Posts Tagged ‘Friendship’
Posted by Shirley Anne on May 30, 2012
Friendship-001 (Photo credit: Ludie Cochrane)
I’ve been feeling quite lonesome lately. I can feel lonely in a room full of people. It is the closeness of another that wards off my loneliness and I don’t necessarily mean a romantic closeness. People who take the time for me and what goes on in my life are those I cherish the most and they are my family and my friends. So it was on Sunday that a friend of mine invited me out to dinner at a restaurant she and I and some of my family have frequented in the past. She wouldn’t let me pay for anything. Now I like to pay my way and I wouldn’t allow her to pay for anything whenever she was my guest but this time she insisted that it was her turn to treat me for a change. We hadn’t seen each other for more than 14 months so we had some catching up to do. My friend arrived on time and we drove the ten or twelve miles to the restaurant. Many folk were sitting outside in the sunshine but we chose to eat indoors where it was much cooler and where there were no flies challenging us for our food! One thing I hate about eating out-of-doors is having to cope with flies. When at home having a barbecue it isn’t quite so bad as the smoke keeps the blighters at bay. We had a lovely meal and a really enjoyable couple of hours together. Later I asked if she would like to visit my local pub, it was her local too until she moved to her present location some fifteen miles or so away. We each had a soft drink and sat inside out of the heat. A guy I’d met on Thursday night came over for a chat and the three of us had a few laughs together. Actually it was he who was making us laugh! My friend wanted to go home to do some laundry and prepare for work in the morning so we didn’t stay there very long. I got home to an empty house, E had gone out for the afternoon, probably to a barbecue although she didn’t tell me that, I just assumed she had. I hadn’t mentioned that my friend, and her friend too, was coming over but she’d gone out before my friend arrived. She probably thought I’d been at home all afternoon but I most probably would have been at the pub had I not made other arrangements with my friend. My friend suggested we get together more often, when we can of course, after all I am not her only friend! As I write this late on Sunday evening I am feeling less lonely and it is all due to the kindness and friendship of a wonderful friend.
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Friendship, Relationships | Tagged: Friends, Friendship | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Shirley Anne on May 29, 2012
Heartbreak Hotel Restaurant (Photo credit: Thomas Hawk)
Saturday was another very hot and sunny day. I got up early and went for a run on my treadmill. My treadmill is in one of the rooms in the cellar (basement) but so is the hot water and central heating boiler! As it is now warm every day the central heating is inoperative but the boiler still comes on to maintain a hot water supply to our storage tank upstairs. The room gets warm of course but not as warm as it does in the winter months when the boiler is running for many hours in the day. If it gets too hot I can open the door leading to the garden and it becomes much cooler. Anyhow I digress. I did my stint on the treadmill and then went out into the garden and sat on the patio to cool off. After returning indoors and getting dressed I had a late breakfast which doubled as my lunch. I had nothing to do in the afternoon so I raised the canopy over the table in the patio and sat there all afternoon drinking red wine and listening to the radio, switching between Radio 2 and Radio 1, later Classic FM. I don’t much listen to pop music these days but I needed cheering up. I quite enjoyed the old songs they had been playing and they brought back to mind some lovely memories of the days when I first heard them many years ago. I felt really happy and relaxed but at the same time a little lonely. The genre began to change from happy-clappy to romantic love songs and it was then that I found myself crying involuntarily in response to the words. I needed to go indoors to visit the toilet and discovered that E had left the house, probably to visit her mother and that left me alone with no-one else at home. It often happens of course and under normal circumstances it means nothing but at this time when I was feeling so lonely with no-one to talk to it made me feel even more so. A song by Brian Ferry was playing when I returned to the garden, a love song and then more love songs by other artists the names of whom escape me now as I write this on Sunday morning. I was now being reminded of the fact that I was a member of Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, a visitor to Heartbreak Hotel, a Lonely Girl (lonely and