Reflecting on my week #116

Compared to last weekend, this weekend has been positively chilled. Some of that was down to weather with Storm Ciara arriving and staying for most of Sunday. It was wet and windy here, but nothing like some of the devastation we’ve seen on the news.

My faux topiary ball by the front door has been swinging all over the place, and in the back garden I popped out to save my pool sign. I timed my visit much better than MOH, who decided to clean his bike just as some heavy rain arrived. Undeterred he donned a waterproof and carried on until it drove him indoors.

My trip to the garden was much more successful and there was even some time for some photos. Thankfully our neighbour’s trampoline had stayed in its own garden (and hopefully that’s continued).

The other reason for a quiet weekend is that it comes on the back of another busy, and long week. Combine that with a few days off next week and the work preparations needed means that taking some time off can be quite stressful. I can’t wait though, it’ll be nice to explore a new city and I’m looking forward to seeing just how quirky our hotel is. I’m expecting pretty quirky, and yes, I’ll let you know.

The other good news is that next door’s scaffolding is mostly down. It’s been up a while, I had to check, and it was the end of October. They’ve had some awful weather during the work, but even so I bet they weren’t expecting the job to last quite so long.

The glass balustrade is in and on a sunnier day I had a peek out of our top floor window.

We do seem to have a cracked paving slab which we’ll need to sort out, and there’s still quite a bit of clean up that needs to take place, however I’m currently not too concerned as throughout our neighbour has been considerate. They have offered to put the pots back, which were moved to accommodate the scaffolding, and while that’s nice I’m going to decline the offer as it will only make it much harder for MOH to get them exactly where they should go.

I’m talking more than in the right order, I’m talking exactly where they should go - equal distances between them, and so we can get to the tap too. I’m pretty sure they don’t realise the precision I need here! MOH is used to it now, it frustrates him I’m sure but he also knows I won’t settle until I’m happy.

While I was in the garden I looked up to check out the new addition from the ground. I think it’ll take some getting used to seeing it there, a bit like when you have a drastic haircut and shock yourself everytime you look in the mirror to start with.

MOH has also managed to get a viewing, I don’t know how he does it. He’s been in several of our neighbour’s houses and yet I don’t think I’ve been past the doorstep of any. I’m not quite sure how to take that, I’m sure there’s nothing in it…

Anyway, I’m hoping for a less quiet week on the blog as I’ve plenty of topics to cover, on top of the plenty of topics I already had, and of course I’ve plenty of photos to edit and blogs to read too. I’d better get cracking, thanks for bearing with me.

Reflecting on my week 115

Often when weeks are busy everything merges into one and it could be any week. This week though it’s been a little different, as usual the weekend has been loaded with more than during the week, but the week got off to quite a civilised start. It was MOH’s first day back at work, or rather back online, and I also worked at home. So we found ourselves set up either end of the dining room table working away in companionable silence. It was nice and something I’m sure will happen again, though not sure it’ll become that regular an occurrence, even though addressing my work-life balance is something I’m working on.

The week started and ended with trips to the hospital for MOH though. Monday evening saw the repeat blood test with thankfully none of the repeat drama of the previous time, which I think everyone involved was very pleased about, not least MOH. Saturday we were back there again, and this was my view, along with the Saturday papers.

For a change we were up and out on Saturday at a respectable time, and as a reward we headed on to RHS Wisley, where I’d booked an entry time slot into their latest exhibition in the hot houses. I love a Wisley visit in the winter, whether it’s for the butterflies or the houseplants that are taking over, the hot houses are always a good place to visit.

So this weekend we notched up our third garden visit in three weekends, which we may struggle to keep up for much longer, but we can give it a good go! I’d not been to Wisley since their work moving the entrance completed - the work is fab by the way. But it does bring you into the garden in a different place (obviously) and that meant our focus was on a different part of the garden too.

We were drawn to the colour of the dogwoods as we headed towards the hot houses, and then along the winter walk where the irises were already out and we discovered a new-to-us plant, Edgworthia, which was also in the garden section of the Sunday papers too. Must be the time of year for it, but more on that another day.

We were here for the RHS’ latest exhibition, and if you can go, definitely go. There’s so much to see, and luckily for us, it was fairly quiet. There weren’t any queues but you can book timed entry slots so you can avoid any queues there might be - I suspect it’ll be busier in half-term week.

There’s six rooms: the hallway, living room, bedroom, kitchen, dining room and bathroom and each is overrun with houseplants. I’ve loads of photos, and will share more here, but it’s safe to say I loved it.

Saturday also gave me the opportunity to see how work is progressing next door. The glass surround is due to be going in this week, and the scaffolding will be down soon after that. It’s been up a while, and longer than expected, but it’s kinda needed for the job to be done safely. I’ll not be sorry to see it go though and once it has there’s a fair bit of clean up work to take place, but our neighbour has said he’ll pay for this, so we can’t ask for more than that.

We headed into town Saturday night, which made a change. We had dinner at Gunpowder at Tower Bridge and the food was great. it’s been a while since I’ve seen this view, and couldn’t help but be the tourist.

The food was good, and as usual there’s no pictures of that as it didn’t hang around for long. It’s the first time though that we’ve had cocktails garnished with dried chillies. That was clearly a theme as Sunday night I added some dried chilli to the impromptu pasta sauce I made, and also my eye - ouch!

This week I’ve some planning to do, working out how to get everything for a couple of nights away into hand luggage. That wouldn’t be so bad, but MOH has booked a bit of a swanky restaurant, and the outfit I want to wear needs heels. I’m sure I’ll manage it, somehow…

Making things stick in 2020 with some gumption

It’s almost the end of January, and unusually for me I’ve not shared my word of the year yet. Nor have I posted a decade in review, and in all honesty I probably won’t post anything in great detail. The 2010s were a decade of house refurbs and holidays and many happy times; there were job changes for us both, but we also lost more good friends and family than ideally we’d have liked. We celebrated milestone birthdays, and ten years of marriage with family and friends, and by all accounts we should feel grown up by now, but I’m not sure we really do.

At the start of 2019 I was looking forward to facing the year with tenacity, and I predicted it would be a busy one. I wasn’t wrong. At work for half of the year I covered the junior role on my team as well as my own, and by November, it was tough. MOH too had had a stressful time at work too, and so our holiday in December was a much needed break for us both. It helped recharge our batteries, and for me reduced some of the overwhelm.

This year I think there’ll need to be more of that tenacity, but also more discipline to stick at things. I know I can make things happen, at home and at work, if I stick to them. I also know that I need to stick at the things that are important, and not just the things that shout loudest and seem most urgent. I’ve also recently learnt that I ‘over give’ so while I can stick at things, I need to stick at the right things.

So that’s why gumption seems to fit. This year being I’m certain that being ‘shrewd or spirited initiative and resourceful’ will stand me in very good stead.

The year though has already started with a bit of a health scare for MOH, though now it’s been identified as kidney stones that’s helped, and I hope he’s well on the way to being fixed. We’ve a couple of breaks booked already to look forward to. We’re heading off to Lyon next month and a cottage in the Lake District in early summer. There’s another family wedding, this time in Yorkshire, and milestone birthdays for both of our siblings.

We’ve plans for some work on our house, and in the garden - which we made little progress on last year - and I’m planning to make sure there’s time for crafting too. That all means there’ll be plenty to share here, and 2020 will be as busy as any yet I’m sure. We also think that the decade ahead will be a big one for us.

But with added gumption* who knows what successes 2020 will bring?

Photo by Daria Volkova on Unsplash

* I clearly didn’t give imagery much thought ahead of choosing gumption as my word, a G was the closest I could get!