Tag Archives: life

10 THINGS MY MOTHER NEVER TOLD ME ABOUT MY THIRTIES

Twins

Twins (Photo credit: kevin dooley)

Now that I am edging towards the second half of my thirties, there are a few things that my mother definitely never covered in our mother daughter chats. Although I am not sure I would have believed her even if she’d told me…

  1. You will look in the mirror one day and not recognise yourself. This will happen overnight and you’re certain that you didn’t look like this yesterday.
  2. You don’t know what’s at number one and have never heard of half the songs in the download chart. Music also sounds louder at lower volumes even though you know you used to play songs at a level eight – the six is now quite loud enough thank you.
  3. You will get hangovers even if you used to come home in the early hours and arise fresh and rested after two hours sleep. You lost three days in recovery time the last time you got drunk.
  4. You will be able to keep more than one bottle of vino in the house without drinking it. In fact you have a rack that has wine in it!
  5. You will enjoy staying in more than dressing up.
  6. You are inexplicably attracted to the colour beige when clothes shopping and have a bit of a moment, consequently bursting into tears and needing a stiff drink to sort you out.
  7. You will walk into rooms and forget what you went in for. You will then stand for about ten minutes before checking the internet to see what the early signs of Alzheimer’s are.
  8. Hair starts to grow in unusual places even if you are a woman, it’s just that nobody talks about it.
  9. You will start to wear flat shoes even if previously you haven’t been seen in anything less than four inches. Ballet shoes become your new go-to.
  10. The garden starts to become interesting and you find yourself at the weekend going to the garden centre and spending an extraordinary amount of time looking at plants.

So what have you noticed that you think should be in the life manual?

Comments, as always, welcome.

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FOOD, FALCONS & FOUL PLAY

I have a thing about food and absolutely adore all types and origins: Mexican, Chinese, Thai, Moroccan, Malaysian, Indian, Vietnamese, Mongolian, French, Spanish, Traditional English, Modern English, Austrian – I’ve never met a food style I didn’t like as my ever-expanding waistline can attest to!

So today was a rare treat! We have a bit of an annual date on the August Bank Holiday with the food show at Holdenby House in Northamptonshire. It was at one time the palace of King James the 1st and is now in private ownership. Every year they hold a fantastic food show with live cooking demonstrations and a range of organic and local artisan produce stalls. They also have an extensive choice of excellent wines and spirits which are not available from commercial supermarkets or grocery stores.

The kitchen gardens are especially beautiful and it also has a croquet lawn and a falconry centre.

So, the Food….

There is something about tiny bits of bread that you dip in stuff that gets my food motor going! It was a smor-gas-board of taste sensations. Olive oils, salad dressings, mustard’s and I can’t forget the cheeses and pickles. There were also cakes, cookies, fudge, sweets, fruitcake and fresh bakery breads. I think some of my love comes from the passion of these small craft producers. They live and breathe their products, selecting only the very best ingredients and ensuring they get just the right mix. In some ways it reminds me of the beauty of writing, all that want, preparation and finesse to craft something of value.

Now the Falcons….

They have a falconry centre at Holdenby which accepts rescue birds. I am always a little upset to see the wild behind bars, but I do understand that without the centre they would have a much worse existence. I’d rather they are able to inform and educate and not have to be put down (having been stolen from nests or bred in captivity their chances in the wild would be slim) or worse kept in tiny cages in private collections where they are not exercised properly.

Now of course there was another reason for wanting to look at the falconry centre. Hello, writer here! I have a character in the book that I want to give a sidekick… Wolves are so last season and I’ve always been fascinated with birds of prey, so this was a perfect opportunity to do some research into the different types of raptors.

I had a rare opportunity to talk to the experts about which breeds and species have the most distinctive personalities, I got a sense of scale and size and was able to ask about the sort of bond that develops between a hawk and it’s handler. The bigger birds of prey have very varied characters, especially the Black Eagle and the Eagle Owl. The latter has extraordinary Orange Eyes! Probably the winner but I have some more reading to do……

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Finally the Foul Play…

Well, I did mention the croquet lawn didn’t I. What do you get when you put two couples together on a “try croquet” session where the men are both super competitive? You get my husband gloating for the last two hours of the show, saying things like…

“We beat them six two, ha – I was never going to let him win. Was only supposed to be a bit of fun. Knocking your ball out the way the whole time and playing tactics. Ha!”

Oh dear…… Is it okay if I admit secretly I was quite pleased with my husbands chivalry?

