Frump to Fab 2017 - A Whole New World

indiepanda

LL what a lovely complement. I have to admit I am a bit vain and always rather gratified to find myself taken for younger than my age. I will be 45 this month but people I meet for the first time generally place me in my 30s. I reckon it's payback for having never been overseas on holiday as a child and always being quite careful with my skin - got a few little lines under my eyes and some faint ones on my forehead but especially compared to a lot of the men I've met who are my age or even younger internet dating, I am relatively line free. I guess guys take less care of their skin and are more inclined to skip sunscreen and get burned.

Floss happy anniversary, Pembrokeshire is a lovely part of the world, been on a few hiking trips and we finished a hike in St David's at Easter. I think it that part of the coast is as pretty as Cornwall but not nearly so touristy.

maman wrote: »

I had a very enjoyable and productive few hours in Winchester. The exhibition was interesting, focused on Turner's representation of sunlight in landscapes.Then I strolled through town and did some gentle shopping! I bought 2 summer tops in sales and some super indigo jeans in the White Company. They were expensive but I felt like treating myself. I'm going to pension off some of the jeans I've stopped liking to the CS and limit myself to 2 smart pairs and 2 knocking around pairs.

Now that I am slimmer I've been able to get back into wearing jeans from some more premium brands - for years I wore M&S ones - and I can feel the difference in the denim, much softer and a higher lycra percentage so seem to keep their shape better. I need to get rid of my older ones - there's nothing flattering about jeans that have gotten too large.

sugarbaby125 wrote: »

Hello Ladies,
I will be forever grateful for this thread, as it gives me so much inspiration, especially on the days when I feel as if I can not be bothered, I try to make some effort with my appearance. I never want to be 'mutton dressed as lamb' woman, but neither do I want to dress older than my chronological age.

I went to another Poetry group in Beckenham last night and I had another really enjoyable evening. It is run by the same man who runs the Blackfriars Poetry group. My friend of 13 years who I met at Hillcroft College, was there, as she is a regular attendee of this group and lives in Beckenham. She was really pleasantly surprised to see me there. It is 2 longish bus rides away from my home in South London, but it is a very straightforward journey. I had been inspired to write 4 new poems this week, so I performed those 4 poems for the group, despite my nerves.

I am definitely returning to work on Monday for my usual 3 hour shift, but I will be on light duties for the next 2 month's, so my worn down body should be able to cope admirably with the light duties. One of the other cleaners has been assigned by Management to do all of the heavy work on my floor for the next 2 months.

Okay, it is time for me to watch my recording of X Factor. This way I can cut out all of the adverts, the judges waffling and simply watch the acts and enjoy the singing talent in the show. :j I tend not to watch the really awful singers, as I feel it is cruel to put them through round after round, just to laugh at them.

I know what you mean, I am definitely making more of an effort with my appearance these days too - more inclined to wear make up, not save my nicer clothes for best, do my hair etc. I am trying to dress a bit younger too - when I was more overweight I think I was veering towards lamb dressed as mutton at times.

I do admire your creative efforts, I was utterly useless at poetry at school and didn't enjoy much of the poetry I studied for my A level in English literature, all a bit too impenetrable for me (The Wasteland by TS Eliot was the main one we studied). I used to enjoy writing stories but as my English teacher told my Economics teacher I was too prosaic to be really good at English. As my economics teacher told me that was no bad thing given my university plans were economics and flowery language has no place in economics. All the same, books give me so much pleasure it would be nice to be able to write with flair.

Hope the return to work goes well on Monday.

I know what mean about the cruelty of the X factor auditions with the people who can't sign. I watched the early singing talent shows like Popstars and Pop Idol but I got tired of them laughing at people who had delusions of talent and have never really got into X Factor. At least the Voice they only show the decent singers, but they seem to be very bad at picking people who end up having any commercial success after the show.

