STARTING THE DAY WITH A POSITIVE FRAME OF MIND

TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2011

Mornings usually set the tone for the day. Mornings can have very delightful energy, unfortunately I usually miss it because I have to sleep so long. In fact, the mornings are generally speaking pretty awful when you have symptoms of a fibromyalgic nature. It can be difficult to get out of bed after lying there for a long time, and you feel stiff, sluggish as well as pretty grumpy, for at least a couple of hours ahead. This is especially true when you have insomnia. You have to take it easy and not get stressed out by the chores that pile up in front of you while the clock ticks away, inexorably. I could call these my "morning collages" - pink, red, turquoise and gold is a delicious combination that feels life-affirming and uplifting.  It was what I felt when I saw the cup above with the same color scheme!

"Innocence Revisited", copyright 2008

"Ode to Creativity", copyright 2008

Many years ago I started drinking green jasmine tea in the mornings. I drank it strong - and a lot of it. It must be loose leaf tea so I usually buy it in Asian supermarkets. It's also be much cheaper if you get big bags (1 or 2 kg). However, I bought a very cheap tea during the last raid to Win Yip that tastes pretty awful. now I have to drink up 2 kilos worth of it... Anyway, it feels refreshing (Buddhist monks say that green tea soothes and stimulates at the same time) and has become a ritual that was at least a little thing to look forward to in the mornings. You have to have something positive to look forward to ... it's not always so easy when you have many chores to tackle. When I lived alone, I learned not to stress too much about them, but now that I'm in a relationship, I feel a greater responsibility to get things done and contribute to the household. The house is rather big and in its half-finished state, it is not always the easiest of tasks. 

I have no words for how terrible this is
melanin, which mimics wood grain and drab floral designs from the dreadful 1980s!
We also have pine panels, what I call it "the sauna effect".
Many in this country, where wood is scarcer, don't quite understand that someone might like to paint wood.

Nonetheless, we will paint the panels until they can be ripped out,
and most floorboards will be painted white in the true Scandinavian style!

I used to take my tea in the kitchen, which is situated on the ground floor. It's freezing in their, most of the year. It is in a miserable state, and I used to look out over a small square yard. It took me a while to realize that the yard was like a symbol of a decripit body. We have now had time to clean it up a bit and I have planted the poor little trees that were hanging on for dear life in some old flowerpots, but there is still much to do to make it lighter. 

The trellis must come down and the walls will be painted white.
But it is still quite dark and unsuitable for most plants. 
The clematis is dead, it must be cut off from the roof.
At some point the floorslabs will be changed.
We would like to create an Indonesian style area
but don't know when we'll find the time and money.

I stayed at a pain- and fatigue management clinic in a private room last winter. I used to make sure I had at least 20 minutes quiet time in the morning when I drank my tea and looked out over the lovely lawn. It was perhaps the most healing part of my stay! During the morning stretches, our physiotherapist used to say, "What stories did you tell yourself when you woke up?"

My view at the clinic was to die for. The accessories are my own. 
I brought whatever I thought I needed in order to make the stay in the dowdy room more enjoyable.

That view was the epitome of the fresh and beautiful life in the country... Unfortunately, it may take a while before I get a similar lawn ... but I decided to move up tea drinking to the second floor, to the old settee with a view of old buildings and a Methodist church.

I had often seen some china in the stores that I thought was exceptionally colourful and pretty in a girly sort of way, and recently found a mug in the same series. It was clear that I needed a happy mug for happy mornings. It says "a happy mug for happy people" at the bottom. Well, you can at least try and encourage yourself by surrounding yourself with positive things... If we have flowers at home, I usually put them on the little sewing table we bought  fairly cheaply last autumn. Martin usually has a cup of tea as well. Our cats usually come and keep us company. Cats like rituals and morning cuddles are part of them.

Sometimes they are more energetic and full of playfulness ...

Any old string will do  - this is mummy's bathrobe belt

A favorite toy from "Willow"

Marius is good at being cat-atonic ...

Boys Will Be Boys ...

I have a large and physically demanding job ahead of me (one of many): I have to go through thousands of cat pictures to abstract the gems. Once I get into a routine it shouldn't take too long ... Over time, I will post more here on the blog.