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sarah-blue-eyes · 3 years

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2020 In Review

Hoo boy, here we go.

[Ok just before I begin. I had this queued to post in the first month of January but it doesn’t seem like that ever happened haha. Better late than never I suppose!]

So I am a nostalgic bitch, and since 2011, have loved to make memory boxes for each year, where I put trinkets and memories into a shoebox. This year I have continued that tradition, but I have also kept track of my happy memories throughout 2020 in my planner. This was done with the intention for me to upload a year-in-review sort of thing in hopes that maybe like, 3 people max on this god-forsaken site will read it. This sort of reminiscence was inspired by my friend @a-lbeit, who has done these for a few years now and me, as a slut for nostalgia, was encouraged to do the same back in January (I think? What even is my memory at this point?)

2020, as it has been for many, was a very shit year, and I am no different. I would safely say that this year has undeniably been the worst I have lived through. But I am here. I am present. And I have made it through some of the darkest times to face 2021 with a new sense of hopefulness. Keeping track of my happier memories has been something that has truly got me through this clusterfuck of a year, so I am glad that I can finally go through them all again and share them with you.

Read it, or don’t, I don’t give a shit what you do with your time, but if you do, I hope that you aren’t bored to tears. And I hope to keep myself accountable to continue to do this for years to come.

Buckle up, grab a hot drink and a snack and get comfy, because this is a JOURNEY.

January:

· Kicked the new year off with hosting a 1920’s themed party with some of my closest friends at my family home at the beach. Had fun with drunk SingStar, playing What Do You Meme, creating a playlist with everyone’s top 3 songs of the decade (it was a bangin’ playlist I must say), and just overall drinking too much and having a riotous time

· I remember going to the beach New Year’s Day (as is tradition in Australia) and playing ultimate frisbee in the shallows and completing a crossword puzzle on the sand (I am a 75-year-old woman, it is just a fact of life)

· I also had my friend Kirsten from South Australia stay with me for the New Year’s period and it was lovely to have a guest over! I haven’t spoken to her much this year, she sort of fell off the face of the planet, but I hope she is doing ok.

· Went town to Torquay (a beach town in Victoria) for the 6th time for Beach Mission, which is essentially a holiday program for kids in preschool-year 9 where we run activities for them. It’s a Christian-based program but the aim isn’t to convert the kids or anything like that, it’s more to show God’s love to them through our actions and how we as Christians live our lives. It’s also a convenient way for parents to dish their kids off for a few hours too haha. This was my final year of being a part of this program, and I am so pleased to have made so many memories and (hopefully) impacted many children’s lives during my time there

· I remember going on a late-night beach walk with my boyfriend Josh, talking about what the year had in store for us. We were just sitting on the beach, as you do, and I saw a shooting star. I can’t remember what I wished for (if anything) but in that moment, life was a dream.

· The week after beach mission I started at my new internship! It was for a place called KidsCo, who run school holiday programs at workplaces, so parents don’t need to take time off work to look after them. I helped with client relations and a lot of behind-the scenes stuff. I really loved it there

· On the very first day of my internship I remember there was torrential rain, and the train home was delayed by like, an hour or so lol

· One of the best parts about interning at KidsCo was that they were the official child-minding service for the Australian Open. I make an effort to go each year, but I was lucky enough to get free ground-entry for me and a guest for the duration of the event. I went quite a few times and got to take my mum and Josh along as well.

· Saw my only concert of the year, The Veronicas, at the Australian Open. When I say the moment the violin riff at the start of Untouched absolutely went the fuck off is an understatement. Grade 5 me would have cried (and 23 year old me did a little bit too tbh.) Yet another of one of my “all-time-favourite-songs” that I’ve had the pleasure of hearing live. (I also went through the year feeling sad that this was the first time in 11 years I hadn’t gone to a concert, but this one certainly fell through the cracks)

· Started planning my trip to the UK to see my twin sister, and best friend, Jess

· Went away to Rye for the Australia Day weekend #changethedate. An excellent time with excellent mates, and went to the beach pretty much every day and got mindlessly sloshed every night

· Listened to the Triple J Hottest 100. I think 4 of my picks made it in, which was pretty good

· Continued my job as the office manager/events coordinator at my church

February:

Basketball started back after the summer break for my two different teams, The Vikings and The Wildcats (honestly such a highlight of this year with how the rest of it ended up going)

As a team-bonding activity at KidsCo we hired a boat for a few hours and I got more drunk that I had been for a while. It was a very fun time jetting down the Yarra, waving drunkedly at the people jogging by

For Valentine’s day Josh and I had an indoor picnic with our favourite food! The weather was shit for Feb, hence the indoor nature of the picnic

Saw Shrek the Musical with two of my closest pals, Bec and Katie (I honestly forgot that this happened in 2020 hahaha) but it was ICONIC

Had a Jackbox night with The Boys

Had my cousin Amy from England over for dinner! I hadn’t seen her in 5 or 6 years, so it was so lovely to connect again like no time had passed at all

Went to Healesville Sanctuary, a lovely conservation park which focuses on preserving and educating its visitors about Australian animals, with Amy

Went to mini-golf for a friend’s birthday on the leap day. He technically celebrated his 6th birthday which was excellent

Saw Cody Ko and Noel Miller live with Bec and Katie

Finished working at the church office to make room for the potential job opportunity at KidsCo

March:

Ahhh March, you shitstorm of a month. This is where everything started going downhill.

