Monday 17 May 2010

Wot no Bear?

Hello friends. I've had a few days when I've unusually had quite a bit of energy. On Friday I was able to do some decluttering and threw out 3 bags of recycling, took 1 bag to the bottle bank (mainly jars!), and had four bags of books and a bag of old sindy stuff to go to the charity shop. The sindy stuff was given to me by the Bear as someone was throwing it in the bin, but it was mostly TLC and from the 1960s and I collect only late 1970s up to mid 80s. There were also a number of Pippa dolls, clothes and shoes in there. All could have been sold on Ebay - but I decided a whole year ago I would sell it and still hadn't done it. I've never sold anything on Ebay (though bought plenty of stuff!) and it just seemed like too much stress for very little money given that the doll stuff was in poor condition and I find parcelling things up takes hours. Then there is the stress of having to go into town to the post office. And the worry about the buyer being unhappy with what they've bought. So I decided to just give it away to be rid of it.
In my decluttering I sorted through a MOUNTAIN of mail which was mostly junk, so I'm totally caught up on that. I also cleared the kitchen table - I can now see my kitchen table!

On Saturday I wanted to get to the bank, but spent so long sorting papers - and the inevitable fear of leaving the house - that I was too late. So I took as many bags as I could carry to a charity shop. While I was there I spotted a butterfly stamp - just the very thing I wanted - to make a bowl in my pottery class with impressed butterflies on it for my healer's birthday present. I can't remember when exactly her birthday is but she's cancer so not too far in the future. Sadly I have only seen her once in the last 4 or 5 months due to various problems her end.

Anyway, while in the shop I FORCED myself to have a look through the clothes, but there was nothing I was interested in. I must have been fired up a bit because next I went into BHS determined to get something so I wouldn't have to wear my thick jersey trousers all summer.

A depressing experience! But that is why I have very few clothes. I made myself act AS IF I was one of those people on a "How to dress yourself" show. You know, if you're big get something that's fitted, shows off your curves etc etc etc. Well all the tops seemed to be fitted so I selected a few and tried them on. Not a success! They made my bust look ginormous and I looked as though I was about to topple forward at any moment. One top, that gathered in under the bust, made me look heavily pregnant.

I decided my straight down t-shirts are the best option as long as they skim and don't cling to the fat. They make me look less like a giant blob on legs than the fitted tops.

I couldn't get any proper trousers as I need a short fitting and I couldn't find a large enough size in the short range. I did manage to get a couple of pairs of cropped trousers. After trying on about 10 pairs.

All in all a sobering experience. But it might just give me the kick up the a*se I need to reduce my eating.

Yesterday I was supposed to be meeting the Bear. I rang him about 6 times with no answer and at 4pm gave up. I have been out very little in the last couple of weeks as he hasn't been out much. I realised I'd become reliant on him to be able to get out. And getting zero exercise for two weeks actually made me feel ill. I decided I had to get out on my own and have a walk. So I did.

And 100 yards from my front door I was caught in several minutes of VERY heavy rain - with even a few hail stones thrown in. I stood under a tree and my umbrella. But by the time it abated I was soaked up to the knees because the rain was bouncing off the pavement so much!

I was cursing and thinking things were against me as the one time I head out for a walk it's the heaviest rain ever.... But I carried on. The weather was very temperamental that day. There were showers but also periods of intense heat and sunshine.

To give myself some purpose in being out I took a load of photos for your enjoyment. I ended up wandering around for 3 hours. I felt good at the end of yesterday.

This path is a few minutes walk from the high street (split into cycle and walking)
























View looking from path over to the University
 
Then I walked through the University grounds

 
 
 
The beauty of weeds!
 
View from a field behind the University. Between the University and the far hills lies the town.
 
Next time I'll continue the pictures of my walk from this point. 
***
I was given this lovely award by Rainbow Dreaming. Thanks L! And an appropriate ending to a happy post!
Hope you've all had a good start to the week!

