Yes sir, I can boogie ...........................

Yes sir, I can boogie, but I need a certain song………………………………

Shootin’ the breeze … blowin’ in the wind … gone with the wind……….

Autumn is here and it’s a pretty breezy day out there today so I’m settling down to do some stuff around the house.  However, before starting on housework I thought I’d spend some time updating my blog.  So, as usual, here are some of my ramblings about things that I like.

The words of a nice song:

     I say goodbye to all my sorrows
     And by tomorrow I'll be on my way
     I guess the Lord must be in New York City

            (Harry Nilsson – I guess the Lord must be in New York City)

And another nice song:
     Dreams are nothing more than wishes
     And a wish is just a dream you wish to come true

          (Harry Nilsson - The Puppy Song)

I like listening to music, particularly the oldies but goodies.  Timewarp 60s is my favourite, but I also like the 70s music, some of the 80s stuff and lots of the 50s stuff.  I sometimes wish I could sing quite well, but sadly I don’t.  I remember quite a few years ago, Arlene was visiting us with a friend. I was in the kitchen doing stuff, and singing along to the music on my little cd player.  Arlene’s friend asked what the strange noise was and Arlene replied (with a straight face I believe), “oh, that’s just Isobel singing”. Clearly Arlene was used to the noise and thought nothing of it.  Not sure how long that young man remained in her life, but I think my singing must have scared him off!  In my mind I’m a superb singer, at least opera standard if not better, but clearly this is not a belief shared by others.  Fortunately Mike doesn’t make comment when I sing along, but then his singing voice is probably worse than mine! Well, I think it is anyway, and that’s about all that counts…………….

And now for some words of wisdom:

Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is probably the reason why so few engage in it.  (Henry Ford)

In a dream you can do anything … Veronica M Hay

And a couple of nice words:

Ethereal :

Extremely delicate and light and may seem too perfect for this world.

Heavenly, spiritual, otherworldly.

Intangible, of the celestial spheres.

Intangible:

Unable to be touched or grasped.

Not having physical presence.

Not able to be perceived by the senses.

Memories:

 Mr Blue by Mike Preston … the first single bought for our first record player (probably around 1960 but Ken or Fiona could confirm the year).

Back in the summer of ’69 … those were the best days of my life.

There’s an awful lot you can tell about someone by their shoes.   (Forrest Gump)

The purple dust of twilight time…………..

And now onto other ramblings: 

Well, onto other things now!  Yesterday I decided that I was a bit fed up with my hair being grey.  So, I decided to use a home colour that I bought a while ago.  My hair now looks a bit of a strange colour.  I’m sure Jennifer and Sarah would think it’s quite chic and modern, I think it looks a bit orange, or maybe it’s like the inside of a Crunchie bar.  Suffice to say that I had difficulty with the whole process.  It was one of those kits which has the bottle with the little nozzle that you use to put the colour in at the roots of your hair.  Now, I thought this sounded really, really easy … how stupid was I?!?!?  It would be easy if you were ambidextrous and had an extra pair of hands.  Oh, and it would also be helpful if you didn’t wear glasses.  In an effort to make sure that I didn’t get gunk and stuff on my glasses I decided it would be prudent to take them off.  And it was.  Unfortunately it meant I couldn’t really see what I was doing.  Coupled with being totally unable to get the stuff in at the roots at the back of my head … well, enough said about that.  So, to sort it all out, I just squirted the colour all over my hair and sort of squished it all in.  Overall, bearing in mind my ability level,  I’d say my efforts were fairly successful, however, I’m not too sure about the colour.  At least I did have the good sense to use a semi –permanent colour which washes out after something like 24 washes.  Which means that I won’t be too embarrassed when I next go to the hairdresser cos it should all have washed out by then!

