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posts that cover a multitude of fascinating subjects

The Snowball Effect… #Problems Solved?

/ Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes / 21 Comments

I have a bit of a problem, one I have been trying to get a handle on for most of this year.

Despite many approaches and different methods, I always seem to end up back at square one with too many irons in the fire or balls in the air, whichever rocks your boat.

My recent ploy was to tackle just one thing every day, and although jobs were getting done, the effect on the pile of jobs was minimal.

On a good day, I can manage to clear quite a few jobs, which has me feeling inordinately proud of my achievements.

I seem to be quite efficient at the day-to-day routine tasks; it is everything else that I have trouble with.

All of this is what I call the snowball effect, and most of you will probably know what I mean. How just drafting a book can unleash a never-ending stream of jobs that keep on coming. Calling it marketing is how the experts describe their prowess, but this is something I haven’t been able to master. Maybe I never will.

I have read all the advice on this problem, like giving up social media for a while or checking emails, but I need a long-term solution before I get too old to know what I am doing.

I want to super streamline my working day, so looking for help with this, if, of course, there is any. Maybe this happens to all writers/bloggers…  and I am not the only one struggling?

Oh no I won’t!

#Silent Sunday… #Storms #Heatwave

/ Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes / 17 Comments

Image by Brigitte Werner from Pixabay

The clouds are gathering, and the sun has decided to take the day off. Does this mean the end of this oppressive heatwave and cooler weather? I hope so.

A thunderstorm, even a very small one, would be most welcome…

I wouldn’t look like this though, I would be dancing!

The Perfect Flowers… #flowering #blooms

/ Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes / 9 Comments

I just knew today would be special.

I just wandered outside for a quick look around before the heat builds up, and the Myrtle cutting that I showed you last week, has flowered. The flowers are tiny compared to the parent plant, but so sweet.

They say we might get some a thunderstorm later, so that is something else to look forward too…

Wishing everyone a glorious weekend…

Can I Have a Quiet Day?

/ Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes / 9 Comments

Today, I thought we would try to have a quiet day. No dramas, no problems and definitely no worries.

I should be able to keep most of them at bay for just a few hours, don’t you think?

Start as you mean to go on, they say… so here is one of Anita’s lovely poems…

Milo just popped in the window to say hello, he still looks a little sad, don’t you think?

Milo is Home… #Recovery #Virus

/ Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes / 21 Comments

Yesterday must have been the hottest day of the year here in Hampshire, UK.

It was unbearably hot as we walked to the car to fetch Milo from the Vets, but inside the car was like an oven. Within minutes, I could feel the skin on my arms begin to burn. We would need to drive with all the windows open to get rid of some of this heat before we picked Milo up.

The veterinary surgery is beautifully air-conditioned, and I knew I would have to be dragged outside screaming to get back in that car.

They were very busy, with lots of comings and goings with animals of every shape and size. There was also sadness about the place and activity in the special room that is usually reserved for sad occasions. It only seems like yesterday when we were in there, coming to terms with losing Merlin.

Remember him?

When the nurse brought Milo out to us in the carry box, I could tell he was pleased to see us and desperately wanted out of the box. They had not found the cause of the problem and were putting it down to a virus. You would think that medical science would have moved on by now, wouldn’t you?

His temperature had come down at last, and he had been eating, so they thought he would make a better recovery at home as he was fretting too much. I had to continue the pain relief for a few days and add a powder to his food to calm his stomach. And if we were worried about him, we were to bring him back.

I don’t think we are out of the woods yet, though. Yes, he is eating, but not quite like before. He is also talking to me, constantly demanding something. He knows something is wrong, but hopefully, it will resolve itself.

I just wish I could understand his language…

Thankful Thursday… #Patience

/ Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes / 18 Comments

Thankful Thursday…

First thing this morning, I thought I would post a Thankful Thursday post today, for despite appearances (lol), I do have quite a lot to be thankful for.

Sometimes I wish there were a few more, but I am grateful, nonetheless.

The Veterinary nurse telephoned just after breakfast to report that Milo had a reasonably peaceful night and had managed to eat a little food. His temperature had come down a bit but was still considered too high. Because he was badly dehydrated, the blood test was inconclusive, and he hadn’t spent a penny yet, so they couldn’t test his urine. She reported that he seemed fretful and that they were hoped to send him home sooner rather than later.

No surprise there then, for as well as being a crazy cat, he could be stroppy too, so I imagine he hated everyone right now. Poor Milo, locked in a cage with a drip feed in his leg.

They still have no idea what is causing all of this, so I hope they make some headway before sending him home.

I began the usual morning sweep, website, emails, Twitter etc. Everything was fine until I reached Twitter. I refuse to call it X. It was as if I was in someone else’s account. Everything had changed, and I couldn’t find anything I recognised. I probably should delete it and find somewhere else, but nothing takes my fancy. Mastodon doesn’t appeal, and some of the others are linked to sites I don’t use. I quite like the sound of Threads, which links to Instagram, but when I tried to log in, they said my password was wrong. Not according to Instagram, it isn’t…

I moved on to Facebook, only to be met with the same problem. Wrong email address and password.

