Back in the salad

The mistake in the heading (did you spot it?) is deliberate. I typed this in an email to a client and almost sent it, which wouldn't have been a good advert for my editorial skills since I meant, of course, back in the saddle after the Christmas break. Mind you, I am also back in the salad, after the quantity of food and drink I've consumed recently.

I was hoping that for the first CTST of the year I'd have something amazing to shout about, but my celebrations are modest - and none the worse for that:

1. Catching up with friends.
2. Ukulele group resuming.
3. Finishing my week's work by 5pm today.
4. A ridiculous number of goldfinches in the silver birch trees at the bottom of the garden (the photo doesn't do them justice).

Have a good weekend, folks.

Join the celebration: share your news on the bloghop Celebrate the Small Things  hosted by  Lexa's Blog.

Onwards!

Programme from yesterday's show

It's all been said elsewhere: 2016 was rubbish, but 2017 will be better, so let's get started.

We've taken down the Christmas tree today and it feels as though the house has heaved a sigh of relief that everything is back in the right place. We're still on holiday, though, for another couple of days and there's Baileys and shortbread that need our attention.

I have mentioned before that I don't do New Year resolutions, but I do like to pick a word to bear in mind - a sankalpa, or intention, as we call it in yoga. This year I'm going with kindness, following on from the advent calendar I had on this theme. I think it did me good and I'm planning to keep it up, if I can. You can join in here.

In other news, there was excitement at the Royal Theatre in Northampton yesterday when in true 42 Street style one of the lead actors had been taken ill in the morning and a local actor (Jamal something, I think) was roped in at the 11th hour to take his place. He did the show script in hand, but made an excellent job and I think the book was more of a security blanket than a necessity. He got a huge round of applause at the end.

Finally, I wonder if Prince Charles is polishing his orb and sceptre. Get well soon, ma'am.

Season's greetings

Solstice, Christmas: whatever you're celebrating:

May you be happy and healthy,

May you be safe and free from harm,

May you live in joy and ease.

See you next year.

x

Celebrate the small things, 16 December

It's been another full week, but fairly uneventful: nothing amazing, but, thankfully, nothing awful. Today, let me celebrate a couple of clever women I know:

Last Saturday I went to the launch of Kezzabelle's fourth book (pictured), When You Say Yes. She has also recorded the poems and CDs are now available. Isn't that great?

Today's post brought me a 'reward' for contributing to a crowdfunding appeal for Screen Northants, a non-profit feature film studio that uses film-making to do great things for Northamptonshire and particularly for members of the community that are disadvantaged or feel disenfranchised in some way. Read more here. It's headed by Becky Carrier, who is a real powerhouse.

Tonight it's Girls' Night, when a bunch of old NCT friends get together to put the world to rights. Bring on the M&S nibbles!

Have a lovely weekend, folks.

Share your news on the bloghop Celebrate the Small Things  hosted by  Lexa's Blog.

Flushed with kindness

'Smile - you're beautiful!'

My kindness advent calendar is going well so far, and I've been able to reward my good intentions with a guilt-free chocolate from my other calendar for 10 days in a row. However, I was nearly beaten by logistics yesterday. The suggestion was:

Write a positive message on a post-it note and put in on your mirror at work...

Given that I work from home, this didn't seem feasible. However, it continued:

... or in a public place.

So while Mr Thorley was queuing at the checkout in Morrison's, I sneaked off and stuck a little message on the mirror in the Ladies. I was tempted to hide in one of the cubicles to see if there was any reaction from anyone, but I could see the headlines:

Local weirdo caught lurking in public toilets

So I just left it. I hope it made someone smile.

Celebrate the small things, 2 December

I've had an admin day today, starting with a check-up at the dentist, filling the car with petrol, running a few errands and restocking the fridge. One thing I had to do was pop into Majestic Wine to pick up a bottle of prosecco, which I won in a draw by virtue of being a British Gas customer. Cheers! That means I'm celebrating winning something often drunk in celebration.

I hope you have plenty to celebrate, too.

Share your news on the bloghop Celebrate the Small Things  hosted by  Lexa's Blog.

*smug face*

I'm just back from town with a bag of goodies for Christmas. The benefit of having a small family is that a couple of trips usually sees all the presents bought, and I've made a really good start today. The shopping centre was full of women clutching lists, closely followed by men carrying bags. OK, I generalise: I know that the reverse is often true.

And actually, given what my local MP said recently in parliament I should be more careful about gender stereotyping. Oh yes, Philip Hollobone MP (Cons) - don't blame me: I didn't vote for him - told the House that in towns like Kettering it's the men who are the football coaches and the women who wash the kit. Chump!

But back to happier things. It's 1st December, so it's time to break out the advent calendar. This year, via FaceBook, I have a 'Kindness' version - take a look here - which encourages random acts of kindness throughout December, so I thought I'd give it a go. I'm particularly looking forward to next Monday, when I am encouraged to 'Smile at everyone, today, including strangers.' Cue funny looks, methinks.

Don't worry, though, I've got myself a tasty chocolate version, too. I'm not that good!