The other day, Lucy was charging at the dining room window to see whoever had dared to ring the doorbell. On the way, Mike put his foot out to slow her down, but Lucy took appropriate evasive action and starting jumping onto the foot stool early … sadly she overshot and her little nose bumped right into the window. But she’s fine now, squashed up nose, but fine and dandy. She still jumps up at the window, so clearly no lasting damage or harm done (apart from to her pride).  Then the other night (Sunday evening) Lucy was charging around the house trying to see the little black cat that lives next door.  This little cat hasn’t yet learned that Lucy is quick on her feet, but unfortunately for Lucy she was inside the house and the cat was outside. Anyway, I digress. Lucy was charging around the house from window to door, to window, to door etc (we just stand out of the way in case she charges into us) when she must have tweaked her wee leg . So, she limped a bit, got cuddles, got extra sweeties and more cuddles and stuff.  She then had selective limping (similar to men having selective hearing) … she limped when appropriate ie, when passing the sweetie cabinet.

So, she had a quiet evening, bedtime sweeties and then tucked up in her wee beddies.  Yesterday, I decided she’d have a quiet day, so she didn’t go out zinger chasing, we went for a quiet walk at Linhouse water.  

(Lucy, my beautiful puppy ...
in a world gone made you have the ability to make everyone smile)

Lucy charged around at a sedate pace (when compared with zinger chasing speed), and all was well with her world, until I tossed the zinger … zoom, zoom, zoom, and then wee limpy-dan Lucy came limping back. Then to make her day worse, she was a bit poorly yesterday evening (well, she will go out eating grass) so she was cuddled and at bed time she only had one sweetie, and cuddled and snuggled into her  wee beddies.  So, today, she’s having a day of enforced rest and will only be out and about in the garden (after I carefully check for hidden cats) and she can go for a quiet and sedate walk (without zinger) tomorrow and if all is well, she might get going out zinger chasing on Thursday. 

As most of you know, I got a Kindle for my birthday. I’ve got lots of books on it, and lots of them were free (I always wanted to read the classics, and all of them were free!).  I’ve also got some weight loss books there too and I got one which is a life-coaching weight loss book. I've got some meditation and visualisation books and also some psychic books.  It's great having one little item which has LOTS of books on it. I have to say that I LOVE MY KINDLE. Anyway, I digress ... as I said, I've got a little life coaching book on weight loss and I'm aspiring to follow the advice and guidance provided in this little book.  Read on ......

So, I’ve got myself a pretty little notebook (from Tesco) to write down all my motivational stuff.
I started writing the notebook yesterday but this new-fangled system hasn’t worked too well so far as I finished off a packet of chocolate covered fudge that I bought on Saturday and also had a couple of crispie cakes  … oh, and a glass of wine! But, I did walk Lucy and use my treadmill AND today I feel very positive and motivated.

So, this little book that I bought got me to thinking.  Perhaps now that I’m retired I should think about becoming a life coach.  I’m sure my words of wisdom could be useful so maybe I’ll look into it. I wonder if people would pay me to give them advice?  I think this idea warrants me looking into it a bit further.  I could couple it with something like colour therapy and stuff (I like stuff).  I’d be interested to hear everyone’s thoughts.  Now, I think it’s something that might make me a bit of money, and that’s gotta be good, don’t you think?

 Or maybe I should write a book with all my little thoughts and inspirational / motivational quotes and stuff.  That could be a good idea.  I could sit out in our little summerhouse and write away all day, supported by calming fruit teas and the occasional glass of wine.  Now, that really sounds like a good plan! 

(summerhouse framed in the weeping cherry tree : spring 2011)

 

I do need to think about a grand plan so that I don’t vegetate now that I’m retired.  I really need to think about what I’d like to do.  I’ve had lots of ideas … online business (crystals etc), start sewing stuff for my online business, write my novel, write a psychic development workbook, motivational book, run a psychic development circle, parapsychology course, learn some therapies to complement my Reiki, learn hypnotherapy, card / ribbons readings etc.  Lots of ideas, but I really need to get started on what’s to do.  I don’t want to waste my early retirement by just blundering around each day without focus or plans and stuff.  I’m sure there’s lots I could be doing, I just need to get my thinking cap on and get started.

