Summer in the city

Summer afternoon—summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.

Henry James

Five minute lovely list

Right now I'm enjoying:

~ Taking 5 minutes...

~ Early cherries from Turkey - I love, love, love cherries and they have such a short season. I am at risk of over-indulging.

~ Intermittent sunshine. I wouldn't exactly call it Summer but there have been glimpses.

~ Four wheels on suitcases. Have I mentioned this? Changed my travelling life, bearing in mind that when I'm not on planes I'm mostly on public transport and always my own porter. Seriously, who would have thought those two extra wheels would make such a difference?! Revolutionary!

~ Six days in a row working from home to look forward to. Sleeping in my own bed... what a pleasure.

♥

It doesn't take much...

But even if I'm left high and dry at the end of this wild journey, just taking it is a great feeling.

Olivia Wilde

Even after all these years, and what must amount to hundreds of flights (I took my first alone as an unaccompanied minor, to visit my grandparents, at the age of 5) I still love the little kits one gets on planes, with a pair of socks, an eye mask, earplugs, toothbrush and teeny tiny toothpaste in them*. Whether I use the goodies or not, whether they're really tacky or a bit more stylish in presentation, it makes no difference. In my mind (even when I fly for work) they are inextricably linked with adventure.

I really love this one's name (just in case we aren't sure of its purpose?) and it got me thinking... wouldn't it be fab if everyone could carry a tiny feel good kit around that, on less than great days, senses exactly what's needed and when it's opened up, there it is?! If I could have a magical job, I think it might be to create these... what fun!

The contents of mine would vary from day to day - some days a hug, some days a good book, some days a nice long bubble bath or a nap in a hammock... every day, chocolate.

How 'bout yours?

* I've never yet flown business or first class and I bet their feel good kits are amazing! It's on my list... just once, just for the experience (oh, okay... and the kit! ;)

Namibian Retreat

Touch the earth, love the earth, honour the earth, her plains,
her valleys, her hills, her deserts, and her seas; rest your spirit in her solitary places.
Henry Beston

Solace sought (and found) where sand and sky combine to create space - immense space, heart space, breathing space. 

Just sorting through the sensations, impressions, and the photographs. More to follow...

Finding the way back, or is it forward?

The first principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you're the easiest person to fool. 

Richard Feynman

(1918-1988)

I used to believe that anything was better than nothing. Now I know that sometimes nothing is better.
Glenda Jackson

(1936)

When "Why not do it?" barely outweights "Why do it?" - don't do it.

Mignon McLaughlin

(1913-1983)

It's all right letting yourself go as long as you can get yourself back.

Mick Jagger

(1943)

Good for the body is the work of the body, and good for the soul is the work of the soul, and good for either is the work of the other.

Henry David Thoreau

(1817-1862)

In this age, which believes that there is a short cut to everything, the greatest lesson to be learned is that the most difficult way is, in the long run, the easiest.

Henry Miller

(1891-1980)

Toss your dashed hopes not into a trash bin but into a drawer where you are likely to rummage some bright morning.

Robert Brault

It's a process...

Thankfulness, every day - Three

Today I'm feeling grateful at a very basic level.

I'm grateful for those little everyday things that I carry in my bag, which either make my life a bit more comfortable - like my Burt's Bees lip balm - or are just plain practical, a pleasure to use, or make me smile - like my cheerful little chocolate milk recycled purse, which is all three of the latter.

Other things that qualify are a Muji notebook and coloured pens, a small pack of tissues, a beautiful and tactile keyring, and a lovely rich hand cream (at the moment I'm loving this one from M&S)... all items I use and enjoy every single day. Being able to have these things that I like is a small luxury, for which I am thankful.

Red reflections

By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; 

and third by experience, which is the bitterest.

Confucius

(551BC-479BC)

I know of no more disagreeable sensation than to be left feeling generally angry without anybody in particular to be angry at.

Frank Moore

(1865-1925)

Loss and possession, death and life are one,

There falls no shadow where there shines no sun.

Hilaire Belloc

(1870-1953)

Struggling a bit to see colour in the world today, although I know it's there. 

Sometimes one just has to look a little harder and be prepared to accept subtleties and shadows I guess. Not necessarily a bad thing.

And tomorrow's Friday...

