AA Milne

 

I think Mr Milne got it spot on when he wrote about Eeyore. We all have mental health, some good and some not so good. And mental health is flexible, ups and downs! Mine has been a little down lately. I've been walking around with a dark cloud above my head. Nothing serious, I've not fallen into a black pit of depression, just a mild melancholy. I'm worrying about both my children just now, of course I am, and I'm struggling with my decision to never diet. I haven't changed my mind, it is still the right choice for me, but after a lifetime of diet habits it's hard to shake. I'm not content with my size or shape though I hope I'll get used to it, eventually. But food has been so important to me that I'm finding it difficult to get rid of those rituals - the guilt after consuming some types of food or the daily (often twice daily) weighing on the scales, and my paranoia that people perceive me to be sub standard compared to my thinner friends, family or colleagues. I think society is slowly changing. When I was a lass being thin was linked to being healthy and being overweight was very bad, and everybody, absolutely everybody thought that way. But now I see younger people and they don't seem to care. Their priorities are different and getting and being thin is not the be all and end all of their existence! They carry their weight confidently and (I think) they think much less about it. But I could be wrong, maybe they keep their hangups silent! I reckon it is going to take me a long time to get over my hangups and to relax into my size 18 jeans! Which reminds me that I may wear a size 18 now but I bet this very same size arse would not fit into a 1980s size 18! Sizes are getting bigger to facilitate the bigger generations. But your bum is still your bum no matter what the label says.

Now my family are again under the same roof we've been having themed evenings once a week. With one person making the starter, another on mains, one on puddings and one on drinks. So far we've done Spain (meatball soup, chicken & chorizo main, catalana creme, with red wine and coke - yes a real Spanish combination) and Greece (baked feta, moussaka, ricotta cheesecake with Ouzo and an iced coffee with condensed milk). This week is Scotland and I'm on mains! Whoop whoop, I'm away to catch a haggis! 

My favourite flavour of cake is more.

This week's interview was with my young nephew.

Job title - assistant engineer for BAM

What do you do - manage the construction teams of big builds, h&s, and dealing with public queries

Best - everyday is different

Worst - nothing is easy

Surprise - no one realises just how complex construction is, everything is measured to the millimetre

Funny thing - I'm in a giant photo on the side of the construction site