A Christmas Carol

It has been another cold and frosty day. On my journey into work, I was treated to a clear starry sky and just as I arrived the big, bright moon dipped below the horizon.

A long but enjoyable day, and with a temporary change to my usual job role. A change is as good as a rest, after all :)

I have just returned home from watching a performance of A Christmas Carol. It was a community theatre production, in which my friend was playing the part of one of the ghosts. I've just messged her with my congratulations on a fantastic opening night. The whole cast were amazing and it has been a really enjoyable evening, filled with an enormous amount of talent and enthusiasm. 

Time for bed now, as I'm feeling very tired, and it's going to be another busy day tomorrow.

J. X

Frosty Day

It has been incredibly chilly here today, so it was a relief this evening when I could finally warm myself with a mug of hot tea.

Early this morning, the ground was covered in a light frost and the edges of the sky were tinged with a gorgeous pink glow.  The almost full moon lit my journey to work, and the air felt bitingly cold. It was a quiet and still start to my day, just the way I like it. 

I've had a hectic time of it, going back and forth. I often think I try and do too much, but then Tuesdays and Wednesdays are my busiest days. I get to catch my breath momentarily on a Thursday, before another full day on a Friday, to finish off my working week. I'm just always grateful I get to do something I enjoy :)

On my way home this evening, I noticed the Christmas tree all lit up on the village green. It looked rather lovely, and quite different to how it appears in the daylight, as is often the way. 

This evening, I have baked some mincemeat slice ready to take along to the Warm Space later in the week. It smells delicious. I hope they will enjoy it.

Tonight, I have put another blanket on my bed.

J. X

Friends

 

As you can see from the above photograph, Boo has made himself very much at home now, although I'm not quite sure how he will be feeling after his impending visit to the vets on Thursday. I won't go into detail, but I'm sure you can guess what it is for ;)

It has been a very ordinary day. I did, however, manage to squeeze in a trip to the recycling centre to clear out several bags of clothes and also a couple of other items, which have been languishing in the boot of my car for several weeks now. That's another job checked off, much to my great satisfaction.

This afternoon, I deliberated over buying a small Christmas tree for the kitchen like I usually do, but I think I'm going to give it a miss this year and just string some lights instead. It will be one less thing to stress over. Not that Christmas trees are in anyway stressful, but keeping Boo away from it could be. He hasn't shown any interest in the decorations on the mantel yet, but the real test will be when we put the tree up in the living room. 

J. X

Bleak

 

Lily slept much more soundly last night and even though she is still coughing on and off, she insists she's feeling fine. I know better than to disagree, as much like her mother, she doesn't 'do' being ill. Instead, we plough on regardless, until such time as we have to admit defeat. That said, the advent chocolates disappear rapidly each morning, and she does appear to be quite unaffected by this virus, and so for that I am very grateful.

The weather today has been typical of this time of year. Even when the sun shone, the sky looked colourless and grey. The air felt damp and cold, and even our favourite walk failed to lift the spirits as much as we would have liked. A walk I insisted would do us some good, as I always advocate fresh air to blow away any residual germs, and so far it seems to have worked. We wrapped up well against the chill of the afternoon. Hats and gloves are needed most days now, a sure sign that winter will soon be here. 

I've been though all my gifts and checked some items off my lists, and I am happy to say that I have less remaining to do than I had initially thought. Although I am slightly regretting my fanciful notion of making my own Christmas Crackers this year. In my defence, this was back at the end of the summer, before I realised I would be working such long hours. Oh well, I could always just buy some instead. 

J. X