*other seekers of red in Poppytalk's  Autumn colour week to be found here.

Colour week - it's a rainbow 'round here

The true harvest of my life is intangible - a little star dust caught, 

a portion of the rainbow I have clutched.

Henry David Thoreau

(1817-1862)

When I daydream about my perfect home it broadly includes a white, light-drenched space with a small lush garden and an ocean view. More often than not it's decorated with lots of natural materials in light neutrals, accented with rich but subtle colours. Strange then that I find myself living in a city-centre apartment, without even a tiny balcony let alone a garden, a view of a city skyline, not a lot of natural light, and decorated in quite dark neutrals and bright jewel colours. And I'm happy here. What both have in common I guess is that they are calm and peaceful spaces that reflect the things and the people I love. If I were living in my dream home I would have posted whites today. But what I see around me is a rainbow. And living in a rainbow is not such a bad place to be.

~ several years ago now I moved to the Eternal City to live for a few years and whilst there I met a kindred-spirit, someone who showed me the ropes, shared her days with me, and gave me some of my happiest and most enduring memories of the place. I had no idea at the time how profoundly this meeting would impact on my life. She and her husband returned to Canada, I went to France and then came to the UK but we remain friends, joined at the heart across the distance. Joined at the heart I like to believe, like the city where we met, eternally. Even at a distance she enriches my life, loves and supports me unconditionally and gifts me with her thoughtfulness and a warm deep wisdom, always when I need it most.  She has also given me some of the things I treasure most and love to have around my home, including this incredible glass colour wheel, made especially for me. When it catches the light, I think of her and the creativity that runs in her veins and the love that she embodies. And it makes me smile. Thank you E.

~ we've already visited my bookshelves once this week and I return to this one now because it's a rainbow of colour and content. My book collection is vast and eclectic. I love books. I enjoy electronic media but I hope we never ever move away entirely from books made of paper and ink. Books that we hold in our hands, that we keep on shelves, that we revisit like good friends for years and years. Those who love books will get this. Those who don't will not. Let's just leave it at that.

~ last night a friend turned thirty and we celebrated with a party where everyone was required to wear a wacky wig. Fancy dress for heads. It was fun - great fun. This gift bag, hanging on my living room door was waiting to leave for the party... where, like it, there was a swirl of rainbow colour and style. I love to wear a party wig and I think that every opportunity to do so should be taken. Wig-wearing releases the alter-egos of people, usually their bolder, sparklier sides, and I love to observe those at play. Mine was red, very bright red, and curly and big. Very big. I was channelling someone who might have hung out with Dolly Parton in her big hair heyday and it was fab. Perhaps I'll model it for red day of our next colour week.

~ There's something magical about a kaleidoscope, isn't there? I'd like to collect them and so far I have two. More than one is a collection, right? This tiny one, a souvenir from a visit to science museum, offers up a rainbow both inside and out. It always makes me smiley.

~ today's breakfast. Breakfast is my favourite meal of the day to eat out - love it - but I'm not always very good about eating it at home. I know that's not good, so since I've moved I'm trying to make an effort to do so more regularly and one of the ways I find makes it easier for me to stick to this resolution is to make it up on a little tray. This morning I started my day with some red berry tea, cereal with milk and a sparkling blue sky - perfect.

And that rounds up colour week. I've enjoyed having the opportunity to look for the colourful comfort and sparkle in my living space. It's interesting to see one's own world through the lens with this kind of emphasis. It's shown me things and made me think about them as I might not otherwise have done. And it's given me something positive and creative to focus my attention on, which is always a good thing and just what I needed. Like Thoreau, I realise that the true harvest of my life to-date is intangible but that the things that surround me remind me of these, and facilitate the creation of them too - love, friendship, fun, learning, contentment... happiness. A rainbow of beauty and emotion. Thank you to lovely Lisa who initiated and hosted our colour explorations and to everyone who popped by to say hello, and who shared the beauty of colour in their worlds for our enjoyment. It has been a pleasure.

A happy, rainbow-filled weekend to you!

Colour week - at home with radiant reds

Red is the ultimate cure for sadness

Bill Blass

(1922-2002)

Sparkle and comfort at home, in red. Day one of colour week.