I think teal has been quite popular in home furnishings and even clothing for quite a while - I love it because it's one of my best colours in terms of clothes that suit me and I find now I gravitate towards colours in my life that would work well as clothing too. Most of my towels are chocolate and teal, and for neutrals round the home I always pick creams, taupes, browns rather than greys and other cooler colours. It's interesting that the stereotype of women is that we will go mad with pink given half a chance and yet the only pink thing I have in my house is a tealight holder given to me by a friend.

I've been having a bit of a declutter of toiletries this morning - partly in preparation for the bedroom move and partly to help with packing for my upcoming holidays. Oh dear.... how much money have I wasted. I've found body lotions that must be at least 10 years old... things I would never use now, e.g. because they have mineral oil in (i.e. a petrochemical) or things that smell of things I wouldn't choose now (like blueberries and passion fruit... nice to eat, but to smell of??) and some which have evidently gone badly off. Am throwing a ton of stuff away but still have plenty left. Part of the issue is I get given some stuff as gifts and I don't want to be rude and say to friends "don't buy me any" or "only buy these brands" as it's ungrateful. But I have cunningly posted a status on Facebook about how much I had and how I am not buying any more till they are used up. Let's see if that cuts down what I get given instead!

Part of my issue is I keep buying sample sizes of things like shampoo, conditioner, shower gel and body lotion and when I get home from a trip I've used enough of them to not want to take on the next trip, but I then keep the left overs in a drawer, taking up space. So the plan now is each time I come back from a trip I need to go through my washbag and move into the bathroom anything that isn't full enough to do another trip and use it up that way.

I also need to get back into putting on body lotion day and night - I don't manage most nights and only around 1 out of every 2/3 days in the morning, and I can feel my skin is a bit dry. If I am going to keep any colour from my holidays I need to get rid of the dead stuff and soften up the stuff underneath.

On the positive front, I have at least found my favourite hiking hat which will save me buying a new one (they are vital on sunny day to prevent heatstroke as well as protecting the face from the sun, and discovered my waterproof trousers needed cleaning in time to do it before the trip. I do want to replace them at some point, but am holding out till next season when I want to be down another dress size.

Right, better get back to doing something useful. Have a great Sunday all x

sugarbaby125

Hello Ladies,

Having been through the early part of the process as an applicant for X Factor, I know that you have to get through 3 rounds of auditions and get into the 4th round of auditions, as that is the round of auditions that is filmed and excerpts of contestants in that 4th audition round are then put in front of the judges. I only got to the 2nd round of auditions, but that truly amazed me, as the other singers on the day of my 1st audition were far more talented than me, including my sister who also was auditioning for the show.

That was a real eye opener to me, that researchers from the show with no knowledge of music or singing choose what contestants go through. There were literally hundreds of incredible singers being sent home by people ill qualified to judge their talent.

One of the men from Karaoke auditioned for The Voice and never got past his 1st audition and he was absolutely gutted and began to lose faith in his singing ability after that rejection even though he was in his early fifties. He was so mega talented as a singer though. I could never listen to him sing without having an emotional response. An equally talented young female singer from Karaoke auditioned for the X Factor and even though she did sing for the Judges, they edited her singing in front of the judges to less than a minute when that episode was shown. She is a young girl in her early twenties and she would make the hair on my body stand on end with her singing ability, so I was stunned when she did not get to Boot Camp. I think this rejection knocked her confidence in her singing ability as well, as she soon stopped coming to Karaoke.

These shows can be the only vehicle for a struggling, talented singer to get a firm foundation within the music industry, but they also roller coaster over the dreams of so many aspiring singers.

I am having another quiet day and resting as much as possible, as I had chest pains again today. There is a birthday party today for my great nephew's 2nd birthday, which I did not have the energy to attend. I have to give Karaoke a miss this evening as well for the same reasons. My cold symptoms have literally vanished today, so I do not need to continue taking medication for my cold.

I had not seen my grandson for a few weeks, but he turned up today and surprised us. It was really good to see him and find out what was going on in his life. He starts College tomorrow, so he was excited about that positive step in his life and I am excited for him as well.

