Julia Is Struggling!

There, I’ve said it. I’ve owned up to you all. Things have got on top of me and at this particular moment I’m not sure how to get out of it.

Let me explain a little. As you know I am retired but you also know that I found it very difficult, particularly at first. Gradually over the first year I began to take an interest in things & now have two blogs that run a couple of weekly challenges, I’m a Governor at two schools and over the past month have been trying to set up a data base of email contacts for an Association of Governors.

Result?

Too much taken on!!

So what’s the problem I hear you ask? Ease up or give some of it up I hear you cry. Well, that’s another problem! I feel committed to it all and have those blasted demons that continually chatter in my head telling me that I must carry on. As usual, in these situations, I have ground to a bit of a halt. I say ‘bit of’ because I’m still doing stuff and I shall be at Cybermummy on Saturday but I need to slow down.

I need to get back some balance that will let me read or do my jigsaw or take some exercise without feeling that it is wasted time or time that should be spent in front of a PC or laptop. I need to remind myself that I am retired, no-one is paying me for this and most of the time no-one will worry if I stop. I need to remember that this is my life and providing I don’t harm anyone, I can please myself. I’ve earned it and need no-one’s permission to have a day off.

So Dear Reader, I may be absent for a little while. I hope that you will still be here when I get back. It won’t be for long – maybe only a few days but I wanted to keep you in the loop because you are all very special to me!

So, in the spirit of cutting back this post is one for three!

I’m posting this on the Gallery over at Sticky Fingers for the theme ‘Three Words’

I’m also posting it on Jenny Matlock’s Alphabe-Thursday because the letter this week is ‘J’.

Finally, I’m posting this on Josie’s Writing Workshop as I’m hoping this picture will soon be an example of my newly found state! !

Isn’t life strange?

Just over 2 years ago when I retired from headship, I gave a huge sigh of relief. Not for stopping a job that had been my passion for over 13 years; not for leaving behind all those little sponges that made upon the learning community of the school. The relief was from the end of the stress of spinning plates on very wobbly sticks!

Whether it was finance, health & safety, safeguarding, Ofsted, staff development or the curriculum, they all seemed to need my attention 24/7.

 So, I went off into the sunset with a bit of a plan. I would do some consultancy which would enable me to sharing the knowledge I had acquired, much of it at a cost to the taxpayer. I would get fit using our treadmill regularly. I would make a start reading all those classics that I had always promised myself I would read & of course I would do lunch(& coffee & afternoon tea!) with great panache!

Stock Taking!

As many of you know, I suffer from anxiety. It is under control most of the time but occasionally it creeps into everyday life. This week over at Sleep is for the Weak, one of the prompts for the writing workshop is ‘Taking Stock’. When I saw it I thought –‘Now that’s a good one. I could do with taking stock.’ Then I realised that when the demons

Dear Mum…..

This is my entry for Kat’s Writing Workshop at Mamas Losing it.  I have chosen prompt 1   ‘Dear Mommy and/or Daddy…(write a letter to yourself from one of your children)’.Do pop over & read the other entries!

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Dear Mum,

Thanks for all those photos you gave us. Gosh they go right through my childhood don’t they? Carly is going to do something fabulous with them for the wedding but you’ll ge the em back of course!

The Eyes have it!

This is my first foray into the Writing Workshop organised by Kat at Mama Losing It!. I have chosen prompt  ‘The most unbelievable blue eyes you’ve ever seen…’ When you’ve read mine, pop over & read the others!

‘Here’s looking at you kid’……This saying hasn’t really got anything to do with the content of this post as it doesn’t concern Humphrey Bogart but it seemed appropriate somehow! When I read that the prompt I thought of the Magnificent Three! In reverse order:-

Number Three –ole Blue Eyes himself – Frank Sinatra

Whether he is of your era for drooling you have to admit he had a fine set of vocal chords. He was obviously quite successful on the womanising front as well!

Number Two – the sauce making genius – Paul Newman

He was often the one paired  with Robert Redford (the dark haired-brown eyed one) & they prompted a similar choice to ‘Do you like the Beatles or the Rolling Stones?’ For me, the blue eyes always won!

However, my top blue eyed star prize goes to *drum roll & trumpet sounds*

Number One – the motorcycling star of The Great Escape – Steve McQueen!

I once met someone who had met him! I was in awe. Rather like that very old song my granny taught me about dancing with the man who had danced with the girl who had danced with the Prince of Wales or some such lineage!

I just think he is (yes I know he left us a long time ago but still lives on in films) delicious! I could drown in those eyes & when the voice is added….! *Swoons*

The fact that I & my wonderful DS have blue eyes has nothing to do with these choices! No honestly! Who would you choose for this particular accolade? Which colour do you go for?

Images courtesty of Google

The Glorious Twelfth!

School was finished for the summer. It had been a hard & difficult year but nothing like the impossible last term. Time was needed. Time to stop & look at my life & where I was. When I looked it was at a second failed marriage. It had just petered out. We didn’t argue just occupied the same space until I could move out.