Red, I've discovered, is the accent colour that links my room's schemes together. Paired with turquoise, or orange, or purple (my three favourite colours), deep and subtle or bold and bright - radiant red is everywhere in my home. In China and parts of India and Africa red is the colour of celebration, symbolising good luck, but in most Western cultures it's associated with danger and masculinity, neither of which seem especially appropriate for my space. I don't know why I'm drawn to it exactly and I know it's not for everyone as a decor choice but, no matter what the shade, it's the colour of strength and fire at the core of my heart and always lifts my spirits.

There was plenty to choose from but yesterday I particularly noticed these bits of brightness as I went about my day...

~ a fragile bauble catching the sunlight and beautiful butterflies from a friend dancing in its glow - I see these first as I open my eyes after my Sunday nap, and every day when I wake.

~ a hand-blown lantern in my living room reminds me every time I pass it of the alluring ancient city where I bought it - and the special time spent there, with three very special people. Good memories.

~ essential kitchen appliances for the production of tea and toast, two of my comfort staples - shiny and new in a cherry hue.

~ a pretty dishcloth makes doing the dishes just that teensy bit more appealing - and helps keep the sink empty, which is how I prefer it.

~ glistening and glittery gifts from loved ones - these casting soft red reflections - surround me and make me smile and sparkle on the inside too...

And so the colour fun begins... for me it's all about home comfort and heart sparkle and I can't wait to check out this evening how my fellow colour week players and our lovely hostess have found and interpreted red in their worlds. It's bound to be a treat.

Happy, vibrant and radiant red Monday to you!
♥

p.s. Lisa has also set up a Flickr group for colour week enthusiasts here

I dreamt of sweet peas and a wall...

...both red. 

I could smell the sweetpeas (lovely!) and there was a rich warm glow off the wall. I remember thinking I'd like to paint a wall in my home red (I'd like one in deep peacock blue too) and that was it. I don't remember anything else. 

I wonder what it means.

Perhaps the sublimation of my anger into something less hostile but still red? Maybe something far more prosaic, given that I'll be moving home quite soon? I don't know. It had a good vibe though so I'll hold on to that and hope it wasn't one of those reverse meaning dreams. Like an upside down Tarot card.

[thank you Flickr Peeps for the perfect images to capture it]

Dare to

Too early for bedtime?

Happiness is the absence

of striving for happiness.

Chuang-Tzu

(369-286BC)

It's almost 6pm on Friday evening and I arrived home about an hour ago, had a quick shower, changed into a set of lovely clean and cozy flannel pyjamas and made myself a cup of tea. All very exciting I know but exactly what was needed after a day out in the icy world that's ours right now. It's a real treat to be home at such a reasonable hour and I could literally feel my marrow thawing and my shoulders relaxing as I settled into weekend mode.

I sat and sipped my tea and considered what I might do this evening as I have no plans to meet friends or to work and nothing that's urgently demanding my attention for a few hours. The evening spread out before me, full of potential... delicious. And then I thought, "what I really feel like doing now is taking my book and going to bed." Of course, on the very next beat I dismissed the idea as daft because, honestly, who goes to bed at 5pm? Even most babies and toddlers are not in bed at this hour of their day.

But why not? Is one of the joys of being a grown-up, with no-one to answer to but myself, not precisely that I can eat ice-cream for breakfast, watch movies at 3am and yes, go to bed at 5pm if that's what I feel like doing? I'm not suggesting that any of these things are particularly healthy behaviours if they were to happen all the time, but I reckon, every now and again, a little of what's not healthy, is healthy!

So I'm sending you wishes for a great weekend - may it be filled with whatever makes you happiest. And I'm sending you these wishes from under my duvet...

Happy Friday lovely ones!

♥

When in doubt...

...wear red

Bill Blass

(1922-2002)

[Flickr loves]

Talk of travel...

...makes me happy!

Not as happy as planning a trip and travelling itself, of course, but it does lift my spirits just to think about somewhere interesting and exciting to go to. Or to talk about it. Or to share a conversation with people about places already visited, by them, or me, or both.

