creative.mother.thinking

Still not quite back in the groove. But. I did sleep for something like nine hours straight which is s definite improvement. It did mean turning the lights out around 8 pm but I’m good with that.

So I woke up a little before the alarm, started doing my morning routine things, did not write (I’m starting to feel rather lazy), made breakfast, my husband showed up rather early but this time I was expecting him, I knitted a bit, we talked, we did a few more things to straighten up the mess we made before painting, my husband went to his dentist’s appointment and I went grocery shopping.

Bakery, butcher, health food store and back home while listening to a rather good podcast („The Creative Penn“), I put the groceries away and changed into running gear. By then it was already noon and I was getting a little hungry and didn’t have much energy left which meant that my 3 k run was more like a 3 k walk. But that’s alright. The weather was gorgeous if a little chilly:

Then we had a super-Bavarian lunch:

Traditionally these have to be eaten before noon but that was before modern refrigeration was a thing.

Then I fell into a bit of a slump, talked with the boy, then did dishes and picked myself up from the slump just in time for teaching. In between I had started calculating how long the current novel will take me. Well, if I continue at the same pace as the last few days the answer is ‚an infinite amount of time‘ because there is no progress without writing. If I extrapolate the average pace since I started into the future the answer is 166 days. Um, not good enough.

So, somehow I will have to get myself in the chair and back to writing.

Then I taught my students and it was fun. I was a little disappointed that one of my ukulele students canceled because I have found a really nice fingerpicking piece for her to play. I did offer it to the other two ukulele students (the one who canceled is an adult but those two belong to the elementary school crowd) but they shot it down immediately. So I started them on a Russian folk song instead.

Then the boy and I did twenty minutes of bodyweight exercises, I got ready for bed, contemplated maybe writing a little and went to bed early again.

And all day in between other things I read „Can’t escape love“ the latest in the excellent and fabulous „Reluctant Royals“-series by Alyssa Cole.

Okay, that might be a bit of an exaggeration.

I woke up from the alarm and spent two hours lounging in bed reading. Had breakfast, knit, talked with my husband, bought yet another non-fiction book, woke up the boy, did some dishes and then it was painting time.

We started with the living room so that we would be able to make lunch in the kitchen and things took quite a bit longer than expected. As they always do.

There was goulash for lunch. It was very good but not as tender as it could have been. We should have defrosted the meat earlier. Still, a very good meal:

We took a short break after lunch during which I read and then started culling my feedreader. And then we went back to painting.

And we painted and painted and painted. Painting all the tiny nooks and crannies with a small brush took the same amount of time as doing the ceiling and all the walls with the big paint roll. And there was paint everywhere.

We did the kitchen next and were finished an hour after dinnertime. And then there was still some cleaning to do. And dinner to eat.

The paint brushes and the roll are sitting in the bathtub soaking and there is still cardboard and old sheets everywhere. We did manage to bring all the furniture back in from the porch which was a good thing because then it started raining. And it’s supposed to snow today.

Of course, we did miss a few spots, one always does. But the living room and kitchen are now white and shiny and all the mold is gone. Next up we need a new sofa and then I will declutter the bedroom so that we can paint that and the old bathroom and the hallway.

After dinner I took a quick shower (there wasn’t much hot water left after all the cleaning and soaking), the boy and I watched some „Big Bang Theory“ and I finished the heel on the Coriolis sock for the second time only to realize that the sock was the wrong way up. I had to rip the whole heel back. Note to self: don’t start a sock heel while distracted. At least not one of the Cat Bordhi heels that come with several set of instructions.

Then I still had to plan out the week so I went to bed a little late.

Today I really hope that I’ll get back to writing, we will deal with the aftermath of the painting and there will be teaching. Maybe running even.

And it will be a whole new week.

.Woke up from the alarm and started reading right away. Yeah, I know. I did manage to meditate and to listen to the daily piece of classical music, so that’s something. No writing.

Got up, had breakfast, found that I had moved all the knitting to the bedroom because of the impending renovation and moved some of it back, of course. I’m finding that the running socks I’m knitting are really taxing my patience because knitting 3-ply takes a lot more time than knitting 4-ply and the stitches are just so tiny and the needles really thin. The fabric looks and feels great, though.

I finally got around to listen to the podcast and write the show notes. I wasn’t quite finished when my husband showed up but since he was building the fire again it was fine. Also, he basically started cleaning and preparing everything for painting right away. He has really worked like crazy on this. I haven’t.

