the Monday Musings column from that consultant bloke

The weather fluctuations continue to thwart me on the things that I need to do around the house and garden and so I find myself doing other things that I had planned to keep me busy over the Winter. I have long loathed the ToDo list, but I am starting to think that I do need to sit back and make a list of jobs to avoid losing focus.

Today I managed to get a few external chars out of the way before the rain set in, but am now sat by the front room window typing this as the rain steadily falls. The weather radar shows now sign of the rain stopping much before it gets dark, but from the kitchen I have the aromas of the curried carrot soup that is cooling on the hob and the belly pork joint that is slow cooking to provide tonight’s dinner. Cooking is always a pleasant distraction on days like this and it also provides some personal fulfilment; that primeval urge to provide for the family.

In will be ducking my afternoon exercise walk this afternoon too. There seems little point in getting cold and wet and, in anticipation of dud weather, I have almost walked my target for the week anyway so I shall skive off today and see what tomorrow brings. These walks are important in terms of my seeking to loose weight and, after losing around 7kg so far I have plateaued somewhat so I need to balance my reluctance to go out in inclement weather with the desire to beexpelled from the fat bastard’s club.

One of my side projects at the moment is putting together something of a personal history. I began to do this about 12 years ago when my Mother was slipping away and dementia had robbed me of chance to talk about some of the family background. She died without revealing the Mystery of the Bowens, but my son’s research into the family tree put us in contact with the half-brother that I suspected, but did n to have any proof of. It solved some of the mystery, but not all and so I felt that I should leave something for my children should they be interested.

I have been working my way through what I remember of our lives through from when I was born through until now. It is odd how memory is flawed, for some of the dates that I would have sworn were when events occurred have proved to be out. My efforts are not hampered by an industrial accident back in early 1972 that saw me rendered unconscious and unable to recall much of the previous 18 months. I do have some documents that give me key dates and from them I am trying to piece the rest together.

It has provided something else to use the grey matter on and that can only be good, especially at the moment. Research can be frustrating, but it can also be rewarding. The internet has an astonishing range of opportunities and today I have, from the comfort of my dining chair here, visited the four houses that I lived in before I settled where I am now all via Google StreetView. It has also given me a 4 year old view of where I sit now and the improvements since are very noticeable.

Seeing the old houses has brought back a variety of memories and has also reminded me that I have lived almost half of my life here. There must be something in the water.

Stay safe one and all, wherever you may be.