Back to New!

Do you know the story about the old woman who boasted that, apart from two new handles and four new heads, she’d had the same broom for 50 years? I’m feeling like that with my computer …

After two weeks of ‘repair’ it was returned to me with more faults than it had before. So, it was sent away for another ten days and this time came back with a new hard drive, a new motherboard, more memory installed and some different software.

It’s working beautifully (I’m touching wood) but it’s like starting with a new computer again. I’ve had to adjust settings and rearrange everything so it looks something like my old, familiar computer.

Oh, well, it keeps the brain working – but I wish I could have some more memory added too!

Logging on

When I am Rich I will have a spare computer – no, make that half a dozen spare computers – so that when my main machine has to go for repair I won’t feel quite so bereft.

I thought I was only going to be computerless for a couple of days but it’s stretched to nearly 2 weeks now. The withdrawal symptoms aren’t getting any easier, but there are some compensations:

I’ve rediscovered the joys of writing with pen and paper
I’ve talked to people instead of emailing
I’ve spent more time in the garden
I’ve gathered my news from the radio instead of the Internet
I’ve done research in a real library - with books!
Even so, many, many thanks to the generous person who has let me borrow his laptop!

A Special Day

It’s our anniversary, what shall we do to celebrate?

If we were Rich we could give each other expensive presents, dine in a posh restaurant, perhaps spend the day in some exclusive, tropical paradise …

Or, we could go and watch the boats,












say hello to the ducks,

















find a coot on her nest,

and have a home-made picnic while enjoying the view.

You can find romance anywhere – with the right person.

Does a tomato have the answer?

Since my last post I’ve decided that as I can’t buy more hours for each day I’ll just have to make better use of the ones I’ve got. I wasted quite a lot of time looking at various complicated time management systems, but then I came across The Pomodoro Technique.

It was developed by Francesco Cirillo. It’s simple, fun and, best of all, it works!

When I am Rich I will buy a genuine, bright red tomato timer. Until then I’ll make do with what I’ve got.



Anyone know the Italian for silver egg?

Where does it go?

When I am Rich I will have a time machine.

I don’t mean a device that travels into the past or future. I just want something that will slow time down to a reasonable pace.

When I was in my teens someone told me that the older you get, the faster time passes. I didn’t believe such nonsense. But now, I know it’s true. Each day seems shorter than the one before, weeks are suddenly over as soon as they’ve begun, and I can’t believe it’s March already! (Or that I haven’t posted anything on this blog for so long!)

I have been busy, but the other problem with getting older is that there is so much more I want to do. All those things I planned to do ‘one day’ when I had more time, for example!

Does anyone have any ideas on how I can work faster, or make the clock tick slower?

Pretty but Problematical

When I am Rich I will buy a snow machine so I’ll be able to add that magical Christmas sparkle to my garden if the real stuff fails to arrive on time.

But I’ll also buy a snowplough (a big, yellow one) so I’ll have no problem in getting out and about during our wonderful British winters!



Fortunately I’m only planning a short journey tomorrow to spend Christmas with family – but keeping fingers crossed for no more snow so I’ll be able to get back next week.

Merry Christmas!
Happy Holidays!

Best Wishes to Everyone for whatever celebrations you will be enjoying at this special time of year!

The Bright Side

It was only a cold, but it stopped me going out rainbow-hunting.











But it wasn’t all bad news. A rainbow came in to visit me!



(OK, it wasn’t a real rainbow, it was sunlight reflected off the edge of a mirror, but it still cheered me up!)