Musings :: Moments :: Memories
As well as having my 25 Things for 2025 list, I also decided to make myself a fun list of things I would like to do this month. Some of these things are definitely going to happen (theatre tickets already booked; Mum's birthday dinner next week) and some I would like to happen.
February has felt like a strange mix of momentum and stillness—a month of small achievements and moments of quiet, of pushing forward but also needing to pause. It started with a bit of a wake-up call regarding my health, which spurred me into action. The idea of becoming more active initially felt like a chore,… Continue reading February Reflections
Skyline Drive, Shenandoah National Park, Virginia. Rich and I drove along this stunning road in May 2006 when we took an epic road trip from Miami to Washington DC. We continued our holiday by train stopping for a few nights in New York City and ending up in Boston, MA.
I have just taken the rather drastic step of deleting Instagram and Facebook from my phone and I already I feel lighter. Over the past few weeks - and the past few days especially - I have found myself mindlessly scrolling, spending far too much time chasing an undefined post or reel that would scratch… Continue reading Switching Off
Thanks to starting the Couch to 5K course with Writers' HQ and finding my writing buddy, Elizabeth, I’m back to writing. In addition to meeting weekly with Elizabeth on Google Meets, I am taking a live Plotstormers Lite course to help plot out my new children’s story. Last week, I write the 'elevator pitch' (in… Continue reading Plotting
We were bracing ourselves for a terrible stormy day but, in fact, the storm missed us completely. So instead, we had a sunny day which was surprisingly calm. I spent the day trying to relax - doctor's orders - but I still found myself pottering about. After walking the dog, I managed to sit down… Continue reading Sleepy Saturday
Yesterday Evelina got braces fitted. It has felt like years of waiting and then it came around all of a sudden. She was so brave. Austin's football team played so well together, passing brilliantly and really looking all round fantastic. Such a shame that they lost anyway - luck was certainly not on their side!… Continue reading Around here
I mark an piece of poetry analysis today. I take my time - I don't have a large stack. I have just one student's work. I type up my feedback starting with what they did well, then explaining some of the ways that they could do even better. Finally, I write a paragraph of analysis… Continue reading Tiny Bit of Teaching
Reading: Wintering by Katherine May; The Winter Spirits: Ghostly Tales for Frosty Nights by Various; The Peace of Wild Things: And Other Poems by Wendell Berry Listening: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J. K . Rowling; Mediations for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman; my 'Strummy' playlist on Amazon Music Watching: Silo and Bad Monkey… Continue reading Currently
Some time last year, I realised that one of the things that could make me feel particularly good (whether that was happy, calm or some other contented state) was paying attention to nature around me. I acknowledge that this is hardly groundbreaking information. We are often told that being is nature is good for our… Continue reading Nature Journal
Notes From My Day 