Comments, as always, welcome!

PERFECT MOMENTS

There are periods of your life, where the smiles come easier and a feeling of calm and wonder pervades. Do not let these moments go, hold on with both hands if necessary, because you are blessed. How much of life passes by in a blur of forgotten small stresses? The shoes you can’t find. The train or bus you miss. The child that will not get dressed and is late for school. Being passed over at work. There are a thousand tiny things that fill us with thoughts of our own powerlessness and inadequacy and yet…

There are also the small times that shine a light on all the goodness and the greatness. They rarely involve mountains of cash or trophies, but they make you feel like you are exactly where you should be. That it really is, a wonderful and interesting world. That you can meet your dreams if you just reach out open-handed.

I call these the “perfect moments” and they last a lifetime. My life is made up of these small wonders; the bits in between – often fuzzy and out of focus. There is often a graininess to other memories, almost as if they begin fading out even as we’re making and storing them. A perfect moment can be recalled in a heartbeat, its freshness, the smells and sounds, retained in perfect Technicolor detail. I like to think of it as life in HD.

Today’s moment was walking in the sunshine at a hot air balloon festival.  My husband reached out to take my hand and pull me just a little closer. It wasn’t a statement of undying love or an expensive piece of jewelry. There were no diamonds and rubies in tissue paper. But that moment was one of the most romantic of my life. Because he wanted me in his space, to touch me in front of a thousand other walking spectators and he wasn’t even thinking about it.

The Albuquerque, New Mexico International Ball...

The Albuquerque, New Mexico International Balloon fiesta. (October 2007) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It made me feel loved, wanted and content. I’ll cherish it and put it away in a box of memories reserved for the not so perfect times.

Comments as always, welcome.

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THE BED WARS

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Before you start thinking that this will be smutty, please look up, we are not descending here at IWTWI to the gutter. We do slovenly writing, incomplete sentences and spelling mistakes. What we don’t do is sex. Whilst I am all for well-written erotica that doesn’t involve mentions of inner goddesses, that is not the purpose of this blog. However, if you would like to read some really good stuff, written, shock horror by a man! Head over to “The Reclining Gentleman”  and check out the adult section.

So what am I referring to with the above headline? Well, it’s come to my attention that my and Mr IWTWI bedtime habits (sleep time, not sauce-time) are perhaps a bit odd.

The evidence:-

1. Two sets of bed-linen.

We have two duvet (bed-linen sets) on the bed. It may shock you to learn that Mr IWTWI is a duvet/covers hogger of the grandest scale. He has been known to swipe Super King Size duvet off poor Mrs IWTWI in the middle of night with no provocation. If we lived in the Maldives (one day when my ship rolls in) this would not be as much of an issue.

Unfortunately this happens anywhere that there is a single piece of fabric on the bed. Amazing hotel stays turn into constant battles where I try to roll Mr IWTWI off the covers as not only does he steal them, he also has the audacity to lay on top of the damn things.

Therefore, we took the decision, so that I could get some sleep –  to go dual on the bed covers. We always have the same design on both, so that it matches.

2. Laying the other way up. (Top and Tailing)

We have a sleigh bed and are able to lay the other way up with the pillows still fully supported at the other end. There are a couple of reasons this occurs.

Reason one - Done as a pair, (if you have a bed that supports it, give it a go) we pretend we are on holiday! We can’t afford an overseas holiday this year so moving to the other end accompanied with “where are we tonight?” seems like a nice alternative. We happily talk each other to sleep about where we are in the world… Hey, your imagination is the one thing in life that is free. Best to get some use out of it.

Reason Two, is slightly more sinister. Mr IWTWI is afflicted with “Thumper” syndrome (restless legs). This means that I get to feel like I am in the percussion section of the London Philharmonic Orchestra on some nights. Boom, tap, boom at roughly 45 second intervals – at least there’s a beat to it. However, If I switch ends I can gently reach out and grab the offending foot disturbing Mr IWTWI just enough to stop him for hopefully long enough to get to sleep.

Once asleep, Armageddon could be happening and I wouldn’t wake up, unless I am cold and we’ve solved that problem.

I was going to mention the snoring but as Mr IWTWI has informed me (which I unreservedly deny) that I have a bit of a rumble myself some nights, I’ll leave that one be.

P.S We only take holidays at weekends.

Comments are errr… Welcome?

