Diary
What a long time since I have written here. I find I am missing the way the blog records the days which otherwise whizz away so quickly so here, with no attempt to be for anyone other than myself, is blog as diary.
Monday is yoga morning. I have bought some new yoga clothes, well I bought them a few months ago. For years I have used baggy track suit bottoms and old t-shirts as my yoga clothes. I suddenly thought that doing yoga most weeks for nine years was probably an indication that I wasn't going to stop so two new pairs of leggings and two new t-shirts were allowed. They are from Asquith and I like them very much. In fact if the leggings were not so close fitting and I were not over sixty I would wear them all the time. They are ludicrously comfortable, like your favourite pair of pyjamas when you were a child.
This Tuesday was a meeting of the Clwydian Range Tourism Group, a group of people who run small tourism related businesses in our area and who are committed to sustainable tourism which uses and protects our very beautiful landscape. It is amazing how much time it takes up to attend a meeting, write the minutes and do the follow up work I had committed myself to. They are a lovely group of people though so if I stop, which I am contemplating, I know I will miss them.
Wednesday was the chance to catch up with a friend in the morning and then spend the aftenoon on my Spanish. I wonder why I am doing this Spanish sometimes. In order to get to the stage where I can be capable of a conversation there is so much more work to do. I like the sense of using my brain though and I did like the fact that when we were in Spain I could manage the fairly basic conversations for booking into campsites, shopping and ordering meals. Bur life is so short. I need to go to Spain two or three times a year to keep the impetus going I think and that is just not going to happen. I found a correspondent through mylanguageexhange and have exchanged a couple of emails. Now I need to find someone to have skype or facetime conversations with and perhaps between these two things I will feel I am making progress. And surely using my brain is making new connections!
Thursday was a visit to Maddy and some time with her and her children. Grace (3) demonstrated one effect of going to nursery by organising us into a circle to play a game of her own devising. Toby (nine months) was not impressed at being left with Ian and me when his parents disappeared for half an hour but was distractable with enthusiastic singing of Wheels on the Bus and finding himself in the middle of one of Grace's games. He did not look thrilled but he did stop crying.
Thursday evening was choir and I was pleased to find that I am not quite so intimidated by the standard required by the new choir master. I am never going to be able to sing purely from sight reading and the sound that comes out of my mouth will wobble out of tune if I am not surrounded by others who can sing but my music reading has improved tremendously and choir continues to be a time when I lose myself entirely in the moment. It is like sailing. You need to be in it, doing it, concentrating entirely on the now. And like sailing, sometimes you feel you are flying.
Friday morning Welsh class. It is interesting to be trying to learn two new languages. When I started Spanish it was always Welsh that popped into my head when I wanted to say something. That doesn't happen so much these days although I did find myself enthusiastically nodding "si" when I was asked something in Welsh so maybe it is just turning round the other way and Spanish is taking over from Welsh as the default foreign language! I don't think so. I think that somehow they are managing to live side by side in my head.
On Friday night I learnt that a friend's father has died after a stroke. It made me think of my parents' deaths and wonder how I normally manage to keep their loss at arm's length. The deaths of my mother and then my father seem so recent and yet somehow the life before their deaths was another life. I still find myself wanting to share things with them that I know they would have loved. Perhaps I always will.
Yesterday I did another big slug of Spanish and today has been mainly in the garden.
I looked down at my hands last night and noticed two small bumps on my fingers which I think are the early stages of arthritis. How can this possibly be? I don't feel old enough to have arthritis. I look at my hands and see they are my mother's hands now.
The clocks went back last night. Time for fires and soups and knitting again. Through the window I can see the sun on the hill on the other side of the valley. There is a wren flying in and out of the hedge in the kitchen garden, so small I can hardly see her from here. Time to go outside.
Monday is yoga morning. I have bought some new yoga clothes, well I bought them a few months ago. For years I have used baggy track suit bottoms and old t-shirts as my yoga clothes. I suddenly thought that doing yoga most weeks for nine years was probably an indication that I wasn't going to stop so two new pairs of leggings and two new t-shirts were allowed. They are from Asquith and I like them very much. In fact if the leggings were not so close fitting and I were not over sixty I would wear them all the time. They are ludicrously comfortable, like your favourite pair of pyjamas when you were a child.
This Tuesday was a meeting of the Clwydian Range Tourism Group, a group of people who run small tourism related businesses in our area and who are committed to sustainable tourism which uses and protects our very beautiful landscape. It is amazing how much time it takes up to attend a meeting, write the minutes and do the follow up work I had committed myself to. They are a lovely group of people though so if I stop, which I am contemplating, I know I will miss them.
Wednesday was the chance to catch up with a friend in the morning and then spend the aftenoon on my Spanish. I wonder why I am doing this Spanish sometimes. In order to get to the stage where I can be capable of a conversation there is so much more work to do. I like the sense of using my brain though and I did like the fact that when we were in Spain I could manage the fairly basic conversations for booking into campsites, shopping and ordering meals. Bur life is so short. I need to go to Spain two or three times a year to keep the impetus going I think and that is just not going to happen. I found a correspondent through mylanguageexhange and have exchanged a couple of emails. Now I need to find someone to have skype or facetime conversations with and perhaps between these two things I will feel I am making progress. And surely using my brain is making new connections!
