Thinking…. | 1000 Fields of Roses

Cyborg, Sleeping

At least, that was the plan.

Here is my morning coffee.

Lovely.
And much appreciated.

I was recommended for a sleep study recently, just to check some things.
I’d never had one before and as far as I knew they were done in a clinic where you stayed overnight, wired up and monitored.
These are the days of outsourcing – in other words – home testing! Yay!
I picked up a kit with leads, sticky dot things, and devices to read and store the data. Also – a manual to explain how to work everything.

I was on a Zoom call last night.
The whole rigmarole had to be set up and running for at least eight hours, and I thought I would have tons of time after the call to put it all together.
The call ran way past time…

I turned my camera off, pulled the headphones out so I could still hear the call, and attached wires to my face. No mirror to help the process, so I just had to “feel” where to attach it all.

Not impressed.

There are leads you can’t see. And I somehow managed to stick down more hair than I’d planned, which made the de-sticking this morning a bit more painful than I’d anticipated.

I slept surprisingly well.
Not at any length.
And of undetermined quality.
But I was more comfortable than I expected to be, and didn’t notice it too much.
Still – it’s done, and everything’s returned. I will get the results in a few weeks, apparently.

Until then, I will feel renewed appreciation for my disconnection from the Borg collective, and enjoy unencumbered sleep.

Published in:

on June 10, 2026 at 10:58 pm Leave a Comment
Tags: Borg, Sleep Study, star trek

Doughnut (Unexpected)

Had a waltz around town today, which is not my usual Friday.
We just wanted to get out of the house.
First – coffee. And tea 🙂
And another shadow snapshot to enjoy ❤

A bit of (thrift) shopping – added to my winter wardrobe.
A saunter around the shopping centre for some bits and pieces.
And a biscoff cronut for tomorrow!

I have been trialling gluten again, just to see how I go.
I haven’t shrivelled up in a corner, moaning…
but I do think it’s probably best (for me) to eat less gluten.
It’s just that bread (and cakes. and pastries) taste so good!
So my cronut is a bit of a last hurrah.
Except I didn’t realise it was “free cinnamon doughnut” day.
Hot – just cooked!
We had to have it straight away, half each, in the food court. Fresh, and sugary/cinnamony, and nearly too hot to hold.
Yum!

We got some fruit and veg on the way home.
It’s all about balance. 😀

Home, then, to books, and washing, and tidying away summer.

My garden seems to be handling the colder weather.

The rosemary is lovely.

And the succulents seem happy.

It’s a good day, really, when it includes coffee, books, and a random free doughnut.
🙂

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Thinking....

on June 5, 2026 at 9:38 pm Leave a Comment

Hold The Phone!

This post might be a bit grumbly.
Here’s a tiny duck to bring some cheer 🙂

I have been quite tired lately. Getting out and about – just wearing out more quickly.
It’s very annoying.

I’ve also had…too much phone.
Messages. Emails.
All good.
I might have to think through the answer until it’s just right.
But – doable.

I hate talking on the phone.
If it’s an expected call, especially one I have a vague “script” for, I can do it.
If I know the person, and/or the call is likely to be short, then I can manage.
(If you’ve called me and I haven’t answered, it’s most likely I haven’t heard the phone ring. But also possible that I’m staring at it like it’s a snake ready to strike, waiting for it to stop…and the caller to leave a message 😆 )

I am partly deaf, which makes it harder to handle a call. Not so much the actual hearing part, although I “hear” much better when I can see the person’s face. I find that I generally hear the sound clearly over the phone, but without visual context, I find it harder to comprehend the words – at least, quickly enough to hold an easy conversation.
When that call is long, and/or the person is speaking fast, I get stressed and end up a bit weepy…
It’s similar to the way I feel in a space with background noise and many people talking. I cope for a bit, then feel like running.

This week has had more involuntary phone participation than I’m used to. Some has been necessary. Some, I feel, would have been better in an email, if that had been an option 😀

Most people seem to have no problem with phone calls, so I feel like a whiny baby sometimes.
But what’s the point of messaging and email technology if you insist on actually talking to me?? 😆

Oh well.
Whinge over.

We went out for coffee yesterday. That was nice.
I had a strawberry buttercream and vanilla mini cake.

And enjoyed the shadows cast by the greenery.

With added blue phone light!

