Thinking…. | 1000 Fields of Roses

Here For…

Just taking a break from a strenuous programme of watching YouTube and episodes of Death In Paradise 😆
Seriously…I’ve had a good day of catching up with transcribing notes, and revisiting the concepts from the lessons they came from. It’s taking time, but is also inspiring.
I’ve been thinking about the “faces” we wear, and the importance of finding why we are here, in this life, in this place. I was watching a cover of a song from Barbie (the recent movie) – the original is hauntingly lovely/sad, but I thought I’d share this one. If you haven’t seen the movie, there’s a theme here of authenticity – of being “real”.

We all spend some amount of time finding out what we’re made for. Some work it out while they’re still young. Some never get there.
I think most of us get there at some point…but sometimes, when things change – we’re off again, trying to find our place in the world, and our people. It’s the question everyone’s asking, even if they don’t know it.

I’ve never been big on makeup.
There was a brief time in my life where I was an Avon lady. I had a lot of samples, and tried all of them out. It never looked quite right, and I’ve always hated the feel of it on my face. I found a more natural range, which felt quite nice, but still looked odd to me. In the end, I couldn’t really be bothered…my face is mine, and it’s good enough for me 🙂
There are a lot of boxes in the world – ones that people are supposed to fit into, and then stay in forever. By the time we’re in school, and often before, we’ve been put in a box somewhere. It’s generally one we haven’t chosen, and it’s hard to get out.
I don’t feel like I’ve fitted in any of the boxes I’ve seen. Maybe there’s room to make a box? One with open doors and transparent sides…flowers and colours and perfumes and songs!
After all my years, I’m happy with myself. Not perfect, of course. Still a weirdo to other people. But “me”, as much as me can be. I still have a lot to learn and grow into – that’s a lifelong thing, really – but I’m learning what I’m here for.
I hope you are too.

And here’s another song, for when people tell you you “can’t”.

Find your music.
I know it’s there.
❤

Published in:

on March 9, 2024 at 11:10 pm Leave a Comment
Tags: Lindsey Stirling, The Hound + The Fox

A Couple Of Cacti And A Clear Path

We’ve had a tree by the front steps since we’ve been here.
It was quite majestic, towering against the front of the house, but partly blocking the concrete path.
It was also full of toxic sap. If you believe the online reviews, it also had a tendency to fight back when you break the branches. As it was right there by the steps (and front door) we’d already had a couple of people reach out to touch it when they visited.
It’s gone now, and the area seems a lot bigger. The little ex-garden under the steps will need sorting out, but we now have a path that we can use to get to the car when it’s raining, rather than trying not to get drenched by wet grass.

I hadn’t realised what was there, hidden and waiting. I could see the hanging basket and the concrete(?) birdbath/succulent planter, which both need to be replanted. But there are also two little potted cacti, just waiting to be brought back into the light!

And a little metal guardian 🙂

My “life” path for this year seems to be getting clearer as well.
There are still some things to be decided, and organised, but I’m feeling more optimistic.
And to keep the good mood going, I’ll have another listen to this cheerfulness…

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on March 2, 2024 at 10:05 pm Leave a Comment
Tags: Home Free

Sleeping In

Well, it’s been the weather for it…
There seem to be signs of the autumn to come (some nice rain here), but how can it still be so muggy, even though the temperature’s dropped?
It’s been a week of fatigue – not sure why – but I still feel like I should be doing something. Even when my body’s saying, “Please don’t!” But I did have a day of reading today, and didn’t even feel guilty 🙂
The week started off with a scan. Just a check up sort of thing, but the department I had to go to is now in the process of packing up to move, and the only available appointment was a few hours after I phoned.
It was a nuclear scan, so I had to breathe in argon gas, and get some other radioactive tracer injected.

Sadly, I have yet to exhibit any superpowers.

On the plus side, I haven’t been called in by the doctor, so everything seems to be good.
I had to stretch my arms above my head to keep them out of the way of the camera thingy (it rotates around the bed), so that caused aches in more places than I would have expected…
The machine reminded me of the shuttlecraft from the original Star Trek.

You can just see a lifting trolley thingy at the back there. Somehow, I don’t think it would be much use with the scanner!

Today started with an involuntary sleep in. Probably the grey raininess, but I didn’t realise how late it was.
A friend came over to help my Babe cut down the firestick tree by the front steps. If you’ve visited us in this house, you can now be reassured of safety from the possible threat of toxic sap. Or tripping over the branches that were growing through the steps.

I’m content right now, with the day, and my part in it.
Maybe sleep will be earlier, and then the waking…
the rain will come, or it will disappear.
And the roses will die –
but not before capturing the last of the raindrops.

