Catch-Up

Update 03/10 – 11/10 2020

| Suzi Tench

I am still struggling with motivation regarding my blog and where I am going with it. I am signed up to get e-mails from Pete McPherson who runs the “Do You Even Blog” podcast and had one at the beginning of October talking about how his motivation was down because of all the changes that have taken place during this pandemic and, reading it, I realised that most of my lack of motivation is down to the Coronavirus. At this moment in time, where I live is back on a local lockdown and it seems that one day we are able to do thigs then the next we can’t and no one really knows what we are supposed to, or not supposed to be doing. Its really tiring and is all leaving me a bit lacklustre and drained.

Last Saturday was the boys Birthday, he turned 40. We had planned to have a big party, a room was booked for the party, a band was booked, food was planned and the guests invited but because of all the different restrictions across Wales and the rest of the UK it couldn’t go ahead. The boy went for a walk with a couple of friends and went target practicing, had a fire and came home a bit cold and wet as the weather wasn’t that good. We had a few drinks but nothing special, he liked his day but it wasn’t as special as it could have been.

I’ve been in work all week, we are running on a skeleton staff as most people are now working from home. It has been quiet in work but really busy as we are finalising payments. Work have slowly been rolling out laptops to all staff so we can work from home , its a slow process as all the software used varies from office to office depending on what our job role requires us to have access to, we need vpn access and network access along with a ton of other things. I received my laptop on Tuesday and had it up and working fully by Wednesday so was able to work from home on Friday. I was a bit apprehensive about how working from home would be, especially as my motivation has been so low lately but I really liked it. I had my wax melt burner going and was able to listen to podcasts without my headphones on, there were no interruptions and I could concentrate on what I had to do. It was a really nice day!

Over the weekend we have been sorting the house out, since the boy moved in we have had loads of stuff to sort out, tidy up and things that we needed to get rid of. We have a tip not far from our house and I finally was able to book a visit slot to get rid of some stuff. Our tip, as part of the COVID restrictions has put measures in place that mean each visit needs to be prebooked, your car registration given and a time slot chosen, only one person can go, any others need to remain in the car and if you miss your time slot then you need to re-book. The system is pretty good though I was doubtful about getting a weekend slot so I was surprised to get one this weekend. The boy filled his car up and took the stuff down and got rid of it then we spent time sorting out the downstairs of our house. It feels loads better now and it’s starting to look much better than before! I wish I had taken some before photos, I’ll share an after photo soon!

I’m not sure how this week is going to pa out and what the plans are, I’m not sure if I will be working from home at all this week yet. I am off on Friday though, I have a day’s annual leave booked as it is my Birthday. I plan to spend the day doing nothing, Lol! I might have a lie in and a lazy day with Roxy and potter about. I have a few art things to work on, I started Inktober though I am a bit behind, I may spend the day doodling for that. I have also been writing for The Everyday, an online magazine which is really worth checking out, there are so many good articles on there (especially ones by someone called Suzi Tench 😉 . I have an idea for another article that I want to write and may pitch the idea this week and make a start on writing the article on Friday if not before then.

Are any of you struggling with your motivation? How are you dealing with it? I’d love to hear your opinions on motivation and the Coronavirus in the comments!

Words on Wednesday – A Catch-Up!

| Suzi Tench

Wednesday (3)

I feel like I haven’t done a catch-up post in ages, and thanks to not having internet for a while I haven’t…. but, I am back today to share with you what I have been up to for the past few weeks.

I gathered a few friends for another Crafternoon a few weekends ago and we had a really lovely time being taught cake decoration by my friend Jez.  We had a brilliant time and raised some funds for Mind, a mental health charity (you can read more about Mind here).  If you would like to donate, you can do so via this link to my JustGiving page.

There were 5 of us in total and we got to decorate cupcakes that had been baked by Jez with different coloured butter icing and piping bags with different nozzle attachments, we then got to add all manner of different embellishments to finish them off!  I was really pleased with how mine turned out even though I hadn’t really thought about design and just wanted to try all the things!  Lol!

I bought some sparkly gin that I enjoyed one evening, it was raspberry trifle flavoured but wasn’t sickly sweet and was lovely with tonic water!

I bought some flowers that were on clearance in my local Tesco, it was the anniversary of my Grandma’s passing so I wanted to take some flowers up to my Grandpa and her grave, I ended up buying a few bunches for myself too!  They had been marked up at £10 per bunch but on clearance, they were only £2.70 which I thought was crazy as the buds hadn’t fully opened or anything.  It took them nearly 2 full weeks to fully bloom.

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The weather has been really crazy here, lots of storms, high winds, rain, hail, sleet and snow.  Luckily none of the snow has stuck but lots of places have been affected by really bad flooding.  Roxy and I have spent a lot of time snuggled up and staying in, away from the bad weather.  I did treat myself to some icecream one evening and we sat and watched a few films together, Roxy is an excellent inspector of empty icecream containers!img_7221

Aside from that, I have been working on a few projects that I might reveal soon!  I have a few different plans and ideas that I want to work out and see what happens first though!

What have you all been up to?  I’d love to hear any news you may have or anything you have been up to in the comments!!!

Sunday Funday – Guess Who’s Back?!!!

| Suzi Tench

DAY

I’m finally back online after a few weeks without internet!  My phone is fixed and I’m so glad to be blogging again!  These past few weeks without a fully functioning phone and internet have been crazy and made me realise how much I rely on the internet for even the smallest of things, from checking the weather, staying in contact with friends on WhatsApp or online to even checking in with my parents, reading blog posts, sharing photo and even gaming or designing things.  Being without any proper means of contact or “entertainment” has made me realise that, perhaps, I have a bit of an unhealthy relationship with my phone and the internet itself.

Being away from the internet made me think about how I use the internet and how things were in the past, before the internet.  I love blogging and really missed that, and I missed being able to use my design software that is internet-based to create any designs and I missed being able to find tv shows or films to watch on NetFlix, it amazes me that with so many different channels on Freeview that there is so little that is worth sitting and watching!

I would love to say that I had done something really productive with my time away from the internet, and I probably would have if the weather had been better, but I have been spending a lot of my time listening to all of the audiobooks I had downloaded, sorting out bills and finances, taking some extra long baths, doodling and taking naps!  I did have a visit from a guy to fix the windows in my house, they have been letting in an awful draft every time the wind blows or when it gets cold (which is pretty constant since its winter here!), seems that the windows hadn’t been fitted properly and the bit of frame that holds the glass in place hadn’t been secured or clipped into place properly so all of my heating was going out of the house.  Now it has been fixed I have noticed a huge difference in the warmth of the house, especially in the mornings and when I get home from work.

What have you all been up to?  What have I missed?  I’d love to know all about your last few weeks so let me know in the comments!  Also, leave me a link for a blog post of yours that you have been proud of this month!