The first thing of note that happened this month was me injuring my ankle at basketball, which had me out of action for a few weeks. It was especially bad because I was nearing the end of my internship and was hoping to do my best work so that I would be chosen to stay on as an employee, but had to take a week or so off to rest my ankle. My ankle would continue to be tender and sore for most of the rest of the year

Went away for the Labour Day long weekend with the family

Finished up my internship at KidsCo. Honestly was lead to believe that I would be staying on as an employee and felt sort of betrayed after all the work I did for them, but whatever

Had a party at Bec’s house to listen to Triple J’s Hottest 100 of the Decade. One of my favourite songs was number 1 which was a pleasant surprise

Went down to the holiday house for a few days just to have so me time and sort myself out

Animal Crossing New Horizons came out haha. Honestly was one of the highlights of this year though. I stayed up until midnight so I could download it as soon as it was available because that’s the sort of person I am

Mum’s birthday dinner with Dani, one of my best friends, and her girlfriend Amy

Went for a hike at Sugarloaf Reservoir with Josh and got spooked by a mob of kangaroos

April:

My mental health started really taking a downward spiral this month for multiple reasons which I won’t get into here, but this is more a note to my past self to say that it will all be ok I guess? Idk I just felt like this needed to be here

Did my ankle badly again on Good Friday

Watched the Overwatch League live with my friends and just memed in the livechat lmao

WARNING - this is a bit TMI but I am going to share anyway since it was a big part of this year, and if you are reading this you are either a stranger or a good friend so I really don’t care lmao: This month I also started to get bad pains in my uterus, like, not period pains but deep, stabbing pains. This continued on for the next few weeks without me doing anything about it, except for increasingly getting stressed about it, although I will talk a bit more about this later.

Josh and I celebrated our 6th year together which was ~wholesome~

Called my friend Ashley from the US and just caught up. It was nice to see her face again. She is a good egg. I haven’t talked to her since but I really hope she’s ok.

May:

Watched Star Wars with Josh and his family for “May the 4th”

Started a volunteer job at Kivuli, a non-for-prophet that is based in Kenya, and started helping out with their website and social media stuff

Zoom movie time with my friends, we watched How To Train Your Dragon I think? Athough everyone was talking over the movie so I didn’t really get anything out of it

Played Scattergories (one of my favourite games) with Bec and Jess on zoom and just wrote really stupid and funny answers and I remember this being just what I needed

Went for a long walk with mum and one of her friends and her daughter on a track we don’t usually go on, which was a nice change of scenery

Went down to the holiday house for the first time in forever since restrictions were eased, at least for a little while lol, with the fam

Went to Portsea for a walk along the beach with Bec and her husband Trevor

Did an online trivia night that night with a big bunch of friends

Had a doctor’s appointment to see what was goin’ on down there. Honestly freaked that it could be something REALLY bad. Got booked in to have an ultrasound the next week, so at least I’d be finding out what was wrong soon.

The day after I got my results was the 21st of May, the day my mum and I were meant to be flying out to the UK to see my sister and her boyfriend. It was already hard enough a month or so before when I had to cancel my flight, but this day was so SO difficult. I can’t remember the last time I cried so hard. I am so blessed to have a boyfriend like Josh though. He was by my side the whole day, and held me as I cried. Oh man I am crying as I write this now, it was such a hard time but I know I will see my sister again.

And then the day after THAT whole ordeal was my birthday, which was meant to be spent in London with Jess but it turned out to be the first birthday we’ve had apart. This day was also hard, but made better by being with loved ones and having dinner at my grandma and grandpa’s house. Grandma’s roast potatoes make everything better.

Went to Geelong to see the other side of my family, it was so good to see my nan again. I love her very much.

Went to the Briars with Bec and went on a lovely nature walk and saw a lot of little wallabies and even an emu

Had an ultrasound and my pain turned out to be a 10cm wide cyst!!! So fun!!!!! Thank the heavens it wasn’t a child. I was so relieved. It is still in my body so that’s cute tho.

June:

Applied for a bunch of jobs, and even got a few interviews! Still no job.

The absolute highlight of this month, and maybe even the whole year, was going away to Lake’s Entrance and Yarram with mum, dad and Josh. It was so good to go to the country, I love country towns so much and the wildlife and nature is so beautiful in the eastern part of Victoria. If you ever get the opportunity I recommend going there!

We ate so much nice food and just relaxed. It wasn’t a perfect replacement for not going to Europe, but it was something at least.

Did more work for Kivuli which kept me busy

Went to Bec’s house to bake a cake. She came out to me as bi this day too, and the cake was coloured like the bisexual flag!

Started a short course through the university I went to in Facebook for Business. It was a great way to build up my skills.

Played Animal Crossing with Dani’s little sister, Tami, a very wholesome time

Looked after Josh’s dog Jed while his family went away for the weekend (also went into the start of July) and was honestly the greatest time

July:

Halfway through the year. Thank fuck.

Had another job interview

Went on lots of walks

Was just generally cold

Did a lot of cleaning

Painted the downstairs rooms at church, which took a few days and a lot of back pain, but it’s cool to think that I was able to contribute my energy and time to something while I was not feeling good at all

The restrictions were tightened again, meaning that I couldn’t go further than 5kms away from my house, except to see Josh, so this was a really lonely time for me.

Really got into Masterchef with mum this season. They had all returning contestants from other seasons so that was really fun to watch.

Got and assembled a new couch upstairs that I can say I actually own myself. I absolutely love it.

More walks, despite the cold

This was a very uneventful month, but that’s ok!

August:

Had a call with the hospital I’ll be having my cyst surgery with. It was good to know that things would be started. I had to have a blood test and a second ultrasound then put on the waiting list for surgery. Still no sign on when that will be happening though 6 months later. Just so lucky to live in Australia where all of these appointments are free.

Went for a really nice long walk with Josh. Got shat on by a bird.

Did lots of stuff around the house, just tidying and watering the plants and sorting through my wardrobe to purge all the clothes I grew out of

Had an online Switch games night with some friends which was fun. We played Smash Bros. and Mario Kart and just had a great time!

Ok this sounds super lame but my favourite podcast, The Jenna & Julien Podcast, finished forever which came as a surprise and was just really sad. I really hope it comes back one day.

Did my tax return lmao

Baked rice puff/marshmallow bar things

Made an ASOS order to fill my happiness with material things. Did get some cute clothes and lingerie tho 😉

More games with Bec and Jess, we played Golf With Your Friends this time

Had a cocktail night with Josh, where we just made a bunch of fun cocktails and got drunk. I can’t wait to live with him so we can do this all the time.

Lots of Kivuli work, as we are planning for our 10th anniversary fundraising event

September:

Baked cookies, which was something I did a lot at the start of lockdown but sort of drifted away from. I absolutely love to bake.

Started working for Media-Wize, a small PR company that was started by someone I know at church.