Bearfriend xx 

15 comments:

  1. Glad you were able to declutter so much, BearFriend. What a load off eh?
    Wow ... this walk you took is so pretty. Thanks for posting all the photos. I'm so happy you were able to get out of the house and enjoy yourself ... for 3 hours yet! Great stuff!

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  2. what a beautiful place for a walk and congrats on the decluttering.

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  3. Hi Bearfriend! Wow...you've been busy. Its good to declutter now and then. Must be a good feeling to see the kitchen table again!. Dave's a hoarder, and messy, and I cleaned his unit once last year coz I'm a clean freak.

    He had old newspapers and letters dating back to the 1980's, stuff he never used and broken stuff. It was a big job, but one that kept me busy during a depressive episode last year where I had 4 weeks off from work.

    I am morbidly obese, and have problems with finding clothes that fit. Most of my weight is concentated around my trunk, and abdomen, so mid-top heavy with short legs. I too have problems finding trousers to fit, and most of them are also meant to be cropped pants for large tall women, but fit my short legs perfectly. LOL!

    Love the photo's of your nice long walk through lovely green countryside. It looks alot like New Zealand!! I bet you felt good after that 3 hour walk. Have a great week!

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  4. wow! it is super lush there. I am glad you got out! I worked a lot today and your pics brought end of the day escape :)

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  5. Hi Bearfriend, I'm commenting from Canada, and just wanted to let you know how lovely I think your pictures are. I love to look at what you saw each time you go out and about. Thank you. You are an inspiration to me.

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  6. More fantastic photos! I think you did really well to get out and about for so long without The Bear to give you that extra push!
    And even more so with the weather fighting you!
    Well done on the decluttering too, it is a good feeling - afterwards - isn't it? I hate actually doing it, but the results are (almost) worth the pain!

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  7. Good job on decluttering. I enjoyed your photos. They all look very beautiful. I liked that path very much. Greenery on both the sides. Wow!
    BTW, Congrats on the award...:)

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  8. BearFriend, I loved these photos, particularly the first and the last one are amazing.

    We are so happy because there was rain here in Lahore as well.
    The trees and leaves look more beautiful after being washed by by a heavy rain.

    I look forward to check the rest of these photos as well.

    Thank you so much.

    Ibn Hanif

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  9. Beautiful photos as always!

    I wish I lived near you - I'd scour the charity shops for the Sindy and Pippa bits and try to rescue the ones I could. :o) I sold most of my collection when I was going through my divorce a few years ago and bitterly regretted it!

    Hope all is good with you. xx

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  10. Wow! Love the photos. What a gift to have all that beautiful scenery within walking distance! Good move with the decluttering, it is very satisfying. I did a little kitchen decluttering myself yesterday, though not on your scale!

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  11. The photographs are lovely. It is very pretty where you live and you made quite a walk. Up and down hill, so you had quite a work out. You should be proud of yourself. Don't worry about the clothes too much. It's what's inside of you that counts and I see a beautiful person.

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  12. i'm so proud of you for getting out there on your own!! good job :-) what beautiful photos. what an inspiring walking trail! Good job looking for clothes too :-) don't be so hard on yourself. you'll find something. keep looking. treat yourself to some clothing that's luxurious and magnificent and queenly (nurses orders) ;-)

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  14. Oh My! That looks beautiful. I often wish I could hire a personal shopper to just bring me stuff that would look OK. Shopping is not fun if you are body conscious. Please don't give up though, I think we are often our toughest critics.

    Lola x

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  15. Hello. Just found you via Ellen @ Weighting Around and wanted to tell you that the clothes not fitting or not looking right on you is about their clothes being unflattering, not that your body is not right. I promise you there are places you can go - mostly online, granted - where you will find lovely clothes that suit you just as you are...I know this because I'm in the same boat. It's not as easy for bigger girls than those who wear standard sizes, but it can be done. Don't let the failure of a clothing designer make you feel badly about yourself!

    (Also, I really love your photos!)

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All comments gratefully appreciated!