MY BLOG IS TWO MONTHS OLD TODAY – A COMING OF AGE STORY

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I’d just like to take this opportunity to thank anyone who follows me for hanging in there over the last two months and rest assured that my blog will start to have a sense of maturity and seriousness with this new milestone that has been sadly lacking thus far.

Or there again, maybe not. Me and my blog are quite enjoying having fun and sploshing around in the murky puddles of my mind with our Wellies on (galoshes for anyone outside the UK)..

I had a “Duvet Day” yesterday with the husband and it was bliss. I now have a full week off with no distractions to write a minimum of a blog a day, continue with the book and sort out the style and menus of this blog! – I have also gone Pro. Yes, I treated myself to the Upgrades bundle here on WordPress and I’ve got my very own .COM. So expect to see changes over the next week, along with it reverting back to exactly the same style it started with, when I figure out that actually, I liked it just the way it was.

I am also going to be looking into the mysterious world of the “Plug In” and may even attempt some CSS. Err, so if you visit and get nothing but a blank page, it will probably be all my fault.

Expect to see posts about several strange quirks that go on in the IWTWI household over the coming days. Including and not limited to another post about the bed-linen (Nothing kinky I promise, not a IWTWI, very own shades style expose).

Robin Williams and Pam Dawber as Mork and Mindy
Robin Williams and Pam Dawber as Mork and Mindy (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

There will be Posts about writing this week, including whether I am going to sign up for NaNo (National Novel Writers Month) in November. I can’t help but giggle a bit when I write Na No. I think of NaNu, NaNu from Mork & Mindy. I’ve just lost anyone under the age of twenty-five haven’t I?

I will actually have a couple of serious posts thrown in for good measure…. There are a couple of things I have wanted to write about that every time I’ve sat down to do, I’ve frozen up – So I’m hoping for an emotional thaw!So last but not least a big thank you to all the regular commentators and dare I say electronic friends I’ve made thus far.

Sorry all, I am a bit over excited this week (think new puppy and favourite toy), comments as always welcome.

WHY EVERYONE NEEDS A DUVET DAY

duvet
English: A photo of a white duvet.

English: A photo of a white duvet. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

With all the pressure in modern life for us all to get on with it, to seize the day, to be all we can be and all the other general planning and goal setting that goes on. I believe that just every so often, you need to do the exact opposite. Throw the rule book out the window and have a break. Have a duvet day! For all of those in long-term employment, I am not suggesting that you make a habit of these, however, I think we can all develop a bit of a tickly cough or a sore throat, resulting in a voice that sounds as if we are on the edge of death. One or two duvet days a year are the absolute maximum. Alternatively use a Sunday.

PLANNING A DUVET DAY!

Whilst this may sound counter-intuitive, proper preparation will make sure that you get the greatest mileage from your twenty-four hours off. Got kids – you’ll need to send these to the parents for a couple of days. Got a husband/partner/wife, well if you can’t get him/her out of the house, have a joint duvet day. Just no fighting over the covers; if he/she is a hogger, you may want to get the ground rules straight before you start.

  1. Buy feel-good foods.

You don’t want to traipse out during the real day so make sure you stock the fridge with snack type treats that take an absolute minimum of effort to prepare.

2. Change the Bed.

There is nothing nicer than fresh clean bed-linen and as you’re going to spend a whole twenty-four hours with your duvet let’s make it smell nice. You don’t want to crocodile wrestle the covers into submission on the day, so this is another key prep stage.

3. Chores

Ensure that any cleaning or household chores are done the day before. This is your me time remember. There’s nothing worse than snuggling up on the couch or sofa worrying about the state of the bathroom.

4. Set Your Alarm

Ever got up on Saturday thinking you have to do something and then realised you don’t and gone back to bed. Feels good doesn’t it? Let’s set that up for yourself, then.

5. Switch everything off.

Yup, the Blackberry, the iPhone and definitely no email. You are for twenty-four hours at least INCOGNITO. Ensure the immediate family know that you are Okay, the day before. You don’t want the fire-brigade or police breaking down the door to discover you in your pyjamas with a face full of chocolate or pizza because of an over-anxious relative.

THE DUVET DAY

So there you have it. You now get to spend a whole twenty-four hours doing exactly as you please. After maybe spending a luxurious extra hour in bed, transfer yourself to the couch (don’t forget the duvet). Watch movies, listen to your favourite music, eat rubbish and indulge. No chores, no stress, just let yourself go. Fancy a NAP? You go for it. 3PM and fancy a drink, why not! Whether it be an expensive glass of wine or a hot chocolate with Marshmallows.

This day is all about you….