blue) and all alone in the big wide world. I made a call to one of my friends, Jane, whom I hadn’t seen for a couple of months and who now has moved to another part of the country. I just wanted to know how she was and that all was well with her. She is managing ok it seems which I am so grateful for as she hasn’t had an easy ride lately. It was later in the evening when another friend, Lotte, called to let me know when she will be coming to see me today (Sunday) when we will be driving somewhere for a meal together. We have lots to chat about as we haven’t seen each other for 14 months or so. She had been on an extended tour in the far east for three months and on her return was busy settling in to her old job with some extra responsibilities. She had been busy finding somewhere to live too, thankfully she found somewhere nice. It’s funny how friends and family drift apart sometimes but we all have our lives to live haven’t we? For me, friends are most important and I make every effort to maintain contact with them. Family are a different matter aren’t they? They say you can choose your friends but you cannot choose your family! I love them all though, family and friends alike whether they reciprocate or not. A friend to me is a friend for life, a family member a cherished blood relative I could never reject. As it is though I see very little of any of them and that is why I get lonely sometimes. So here’s to my family and my friends…..I love you all
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Celebration, Drink, Family, Friendship, Love, Relationships | Tagged: Family, Friendship, Heartbreak Hotel, Love, Music | 2 Comments »
Posted by Shirley Anne on April 22, 2012
me and my friend (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
A couple of years ago my ex. and I met for the first time with a person I had only previously known via the Internet. Initially we were treated very well but as the time we shared together passed by I could sense some friction between us. It is hard to live with some people even for a short time and I guess she saw us, that is E and myself as being difficult at times. I also sensed it was more to do with E than it was to do with me. When we visited with her she had only two bedrooms and only two beds. This made the sleeping arrangements rather difficult as E and I could not share a bed and E needed the spare bed more than I did. That meant I either had to share the other bed with our host or sleep on the sofa. I chose the sofa. I could not share a bed with my host no matter how innocent the invitation, it just didn’t feel right. I was left therefore to fend for myself. Not very good hosting on the part of my friend I thought however I managed to find some blankets and settled down on the sofa. I spent three nights on that sofa and each night I was disturbed by the cat who wanted to share my sleeping arrangements. E required to eat something in order to take some of her medication which did make it awkward sometimes. I felt my friend found it difficult to accommodate E’s needs at times and it showed in her reactions. My friend, our host, slept in until almost lunchtime each day leaving us to fend for ourselves with nothing to do to wile away the hours. I found an old guitar, tuned it and sat on the veranda playing quietly to kill the time but was scolded later by my friend for disturbing her sleep-in. Some host! It is fair to say that we had some great times together despite all of this. Our visit only lasted three days and my friend had to return to work whilst we continued our holiday from the hotel we had booked. My friend brought us back to the city but not to our hotel, she decided to drop us off on the opposite side of the square from where the hotel was situated which meant that we had to struggle a little with getting back to the hotel with our luggage. I knew from that moment that our friendship had ended but I still love her and she will always be my friend. I still think about her and I do not hold anything against her, in fact she figures in my prayers every day along with all others I know who are not Christians. She ranks amongst those, especially some of my friends and acquaintances, who won’t or don’t accept Christ as their saviour preferring as they do to trust in their own understanding of who God is or believing in some strange philosophy that has nothing to do with God. What they fail to understand is that God says differently for there is no other name under heaven by which we can be reconciled to God other than through Jesus. It is so simple and yet people cannot see it. It isn’t surprising though as these things are recorded in the Bible but we pray nevertheless. God acts when we pray in accordance with His wishes. My hope is that all those I pray for will eventually realise their need in Christ and turn to him one day.
