29/08/2011 by Aileen.

I spent all last week sitting on my bum. Well, apart from making 5 kilos of tomato sauce. I catalogued all my photos, reorganised the folders, got my scripting skills up a notch in Second Life, did the first two weeks of my next OU course (well, read Othello and the first two chapters in the book, plus watched part of some performances on Youtube).

But today it’s gonna change. Monday is traditionally housework day for me. It hasn’t been for the last few Mondays for various reasons. It probably shouldn’t be today as it’s Bank Holiday, but hey, I really need to get some exercise and spruce up the house. I need to move my arse. (Oh what unladylike language).

So, today I’m dusting, sweeping, mopping, cutting three lawns (I forgot, I did one last week before the rain set it) finishing off clearing the gutters (forgot, I started that last week too), andif I have any energy left I’ll go to Viewfinders tonight. I don’t think I’ll need to do any Wii-fit, but hope to meditate twice too.

So, I’d better redisvover the off switch on this here laptop and GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. Bye.

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15/08/2011 by Aileen.

Wow, two posts in one day. Well, I had such a good day. I didn’t do my usual Monday rush through the house, but made the jam, cut the bottom two ‘lawns’, and got the guest room up to scratch in the morning.  In the afternoon I did quite a lot of weeding. In the evening I went to Viewfinders, and we had a fab time at a local blacksmith’s. The light was really good, and I took lots of photos of the smithy, the horses and the two dogs that were hanging around. I might post some photos later, but here are my favourite two.

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15/08/2011 by Aileen.

Well, here I am again, a fortnight older and no wiser or better. My good resolutions never last. I was up before 6am today, and picked plums off the tree to make plum jam. Have to pick them early as the wasps are all over them.

Biggest bit of non-news is that I haven’t got my BA (HONS) Lit. I passed my course, not with the distinction I hoped for as I only got 71% in the EMA and you need a distinction in both parts. But I was waiting for the OU to tell me I had my Hons, and they didn’t. So I did some research and found that although eligible for Hons Open, I had omitteda comulosory Level 2 course for the Lit degree. I hummed abnd hawed, but quite quickly decided that a Lit degree is more me, so I signed up for A230, which studies books like Othello, The Duchess of Malfe, Wuthering Heights (I think) and some other classics I forget. It looks a good course, but it has an exam rathr than anEMA. I don’t mind exams really, but would rather an EMA. Oh well. Honours, here I come.

One good thing is that I now have a Diploma in Lit. I wasn’t eligable for it last year as I accepted my degree a day or two before applying for the diploma, and you can’t do it in that order. (You can acceptlesser  qualifications on the way to a degree, but not in retrospect.) Anyway for some reasonI qualify for it now - since passing the Children’s Lit course.

I must make hay while the sun shines (or it will soon) but first I’ll upload some of Rachel’s wedding photos.

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01/08/2011 by Aileen.

Every Monday is like a new beginning, and not only is it a new week, but a new month. Yay. Two years ago yesterday we had our near head-on car crash coming home from a quiz night. (White van men on the wrong side of the road) We’re still here to tell the tale, and both so thankful to be alive. Three years ago John’s system was actually closing down - in hospital the top half of his body was all white, and you could see the red of his blood on the lower half of his body. (Internal abcesses so we didn’t know what was wrong with him or how seriously ill he was until I drove him down to Stoke Mandeville for a routine checkup. If he hadn’t struggled to keep that appointment he could be dead. The local doctor - not the normal one - had said he had a urine infection, and all his symptoms were ‘normal’ for that.) So yes, I’m still here writing, and John’s stillin bed snoring.

I should write more about Olivia, but don’t know what to say really. I will try to take a picture from Skype. Fiona says she is doing everything well, e.g. feeding, burping, etc. But she’s NOCTURNAL. Well, I suppose they all are to start with. And she has a great pair of lungs apparently. When we saw her in hospital she was really sleepy and placid. When Alexander was born he had a bruised face, as he was a forceps delivery, and he cried quite a bit when he was moved. Olivia is so different. But at the same time she is the image of Aleander. Alexander is delighted with his little sister apparenntly, and knew the words ’sister’ and ‘Olivia’ more or less straight away. He keeps kissing her on the forehead, and saying aaah.

I must also put up some of Rachel’s wedding photos. They’re only just off my camera, and still in Raw format, so I need to convert them to jpgs. And delete a lot! I took so many.

Well, new month’s resolutions. They’re not new, I’m afraid, they’re the same old ones I always make. Pray more, better housewifery, eat less, exercise more. I am actually a bit more specific than this, and have started a (another!) blog recording how I am doing. Don’t think I’ll give details here. Last week I decided to drink 6 glasses of water a day, and get my feet up to scratch. I can only manage two glasses of water so far. I use a crystal glass and pop in a slice of lemon, but I still forget to drink it. I’m using up old foot products (should I say old products for feet) to get my heels smooth, and once the three tubes are used up I’ll buy one new one.

Oh and I went through my clothes last week. Just the tops and trousers, but not only those in the bedroom, but also those I store in the guest room. I’ve put the too tight ones and the winter ones away in the guestroom, and discovered clothes I forgot I had. So I’ve decided to take a bit more care of my appearance and wear different clothes, instead of bumming around in jeans and the same few tops.

Well, I’d better go. Monday is housework day, and I hope to sweep the garden paths this afternoon if I have any energy left. And this sounds contradictory, but I’ve decided to wear shorts around the house, as I would like my legs to be more tanned. But when I go out -Victoria Beckham. look out.

Bye all.

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