Selfish Saturday: Closed for summer

Another year of this self-created tradition: there will be no original waffling during August. Priorities have shifted towards family time, outdoor pursuits (as far as Great British Summer weather will allow) and reading the words of others without relaying them. There will be DailyOM snippets for those who bother to drop by, and before you know it, September will be here and regular activity will resume. Until then, enjoy!

Selfish Saturday: (Some) missions accomplished

School’s out. No more keeping up with arrangements for the young one. At least for six weeks. Now I just have to survive these six weeks with next-to-zero privacy…

The dental appointment was kept, the tooth was pulled. It was surprisingly quick and struggle-free. I’m still getting used to the gap, but I’m almost back to normal, less than three days after.

The NaNo project is completed and validated. The sequel went so well, I actually have ideas for two more. I’m beginning to understand how pro writers create book series… I think.

There is work to be done around the house, but not as much as I anticipated, since the inspection I dreaded is not going to happen when we thought. That means there will be time to lounge about as well. Thank goodness for small favours.

My library sent me, together with the monthly newsletter, a list of about 20 books that can be read in a day. Some judicious searching discovered 11 of them among my Kindle stash. Let’s see how many I’ll be able to get through until school resumes. I find the new Kindle (Fire) reader feature that calculates the time left in the chapter and/or the entire book, based on one’s reading speed, an incredibly useful tool in that. This five-year owner still doesn’t grok locations!

Selfish Saturday: Tribal gathering

I had been sort of dreading the coming of last weekend for a long time. We were invited to a joint birthday party – my mother-in-law’s sister was turning 80 and her son 50, within a few days, so they were to throw a big bash at great-aunt’s South Wales place. There were so many ‘errrrrr’ elements for me there: a cross-country drive (and back) over a single weekend, in a heatwave, no less; as well as a whole load of family I had never met (and the husband, not for years, if not decades). Unfamiliar surroundings and people; you can’t possibly put me in a more stressful situation.

As it turned out, though, it all went mostly smoothly. We decided on a rental car, since our little dink no longer has air-conditioning or a sound system, and a small delay by someone else got us a big beast of a SUV at no extra charge. (Score!) The drive down was rather stressful, as we ran a bit late, hit Saturday traffic and only got to our hotel less than an hour before the party. I don’t think I’ve ever done the shower-groom-get dressed thing that fast!

At the party itself, the young one made himself instantly at home, off to play with his cousin’s kids, and I got introduced to lots of people with either the Welsh daftness I appreciate or the Yorkshire sharpness I appreciate even more. Good food, a buzz-but-no-hangover-inducing punch, and general acceptance in the sun. By 10pm, when we finally got back to the hotel, I was more than ready for bed, and I slept way better than on my battered mattress at home.

After glutton’s heaven (i.e. a buffet breakfast), the drive home was smooth sailing without any hitches. I hadn’t thought that spending about one-third of a 30-hour journey on the road could be that painless. I suspect spousal unit would consider a big beast like that, if it were within our budget.

Of course, after behaving over that weekend, my hayfever returned with a vengeance on Monday, enough that I had to reschedule my dental appointment from Wednesday to two weeks later, because there was no way I could keep my mouth open long enough without accidents.

This is the home stretch for the end of the school year, and one of the toughest times. Lots of PA’ing for the young one’s busy social life (even though this year he didn’t have a birthday party, and didn’t even bat an eyelid at missing the school fete to make it to Wales), and the heatwave still going strong. September can’t come quick enough.

Wordless Wednesday: I’m meeelting!

Selfish Saturday: The Waffler is out

Yesterday I had to attend my son’s end-of-year picnic; he was very disappointed last year, when I didn’t. I should have passed again. The 27-degree, 100%-humidity weather made me feel like a steamed dumpling even first thing in the morning, and had given me a raging case of heatstroke by the end of the day. Let’s say it hasn’t been a fun 30-odd hours.

I can have a lot of odd thoughts when physically incapacitated… odd, but generally good. And this time I decided to break out of my rut over the holidays. I usually dread them, because they tend to mess up the regular things I want to do. Maybe giving up some of those regular things will help me enjoy myself more.

Long story short, the Waffle’s regular columns are going away for the summer. There will be bites from DailyOM to keep the mind alert, but all the books, music, food and art can wait for order to reassert itself. If all goes according to plan, regular activity will resume on September 4. Take 45 and enjoy!