Twenty Twenty: Week One.

The first week of 2020 has been equal parts lovely, relaxing, reflective, busy and full of moments big and small. A portent of the year to come. Yes, those fancy new to me words get slipped in a lot early in the new year as I endeavour to make myself a more literate and …. wordy person.

The euphoric, glittering disco ball moments of New Year’s Eve have passed. As have the celebrations. Passions ran high in Sydney regarding the appropriateness of a pyrotechnic extravaganza in the midst of our devastating bushfire crisis but the show did go on.

via City of Sydney

Over Darling Harbour and Circular Quay but not in other areas of the city.

via The City of Sydney

I was one of those who would have rathered the show not go on but I have to admit, the display was breathtaking and hundreds of thousands of dollars were raised over the evening that will directly benefit those who have lost so much through the fires.

Back at the ranch, I trotted out the back and looked up over the fence to catch the top bits of the fireworks after dinner.

You will be so impressed with my effort this year. I had a candlelit dinner at nanna o’clock accompanied by an equally nanna sized and responsible bottle of champagne. And then I managed to stay awake for the midnight fireworks. I can feel it already, this year is going to be filled with extraordinary personal achievements.

I’ve yoga-ed, foam rolled and even pilates-ed every day of the year so far. What can I say about pilates? 15 minutes of isolating those core abdominal muscles is painful work yet I feel so full stretched and toned after each session.

I’ve had real coffee every day too. That New Year’s Day one was the best, though.

I’ve made it to the pool. I got a bit slack about my laps last year but I’m determined to keep at it this year. Those knees of mine need a break from the pavement. Plus, it is lovely being at your local aquatic centre when it’s something draining like 30C outside.

I’ve made inroads into various little jobs I keep putting off. I found storage bags for the bed linen in the spare room ($6 a pair from Big W, each fits either two pillows or blankets and have a zip closure). I’ve invested in proper coloured biros for work. I need to buy them in triplicate because I am always losing them on my travels through my workplace. I also have several rulers fashioned from both steel and plastic. These were from Big W, one dollar apiece and they are all on the home ‘everything’ desk. They will not get lost this year. They will not.

All my pretty lights have been taken down from around the garden and stored in as detangled a state as I could achieve after only one coffee.

There’s something about working the holiday break that nearly everyone else seems to be having off that makes me think ‘Travel Plans’. So I’ve started researching, dreaming and finger crossing. I’m hoping to have plenty to write about from this year’s destinations so stay tuned.

Speaking of writing, my enjoyment of writing this blog continues unabated. I’ve taken a break from my regular routine and just writing when the feeling finds me. No particular topic, no particular agenda. My aim this year is to simply write when it feels right to do so. Thank you, as always, for your kind and supportive comments.

Besides sampling non-champagne based summer beverages, I’ve been testing out face masks. The drinking has been more successful than the face mask testing. That sounds so wrong but it is what it is.

The supermarket in the summer is an interesting beast, isn’t it? It’s much less crowded which makes doing the groceries not even feel like a chore. The fruit is fun and the waiting game for the first hot cross bun sighting for the year begins in earnest.

I keep forgetting to look for the buns each time I shop but I have been having fun finding names on the new Coke bottles. I have a bottle with Master SSG’s first name chilling in the fridge as I type.

Meanwhile at work, I’ve found myself just a little more organized that usual thanks to this desk stand from Ikea.

The Mojlighet metal stand costs $7.99 and has a very pleasing one step only assembly process.

My desk never looks this tidy at the end of the day. I like how the stand has that high backed ‘tree’ bit. I lean things against the stand and intertwine things through the branches. The tree’s height also makes it easy to spot in the sea of junk on my desk.

So there you go. If you’re heading back on the 6th or later (not jealous.. I’m off on leave myself .. possibly when you latecomers just head into work .. that was mean, sorry!) make that trip to Ikea for a Mojlighet with a side of meatballs and chips.

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