Started playing Among Us at the start of the month

So many Among Us nights omg, just call me queen impostor please

Did my induction for Media-Wize

Got n e r v o u s because I kept getting things wrong in my new job. I always seem to fuck up the good things and opportunities that I get

Did a livestream reading of The Great Gatsby on my friend’s Twitch stream. It was really fun and something I had never done before. I voiced Tom Buchannan, which was interesting but cool to sort of get into the character. I hope to do something like this soon.

I burnt my hair while cooking dinner and had to give myself a haircut lmao. It was the first time since 2018 that I had cut it so it was a long time coming anyway.

So much Media-Wize work. It felt good to finally be getting paid to do a job

Got locked out of my bathroom so I had to climb up the laundry chute to unlock it from the inside, all because a fly outsmarted me (it’s a long story… and honestly best told by speaking it)

October:

Had the Kivuli 10th anniversary livestream. Lots of work went into it and it was so much fun! It’s incredible that a non-for-profit that has benefitted so many children and families is still going strong. Such a blessing to see.

Dad’s birthday, and we had a picnic with grandma and grandpa and saw them for the first time since lockdown was somewhat lifted

Walked to Beasley’s nursery with Josh and got a coffee. This was the first proper, not McCafe coffee I had had in months and it was SO good

Played Animal Crossing with Dani

More Among Us, a theme for the last few months of 2020

Watched the AFL Grand Final. Wasn’t super exciting this year tbh, especially since we couldn’t have a BBQ or party or anything, but hopefully next year will be different

Nearly moved out of home with a friend of a friend, but since I didn’t have a job, didn’t think it would be a wise decision. Would’ve been nice though

Did some more Media-Wize work. I haven’t been given anything to do since this time though, so I don’t know what’s going on with that? They really be ghosting me tho.

Applied for JobSeeker so I would at least be getting a little income

New Jackbox came out, and had a games night with The Boys playing all the new games

Voted in the local election

Went to Westerfold’s Park with Josh for a lovely long walk

Played lots of The Sims 4 (but tbh I have been doing this all year)

November:

This month things sort of started to turn around, as Covid wasn’t hitting my state hardly at all, so I was actually able to see family and friends again!

Went to my old primary school with Dani and played basketball and just shot around and talked. She also came over for dinner. It was so nice, and she is a true friend.

Had a picnic at the park at the top of the street with my dad’s side of the family, all together at last

Melbourne Cup Day, not that I really care but it’s nice to get a day off. Went on a day trip to the Dandenong mountain range. It was so, so nice and bought some lovely little things from local shops, went for a bushwalk and had a bakery lunch

Went to the park to throw the frisbee and kick the footy around with Josh and his friends, although they are my friends too tbh

Had a picnic with a group of friends that I hadn’t seen since January, so it was so, so good to catch up with them and have a delicious BBQ dinner

My favourite online comedy group, Aunty Donna’s Netflix series came out! Had a virtual watch party with a few friends and binge watched it all in one go

Had lunch with grandma. This used to be a weekly occurrence but for obvious reasons was put off for this year. I absolutely adore her and every lunch we spend together is so precious to me

Went to Kyneton with some of the family as another day trip

Christmas shopping time again. So weird to be at the shops and feel sort of normal? I went 4 different times in the span of a week and a half haha

Josh’s birthday! We went to this maze place with has a bunch of big mazes and other fun activities. It was such a perfect day. Then we had dinner with his family.

Got a letter from the IRS saying that I needed to provide them with proof of identity, so that was fun trying to sort that out. We love the outdated US tax system <3

Went to a bridal shower for my friend Katie

Went for another hike with Josh to the mountains

Drove down to Geelong for a friend’s wedding and stayed at my nan’s house

Had a pub dinner and Jackbox night while down in Geelong with The Boys

A good friend of mine was leaving to live in Japan for two years, so I went to her house one last time to say goodbye and chill in her pool and just hang out

God why is it so hard to get a job?

December:

Omg we have made it to December. It truly is a miracle with how this year went tbh. And if you have read this far, thank you but also, how little of a life do you have?

Went to my friend Katie’s wedding. Sort of surreal to go to a wedding during a pandemic but it was fun and I got to see a lot of friends I hadn’t seen in a while

Enjoyed the hot weather and went to the beach a number of times with a variety of friends

Went Christmas shopping, and just shopping in general since it was safe to and shops had finally opened again

Got a job at a talent agency where you get gigs as a paid extra in TV shows and movies, which was pretty cool! I even had a professional photoshoot to get headshots done, something that I had never done before. Glad that I could get some pictures to use on LinkedIn though haha. Still haven’t been cast in anything but here’s hoping.

Had dinner and drinks with Josh, Bec and Trev in the city for the first time since it reopened. God I love Melbourne so much. It is just so magical on balmy summer nights. This was such a special evening, and was so good just to be in the city again

Had a lovely day with Dani, starting with breakfast and then going on a hike before the weather got too hot. We went to Sherbrooke Forest, a place I hadn’t been before, and it was incredibly beautiful

Had a number of job interviews this month too, none of which got back to me which was annoying :/

Now it was heading into the time where every weekend is packed with Christmas do’s so I’ll just collate them in this point. Lots of drinks were consumed and many delicious roast dinners

Had our annual Christmas Carol’s service at church. It was a blessing to be back in the building for the first time since March, and to be able to do something I love (singing) with some of my best friends was the best

Christmas eve I went to my grandma and grandpa’s house (on dad’s side) to help them set up for Christmas lunch. Spending time together just the three of us is so special, and I am so glad I was able to come over and just chat and be in their loving presence. Then that night I went to our 11pm church service to bring in Christmas day. It was a great service and was great to see our kick-ass minister give a sermon face-to-face.

Ok here we go, Christmas was a doozy, let’s go. So Christmas lunch was, as I said, with my dad’s side of the family, which is always a great time. Cracking open crackers and fighting over who’ll get the bottle opener or nail clippers is always a highlight haha. But we had the fucking best roast potatoes I swear. I need to know what my grandma puts into them because I could genuinely eat 20 of them and still have space. Then the rest of the afternoon was spent in a food coma until I went to Josh’s house to spend dinner with his family. Another delicious meal and great banter was what I needed, although I can safely say that I put on at least 5 additional kilos after that day.

