100 Seconds to Midnight

Ten days - one dress - several hundred photographs! I've had mixed feelings about the first tenth of my 100 Day Dress Challenge.  For whilst I am loving wearing the dress and subsequent liberation from the ongoing question of "What am I going to wear today?" I'm pretty sure that stressing over the daily photographic evidence was not the intended outcome, and certainly doesn't fit with premise of having more time to do the things you love.  It is, after all, not a photographic competition - but by the time I am a couple of days in, I have a sneaking suspicion that, for me, it might as well be.  And when, on Day 4 I discover that fog is forecast for the following morning and message a friend to ask if she'd be up for a 8.30am woodland photoshoot to catch the atmosphere, I think I'd be hard pushed to convince anyone otherwise. Luckily for me, said friend was indeed prepared to take on the job and off we went into the woods in search of the perfect shot.  Seph...

The same boiling water that softens the potato, hardens the egg. It's about what you're made of, not the circumstances. Unknown This is the second time I've written a blog.  The first was a peek inside my one any only foray into the world of marathon running, I say peek but, after 750 continuous days, reading it was more of an endurance event than the actual race.  It became a daily habit that I enjoyed writing but grew increasingly uneasy with the fact that I was, to all intents and purposes, publishing a diary online and really what was the need?  It took a little over three and a half years, and a knee jerk reaction to the resetting of the Doomsday Clock, for the compulsion to write to resurface - what I've yet to really settle on is why? Without wishing to jump back into the realm of diary (but alternate stimuli have been few and far between this week) I have received word that my art submissions have been moved from someone's 'to look at later' p...

We are all parts of a whole.  Our individual actions, conversations, behaviours and mindsets can have an impact on our larger society.  Collectively, we can make change happen.  Collectively, we can each help to create a gender equal world. We can all choose to be #EachforEqual  International Women's Day 2020   For whilst I appreciate that not everyone will share my view that we can no longer ignore the environmental impact of our decisions and we need to take action - now - it was somewhat disheartening when the woman working in the local health food shop launched, unbidden, into a tirade against Greta Thunberg and then revealed herself to be an advocate for world leaders being our best hope. Thankfully my faith in humanity was restored a couple of days later when I received some art materials wrapped in a cardboard alternative to bubble wrap.  Particularly pleasing because it was unexpected, the company's website made no reference to being ...

OK, so I thought I had it sussed. Optimism over pessimism, anger management under control.  However, when your emotional response to the news is one of overwhelm, it turns out that's a whole different kettle of fish. Determined to make a difference and armed with my new found podcast from last week, I set out on a daily programme of re-education.  But a few days in and it's time for a rethink!  Instead of feeling inspired as I expanded my mind beyond the usual dog walking mental challenge of 'PopMaster' I started drowning in a sea of hopelessness. There is just too much wrong with the world: too many awful things happening to too many people and too much complacency about it; too much greed; too much plastic; and too many lies. It didn't take long for these feelings of anguish to spill over into my own life and Bam! instead of striding out across the park enjoying the fresh air and signs of spring, I'm trudging along getting stuck in the mud and dreaming o...