Shirley Anne
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Posted in God, Jesus, Religion | Tagged: Bible, Christ, Christian, Couch, Friendship, God, Jesus, Religion and Spirituality | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Shirley Anne on April 16, 2012
A picture taken, of Champagne. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
I’ve not been enjoying the best of health lately and it’s been mostly due to the common cold. All the usual symptoms, aches and pains, lethargy, dull headaches, sneezing and runny nose as well as cold sores have been my lot this time around. One day I’d be feeling fine and the next day not so good. Added to all of this I have toothache, one of my fillings needs replacing I’m sure but I had a toothache in the same place a few weeks ago and it disappeared. Perhaps it is just an infection. On Thursday afternoon as with the rest of that day, it was warm, sunny and cloudless. I felt like some company so I took a walk to the pub. The place was almost empty so I bought a soft drink, a diet cola to be exact, and I sat on one of the large sofas they have there. I could have sat outside where there were people eating but I don’t much like sitting in direct sunshine and as they were eating and I didn’t know them anyway, I stayed indoors. Lots of people eat there during the day but many of them are simply passing or they are not regular customers there. I sat and waited and as I did I began to see more and more people enter as the afternoon wore on. I did break into conversation with a couple of people eventually and my drink became a bottle of red wine. Once the wine was finished I took the walk back home, it was about seven o’clock. En route I called into a friend’s house to ask if he could fit my roller-shutter door for me as the guy who is supposed to be doing it keeps giving me excuses as to why he hasn’t been able to come. As it turned out my friend who incidentally fitted my gates and railings said he refers people who want garage doors fitted to the same guy who in return directs those who want electric gates and railings to him. A bit of a coincidence! He said he would pursue my case for me and see if it can finally be fitted. This same friend as it turns out is a brilliant guitarist, far better than I am and he demonstrated some of his talents while I was there. I told him that his talent is being wasted and that he should take it up professionally. His wife in the meantime poured me a large glass of red wine. I stayed there a short while and was persuaded to return to the pub with them as it was quiz night. I could hardly refuse but I think it was more for the company than the drink nevertheless I ended up having more wine there which I shouldn’t have done. I met two new people who sat with us and are neighbours to my friends and we got along like a house on fire. When the evening was over I walked with them on my way back home but they pleaded with me to go to their place for a nightcap. I said I would but didn’t wish to stay long. Their house is literally less than one hundred yards (metres) from the pub, a large house with a Rolls-Royce parked in the front gated garden. They obviously weren’t short of a few shillings as they say! As it turns out they plan to get married in August, I could get an invitation, who knows? The house was lavishly decorated inside and I got to see quite a bit of it. I got very friendly with them both but the woman more so. She showed me her collection of dresses and I was admiring one in particular. I was gorgeous, a summer dress with a full skirt in a large floral print. She told me I could have it! No way would I accept such a gift in the circumstances. When back downstairs she showed me a lovely framed photograph of herself hanging on the lounge wall. I like it so much she presented me with a smaller framed photograph exactly the same and insisted I took it. How lovely is that? Even the smaller one is around 8 x 10 inches in size. The three of us sat together and drank a couple of pink Champagne bottles between us. How naughty is that? I was asked if I liked John Bishop (a Liverpool-born comedian) to which I replied that I liked him a lot. Out came the video and we had a good laugh for a half hour or so. At the end of the video John starts dancing with others on the stage whilst the three of us joined him in our lounge! I was asked if I wanted to stop over but of course I declined. A taxi was called to take me home but I would rather have walked the few hundred yards home. There was no way I was going to be allowed to do that so I graciously accepted and said my farewells. I arrived home around 2.20 am, the taxi fare had been paid by my hosts. I wasn’t feeling tired although I should still have gone to bed and I ended up sitting at my computer until six. I couldn’t stay up any longer and grabbed a few hours in bed sleeping soundly until just after ten. My phones were ringing but I didn’t answer them. I was feeling a little uneasy when I got up, a few aches and pains attributed to the cold I knew I had. I had a late breakfast/early lunch of kippers. I just fancied kippers. Mistake number one, I suffered the rest of the day with trapped wind and an acid tummy. I resorted to drinking warm glasses of milk to settle my stomach and eventually things improved. I felt lousy still having aches and pains and a toothache. I just cannot shake it off. Well that’s what I thought. It is now Monday and I am back to my normal self.