The next day the fam and I headed to Geelong to see my mum’s side of the family. Was a great drive down and I listened to all of The Avalanches new album which had just released. Easily the greatest album of the yeah hands-down. So we spent lunch there and absolutely stuffed ourselves with more food. Three Christmas meals really took a toll on me, but I am just blessed as it is to have a loving family and food on the table.

The next day dad, Josh and I headed to the beach to spend that weird time between Christmas and New Year’s. To get there we took the ferry that goes from Queenscliff to Portsea, which is always a fun time, since we don’t often go from one side of the bay to the other (if you don’t know the geography of Victoria I apologise lmao). Mum didn’t come with us as she had some symptoms of Covid, so went home to isolate and get tested. Thankfully she tested negative and she joined us the next day.

Once I got back home I had to prepare the house for my friend Jono who was visiting for new years from SA. Many last-minute chores and cleaning was done haha.

New Years Eve! Went to pick up Jono and my other friend Sarah from the airport and dropped Sarah off at her accommodation and ended up staying there with Jono for a while as this was where the New Year’s party was going to be. Although, in true Victorian fashion, our premier announced that there was going to be a limit of 15 visitors at any house from 5pm that night. Excellent. We love a last-minute change of plans. So we had lunch and spent the afternoon at my friend’s house before heading to a local park to chuck the frisbee and kick the footy around. We also had our second annual NYE trivia competition, which my team lost by 1 point!! Dang I get so competitive, but we will win next year, I can feel it. The new year came through uneventfully, we were in the middle of a game of Scattergories or something like that when someone changed the channel on the TV to see the Sydney fireworks across the screen and like, 4 second left of the countdown. I gave Josh a bog ol’ smooch and gave my friends a big hug. We had done it. 2020 was defeated.

Conclusion (damn this really be an essay tho)

This year was undeniably the hardest year I had ever been through. Going through unemployment for the majority of the year and having no sense of purpose hit me hard but I am entering 2021 with the hope and willingness to get on track with my career. And I think I will be successful. A lot of truly awful things happened around the world this year as well, with the devastating bushfires at the start of the year, the powerful BLM protests, Coronavirus absolutely destroying lives and many, many other global events but through it all, here we are. I hope you all keep well this year and that your 2021 is infinitely better than your 2020.

Song of the Year: Tangerine – Glass Animals

Album of the Year: We Will Always Love You – The Avalanches (I CANNOT stress this enough, but you absolutely must listen to this album!)

TV Show of the Year: The Mandalorian - Season 2

Movie of the Year: Bombshell (the only movie I saw at the cinemas so didn’t have much to go with)

Memory of the Year: Going away with my family and just enjoying time away with each other

Thank you for reading this, if you’ve made it this far, you’re a real one <3

#me #2020 #2020inreview #nostalgia #anactualnovel #iapologise

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blackjacketmuses · 6 years

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hc; kh muses (rg based)

Radiant Garden Holidays

I had this whole big thing typed up on my original Lea blog about this, so I figure I’ll copy past it here because it’s still some great worldbuilding stuff. Like I said in the original post, if your muse is from Radiant Garden and you like these, feel free to reblog/borrow! Just credit me, thanks~

Holidays and festivals in Radiant Garden, chronological order:

Lovers’ Day – Mid February. It’s basically Valentines’ Day. Kids at school exchange chocolates and love letters, and adults tend to go out to dinner and buy each other flowers and chocolates and other romantic things. It’s a lovely little holiday, and a hell of a lot of people enjoy it. If someone’s single, they usually get together for Single’s Parties and drink and eat chocolate and gossip.

Spring Equinox– The first day of spring, so it tends to vary a little when it happens, usually March/April. It’s a nice day, full of open-stall markets that sell treats and knick-knacks, with games, dancing and music in the courtyards and a big maypole set up by the guards. Ansem always used to walk around and visit the citizens and play with the children.

Flower Viewing Day/Garden Day – Basically the Garden’s ‘Founding Day’, the day when all the gardens bloom in full, it’s in mid-April. It’s a very quiet day, mostly; families all go to the open gardens and have picnics, and for the ones that don’t bring food the castle always opens its kitchens and brings out tons and tons of food of their own. The kids all play in the gardens, and there’s a lot of flower crowns and other flower-themed stuff, and Ansem usually makes an appearance and a speech or something.

Summer Festival – It’s a week-long festival in July. There’s open markets filled with food and vendors, tons and tons of ice cream and shitty carnival food, lots and lots of games (water fights, fishing games, balloon games, dart games, any kind of carnival game you can think of), many people put on shows and performances, and it lasts a whole week of revelry and partying, with a finale the last day of a huge, city-wide water balloon fight and a formal party that evening.

Ancestor’s Day – Mid-August. It’s a rather quiet festival, dedicated to the ancestors and deceased family/friends. Most of the day is spent indoors or with loved ones, or visiting graves, and at the end of the day, floating lanterns are all released as tribute to the souls of lost loved ones.

Autumn Equinox – Late September/Early October. It’s basically the first day of autumn, so again, it varies. The festival itself is just basically another Spring Solstice festival, with games and vendors, with dancing and music in the courtyards and a bonfire during the evening. Again, Ansem always makes an appearance to play with the kids and mingle.

All Saint’s Day – Late October; it’s basically Halloween. The whole day – and weeks before, because this is the childrens’ favorite – is spent getting ready and with games like apple bobbing and things like that. Once the sun sets, hordes of youths crowd the streets, dressed in brightly colored costumes of all sorts of creatures and monsters, going door to door for candy and cakes and sweets until three in the morning; it’s a magic hour, and everyone is back home before then. Some adults have costume parties as well, with alcohol and sweets.

Yule – Mid/late December, it’s basically Christmas, nothing is changed from Normal Vanilla Christmas, except without the Judeo-Christian influences; it was brought to the Garden by settlers centuries ago. It takes place over two or three days, usually, and Santa usually comes the last night, with presents opened either that night or the next day. There’s lots of cookie-baking and caroling and soft visiting family and enjoying each others’ company. and every night families have nice large dinners with each other. For those who don’t have families or can’t afford it, Ansem always hosts a Yule Dinner at the castle.

