Colour therapy

You may of noticed a few comments around how the present situation in this country is having a adverse affect on me and I think a few times I have mentioned coping strategies.

Recently I was given this unique product, part of whole series of small books with various inspiration quotes and things.
Although in so far as the general public goes, they see colouring as a relaxation technique as fairly modern although the famous psychiatrist Carl Jung prescribed it as far back as the nineteen twenties and today many medical practitioners and occupational therapists are suggesting it has widespread benefits across many issues.
Personally I've always found colouring  relaxing apart from just fitting in well within my younger than my years frame of mind but moreover because using colouring as a therapy uses parts of the brain that enhance focus and concentration, it helps too with organization skills, memory which is something I sure struggle with and positivity.
What this book has is small selection of drawing to colour but included with it is a cd of relaxing music that is designed to listened to in tandem with the colouring to enhance the relaxation and lead toward a meditative state of mind.
It is something I would suggest trying out.

January round up

It's been something of a mixed week with being a bit busy with the build up to February tidying up the desktop of the old Windows laptop and things .
Apart from about six days of low temperature it has been a fairly mild winter here to the point that I noticed while out some of spring flowers had started to burst out of the school gardens I pass most days here and in fact going toward a patch of woodland, you can actually see the pussy willows and catkin out which was something always loved as a kid.

There has been some strong stormy days out mixed in this so apart from running my Tumblr account and visiting the odd site, I have been doing some colouring.

 No that's not a miracle, I do actually have fingers not that they work so well, trying hold that page down as I took a picture of it with an old camera lens mount in its box holding done a sheet of spare paper.
Yes, they are small fingers too so I have to wear girls gloves as groan up ones are too big!!!
The lambs were out this weekend as I walked past their field and their was quite a bit of activity on the bird front.
I did also redo some minidiscs one using an early edition of a title that sounded better and had another bunch of six brand new blank ones arrive here to keep me busy.

A spot of colouring

The weekend was not particularly conducive to going out with strong winds on Friday so with even bigger and strong people than myself struggling I needed to stay indoors which as you probably aware isn't something I like at all, being an outdoor girl.
One thing you can do when it is like this is colour and so I had my colouring book out on Friday.

 Normally when I colour I use Staedtler colour pencils available in the Noris Club 36 colour pack as they respond well to different pressures for shading and don't easily break in the way some cheaper ones found in convenience stores do
They also sharpen well.
That illustration is from the Jacqueline Wilson Colouring Book published by Penguin UK and illustrated by Nick Sharratt who does the drawings in her stories.

New and improved colouring

As you may be aware I do colour quite a bit and I did mention not so long ago I really did need to get a new colouring book  having finished off my "Coloring book for girls" one I had since last year.

It also is the case I do love Jacqueline Wilson's stories  so when I found out there was a colouring book based on the characters from them, that to me seemed just perfect as that just married up two likes in one.
I bought it because I was looking for something a little more of a challenge when it comes to neatness and having smaller areas to colour compared to my other ones so it would hold my interest being more for Tweens which as far as my regression goes is more where it is at.
I'm enjoying this one heaps.

All change!

