Went to the Pantomime with The Davidson Family. Achieved feeling properly Christmas finally!*****
Driving all the way across Denmark from Copenhagen to Hjerk in the northern part of Jutland to be with Peters old folks for Christmas.
Managed to put up the Christmas tree, which was a gift from a good friend of the family. Niels and Gunhild didn’t have the strength to put up the tree, but still had a strong will and opinion on when the tree was properly horizontal.
Read my book in bed cosy with tea. Dragged myself out in the wind and rain to walk Otto and went to a favourite walk I hadn’t been to in a while. Walked all the way along to the setting sun on the bridge sending voice notes to Trine (who is my partner on this blog this year)…the wind, walking, views and sharing helped. Went to winter solstice yin yoga in the evening and left all the negative thoughts behind and felt rejuvenated.*****
Getting through the last working day before Christmas.
The little Christmas decorations on the screen; shows different numbers throughout the year at the heart department; amongst other 76 transplants heart/lung/heartmate(artificial heart), 85 new colleagues …
A Christmas ramble followed by our Christmas meal at a pub in Brixton, Devon. Joining The Muddy Boots has been one of the best things I’ve done this year. So many stunning walks all over Devon and Cornwall. You can talk and walk or not talk at all.*****
Quiet day at work, home again, checking out the Christmas lights in the nearby Humlebyen.
Not the most glamorous photo and wish I’d taken the towel off my gorgeous orange radiator but heh… Just back from hot yoga and feeling pretty damn strong.. physically…Keeping going with all the healthy things*****
Making a cosy Christmas dinner for my family. Everybody brought one surprise present for a raffling game after the dinner.
Back at the studio painting. Also packaged and sent a painting I sold. I’m really good at remembering to bring packed lunches and make them tasty. I think it’s an achievement rather than spend money on not as good snacks out. Here is part of today’s…yoghurt with blueberries (at the bottom) raspberries and a little honey in a glass jar..*****
Getting through the day.
Walked Otto, took photographs of 2 of my paintings and put them for sale on my Instagram account (because I have sold the two I had for sale there), cycled to the studio, painted, went to an intermediate yoga class (it was tough), home, bath, dinner in bed. *****
Getting up early on my day off, going to the woods to discover it is raining and the trail is pretty wet and muddy, but still did a round and had a great time with fellow bikers.
Walked Otto, went to yoga, cycled to my studio. First time in my new studio space (same room different space) Had a day reassociating myself with oil painting. This piece has been hanging in my bedroom since I stopped working on it after I changed studios and went back to using acyclic paint. I will be working on it until I feel it is finished*****
Achievement; convincing Peter that skiing is a great hobby and worth spending money on.. so these are his new skis and boots. He mounted the bindings on the skis himself.
Yoga at 7am…then was led astray so instead of going to the studio I went walking a coastal path from Lantic Bay to Polruan and back round instead.*****
Achievement; starting a Christmas tradition.
My aunt started singing in this choir 2 years ago and this is their second Christmas concert and they keep getting bigger and better.
Me and my brother get invited every year and really enjoy it.
Drove down to Charlestown, St Austell for a nice but unfruitful 1st date. Stopped for this beautiful photograph on the way so this photograph is my achievement of the day. Oh and scones, clotted cream and jam for breakfast, in bed, this morning.*****
Achievement; going to the Dojo despite a late night the day before and a broken pinky toe.
Bandaged the toe and had to keep grounded, but had an amazing time and always learn something new.
Truly love this place and the people training there.
Vixen Tor. Inaccessible due to private ownership of land surrounding it. Pfff! Had a gorgeous walk to and a wee climb up it. Also investigated a churchyard in Sampford Spiney to find a gravestone for an old boy I’d met in a charity shop in London whose wife’s parents were buried there. He hopes to take her ashes there. It was great to find the gravestone and send him photographs.*****
In the morning attending a 4th Dan graduation; amazingly precise and effortless Aikido in beautiful awase (blending with the energy) of the opponent.
The result of several decades of training Aikido.
No pictures allowed during the graduation.
In the evening attending my oldest friend’s birthday party, new people were there, so great achievement to make new friends also when past the forties.
And this is Haliey, happy to join the party, despite the (perpetual) sad face.
Hot yoga, chest x ray (cough since May) and then a walk around Tamerton Foliet woods with Otto to blast away negative feelings.*****
Achievement; meeting up with my friend Christina and going for a stroll to enjoy the Copenhagen Christmas streets, reaching Nyhavn and not getting lost from one another in the maddening crowd;
Thousands of people wanted to see the floating lucia parade paddling through the canals of Copenhagen.
Managed to find a corner with less crowds and a familiar place where I used to hang in the bar and chat with Victoria.
Achieved peace, but no parade.
Fixing a 4 screwed mirror to the wall, discovering the hammer aspect of my drill, fitting plastic anchors and finishing painting the bathroom in time for a friend visiting this weekend. Oh and yoga everyday this week.*****
Meeting up in Hareskoven to go mountain biking in the Dark, in the theme of Lucia.
A tradition of carrying light forward in a Dark time.
Painting the wooden trim in my bathroom to match the grout…. Achievement…loving grey and pink in my paintings and transferring that to my bathroom*****
Achievement; after a really busy nightshift feeling lazy and blue, but still managed to take down the trash.
This was a result of the storm I was walking across Bristol in on Friday night….. achievement…that not being my camper van….*****
So Tuesday went without a picture; worked all day at the hospital, then home to rest for some hours then back to work for a nightshift.
So this picture is from me hitting the sack in the morning after a really busy shift as the nightnurse.
Bright sunshine, cold cold, brisk walking to stave the anxiety of not knowing what’s next… achievement…doing all the healthy things…..*****
Achievement; understanding this recipe and making delicious chestnut curry (thank you google translate;)
Otto met his first Santa!*****
Despite being up til 4 in the morning at a dinner party (julefrokost ) on Saturday night, still getting up and bicycling 12 km to go for another Christmas lunch on the Sunday.
A ridiculously bougie lunch with my good old buddy Max. (Another of the 3 friends who came to visit me at the farm in Missouri (which counts hugely))… Achievement….um….I just enjoyed it…after a big night out with the Waiting Room crew where I’d walked across Bristol in a storm at pretty much the only time we’d ever been told not to walk across Bristol because of a storm. Oops. *****
Achievement; winning the annual Christmas quiz at the Christmas lunch at Anne-Sofie’s. Every year Anne-Sofie hosts a potluck Christmas dinner, everybody brings a dish and each person also has to bring a quiz consisting of 5 questions of their own choice.
A massive jigsaw piece of my life has been found. A happy place for Otto to stay when I need to go away. A sheep farm so they know and understand collies…. And this is his welcome 🥰
Making a gourmet meal out of cheap ingredients. You can buy a portion of mussels enough for two people for 30 danish kroner (2,5 pounds) some left over veggies (onion and leek) and voila, bon appetite.
Out walking my dog….I believe just that was enough of an achievement for the day ….*****
Achievement; getting through an 8 day working week, finishing off with a 16 hour shift and still keeping the Christmas spirit High, thanks to great colleagues and an interesting job.
First fire of the year. Crashing a bit after all the excitement of the Saudi trip so ribeye and a cosy homely fire was my healthy soothing.
Achievement; keeping this plant alive for 8 years now. Every year all the leaves fall off, but then new grow….
Still not sure what kind of palm tree it is.
Side to Side 