How Do you solve A Problem Like A Ninja ?

What keeps us young ?

I suspect it is do a bit of what you fancy or in my case rather a lot , I am by nature a willow the wisp character , a flitter and a flutter. When they said " how do solve a problem like Maria ?" I think they were actually referring to me. I used to worry when I used confuse people but you know what I don't care any more , if I need to explain I will , if you truly know me you'll get it.

I'm the wave that can't be pinned to the sand.

The flippity gipity ness is what keeps me young that and tea , I mean who else would mop the floor before making a cup of tea?


See I am the other side of an anniversary of my depression and I am now feeling that I am living, why should I keep worrying about people think of me , we can't like everyone. I didn't get on with CBT last year it wasn't for me to be honest down a counsellor with an emotional range of a teaspoon to quote Hermione from Harry Potter.


For me I have learnt talking through things helps to my friends I mean my real friends and that is what works for me. I can't spend my life worrying about every little thing I am not living in the moment awoken if you will. It is what us Ninjas do us willow the wisps us trail blazers...

Pegging out washing pause.


You see the turning point is accepting what I cannot change like the weather I am no more in control of that than I am of a cat ~ free will and all that jazz.

I do have flighty moments but now I walk away from what think might be triggering it and live my day and it is fantastic , for when you relax you notice the finer details it life. It is  a sign of a light bulb being switched on in your brain. For all the times people told me not to worry about it and let it go they were right it was just fighting it out how ! The more you are told it is reactionary to listen less  it is what us humans do ! until we spark ourselves out.

I am brave , I am a hero I am me 


The other evening I went to sign with the community choir I hadn't been to for years  and it was my first time back since my breakdown , we were to sing at the local dementia home. I arrived with my work colleague and to say I was anxious was an understatement , I couldn't look up at first. The reason I couldn't look up wasn't because of the audience but my own inhibitions but as I sang I did look up and noticed the finer details. the finer details I noticed was the joy that music brings to the human soul and condition it unlocks from our mental fight. To see dementia sufferers taping along and singing , and they kept us out our toys , it was a humbling experience and when the music some retreated back into themselves.

Music can reach them .

Music can reach.

See now I am living life for me


SO how do you solve a problem like a Ninja ?

Thing IS ...

Thing is I have to grow old.

Thing IS I have to grow old gracefully   disgracefully 

Thing is I 'm told I shouldn't hold a grudge for days on end.


Thing is you shouldn't have ate the last choc ice


SO I ate the muffin I brought for you ... in protest


AND no I haven't brought the washing up gloves to protect your lilly white hands ...


Thing is the those shoes just fell in my virtual shopping basket.


Thing is I was mugged by a Strawberry scone while you were out

It was awful


You wouldn't have survived the attack

Well Dressings in Derbyshire

At the weekend we attended a well dressing . not literally a well dressing but a tradition going long back giving giving thanks for the water supply, now the village that is next to me is called Aston On Trent which lies on the river trent * what coincidence . The well dressings started back in 1997 ( from from this is raised for nominated charites) other areas go way way back in the mists of time. Aston on Trent is a sleepy little village with bags of chocolate box character and is at the bottom of a lane at the bottom of my road , sometimes I cycle there which is a bit hairy as the lane is a 60 mph country road * yikes.

Friday saw us popping over and installing ourselves in the local watering hole , must admit it took me a hour and half to relax , wicker man and you're not local vibes weren't there despite me imagining such things. It took me while to relax and soon the friendly locals were buying me lager one after another ( I wasn't driving ) When I say I am in a country idyll I am , I am in a village myself though it has been engulfed into a urban sprawl it is surround 360 degrees by rolling and undulating countryside.

This is why when and if I have to go to London I do love it but then I hanker to get back to my peace and quiet. I love the horses clipping and clopping down the road where I live and the tractors ooh how I love a tractor * nods I do , intact I am a bit obsessed, think I have turned into a lady tractor spotter.

Here in Derbyshire we are like that , I may be a soft southerner and get outed by my accent on occasion but what the heck if you can't beat em join em. Oh that reminds me they do thrash the village boundary for good luck or something like that ...

I think my favourite well dressing was Alice in Wonderland ...

Ooh if you looking to buy me a present what about this Georgian dream house ?

 

There is of course the village church which is old * really old ( goes to check dates ..

If you need me I'll be the one staring into the countryside ...

