Well it has been some time since I last blogged. Time just seemed to get away from me and I did have a bit of pandemic fatigue as I am sure you have or are experiencing as well. The fatigue that just makes you want to take to bed and hibernate it away. But must needs we have to carry on with the business and busyness of living. For me that is a great deal of the mundane and simple. Being alone with family all at such distance and now retired, my days are simple and slow. I do like slow sweet simple days however. But I do miss my children and grands dearly!

I have also been struggling with family health matters. My big brother was just put into hospice care. I shared some time back about the gene that 3 of my siblings have that causes amyloidosis, his was the worst case and is coming to its end. I did take a trip over to see him in spite of the Covid dragon blowing fire all about. I am so glad I did. There is so much that could be said about this, but the words just escape me as my heart feels the feelings.

My days are rather routine. I have my sweet rituals that add meaning; morning prayers, daily meditation, and lovely long walks. The doggies and I are now up to 3.5 to 3.7 miles daily. I remember back to the days when we were lucky to get in 2. I set a goal of 60 miles a month and blew past it in January. It is a bit more of a challenge to walk in the suburbs as the same ole same ole streets can get a bit tiring. Luckily we have so many open green spaces here. Those are my daily soul medicine as I need nature to thrive! However the rain can often turn them into bogs and I ended up slogging home one day after wandering into a boggy area and treading up to my ankles to get back out. That was a mess, but I had to laugh at myself for being so silly as to enter a boggy area after days of heavy rain.

I did chance upon a new organizer for 2021. An ad popped up on my IG for this lovely Dragontree planner. It was discounted 50% as the new year had passed. I debated about it for a week, but I just love a new journal and planner and finally took the bait. I am glad I did as I love it. It is nice and large and spiral bound. It is not a journal, but a planner. I enjoy filling it out daily as I plot and plan what I shall do at the end of this pandemic or when (if ever) I get a vaccine so I can resume travel. Isn’t the color of this planner just dreamy? I do love periwinkle!

I have since enjoyed exploring the Dragontree Apothecary site https://dragontreeapothecary.com It is a Portland based company and has a treasure trove of wonderful offerings. I have enjoyed a guided imagery offering and now use their Ayurveda Kapha oil blend. They offer an excellent video on full body self massage that is a perfect addition to my self care routine.

Do your communities have the facebook buy nothing groups? They are such a wonderful idea. I have been able to clear out so much stuff and find homes where it is needed or used through that group. I have also found things I need as well. When someone posted this set of books, I threw my name in and was the lucky recipient. What a fun old set of novels. They are the story of a young married couple and just easy pleasant reads, just what is needed right now. I love discovering a new author and book series, although these were written in the late 20s to 40s. Books of that era are always my favorites. I had to then pull my favorite Christopher Morley’s off the shelf and fall into the lovely stories of Parnassus on Wheels and The Haunted Bookstore. They were as delightful as the first time I read them! This was followed by one of my favorites, however more modern, The Shell Seekers by Rosamunde Pilcher.

Other favorite activities have been jigsaw puzzles and knitting. I cast on another sweater for sweet little Mimi, a simple hooded cardigan. I am making it plenty big so it will fit her next fall. I finished up one of a pair of socks, I always have a pair of socks on the needles as I love the mindlessness of sock knitting, and I cast on a sampler baby blanket for the newest grand due in the summer. I am using an acrylic wool blend for the blanket as it needs to be easy care and washable. The cardigan is a pure wool and with proper care will last for generations.

As I like to watch a bit of TV while knitting, I look around for a new British series and fell upon Hattie Winthrop Detective. It is delightful. What is not to love about a woman of a certain age (my current age) determining to open up a detective agency and solving the most intriguing crimes across Britain. Delightful indeed! That and my favorite you tube channels give me a lot of enjoyable knitting time. I just marvel at the you tube variety. I have learned so much about so many things through watching these video blogs. I have my favorites who I never miss and chance upon new ones quite often.

One new thing I chanced upon in my you tube browsing is Miranda Esmonde-White and Essentrics workouts. Although this has been on PBS for years, I was never aware that it existed. Now it is my daily workout routine. I find that I do feel more fluid, less achy, and more flexible. It seems to be a mix of yoga, pilates, and dance. I was doing a simply daily kettlebell exercise, but I find this much more to my liking!

Today everything is thick with ice. Snow was the forecast, but we got freezing rain instead and the temperature at midday has still not risen above freezing. It is days like this that I am grateful to be retired and able to just cozy up at home with nowhere to go. So I am curled up in front of the fire, cuppa at hand, and knitting on my lap. This is indeed, as my grandma used to say, the life of Riley!

Stay warm and stay safe!

Patricia