Tag Archives: home

Just musing, nature

My new daily schedule…

12 Comments

Three weeks into retirement and I’ve settled into it nicely thank you very much! My days have naturally evolved a schedule of their own which I’m feeling pretty pleased with. I was beginning to panic a little before the big R date what with all the plans and projects I had in the pipeline. Some time during the last 3 weeks I gave the pipe a bit of a flush and have been a whole lot more relaxed since then ( no metaphors intented there!)

So how do I fill my days? I get up when I please which is usually fairly early – but how nice it is to occaissonaly sleep in without any pangs of guilt at all that wasted time. I shower, breakfast and do a spot of spiritual contemplation to start the day. Next comes a quick check on Etsy and followup on any commission queries. Now The Writer gets some time and we usually head off for a morning walk along the beachside walking track at Blackman’s Bay. The water views are changeable but always beautiful . There’s a bit of an incline both ends of the walk – after 3 weeks l can already  climb the cliff path faster.

12354

 

Home for a morning paint, or a sewing session and then lunch by the pool at noon. I do some more work in the studio till 2’ish and then it’s a swim and a read in the deck chair. This is when I catch up on my art books- just choosing one at random and dipping into it can trigger off some new ideas.

Abstract gift tags

At 3pm  I head inside and back to the studio for another session. The Writer and I share the cooking so if he’s on chef duty I’ll work through till dinner. The evening is family time , playing a board game, reading, watching a movie or catching up on computer based stuff.

The most wonderful thing about this evolved routine is it’s not really a schedule! If my niece needs a hand I can head off to help her, if I want to visit my Mum there’s no reason not to , if my sister drops by we can swim and chat for an hour without me thinking of all the things I should be doing and if I want to spend an hour leafing through a cook book that’s just what I do. There’s time for some gardening, a visit to my local art shop or a trip to the recycle centre. Of course somewhere in between all this good stuff I do a bit of housework and the odd spot of grocery shopping but that’s just a great counterpoint to emphasise the absolute joy of my daily pleasures.

The best part is that I’ve reclaimed art as a leisurely pursuit instead of something to be squeezed and squashed in between my working life and my family time!

 

Just musing

First week of retirement.

7 Comments

It’s been a busy week! I’ve kicked off retirement with a few projects which has The Writer a bit worried- he thinks it’s just going to be one project after another and maybe he’d better go out and find a job again to keep out of my way! I had planned to start gently but I’m so used to squeezing the maximum productivity from my spare hours that I’ve just gone a bit beserk.

Monday started nice and gently with a trip to drop off my pension claim forms ( I’m now a pensioner!) and then down to Blackman’s Bay for a spot of snorkeling. It was a sparkling day and it was only enhanced by the thought of all those other mugs in their stuffy offices whilst I breathed the salty ozone and soaked up the sun on the hot rocks after swimming in the seaweed beds amongst the fishes. Just how retirement should be!14838713768160

Abstract ink cards
Abstract gift tags

I followed that with some card making using a sheet of ink abstract doodlings and felt pretty pleased with my day.

Tuesday I did a BIG grocery shop to stock up the pantry after two years of living on whatever The Writer thought we might need that week. When I got home I couldn’t stop myself from rearranging the pantry which inevitably led to an all out assault on the kitchen cupboards . The IT Geek caught me at it and wanted to know how long it was going to take since he wanted to make lunch – I gaily replied – “about half an hour”. He laughed derisivly and grabbed an apple to sustain himself. It was a sound move as I finally wiped down the last shelf three hours later.  All this necessitated a guided tour of the kitchen for the rest of the household as I managed to reshelf and redraw every single item by the time I was done! The IT Geek could sense I was in an organising mood so cashed in by getting me to help him put together a flatpack wardrobe and then get rid of his old one.

Wednesday I looked at the old wardrobe still sitting in the middle of the lounge room and decided it was too heavy to move over the paddock to the storage shed . What to do with it? I pondered on the fate of the wardrobe while spending the morning helping my niece clean her house (she’s in the middle of house moving ). Got home around 2’ish grabbed a sandwich in one hand and the circular saw in the other and headed outside to repurpose the wardrobe as a customised entertainment unit for the IT Geek who has every game machine from his first Nintendo up to the latest PS4 and has run out of space in his bedroom. Around 8 pm I dusted off the sawdust, packed away the tools and crawled to the shower! Dinner at 9pm.

Thursday I painted the unit – which you will not see a photo of as it is not a thing of  beauty despite it’s absolute versatility with 10 moveable shelves and a clever little gap I built in for all the cables to easily connect to the TV. Then off for a walk with The Writer . After that it was a good 2 hours as dusting and cable assistant to the IT Geek as he unloade the old shelves of all his gaming equipment and reloaded the new unit which looks pretty great. Then I had to find a home for his old glass shelving unit – you haven’t seen my house so just imagine a second hand shop that’s outgrown it’s accommodation. There’s not a spare inch now both sons are home again so it requires a lot of ingenuity to fit another bit of furniture in – but the thought of hauling the darned thing across to the Potter’s shed to join all the other rejected furniture was just too daunting and I started moving potplants and whatnots until I had a space in the lounge room. The Writer could be heard muttering in the background  but I just ignored him! Mission accomplished I finally started in on a large painting I need to finish by Saturday morning. Just couldn’t settle on the subject so had been procrastinating all week hence the many projects. Anyway this is what it looks like so far – a lot more to do tomorrow!

14842250523980

Just musing, Photography 101, Uncategorized

Home – Photography 101

6 Comments

The BookshelfHome is family and this family bookcase tells the story of those who live in my home. Our individual and collective interests sit side by side on the simple white shelves.

On the top shelf  lie the heavy tomes of architecture – an absorbing passion of the Writer. 

The next shelf holds art catalogues, travel stories and some language dictionaries – the Writer and I travel every year, love seeing great art and have taught ourselves some French and Italian. The Writer says he’s speaks 4 languages, English, French, Italian and fluent gibberish!

In the corner is the little ceramic cat that our then 12 year old son choose as a souvenir in France where he befriended many a cat – enticing them into our holiday homes with scraps of ham and saucers of milk. At 20 he rescued a kitten that had been dumped and she’s become a loved family member.

Then there’s the shelf with the speakers – our home is filled with music from the moment the Writer gets up to the moment he goes to bed. We have R & B, classic, baroque, rock and jazz – and a library of 4000+ CDs to choose from. He carefully curates a sound track for all our holidays and particular songs are irrevocably linked to certain places and bring back sharp and clear memories every time I hear them.

Then there are the family photos of parents and grandparents no longer with us – their memories cherished, stories told and lives remembered.

Also a  few simple ornaments that bring back memories of far away destinations.

Stashed on the bottom shelf is a collection of classic reads enjoyed by us all- Wodehouse and Christie. Some of these have been read and reread over the years. We’ve spent many a night chuckling over a Bertie and Jeeves video or guessing “who dunnit”as we watched Poirot unfold the clues.

A few tubes of paint hint at my passion for painting.

A trio of games are the flow over from a huge stash of boardgames  which are the glue that bonds our family together in difficult times, when we need to destress or to celebrate someones achievments. The eldest son owns many of these – he eschews spending money on frivolities but feels games are a basic necessity of life.

So there you have it – my home on the shelves of a bookcase!