Thursday was a visit to Maddy and some time with her and her children. Grace (3) demonstrated one effect of going to nursery by organising us into a circle to play a game of her own devising. Toby (nine months) was not impressed at being left with Ian and me when his parents disappeared for half an hour but was distractable with enthusiastic singing of Wheels on the Bus and finding himself in the middle of one of Grace's games. He did not look thrilled but he did stop crying.
Thursday evening was choir and I was pleased to find that I am not quite so intimidated by the standard required by the new choir master. I am never going to be able to sing purely from sight reading and the sound that comes out of my mouth will wobble out of tune if I am not surrounded by others who can sing but my music reading has improved tremendously and choir continues to be a time when I lose myself entirely in the moment. It is like sailing. You need to be in it, doing it, concentrating entirely on the now. And like sailing, sometimes you feel you are flying.
Friday morning Welsh class. It is interesting to be trying to learn two new languages. When I started Spanish it was always Welsh that popped into my head when I wanted to say something. That doesn't happen so much these days although I did find myself enthusiastically nodding "si" when I was asked something in Welsh so maybe it is just turning round the other way and Spanish is taking over from Welsh as the default foreign language! I don't think so. I think that somehow they are managing to live side by side in my head.
On Friday night I learnt that a friend's father has died after a stroke. It made me think of my parents' deaths and wonder how I normally manage to keep their loss at arm's length. The deaths of my mother and then my father seem so recent and yet somehow the life before their deaths was another life. I still find myself wanting to share things with them that I know they would have loved. Perhaps I always will.
Yesterday I did another big slug of Spanish and today has been mainly in the garden.
I looked down at my hands last night and noticed two small bumps on my fingers which I think are the early stages of arthritis. How can this possibly be? I don't feel old enough to have arthritis. I look at my hands and see they are my mother's hands now.
The clocks went back last night. Time for fires and soups and knitting again. Through the window I can see the sun on the hill on the other side of the valley. There is a wren flying in and out of the hedge in the kitchen garden, so small I can hardly see her from here. Time to go outside.
I love the fact that the blog gives you a regular record of life. It’s good to look back at old posts and remember. I empathise with your feelings for your parents. Mine died many years ago when I was in my late teens. There are often days when they are in my thoughts; something will occur to bring them to mind. A flower, a song or some comment from my boys keeping them alive in my thoughts.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the Spanish and Welsh. I struggle with French. Vocabulary brilliant, grammar abysmal! Have a good week . B x
Oh that is interesting about great vocab and poor grammar! I am exactly the other way round. I have quite a good grasp of the grammar but not enough vocab to say what I want to say! It's always been like that, first with French and now with both Welsh and Spanish. I would swap more vocab for absolute correctness right now! Much more useful!
DeleteThe other day an erratic driver made me yell Hell's Teeth - my father's words in my mouth.
ReplyDeleteHave you found any Spanish blogs that appeal? The handful of German blogs I read help me keep my German alive, not just fluent but also contemporary. I don't want to speak like a textbook or a 'grandmother' particularly. I have a Portuguese garden blog - which I read in translation. And a Dutch one for fun, because I can, using my school Afrikaans.
Spanish blogs are a great idea Diana. I hadn't thought of that but I will go and see what I can find. It is all part of doing enough to become, if not fluent then at least more confident!
DeleteOh i did yoga and running for years in old baggies and like you finally invested in some 'proper' gear...and what a difference 😊
ReplyDeleteIt is funny quite what a difference it makes. I wore them again at this morning's class and it has become part of the pleasure of doing it!
DeleteWear what makes you comfortable. I see lots of over 60 year old women wearing them in the stores. Of course, they wear long tops and blouses and there is nothing inappropriate with the way they look. Not all yoga pants are leggings, they also have some that are straight leg and are not so body hugging. I love mine.
ReplyDeleteI love mine too but they are definitely very close fitting! They do get worn two or three times a week for yoga or Pilates so I feel I'm getting to spend plenty of time being hugged by them!
DeleteLovely to see a post from you once again, full of the everydayness of life that we all share in some form or another. I'm fortunate to still have both my parents, but my mother-in-law died just over a year ago and just yesterday I thought of something I wanted to ask her.
ReplyDeleteGood for you for studying Welsh and Spanish. Languages are fascinating glimpses into culture and can only benefit the brain.
I suspect we will always recognise those things we would love to share!
DeleteI miss it when you don’t blog! I’m going to look at that make of leggings for the gym, they sound just what I need.
ReplyDeleteI am in the process of sorting out my parents home as my Dad passed away in July, just under three years after my Mum. What a knock it’s been and continues to be. But I’m grateful to them for everything and I love and cherish them still. Jane x
Ah yes, it doesn't stop that sense of having been lucky to have had our parents and hoping that we can hand on to our children and grandchildren what they gave to us!
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