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Drink, Enjoyment, People, Socialising | Tagged: Champagne, Cola, Common cold, Friendship, Fun, Health, Herpes labialis, John Bishop, Liverpool, Socialising, Soft drink, Wine | 2 Comments »
Posted by Shirley Anne on March 31, 2012
A thatched pub, the Williams Arms at Wrafton, near Braunton, North Devon, England. Taken by Adrian Pingstone in July 2004 and released to the public domain. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
These last two years I haven’t been out as often as before, to the pub that is. Today, Wednesday I decided to break the habit and I went along to the pub, my local pub, to enjoy a drink or two and hopefully meet some friends and acquaintances there. It was such a pleasant day so after doing a couple of small jobs in the morning, returning home and eating my lunch, I changed my clothes and took a walk in the warm sunshine, ending up at the pub. It wasn’t long before I was engaged in conversation with people there, most of them new to me. Later I met with a couple of friends and chatted with them too. I didn’t wish to stay the whole evening as I’d drunk enough and as they say, enough is enough! I am trying my best to be a good girl by placing a limit on my drinking habits when out and about. Apart from the obvious health issues it is good for my purse too! I do enjoy good company and I will speak with anyone who has the time to respond to my contact with them. I have said it before but reiterate, people seem to like me! When I returned home E was already eating her evening meal (she doesn’t like the idea of pub life as much as I) so I had to prepare something for myself. We had an uncooked chicken in the fridge which needed to be cooked that day so I popped it in the oven and resigned myself to waiting the hour and a quarter for it to cook. I spent the time online catching up on emails and blog visits and by 8.30 I was able to sit down with my chicken and vegetables. I don’t know when I shall visit the pub again but I know that whenever I do I will be assured of a good time with great company. Life is what we make of it and I try my best to make it worth living.
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Drink, Enjoyment, Friendship, Happiness, Lifestyle, People | Tagged: Bar (establishment), Drink, Friendship, People, pub, Public house, Restaurants and Bars | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Shirley Anne on March 27, 2012
I accompanied Jane to the venue for an evening meal with her archery club friends on Saturday and we arrived a little late, the last to arrive in fact but we settled down and soon found ourselves enjoying each others company. A few of the regulars came over and greeted us personally which was nice. I suppose there were about forty or more guests in our group but in other areas of the restaurant were more groups of people celebrating birthdays. It appeared to be a popular place and I imagine the restaurant to be filled most evenings. I am not sure when Jane and I left but it was getting late when we did. Jane took me back home before returning to Liverpool for the night. She said she would be travelling to Brighton sometime on Sunday as I recall but using the train services rather than her car. I seem to remember her saying she hadn’t as yet received her residents parking permit so was leaving her car in Liverpool for a couple of weeks. I gave her a hug and she was on her way. I didn’t go to bed immediately as I wasn’t that tired but eventually hit the sheets around 4 o’clock having forwarded all the house clocks by an hour so technically speaking I really went to bed around 3 o’clock I suppose. I was dressed and eating my breakfast at 9 o’clock but was still a little tired. Around noon I decided I had to get motivated and mow the grass which was by now getting rather long but I hadn’t taken into account that it was still mostly wet with dew. The sun was shining but only half the lawn was in sunshine. Part of the lawn, that which is closest to the rear of the house, doesn’t receive full sunshine until we are nearer summer and then only in the morning or around sunset. The rear garden is on the north side of the house but most of it is in full sunshine at some point in the day and some parts all day during the summer months. So I set up the extension lead and mower and began to cut the grass. I got about a quarter of it done, that part which was in full sunshine and then began to struggle somewhat because of the dew that had elsewhere remained. I took a break for lunch and returned to complete the job later hoping that the grass had dried enough by then. It hadn’t. I struggled but found I could still cut the grass by pulling the mower backwards rather than forwards as it didn’t clog up the blade as quickly. It still took me a couple of hours where normally I could get it done in forty minutes when it is dry. It may have been easier with the larger petrol-driven mower we have but it was out of fuel and it needs servicing. What I might do is purchase a hover mower for use when the grass is damp as they are not affected in the same way as other mowers but they don’t really cut the grass as short as I’d like. Nevertheless having one would enable the grass to be cut much more quickly and I could always use the other mowers when it is drier weather. By the time I’d done the lawn I was really exhausted but I found the strength to get out the heavy wooden garden furniture that had been stored in the old garage over the winter months and put it into the patio area. I noticed that the floor paint I’d put on the patio concrete floor had peeled away in many places. The concrete had been treated with a sealant to keep out the water and the paint is supposed to be suitable for outdoor use but eveidently it isn’t! I doubt I shall repaint it though. I didn’t rake off the grass cuttings, I was too tired but that can be done during the week. Gardening is hard work especially if it hasn’t been done in months! The garden plants are in full bloom and I took some photographs while the sun was still shining on them…..
