Week Highlights!

Well late Friday afternoon again!!  I thought time was supposed to hang heavy as you get older but it doesn't seem to be the case in our house!! It has been a very pleasant week with planned events and time to invest in our hobbies and interests.

As always I try to go to the gym most days as it really sets me up for the day.  I prefer to go early to when I feel at my best - if I leave it later then tiredness inevitably makes the seem trip less attractive. So how did the week pan out?

Monday was essentially gardening day.  Lots of trimming back, mowing lawn and hedge cutting.  So enjoyable and therapeutic and it was a reasonable day weather wise. I also treated myself to some of the roses as rain was on the cards and they would be ruined so I thought we would have the benefit indoors.







Tuesday I met a friend for a girly lunch at Balthazar in Covent Garden.  We haven't seen each other for a while hence need for a catchup. There's nothing nicer than a long leisurely lunch  with good company and not having to rush back to work!! Retirement does have its compensations!

Wednesday we went to see "Shakespeare in Love" at the Noel Coward Theatre. Splendid production - quite mesmerising and quite emotional.

We found the film excellent and the stage production didn't disappoint - very powerful in a different way. Highly recommend it.

As we were leaving a twenty something said to his friend ...."That was great and it was Shakespeare! Makes you feel cultured when you are not!"

Laughing  at this we then popped next door to Browns for dinner - end to a perfect day!


Thursday read our newspapers on line, did my tweets before getting up! Bliss!  Cooking, cleaning and ironing filled the rest of the day. It has to be done! I also did the finishing touches to an oil painting  of a member of our family.  Will have to let him have a look and see what he thinks!! Now have to look for another subject which is often the hardest bit.......







Today went over to Chiswick to have a brief catchup with my daughter took the grandchildren to school before heading back for lunchtime with my husband. 

I can honestly say i am never bored there are so many things I want to do and I am trying my best to fit as many of them in as I can. We can never stress the importance of planning for your future enough. When you are young you don't pay so much attention to saving for retirement as it seems a long way away.  However as we tell our children if you work hard, be sensible and save as you go along then your future can be assured and you can enjoy the liberation that retirement brings.  Thankfully 50, 60, 70+ somethings don't carry the stigma of age so much and remain vital and curious about life. Providing your health holds out the wonder of new experiences is still within your grasp!!

Election Day!!

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Well today is the day when all the speculation comes to an end. I spent 7-10 this morning "telling" at one of our polling stations.  It was very slow and we probably only had about 6 people through the door in the first hour.  I have been told that the turnout has started to gather some momentum.

It is a curious gathering of people at these events - activists with very different political views meet up and chat good naturedly about this and that. You see many of the same faces at each election and we compare notes about what has been happening locally and then we go away and don't see each other again until the next time!  Really weird!

It is surprising how time passes very quickly - even so I was relieved when my husband came to take over for the next couple of hours.

Now it is the wait for the end of day and the count. We probably won't have the results until the early hours and so won't be attending the overseeing of the count.

All the political activists and candidates have worked extremely hard but there will inevitably be winners and losers.It would be interesting to know how many miles have been walked, how many leaflets have been delivered, how many houses visited, how many phone calls have been made, how many hours of data input............

We asked ourselves why do we do it.....and the answer is that we all feel a commitment, a passion and a duty. Its not everyone's cup of tea but it certainly is a hobby and interest which occupies a great deal of time and energy. When you get into your sixties politics provides a sense of belonging, stimulation and exercise.

There was a report last week which said that a high proportion of women in their sixties are quite sedentary. This is alarming and you can see the medical problems stacking up.  So if politics isn't what turns you on there may be something else you could pursue??

Anyway will try and stay awake a bit longer tonight and hear at least some of the results :)

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some stats recorded on my pedometer on my iPhone from last Monday delivering last minute leaflets...

1.5 hours, 7403 steps, 5.06 miles .......and .........584 calories - win win!!!

Arty Habits

I have just finished another couple of oil paintings…..

this one of my cheeky 2 year old grandson Mac…………….

and the other of my son Ben…………

It is surprising how the hours pass so quickly with my hobby.  My husband usually has to drag me away and says "enough!"  :) 

Flower Power...........

Isn't it fantastic having a sunny day ?  Never thought we would get one.  One of the most frustrating things in a garden is that the plants and flowers never reach their full potential if they miss their biological timeslot.  We all know how disappointing it is when the climate is unkind particularly with frosts wiping out the blooms on magnolias and camellias.

Thankfully we are now enjoying the fruits of out labour in our garden.  We moved into a new build house 7 years ago and had to start from scratch.  My husband and I mused at the time about the number of gardens we had had to tackle and never fully had the benefits. We do intend this time to stay put and to tend rather than develop!


It has been a challenge trying to get the garden into reasonable shape.  We have extracted bricks, breeze blocks and other general builders rubble.  Even after 7 years we are unearthing rubbish  - you wonder why some plants don't survive and then you find out why!

Gardening is so rewarding. When I was working I found it very therapeutic and helpful in reducing stress levels.  Now in retirement it is another interest, an interest which enhances our property and gives us great satisfaction and a great environment in which we can relax and keeps us fit!

Our standard wisteria coming out at last!!