Yes sir, I can boogie, but I need a certain song.

You know, I’m just sittin’ here shootin’ the breeze and wondering about life.  If I was sat here 100 years ago (ok so I’d be 156 years old) I wouldn’t have my nice pink laptop, my Kindle (in a nice pink leather cover with integrated light), my iPhone sitting in the iPhone docking station and playing timewarp 60’s music on the iPod app of the iPhone, I wouldn’t be sat beside a nice warm radiator, listening to the TV playing in the living room (where Mike’s sat watching informative TV), planning what I’m going to do with the rest of the day, my life and other stuff. What would my life have been like if I was still 56, but living 100 years ago? Would I be worrying about the possibility of war that was to become a reality within three years … the war to end all wars that would be over by Christmas, and would eventually become known as The Great War. Not only that, but by the time that war was over, would I realise that there would be another war starting in just over 20 years’ time? Would I have liked that world? Would I live through it all wishing I was living 100 years in the future?  Would I be able to comprehend the changes that would happen in the world over the next 100 years?  I’ve always been fascinated by both world wars, but I have to say that I wouldn’t have liked to have had to live through them. I like the easy life I have now, and I appreciate everyone and everything in my life and that all is well with my world.  I think this is the main reason why I feel I should be doing more with my life than I am just now.  It’s not really a case of “is this all there is” it’s more a case of “the truth is out there” and I should go and find it. I just need a plan … doesn’t need to be a great or perfect plan … it just needs to be a plan!

I need to sort out what my legacy to the world should be………………… it’s important to leave my mark on the world.

Well, better get this blog uploaded and get on with some stuff today. 

Yes sir, I can boogie, but I need a certain song …..  and that’s all I’ve got to say about that!

Some more ramblings

Well been a wee while since I updated my blog.  I had hoped to upload some photos, but for some obscure and unknown reason the photos are uploading upside down, wrong way round etc so I may only manage to add one photo the right way round.

Well a couple of weeks ago Fiona and I met up with our cousin Eileen in the Willow Tea Rooms in Buchanan Street in Glasgow. It was fun to meet up with a member of our extended family that I don't think I've ever met before.  It didn't seem strange, as I thought it would, it seemed as though we'd known each other for years!  One of the nice waitresses even took our photo for us:

 From left to right : Eileen, Moi, and Fiona.  

After a bite of lunch and a cuppa, we went strolling around Glasgow looking to see if we could spot Brad Pitt who was hanging around Glasgow shooting a movie, sadly I can't remember the name of the movie though. But, I did take this photo of a SWAT van ... all rather exciting stuff for a little countly bumpkin like me ...

It was all rather exciting stuff and seeing the SWAT van made up for not seeing Brad Pitt ... at least for me anyway, perhaps Fiona and Eileen would disagree.

So, what else has been happening round here? Well, my birthday BBQ was good fun, even if it was a bit chilly and damp. A little vino was enjoyed by some of us, in particular me.  Not that I had much to drink, but what I did have I enjoyed.  We had lots of yummy birthday cake and I had hoped to upload some photos, but they're all turned every which way but the right way. So, apologies if you have to look sideways:

Lucy and Zinger birthday cake courtesy of Sarah:  

Ooh ... there's a surprise, it came out the right way round! Yay for me!!!!! 

Yummy GIGANTIC cupcake birthday cake courtesy of Valerie:

Clearly I'm getting the hang of this uploading photos the right way round thing ... smart eh?!?!?

Last week we had Ken down to stay for a couple of nights cos he had a hospital appointment in Edinburgh.  On the night he arrived I made a most excellent shepherds pie and it went down a storm.  Lucy had a little bowl of mince that evening for her dinner and the following evening she had the leftover sheppie pie for her dinner.  It was nice to have a couple of days with Ken, even if it was overshadowed a bit by the stress of his hospital appointment.  That said, on the Friday morning before he went home he came along with me when I took Lucy for her daily constitutional ... Ken's comment during the walk was "cor, look how fast she is!"  Clearly he was very impressed with Lucy's Zinger chasing and catching skills and Lucy was in her element showing her speed and expertise. So, a good time was had by all! 

