SEEKER IS POORLY!

The eczema-related problems in my ears have got much worse and have now spread to my nose and eyes too. So now I have got red eyes, a sore and slightly swollen nose and I cannot hear much in either ear! I went to the doctor’s yesterday and came back loaded down with a huge array of ointments and drops. I have got so much stuff, I almost had to take out a mortgage to buy them at the chemist’s!

I avoided going to the doctors for as long as possible – probably for too long! This is partly because there was a time when I was at the doctors so much – and I am trying to live without these guys! I want to see myself as a healthy person once again! I also did not want to have my blood pressure checked there at the moment. I have had problems with raised BP since it was taken on my first ever visit to the gym in 2001! I have managed to avoid BP meds, by the skin of my teath, ever since: I got it down with diet and exercise. I had a long spell away from the gym in the summer though and my BP unfortunately went up. It is on the way down again now though (I have my own BP machine) and I do not want to risk getting put on BP meds by my doctor before it comes right down. Stupidly, BP is a big issue to me and my BP is usually right up when taken at the doctor’s surgery because I get myself so worked up about it! Fortunately, they didn’t take it yesterday though.

So, today is Halloween! To you, Halloween probably means witches and pumkins and trick-or-treating but – for me – it merely means my daughter’s birthday! Yes, 26 years ago today I was in a hospital labour ward awaiting the birth of my 2nd child! Where on earth does time go to? It’s seriously scarey! We all are going out for a meal to celebrate later on – I am just hoping that I feel up to it!

I really need to get these ears sorted out, as I am going to be going to be flying in 9 days time (hopefully not by quite the same mode of transport as the lovely lady in the picture though!). I am going to Rovinj in Croatia – with two men! Yes, two men! Before you get any bad ideas, one is my husband and the other is his boss – and they are actually going there to have some dental work done! There have been to the dentist there before, but this time I am going along too for the ride! I have no idea just how this will work out – I don’t know his boss at all really, but have never liked him much when I have spoken to him on the phone. He is apparently in a pretty unhappy marriage, so I don’t know how he feels about travelling with an old Derby and Joan like hubby and me! It should be interesting! By all accounts, Rovinj is a very beautiful place and I will have plenty of time to explore on my own; a pretty novel experience for me, as hubby is usually always with me! I am looking forward to it. I am just hoping that the weather is good and that I am no longer so deaf!!!!

I am off now to make myself a nice, hot drink …….

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The music track now playing on my computer is: –

Mercy Street from So by Peter Gabriel

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ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY THINGS!

The object of this list is to highlight the things that you have done.

Feel free to borrow this and complete it on your blog.

(Thanks to ukok for this)

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
( Attempted to climb Snowdon in Wales once, but didn’t make it to the top. Climbed mountain in Bosnia and Herzegovina 3 times!)
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said “I love you” and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris (Just briefly – and it wasn’t a very romantic visit!)12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
(On a ferry to Ireland in 1998. The overnight journey started with a very rough sea, but later we went out on deck to see the most beautiful sunrise!)
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game (and survived the crush afterwards)
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
(My husband did most of the work!)
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
(No, but have slept in a tent in some amazingly windy weather, so could easily have ended up sleeping under the stars!)
20. Changed a baby’s diaper
(For my 2 children)
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
(When I was 20, I went on holiday to Majorca all by myself. Whilst there, I went on a boat trip/beach party. Landed on a very quiet beach where we were each given a whole bottle of champagne! It was pretty cheap stuff, but it did leave me somewhat merry!)
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
(With my children, many moons ago!)
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
(Almost did in 1999 – but it was too cloudy!)
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
(My life seems to be full of many problems – but I still get these moments when everything feels wonderful and I am truly happy. I can never fortell when these moments are going to happen, they are pretty random – but they sure do make life worth living!)
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
(Yes! My Daughter!)
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
(In Majorca a long, long time ago!)
44. Watched wild whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
(No, but I live there anyway!)
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
(Yes, see No. 13 above. Magical place – must go there again!)
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your CDs
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
(Many times. On holiday in a caravan a couple of years ago we woke up on the first day to find it pouring with rain, so we just stayed in bed. It was so relaxing)
(No, there was nothing naughty going on. Daughter was in the caravan too!)
60. Played touch football
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
(10th August 1974)

73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
(In 2002, just after my hysterectomy. Shared it with some Americans who called us “A cute English family”!)