New Year’s Festival – The last day of December/first day of January. Ansem usually holds a New Year’s party at the castle, and almost everyone is there save for those that hold their own parties. The parties go on well into the night, with dancing and drinking, and grown-ups always let their kids stay up until midnight, because Ansem always has magical fireworks set up to celebrate the coming of the new year.

#;hc: lea #;hc: braig #;hc: ienzo

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ancientbrit · 3 years

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Natter #2 6/6/2020

My Dad moved us from Essex (east of London) to Surrey (Southwest of London) when I was 3 months old (there's that steel-trap memory again) My Dad's sister Kate moved in next door with daughter Joyce and Uncle Jim. Joyce and my sister Joan were the same age - three years my senior. Uncle Jim was something of a character even though he was right under the thumb.

To stay sort of independent he had a workshop at the bottom of the back garden and he built a greenhouse nearby. Uncle Jim was a good gardener and he came up with a great method of getting seeds off to a fast start by placing a seed tray directly above a roasting pan filled with water. The roasting pan was held in a sealed box containing a light bulb. The bulb heated the water, warming the seed tray evenly and maintaining an even moisture content. Ergo the seeds germinated very quickly and the seedlings grew away.

Being a gardener and living fairly close by Kew Gardens, he wanted to visit and I was one of the beneficiaries when he took Joyce and me to see the whole garden. This was around 1941 when I was seven and Kew made an enormous impact on me. There was the Chinese Pagoda and the Palm House - an enormous glasshouse which had palms which had grown out through the roof. Inside the Palm House are the huge Victoria water lillies with their enormous round leaves which are capable of supporting the weight of a fully grown man. One thing that truly made a lasting impression on me was when I saw bananas for the very first time - still on the tree. These were distributed to hospitalized children who had compromised digestive systems with intake restrictions. The atmosphere in the Palm House was also memorable too, being humid and warm and it was probably the first time I could remember being thoroughly warm during the winter due to the effects of fuel rationing. Of course, coming outside again felt awful. It was obviously much colder and the humidity on your clothing dried off, sucking heat from you for a time. Uncle Jim was also something of a chrysanthemum addict and he raised some magnificent blooms, which lined the central path in pots from the top to the bottom of his garden. When the family went on holidays I was given the job of looking after these beauties and also the greenhouse. This was really my first experience of working in a greenhouse and I loved it. When Jean and I were first married back in 1963 we moved into a new house that had a generous sized garden. The house was located at the end of a cul-de-sac on one of the corners, so of course, the garden opened up radially.

I wanted a greenhouse, remembering Uncle Jim's and my Dad's down in Devon. When we visited my parents, after the usual greetings and hugs, I used to go straight through the house, into the garden and into the lovely atmosphere of his greenhouse.Talking to him about my proposed purchase he advised thinking hard about what I intended to use the greenhouse to grow, calculate what size that would necessitate and then double it. But it doesn't seem to matter what size you finally buy - it is never big enough.

I finally settled on 20' x 10' as I certainly had the room. The structure was of Redwood which has a similar reputation to Cedar for resistance to rot. When the boxes of goodies arrived I was so excited to get it built, but it took a little more than the weekend I had put aside for that purpose. I did add to the work during the week and finished the following weekend, but a short while later I was working ridiculous hours, 7am - 9pm seven days a week, week after week and I was unable to do anything with the greenhouse apart from planting tomatoes by moonlight. At the end of this year I was sent to Atlanta in Georgia with a load of my friends to finish off the work we had been doing on the Lockheed C5-A wing design. Our wives came with us and we had a wonderful time, traveling all over on weekends, managing to get badly sunburned sometimes in the process. Our work took us about six months and we then returned home to the UK where we found that our company had nothing to offer us - except a contract with Boeing on the 747 In Seattle.

This was a whole new area of the States and Jean and I thought about it for a very short time and signed up. I came over via Vancouver in August, Jean followed on the 20th of December, just in time to catch her breath before we hosted a large Christmas Dinner. I have never been allowed to forget this - understandably. We bought into the oldest house on Mercer Island - built in 1906, which we loved. Loads of garden where I kept bees and raised veggies and fruit Then came 1972 and Boeing famously lowered the boom. I was very lucky as I had quit some months before and was now working downtown with a firm of Architects and Engineers. During the five years here our daughter Heather put in an appearance and we had to return home again as we still had our original house and the mortgage interest rate had been rising over that five years. Partly to counter that rise we had been forced to rent out the house which we did with great reluctance, having seen the state that rented houses were left in after some renters left. Our renter was deliberately nasty - he was just a few sandwiches short of a picnic. He was interested in keeping birds apparently - which he accommodated in the greenhouse, which I had fitted with automatic vents. Of course, when the first warm and sunny day arrived, the vents opened and the birds flew south for the winter. Not to be beaten, this hobbyist fixed the automatic vents by nailing them shut. Although this didn't break the glass, the next warm day did. The vents strained to open against the nails and finally, not to be denied, they burst the vent frames apart, shattering the glass. Eventually, we decided to sell and return to Mercer Island, and I had to bring another greenhouse with us, but because it was going to have to travel I decided to opt for an extruded aluminium, powder-coated structure of the same 20' x 10' size which I had never been able to find time to use. It also was ordered with the same four automatic roof vents as the original,m but as it would be traveling via ship and truck, I decided that including the glass would be too risky.

The saga of it's long time in-crate and subsequent construction I have Nattered about before, so I won't repeat it. Now my greenhouse is doing well, apart from gradually being overshadowed by trees and bushes and I have some judicious pruning to undertake. Before I forget, there is a possibility that we might be holding our September plant sale at the BBG. There will not be accompanying education classes and it all depends on the Governor putting phases 3 & 4 into effect. Also, because it has been sprung at the last minute - sort of - I am sure that there are few who have much in the way of stock to bring to such a sale. Since NPA was considering their own sale around the same time at the same place, I checked with them and we will be able to use a stall at the combined event. As I said, this is dependent on the Gov. making the appropriate decisions, which of course are co-dependent on the infection rate going down. Quite honestly, I cannot imagine that happening following the closeness of all those demonstrators downtown, many, if not all of them shouting and yelling, expelling breath and CV19 if any were infected. Most wore no masks and I think that infection rates have to rise. They have already started to climb again in a couple of places and it seems inevitable to me. Sorry to be a Jonah but I am just running the idea and my thoughts up the flagpole, so that if I come to you a little later and ask if you have any decent plants that would reflect well on us at a sale you won't be able to say you didn't know. See how I am?