Today at lunchtime a colleague and I chatted about his forthcoming visit to India, where he will be attending a family wedding in a few weeks. We talked about his holiday plans and he shared with me how he felt like a new sector physically opened in his mind, one not previously accessed, when he first travelled as an adult to somewhere that he had not been before... His whole demeanor - usually quite reserved - changed as the pleasure of what this brings him was apparent in word and tone and gesture. He apparently went to India quite often as a child and in his youth but always to visit his family in their homes. Fly in, one city, one town, fly out. Only a couple of years ago did he and his wife travel over and take a little extra time either side of visiting family to explore the country a bit more. And the travel bug bit him. Good and hard. Fortunately for him, it bit his wife too.

We had a lovely chat. We compared notes and reminisced about places we've both been and shared experiences and adventures from places that one or the other has not yet been. We talked about our travel wishlists and regretted that a lifetime would probably not be long enough to fulfill them unless perhaps we could find a way to earn a living as travellers and live out our days that way.

Mostly we talked about India and South East Asia, as we have more common ground covered there, and it made me long for the colours, sights, smells, textures and flavours of these places. The heat.

These things make me happy. Even just talking about them makes me happy.

As do the colours that conjour them in my mind's eye - rich red, saffron yellow, golden orange. Gorgeous!

Travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.

Miriam Beard

Two of the greatest gifts we can give our children are roots and wings.

Hodding Carter

(1907-1972)

Let your memory be your travel bag.

Alexander Solzhenitsyn

(1918-2008)

To see what's making other people happy today check out the happy week list here...

[Flickr credits]

Racy Reds

I've just spent two nights in a very boring hotel for work, but what a delight to be able to browse all the wonderful colour that people are finding in the world this week. I love it!

So today we have red... Red and I have a history that hasn't always been an easy one. I have red hair. And for some reason that led me to believe that I should never wear the colour, so for years I avoided it, even though I was drawn to it. And then I went with a group of colleagues to a seminar on 'Personal Presentation for Corporate Women' (yes, I used to be one in a former incarnation) and part of the session was about colour and how red was an indicator of strength and confidence that every woman seeking success should have in her business wardrobe if she wanted to be taken seriously by her male counterparts (it was the 80s!). Anyway, long story short, I hated the seminar, and am no longer in a corporate environment, but I took it as an opportunity (officially sanctioned) to buy a red silk scarf... and I never looked back. Red and I made friends.

Guitar wire beads - I bought this set of beaded bracelets in the same shop as the above-mentioned scarf. The scarf is no longer with me (I am actually not sure what happened to it) but the shop remains an absolute favourite to this day. And I love these beads and baubles strung on guitar wires. I've had these for almost ten years now and I still enjoy wearing them. The combination of the deep reds with the subtle metals is just lovely and they make a very gentle tinkling noise when I move. 

African butterflies - another favourite bracelet, a souvenir of a trip to Namibia. I was working there for several weeks some years ago and was fortunate enough to spend the weekends travelling with my hosts to see some of the country. What a magical place it is. I'm generally not an arid landscape person - lushness and greenery make me very happy - but Namibia converted me to the desert. It's indescribable. Sea and desert adjacent to one another, sand dunes the size of mountains, entire plants the size of a coin, and the most vivid sunrises and sunsets I have ever seen over land, to inadequately name but a few features. I love this bracelet because it brings to mind that beautiful place and I most recently wore it to a work-related dinner function with a black dress, and several of these tiny feather butterflies in my hair...

A touch of rose - I love having my prettiest accessories where I can see them even when I am not using them and so I have these occasionally-used evening bags and the red flower corsages hanging against the wall in my bedroom where I can enjoy them every day. They dangle from the bottom of a heart-shaped wire frame, designed to hold cards or photographs I believe, which was my gift from my office Secret Santa last year. I still don't know who the Secret Santa was but I love the gift. It's probably not something I'd have bought for myself, especially in that particular shape (not wild about heart-shaped things for some reason) but it actually looks really pretty against the wall and I've found its great for hanging bits & pieces like this on!

A stopped watch - I don't wear a watch - never have - but I own several. And I love them all. Gifts to me from special people over the years, who just don't understand how I manage without one, they are all beautiful and different. All of them have batteries or winders that have now run down so that they no longer work. This one with the red leather strap is one of the very prettiest, a gift from my sweet brother, R. I think of him whenever I see it and although it doesn't tell me the time, it tells me that he loves me and he knows how happy red makes me. And I still manage to be punctual. Always.

