I hope everyone is well this Saturday which got off to a brilliant start with some big yellow thing in the sky - erm... the Sun! At last.
As is the custom here, welcome to new follower 'Morningaj.'
Apart from a bit of shopping to prepare for our week away in London for a break and to get the kids enough food in to feed an army, the day has been spent in the garden. I've also bought a pack of 'post-its' in bright fluorescent yellow to fix reminders throughout the house for the children: 'dishwasher,' 'hoover,' 'rubbish bin,' 'cat food,' 'this way to the washing machine,' etc.
The lawn has had it's first cut this morning and I've cheated a little really, I've cut it too short which I guess you should never really do especially at this time of the year, but it picked up all the rogue leaves, twigs, bits of other detritus to save me raking it all up. Still it looks okay for now. The compost bin produced three barrows of lovely rich stuff which is now in the borders and in the top of the pots.
The top of the fountain was damaged by the frost and snow this year and when my eldest lad and I came to clean it out ready for the spring, it was cracked and badly damaged. We put it back together and it's working okay, but the pond at the bottom is leaking so it has no fish in it at the moment. I can't decide whether or not to fill it with soil or repair it and put the fish back in. The problem is finding something to line the inside of the concrete section fountain pond with (liner is difficult) and was thinking along the lines of fibre glass. I can feel research coming on. These days you just 'Google' every conceivable problem.
The miniature daffs are in flower and the flowering blackcurrant is out. Some of the heather I planted last year has survived the snow and is in flower and the dicentra, 'bleeding heart' is about two feet high - the heart shaped flowers won't be far away now. The thing that seals springs arrival for me is the honey bees and midges that are out in force. The fish in the ponds are now eagerly feeding with wheatgerm even though the water is still cool.
A cuppa, while sat on the garden seat listening to a blue tit singing away in the tree just a few feet away was just dreamy in the warmish fresh air. The long tailed tits are just starting to appear along with the goldcrests, a sure sign of the birds returning for the spring entertainment. They are so funny to watch. The robins are around in pairs too.
The week has been a good one for a number of reasons, lots achieved at work and the first night of the healing group that I was invited to as a healer went off really well on Thursday night. I met a couple of retired ex work colleagues on Friday tea-time for a drink (non-alcoholic in my case, sadly) and a catch up for an hour at a local and a Tarot card reading I did on Friday night went really well with a positive and confirmed spirit link for the sitter and that rounded off the week.
So, I can hear my other half hoovering, getting the house ready for us going away so I best get the kettle on to make her a cuppa to keep her strength up so she can carry on with the domestic chores (so I can listen to the football on the Internet radio).
I'll keep you posted with what we get up to in the capital next week because I think the hotel has free wi-fi connections.
Enjoy the rest of your weekend.
Chat soon
Ta-ra.
The dunnocks are displaying, the crows are pairing up, the first daffodils I've seen this year are out on the grass verge on the dual carriageway down the road and... it's snowing just a little further up north.
When will it end - give me some HEAT?
I've been working silly hours hence my tardiness with blog writing plus being out every night this week, I've managed to catch 20 minutes between arriving home tonight and eating tea before going out again. Although all these sojourns are for pleasure, (they are spiritual working activities) they are not onerous and there is plenty of opportunity to relax with friends.
Last night I met with three ladies who have invited me to join a healing group, as a healer, which will meet once a fortnight. Last night was a 'get to know each other' night and we planned how we will do the healing, we chatted about life and philosophy and did a practice healing session on each other which, I have to say was wonderful; so I'm really looking forward to this slightly new and interesting direction in my life. They have been planning this for sometime and they thought they needed a blokes balance to the group so they asked me and I said 'yes' like a shot.
I'll use my Reiki experience of 'hands on' healing coupled with their plan to ask for Angelic assistance to heal. This is powerful stuff.
You know the really sad thing about this? This is an achievement that I haven't discussed or told my wife about because she is a religious person and she doesn't agree with this sort of thing. In fact whilst she tolerates my activities, she does not agree with them at all in any way. We don't talk about it and I have no-one to share my spiritual life with other than friends who have a like mind.
Work is daft at the moment. Working in the public sector is enjoyable, frustrating, hard, rewarding and a whole lot of other contradictory adjectives you can think of. And now, not only do I have to put up with a two year pay freeze while inflation continues to rise, but I'm paying more for my pension and getting less back and probably working longer. My wife is in the same boat. I have been determined not to talk much about this because it is boring for most of you and frustrating for me, so I apologise.