Anyway, now that I'm on a roll with this uploading photos thing, here are some photos of our Lucy modelling her new handmade Willow's Wisps Doggie Scarf :

Oh what a beautiful wee lass she is!

Now ... doesn't she look smart! She got this yesterday at the Dogs Trust Open Day when she came along for the last hour or so. First stop was to say hello to Auntie Fiona and cousins Eileen and Jennifer as they manned (or should that we womanned?) the Willow's Wisps table. Then she made her way along to see Siobhan at the DG table and then on to me at the tarot table.  No doubt as Mike walked around with her she would have got some very admiring looks.  I'm hoping the she'll now appear on the Willow's Wisps web page.  Of course if anyone would like her pawprint, well then, that could be arranged. 

So, yesterday was a pretty cold day, and I spent three hours in the afternoon sitting outside in the cold giving tarot cards readings to help raise funds for the West Calder Dogs Trust (where we got Lucy).  I'm quite pleased that I raised about £80 for the Trust.  But I did get a nice bunch of flowers and a DG baseball cap so that more than made up for it. I also got a lovely little thank you note from the Dogs Trust doggies and that's been put on on the fridge so that I can read it as and when I want to.  It's just a bit of a pity that the first year Willow's Wisps had a table there, it was probably the coldest it's been.  Last year was so warm that I eventually had to unzip my fleece!

After I got home yesterday afternoon from the open day, I was pretty well chilled to the bone. My little tootsies were like blocks of ice ... pretty bad for a summer's day, don't you think?  So, I got all snuggled up with my fleecy slanket and had a nice cup of hot chocolate and a little cake and watched the most excellent of all musicals GREASE.  The greatest ever musical.  Graeme, Eileen, Jennifer and Sarah will all tell you what a fantastic film it is ... mind you, they may not have watched it since the last time I babysat them all!

Here are a couple of other nice photos, which I think you'll all like.  The first one I took yesterday evening from the back door.  It was a beautiful sunset (after a cold, wet and miserable day) and although it's a good photo, it doesn't do the actual view justice.  But here it is:

 

And finally, here's a picture of a little fridge magnet I got whilst I was in America:

And I think that about says it all!

So, in true Forrest Gump style, and until next time  ... that's all I've got to say about that!

Abstract ramblings for a Saturday Afternoon

Man is but a product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes. 

Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself. (George Bernard Shaw).

Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you. (Ralph Waldo Emerson).

Happiness is a perfume you cannot pour on others without getting a few drops on yourself. (RWE)

It's impossible to speak highly enough of the virtues, the dangers and the power of shared laughter. (Francoise Sagan) 

  What a delight it is 

      When, of a morning, 

  I get up and go out 

     To find in full bloom a flower 

  That yesterday was not there

(Tachibana Akemi)

Well, it started off a beautiful morning.  Lucy and I went our for our daily constitutional. I strolled around Bankton Mains and Lucy raced about stretching her little leggies and showing off that she's truly earned her middle name of 'Born to Run'. She raced about the field, running and hiding in the trees, losing her beloved Zinger and retrieving it again from its' hiding place.  She's a smart wee cookie at finding her Zinger (usually, we'll ignore for now the incident at Luce Bay where there's a Zinger Ring riding along on the crest of a wave).  We got back home safely before the rain came on. 

We had another Circle meeting yesterday and I think it went very well.  Next month it's going to be a week early (on the 26th) and we're going to do some psychometry. At least that's the plan, so long as everyone remembers to bring something along with them.  Julie and I enjoyed a bottle of wine afterwards, and Siobhan had a nice cup of tea.  Unfortunately, Fiona had to leave sharpish (mind you we ended up finishing later than we should have!). It was a good evening and many of the things picked up were quite relevant.  Siobhan has kindly offered to take over leading the meditation etc, to allow me to sit in Circle.  I'm quite happy with this idea cos it gives me a chance to take part in the actual Circle itself. Meanwhile, Sarah seems to have noticed some perfume in her flat ... hmm, interesting. Could be a useful training session for the Circle, or maybe we need our 'Ghostbusters' team of experienced mature ladies! 

