Embracing the ordinary (and staying alive to the extraordinary)

My husband and I have recently watched a sci-fi series on Netflix called "Altered Carbon". We started watching because it featured (for all of 1.5 seconds!) a new bike made in Mielec, and we are ok with trying new genres. The concept is based around the fact that people could continue living, beyond a "body death" by exchanging their "sleeve" or body and inserting their "stack" (memories, intelligence, soul) into the new sleeve. Don't worry, there won't be a test on this terminology and that is all I am going to say about the series. But this concept of our bodies being interchangeable sleeves we could wear like clothes, simply to house our spirit, minds, memories etc. was fascinating and resonated with me. I have always had an unusual (though I didn't realise it was) relationship with my body. As a child, I delighted in what it could do as I climbed trees with abandon, ran fast, jumped far and pirouetted with precision. It seem...

Motherhood Challenge Accepted !! I was nominated to post a picture that makes me happy/proud to be a mom (yes just one photo). I'm going to tag some ladies whom are fabulous mothers and can rise up to the challenge of posting one picture of their own. If I've tagged you as one of the awesome moms, copy the text and paste it to your wall with a picture and tag more moms proud praʊd/ adjective 1 . feeling deep pleasure or satisfaction as a result of one's own achievements, qualities, or possessions or those of someone with whom one is closely associated. "a proud grandma of three boys" synonyms: pleased (with), glad (about/at), happy (about/at/with), delighted (about/at/with), joyful (at), overjoyed (at/over), thrilled (at/about/by/with), well pleased (with), satisfied (with),gratified (at), content (at), appreciative (of) "Moira was a delight to her proud parents" On a rather long car jo...

In February, we had this incredible opportunity to go on a family road trip in South Africa (a.k.a. the Motherland). And in our eagerness for this holiday adventure, we made our many preparations: Friends invited, check ... Flights and insurance sorted, check ... Birth certificates copied and translated, check ... Pets and plants taken care of, check ... Accommodation and itinerary sorted, check ... Bags packed, check. Finally, because we live in the Magic Kingdom and Enchanted Forest (more about that another day) ... House sitter, check. This final point took care of a few things on our list: pets, peace of mind, plants etc. Since moving to our own little paradise, in a quiet village, we have heard frequently that it would be foolish to leave our home unoccupied for the duration of our trip. So we dutifully (and a bit skeptically) found someone willing to occupy our space and take on the duties listed above. We thought we were doing them a favour ...! Fast forward to 5 days into o...