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Drink, Food, Friendship, Gardening | Tagged: Brighton, Drink, Food, Friendship, Garden, Grass, Lawn, Lawn mower, Liverpool, Mower | 2 Comments »
Posted by Shirley Anne on March 26, 2012
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Well it’s not Saturday night or Sunday morning but it’s been a nice weekend. It is Monday morning once again and I am wondering what this week has in store for me. After last Friday’s fiasco I am hoping things will go a lot smoother. At the time it was frustrating on Friday but through it all I remained in good spirits and found myself laughing at the ridiculous chain of events in which I found myself immersed. I was rather tired after the days events and all I wanted to do was sit down and relax. I received a call in the evening from the old lady in whose house I’d been in earlier in the day asking if I could remove the wall lights for her (you will have to read last Fridays post to get the whole story). I returned to the old lady’s house on Saturday morning to remove the two wall lights and at the same time fit the new ceiling light she had bought, a much better and much simpler affair. She wasn’t able to get the new wall lights until she had returned the ones I was to take down, the ones I’d fitted on Friday! I offered to take her into town and drop her off with the lights after which I was to return home and she would return home by herself later. I would return today, Monday to fit the wall lights she was to collect from the store. So that’s what I will be doing this morning if all goes well. It’s been a lovely weekend with fine sunshine and on Saturday evening Jane collected me on her way to the archery club social dinner, probably the last one I’ll attend as she is moving down to the south coast. E had been out all day on Saturday having driven to her venue early in the morning with her car stocked full of gifts for her ‘Formidable Friends’ competitors club event out-of-town. At least it gives her something on which to focus in her life as she is unable to work because of her incapacity. Life goes on with all its ups and downs. It’s Monday morning and I feel great.
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Life | Tagged: Archery, Drink, Food, Friday, Friendship, Fun, Happiness, Jane, Life, Monday, Saturday, Work | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Shirley Anne on December 18, 2011
Image via Wikipedia
When my friend Jane and I went out for the afternoon last Friday, that is a week ago, everything seemed to go wrong. Our first choice of venue told us that they could not provide us with food as the gas supply to their ovens had failed. We were not charged for the drinks we had ordered and received. It appeared that they had been having difficulties all morning but had somehow managed to provide a service until the moment we arrived when all went pear-shaped as they say. After trying a couple of other places we finally found somewhere to eat. It wasn’t the best of places but we were so hungry it didn’t matter. I decided to invite Jane out again this Friday by way of compensation and to go somewhere completely different. As it turned out we had chosen well and subsequently enjoyed a very nice afternoon. It was so nice that the afternoon turned into an evening out too but eventually we had to leave so that Jane could return home, however we went via the supermarket so that I could re-stock on some red wine and we got back to my house sometime after ten-thirty in the evening. Jane is always welcome to stop over but this time she wanted to go home as she had her archery meeting on Saturday morning and her equipment was at her house. She stayed for a time and departed a little after eleven. I shall not see her now until the new year as she plans to stay with another friend over the holiday. It is lovely to enjoy the company of friends and it is something I cherish very much in my life. I wish that I could see my friends more often but it isn’t always possible for many reasons. This time was so different from the last time we met and much more enjoyable. I look forward to our next afternoon/evening outing! Thank you Jane.
