Thanksgiving 2015

This post is a bit earlier than usual but it was very apt so I'd rather do this today.

To everyone at GT, IK, DD/lg forums,G.I., F.A. and Tumblr enjoy the time you have together.
Regards Jo.

Numbers

The weekends interlude of snow has passed so I wobble around our estate without fallin' down today which is nice as I don't like being shut in much at all.
Talking in various places across the week brought a few memories back about the past like how we were taught math.

 For us everything started with learning addition and subtraction (take aways) and the decimal system (yay for logical units!) before being introduced to times tables which we had to learn by rote, reciting both individually and as class  up to the Twelve timestable and also by compiling our own time tables  in a grid form.
Everything came from either a text book or more often what our class teacher stuck up on the board for us to either copy down in our exercise books and complete or to work through in class on the board with us being called out to complete in front of the class  showing your working out.
There weren't any work sheets, calculators or a computer back then.
Carrying over numbers and doing long division are kinda etched in my brain which says a lot about how effective the whole class teaching was despite my best effects of telling the teacher I didn't think I should have to, which responded in a sharp reminder who was actually in charge.
We did do fractions but by the time I went to boarding school we got more into equations, area and trigonometry  which I was lousy at to be honest.

Random Friday post stayin' wrapped up

 

With this time of year one only wishes for the brilliant colour of the summer not least when my bones feels the damp cold air and the Sunflowers in peoples gardens growing although it is brighter today.

I am better today than I was earlier on in the week when I seamed to have pulled my left hamspring yet again just getting to sit up in the bed first thing and was able to see the hairdressers on our main road for a trim and some restyling attending with my nails painted as ever.

Today I've been doing some colouring so far connected with Thanksgiving although I would say Thanksgiving in Canada is a month earlier and I don't understand why over here you don't celebrate it.

Last night I had to quickly rescue Mr Marmalade who had gotten his paw right through the gas fires grill, heaven only knows why he'd do that, as it was very close to the flames just as I had some very hot tea in my hands so had to quickly put it down without spinning it on my skirt and legs and yank the errant paw away.

He's so strange like that as no cat I've ever had has ever tried it before.

I've always loved reading comics, especially British ones loving the Minnie the Minx strips for like eons so It won't be long before an annual or two arrives care of Mr Claus so I thought end  by a older frame in one weeks strip I remember laughing at.

 What she says is very much the kind of thing I'd of!

Until next edition, byes.

Personal growth

It's kind funny how it is change and permanency crop in in differing forms when it is we think about aspects of our lives such as what may matter the most or the direction a hobby or interest may take.
Some people may put a great store on things being the same then, now and even in the future living around patterns from the past and equally we can all think of people who never really seem settled, forever swapping and changing things at whim, sometimes to the consternation of those closest to them.
Sometimes you may feel things changing but hear the siren calls of those who just loved you and what you do begging you not to change, that you and what you do is all that you are and to embark on journey be it personal or in developing your skills would lose you your own qualities while others still may wish to take you down routes you might not feel sure over.
To grow and to adapt either as a person or in your interests to me seems on the face of it a healthy thing as that would imply you are learning and exploring more of what interests and fascinates you.
I know and sometimes it feels at certain sites as if I'm forever on about, I am changing, learning  to do and live with greater expectations of doing things to those I'm been familiar with far a long time which hasn't been easy.
It would of been easy to given the matters that came to a head last year to had done nothing, in effect deciding to have stayed in rut which may have been a dead for end for me but a comfortable one but instead pursued on that was and has been painful at times but has ultimately been more benefit to me. Sometimes it's the courage to change that we need.

Chilling little style III

After Monday's write up about the combined Halloween and Bonfire party here is the unexpected follow up.
Whenever people get together, not only do they talk about different things but sometimes they may bring things that for whatever reason they no longer have a use for or perhaps found didn't fit quite right but would rather another had if they could make use of them and this is very true in the Adult Little Girl community.

