long weekends and not working cars

Tags

bank holiday, car trouble, Dublin, Enfield, Ireland, train

Today is a bank holiday – this means we all have an extra day to add on to our weekend.  And I ave to admit I am loving it. After handing in my short story final on Friday (three stories and about 7000 words) I really felt I deserved a few days off. Well, at least a few days of doing less.

So I spent the last two days at home, catching up on my reading (and sleep), designing a friends wedding invitation and not doing very much at all. However i had made plans to meet up with a friend in Enfield today, it was long overdue.

However as I tried to start my car, it just wouldn’t. It sat like a sulky tortoise outside my home and wouldn’t budge. I have no idea if it’s the battery (I hope it’s the battery) or if my car has finally decided to die. If so I am at a loss- I can’t afford  anew one. But then maybe it’s just my car taking the day off too – a bank holiday for all!

Not willing to give up I have now decided to take the train. Hopefully I can use the hour to work on my novel. After all it would be the perfect way to spend the time while green landscape whizzes by.

my little mobile office

short week, long list

Tags

bank holiday, blue bench, long list, photography, photos, rainy days, short week

Yesterday was a bank holiday here in Ireland turning a long week into a short one. But this morning, as I was writing up my to-do-list, I discovered that I have more to do than I thought and a long list and a a short week isn’t really a good combination.

However as the rain has decided to return and is beating down against my window it makes being stuck behind my desk a little bit easier. After all staying indoors is so much harder when sun is beckoning you out to play.

On the bright side, my window boxes are loving the rain. On Sunday afternoon I took the time to tidy them up and plant some flowers. Now all I have to do is to wait for them to bloom and turn the path outside my door into a little urban garden.

So for now I will steadily work my way through my long list and hope the short week doesn’t pass too quickly. And maybe the sun will return allowing me to spend a few moments on my blue bench.

 

 

 

 

extra day – extra work

Tags

bank holiday, house work, mending clothes, quiet, work

Today is a bank holiday in Ireland and this means we all get an extra day to relax and kick back. After my me-day yesterday I have decided to use the day to get a few things that I have been ignoring for a while now.

There are a pair of socks that need darning, some clothes that need fixing (a dropped hem, a hole that needs a few stitches to close and a button needs reattaching) and my desk needs a bit of a tidy. And I do have a few other bits and bobs that need my attention and  a couple of letters to pen.

Then of course there are the normal things that need doing, a wash put on, a bit of tiding, water the flowers and preparing my classes or the coming week and starting some research on articles I need to write.

So maybe this extra day is just what I need to get my life back on track and to feel less stressed about everything I still have left to do. But then maybe, just maybe we could all need a few extra days every week to just keep up with what our lives demand of us. And if that is the case that maybe we are all just way to busy.

I was thinking about how time seems to be always full, how we are always rushing and never seem to get enough rest. How all days have transformed into working days, how we can’t really distinguish between weekends and weekdays anymore.

Here in Dublin the shops are open every day, so if you can’t go shopping during the week you end up using your Sunday to run errands. Few of us take the time anymore to allow a day of nothingness to feature regularly, a day when we just enjoy the peaceful relaxation of a Sunday walk, a family dinner or even to enjoy an afternoon nap.

So maybe instead of filling up these extra days with extra work, we should just let them be gifts of peace and quiet. But then when would I get a chance to finally catch up?