Six Word Saturday . . . Lovely Week For Fluff and Stuff

Lovely Week of Fluff and Stuff

Six pic highlights of my week

     Bundle of fluff 1                                                                                             Bundle of fluff 2

Met this cutie for the first time
my great niece (9months).

Spent time with my niece (4 months)

                                                                                       

We visited Thorpeness where
you'll find The House in the Clouds 

We messed around taking selfies

                                                                                 Stuff

A gorgeous 5* review for my chicklit novel started the week. Reviews are what makes an Indie author's novel a success so I was chuffed to bits by this review, and a writer too.
Available through Amazon

And to finish the week?
More stuff

I was in Suffolk and got this text from my son in Sussex. As you can see he is a boy of very few words. Kept me dangling for what felt like ages before he told me and then not much detail. But proud to bits for my boy who can now go on to do what he wants to do. 

So there's my week in six pictures for Six Word Sat over at  http://www.showmyface.com/ hosted by Call Me Cate

Monday Mixer! It's back! Yay!!!

I knew my day was coming. I planned it just as I wanted it. But there’s always some family drama erupting around my eldest. What’s he gone and done now? I can’t quite make it out but my Beryl is wagging that finger again. Such a sagacious woman, taking no nonsense from any of them.

A tear trickles down my sallowed cheek as a susurrus of her name escapes my dry lips, hoping it’ll reach her like a gentle kiss on her heavily rouged cheek. She’s sitting proud, ignoring the ennui surrounding her from her own flesh and blood. I wish I could clip my boys right round the ear for their lack of respect; not to me, but their mother.

The stentorian voice of the vicar, belying his doddering frame, makes me jump as it rings in my head; ironic how his words of love are splitting my skull. Sod this for a game of soldiers. As soon as Beryl bids her last, I’m off. Just as long as there’s none of that ululating. My sister’s one for that but she’s keeping it together.

I smile, surveying my life below. Not too bad, Sydney, not too bad at all.

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Written for Monday Mixer, hosted my Jeff Hollar over at The Latinum Vault

So pleased this flash fiction is back! I loved this. Makes you think and is highly creative. xxx

Bird's-eye View from the 15th Floor

This post is for Six Word Saturday where you describe your life in six words- don't you just love the little hyphen, making one word :-) .  You can then elaborate if you wish and seeing as I like words and can use thousands instead of 10 or 6, I have elaborated. I decided to share some pics from last Sunday when we had a family get together in Chelsea. I would've loved to have visited more of the places I knew so well as a child but once the photo albums come out, there's just not enough time. 

Birds-eye View from the 15th Floor

Ok, not quite a bird's-eye view but as close as you'll get without flying into Heathrow. Standing on my Aunt's balcony, last Sunday, on the 15th floor on the iconic World's End estate in Chelsea, SW10, you can see right across London. In the distance is the Wembley Arch, below, the streets of Chelsea.

I used to stand on this balcony as a child and that excitement of the view has not diminished even though the views have changed.

But one thing has never changed and that's seeing Chelsea football stadium, Stamford Bridge, from the balcony on the 15th floor.

            


Turn in another direction, you can see The Royal Albert Hall (bit blurred that one). Then in another direction, you can see across the Thames to Battersea in 'Sarrrf' London.

I love visiting London. And will never tire of it; the buzz, the noise, the excitement, and especially those places that mean so much and were a huge part of my childhood, like the 15th floor on the World's End estate.

Source

                                                    


                         http://www.showmyface.com/ hosted by Call Me Cate

Mid Week Blues Buster Betrayal

Maria waited over an hour at the backstreet motel for Jason but couldn’t wait any longer. Throwing the key on the counter, she walked out, wrapping her coat tight around her, shielding her from the sudden downpour.

The main street was deserted, the only sound the clipping of her heals.   

A car rumbled behind her, slowing down. The tinted window  slid down and Maria smiled, hiding her surprise at seeing her brother.  

      “What are you doing in this neighbourhood?” he asked.

      “Seeing a friend,” she replied, her story already prepared. If Carlos knew she was seeing Jason, he would flip. As head of the family, he decided on who she should date.She climbed in next to him.

       “Which friend?”

       “Rita, she’s having problems with Zak.”  She stared out the window, the town lights slowly disappearing in the distance. It was silly feeling nervous being with her brother but she knew what he was capable of, had seen him blow a man’s brains out for just looking at her.

        The car drove slowly around winding roads, deeper into the desert and Maria felt uneasy, not because they were going completely wrong way but because she hated being around when Carlos did business, reminding her how feared he was.  

       The car stopped and Maria saw another car ahead where two men stood, the headlights flooding a usually dark desert.  

