So far I have resisted the temptation to succumb to mid-life body art. I reason that I will ‘do a Judy’ – Dench, naturally for there can be no other – and wait until I am in my 80’s before I allow my body to be used as a canvas. In my octogenarian period, I…
Travels with their mother
Ever since Jack Whitehall and his father cornered the family travel market, my ‘children’ have been begging to holiday with me. Begging. ‘You have kerb appeal, Mum. You are the ‘right’ age (senior/mature) to contrast with us – in the the prime of adult youth – and you are so beautifully inept at travel that…
Swelling up
It is not unheard of for a teacher to be on their knees at the end of term. We soldier on, knowing that the WFH crew has no time – or inclination – to cry our pity party. In the words of Favourite Man, ‘You are a tired – and quite frankly, grouchy and unlikeable…
My mother says
I have spent a lot of time with my 95 year old mother of late and know the value that she brings to my life. I also know how tough Mother’s Day can be for those who are missing their mothers; those who are missing their children; those with mothers who are unwell and those…
Rude
It is hard navigating through these mid-life years with humour and irreverence, but now I need to negotiate some additional hurdles – namely social etiquette and punctuality. I fear I have been reprogrammed to become quite rude over the past two years. I am now noticing my inability to be punctual, my struggle to be…
Here I go again
It has only taken me 18 tears of teaching to crack a school holiday without burnout. No doubt, my sharing of this newsflash will cause my non-teaching readers to log out muttering, ‘cry me that river, teacher’. I came to teaching late in life and did not adapt well to enforced ‘free time’. This is…
Just keep swimming
Creeping to the end of another school term, my inability to hold focus has started to irritate me. Even on one of my ‘good’ days, Dorey (‘Finding Nemo’) would be sharper than my good self if we were to race each other around the goldfish bowl of life. (Forgive me for not adding a hyperlink…
A January Stretch
I am keen to see the back of January for it has stretched itself out, outstayed its welcome and I am totally done with it. All my usual coping strategies have been flexed and toned to their limit. Because I am still standing, these tweaks must have worked to some extent, however I sense I…
I might be biased
If you thought this week was grim, buckle those seat belts because we are not through the worst apparently. Tomorrow – Monday January 17th is – allegedly – the most depressing day of the year. We are heading for a car crash. Normally I avoid doom merchants and energy saps, so all this January 17th…
It’s been a while
So, didn’t 2021 turn out to be an exhausting little critter? I started the year with great intentions but then ground myself down with the guilt trip resulting from having absolutely nothing to show from the ‘Age of Covid’. No, nothing. Not a sour dough loaf or a podcast in sight. Not even a self-congratulatory…
The Dragonfly Jar 