Ladies in future if you are given toiletries that you would prefer not to use, then immediately donate them to one of your local charity shops. That way the gift givers money is not being wasted and you do not need to inadvertently offend the gift giver by not using their gift.

I never buy travel size toiletries, I just buy sets of travel bottles so I can decant my favourite toiletries into them. At the end of summer Primark will usually reduced these sets to 50p.

Indie, I have always liked to write. I loved English Literature and Language throughout Secondary School. It is a shame that none of my early writing still exists, so I can 'see' myself in my earlier writing. As I am reading over my earlier work that I wrote more than 12-14 years ago, I can see how my writing now has developed into creative writing that I think is much more reflective of the type of writer I am growing into.

The Poetry groups will benefit me in so many ways as a writer, not just give me the opportunity to make like minded new friends.

Now, that I am returning to work, I will not have as much time to go to other Poetry Open Mic events, but I will try my best for the rest of the year, as it gives me so much pleasure.

sugarbaby125

Ladies, this is why I love to write:

I Write Because

I write because if I did not write, my soul would be damned with all the strong emotions that could not be expressed.

I write because the ideas, if not written down on paper would crowd my mind so that other thoughts would have to fight to see the light of day.

I write because it is the way for me to have closure about all the life changing issues that have happened to me throughout my life. If I did not write these issues down, I could not have a safe outlet for them.

I write because it gives me the vehicle to say what I need to say aloud. Sometimes I do this with humour, other times the subject matter is too intense.

I write because I believe that I was born to be a writer and that one day I will finally realise my biggest ambition and will see my name as a writer in print.

I write because words are balm to my troubled psyche. They soothe me, they ground me and they sometimes give me solace when no other forms of comfort will do.

I write because sometimes it is the only way to share my pain and anguish, without it overwhelming me.

I write because I have to write.

I write because I need to write.

I write because if I did not write, maybe the pain would engulf me and swallow me whole.

I write because without writing, I would simply not be me

chanie

sugar what a lovely piece of writing. I enjoy your style, as its very simple language but conveys what you want to say - I'm not a big fan of flowery words and concepts.

indie I had a big clear out of toiletries a few years ago. I had to throw away a lot of stuff that had gone bad - some of it was expensive stuff that I was keeping for best and I was annoyed that I never got to enjoy them. I keep all of our excess toiletries in a box and when we run out, we get something out of the box. That way, everything gets used and it saves us a couple of pounds. It took me about 2 years to use all of the excess body wash/soap. It was only me using it though as OH has sensitive skin and I didn't want to use them on the children as they were babies/toddlers.

The children are back at school tomorrow, so we are going to have a chilled day at home. Plus I have lots of tidying and cleaning to do.

A couple of tips:

Food - we often get stuck in food ruts, of eating the same foods and getting bored. I bought a few bits from Greek Week at Lidl and the IKEA food section, which have been really nice.

Open House Days London- the weekend of 16th and 17th of September, where lots of buildigs are opened to the public and they let you access parts you otherwise may not see. Google the website and see if anything take a your fancy.

https://openhouselondon.open-city.org.uk

maman

Thanks for sharing your writing sugarbaby. You've been through a lot lately especially with your health and it comes through.:)


I've heard about the Open Days chanie. I think it happens all over the country IIRC. We have family birthdays around then so sadly I've never been able to take advantage.


Another tip for ringing the changes to get out of a food rut is to look at menus online or when you're eating out or look at ready meals in places like M&S for ideas. The other thing I do is pick up in house magazines from places like Asda as they have recipes too. I often adapt them to use things I've got in or herbs/spices I have rather than what the recipe dictates.


