The Ying-Yang of Reality

It’s been a twenty four hours indeed. Yesterday, dear readers I was forgotten! FORGOTTEN!! Moi, the indignity.  BFF usually calls me as she walks home from work everyday. Yesterday circumstances meant she went home at lunchtime, but come 4pm no message so I readied myself, tv muted, phone in hand, and waited.  Hmmmm, 4:15 no call, perhaps she’s chit chatting with her boss (not unusual).  Hmmm, 4:30 no call, perhaps she’s calling after getting her prescription. Hmmm, 4:40 no call, perhaps her phone died.  I sent a message, immediately my phone starts ringing “I forgot about you”. Charming! Lol.

Today my niece and great neice popped in for lunch and to help with a chore or two (at above inflation living wage pocket money rates too!) and was bestowed the honour of an original piece of artwork.  We didn’t spend long discussing the modernist take on the abstract theme of the piece, very much leaving it to the fluid thoughts of the viewer.  It could be a statement on climate change and the rising of the blue waves, or it might be Rizzie the cat lounging in the sunshine.  Either way I am rather chuffed to be considered worthy of such thought.

Life – never a smooth road, keeps one in one’s place.

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February

It began so positively, but best laid plans and best meant intentions so often do.  After waking up I usually lazy and cogitate my plans for the day – up & dress, make coffee & lunch, plant self at desk and tick things off the various to-do lists, shuffle to sofa, fiddle & rest before going to make dinner & cook freezer foods. Simples, right?

So, initially things went as intended, got to desk with coffee and lunch, began back up procedure for computer (not on to-do list but needed), began sorting through piled detritus stuffed through the door over the past few days (not on list).

Phone rings ….. It’s on the sofa, do I wheel across and grab it or leave it, best get it … BFF needed distracting while she walked home from the City (about 1.5miles) while carrying a 4ft6 stuffed swan resplendent in gold crown and punk tutu (the swan, not BFF).  Sandwiches munched and coffee drunk while chatting.

Right, back to it. Source a few photos for new FaceBook album on group I administrate. Hmm, need to crop, tweek and © mark them, but hey it’s a job on the list 👍🏼. Then wheeling self about to get recycling into waste paper basket (not on list). Started business banking log in (ahha, that is on the list) but it’s been so long it errored out on me so had to restart all over again which means waiting for authorisation codes to come in the post (add follow up to list).  Sort through post waiting to be dealt with, add two things to to-do list.

By now I’ve been at the desk just over two hours, which means hips need resting on sofa for a while before I can confidently get up stood ….. this ends today’s productivity time. Successfully ticked off one thing, postponed one thing and added two more. 

Oh and I’ve written a blog (not on the list)

*sigh*

 

Reporting Menacing Phish

Well, it’s not exactly what I had planned for my afternoon.  Firstly, I am fine, these things don’t bother me.

Today I was intending to do a spot of cyber housework (it’s easier than off screen house work). I logged into the server and headed to the emails, a mixed bunch of fan query, fan fawning and spam, but there was one that caught attention.  I knew it was phishing for personal details, financial fraud, general trickery but it was the manner and topic that was a little different.  It threatened to release to all my contacts a video of me that was sexually explicit, as well as pornographic images and spread rumour of deviancy with children unless I sent x-thousand via Bitcoin to a specified account.  The hacker generously explained how the deadline could be extended and even bragged about being able to hide his identity, seek sanctuary from all laws because they were not in my country, and that any ‘federal’ involvement would mean the stuff would be circulated immediately.

As this particular webmail client is tricky to manage, junk wise, I get regular emails from phishing fake accounts trying to get me to click a link, rearrange courier delivery, download court non-payment papers, etc.  Apart from being quite a savvy person, I know these are scams as the email address isn’t really used for anything other than web site business, so they get deleted and a new junk filter created to redirect others.

However, the particularly articulate, menacing, intimidating language of this email made me stop and think, hmmm I can fully see why the more nervy would fall for this, panic and stress over this, maybe send funds, even if they are completely innocent of all allegations (mud sticks and all that), so I decided to file a report with the Cyber Crimes people.  It was very straight forward, we shall see what occurs (if anything).

Well, well, hmm, there ya go!

 

Proper Busy Hooker

Back in May 2017 (😱 yes I know, that long ago) I blogged about embarking on a new crochet project, the stitching of cat blankets for Cats Protection (Project Cosy Cats).  I don’t stitch much in the summer as my hands are too hot to comfortably work the wool, so generally I stitch in cooler times, about an hour and half to two hours a day, two or three days a week, because doing too much can cause me to suffer cramp, or strain in my upper arms and shoulders, which impacts on my get-up-able-ness. 