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Enjoyment, Friendship | Tagged: Enjoyment, Friday, Friendship, Holidays | 2 Comments »
Posted by Shirley Anne on December 15, 2011
Image by jbelluch via Flickr
On Monday evening I got called out to a little emergency job in town, an elderly (90) woman had lost electrical supply to a few circuits in her apartment and was desperate to have it fixed. I knew before I went what the problem was and was proved right when I got there. A table lamp bulb had blown which caused one of the two RCD units to trip, switching off power to half of the apartment. The distribution board would have been out of her reach even if she knew how to reset it. I ran this by her before deciding I had to go and do it myself. I got back home and just wanted to relax. I had eaten my evening meal prior to that call and just wanted a quiet evening. I have been suffering with pains in my back (feels like lumbago) for a couple of days so I was not in the mood for much activity, although I have been doing some electrical work. The house phone rang and then stopped. I checked 1471 to see who it was but they’d concealed their number. It rang again after a few minutes and someone asked for me by name. Thinking it was a request to do some work I answered that it was me they were asking for. My name is listed on my advertisement and cards so people often ask to speak with Shirley Anne and it is nothing unusual. It was a mans voice and he gave his name. It didn’t ring any bells so he asked if I remembered him. Then it dawned on me that this guy was somebody I had met some ten years ago and at that time he took a great interest in me, I think you know what I mean. However I rejected his advances but accepted him as a friend. He reluctantly accepted that I wasn’t interested in anything more than friendship. We met occasionally in the clubs in Manchester and once or twice he came to visit me. I must point out here that there is a 32 year gap between us and I felt a little uncomfortable with that at the time we were together. When he began to shower me with gifts I knew he couldn’t be satisfied with just friendship and I felt he wanted to go further. I broke off the relationship and he was hurt by that but I figured all would be ok and he would get over me. Well he had to. Now another thing I ought to mention (up till now I didn’t want to say) is that when we met this guy was in the early stages of FtM transition. This had no bearing on our friendship or my decision to break it off, it was simply that I didn’t want a sexual relationship with anyone at that time. So here he is calling me ten years down the line and making tentative steps in rekindling our friendship. I was a bit taken aback but I still do not wish to meet up again even though it could be harmless. He was keen to tell me about his operations and how much he had changed but it was all falling on deaf ears. I am simply not interested. I told him this several times but I am wondering if he will get the message. Why would anyone keep my telephone number for ten years knowing that I had broken off our friendship if he didn’t still have an interest? I feel that if I allow him back into my life I shall never be able to get rid of him. Hopefully he will respect my wishes and accept the fact that he is barking up the wrong tree.
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Relationships | Tagged: Friendship, Intimate relationship, Manchester, Monday, Relationship | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Shirley Anne on November 20, 2011
Image by Paolo Margari via Flickr
Sometimes I feel closer to you. Yes you dear reader! I get quite lonely sometimes. My family is spread afar, my sisters live in another country, my brothers live reasonably close but I only see one of them and that only occasionally. The other brother might as well be on another planet as he has pretty much alienated himself from the rest of us. Both my parents died years ago. My sons, well one lives with his wife, naturally, the other has taken it upon himself to leave recently to live in his mate’s house. My ex and I are not on speaking terms right now and the only friends I have either live outside of this country or too far to be regular visitors. I am not looking for sympathy here by the way, no but I just point to the fact that those I’ve ‘met’ through blogging give me more of their time than those supposedly closer to me! One way of looking at it, a philosophical approach would be to say things will improve or I’ll die first! I am not taking bets on this one….LOL I remain as ever cheerful and never do I get depressed. I am a strong person in that respect but I also have a ‘live-in helper’. I think you know what I mean by that but if you don’t then look at my ‘religious’ posts. I have a lot of time on my hands these days, not much work to do in a professional capacity and the domestic situation is on hold untill I feel inclined to move on it. I could be tempted to fall into bad habits but I fight against it all of the time, my trips to the pub have taken a back seat but that is more to do with my lack of interest than anything else. Another aspect of my personality that you may not be aware of is that I have always been what people call ‘a loner’. I’ve never enjoyed being one of the crowd, going with the flow, doing what others do sort of person but I do nevertheless enjoy conversation and mixing socially. I suppose in these situations I feel more in control, having the choice of walking away rather than feeling obliged. It may have resulted me in not having a lot of ‘mates’ but then I was never ’one of the boys’ now was I?
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Friendship, Life, Lifestyle, Philosophy, Relationships | Tagged: Family, Friendship, Happiness, Philosophy, Relationship | 4 Comments »
Posted by Shirley Anne on October 23, 2011
Image via Wikipedia
Recently a new-found friend decided she has had enough of blogging and is about to shut down her site to the general public but evidently keeping something going for her close friends. I hope I can be counted as a friend even though we don’t really know each other, not because I would like to be included as someone privy to her continued writing but because she is a sister, a fellow Christian and I am interested in all my brothers and sisters in Christ. Of course any decisions she makes don’t have to include me, a stranger apart from our kindred spirit. I wish her well in her life and hope she finds peace in her heart and situation. I feel it is such a shame that folk feel they need to close off their blogs because of the behaviour of others. To me it is being defeatist. I do hope that my friend hasn’t made her decision based on that but more to her own personal needs and those of her family. For many people the Internet is a place for meeting people and getting support that is sometimes hard to get elsewhere. It is also a place where folk can make friends and for some a chance to meet up with them. So it is especially sad when someone who was and is loved suddenly departs from our midst taking with her the opportunity to benefit others. It is true that there are wicked people out in Blogland, I know, I have encountered them myself and have reluctantly left sites for that reason but there are good people out there too and more of them. Why can’t people be nice with each other? It is such a shame.
