Better Late Than Never

It was a busy weekend and Monday.   It's late on Tuesday now and I only just remembered I hadn't done my Monday blog post!

Ah well, you get that.  Our weekend began with a lovely walk up the block.  The moss and lichen is looking lovely now we have had so much rain.

Isn't it amazing how it can grow over a whole little rock?

 

  

Universe-like constellations of life.

So beautiful!

The last few days have been very showery, with sunny spots in between, which makes for plenty of rainbow opportunities.

   

Gorgeous!  I like the juxtaposition of the power lines with the beauty of nature, though I know not why.

Saturday we went to a matinee of the concert, Scotland the Brave, with my mum.   It was fun and there was plenty of talent there,  but the best cheer of the night was for the members of the WA Police Pipe Band.

Pic pinched from their site.

Sunday we had a full day of a course for driving under operational conditions.   This is now me:

 I had both Andrew and Jen there with me, so it was good fun.

My darling Tigger sis, always fun to be out with!

We learned a lot.  Was particularly interesting to do the simulated test of your awareness using a video and a system that captures your eye movements.  Being, all three, motorbike riders, we did very well at this.  Motorbike riders know everyone is out to kill them, so they can drive very awarely indeed!

Main points that came out of the day for me:  Don't speed even a little bit because it adds to your chances of having an accident markedly, and also adds to your chances of killing or being killed if you are in an accident.  Try never to have to look away from the windscreen and mirrors for even a second (and definitely don't text!)

Monday I had my niece Niamh here for a lesson.  We looked at one of the journals that I have been keeping for years, with an eye to her making one too.  Mine are full of pictures I like, drawings and doodles I've made, quotes, poems, book reviews, ideas for songs, novels and poems, news, all that sort of thing.  I've kept them for years and years.  Not so much these days since I started blogging, but I still have one on the go.

Then Niamh picked out a quote she liked and she illustrated it, and then we painted together, me doing the one I'd drawn the other day:

I didn't remember to get a pic of Niamh's before she left but I'll blog it when I do.  Oh oh, this won't be happening, because the dog ate it, yes she really did!   Naughty Pippa!

Dog shaming.  :D   Of course she can be forgiven everything because she is just so squidgy and adorable!

The quote was the one that goes, "Life is a great big canvas.Throw all the paint on it that you can," by Danny Kaye.  A good one!     

Today, after bouts of my usual crappy health on Sunday and Monday nights (why must it always get worse at night, why!?)  this is about all I was good for, kitty snuggles:

But I did manage to do some work on learning about how to set up an automated newsletter for my author site, and reading about mast cell activation disorder, which I am beginning to suspect I may have and which will explain why I get triggered by so many foods, perfumes and chemicals, and by stress, and even by changes of temperature.

I hope learning this and finding a MCAD-aware doc to help will help me to avoid some of the anxiety, reactivity and nausea in the future.  I keep on trying to have a life, but it does make things very hard when every plan you make might see you ending the day over a bucket.