Seeking the Good Life

The Idle Bee


Family

Weekend in the Scottish Borders

M and I have just returned from a short break visiting family who live in Haddington. Time with family is always well spent. We enjoyed several fine walks by the river Tyne, watching the wildlife and simply enjoying good company.
We visited
Tantallon Studios on Sunday and were made really welcome by resident potter Ronnie Fulton, who downed tools and gave us a full tour of the pottery. We loved the design of his Raku kiln and he very graciously gave us plenty of tips and advice. An absolute gentleman. We couldn't resist buying one of his Raku Chickens, now enjoying pride of place on our kitchen dresser.

My Birthday

Hmmm, It is now over 55 Years since I took my first breath. Once again my Family rallied round to remind me of the continual progress of time, and therefore my inevitably approaching demise. They do this in the usual manner by sending me a selection of rather fine gifts and birthday cards. There must be something more important than simply the fact I have survived another full circumnavigation of the earths orbit around the sun but perhaps not!

Procrastination is the thief of time


I have always believed that it takes effort to produce results. How you choose to measure those results depends on your individual mindset. There are some who define success on the basis of how many Pounds, Dollars, Yen, Rupees or indeed any currency you choose to name, you have in your bank account. This misses out on some of the forgotten truths of the 21st century. Real success is measured in: the number of real friends that you have (the ones who would drop everything if you needed help), in the success of your children, in the success of your ventures (business or other), or even in the recognition of the output from your creativity.
Today I returned to my place of work having spent nearly six months battling the demons in my head that relentlessly convinced me that I was a failure and a fraud. A mixture of mind altering medication prescribed by my GP and half a dozen sessions with a clinical psychologist had finally allowed me to return to my place of work. My fears and anxiety were completely obliterated by a spontaneous hug from a surgical colleague, a smile and a hug from the critical care receptionist and being grabbed and welcomed back by one of the critical sisters. Simple things mean a lot. I can now see myself returning to work with these delightful people at least until we sell our house and move to our next project.
Mental health is really important,
Mind is a charity devoted to improving and helping people with mental health issues. Mental illness can affect any one of us and indeed affects one in four of us at some stage during our life.
The exercise campaign continues with a combination of rapid walking, circuit training and kettlercise sessions,