I had had plans to go for a run but decided to stay home and do some writing. I had ditched my weekly cleaning because it didn’t make sense to clean everything only to start painting the day after.

Then I got the podcast ready, published the blog post, finished uploading the video and wrote a couple of posts on social media to announce it. Unfortunately, I forgot to attach the audio file to the blog post. I was lucky that I couldn’t keep away from Ravelry. A mind listener told me that her podcatcher couldn’t find the new episode. Oops.

Then I did make an appointment with an oral surgeon because the boy needs to have his wisdom teeth removed. I was so fuzzy while on the phone that I couldn’t remember my own phone number for a second. That was embarrassing. It’s always hard to find a time where the boy and I can go and see a doctor together because of school for him and teaching for me. I got an appointment for Thursday at 3. My first student on Thursdays usually comes in at 4. That was cutting it a little close even though the surgeon’s office is only a few minutes away.

I am rather proud of myself, though. While I did feel a little embarrassed for not remembering my phone number and being spaced out on the phone when I realized that the appointment would be stressful because I wouldn’t have any margin for error I picked up the phone again and asked if I could possibly have an appointment at 2 on a Thursday. And lo and behold, the 2 o’clock slot was still free. She just hadn’t offered it to me. So while it will be a little hectic to get there, maybe, I won’t have to leave in the middle of the appointment in order to get to my lesson in time. Phew.

And then I called the dentist’s office to tell them to send the boy’s x-rays from the orthodontist to the oral surgeon. Yes, I know. Complicated.

I guess that filled my adulting quota for the day.

My husband went running and somehow I neglected to tell him that I had decided to stay home. I tried writing but got stuck. I think that might have been the problem the two days before as well – I just didn’t know what would happen next.

There was some singing and then there was the making of the pizza:

Oh, and some time in the morning I had gotten a text from the boy that he would be home later than usual. Which was a little odd but I thought there was some school thing he had to attend or that he maybe wanted to do something with a friend for a bit.

I did start to worry when he was more than 90 minutes late. And then, thirty minutes after I had started worrying he came home, all wet and cold. Apparently, he had gone to Munich for „Future Friday“. It seems almost everybody had gone and the school didn’t mind.

I did give him a short lecture on how to tell your parents where you are and what you are doing. „Today I’ll come home later,“ Is not an adequate message in this case. „We are all going to ‚Future Friday‘ in Munich, I’m not quite sure when I’ll be home but everything is alright,“ would have been a much better version.

So I fed him cold pizza and salad and made him promise that he’d sort through all of his crap that still occupies the living room.

I went over to the annex for my first student. Pity she didn’t show and didn’t call. When I was coming to the old part of the house after having waited for fifteen minutes the boy was just showing up again. Seems he fell asleep after lunch. He did start sorting after helping me with the dishes, though. Doing the dishes had the unexpected side effect of giving me ideas for the next two scenes in the novel. Sweet.

I taught two students and when I was finished the rest of the family was eating dinner. It turned out that the boy had only gotten halfway through his stuff. So I made him promise to get up early today to sort the rest.

Then we watched an episode of „Star Trek Voyager“ (another good one, the series is really starting to get better) and an episode of „Big Bang Theory“. Then we talked a bit, searched for his Skylander collection and I finally got ready for bed.

You know, now that I’m writing it all down I don’t feel quite as lazy anymore.

Today there might be running but I don’t think I’ll do the 10 k that’s on my training schedule. And then it will be cleaning and preparing everything for painting and then the actual painting which is always way less work than all the stuff you need to do before and after. Like finding clothes to wear while painting.

And tomorrow will probably bring more of the same.

I woke up from the alarm at 5 and had a hard time getting into gear. No writing, no meditation and got up a little late.

Still in time to make breakfast, though.

My husband built the fire and then basically went at the kitchen and living room again. We have decided to paint those rooms on the weekend and there is a lot to do before then.

I knitted a bit and we talked and I’m still not quite sure about the advent calendar sock and then I took the bike and trailer and went to the hardware store for paint and to the grocery store for all the things.

It’s always fun to ride the bike uphill with the trailer full and this time it was even more fun because of the wind. Those are the times that I am very happy to be reasonably fit.