This is all a little different to the Natter I intended to send. The original one was 80% completed a couple of days ago when it suddenly disappeared. I have no idea what if any key I hit or what happened to it, but gone it was - and is, not to be found anywhere. I don't think that computers and I are sympatico somehow and I am sure everybody out there is saying how the heck can he keep losing stuff like this? But this time I was not dumping stuff deliberately to grab back my memory. Incidentally my recent appeal for anybody with Natters on hand that could let me have them has been magnificent. Janet sent me a stream from the whole of 2015, Horst has 90 of them saved and Jo & Tom delivered a flash drive to the house containing 126 Natters - count 'em - 0ne hundred and twenty-six., and Carin contributed a whole bunch too I think that they are safe, so thank you all so much. The grand total is now some 160 odd.

Your fearless and overjoyed leader,

Gordon

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fashiontrendin-blog · 6 years

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How I Avoided Sunday Scaries Last Week: A Detailed Account

http://fashion-trendin.com/how-i-avoided-sunday-scaries-last-week-a-detailed-account/

How I Avoided Sunday Scaries Last Week: A Detailed Account

This Sunday Scaries diary starts in the middle of the night…

4:30 a.m.

I wake up to Avi getting out of my bed and leaving the room. I presume he’s moving to the couch, which he occasionally does when he’s having insomnia and is nervous about waking me up. I lay awake for 30 minutes, mind turning over the previous day. When I hear him stir, I say that I’m awake too, and he joins me back in bed. We talk for the next hour about life — what’s keeping us up, what’s exciting us, getting us down — and eventually both drift off to sleep.

9:50 a.m.

I wake up to Avi’s voice: “My mom’s flight just landed.”

“What time is it?”

“9:50.”

“She’s early.”

“Yeah. I gotta go. I’ll call you.”

He pulls on his pants, kisses my check and is gone.

10 a.m.

I lay in bed and consider falling back asleep. I had a rough couple nights of sleep and have been playing catch-up. When I realize it’s not going to happen, I succumb to the blue light and check my phone. It’s dead. The memory of last night returns: My charger wasn’t plugging in properly, as if there was something stuck in the inlet. I grab my phone, my sewing kit, and make my way to the couch.

10:21 a.m.

I’ve been using various tools to dig something out of the charging port of my phone for 20 minutes. It looks like cookie dough. I’m squinting and trying to see inside. I don’t test it until I’m confident it feels clean. When I finally try the charger, it works. Hurray! Blessed be the fruit.

10:24 a.m.

I decide to make myself a smoothie bowl, which have a reputation for being snooty and expensive, but which I think might be the hidden secret of breakfast. The ones I make are cheap, healthy-ish, delicious and don’t require fresh food. Here’s how I make them:

-One frozen banana (I keep a bowl of them in my freezer at all times) -A big handful of whatever frozen berries I have on hand (usually blueberries, strawberries and raspberries) -A few glugs of almond milk (I buy cartons two at a time and they last forever) -A tablespoon of flax seeds (or chia seeds, or whatever seeds) -Blend until smooth -Top with honey, gluten-free granola, goji berries

As the blender roars, I make up a story in my head about my neighbors hating the all-too-frequent sound and having an inside joke about how much they hate me. When it’s done, I return to the couch with my bowl. I reach for the remote but stop myself and grab a book instead. I’m reading Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh.

“Reading makes me happier than TV,” I announce to an empty room, like a weirdo.

10:45 a.m.

I’m still reading Eileen. It’s good.

11 a.m.

I suddenly occurs to me, mid-page, that there were two Man Repeller stories I was supposed to finish editing on Friday but didn’t. I drag my computer to the couch and get to work on editing what will eventually become 12 Home Decor Tips I Can’t Stop Thinking About and Why “Black Girl Magic” Doesn’t Always Sit Right With Me.

11:22 a.m.

My brother Andy FaceTimes me mid-edit. He’s smooshed into his couch too. We rehash the picnic we had last night at Transmitter Park. He had to leave early and wants to know what he missed. He has a general existential fear of missing out, which always makes me laugh because I don’t know anyone who does as much fun and interesting stuff as he does.

12:35 p.m.

I finish editing and suddenly remember I’m supposed to be recording my day today for Man Repeller’s Sunday Scaries franchise. I spend the next 15 minutes documenting the above. Now I need to rush to get ready to meet up with Avi and his mom for lunch.

12:55 p.m.

I shower off but decide not to do anything with my hair as it looks fine. For my skin, I put on EasyDew Active Soothing Serum mixed with The Nue Co vitamin-C power to start, followed by Honest Beauty Nourishing Lotion, then Glossier sunscreen mixed with a drop of Drunk Elephant bronzing liquid, and finish with Glossier Cloud Paint in Haze. Then I move to my closet to get dressed.

1:19 p.m.

Omg. That took me forever and I don’t even like my outfit. I panicked! How does one dress for a day with one’s boyfriend’s mother when one has no idea what the day entails? After trying a basic dress and sandals and realizing I felt entirely unlike myself, I put on navy blue wide-leg pants I haven’t worn in a year and a black puff-sleeve shirt. I feel very whatever about this outfit but I have no further time to deliberate or I’ll be late!

1:25 p.m.

IT IS VERY HOT. Why am I wearing pants? Why am I wearing such dark colors? I’m fired.

1:42 p.m.

I arrive at Avi’s looking so hot and sweaty his mother immediately dotes on me — bringing me water, sitting me in front of the air conditioner, etc. It’s very sweet. Avi says he’s calling a car because we’re going to Jackson Heights! As they put on their shoes, I run downstairs and buy myself an iced coffee.

1:58 p.m.

Avi, his mother Rita and I are squeezed into the back of a car on our way to Queens. Rita and I are discussing how chubby Avi was as a baby. She says her doctor put him on a diet at six weeks old! Apparently he was taking down double the milk he was supposed to. This delights me to no end.

2:25 p.m.

