lows and highs

We only halfway through term and I am not enjoying it. There is just no room for thought and I am stuck in a relentless routine of churning out learning material and giving feedback, always a week behind schedule. When not glued to my computer, I don't really feel like doing much other than staring into midair but of course there is always something that requires my attention. The laundry, always so much laundry. How many pyjamas does a single child need each week? I found four pairs of Alistair's in this week monumental pile of laundry. Yes, four. On the other hand, only one school shirt. Poor teachers, the assault on their odour receptors must be quite something. 

The highlight of the week was Annie's visit. It was study week in St. Andrews and she came home for a few days. She brought all her laundry because it is free here (she does it herself). I think she needed a bit of a rest, she looked a bit worn-out. She arrived just after Raisin Weekend. What a weird tradition, I can't quite get my head around it. It involves her academic family pranking the first year mentees, drinking games, very little sleep and to round it all up, a shaving foam fight in costume. Annie's academic family went as Minions. You must google it, it is most bizarre. Of course the official description on the University's website is far from the reality judging by Annie's experience. It was good to have her home for a few days. We all carved out a bit of time to spend with her individually. We enjoyed a wee trip down Byres Rd to shop for earrings, then for lunch at Kember & Jones. Avocado on sourdough toast with crisp streaky bacon strips. We sat outside, it was rather chilly. Then we went to the supermarket for some essentials for the student flat.

I wanted the weekend to be easy on the mind so did a few jobs that had been on my list of things to do. I mended two pairs of jeans, borrowed Annie's glue gun to fix the small birds on twigs in my wire lampshade back in an upright position. I washed the raw selvage denim that is destined to be come jeans three times, to soften it a little. It was stiff as a board. I went for a run on Sunday, 40 minutes, with a few short walks. I am rather pleased with that although I am barely faster than an elderly person walking a dog. We started stripping lining in our bedroom in preparation for the decorator who will give the room a makeover. Stripping the walls ourselves saves quite a bit of money. I had forgotten how satisfying a job this is. I did most of one wall on Sunday afternoon and only stopped after my body started aching from the surprisingly physical strain of climbing up stepladders and kneeling on the floor. We have one week to finish this preparatory job. The original walls painted in 1929 were duck egg blue below the picture rail, beige above. I chose the paint already, it is called schoolhouse white. I am not sure what to make of this name. White touched by grubby hands? I'll keep you posted on that. So, in a couple of weeks from now I'll have a freshly painted bedroom. I might buy new bedlinen, just because.

The photos are from our trip to Devon, in no particular order. We managed three walks in three different landscapes, one on the beach on Jurassic coast, a woodlands walk and one walk up a Tor in Dartmoor. Jack loved them all, and so did we. The main reason for travelling that far was of course not exploring the different landscapes but a memorial service for Richard's aunt Kay, an aunt we all loved very much. 

Thanks for stopping by. Have a lovely week 🙂