Red is for Tango - I love a paisley print and it works so well on this lovely skirt, which is one of my favourites for dancing (and which apparently needs a press!). It's soft but slightly fitted, with a bit of a flirty flare at the hemline and allows great movement - perfect for an Argentinean Tango with a tall, dark Tanguero. Sadly neither Tango nor Tanguero have made an appearance in my life recently but if the opportunity arises, at least I'll already have the skirt. 

Red comes in several flavours - I snapped this shot of the handbags I have hanging on the back of the door in my guest room and without even having to rearrange them, they reveal that I have reasonably eclectic tastes in pattern, and that I'm quite fond of red. The one on the left is a great shopper that came as free gift with a magazine (don't you love those?) and has proved really useful. I love it. It's big and strong (can hold a week's worth of groceries) and the graphic floral design really cheers up a shopping trip. The leather one with the embossed butterflies and flowers is just big enough to hold everything a girl needs on an average working day, including a fold-up brolly, and who can resist a butterfly bag that still manages to look quite smart? Not me. The one on the right was something I bought when I was living in Paris. It's obviously not particularly Parisian but it reminds me always of that amazing city and how lucky I was to spend time there. And I like the pattern, the muted tones and the fact that it's beaded but still quite casual. I love to wear it with jeans. It's something that people often remark on and a year or so ago I was waiting in a queue in Marks & Spencer's when a woman came up to me and asked, in a lovely French accent, where I'd bought it. When I said Paris, she gave one of those expressive Gallic shrugs with a sigh, as if to say, "Aah, I should have known" and wandered off. That made me smile.

Reds can be invisible too - in the foreground here is the little zipped pouch that I use when I travel to hold whichever of my accessories I'm taking with me, most recently that included this wristband that I wore yesterday, and which I just unpacked from my little suitcase. In the background are two of the fragrances I like - one is a sample of Lauren, by Ralph Lauren (great for travelling, samples), and the other a gift from a friend who understood my love of vanilla and woody, spiciness and mixed this lovely warm fragrance specially for me. What an unusual and very personal gift. I was surprised and delighted! Although she's now returned to Australia, and the scent is almost finished, I think of her whenever I wear it or look at the beautiful red bottle she chose to put it in. Like all things, I have a variety of fragrances I wear, ranging from the green - light and fresh - to the red - warm and spicy - depending on my mood, the season and the alter-ego who's making the selection on the day. I have no signature scent, except that a hint of vanilla is something they almost all have in common. It's my favourite. I believe that less is definitely more when it comes to perfumes (it should be a subliminal sensory experience rather than an overt one I think, don't you?) but an outfit just isn't really complete until the invisible accessory has been added. And some days a red scent is just the thing. Now what shall I wear today?

Have a happy red day!

♥

P.S. It's not that I forgot about pink. I literally do not have a single item of pink in my wardrobe. There's a story behind that too, and it has to do with red.

Picnic perfection

Something that makes me indescribably happy is a picnic. My childhood was filled with them - simple, carefree meals in luscious gardens, riverine valleys, roadside fields, ancient forests, red sand deserts.... One of my very earliest memories is of my Nana with a tea towel spread across her knees, peeling an apple for me as we watched the sunset gathering of impala, giraffe and zebra at a watering hole. I can smell that air and taste that apple still. 

I celebrated my coming of age with a luxurious Edwardian champagne & strawberries affair alongside a mountain lake; discovered love over bread, cheese and philosophy shared on a beach; listened to symphonies soar with friends and family against a backdrop of magical mountains and the flavour of roasted bell-pepper and avocado salad; watched stars shoot through the Milky Way with the taste of toasted marshmallows on my tongue and the scent of cherry orchards in the air; snuggled in a sleeping bag under trees that smelt of resin, wearing every article of clothing I had with me against the cold, and shared a sandwich with a stranger.... 

So many lovely picnics across the landscape of my life. And I look forward to many more. There's something about the act of such casual yet intimate sharing of food and drink in the open air that makes everything delicious, conversation flow, and hearts open wide. Even when being outdoors is not an option, a carpet picnic with friends is one of my favourite ways to entertain. 

In fulfillment of my role as bridesmaid/matron-of-honour later this year I am, along with three others, planning the 'hen do', which will take place in June. There will be about 25 of us and we're going to Stratford-upon-Avon for the day. We'll spend the afternoon cruising up the river Avon, have a riverside or boat picnic (depending on the weather) before heading back into town to glam up, enjoy one of Shakespeare's finest at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and then on to a late dinner and dancing. It should be fun. We've divided the day's events up between us and I'm on picnic-planning duty. 

