Thoughts on a Rainy Evening

I took three parcels to the post office and will be taking three more as soon as the buyers have paid up.  There are, of course, always incoming things like the knitting patterns for instance and new school clothes for Zoe.  I am choosing not to view knitting patterns as clutter.  For one thing they have a use and thankfully take up very little room.  Even so, I will look through my patterns and give away or sell any I don't want anymore.  I do try to operate the one in, one out policy in the house so that it doesn't silt up with stuff.  Zoe's wardrobe needs a sort through so that the old school uniform can be outgoing either to fabric recycling or to charity.  There are only really a few pockets of wild clutter left in the house - the untamed stuff which lies about with no fixed abode.  Although of course I'm not counting the loft which is groaning with 16 years of  toys.  These days I'm verrry careful what we put up there as I know I'm only storing up problems for later.

We have had a lot of rain here this evening, I can hear it pouring down even now.  Cherry is feeling anxious as she is starting college tomorrow.  I have just dyed her hair and earlier bought her some new false eye lashes.

The End of Two Eras

I am having a bittersweet day.  It's the first day back at school for my youngest and it looks like my school run days are over as she is now old enough to want to be independent and go with a friend.  I'm pleased she's organised this with a girl in her class but of course it means I no longer have those walks with her and that familiar structure to my day (I've been doing school runs for 12 years).  So I suppose I'm in mourning in a way.  The days of small children are past.

The other bittersweet thing is that I am knitting some baby things for a friend of mine and - sorry I can't remember if I've blogged this before - I've been getting really interested in vintage baby knitting patterns as a result.  They turn up in charity shops quite a bit and I am starting to view them from a new perspective.  Modern patterns tend to be rather dumbed down at times and can feel a bit half hearted in terms of being a bit cobbled together, I don't know if that makes sense.  Vintage ones from the forties and fifties are so beautiful and they seem more patterned and as if more care went into the little details.  I am feeling as if I'd like to knit from these patterns and maybe sell or give away to charity what I produce.  Anyway, to get to the bitter part, I visited my mum this morning and she had gathered together her old baby knitting patterns to give to me as she seems to have no intention of knitting baby things ever again.  This gives me a big pang of sadness as, when my girls were born she knitted some truly lovely cardigans and matinee coats which I used and used and treasured.  As the girls grew older I didn't part with them and, in fact, they are now under my side of the bed in my old baby changing bag but you can't see them in my picture (previous post) as they are tucked well under.  As I cycled away from my mum's I thought she looked old and tired and I wondered how long I would have her in my life.  She, too, is clearing out but not so that she can live in peace .......

So it's an emotional day with strong feelings and awareness of the passage of time and the end of two eras both at once.  I'm not keen on this time of the year, I prefer Spring into Summer.

My Side of the Bed and a Peek in my Drawers

Here is my bed side area and top drawer.  A few months back the chest of drawers was dusty, crowded with soft toys and books with all sorts of stuff on the floor in front of it and in the drawers.  I still have a problem or two to sort out and if the camera was pointing in the opposite direction it would tell a different story, but I'm proud of this space I've cleared in my life through simplifying and decluttering.  I sorted out the top drawer by emptying it out, vacuuming it, lining it with a lovely scented drawer liner I bought at a car boot sale (people never seem to get around to using these and yet they look and smell great every time you open the drawer!) and replacing only what I use regularly.  It used to contain old cassette tapes I didn't listen to and books I didn't like but thought I ought to read.  The middle drawer used to house my financial papers and school letters and certificates.  I made room in our study for these by getting rid of books no longer used and now it has become a drawer where I keep my latest knitting projects. I like to knit when I am relaxing so it's good to have them to hand. In the bottom drawer I keep nightwear - I have far too much but I'm working on that.  I've sold two kimonos on Ebay today and at least now the rest will fit nicely into the drawer.  My radio is a much loved object, I listen to it at night when I am going off to sleep.  The vintage basket on the floor contains what I have sold this week on Ebay.  And that's about it really.  I'd love some comments and more followers, is there anybody out there?

Decisions, Decisions

I'm feeling optimistic because I've seized this free time I didn't know I'd have and listed ten items on Ebay - that's a whole basket full of stuff I had in my space and hopefully most or all of it will go in a week's time.  If it doesn't sell I will put the items in a charity sack after that.  It seems that having stopped most of my pointless shopping and done an initial sweep around the house I am now doing another skimming out of superfluous objects and I am really seeing a difference.  I used to dream of a skip on the front lawn and a radical and ruthless tipping out of excess stuff but quite aside from the fact that we would be unlikely to spend £200 on a skip, it's a gradual process.  There are decisions to be made, lots and lots of small and sometimes large decisions that all add up to The Big Decision to live and function differently.  To do this requires swimming against the tide, being tempted daily by the glittering and shimmering of seductive objects and advertisements but even so standing by that big decision so that its results can be seen and enjoyed and the next stage - to maintain - can be reached.