The yarn has been in my stash bag and from time to time I’ve (or my great neice) has dibbed in to select a fresh ball for a new blanket.  Trying hard to find a different pattern for each blanket, although I am going to have to start doubling up.  Today I stock-taked/stock-took the blankets I have already completed and the yarn stash bag (although there is also a large shoe box of yarn I haven’t tackled, yet).  I have completed twelve blankets (pictured above), there is another needing edging (it needs a cotton blend of yarn, it’s an ideal excuse reason to visit the wool shop when my BFF comes to stay) and I have started another, that’s number 14.  Even so I’ve still yarn for another eight blankets, with what’s in the shoe box and the tail end scraps blanket, I’m about half way through my yarn.

WooHoo 🎊

I’ll have to contact Cats Protection to see if someone can come collect the done ones.

 

When boredom meets taste buds

I has the munchies, despite gorging on my favourite dinner………. So can someone go get, one, some, all the following, that be great….. 

1. Cheese on toast
2. Chocolate biscuits
3. Cornish pasty
4. KFC 
5. Hazelnuts 
6. Walnuts (thank you Kim, for planting that need)
7. Proper mug of tasty coffee
8. BFF’s left overs (she always has sumptuous tasty morsels)
9. Spag Bol
10. Red beans and rice
11. Jambalaya 
12. Roast pork, with veg and gravy
13. Thin crust pizza
14. Mulligatawny soup and rustic dunky bread 
15. Aero minty bubbles

*sigh*

 

January Jaggardness

I don’t like January, it is dark and grey, cold and dank. I don’t leave my dusty hovel, unless there is an absolute cannot be avoided need.  This year it feels like the morbid month began the day after boxing day and still hasn’t progressed past the first week and will drag interminably to its chilled bitter end.  Most January’s I feel like I’m waiting for the sn**, sn**, nope can’t say it, white rain, to fall, settle, freeze, melt, freeze, melt and bugger off.

Today is a typical day, I’ve not even opened the curtains.  Okay, part of that is being lazy, part is because it’s a Sunday and I didn’t begin my attempt at rising until after 12.30 (I was listening to the radio, mostly, but did doze through desert island discs).  By the time I got up-stood, been to the bathroom, then the kitchen to make lunch etc it was gone 1.30 and it would be dark by 3.30/4, hardly worth the muscle strain and ache.

That’s not to say stuff has not gotten done.  I’ve been working on my crochet, occasionally, I’ve grappled with the GDPR requirements on websites (thank you, piggin interfering EU), I’ve reconciled my finances and even remembered to pay the credit card bill.  I’ve got rather successful at playing cards and solved a few puzzles. 

There has been momentary respite, courtesy of my Great Niece and her rendition of ShotGun, Baby Shark, Twinkle Twinkle, Stick, and other pearls of wisdom.  She’s tall for her age and when she trots in wearing her nursery uniform she looks more like five than 3 years 5 months.

My erratic sleep pattern suffers too. I wake feeling more sleepy and weary than when I went to bed. I sit on the sofa feeling too alert to go to bed. If I manage a complete couple of hours unbroken sleep then it’s a rarity. 

Not sure what my next battle plan will be, it’s rather dependant on others and their availability.  Who knows I might even manage to conjure up a white blog or two (steady on).

Tis but the season, and shall pass…..

 

It’s just a Tuesday

I’m not someone who sees the New Year as a fresh beginning, there are those that do and are successful and enthused about the future, their refreshed goals and positive intentions, I wish them well.  New Year traditionally felt like waiting for the clock to strike midnight so I could go to bed.  When I moved out of home it was often the night I was early to bed, sometimes reading a Christmas gift book, or just trying my best to sleep.  Now with portable technology I’m watching something on an app and only the crescendo of fireworks and cacophony of ships horns beyond my window signals the midnight chime, followed later with numerous sirens as the over indulged injure themselves or cause trouble.

This festive season has been intentionally scaled back and quiet because of an off-line family situation that has cast quite the shadow, preoccupying our minds with uncertainty and a side of unknown fear.  Yet it has been pleasant to not be swamped by the stresses of Christmas cheer and so forth.  

While I was googling for an heading image, I was undecided between two, so here’s the other one.

 

Right, let’s shock the fingers and crochet a line or four, maybe conjure up a to-do list of projects for the next month, grapple with organising my usual (not using the word normal, don’t think anything about my world can be described as that).  Happy Tuesday, yes it is only Tuesday.