We arrive at Sri Maha Vallabha GanaPati, a Hindu temple in Queens — said to be one of the first Hindu temples in the U.S. (Also, did you know some people call Queens one of the most diverse places on Earth? The whole neighborhood is incredible and feels completely different depending on where in the borough you are.)

We remove our shoes before entering the temple and I take note of a sign that says shorts and ripped jeans are prohibited. I’m suddenly thankful for my full-coverage outfit. Avi and I walk around looking at the shrines, leaving his mother to pray on her own. I’m struck by one of the plaques that reads: “When I study, grant me success (by means of right understanding) always.” I make a mental note; I like that definition of success.

2:53 p.m.

After we leave, we head to the temple canteen for lunch, which Avi heard serves the best Dosa in New York. The canteen is underground, looks like a cafeteria and smells delicious. We order too much food, confirm it is indeed the best dosa, and spend the meal discussing Indian politics, Avi’s mother’s argument with Avi’s father about what car to buy next, and Avi’s mother’s similarities to my mother.

4:09 p.m.

After a long lunch, we head out. Next we are going to Patel Brothers, which is the largest Indian American supermarket chain in the U.S. It’s a mile away. We decide to walk because it’s beautiful out. I’m not worried about a thing, except that my brother missed out on lunch. (He’s been talking about going to Jackson Heights for months.)

Avi and I are laughing because we can’t seem to get 10 feet without his mother stopping to identify a plant and discuss its properties. It’s very charming.

Avi: “Mom, you’re too Michigan. Have you ever walked a mile straight?”

Rita: “This is the simple life, Avi. You should learn it.”

4:28 p.m.

We arrive at Patel Brothers. I follow the two of them around like a puppy, laughing in delight as they argue about things like whether Avi needs a 50-pound bag of rice. At times I can’t tell who is trolling who.

5:04 p.m.

All done! When we walk outside, it feels like it’s going to rain, so I call us a car home. The train would take double the time, unfortunately. When it arrives, we pile in for a 40-minute ride back to Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, where we both live.

5:32 p.m.

On the drive home, I feel a vague fondness for driving on the highway. I don’t do it much. The car is lulling me to sleep. Our middle-of-the-night antics are catching up to me.

6:11 p.m.

We are home! Took much longer than expected. I immediately crank Avi’s A/C unit and put on one of his sweatshirts — I’m in the mood to be cozy. Avi puts on a Michael Bublé holiday music video as a joke to tease his mom, who he claims loves Bublé, which she denies. We pretend it’s Christmas for three minutes while Rita makes us tea.

6:40 p.m.

Tea’s up. Avi puts on Jaws for our afternoon nap time, for no discernible reason.

6:57 p.m.

Wow, the aesthetic of Jaws is amazing. The whole thing looks like it’s been run through a Huji filter, and the clothes are on point too. Avi gets up to cook, leaving me and Rita on the couch as she critiques every scene aloud, which is making me laugh.

Rita: “This is bad direction, no?”

7:47 p.m.

The light is dwindling outside. The house is filling with the smell of garlic. Tomorrow is Monday. I wish tomorrow was Sunday instead.

8:38 p.m.

I decide I would watch any movie with Rita commentary turned on.

8:45 p.m.

Jaws ends right as Avi brings us plates of food: sesame wings over rice with pickled carrots (a recipe he’s been perfecting this month that he found on Smitten Kitchen). He puts on cooking videos while we eat. He’s a good TV host — always picking random entertaining things to put on during downtime. The three of us watch a video of a person making cheesecake, and then cookies, and then a home-made iced latte. During the third one, as the guy goes to great lengths to roast his own coffee beans, Rita expresses her disapproval:

Rita: “No way.” Avi: “What ma?” Rita: “Why would you do all this? You can just buy one.” Avi: “He’s not doing it because he wants a coffee, he’s doing it because he wants to do it.” Me: “He’s stopping and smelling the roses!” Rita: “I think he needs to go to a third world country and see what’s really important.”

Fair enough.

9:17 p.m.

I wash Avi’s dishes as a thank you for cooking for us and then pack up to head home. My eyes are stinging, I think from the sunscreen I put on earlier that morning; it’s making me feel exhausted. Or maybe I’m just genuinely exhausted.

9:27 p.m.

Avi walks me to the train and waits on the platform with me until it comes. We chat and reflect on the day until the very last second, at which point I kiss him and run onto the train car. He watches me go. It’s all very old-timey.

9:41 p.m.

Hello home! Hello Bug.

10 p.m.

I put on PJs, brush my teeth and do my skincare routine right away because I know if I sit down on the couch now I’ll never get up. On my skin, I use Paula’s Choice cleansing oil to start, then Glossier face wash followed by Peach & Lilly toner, and then finish by mixing Caudalie face cream with a couple drops of Drunk Elephant face oil (I’ve been dry lately).

10:11 p.m.

I sit down on the couch and solve the Rubick’s cube on my coffee table in under three minutes, my latest party trick. Someone sent a Rubick’s cube to the Man Repeller office this summer and I took it home because I’ve always wanted to learn how to solve one. About a month ago, Avi and I decided to dedicate an entire night to learning. Hunched over a Youtube tutorial we figured it out together, and we’ve spent the last few weeks trying to beat each other’s times.

10:35 p.m.

I’m in bed now. I set my alarm for therapy tomorrow morning. I normally go on Friday mornings but I was sick last week so my therapist kindly rescheduled. I grab Eileen to read myself to sleep.

10:37 p.m.

Wait! I forgot to meditate. I open Headspace and do a five-minute session laying down, which I think is cheating. It’s a miracle I didn’t fall asleep.

10:42 p.m.

Okay, now it’s actually bedtime. Night!