And if you need to feel a sort of nostalgic sadness to match the rain, here’s a song I’ve been listening to this week…

❤

Published in:

on February 24, 2024 at 11:20 pm Leave a Comment
Tags: julie fowlis, Runrig

An Angel On My Side(Table)

It’s so good to be able to enjoy a day without overheating!
I’ve still had the fan on, but today has felt like a taste of…not quite winter. Maybe autumn? My toes are a little bit chilly at the moment 🙂
This week coming, I start my course for the year. I’ve been writing out notes from the last year I was on the course (2021), and trying to keep my hand from cramping up.
Although I wrote up the majority of my notes at the time, there are still a lot to go. It’s easy to feel a bit guilty for leaving them for so long, but I’m also finding that I’m getting more out of them with the gap than I might have got at the time. It’s at least been quite interesting, and ignited my curiosity for what’s to come in the year ahead.

The weather has made my garden a bit straggly. I’ve left the flowers where they are, for the most part, but still get the nice ones inside where I can appreciate them.

It won’t be long before they’re too bedraggled to display, I think.

As for that angel in the title…
My Babe found a little angel in a vintage shop that he thought I might like.
It wasn’t even a birthday present – just a “me” present ❤
Here she is!

Not exactly on my side table – more my chest of drawers 😀
She’ll eventually go to the glass display case downstairs, but I’ll enjoy her up here for a while.
She’s the Angel of Freedom.
Something to look forward to this year!

(and just in case you need to smile…)

Published in:

on February 10, 2024 at 10:05 pm Leave a Comment
Tags: Arimura Taishi, Blue HamHam

Searching Out Sparkles

I’ll be 55 tomorrow.
My first presents came courtesy of a lovely friend ❤

A hedgehog!
(It says it’s a raccoon, but I see a hedgehog 🙂 )

It came wrapped in a scarf. It’s been a bit hot to wear scarves, so I’ve draped it over my chair so I can just look at it…

Then my Mum gave me some things (and books…)

A bracelet (I got the necklace today).

Two wooden vases (silky oak and camphor wood), with feathers to display in them.

In other years I’ve spent my birthday combing through the charity shops for shiny, sparkly, colourful things. And books, of course. I like to go further afield, which has often meant closer to Brisbane.
This year I haven’t felt up to much in the way of travel, but I still wanted to go somewhere different.
So – off we went this morning to Rosewood, where I had a good look around.
I found books, and some clothing. And some pretty things.

Behold – the sparkles! 🙂

A shiny heart!

Just a reminder…

A couple of pots, and a word for the year.

A mug to take if I travel to Hobbiton.

Some more “indoor flowers”, and a use for the lustre pot in the earlier photo (I already had the incense sticks).

Shiny!

I don’t suppose I’ll feel much different tomorrow morning.
But I know there’s always room for sparkles!

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Thinking....

on February 3, 2024 at 10:43 pm Leave a Comment
Tags: birthday

Catching The Heat

What a week!
Monday was so hot, I felt like I might spontaneously combust. I eventually put the air conditioner on, but first tried to cool down with an ice pack. It worked OK for a while, but you know it’s hot when the ice cubes in your ice pack feel like they’re simmering on the way to boiling…
Thankfully, it’s been cooler on other days, although still not comfortable from time to time.
My week has been up and down in other ways as well…
Another visit to the government-department-which-shall-not-be named, after a highly frustrating appointment at an affiliated department, where the “help” seems to come in the form of saying they can’t help with questions, while also maintaining that they have answered those questions. I did eventually find a human (two, actually!) who took me through the process I should be following now, so that helped a lot.
I feel like I have more direction (I tend to need things explained to me in steps to take), although I have also come out of this week feeling a fair bit older.

What’s been good?
I have a new bedside table 🙂
It’s colourful, and large enough to hold all sorts of things.

…with lovely, although mismatched, drawer handles.

The drawers stick a bit, but I think I’m getting used to them.

With the heat the way it’s been, my roses have looked a bit sad.
I have lots of different flowers inside, though.

🙂
It’s Australia Day here, although we don’t tend to do much different in our house.
I’m not going to stray into controversy in this post.
Except to say – I think it’s quite possible to want to “change the day” and still be Australian.
And also, to listen to this song.

Published in:

on January 26, 2024 at 11:30 pm Leave a Comment
Tags: Australia, The Seekers

Making Time

The world keeps spinning, but sometimes it seems the spin is faster with every year…
As I look round at what’s happening in various corners of the globe, it brings the thought that there is only so much time in a life, and we all get to decide how to use it wisely.
Make time for the small things…
Maybe they’ll all add up to become the important things?

