Category Archives: change

now playing…

15 Tuesday Mar 2011

Posted by in change, hope, music

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Yet another change since moving to the new casa az … I’ve started listening to music again. I don’t remember when I got out of the habit of putting on the radio or my iPod, but it was a very long time ago. Then after moving I couldn’t find Nero and was surprised at how much that upset me, especially since I’d barely used him, or his little speaker deck, for ages.

Then one day I found him, exactly where I’d looked about ten times before (in my laptop bag) and it’s been none stop music around here ever since. I don’t know why, but it just feels right having music playing. Even the cats help out in that department – their little paws pounding up and down the wooden stairs sound like bongos. Have I mentioned how much I love my new home?

getting there…

09 Wednesday Mar 2011

Posted by in change, home

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Spent most of today organising the extra room, which Jessica will be moving into next month. Since moving in it’s been the “storage room” and I honestly had no idea where I was going to be able to shift everything that was in there. It helped to throw a whole whack of stuff away…

Getting the new casa az set up is sure taking time. The first and most important room to get functioning was the kitchen and then my bedroom, which finally started feeling cosy once I got the curtains up. There isn’t much space to move around The Bed, but at least it fits in there with the headboard and it’s a stroke of luck that I have sliding closet doors.

I’m still using the moroccan rug in the livingroom as Loki has mostly lost interest in it. Funny how that one splash of colour cheers up the whole room. And my fabulous “flamenco” shower curtain helps make the best of the way too small bathroom.

Also got hallway bookcases assembled and the upstairs room is slowly coming together – photos to follow. It’s reckon it’s going to take quite awhile before I’m ready to do a new casa az video, especially as the terrace needs a lot of work. But I’m loving it. There are always projects on the go and the cats adore all the extra space.

Who’d have thought that getting kicked out of my old place would have ended up being such a blessing?

Can’t wait for summer barbeques on the rooftop…

back to the gym… again!

08 Tuesday Mar 2011

Posted by in cancer, change, diet & nutrition, health & happiness

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Progress has been slow with my esguince, quite possibly because I missed the “crucial 48 hour period” during which I should have put it up and iced it constantly. Instead I not only finished a four-hour tapas tour immediately after spraining my ankle, but I didn’t get around to getting anything cold on it (in this case, a bag of frozen peas) until some time the following day. And of course I kept hobbling around on it because I’d just moved into my new place and there was so much to be done. So I was on crutches for at least two weeks afterwards, then graduated to one crutch. This was mostly because of all the cobbled streets here – I was getting around the house okay-ish without crutches but needed that extra security when out on the wobbly cobbles.

As walking on my own became easier and the pain in my ankle subsided (though it still hasn’t gone away completely) I decided last week that I would go back to the gym the following Monday. Then on Friday, whilst in a fit of organising stuff, I found my bathroom scale and, well, put it in the bathroom. But curiosity got the better of me and I weighed myself for the first time in about a month… and I almost died on the spot when it said I’d PUT ON 10 KILOS!! How was it possible? I mean okay, I was feeling extra flabby and gross from inactivity, but I hadn’t been eating more – though I had stopped going to the gym!  So I tested the scale later that evening by having Nog weigh himself when he got home from a class – and it showed his usual weight. I was devastated and the very next day I dragged my EXTRA FAT butt to the gym. Clearly this couldn’t wait until Monday. And catching glimpses of myself in The Wall Mirrors I was so upset at how EXTRA FAT I was, but was also determined to just take it a day at a time and make some serious diet changes.

Same thing Monday morning… went to the gym, did my workout and then came home to shower. After which I dared to get back on the scales thinking a weekend of careful eating might have made a kilo or so difference. And I was ten kilos less! Or rather, the same weight I’ve been for ages. I immediately called Nog over and had him weigh himself again and yep, he was his usual weight. So – phew! I can only guess that after the scale being upside down and knocked around during the move it wasn’t at its best when I first tried it out (Nog had tried it several hours later). Well, what a relief! And what the heck, got me back into my gym routine a couple of days sooner.

When I had my last appointment with my oncologist Dr Ana she gently suggested that now it seems I’ve got the worst of what I’ve been through behind me (for now) that I should probably think about losing some weight. She asked if I needed her to give me a diet, which I didn’t because I do know what to eat in order to lose weight. And I told her next time she saw me (June) I’d be 20 kilos lighter! Dr Ana just shook her head and said she’d be happy to see me at 8 kilos less.  A goal I am quite sure I can accomplish. One day at a time…

it really tied the room together…

24 Thursday Feb 2011

Posted by in animals & pets, cats, change, home

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I mean, doesn’t it??

Some of you may remember my wonderful trip to Tangier & Asilah with Susan (aka Pipocas) and this pretty berber rug that I’d bartered for at the medina in Asilah, which ended up hanging on my wall at the old place.

You may also recall that I’ve always said I prefer marble floors over wood parquet – because I do – but as I’d been living with wood floors for so long my minimalist style of furnishing became very simple and, well, mostly white, which worked quite well against vanilla & ochre walls and wood floors. But white furniture with grey-white marble and pale stone-coloured walls seems to be calling out for a bit of colour. And so I tried the rug on the floor yesterday and you can see for yourself! It looked fab and, to quote the Big Lebowski, really tied the room together. I use the past tense because as soon as Loki woke up from his siesta he made a beeline for the rug and proceeded to shred it to shreds. I rescued it before too much damage was done and guess it’ll be going up on a wall soon. Think it’s time for a more colourful sofa cover…

monday, monday…

22 Tuesday Feb 2011

Posted by in cancer, change, home, hospitals, life stuff, work

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A curious day yesterday as things got fixed, some loose ends were tied up, and other projects continued to grow. I realised when I got up and sat down at my desk in the living room just how perfect that set-up is as a work space, especially this time of year. In summer I’m sure I’ll often be bringing my laptop up to the terrace to enjoy working out in the sun and fresh air, at least in the mornings.

Things started well when the Movistar technician came back to fix the stuff he’d installed on Saturday, thus ending the awful saga of trying to get my service reconnected. He’s the same guy who put in my internet connection a couple of weeks ago and remembered me (and my cats) from the old place. Anyhow, at one point I mentioned complaining about Movistar on Twitter and he said – “Oh yes, they know about you!” – and explained how he was told to be careful with me and be extra nice. Ha. And later I got a private twitter message from Movistar asking if everything was okay and saying “if there’s anything else, you know where to find us”. So of course I told them about the iPhone 4 fiasco… still waiting to hear about that one.

Later in the afternoon I had to go and see my oncologist. At first I thought I’d have to go alone, but Nog had some time before his evening class and came with me. And when we were called into her office just 15 minutes after arriving it seemed like there’d be plenty of time to get through the appointment before Nog had to leave, but no…

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