So this weekend I started to formulate my vision. Relaxed, romantic, fresh and fun is what I'm thinking. And for some reason, although I'm not usually a huge fan of them, polka dots and checks in red and white came to mind.

I've never organised a picnic quite like this. I'm excited and delighted. I want to make it special. I'm also nervous of getting it wrong. This is a situation that has so many traditions attached and I would hate to flout convention (which is how I would normally roll) and disappoint expectations. 

It needs to be the perfect picnic.

And so I'm open to suggestions. Wide open....

[Flickr credits]

The Jewellery Quarter

pavement wisdom

jewellery is not always ornament

True, it's also - and for a long time I guess was primarily - used to express intent, allegiance, membership, ownership, status, wealth, as currency or for protection. It can be functional or symbolic or decorative, or all of these at once. 

Jewellery is not always ornament.

But sometimes that's exactly what it is. Can anyone ever have too many pretty beads I wonder?

If ever you're in the UK and at a loose end, this place is well worth a visit. A fascinating glimpse into the heyday of the industrial era. 

And I discovered this weekend that they serve a lovely cup of tea with homemade scones and strawberry jam in the adjacent café too. Added incentive to visit...

Yearning

–noun

1.a persistent, often wistful desire, deep longing, esp. when accompanied by tenderness or sadness.

2. an instance of such longing: a yearning for romance and adventure.

[Flickr credits]

In all its shapes and forms...

...let's celebrate love today

warm and fuzzy, across the miles, and even when it hurts

We wouldn't want to live without it, would we?

Happy Valentine's Day!

♥

[Flickr credits]

5 super senses, 3 overdue presents and 1 public apology

Anairam's Senses

Last year, some might remember, there was a giveaway...  Anairam won a gift box designed to interpret her sensory favourites and I had a wonderful time collecting goodies to send her. I also promised to make her something to accompany it, which I had great fun starting but didn't manage to finish before Christmas as I'd hoped to. 

It is with not inconsiderable embarrassment, that I have to admit this has been sitting on my desk ever since, nearly but not quite ready to go. Alongside it, a project for another dear friend, also awaiting final attentions and long overdue. And a third next to that, an edible Birthday present that was due so long ago that it's already past its 'best before' date, waiting merely to be wrapped and taken to the post office. 

Yesterday I finished Anairam's at last and it went in the mail today. E's mini-book will be finished next weekend and be posted shortly thereafter. And the Birthday gift will be repurchased and sent next week too.

The people involved have been incredibly lovely and very patient and I hope they'll think it was worth the wait. But it's worried me. It worries me. This behaviour.

It's been getting worse over the course of the last year (or two) but it's actually very out of character for me not to get things like this done. I can procrastinate with the best but it's not like me to miss deadlines or to put off things that I like to do. And I like to do this. In fact, I enjoy few things more than considering the perfect gift, finding (or making) it, and then wrapping it up prettily. Particularly if it's for someone special. It's something that gives me great pleasure. And something I am usually a lot better at. Although I can come up with many reasons or excuses, none are really adequate to explain why I have not found or made the time to complete these projects before now. It's just bad form. And I'm sorry for it. 

It might seem like a relatively little thing but gift-giving is one of the small ways I show people that I care for them. It's important to me to remember significant dates and mark them thoughtfully, and to celebrate special events in the lives of people in my life. And I don't believe in making promises I don't keep. My not doing these things is symptomatic of an imbalance I've allowed to develop around where I place my energy - away from fun, away from things that matter to me. And I would never do this in my professional life so why have I allowed myself to do it in my personal life?

Anyway, taking advantage of my lovely weekend alone, and in the spirit of achieving a more integrated me this year, I began to change this. And I found that in some cases this will involve resurrecting parts of me that I have let fade away - changing back. Not looking back, not dwelling on the things that can't be changed but changing behaviours that don't serve me well and even returning to those that have, and do. And I want to hold myself accountable here, and apologise. And then move on.

I'm sorry. Truly. I promise to try to be better.

It's a new week friends. And I'm a teeny step closer to the old-new me. It feels good.