Tag Archives: writing

Goodbye 2017; Hello 2018!

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Today is the last day of 2017.

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It’s been a rather eventful year, and one that I can actually say, hasn’t been a bad one.  Granted, there have been several ups and downs, but this year has been one of the better ones, over the past few.

A few reflections of 2017…

  • Gning started year one in school.
  • Donut started nursery.
  • I finished working at the DWP – one of the hardest, yet satisfying decisions of my life.
  • The hubby started full-time work.
  • Donuts’ speech is coming along beautifully.
  • Gning passed his “Stage 1” in swimming.
  • My depression seems to have stabilised somewhat, and I’m relying less and less on my medication.
  • I have restarted the old way of communicating, in “penpalling” (good old fashioned pens, paper, envelopes and stamps).
  • I made a new, very dear friend.

When I was younger, I used to always make resolutions for the upcoming new year, however, as more than likely everyone else, they never usually lasted longer than a week or two.

For 2018, however, I have decided on a couple…

  • Read more.  I would like to read at least one book per calendar month.
  • Write more.  Not letters, but write more poetry, and short stories – just like I used to “pre-children”.

So, without further ado, I bid thee farewell 2017, and 2018, I welcome you with open arms.

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30 Day Writing Challenge – DAY 6

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Write 5 ways to win your heart

1.  Bring me a big bar of chocolate, and do not be judgmental when I sit there and scoff the whole lot in one go.

2.  I can be quiet and shy.  I can be loud and brash.  I don’t know when I will be either, so this is basically an “accept me as I am” point.

3.  Have an interest in something I am interested in.  It could be something small, like a love for a particular TV programme, or something huge, like a shared obsession.

4.  Be nice to my children.  My boys are everything to me, and no one is allowed to be horrible to them.  That means ignoring them too.

5.  Don’t take advantage of me.  Yes, I have a car.  No, I am not a taxi.  Yes, I have a (secure) job.  No, that doesn’t mean I have money to give away.  They are just a couple of examples of how I have been treated in the past.

30 Day Writing Challenge – DAY 5

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List 5 places that you would like to visit

1.  Canada

2.  Australia

3.  New Zealand

4.  Russia

5.  The Shetland Isles

30 Day Writing Challenge – DAY 1

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List 10 things that make you happy

1.  My husband.  Of course he makes me happy…  I wouldn’t have married him if he didn’t make me happy!

2.  Gning.  My eldest son.  His sparkling eyes, handsome face and beautiful personality.  He never fails to make me smile and / or laugh…  He is so intelligent too.  I have a feeling his intelligence is going to be his downfall when it comes to schooling; but that’s another topic.

3.  Donut.  My youngest son.  He may only be a baby (5 weeks and 2 days old), but he can already light up a room when entering.

4.  Chocolate.  I’m a woman…  What woman doesn’t love chocolate?

5.  Camping.  I mean real camping, in a tent – not caravanning, which some people say is camping (by the way, that’s called caravanning, NOT camping *rolls eyes*).  I’m talking about real camping too…  No electricity hook-ups, no laptops…  Believe me.  I used to know someone who took their laptops camping, and they had a blow-up settee and ‘port-a-loo’.  There’s just something about being under canvas in the middle of nowhere.  I guess it’s because it’s something that I have done since I was a baby (I was 3 months old when I first slept in a tent).

6.  Scotland.  It’s true that Scottish history is full of tragedy, but there is a certain romance to it too.  History, the clans, the music (especially bagpipes), the scenery of the Highlands…  People have said that I do have an obsession.  To be honest, I can’t deny that I have.

7.  Ancient Egypt.  It’s the Gods, Goddesses, culture, architecture…  I’m fascinated by the meanings behind the temples and tombs…  I would love to be able to read hieroglyphics too.

8.  Stonethwaite.  For those of you who are not in the know, Stonethwaite is a tiny hamlet, in the district of Borrowdale, in the Lake District.  The Lake District is a National Park in the county of Cumbria, in the north-west of England.  Stonethwaite valley campsite was the first place where I crawled.  The campsite is set on farmland, next to a wonderful stream, which is amazing to listen to when you’re drifting off to sleep.  Follow the water upstream, and you will eventually come to a little known secret…  The stream becomes surrounded with rocks, and if you are brave enough, the water is certainly deep enough to swim in.  I have done it many times, although I wouldn’t recommend it unless you have an immunity to cold water.

9.  Birds.  I am an Ornithologist.  To a certain extent.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m certainly not Bill Oddie, but I do know a tad about those feathered creatures.  I’ve kept birds all of my life – primarily zebra finches.  I have successfully bred them, and I did actually write a “keepers guide”, several years ago.

10.  Writing.  Whether it’s a short story, poem, review or blog post, writing has always made me smile.  The only problem I have (which long-term Insanely Normal followers will know) is that I suffer horrifically with writers block.  Meh.

So there’s my 10 things.  What are yours?

30 Day Writing Challenge

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There’s a new trend happening on several blogs throughout the “t’interweb”, and it’s starting to move over to facebook too.  It originally started off to give bloggers inspiration on what to post…  Topics of conversation, if you like, for those who struggle to think of ideas themselves; so, after seeing this on several occasions, I thought I would join in with the trend.

It’s the “30 Day Writing Challenge”.

I’ll be starting tomorrow, as this was just the introduction.  Why not join in too..?  Copy the picture below to your blog / facebook, then make a post every day following the theme.  Don’t forget to let me know if you’re joining in too 🙂

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Day 3 – Let’s try this again, shall we?

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To write, or not to write…

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Edit:  After posting this, I take back what I wrote.  I don’t like my writing after all, ha ha.