There is a saying:;

There are two kinds of people: 

Those who say, "I will believe it when I see it."

And those who say, "To see it, I know I must believe it."

While I'm on the topic of mature ladies, I quite like this t-shirt and matching bag (I suppose that this would be the modern version of twinset and pearls!). I wonder if anyone will buy me them for my birthday?

What do you think? Pretty nifty stuff! And they're yellow. I like yellow, its a happy little colour, don't you think? 

I was clearing out some of the boxes of stuff we brought home with us from when we cleared out Mike's mum's house.  There are lots and lots of good sheets which I can use in the motorvan. There are some pyrex plates and things that I can use, and I've also unpacked some of the ornaments.  I came across a westclox clock, still in it's box and in working order. Sadly, we're no longer used to listening to the tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock, of a wind up clock, so I wound it up once and now it's just sitting on the sideboard looking retro-chic and pretty.  But, I also came across this interesting little gem:  

It's clearly been well used, and I wondered if perhaps I should use it for the basis of a Julie & Julia type blog. Only problem is that I'm slightly fussy about my food. I don't really fancy (in fact I won't be) trying things like: 

bloater paste; bloater toast; dried haddock(???) in milk; fried smelts; digestible (EH???) fried sausage; bone soup; Delhi broth (gotta be kiddin' me man!); marrow soup; prune puree; hamgoree; dog fish pie (yeah right!); and butter beans with fried suet pudding. Delhi broth??? Delhi broth??? Are they kiddin' me??? A sure fire way to end up with Delhi belly I think! YUK! YUK! AND DOUBLE YUK!    I DON'T THINK SO!!!!!!!!! And, there's other stuff in there that I wouldn't even type the names of ... clearly designed to put you off food for life! Hmm ... maybe the J&J blog isn't such a great idea after all. I think if I lived way back in 1935, I'd be very, very slim and also very, very hungry. That said I'd fit into all those fabby retro 1930's and 1940's dresses which I think looked absolutely super-fabby!

I'm hoping to go through to the market thingy in Glasgow that Fiona's going to be selling her bags at.  I'm hoping to talk Mike into running me through there. He's got a better sense of direction than I have and it's been years since I was driving around the Glasgow area. The streets are all changed into one-way, no-way, pedestrian and stuff and not only would I probably get lost, but I'd probably run out of petrol as well.  Yes, as it's almost my birthday, I reckon that Mike should run me though there.

I think I'm being taken out for my birthday lunch on Tuesday. Not sure where, but so long as I'm able to have a small glass of wine and a pudding, then I'll be happy! Happy, happy, happy!

Well, I think that's probably about all for now folks ... feel free to comment on my blog (lets me know that someone's actually reading it!) ... happy reading!

Oh ... Almost there ... ... ... 

Birthdays are nature's way of telling us to eat more CAKE!

Birthdays are good for you. Statistics show that the people who have the most live the longest!

I believe in loyalty. When a woman reaches an age she likes, she should stick with it. (Eva Gabor)

The older I get, the better I was.

A grandparent is old on the outside but young on the inside.

If you don't learn to laugh when you're young, you won't have anything to laugh about when you're old!

Retirement can be a great joy ... if you can figure out how to spend time without spending money.

The simplest toy, one which even the youngest child can operate ... is called a grandparent. (Sam Levenson)

And finally ... my personal favourites:

Grandmothers are just antique little girls. Yes ... Old Gals Rule!

   ***   Do not regret growing older. It is a privilege denied to many.   ***

That's all folks ... see ya next time!

Or, as Forrest Gump would say ... that's all I've got to say about that!

Down New England Bay Way .....