Now, I have a fair amount of patience, which, to be honest, is sorely needed when dealing with the internet, but this morning what little I had left, took to the hills and hasn’t been seen since…

So, what exactly am I grateful for?

Not Social Media, that’s for sure. But when I have exhausted my patience, I know I can walk out of my office and join my family in the living room.

Or I can switch off the computer and curl up with my book.

I can also walk out of my back door and stroll around my jungle of a garden; what more could I ask for?

Jaye’s Week… #Milo #WorryBox

/ Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes / 24 Comments

This week started well, so I suppose I could be forgiven for thinking it would continue…

After the strimmer incident, I thought I must surely be in front of any more worries…

But I was wrong. Lurking in the back of my worry box, I knew something was wrong with Milo, our crazy cat. I always like to give my worries time to sort themselves out, and sometimes they do.

But not this time.

I had hoped it was a passing thing, that he must have eaten something unsavoury in the garden, but when he refused to eat for a second day, my alarm clock started ringing loud and clear. This was the cat who tried to eat me out of house and home, always begging for more food. He sounded wrong too. Normally a noisy and very loud talker, all he could manage was a weird squeak.

I rang the vet early yesterday morning. They were busy, but could manage to see him at 1.15.

They checked him over thoroughly, but nothing presented itself. A slight temperature, which she thought could be due to the weather. Two injections followed, one for nausea and one for inflammation.

We took him home on the understanding that if normal behaviour didn’t reappear within 24 hours, to bring him back for further tests. As I write this, nothing has changed. I managed to tempt him with chicken yesterday, and he did eat a little, but he left the rest.

The 24 hour deadline is 2pm, so if he refuses lunch, we will be taking him back to the vet…

Still Silent… #Tanka Tuesday #Poetry #Rainbow #Memories

/ Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes / 25 Comments

Image by Kanenori from Pixabay ~ Poetry by A Dawes

#TankaTuesday Weekly #Poetry Challenge No. 336, 9/5/23: Synonyms Only ~ Quiet & Seek

Ouch!

/ Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes / 27 Comments

Image by Nina Garman from Pixabay

Ouch!

I had already used my new strimmer to tackle the overgrowth of weeds and long grass at the bottom of the garden. I started with the plastic blade, as the metal ones looked lethal.

It worked well but tended to snag on the long grass. So, when I wanted to finish what I started, and there was still so much to do, I changed the blade to a metal one, hoping it would cope better than the plastic one.

Looking back, I wish I hadn’t.

I was happily clearing the overgrowth when the blade hit something. I had been concentrating on the ground before me, so when I glanced down at my feet, I was unprepared for the sight that presented itself.

My left foot was covered in blood. Strangely, I could feel no pain, but the blood kept coming. I am well used to bleeding while gardening, for the brambles are not shy about attacking me, but this amount of red stuff was worrying.

Dropping the strimmer, I limped back to the house, leaving a scarlet rail in my wake. Through the courtyard and into the kitchen, I was singlehandedly creating a murder scene from a slasher movie.

I called for help, and my sister came running, her eyes widening in horror at the sight of me sitting on the kitchen floor, trying to remove my flip-flops and spreading blood around like water.

Wearing flip-flops was stupid, but I swear the strimmer blade was nowhere near my feet. I swung it from side to side in front of me, almost like a scythe.

Sis wrapped a wet dishcloth around my foot to stop the bleeding, but the blood continued to flow. At this point, I thought I must have severed my toe at the very least, but it still wasn’t hurting.

We swapped the wet cloth for copious amounts of kitchen roll, trying to exert a little pressure. After a while, we had a peek to see if the blood had stopped and slowed down to an ooze. My big toenail seemed to be floating, so I thought I would try to pick it up. I was most surprised when it came away in my hand. The toe was undamaged, but the nail bed looked raw and unprotected.

With my toe wrapped as best we could, I started cleaning up, not looking forward to the following nagging. I have broad shoulders, but I knew I had it coming. I was just pleased it hadn’t been any worse.

Next time, I will wear my strong gardening shoes and won’t use a metal blade again!

Macro Monday…

/ Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes / 14 Comments

a very special surprise…

I think this qualifies as a macro image, and I was delighted to spot it.

It, of course, is a cutting I potted two years ago from this magnificent specimen.

My beautiful and unusual Myrtle…

“Myrtle is a genus of evergreen shrubs that is cultivated for ornamental purposes and as a source of aromatic oils used in the cosmetic industry. The plant has oval to lance-shaped shiny leaves, fragrant white or rosy flowers, and black berries. The myrtle flower is a symbol of innocence and purity, and is regarded in cultures all around the world. The plant was anciently held sacred to Venus and used as an emblem of love.”

I have varied success with cuttings. Some are happy to root and do well. But I have a graveyard of pots where nothing happened at all. Story of my life. I think. But it doesn’t stop me from trying!

The most surprising thing about this little miracle, is that most flowering shrubs usually take a long time to flower, so I cannot wait until the flowers unfold…

Could this be an omen that this week will be a good one?

I sincerely hope so, for last week ended in a blood bath, mine!

Post being written as I speak and should land here tomorrow…