Taking Steps To Improve Your Credit Rating

When it comes to finances there is joy in actually paying off a balance knowing that it is at zero , and while I am puzzled that they are sending me a statement saying I owe £0.00 I am over joyed. This time I am not going to go and start my balance again with this certain catalogue company. I am slowly improving my finances and in doing so improve my credit rating which I am has taken a bashing over the last few years. It is important to keep things under control in order to maintain a good credit rating and I am talking about this in collaboration with TSB

In fact as I am starting to take more controls of my finances with budgeting, I am thinking of of bigger projects within my household such as a new kitchen next year.

Why is it important a credit rating so important ?

Our credit rating affects our lives not just when it comes when lenders look at this when we ask for  to mortgages, loans and credit cards. Also your credit raring can affect mobile phone contracts, car insurance banks accounts and much more. Life however isn't smooth but there are steps we can taken to help iron the situation.

Practical steps I am taking to get credit fit as it is important ! 


1. Prioritising my debts I am getting out those bank statements  and bills and listing my debts from the highest to the lowest .

2. Don't be afraid to talk to your creditors ( it really doesn't need to be that scary ) I did and feel so much better for it.


3. Sometimes it can be good to take a loan and consolidate your debts  ( this should always be done with full financial advice as your don't want to be in a situation where you can't afford to pay it back)

4.  Get help  You could try a debt remedy tool which offers great advice and reassurance that you aren't alone in your situation. You could also look at the Government's  Money Advice Service

5. Set a deadline , there is nothing like a deadline to keep you on track . Once you have set a deadline then you know how long it will take you to clear that debt. One thing is if it seems like a long time , don't get down hearted as the way I see it and any creditors will you likely see you  are taking steps to take control of your finances.




Other steps to improve your credit rating.

 Make sure you get on the electoral role ( even if you don't want to vote)

 Make sure the facts about you are correct.

 Make sure that anyone associated with your address such as an ex partner or spouse is not linked to you , then write to the credit reference agencies and ask for a notice of disassocaition.

 Get rid of any used credit card , in fact I have just shredded one that had a nasty high APR it was one I no longer use.

  Pay your bills on time  , I ensure this by using direct debits it displays to the lenders that I have good money management skills.

 Having had previous issues with credit cards , I now only use them for small amount and make sure I

pay them off in full in each month. For me I make sure I never go over £50.



I am looking forward to my summer holiday this year without having to worry about my credit situation.

When Did you Read That Last Bedtime Story ?

When did you last read that last bedtime story ?

When you read that bedtime story to your child ?was it the last one ever? , when did the last bedtime story become the forever thing in the past ? I can't remember the last bedtime story so there is a twang of sadness in my life . I have just read Tattooed Mummy's Randoms on her daughter nearly turning 16 , out children at a similar age though my son is already 16. And you see 16 is that cusp of remembering what you were doing at 16 ....  16 seems now to be that twilight time. I don't have a party popping 16 year old , I have a just got first job sensible 16 year old , putting them selves forward in a job that puts them out of their comfort zone.

SO why do I feel so bereft I was the one that plonked them at Beavers when they were sobbing with their arms clung round my legs with my husband saying he wasn't ready, I was the one who signed them up to try ballet ( despite husband mutterings ) I was the one who signed them up for horse riding lessons. I was the one that booked Cairo and trekked my child in the Egyptian desert , I was the one that booked Dubai and let my child go down the worlds highest water slide. It wasn't pushy parent syndrome.


And when asked "Is this a GCSE text " I nonchalantly said " OOOH no" and handed over a big pile of books while running away. I was the one that said

"WE don't have that as a screen saver"


I am strict and yet I am fair Game of Thrones hasn't been watched by the teen here but he knows what has gone off through discussion on youtube ( his youtube is restricted ) I am the one that checks the occasional attitude ( do some husbands have a filter  ? probably laughs like Eddie Murphy)


There was utter panic when I couldn't contact him in the next rural village , it is a mum thing , husbands I think are more chilled out ... SO 5 phone calls later and furious typing on my husbands mobile , we actually went a fetched him from the village mobile blackout spot . I don't think it is the most helpful reply from a certain mobile phone company that suggests if my teen moves 4,000 metres outside the village they will get a better signal. Not the best in a rural location in the dark ....

But I need to see them as an adult in the house and not a Gremlin ... mmmm maybe not yet

As I type this they are still asleep yesterday they worked hard in a pub serving food....

"What will you do with your money ?"

Big shrug of shoulders ...


So when did I read the last bedtime story OOOOH when did I ?