I don’t yet know how my time will go this year – there are still things to find out, and decisions to be made.
I can do some small things in the meantime!
This project has been on the backburner for a while. Our clock has been with us for nearly 30 years (it was a wedding present) and has travelled without breakage, or even losing time. Not long after we moved to this house, it fell off the shelf it was on. I didn’t even know that there was glass over the dial and pendulum! Thankfully, the large glass circle over the dial survived, but the pendulum glass smashed beyond repair.
I put it all aside for a bit, had a cry, and tried to work out how to fix it. I think it took so long because I was trying to make it the same as it was.
Some things can’t be fixed. But you can still make the best of what’s left!
Not only was the glass smashed, but the dial face was old and crumbling.
I tried to glue it down.
I tried to paint over the cracks.
That just made it look worse.

And so…

I made a new clock face (or, at least, downloaded one 🙂 ), and repurposed an old frame insert in place of the pendulum (which hadn’t worked for a while anyway).
It’s not perfect.
The glue buckled the paper a bit, and I think it’s slightly off centre. We still have to stick the plastic cover down. It works, though!

Time.
Unless I live to be 110 or older, I’m at least halfway or more through my life.
Time –
to use the days wisely,
cherish the important things,
and remember to be grateful for the years still left.
❤

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Thinking....

on January 18, 2024 at 10:14 pm Leave a Comment

Booking It

Just under two weeks into the new year, and it feels like forever.
We’re galloping on into the year, with all its unknowns…my year ahead will have changes, although I’m not yet sure what they’ll be. This week has been odd – frustrating, but interspersed with strange flashes of hope. I have tussled with the government-department-which-shall-not-be named (not my favourite part of the week), so routines will need to be re-examined.
But, in the midst of that I have discovered not one, but two book sales in my area.
The Salvos down the road is selling all books for $1 or under.
How could I resist!

I wonder if I’ll enjoy this? 😆

I don’t tend to go with big coffee table type books much, but I like the National Geographic photos.

Yes. Yes, it does. 🙂

Today I also came across a $5 to fill a bag with books deal in our local Lifeline.
I may possibly need new bookcases.

My reading needs are taken care of for a bit, and there are delicious possibilities ahead!
Also, a lovely floral sash for my bunny 🙂

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Thinking....

on January 13, 2024 at 10:57 pm Leave a Comment
Tags: Lifeline, Salvos

Time For Tea

There’s always time for tea!

Here we are – coming up to the end of the first week of 2024.
If the week between Christmas and New Year feels like all the engines are off, the first week of January can feel like the gears are just cranking up, broadcasting complaints, and getting ready to launch creakily into the unknown.
Not quite nothing happening.
Just not quite sure what’s happening!

I’ve taken down the Christmas decorations, and started a bit of a plan around drawing and writing throughout the year. Nothing spectacular, but probably more sustainable than a big New Year resolution 🙂 .
I wasn’t too well at the beginning of the week, but getting better now. It helped me see how easy it is to be recuperating in this house – comfortable, able to stay cool fairly easily, and all the essential living areas are on one level and easy to get to.
I’ve still managed to do washing and dishes. You don’t realise how lovely it is to be able to get things clean until you have random times in your life when you can’t manage cleaning…
The roses are still taking their place inside, joined now by geraniums.

With a bonus dragonfly!

The space left after packing away Christmas decorations seemed just right to hold my collection of teapots, cups and plates. They’ll probably need a wash before I use them – not sure what will happen with the dust. Nice teasets need to be seen, though 🙂 .

Who knows what’s ahead as we swing into 2024?
At least we can remember to stop sometimes for a cup of tea.
❤

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Thinking....

on January 6, 2024 at 9:22 pm Comments (2)

All That (And A Bowl Of Cherries)

It’s hard to believe that it’s New Year’s Eve tomorrow.
It’s just as hard to believe that Christmas Day was less than a week ago!

We’ve had the lights on a few times this week.

Reindeer flying around the world!

This Christmas we decided to hold back on the cakes and bikkies. I still had some chocolates, but I think my favourite indulgence was a bag of cherries. Some meals this week have just consisted of a bowl of cherries, with a bit of cream. Yum!
It was cheaper to get the chocolates than the cherries, though…

I’ve been out and about for a couple of weeks – getting to church a few weeks running, going to the Rocklea Markets, even visiting friends or having friends over 🙂

The view from the car window on the way home from our friends’ place.
It’s not often these days that I see the sunset from outside the house!
Unfortunately, this gadding about has come with a bit of a crash…I’ve had a cough thingy the last few days, so haven’t been up to much. Caught up on the washing, though, on the first hot sunny day this week. Otherwise – books and YouTube 😀

There have been storms here, although we haven’t had the damage that other places have had. Some spectacular lightning out the back…

…which is pretty hard to capture on the phone.

My roses are still blooming, although the storms have beaten them about a bit. I’ve left them on the bushes up until now, but decided to enjoy them more inside and save them from the weather.