In many ways as discussed in 2013, this picture which is a part of the same photo series, captures the spirit of the 12ish Middle me, a girl who relaxes sucking her lolipop, stroking her pet and reading a book who may know more of the grown up world but isn't in it as just those things alone are what matters in your world.
 I remember writing in December 2014 around how it was the form of uniformed schoolgirl was going to change as I was to be wearing pinafore dresses with my first outing in one at the Christmas party and how they felt so me.
Pinafore dresses are for a good number of actual schoolgirls, a requirement of their being at school as part of the uniform emphasizing your 'belonging' to that school and the implied acceptance of its rules.
There is a parallel of sorts with me because my caregiver requires me to wear mine not just as an adult middle treated very much as the little but also it does reinforce the acceptance of His rules and any correction that follows. It is MY uniform.
Not surprisingly that is very much how most of the time I've been out with people this year and certainly worn at home with blouses and even a tie!

I have a few school type pinafore dresses now in my wardrobe but was rather surprised to see Matron at GHS had something hanging on the stairwell that she said I could have if it fitted.
Math isn't my strong point -prolly was fitted with Math proof cap early on in life! - and sizing isn't always straight forward  but putting it against me it seemed right.
It was a grey pinafore with a heart shaped front zip but  with a straight skirt section that was a bit thicker than some of mine by Banner so seeing it was a 17/18 I took it back with me.
I put it on after a quick wash on arrival home Sunday coming down the stairs to my folks wearing it with an air of confidence sitting downstairs an having my evening meal in it and they said NOTHING!
It fitted perfectly so I like to thank Matron for her kind offer of it as she understands the importance of Uniforms to middles like me.

Firework Party time

Having just gotten up after going to bed really early to help with the tiredness I felt yesterday evening I thought it was time to write up the weekends events.
For me things started with being up at 6 in the morning to makes sure I was dressed, double check my case and fix breakfast ready for for my Taxi to arrive as the weekend local bus service operator is anything but reliable especially if you need the very first bus of the day and being hourly it would be very easy to miss a connection to the rail station.
Because I was being picked up at the other end, it's kinda important for me to be a bit responsible and ensure that to the best of my abilities I get on the right train so this was the best way of achieving it.
Getting through the ticket barriers newly installed isn't fun but I used the Disabled one and waved my ticket to someone who let me through with my case and Hello Kitty tote bag with some long sticking out of it.
Having arrived at the other end I met up with the person who going to give me a lift and waited through the torrential rain storm for another person to arrive before we set off to their house where events were being held. We called in the local shops to pick up some provisions for later consumption although I stopped in the car as it was raining. It does nothing for me fur! (Lol) 
I immediately got changed into my black pinafore dress which is super easy for me to put on (a boon for disabled girls like me) and started the sorting out of bits and bobs I'd brought with me like cards, a gift for the organizer and some playthings.
I had said at a site that one the most important things was working our way through the loss of a dear friend in tragic circumstances and the other was that I felt I had more of need to 'play' which was shared with two other people at least so for us this needed to happen.
Sometimes more grown up sophisticated work or techno stuff can creep into littles meets but that's not I'm there for so I said I was going to bring two things with me, a pack of Hello Kitty playing cards and my Panda glove puppet, Peaches, who came from Covent Garden, London and came to work with me as one of  a few things I used - played  with is the word I'd now use - doing a stressful, emotionally demanding job helping to bring people who hurt kids to justice to help deal with stress and it was the place I learned to express my inner child.
By bring them and talking a little in advance I felt there was a good chance we'd get what we were looking for.
In time everyone arrived and so 'Matron' and Andi got started with the Beefburgers (not LAMB burgers, giggles) with onions by 1PM, talking away (food is so sociable) before we got on to the first activity proper.
At this point the group split up and so I joined Sammy and Lausie outside with their partners keeping an eye on us carving the albino Pumpkin into a spooky but fairly happy face between us, having fun scooping out the mush and scraping the skin off bits ready to put a light in later on.
I got a bit sticky and one of my splints will need a wash where bits got trapped as I forget I'm wearing them as they're just part of my life now but it was so much fun and I'd like to thank them for letting me play with them.
Susan had organized a treasure hunt around the house and its surroundings based on a  Hobgoblin theme with a series of clues and individual prizes as well as Winner prize which was won by Lausie who's just rather good at this sort of thing although I and a few others did get the odd one too.
Next up was Jennifer's music quiz which was based on themes from BBC Tv series issued on BBC's own records where you had to identify the name of the program and when it started (although we relaxed that to the period of original transmission). I got 7 out of twenty but given I wasn't familiar with British tv for some of that time for obvious reasons that wasn't bad I guess especially as one them was Choo Choo connected.
We had a cold salad evening meal from what people had bought and in some instances actually made like Andi's Trifle which was very nice with the cream (shades of the Catgirl coming out here!) which everyone enjoyed.
After a period, the baked potatoes were out which indicated one of the highlights of the weekend was about to begin. At this point I put on my Witches Hat and Held  my orange broom which with the school uniform I was one looked like something very reminiscent of Harry Potter series ready to go outside.
Matron, brave as ever had gotten the bonfire started with bit of fencing and other stuff which soon really started going keeping us warm as the sparks flew in the air before with the assistance of Andi lighting them, the fireworks were put in in order exploding colourfully, fuse permitting of course all around us as a few other folks had spotted although we had competition from major Firework Display a few miles away.
Given some of the issues I've had due to the dangerous misuse of fireworks to hurt me, being able to stand and enjoy anew fireworks without any issues was a great thing for me personally.
Afterward we listened to the super sounds of Kim Wilde and other 80's artists as well as the Eagles as the coal fire kept us nice and warm talking as I was impersonating a cat on the floor, clawing and me-owing and we turned the light off so Andi's illuminated skull shone onto the ceiling which was fun as some of were sure we saw ghosts, maybe even the ghosts of schoolgirls past!
Eventually we got to bed in various rooms, I was in the front room, sleeping on the couch in front of the fire waking up later than usual so I fixed a tea and got washed and changed to have some Rice Crispies before Matron and Andi got some smoked Bacon sandwiches going before a few people left and the remainder of us went to a Pub for a meal together, naturally I kept to soft drinks, which was served very efficiently, piping hot  and very tasty before we all made our way back.
Andi took Suzy and I to the rail station to catch our trains which was interesting as the number of people getting in seconds flat to the Virgin train to London Euston station has to be seen to be believed!
Unfortunately my Choo-Choo was rather overcrowded - standing room only - in the regular carriages including the disabled section occupied by people who I'd be 98% certain weren't,  so  I had to stand in some discomfort for part the journey before myself and a Person of Colour saw a couple of seats come available and claimed them!
Thankfully my back pain subsided by the time I arrived and the ticket barriers were up so I quickly get a taxi off of the the taxi rank, whose driver was only two and half miles away from home who got me back in for Quarter to Six.
I'd like to thank Susan and Matron for organizing the party and Andi for the Pyrotechnical support in addition to the lifts.
A fun time was had by all.