I will finish by simply asking a rhetorical question why I am being punished as an individual who has done nothing wrong, paying a huge percentage of my wages for a pension, who has contributed to bailing out banks, who has worked damned hard all my working life. All this while banks are making billions in profits, giving us no interest on our savings, individual bankers are taking home millions of pounds in wages and bonuses and laughing at the public and the toothless cowardly government who are just preying on the vulnerable to solve everyone's problem in the most inequitable way possible.
What a strange world we live in, and makes me feel like dropping out and just not participating in this rat race any more. Rant over - forgive me dear blogger.
A little girl asked her father, 'do all fairy tales begin with "Once upon a time"'?
The father replied, 'No, some begin with - If I am elected.'
Chat soon
Ta-ra
White rabbit, white rabbit, white rabbit.I don't normally sleep very well when I'm away in strange beds, but for some reason, I've been sleeping exceptionally soundly. Having said that it is so bitterly cold, grey, damp and miserable, snuggling in makes sleeping easy. No luxury of a hot water bottle in the second floor room, but the central heating takes the worse of the cold off.Today started with an reflection lesson on yesterday's course content, what did you find most interesting, what was most useful and what will we take back to the work place and why. We then spent the morning on Risk Management. Although this is my area of business, I always learn something new and I was able to contribute something to the course and help colleagues who don't normally deal with risk consciously (they deal with risk as part of their thinking every day, but not in s structured or writing it down.)This afternoon we did some research on the major events over the last ten years that has affected and changed our society or our attitudes and then contextualised this to our business today to know how we got to where we have. We had a briefing on our 'hydra' exercise which will take place over the next two days working in a tight team of four, making decisions and justifying them on fast moving dynamic situations which will last for a whole two days. I think lots of coffee, which I haven't been drinking too much of will be taken in copious quantities or the next 48 hours. I will hopefully visit the cinema tomorrow to see the film True Grit, but I'll see how tired I am. Tonight is a lazy night in my room and I will be researching Archangels and Ascended Masters and Angels with a view to helping out in a healing group using my Reiki qualifications. This is an exciting new departure in my spiritual life and Angels come into it because my colleague healers will be asking assistance from certain Angels who can facilitate and strengthen healing.I hope you are having a good week so far?Chat soonta-ra.
Today is a little bit of a sad day at work. The organisation I work for is undergoing reorganisation and is preparing for the Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) cuts to kick in.
People are moving about, people are leaving of their own accord and some are taking voluntary redundancy too - thankfully, no compulsory redundancies planned. This person works in our administration and is one of life's good people. Helpful, competent, knowledgeable, very personable indeed and smiles a lot - will go the extra mile. At least this person will be staying in the organisation, just moving to another site completely.
The place won't look or feel the same, and not necessarily for this one person leaving, but for the several others as well who have moved on.
People definitely maketh the place.
In my office alone (of four people) one has gone on maternity leave and is unlikely to come back with us as the role has gone and one of my other colleagues retires at the end of next week after 42 years of loyal local government service. Leaving two. The work hasn't gone away - well not yet anyway.
I've moved several times in my career within the organisation through promotions and development and every time you adjust to new people, new surroundings and new challenges, but nothing quite prepares you for the people you don't get to see anymore other than by chance meetings once in a Sheffield flood.
Well the weather has turned again today - rain and strong winds and according to the Met Office, there are some stronger wind warnings for the beginning of the weekend. I bottled out of washing the car by hand (not recommended for automatic car washes according to the handbook) because it was so bitterly cold last weekend. I might miss out this weekend because of the rain.
I feel sorry once more for the folk of west Australia who are now facing 180 miles per hour winds, high seas and driving rain with Cyclone Yasi. I watch that with interest and will send my thoughts to them in my meditation tonight.
By the way, if you are ever feeling the need for some distance healing and positive thoughts sending to you, never hesitate to ask. I doesn't hurt!
My wife said to me today in a reflective mood, "Oh my goodness, my boobs have gone, my stomach has gone, my bum has gone. Tell me something good about my legs."
"Blue goes with everything dear."
I never realised black eyes were so painful!
Chat soon
Ta-ra.