At this time of night, the world is quiet again.
Time to sleep.
❤

Published in:

Thinking....

on May 28, 2026 at 11:58 pm Leave a Comment

From Rising To Setting

It’s been a good day.
No, I wasn’t up at the rising of the sun 😀
And I didn’t actually see it setting…

But – the day was light and cheerful, if a bit tiring.
Got a bit further on the organisation of something that will be fun.
Randomly crossed paths with friends, one of whom we haven’t seen in a while.
And got to the bakery early enough to get a lemongrass chicken roll!

As winter spreads tendrils into the atmosphere, the skies showcase the sun more deeply.
Mornings glow on our wooden floor…

And light up the windows!

We were out the other day, a bit later in the afternoon than usual.

You can almost see the chill.
And smell the wood fires and dinners cooking (somewhere, there was shepherd’s pie…)

Light hits differently in winter.

Musing on all this brought to mind a song – one which I’ve posted before, but bears listening to again.

“Blessed be the name of the Lord
From this time forth and forevermore!
From the rising of the sun to its going down
The Lord’s name is to be praised.” –
Psalm 113:2-3 NKJV

❤

Published in:

on May 26, 2026 at 11:09 pm Leave a Comment
Tags: Sandra McCracken

Arranging The Cabinet

The cold snap seems to have hit, more or less. It’s still a bit up and down, but I can see winter on the horizon.
And the sunsets are…colder.

More pink! 🙂

I have been feeling better, although still getting tired sooner than I’d like.
But I now have a glass cabinet! Yay!
It’s not the same as the cabinets I already have, but this one is for teacups and pots/plates, so it doesn’t matter so much.

The empty space is for the other type of glass cabinet, when we get around to finding one.
My Babe and Sweet Bean went out in the rain last weekend to get this one for me, and also to pick up some Pop Vinyls the seller had as well.

Wonder Woman, because…why not?
Mrs Potts and Chip, from Beauty and the Beast. A cute addition to my real teapots and cups! 😀
But the one I really wanted was Charlie (Bradbury, from Supernatural)! My favourite character, but hugely expensive – $100 or more online. I told the seller she could get more on Ebay, but she very nicely let me have it for around $3.50 🙂
You never know what you’ll find on Facebook Marketplace…

*********************************
Just a little addendum, as I heard today that another of my favourite actors has died – Michael Keating, who played Vila Restal on Blakes 7 (and went on to play many more roles).
Here he is, quipping his way through dystopia…

Published in:

on May 22, 2026 at 11:19 pm Leave a Comment
Tags: Blakes 7, Charlie Bradbury, Michael Keating, Supernatural (TV series)

Over It

Not the rainbow!

There’s always a place for those. 😀

I haven’t been doing too great the last few days.
Enjoying the cold and the rain, though!

I had my Covid/flu shots on Tuesday, and expected that to be that, with perhaps a bit of an ache here and there…
What I got was a painful arm (only the Covid side) that hurt when I even thought of moving it, nausea and vomiting, and high temperatures (although not quite ambulance/brain-melting levels. That’s a plus.).
Wednesday was a bit of a blur. And I couldn’t even manage to hold a book, let alone read!!
Still not quite there, arm still painful, and temperature fluctuating, but much better overall 🙂

So, perhaps that’s a reason to not get the vaccinations, I hear you say?
I wouldn’t say so…
I haven’t kept up with my Covid vaccinations, and have never had the flu one, but it seemed like the right time to get them. I didn’t react at all before, so all this has been unexpected.

And having had time to stop and think, I remember sitting on the plane on my way to England in 1994. I’d had the recommended basic travel vaccinations (can’t remember which ones), and my arm from shoulder to elbow was hot, swollen and red.
Seems like my immune system just likes to throw a tantrum now and then.
(Somewhere in the back of my brain I see it sneaking up behind me, waggling eyebrows, twirling a moustache, and saying, “A ha!”)

It’s possible that my temperature hasn’t quite gone down far enough…

Well, I still have books to read.
Possibly even sleep to have.
And here is a little heat pack I saw the other day (I didn’t buy it), just to leave on a cheerful note.

🙂

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on May 15, 2026 at 10:50 pm Leave a Comment

A Shot In The Arm

Sunday afternoon brought an unexpected visit to a cafe I’ve wanted to check out for a while.
Their opening hours don’t generally fit in with my week – we only dropped in Sunday because we were heading somewhere else.
It was, of course, Mothers’ Day.
My boys were involved with an online gaming session, and forgot what day it was…
So my Babe took me out for a coffee ❤

French Earl Grey tea, a caramel latte, with a backdrop of vintage clothing 🙂
Just the thing to cheer my day…

The boys did fund my choice of pressie, and this was the sort of place I enjoy shopping!