Halloween edition

For most people Halloween has been and and gone although I'll be off at the weekend so I don't think they'll be an entry here on Friday as I'm gonna be rather busy getting sorted ready for an early morning start.
There weren't so  many little people at the door on Saturday dressed up looking for candy although the weather was more reasonable than last years so I have some spare candy and I believe at least another one of us had the same experience. Around here I know the families of them well.
That kind of leads us into a kind of a theme because of one of things about about that weekend is about re-acquainted  with people you love having fun, the weekend despite some problems with pulled a  leg muscle and badly jarring my neck yesterday also was about that but in a different way as I encountered a few people I hadn't seen for a while.
As well, I've almost finished work on one of the seven micro sd cards for my music player - imagine something the size of a small stamp containing a couple hundred and bit albums - arranged by theme and to which I do have a kinda master list of what's on each.
That work has involved , avoiding getting very technical putting a few shelves worth of cds on to them and at the same time adding any albums I bought as downloads and it was downloads I bought around five and six years ago stored on memory stick I as adding yesterday as strangely enough the store I bought them from had withdrawn them from being either sold or even redownloaded from your folder of purchases.
So I was adding my Gorillaz albums, the Everything and Nothing compilation by David Sylvian of Japan fame (after getting the two cd side to play as two separate sides), Take That's Greatest Hits (no longer available new as they wanted a compilation with recent songs on it too) and Paul Young's From Time To Time.
These were albums I played a lot at the time and two were original bought as MiniDiscs which I loved in the 90's but that technology is now obsolete and in the case of the Paul Young title  that also was a very early pre-recorded mini disc that sounds very raspy too like a wasp chewing your ear!
The download (Mp3 encoded in Lame 3.97 version at 320 kilo bits per second) is much better sounding too!
Having done all of that I was getting re-acquainted with them playing from my Fiio high quality player before going off to bed on time which is something I've learned to readjust to this year.