23 PHOTOS click for more

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ancientbrit · 4 years

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Natter #3 12th June 2020

Gordon Polson <[email protected]> Fri, Jun 12, 11:12 PM My Dad moved us from Essex (east of London) to Surrey (Southwest of London) when I was 3 months old (there's that steel-trap memory again) Mty Dad's sister Kate moved in next door with daughter Joyce and Uncle Jim. Joyce and my sister Joan were the same age - three years my senior. Uncle Jim was something of a character even though he was right under the thumb. To stay sort of independent he had a workshop at the bottom of the back garden and he built a greenhouse nearby. Uncle Jim was a good gardener and he came up with a great method of getting seeds off to a fast start by placing a seed tray directly above a roasting pan filled with water. The roasting pan was held in a sealed box containing a light bulb. The bulb heated the water, warming the seed tray evenly and maintaining an even moisture content. Ergo the seeds germinated very quickly and the seedlings grew away.Being a gardener and living fairly close by Kew Gardens, he wanted to visit and I was one of the beneficiaries when he took Joyce and me to see the whole garden. This was around 1941 when I was seven and Kew made an enormous impact on me. There was the Chinese Pagoda and the Palm House - an enormous glasshouse which had palms which had grown out through the roof. Inside the Palm House are the huge Victoria water lillies with their enormous round leaves which are capable of supporting the weight of a fully grown man.One thing that truly made a lasting impression on me was when I saw bananas for the very first time - still on the tree. These were distributed to hospitalized children with intake restrictions. The atmosphere in the Palm House was also memorable too, being humid and warm and it was probably the first time I could remember being thoroughly warm due to the effects of fuel rationing.Of course, coming outside again felt awful. It was obviously much colder and the humidity on your clothing dried off, sucking heat from you for a time. Uncle Jim was also something of a chrysanthemum addict and he raised some magnificent blooms, which lined the central path from the top to the bottom of the garden in pots.When the family went on holidays I was given the job of looking after these beauties and also the greenhouse. This was really my first experience of working in a greenhouse and I loved it. When Jean and I were first married back in 1963 we moved into a new house that had a generous sized garden. The house was located at the end of a cul-de-sac on one of the corners, so of course, the garden opened up radially. I wanted a greenhouse, remembering Uncle Jim's and my Dad's down in Devon. When we visited my parents, after the usual greetings and hugs, I used to go straight through the house, into the garden and into the lovely atmosphere of his greenhouse.Talking to him about my proposed purchase he advised thinking hard about what I intended to use the greenhouse to grow, calculate what size that made, and then double it. It doesn't seem to matter what size you finally buy - it is never big enough.I finally settled on 20' x 10' as I certainly had the room. The structure was of Redwood which has a similar reputation to Cedar for resistance to rot. When the boxes of goodies arrived I was so excited to get it built, but it took a little more than the weekend I had put aside for that purpose. I did add to the work during the week and finished the following weekend, but just later I was working ridiculous hours, 7 - 9 seven days a week, week after week and I was unable to do anything with the greenhouse apart from planting tomatoes by moonlight.At the end of this year I was sent to Atlanta in Georgia with a load of my friends to finish off the work we had been doing on Lockheeds C5-A wing design. Our wives came with us and we had a wonderful time, travelling all over on weekends, managing to get badly sunburned sometimes in the process.Our work took us about six months and we then returned home to the UK where we found that the company had nothing to offer us - except a contract with Boeing on the 747. This was a whole new area of the States and Jean and I thought about for a very short time and signed up.I came over via Vancouver in August, Jean followed on the 20th of December, just in time to catch her breath before we hosted a large Christmas Dinner. I have never been allowed to forget this - understandably. We bought into the oldest house on Mercer Island - built in 1906, which we loved. Loads of garden where I kept bees and raised veggies and fruit Then came 1972 and Boeing famously lowered the boom. I was very lucky as I had quit some months before and was now working downtown with a firm of Architects and engineers. During the five years here our daughter Heather put in an appearance and we had to return home again as we still had our original house and the mortgage interest rate had been rising over that five years. Partly to counter that rise we had been forced to rent out the house which we did with great reluctance, having seen the state that rented houses were left in after the renters left. Our renter was deliberately nasty - he was just a few sandwiches short of a picnic. He was interested in keeping birds - which he accommodated in the greenhouse. Of course, when the first warm and sunny day arrived, the vents opened and the birds flew south for the winter. Not to be beaten, this hobbyist fixed the automatic vents by nailing them shut. Although this didn't break the glass, the next warm day did. The vents strained to open against the nails and finally, not to be denied, they burst the vent frames apart, shattering the glass. Eventually, we decided to sell and return to Mercer Island, but I wanted to bring another greenhouse with us, but because it was going to have to travel I decided to opt for an extruded aluminium, powder-coated structure of the same 20' x 10' size which I had never been able to find time to use.It also was ordered with the same four automatic roof vents as the original.The saga of it's long time in-crate and subsequent construction I have Nattered about before, si I won't repeat it.Now my greenhouse is doing well, apart from gradually being overshadowed by trees and bushes and I have some judicious pruning to undertake. Before I forget, there is a possibility that we might be holding our September plant sale at the BBG. There will not be an accompanying education part and it all depends on the Governor putting phases 3 & 4 into effect.Also, because it has been sprung at the last minute - sort of - I am sure that there are few who have much in the way of stock to bring to such a sale. Since NPA was considering their own sale around the same time at the same place, I checked with them and we will be able to use a stall at the combined event. As I said, this is dependant on the Gov.making the appropriate decisions, which of course are dependant on the infection rate going down. Quite honestly, I cannot imagine that happening following the closeness of all those demonstrators, many, if not all of them shouting and yelling, expelling breath and CV19 if any were infected. Many wore no masks and I think that infection rates have to rise. They have already started to climb again in a couple of places and it seems inevitable to me. Sorry to be a Jonah but I am just running the idea and my thoughts up the flagpole, so that if I come to you a little later and ask if you have any decent plants that would reflect well on us at a sale you won't ge able to say you didn't know. See how I am?This is all a little different to the Natter I intended to send. The original one was 80% completed a couple of days ago when it suddenly disappeared. I have no idea what if any key I hit or what happened to it, but gone it was - and is, not to be found anywhere. I don't think that computers and I are sympatico somehow and I am sure everybody out there is saying how the heck can he keep losing stuff like this? But this time I was not dumping stuff deliberately to grab back my memory. Incidentally my recent appeal for anybody with Natters on hand that could let me have them has been magnificent. Janet sent me a stream from the whole of 2015, Horst has 90 of them saved and Jo & Tom delivered a flash drive to the house containing 126 Natters - count 'em - 0ne hundred and twenty-six. I think that they are safe, so thank you all so much.Your fearless and overjoyed leader,Gordon

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