Some new badges. A tiny “rubber” ducky. And some china shards I found on the road outside.
I also chose a little screen thing for my desk.

We didn’t sit in the garden this time.

Or contemplate changing our mode of transport…

I indulged in some unicorn fancies later in the afternoon.

Such a lovely day!
❤

I finally got around to getting my flu and covid vaccinations today, so my arms are a bit sore.
There’s always something different to do/see/look forward to.
I’ve had the literal one… but a metaphoric shot in the arm might be just around the corner!

Published in:

Thinking....

on May 12, 2026 at 11:47 pm Comments (1)
Tags: Beastiemonk, Mothers' Day

Under A Mackerel Sky

Bit cold this morning.
I put on more layers to wait for the early bus, so I was comfortable.
The clouds were shining in the sun – not sure if they were completely “mackerel” – I think there were some mare’s tails in there!

The sun was still low(ish), so not much heat radiating onto the town.

Shiny! 😀

Sat and enjoyed a cappuccino…

before checking out the markets.
It was still too early for the library to be open, so I lingered on one of the green areas, watching the world go by.
I was soon joined by a bubble fairy.

Magic!

❤ 🙂

I was apprehensive about going out today – the cold snap, and the early start.
But I got there, and was able to experience and appreciate hot coffee on a cold morning.
And bubbles!

I wandered (lonely as a (mackerel) cloud?) before taking a leisurely bus ride home (roadworks on the route – it was late).
Saturday’s a good day for that.
Weekdays are appointments and schedules, Sundays are church.
Saturday stretches out with anticipation…
At least, this one did!

Published in:

Thinking....

on May 9, 2026 at 11:52 pm Leave a Comment

On Clouds Of Bliss

After (far too) many years, we have finally bought a new mattress.

The finished article…
(and no, there isn’t someone skulking under the duvet. Just a pillow)

The old mattress was sagging in random places, with springs that pinged when you moved in any direction. It had its day, but was too expensive to replace.
Until now! 😀

This new one came in a box, compressed.

Doesn’t look too comfy here.

Nope.

Voilà!

It made a weird sound as it was decompressing – like something was boiling over on the stove.
If I’d known that was going to happen I would have filmed it! 😀

It needed to be left alone (with plastic removed) for at least 24 hours.
And then – sleep!
It’s significantly deeper than the last one.
And much more comfortable…

Yay!

As for bliss…
another random YouTube offering.

Very much enjoying the video 🙂

But – time to drift off, on pillowy clouds, to sleep.

Published in:

on May 7, 2026 at 11:36 pm Leave a Comment
Tags: Vika and Linda Bull

Such A LOVELY Day!

I sometimes wonder if I use the word “lovely” too much.
It can be seen as one of those words that are a bit too twee, maybe insincere…one of the lazy adjectives.
Occasionally, I will use “wonderful”, or veer off into the “spectacular” type realms.

But, mostly, I think “lovely” is the only appropriate word.
The dictionary seems to associate it with “delightful” and “charming“, and that’s how I see it – a sweet flower, or a cute puppy, or a wide-eyed child taking in the wonders of their world – what else could I say? ❤

There seems to be a sort of soft, squishy inner me (my mental image is of a cartoon granny – apple cheeks, grey-haired bun, little round wire glasses) that notices the delightful things in odd corners, and coos, “Ooooh – lovely!”.
And then totters off with a wistful smile.

Yesterday, I enjoyed loveliness in different guises.
Off to town on the bus in the morning to browse the charity shops, and relax with a hot chocolate and an unexpected treat.

A cruffin!
(not as sugary as it looks 🙂 )

I sat by myself at a tiny table for one.
Facing the wall, but with an off-centre mirror to see the world pass by.

Self portrait, with blue.

I was overlooked by a drift of feathers.

Time to move on!

I finally remembered to see the exhibition that is on at the gallery at the moment –
Leonard Brown, an Ipswich artist who paints both abstracts and icons (in the traditional manner).
In the context of my day, I will still say “lovely”…but I will also break out and add “beautiful”, “amazing”, and “inspiring”.
The exhibition is called “Painting the Celestial”, and is on until 14th June.
Go have a look!