My husband had cleaned the worst walls in the meantime and had cooked lunch:

It’s pasta with spinach, tomato, and feta. Very good. And O had a chocolate bar for dessert.

Then I made the boy look through his discarded things that still clog the living room for a bit while I did the dishes.

My student was already there when I went over to the annex five minutes before my first lesson.

I taught non-stop and enjoyed it tremendously. I’m still shocking myself with this re-found joy of teaching. Then the boy and I did some strength training, I did go to bed almost on time for a change.

Today there will be no weekly cleaning. Instead I will go for a short run, help to make pizza and get the living room and kitchen ready for painting. I’m hoping that maybe one coat of paint will be enough which would be marvelous. There is also the podcast to get ready for publishing.

Fridays are usually rather long teaching days but two students canceled so I have a pretty generous break in the middle.

And then the boy and I will watch some Star Trek and it will be the weekend.

I’m already looking forward to a bright and shiny kitchen and living room. A living room that can actually be used.

I woke up from my alarm at my new and improved wakeup time of 5 am. Since I managed to go to bed too late the night before because I was too exhausted to get ready for bed and spent an hour eating cheese and hoping that I’d find the energy to do the dinner dishes I ended up with lack of sleep again.

This is a really bad habit that needs to be culled ASAP. So I will have to go back to brushing my teeth and changing into pajamas the minute I step into the old part of the house after teaching. If I do that I usually find my way to bed easily.

So I did not write, forgot to listen to the classical music but read and meditated. It is a bit funny that I was reading the book about grit while not being gritty at all. There’s a reason I thought I needed this book.

Then I started researching Firewire to USB adapters for recording and since there is no such thing, really, I started researching mixers. As one does. Since one that connects to my computer without any kind of adapter would cost 500 Euros at least (probably more) and since the ones that would need only a USB to Thunderbolt 3 adapter where many and the cheap ones probably weren’t any good I gave up on that soon. I will have to rig something so that the two adapters in a row are more secure. I might have to involve duct tape after all. (Did you know that duct tape is actually called gaffer tape in German? True fact. And it’s pronounced ‚gaffa‘. I never knew why it was called that and thought that that might be the name of a city or something.)

So I started breakfast a little late but early enough for the boy to have a relaxed breakfast. He wanted to have a conversation about how dumb it was that they have to have PE in school. While I really get that he doesn’t like PE I still think that it is an important subject. I don’t agree with the way it is taught at the moment but in general I think that everybody should have a chance to learn about exercise and try different kinds. The boy doesn’t agree and finds that PE should be abolished. Or if they have to take it there shouldn’t be grades.

I then told him that there are people who believe no one needs music education or chemistry in their lives either and that school is for everybody and should make students able to do all kinds of things with their life and teach them all kinds of thinking and approaching problems.

He wasn’t convinced. As I said, I get it, PE was always my worst subject in school. It was a little better in the winter but the moment we were required to run, jump, catch or throw a ball I was screwed. Interestingly I did quite well high jumping. I’m blaming all the rope jumping I did for fun.

My husband showed up and lit a fire. It is still rather cold here. We talked a lot and then I went to the health food store and the bakery and to the stationer’s because the boy needs better drawing tools. I was looking for a fineliner but no luck. I brought two pens, both of which are not quite what he needs.

Came back home, changed into leggings and my old jacket and went for a 3 k run after mailing a birthday card for my aunt:

Then there was chickpea curry for lunch. Very good:

Then my husband would have liked help with washing the walls in the living room but I was a little pressed for time. I still needed to do some lesson prep, get changed and put on makeup and do my singing warmup. I showed my habit tracker to a new student the day before and it was a little embarrassing when looking at my music practice. So I’m determined to get a lot more crosses in there.

Then I taught quite a bit, practiced piano in the break between two students, got a little more detailed than usual with an old student (first I told her about my social media experiment and then she had to do her practice a little more deliberate after having to listen to a lecture about grit, oops).

Then I saw a potential new student, managed to brush my teeth early enough, wrote in my bullet journal, started reading a new non-fiction book because I had finished the one about grit (again, highly recommended – I’m all fired up about getting grittier), did the dinner dishes and turned the lights out on time.

Today will be another full day with running and a trip to the farmer’s market for potatoes and maybe some errands and writing show notes for the podcast and teaching. Lots of teaching. I really hope I’ll also do some writing.

Funny how all those new students mean I have less time. Weird.

I’m not complaining, though.