      “Get out,” Carlos ordered. She did as she was told despite the rain. Her hair whipped around her face but she saw, through tangled strands, a man kneeling between the two men.“Come,” Carlos said. She followed him, trying not to stumble in her Louis Vuittons. “Do you know this man?” Carlos asked as one of the men pulled back the kneeling man’s hair, revealing a bloodied, battered face. She stifled a gasp, biting down on her quivering lip as Jason was thrown to the floor. “I asked do you know this man?”

  She shook her head, unable to speak. She watched Jason crawl back up. He was swiftly kicked in the stomach, groaning as he curled up on the ground. She inhaled sharply, holding her breath, trying in vain not to let her feelings escape and betray her.   

  “So you do know him?”

   She nodded, looking into Jason’s eyes. She saw no pain. His eyes spoke to her, silent words of love. It looked like he was mouthing something to her, words of love, she was sure and a faint smile passed her lips.

        A loud bang vibrated through her, rattling her bones, echoing through the night. Jason tumbled to the floor, blood oozing from a neat hole in the middle of his forehead. Screaming, she ran to him, cradling the lifeless body in her arms, tears streaking her face, his blood smearing her skin.

    “He was a cop!” Carlos bellowed above the wind. “A fucking cop! He was only seeing you to get to me you stupid bitch!” He threw a shovel at her feet. “Now dig!”

     Maria obeyed, her heart empty, her body shattered. She knew Jason was a cop, that’s why she didn’t tell Carlos. But Jason wasn’t interested in him. He truly loved her. He didn’t even know she was Carlos’ sister.

       Exhausted, Maria fell to the ground as the men pushed Jason in the shallow hole. She watched as the desert sands covered his beautiful face until they patted the sands down and walked away.

      Just Carlos and Maria remained. Even the rain stopped as he stared down at his little sister, a traitor. There were no words and Maria knew he would banish her, disown her. But she didn’t care. Nothing mattered now Jason was gone. Carlos would do her a favour, freeing her from his empire of terror.

       She heard the distinct click of his gun and looked up, gazing down the barrel. She didn’t see Carlos’ tears. She didn’t feel afraid. She saw Jason, when they first met. It was her last thought as a bullet ripped through her heart. Maria slumped on Jason’s grave.

    Carlos calmly walked back to his car, he didn’t look back once. Darkness descended and the desert was at peace once more.

694

Written for  Jeff Tsuruoka's Mid Week Blues Buster over at the TsuruokaFiles.

Here's the music; pure instrumental, inspirational and gorgeous. x

How Do You Find The Time To . . . .

A Meme about time and not having enough of it!

   

Have you ever wondered how other people organise their day? How they manage to get it all done? Well The Fabulous Moms Guide  tagged me in this meme that asked the question ‘How and when do you find the time to…’ It was originally started by Ms Dolly Daydream of Sex, drugs, rocker and stroller, baby fame and is a sneak peek into the lives of other people and how they manage their days. Thank you for tagging me. I enjoyed reading yours and hope you like mine.
As with all memes (subjects that a group of bloggers write about) there are a few rules:

Rules:

- Please post the rules.

- When answering the questions, please give as much detail as possible!

Leave a comment on Sex, drugs, rocker and stroller, baby so we can keep track of the meme and I can totally steal your routine tips to make my world a happier place.

- Tag 3 or more people and link to them on your blog.

Here goes. . . .

How and when do you find the time to…

….do your laundry?

Doing the washing is a pain with this wet weather as I do not own a tumble dryer nor want to own one. Generally I do the washing on Friday, Saturday and Sunday as by Friday the laundry basket is over flowing and bursting at the seams especially as the teenage son wears something once. I try to do a load Thurs night so I have time to hang it out before trundling off to work Friday morning. If the weather is rubbish and I can’t hang my washing out then I try to wash it on days that look like the sun is going to shine. So it’s a bit of a gamble and when it does rain, there are a few tantrums thrown in. On top of that, I have to find time to wash the cooking club aprons and wash all the Teen’s Hollister gear separately as it needs a cold wash! The ironing is piling up as I hate doing it and if I can hang it straight in the wardrobe, then I do. The pile of ironing is mainly Hubby’s white work shirts which are a pain and the sooner he leaves that place the better. However, I have to get up earlier than needed to make sure son is up for paper round so I choose to iron one or 2 shirts. This keeps Hubby happy, the pile not so frightening and a difficult task fairly bearable. 

 . . . . .write a blog post      

There is always time for a blog post! Or so I thought. I only started blogging in Feb and was whizzing them out weekly as well as writing flash fiction pieces. I thought as long as I have something to say which has never been a problem, I will always have something to blog about. And then one day, I lost the motivation, the creativity, the knowhow, the confidence and I guess my mojo. I tweeted I’d lost my mojo and received some lovely responses which did the trick . . . . for about a day. I then had some cakes to make which were very time consuming and a teen’s birthday to celebrate and then I came down with a cold. I had no get up and go . . . it had long gone. But then something wonderful happened. . . .the sun came out this weekend and I was smiling! I was energised and wanted to write. So here we are. I’ve never let the weather bother me as it seems futile to let it drag you down when you can’t control it but obviously it was making me rather blah. Anyway, back to the point. I generally blog/write when Hubby and son are watching American Sci Fi rubbish or when I have an idea and just need to get it down. I’m always with laptop in evening once everything is done so there is no excuse to blog/write away to my hearts content :-))..