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Community, People, Values | Tagged: Behaviour, Friendship, People, Shame | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Shirley Anne on October 16, 2011
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I have just read one of my daily ‘words’ from Scripture the essence of which tell me that even though I may strive to be perfect in every way I know that I shall never attain perfection for as long as I live. The reading points out that I should be telling myself daily that I know I am not perfect but that I am better than I was before. A good philosophy to be sure. There are areas in my life though where I struggle to get better for I will forget the promises I make to myself and over-indulge. On Friday I spent the afternoon, late afternoon that is, at the pub. I sat there for a couple of hours watching people come and go whilst I was reading a newspaper and having a drink. Eventually the pub filled to capacity but I remained seated and alone by choice. Later I began to mingle and before long found myself in the company of friends. Drifting along with the conversations, meeting new people and generally having a good time robbed me of my sensibility and I ended up shall we say, slightly inebriated! Horror of horrors I hear you say but it is all so easy to forget one’s promises not to get drunk when one has had too much to drink and therein lies the danger. Switching to soft drinks is the better solution and one that I should endeavour to embrace more often. Let’s hope I eventually learn my lesson and be a little more responsible in future. I arrived home in the early hours after the fifteen minute walk from the pub and was so hungry I rustled up a meal. Still not tired after my escapade I took to surfing the Web and posted comments on other folks blogs. I was beginning to doze off when I made my way upstairs at five in the morning! I remember looking at the clock at five-thirty and then fell asleep, in the correct attire for the occasion I might add and not in my normal clothes! I awoke at ten fully refreshed and most definitely not with a hang-over. I drink far too much water after drinking alcohol to end up with a splitting morning-after headache. Dehydration or lack of it is something I have under complete control. It only remains for me to keep myself under control when out enjoying myself.
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Behaviour, Drink, Enjoyment, Friendship, Happiness, Leisure, Lifestyle, Philosophy, Temptation | Tagged: Alcohol, Behaviour, Drink, Friday, Friendship, Leisure, Philosophy | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Shirley Anne on October 14, 2011
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A couple of days ago I wrote about my visit to the pub and how I found the place devoid of any friends, leaving me to sit it out alone for a few hours. I did get to talk to a few people though so it wasn’t a complete waste of time. I returned to the pub a couple of days later and although at first I was by myself it didn’t last long and before I knew it I was surrounded by people wanting to chat with me. Apart from those I knew there was a guy sitting close by who was browsing the food menu but didn’t seem to be able to make up his mind as to what to have. That shows me that the menu is that good that it is hard to make a decision. In fact the menu is a good one but there are things on it that I shy away from, like the all day breakfast they serve because of its high fat content and similarly the lasagne, also high in fat because of the cheese. By and large though the menu is good. I asked the guy if he was finding it difficult to decide and that broke the ice. I had sensed his wish to speak with me but he was finding it hard to start off the conversation. Eventually his meal arrived and I left him to enjoy it. When he had finished I asked him if it was worth waiting for to which he replied that it certainly was. He began then to chat more and came to the table adjoining mine to continue making the excuse that it seemed better to sit closer rather than speak across the room. His table had only been a few feet away anyway! I knew what was coming next, he was chatting me up as they say. He asked if I lived alone after he found out that I lived close by to where he lived. The rest of the conversation was just small talk but I sensed that he would like to meet me again to chat when he had the time for he had to leave at that point. If I see him in the pub again I will certainly acknowledge him but I won’t be making a point of seeking him out. I accept any proposal of friendship but I am not really interested in anything more than that. I left my table as he made his way home but I simply moved to the bar because I wasn’t ready for home just yet.
