This gallery contains 18 photos.
Foxton Locks
Tag Archive | Snow
Village snow
Our village pub
Lubenham Village School
Nanook of the North-AKA me
Ye Olde Railway Bridge
The brook
The Church
Lubenham village-The Towers
It’s snow joke
The weather forecast has been poor all week, but I was always hopeful that somehow we would escape the snow and ice coming our way and continue with our normal Saturday ice-skating lesson routine.
Alas it was not to be and as the snow gradually turned into a frenzied blizzard early this morning I turned the radio on just in time to hear the traffic report which also told me that the motorway junction we exit to fetch Will was closed due to an accident. Going cross-country didn’t seem such a good idea when the strong advice was not to travel unless necessary, so being the sensible soul I am, I resigned myself to no Will this weekend and no ice skating either and arranged to stay at home.
This hasn’t been such a bad thing though as it has meant I have enjoyed a lazy day which is a rare occurrence for me and one which I would normally rebel against. I like to be on the move, to do things. I don’t rest until my head hits the pillow and then only for an average of 4 hours sleep so for me to go back to bed and sleep until 11.30am this morning was a rare thing indeed.
With nothing to do outside, the garden is under 6″ of snow, the wind is bitter cold and the road treacherous, I have enjoyed sorting out my blog (note the change in format and colour) adding some new links and pictures and deleting the old ones which no longer work whilst listening to old ABBA CDs and watching Inspector Morse episodes! What an admission and bang goes any street cred I had left! But it’s not so bad….
They say a restless body can hide a peaceful soul
A voyager and a settler, they both have a distant goal
If I explore the heavens, or if I search inside
Well, it really doesn’t matter as long as I can tell myself
I’ve always tried
(Abba, Move On)
“The secret of a happy life is to know when to stop – and then go that bit further.”
“When I’m thinking, I get thirsty.”
(Inspector Morse)
So long November…Hello December
Another whirlwind month passes and looking back at how much has happened in just a few weeks, I am determined to make December a more sedate, calm affair. It seems such a long time ago now, but I started this Blog on 1 November whilst off work having suffered a relapse and unable to cope with life outside my front door. I’m lucky. I know what my triggers are although sometimes I still do too much and end up in an exhausted pathetic heap of uselessness. I also know that absolute rest in addition to my normal coping strategies and medication is the only cure. I am now back at work and employing all the tactics learned from years of CBT to ” Stay Calm and Keep Going”.
Starting my very own Blog has been a fantastic way for me to keep myself mentally occupied whilst resting. I only wish that I had done it sooner. After thirty years of hiding my depression it seems that opening up has released my creative genes and I am now catching up on three decades of ideas, poems, thoughts and opinions which were clearly surpressed whilst living my lie. The dam has been well and truly unplugged and I am going through an intense and sometimes tiring period of reading, writing, composing and trying to get everything down in print before it’s forgotten or worse still, flies away unrecorded.
Although the month didn’t start well, it gradually improved and I am now where I would like to be. In control, at peace and enjoying life again. I like to get involved in projects when I can spare the energy and this month was no exception. I have registered for the Aspire Heroine’s Quest- my campaign for 2011 is to “eradicate the stigma attached to mental illness and depression by “talking openly and honestly” about my experiences because “everyone deserves a chance”. I have also joined Rethink as an active campaigner which will give me some professional support and structure to my activities. Be warned though, I will be looking for your support, as everyone can do something to help me in my challenge.
Pudsey and Blush made a great effort raising funds for Children In Need; Dream Alliance didn’t win the Hennessy Gold Cup at Newbury but I will be cheering him as he defends his title at the Welsh Grand National in December. I read a great book, “Hurry Down Sunshine” about a teenager’s descent into psychosis as written by her father which I wholeheartedly recommend. We had our first snowfall of the winter, causing mayhem yet again and I feel that I must mention the Royal engagement. By far the most rewarding experience in November however has been finding new friends and members of my “tribe”. Nicolas, a fellow sufferer well on the road to recovery, Blogger and cycling demon; Emma, with her own business leaderwithin,is one of the most interesting and friendly people I have met in a long time and I must not forget Kevin, another fellow depressioneer, Sheffield Wednesday fan and budding photographer.
“From little acorns big oaks grow” so onwards and upwards to finish 2010 on a high. My targets for December? The Greenwich Park Santa Fun Run next Sunday. So far I have raised over £1,000 for Depression Alliance. My biggest challenge? To survive Christmas mentally and emotionally intact.
That will be a first!
First Fall
First snow of winter
Crisp, white blankets smother fields
Gentle drifts, flurries
Clouds pregnant with flakes
Release icy blasts, blizzards
Bitter cold, frozen
Icing-topped branches
Coated in white crystal shards
Icicles hang tight
Eerie yellow light
Signals mid-afternoon dusk
Bursts of sleet rain down
Sunrise brings new warmth
A slow thaw starts where rays reach
Transform. White to green.
Poppyposts 