 ….look after yourself…i.e. wash your hair, paint your nails, take a bubble bath etc.?

I don’t. This will be the shortest entry of this blog! I am not a girly girl so I am pretty minimalist in this department.  I don’t own a hair dryer. I don’t wear makeup unless going out for the evening. I wash my hair either in the morning when I shower or evening after a sweaty Zumba class. I let it dry naturally. I do my own waxing so to save money but it also saves time now I’ve got the knack. I am now in the habit of one swim a week, one Zumba a week and a visit to the gym 2 to 3 times a week. That is my down time, my me time. I get so many things sorted in my head whilst running nowhere on the treadmill. I haven't had a bath for a gazillion years as much prefer the shower which is used daily. In fact when we renovate our bathroom , we're getting rid of the bath completely. I do enjoy my Heat magazine and Esssentials magazine but they are bought occassionally now. I love to read books and need to do this at night before sleep so to switch off and relax.  

….spend time with your other half?

This one is tricky too and at times I need reminding that Hubby is there as I can get carried away with everything else. But Hubby does work very long hours and spends 4 hours a day commuting as well as shifts so sometimes we are ships that do pass in the night.  Sometimes we don’t see each other for a week as he leaves for work before I get home and vise versa. It’s not ideal and it’s not good. So when he is off, we tend to go for walks over Ashdown forest, the beach or mooch, around Lewes. We always talk to each other on the phone (very rarely text) as talking is so important. I hate being a rat bag because I am too tired but work does get in the way.

….do fun stuff with your LO?

I assume LO is loved ones? Well I have one child who is now 14 so he is pretty much always out with friends or on his Xbox in his room. Occasionally we’ll go out as a family but they are getting rarer as son likes his time doing what he wants and we like adult time; going to the pub for lunch etc. However we always sit to eat dinner together when hubby is off.  Hubby and son have a cinema night which is cute and that leaves me at home with the cat and the laptop and the TV remote. Woo hoo! Occassionally son and I will catch up with a DVD which is cute but don't tell him I said that.

  ….socialise with friends?

‘Words with friends’ on Facebook is a tad addictive and I seem to be on there with my friends quite a bit. During half term we meet round each other houses for lunch, each bringing something for the lunch. Once a month we all attend the pub quiz for a humorous evening. I am lucky that I do work with my friends so see them on  a daily basis. Those I don’t work with are more tricky! I recently met up with a friend a few weeks ago and we both realised we hadn’t seen each other for about 6 years! Shocking! But it seemed only like yesterday which is the mark of true friendship. And we won't leave it that long next time!

 ….prepare an evening meal juggling a baby/toddler bedtime routine?

N/A (no toddler anymore) and I am the Undomesticated Devil so evening meal is not set in stone unless Hubby cooking. If I do cook, it’s pasta which is 20 minutes or a one pot casserole all in the oven and it’s done. I am not a bad cook, I just don’t like doing it most of the time. I am lucky I have a Hubby who enjoys cooking and can cook!

….deep clean your house? ….do the food shopping?

I’ve put these 2 together otherwise it would be embarrassingly short! I’m rubbish at cleaning. I hate it. However, I am a bit evil in that my Hubby is a bit OCD when it comes to cleanliness and I do take advantage of that. I’ll do the hoovering and blitz the kitchen and that’s as deep as it goes  . . . . for me anyway. Hubby does it most of the time.  Anyway, when I’ve hovered and then he comes along and does it like an hour later, then what’s the point? As for the shopping. Hubby does it when he’s off in the week as there are less people around, he has the car and I take too long. Apparently my brain implodes in the cereal aisle let alone trying to manage all the other aisles. Hubby gets it done in half the time if I don’t go and spends a lot less!!

 ….bulk ironing

Oops, have answered that earlier.

Well that’s it. A little peek into my world . . . some of you may want to hire my Hubby; rates negotiable. I am not too bad but there is room for improvement but I do work in a very demanding job and my Hubby does the cleaning so much better than I ever could ;-). It's funny, but my hubby has been requesting I salute him, award him with all that he does so I guess this blog goes someway to doing that so I dedicate this blog to him. xxxx

Now I tag 3 others in this rather tricky but fun meme . . . .

The 1970s Diet

365 pearls of wisdom.

the mummy blogger

And don't worry about having to complete now; it is a time management meme after all and it's taken me 4 weeks ;-) xxxx,