I've been sorting a few things out for my trip to Stratford tomorrow. The weather promises to be fairly dull but mostly dry so that's a plus. I'm mainly taking jeans and Breton tops (one blue, one grey) for daytime. I thought of taking the new cropped trousers/culottes for the evening but decided I don't love them so they're going back. I'll wear some silky evening trousers I've got instead with a chiffon blouse to go to the theatre/restaurant. The culottes have an elasticated waist and it doesn't look right. So the hunt for culottes goes on. I see them on other people and like them.


I'm eating really healthily today as I know it won't be happening tomorrow. I've just checked out the menu at the pub/restaurant we're meeting up in tomorrow lunchtime. There's not a salad or a jacket potato in sight. Although it's quite a smart place everything has fillers like bread, pastry, batter etc.:( Maybe I'll be lucky with the specials!:D

sugarbaby125

Hello Ladies,

I went back to work yesterday. It was hard going for me, even doing only light duties, but I was thankful to be back at work.

I had to take painkillers when I got home, as I had so many aches and pains.

lessonlearned

SUgarbaby.......love your writing. Glad you managed to get back to work, but please be careful not to overdo things.

Having said that.....that's exactly what I have done...I have worked myself to a standstill today and like you I'm a mass of aches and pains. Especially my hands.

I have ordered myself a paraffin wax bath for hands and feet. When I did my beauty therapy I did paraffin wax treatments as part of a luxury manicure package. Obviously doing it for yourself is not quite so easy so hopefully the bath will allow me to do my own treatments. As well as being a lovely beauty treatment paraffin wx is also recommended to ease arthritis.

It's worth a try.

Anyway going to cook a simple supper and then just take it easy. I can tidy up properly tomorrow. :rotfl:

sugarbaby125

Hello Ladies,

LL and Chanie, thank you for what you said about my writing. I really appreciate it.

LL at the moment I do not have any choice about over doing it. I am supposed to stop what I am doing and rest if I get any of the atypical symptoms of having an enlarged heart, but in my work environment this is impractical.

My body will soon get used to doing 3 hours of cleaning 5 days a week again. In the mean time I just have to look after myself as best I can. Once I get in from work, I have time to rest. I have been to bed early the last 2 nights, but that has not worked well for me, as I woke up at a ridiculously early time of the morning and I could not get back to sleep, so after an hour and more of trying I got up.

LL please take it easier on your body. It is much better not to have to endure lots of aches and pains. It is our bodies way of letting us know we are putting it under too much physical stress.

I could not go to Karaoke last night and may not be able to go for a few weeks, as my body adjusts to me being back at work. I am simply too exhausted after work, to rush home, have a quick bath, get dressed up and go to Karaoke on Tuesday nights. Sunday night Karaoke, I am not as keen on at the moment, as I want to get as much time to just rest and relax at the weekends and recharge my energy levels.

lessonlearned

SUgarbaby....so sorry to hear how much you are struggling. You do so well to carry on working. I know that financially you have no real choice. I think you are doing all you can under the circumstances. Shame you are having to miss your karaoke but perhaps it's wise for now.

I know that I am now very fortunate. My pension income is enough for me to live on. I can rest when I have to. It would be nice to work a bit. I would like to have more energy. I used to enjoy helping at Scope and I was thinking of becoming a library volunteer. Perhaps next year.

You are right I did overdo it the last couple of days. Today I am going to do some tidying up and just general sorting myself out. I am tired, a bit achey but better than yesterday. It would be nice to sit outside later If it warms up. A bit grey and chilly so could go either way.

Anyone watching "Victoria" on TV. Jemma Coleman is really good. And of course the divine Lord M (gorgeous Rufus Sewell) is back ......can't stand Albert......never could. Pompous prig.......lol.

There's another Victoria film out soon.at the cinema .....Judi Dench again. Looks good.

sugarbaby125

Hello Ladies,

LL even 3 days in, I am finding the work easier to cope with. I am trying my best not to overdo things. I hope you are feeling much better and are taking it a little easier now.

I loved the 1st series of Victoria and I am now watching the start of the 2nd series with real pleasure. I will be watching the new film about Victoria and Abdul as well eventually.