I managed to remember that this was Wednesday, this week-yahoo. Does this mean that my Clematis (for focus) is working?? Perhaps not as, despite having everyone in the house told to remember, I forgot to take Alison to the dentist on Monday!! Not just me who's forgetful in this house! Jen reminded me at 8.30pm and part of me wishes that she hadn't bothered.
Clematis is a wonderful remedy to help you focus and get going with things instead of just planning all the time. Does this sounds familiar? Perhaps I've already told you about my taking clematis and it helping me to actually get the list written that I had been planning to write for weeks. And with my list came the completion of tasks that I kept forgetting about because I didn't have them on my list.
I have a couple of friends who like lists and who love to add things that they've done to their list which makes it look like they've managed to do something on their list!!! Makes perfect sense-NOT!!
Christmas is fast approaching and I'm doing most of my shopping on line. Except that I happened to be in Boots when they had an offer on that if you spent £50 you'd get 1000 free points (worth a tenner) and so (of course) I had to search for things to spend £50 on. To make it more difficult, they also had 3 for 2 offers and so (of course) you had to make sure that you got that right too. Well, I managed to spend £50.50 only to be given a voucher with the next similar shopping evening date on and promising another 1000 free points for spending (another) £50. Plus there would be a bonus 500 points 'cause it would be my second event!!!
BOO HOO, I thought because I'm a sucker for savings and so I gaily went back last Thursday to spend my £50. I got into the store and realised that I'd left the extra 500 point voucher at home. Mmm, what to do?? It's worth a fiver after all, I decided plus Jen had left her camera at home and she wanted it developed so off I drove back to the house to retrieve the items and then returned to Boots.
I got my £50 worth of goods into my basket and advanced to the till point. Blast those 3 for 2 items-I hadn't spent enough and was £4.95 short of my required £50. Not wanting to lose out, I grabbed 3 bottles of remedies which were supposed to be 3 for 2 (according to the sign above them) only to discover that the remedies were regarded as homeopathic and were not part of the "herbal medicine" offer! EEK!!!
I explained to my cashier that there was nothing homeopathic about them (and in typing this, I must go back to speak to someone in Boots about this) and I should know because I was a Bach Practitioner but he said that there was nothing that he could do. I already had 3 tins of rescue pastilles in my basket and so it made no sense to me at all but I conceded, as I was on a schedule. I ran off to grab something else, which turned out to be 3 bags of chocolate coins and hit the £51ish mark.
Wew-but..........my helpful cashier then informed me that I could get another 300 points by going to the points machine across the store!!!!!!!!
What could I do?
Off I jolly well trotted to the machine and printed off my voucher to give him to make my final total free points 1800 (£18) which is really not to be sniffed at. To those of you who, like me, sometimes get a little bit irritated by people like me in front of them in line, you'll be glad to know that there was no line behind me-phew! Merely a gobsmacked daughter who, when asked whether or not she had found the cashier attractive, shrugged and said she couldn't bring herself to look at him whilst I had my adventure-she was too embarrassed!
Okay, must go now and write my xmas cards-actually I've got to make them first. I promised Bill I'd get started on them. For those of you who feel resentful about it always being you who has to do this task-take some Willow and it will help you to see that it's you who chooses to do it. You might discover that you actually don't want to send any cards-so stop! Don't blame your other half for not doing it. He'd probably be absolutely fine with the fact that none got sent. If not, he could write them himself and that, again, would be his choice to do and he shouldn't moan about doing it.
Do things because you want to do them, people. I happen to love sending and receiving cards and although I totally "get" the saving the planet bit and giving a donation to charity instead of sending cards, I love when I get some news in a card from a friend who I never see! I'm disappointed if there's not a "form-newsletter" inside an old friends card. I know that some of you will detest these newsletters and think them impersonal but I know how much love I enclose with mine. I think, often, about people I have met along the way to this point in my life and I like them to know that, even if it is just a xmas card once a year. Friendship is an investment and it takes work to help a friendship endure the tests of time.
I have a friend who I consider to know me better than any of my other friends. I have known her since I was 13 but I didn't meet her till I was 20. I have only been with her physically for a few weeks in the last 33 years but I consider her my oldest bestest friend. We have written to each other during all those years and swapped christmas cards some years as our only contact for that year. Recently we've discovered that msn is not just for kids and I can disturb her at work any time I please (which reminds me that it's actually been a couple of months since we spoke) Anyway, our friendship and closeness is very evident if you were to be a fly on the wall during our chats on msn.
My point? Make time for yourself but also make time for yourself to be yourself with a good friend or two. That friend does not have to be sitting beside you. She could be on the other side of the world. Write to her, phone her up or email her. If she is closer-invite her round for a blether. Go on, DO IT!
Be happy!
Lx
Posted on Wed, December 3, 2008
by Linsey Denham