
'The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience.'
Way to go Eleanor Roosevelt!
Tuesday was the write-off I expected Monday would be. On my way home from my appointment, I stopped at the houses of the Crown Prince and the Living Doll (middle princess aged 20) to drop off their mail and say a quick hello. Both have half days at uni on Tuesday. The Crown Princess is still unavailable (I assume because of the car - someone ran into it and did considerable damage to its rear end - but since she avoids me like I have leprosy, that is only an assumption). Ah, the joys of mothering!
And now it's Wednesday. It's way too early but I've been awake for at least 2 hours. I don't want to disturb Paul because he is going to Darwin at 9am. The house is still in a certain disarray - 'organised chaos' is closer to the truth. I have to get my skates on to get it looking like 'House & Garden' before today ends. Perhaps a bit later in the day I will ring the Living Doll and ask her for some help. She's certainly an angel!
Youngest Princess has emailed me to say that she is on the 10.30am Wednesday flight from Vienna. She will be home about 7pm on Thursday evening. Paul arrives back on the 5.30pm flight from Darwin. Woo hoo! My family will be together again. I guess that means that I should buy some groceries for the fridge so that I can feed the crowd tomorrow night. I'll add that to the list of jobs I need to do...
Happiness and laughter to you all. Time to go and reach out without fear. But first, where oh where is that mouse?
Bliss
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