Well we're down here in sunny New England Bay.  It's a lovely wee site (we were here last year for the shake-down with the new motorvan) and it's nice to be back. Today has been beautiful and sunny all day. If the fresh (chilly!) breeze had dropped a bit it would have been a beautiful summer's day. 
Tomorrow we're going to go to a lighthouse and later on we'll go to a castle. Now for those of you who don't go motor-caravanning, you won't appreciate that days / trips out have to coincide with the days you have to fill up with fresh water and empty the waste water tanks. Hence the reason we're going out tomorrow. 
I have to say that it's been rather nice to sit at the van and just relax and read a book. Although, it's not all about sitting around doing nothing! Li'll Lucy-two-shoes has her regular 4 or 5 walks along the beach kickin' up sand and generally havin' a good ol' time to  herself. 
I'm hoping that I'll get a bit of time to work on my book and also work on some stuff for the circle. Of course I'll also have to make some time for drinking wine and eating chocolate. 
I think the weather here has to be quite good over the next week. It would be good if the breeze would drop, but more importantly, I hope it doesn't rain. Much as I love caravanning / motor caravanning it's not pleasant with a soggy wet pooch on board and you have to live with 'eau de smelly wet dog' as the air freshener!
Will write more soon ... meantime ... that's all I've got to say about that. 

Gee it's good to be back home again!

Well it's good to be back home again. We had a busy few weeks there and enjoyed ourselves in Chicago. Travelling 'posh class' was an interesting experience with the first two hours or so of each flight being spent eating. Fine on the flight out from Glasgow but on the return flight from Newark this was on top of two weeks of super-size meals. But, I did have a wee glass of champagne on the return flight, which was rather nice. I've got lots of souvenirs and still came back home with some money in my back pocket. Lucy will be back home in a wee while. According to the petsitter, Lucy likes to bark. I already knew that but it seems the petsitter is surprised that dogs bark. Seems strange to me that she didn't already know this amazing and little known fact about dogs. Mind you, perhaps she was meaning that Lucy's barking was excessive. I won't ask, just in case. She must have behaved herself because the petsitter said that she'd have Lucy back. Well, must dash ... got to get Lucy's bed back into the car and check I have her beloved zinger and I'll take her for a quick walk on the way home.

In my next blog I'll tell you all about my purple ice cream, donuts, pizza, posh houses and gardens, Rascal Raleigh, humidity, air conditioning, supersized meals, airport tours and other interesting and exciting things. I'll also tell you about how amazingly excited Americans get when they hear a Scottish accent, and how they all just absolutely want to visit Scotland. I'm also pleased to report that not one Anerican asked me where Scotland is, however, sadly several did ask what part of England I came from and at least two people thought I was Irish. Very few Americans seemed capable or able to understand my accent, however, Peter was an excellent translator. By the end of my holiday I was getting used to the smiling look that said in a kindly way ... what a strange little lady you are, but I like you so I'll smile nicely to you.

And that's all I've got to say about that!

Photo of Lucy at Cramond

Well, I'm mightily impressed with my technical skills here (and thanks, of course, to Jennifer who provided me with an idiot's guide to adding photos to my blog ... credit where credit is due!). 

And, I've also managed to work on the page from my laptop, so that's progress!

Once I've got some more photos on the laptop, I'll see about uploading some more. The photo today was taken just last week when we were down at Cramond for a stroll. It was a beautiful day, but mighty chilly!

So ... for now ... watch this space!

Photo

Hmm I think technology may be getting the better of me cos I can't quite get the hang of this uploading photo thing! Oh but I can tell that this blogging thing is going to be tougher than I anticipated, but I'm up for the challenge (I'll send Jennifer an email asking for an idiot's guide).

On a positive note, whilst out with Lucy for our daily constitutional I stood admiring the beautiful blue sky and watching the vapour trails from the aeroplanes flying high overhead. Soon that'll be me heading off to Chicago!

Now, back to the problem of how to upload a photo ... watch this space!