80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an “expert”
83. Got flowers for no reason
(Very rarely though!)

84. Performed on stage
(Did a couple of am dram plays in early 90’s. Great fun!)
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Kissed on the first date
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one/both of your parents
(Both)
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
(No, but am hoping to speak Greek fluently one day! Not sure I’ll ever achieve it though!)
95. Performed in Rocky Horror
96. Raised children
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking
(Am always doing this!)
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
(Is this money or weight? Have lost the former, but unfortunately not the latter! Am trying hard to, though!)
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Touched a stingray
110. Broken someone’s heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
(My ankle on 1st October 2003)
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
(Had hysterectomy in 2002 ‘cos I had cancer of the womb. Operation was not too bad really!)
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
(I could sleep for England, me!)
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
(Have never even been to the US! Whoever made this questionnaire up thinks that America is the only country with internet access!)
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
(Do evening classes count?)
131. Parasailed
132. Touched a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream
(Every time I am in Kefalonia! Wish I could live there for ever!)
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair
147. Been a DJ
148. Shaved your head
149. Caused a car accident
150. Saved someone’s life

CALL IN FOR A CUPPA.

Come in, sit down. I’ll make you a coffee. Or would you prefer tea? Perhaps a slice of cake as well?

My mum always had friends who popped in for a cuppa and a chat. When I was a child and we lived in Brighton, we used to have a neighbour who would call in every Saturday morning for a drink and a bit of conversation. My dad used to go out and buy some scones to have with our cuppa. Those were happy days.

I’m feeling down today, for reasons I won’t trouble you with. I’d love to have somebody I could call and ask round for one of those cosy chats. I ‘d cheer up in no time. But, there is nobody I can call. The people I do know are all working or just too busy. And I doubt that they’d want to listen to me anyway – most people I know are very good at talking about themselves, but not so good at listening to what others want to say.

So come on in, take a seat. Make yourself comfortable. I’ll put the kettle on.

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The music track now playing on my computer is: –

Ambergris March from Drawing Restraint 9 by Björk

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FITTING IN.

I was prompted to write on this subject by a post on another blog. This guy is mainly talking about his problems in respect of relationships: he is actually in the middle of an affair with the writer of another blog I read. I think though that he is saying in his post – entitled inside looking in – that he does have problems fitting in generally.


I have been very lucky in my marriage, but aside from that I understand only too well what this writer is talking about. I have been outside looking in for most of my life. The feeling of being the odd one out is with me virtually every time I am in any kind of group. And, as I mentioned in my previous post about Friendship, I have big problems making friends too. And the world of deep feelers is definitely the one that I was destined to inhabit!

I have also mentioned before that, in my religious life, finding out exactly what God thinks of us is the hardest things. I guess that most church people would just condemn the guy in the blog I am talking about because he is having an affair. Some of them would think of him as a bad person. But he is merely somebody who is hurting. Most of us are hurting in some way. Most sins are committed because we are hurting. Does God condemn us too, or does he treat us gently because he understands our pain? That is the single, eternal question that Seeker needs to know the answer to!

Being outside looking in upon the rest of the human race is horrible. Everyone who feels that way, or who is hurting in any way at all (and who isn’t hurting in one way or another?) has my sympathy. I believe that they must surely have God’s understanding too.

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The music track now playing on my computer is: –

Love On The Rocks from The Ultimate Collection (cd 1) by Neil Diamond.

I cannot believe how so many of these tracks seem to fit exactly with the subject!
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IT’S ALL GREEK TO ME!

Seeker is back learning Greek (τα Ελληνικά) again!

Our class was actually cancelled because they were two people short of 10 (the number they needed to run the class). This was only because two silly people who wanted to join left it until the last minute to do so!

We managed to get on another course by the same teacher, but in a different town. The venue is fine for us, in fact it seems to take us less time to get there. Unfortunately though, the class in on a Tuesday night. Seeker and husband normally go to Table Tennis on a Tuesday night (in fact, we are both on the committee!).

These are the only two regular evening activities I go out to, people! Now they are on the same night – isn’t that just typical? I haven’t yet mastered the art of bi-location (though I am working on it!), so table tennis has had to go for the time being.

I love Greece (η Ελλαδά). I love Greek (τα Ελληνικά). There wasn’t even a contest!

Για σασ.

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The music track now playing on my computer is:-
Another Day from Wings Greatest by Paul McCartney.

No comment needed here, except to say I bet he wished he’d lived and let die!
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