Posted on by wherethejourneytakesme

dear diary :: a day of accomplishments

I had a rather disproportionate feeling of accomplishment yesterday to the amount of things I actually got done but it felt good to do something and move forward.

The washer is now working a treat and together with the warm wind I managed to wash and line dry a couple of loads so I have a pile of fluffy white towels waiting to go into the airing cupboard and an assortment of clothes to iron.

It is important that I keep up the daily routines I have developed since leaving work even when they seem to go astray or I have to abandon them for a while; checking emails, doing the ironing, shining the sink, entering receipts, planning the meals, taking my supplements, eating an apple – they bring a sense of accomplishment each day in themselves – if anything else gets done then that is a sure win.

We emptied the old cloakroom of its contents – this is only a small part of it above in the picture. It was a bit like Mary Poppin’s bag once we delved in there and now the stuff, that was once quite contained in the smallest room of the house, has spread itself into every free corner throughout the kitchen, dining area and living room resembling that expanding foam when you release it from the tube. I am looking at it wondering if it will all fit back in when it becomes the pantry.

Of course not everything is due to go back and it is this stuff I must deal with. I have decided that a car boot sale is the way to go as we have things not easy to sell by means of ebay because of the weight and I would rather try and get rid of it all in one day rather than string it out. We have a lack of boot sales round us so I am looking to go to Bedale near my daughter. They hold one every Saturday until mid October – she says it is quite a good one and she has room to store the stuff in her house until we have a nice collection together, and she can add in some of her unwanteds.

Once empty DH set too like the guy Jonathan you may have seen on the program Buying and Selling and within no time had hacked the tiles off the wall and then created himself a little sauna with the wallpaper steamer going full pelt.

The wallpaper is now scraped off but we need to remove the old patchy magnolia paint beneath until we get back to the bare plaster; then we will have a good sound surface to apply the paint on the walls.

Whislt he was working away I enjoyed a relaxing couple of hours with my neighbour catching up with news and airing our thoughts on the state of the country. I am not a very political person but I am worried about our politicians at the moment and the fact that we are being led into unknown territory and what is the real motive for this. It is rather overwhelming especially when I feel what we need is a bit of stability and reassurance.

Enough said on that topic.

I tried a new recipe for tea – it worked out well and tasted delicious, a relatively simple and inexpensive meal using red lentils, sweet potato, red peppers and mushrooms with halloumi cheese slices placed on top. The picture does not do it justice – the one in the magazine looks much more appetising! I will certainly be including it in our meals for the coming season. I will put the recipe up under the new Recipe tab above.

I have an assortment of recipe clippings to file away in my folders – so that will be a job for today. I have the guest bedding washed and waiting to go out on the line – it looks a dry sunny day here so far. Then I am going to look at the finances, reviewing last months figures and planning for September.

August seemed a long month but I am sad we are at an end as it signifies the end of summer too. The mornings are seeing a definite change now and a lot of the flowers are already dying back. But there is something quite comforting in nature as it always continues from one season to another and we adapt to the changes; always looking forward to repeating those little pleasurable activities that come with each of the seasons and ones which we will no doubt have done many times before.

My favourite at this time of year is definitely blackberry picking and collecting the Bramley apples to make pies and crumbles, I am sure you will have your own too. I will mourn the end of summer whilst eagerly awaiting the cooler weather and darker nights – when I can snuggle down with blankets and candles by the fire and watch a few favourite period dramas.

Have a lovely day everyone. x

18 Replies to “dear diary :: a day of accomplishments”

  1. It’s lovely to have you back,you’ve been missed,hopefully you can get your life back on track.where has the year gone? It seems to me when you are retired the days just whizz buy, the mornings are definitely cooler but autumn is my favourite season, have a wonderful weekend take care xox margaret

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    1. Hi Margaret – lovely to hear from you. I am enjoying some time by ourselves – although it is lovely to have the granchildren and my daughter and see my mum it is nice to just be able to get on with a few things we want to do. I am determined to get this pantry done before the year is out!