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Friendship, People | Tagged: Bar (establishment), Friendship, Menu | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Shirley Anne on September 19, 2011
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Well Saturday morning I had a good lie in bed for a change but somebody telephoned asking if I could do a job for them. It was an urgent job but as I was still in bed and didn’t feel like doing any work I declined. I had it in mind to go to the pub in the afternoon but later, when I was up and about I decided against going there too soon. Here in the UK it is the football (soccer) season and many pubs play live games on their television, my local being no exception. This means a pub packed with football fanatics all getting drunk. O-oh no way Hosea! I have been to these events before but not often and they are not the sort of events to go and see when you want a quiet drink with friends. I decided to go a little later but even when I went at eight in the evening there were still many guys milling about, most of them drunk. I sat with three friends for ten minutes but they left and I was alone for a half hour. Two more friends came in and we sat together in a quieter spot. Soon we had the pub to ourselves with only a few regular customers to keep us company. We had a great time laughing and drinking and late in the evening my two friends left but asked me to join them again on Sunday afternoon for an hour or so. I told them that it was unlikely that I would be there but they continued to ask. Well Sunday afternoons at the pub are similar affairs to Saturdays because they have the football on-screen again until early evening. When the weather is fine, as it was on both days, many more local people are often seen in the seating area outside, so much so that one can hardly find anywhere to sit. I didn’t go to the pub at all on Sunday as I thought I wouldn’t, well I just couldn’t be bothered! In fact I did almost nothing at all on Sunday but when I was sitting quietly watching some television in the evening I decided to pick up my guitar for the third time that day because a song suddenly popped into my thoughts and I wanted to play it a few times and get it down on paper. It took me ten minutes to produce. This is the way all my songs and poems come to me, on the spur of the moment and usually almost in one go. I have no idea why that is. It is another Christian song which I will add to my collection. So that about sums up my weekend, restful, boring at times, fun at times and productive at times.
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Activity, Friendship, Fun, Leisure, Lifestyle, Music | Tagged: Activity, Bar (establishment), Friendship, Fun, Leisure, Pubs, Television | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Shirley Anne on September 10, 2011
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So I spent Wednesday afternoon/early evening down at my local pub. After visiting the place about two weeks ago after a long absence and promising that I would go more often I have returned there twice since. My workload is very low just now and I was feeling so bored sitting home alone I decided to do two things. One, was to go for a walk and two, was to go to the pub. I did both. The weather at home has been rather a wet and windy affair so walking too far was out of the question, especially as I was wearing (small) heels and wasn’t dressed for taking on the elements. Fortunately the streets afforded quite a bit of shelter from the wind until I walked westward but even then it wasn’t too bad. At least the rain held off until I was back indoors, that is inside the pub! On arrival I found but a few patrons inside so I grabbed the local newspaper and sat down with my drink on a lovely leather sofa near to a window (I need daylight or bright artificial lighting to read comfortably) so that I wasn’t straining to see the script. My eyesight is quite excellent and I don’t need glasses as an aid, just good lighting. After an hour I began to feel hungry so I looked at the menu. For a small establishment they have quite an extensive choice of meals and snacks. I chose a smoked salmon sandwich with a salad as I wasn’t hungry enough to eat a large meal. It was delicious and enough to satisfy me for a few hours. By the time I had finished eating many more folk started to arrive and all but a few (those I don’t know) greeted me. I don’t know about you but I love ‘people watching‘ and I was quite contented to just sit there across the room watching them come and go. Finally though some wanted a little more contact with me and came over for a chat. By early evening I was up and about chatting with people myself. I am a very gregarious and sociable person and I find chatting with people so easy. Of course I had to watch my alcohol intake as I can get carried away sometimes by overdoing things. It was getting late and I decided that I must return home so I said my farewells and off I went for the ten minute walk to my house. I got home just after eight-thirty and found I had mail and a parcel containing the new shoes I had ordered a few days ago. I tried the shoes and they are a perfect fit but I doubt I shall be walking to the pub in them as the heels are just over four inches! I shall take a cab if I wear them out.
Shirley Anne
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Posted in Drink, Enjoyment, Exercise, Food, Friendship, Leisure, Lifestyle, People, Rest and relaxation | Tagged: Bar (establishment), Drink, Entertainment, Food, Friendship, Leisure, Lighting, Newspaper, People, Rest and relaxation | Leave a Comment »