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  2. It is surprising how much ‘stuff’ you can squeeze into a small room! Good luck with the car boot. I do like the look of that recipe, I bought the book The Roasting Tin by Rukmini Iyer and that looks like it could fit into that book, I must try it. As for the end of summer, I too get a little depressed this time of year…. but I will be glad with the cooler weather, I am just not suited to heat! I look forward to seeing the results of all your labours with the room and with the foraging.
    Xxx

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  3. When things are going on all around us over which we have no control, it feels like a real achievement to manage to do even a couple of small things….it helps us to feel like we do have a bit of control, doesn’t it? Your meal looks lovely, I often do a tray of oven roasted summer veggies with halloumi, but never thought to put lentils in it before – now I will, thanks. And thank you for your supportive comments on my blog. X

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    1. It feels an uphill struggle at the moment – but I know you can sympathise with this given your circumstances at the moment. I find the not knowing what the future will hold quite daunting – we seem to be hanging about waiting for certain dates to come up so we can move on to deal with the next part of the problem. Thinking of you and your family x

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  4. It is amazing what you can pack into a small space, isn’t it! Your halloumi dish looks very nice. I’ve seen quite a few recipes recently with lentils in, so I must try some out. As much as I like warm (not hot!) sunny summer days, I do love autumn and the cosiness of the cooler evenings 🙂

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  5. I’ve been catching up with your posts after several busy days here. Having read about your account of the dog incident, I do want to assure you that the imbecile you dealt with is not the usual dog owner. He obviously had another agenda (i.e. make other lives unpleasant) and was using his unruly dogs as his weapon. Clearly, a little mentally disturbed himself. I’m so sorry that your family had to endure this lout and his pack. Our dog is not allowed off lead except in our fenced backyard or in fenced dog parks. But even when on lead, he does not try to approach anyone without permission and when he sees small children, he immediately assumes the down position–his tail wagging–friendly, not threatening. Never barks. Children always ask to pet him and he stays very quiet while they do. He was a rescue dog–a gentle soul–but even so, the first thing we did when we got him was to take him to training class. Exactly what any responsible dog owner should do.

    As for the rest, I am glad the car and washer repairs were not as expensive as they might have been and that you have had a few days to get household things under control. A sense of order in the house can be a balm when the rest of your life feels out of control. DP did a quick (though I’m sure it didn’t feel quick to him) and fantastic job clearing the soon-to-be pantry room. Here’s hoping other things in your life may be sorted out as well. Good luck with the car boot sale.

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    1. It is a shame about the dog incident – it has left me just as scarred as if they had bit me physically. I do know though that most dog owners are very responsible with their dogs.
      I am hoping the pantry will be well on its way by the time we go to the cottage.

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  6. I’m pleased you had a satisfactorily productive day. Especially, as you’ve been so busy lately giving your time to others. I spent a couple of hours on my finances this morning too, with it being the month end. I’ve decided to track our expenditure over the yea,r which I haven’t done for a while now. Just out of interest and not in too much detail.

    This afternoon OH and I are going to dismantle the falling down greenhouse and re-site our compost bins. I’m looking forward to freeing up more space at the end of the garden. I hope you get more things done today. Your pantry is coming along, which must be very exciting. I look forward to a post about your car boot sale.

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  7. I can imagine your joy at having a line full of towels blowing in the breeze and it must be a relief to have your washing machine working again.
    I disagree with you, your meal looks delicious and I will be checking out the recipe you mentioned. X

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  8. Lovely to discover your blog, especially on a day when I’m not feeling well and am confined to the sofa! The one positive is having time to have a good read back through your posts. I’m a former blogger turned to Instagram – and feeling the urge to blog again. I love a good blog read, and there are fewer and fewer bloggers now. Thinking I will revive my Slow Growing in Scotland blog now that I’m reviving a garden in the north east (I was in Edinburgh).
    On money saving tips – I don’t know if you’ve come across this, but I do all my magazine and newspaper reading for free on the Press Reader app. You sign up to it through your local public library and it’s amazing. It has magazines and newspapers from all over the world, and I use it to keep up my French as well. Just this week I’ve been enjoying the October Country Living magazine.
    So glad to have ‘met’ you! Linda

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    1. Hi Linda and thank you for your kind words – I am not sure my rambling blog will make you feel any better today though! It is lovely to discover another Scottish blog and I do hope you take blogging up again though I find it a bit of a challenge at busy periods to read all my favourites. Since leaving work I have done a lot more in the garden this year. As you might have noticed our time is split between Yorkshire and the Mull of Galloway for the moment. Thanks for the tip on the magazines – I will look into it and hope to have more conversations with you and lots of gardening tips!

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