If anyone wondered why I seemed to be not around for part of last week that was because I received a unexpected message inviting me out so I spent  a bit of time altering some arrangements and quickly getting my travel organized.
Some people may be more inclined to think "I've my week planned out" and leave such an unexpected invitation  be but to me sometimes you're better just going with it not least because ultimately your life is the more richer for personal encounters and time spent together. They're the things that really matter.
So it was with that that I set off on a glorious sunny Wednesday morning to get the first of two buses to get to the train station getting aboard the Black Country bound train arriving at Wolverhampton to change to the local train network.
Having arrived I was then met by Auntie Andi who walked with me for a short distance to her car before arriving at her house and getting changed into my uniform.
For me, that is a key starting point because when I'm with friends that's very overtly little/middle time when any kind of masking of that innate littleness that's always in me in outside public spaces is completely off from then on.
I give full expression to the whole middle with a little side of me.
That's when I'm letting out and being that 10-12ish girl, engaged in her playing, colouring and other assorted interests pretty much to the exclusion of much else although I never relate to people as an adult anyway (it simply isn't there) so effectively you keep an eye on me more as that child, correcting as necessary and I accept your authority as the adult in charge.
It just works.
I came down the stairs with my  Rag Doll and colouring book making myself comfortable as we talked about various things over a cup of tea which I was able to hold okay as the other week I spilled hot tea on myself which didn't do me much good and meant I had to change my clothes so the others could be washed.
We were joined later on by Matron who'd no doubt of approved of my attire, talking some more and showing her some of my art stuff before it was time to eat with some music from the early 60's and 80's on in the background as Auntie Andi has her music stored digitally and just selects a Playlist to play rather than putting cds in a cd player. I like that idea and usually play digital music stored by hundred on cards, selecting albums on my portable music player.
We had home made beef stew with dumplings and vegetables which was very nice - I like traditional stews and hot pots - and desert which the least said about cream the better cos it's a big like of mine!
After some talking and colouring on my part Matron left ready to get some sleep in the next day and shortly afterward watching some furry convention videos, I went to bed surround by Princess Sophia the First and lots of plushies. I don't think lots of techno stuff is settling when it comes to getting your sleep in.
After a solid sleep which just the thing Middles like me really need and getting dressed, I read a bit of news resisting the urge to kick Mr Osbourne the next time I'm in Knutsford for his awful planned PIP disability allowance cuts and the Tape users Tapehead.net site before Auntie appeared with a drink and I got on with some more colouring while she dealt with important emails.
Andi cooked a full British breakfast  with fried bread and black pudding and egg which was super appreciated as that's something I only normally only have at weekends before she sorted out some work stuff and checked times for my trains back before I gathered my things up to make our way to the rail station.
Strange things can happen like we had a driver go awl at Birmingham New Street and when they found him we then had to wait for the signalman to gave his go ahead before we could move! Luckily it didn't mess up the connections so I had time to change from Platforms at Wolverhampton and a kind Afro-carribean woman helped me off the train before catching the one home which was on time.
The time I spent away did underline really why spending time together is such a important thing bettering time spent online and I'd like to conclude by thanking Andi for her hospitality and Matron for her company.

The lead makes the colour...

Yeah I know, Tuesday isn't it but the groan ups mess my routine up yesterday that left me super tired  so yesterdays post comes a day later than scheduled and I might of gotten it done before bedtime had it not been for Marmalade playing hide and seek over over half an hour, tearing the lower floor of house apart trying to find him. Grrr.
Anyways, as you know Colouring is a pretty big thing with me and a large portion of us too but one problem I have is gripping and pressing on to pencils due to my disabilities.
It's no lie I can sometimes struggle to write me own name  at a times which makes colouring difficult as with most childrens pencils you need quite an impression to get darker shades and they can break real easy.
At the suggestion of Poppie, I decided to get some more pencils.

 

For one thing my pencils came in 12 colour pack so some of the colours I may need aren't there although I'm pretty good at blending colours to create say Fawn -some packs have different colour shades in them too - and these don't break so easy.

They're also designed  so you don't need to press much on them which is a very real boon for some of us and easier to blend.

Summer playtime

As you may of gathered I was going to be away for a few days this week which was a part the reason for late last weeks entry being done when it was cos usually when I'm away I'm minus any computer connected stuff.
Just say no to techno talk, a sentiment I'm sure Susan wholeheartedly agrees with!
But as ever and increasingly more so, I had do everything like pack everything I was going to take away with me, sort out transportation and remember to take some with me food as I'd be travelling across midday all by myself.
This time was going to be a bit different cos I had to catch two trains as well as two buses each way which isn't the most comfortable thing if you get super anxious about dealing with situations or people  like I do  and have bad bad memories of trains.
Anyhow having just done a quick check of my bags that I had I least gotten the essentials packed away I shot through the front door wishing Mommy a goodbye to hop on a bus to catch a bus to the main rail station in this district that most Britishers have travelled through at least once to the delights of Wolverhampton where this time I was catch a train near to Auntie Andi's having ensured there was plenty of time to allow for the connection.
For some internal reason or other the ticket inspectors were out not just on the first station but here just on Platform five so I had to show my ticket to them before I could walk on the train that was waiting. It was a good job I asked if that was the right train as one employee had no idea and the sign wasn't clear!
So with that sorted I limped into the disabled area of one of the coachs with clear view of such wonderful sights as the canal at Dudley Port and Smethwick Rolfe Street  station in the middle of that town before going through the rabbit warren that is Birmingham New Street after which I'd be at my stop to meet with Andi  who took  my by car to her place.
Seasoned readers of certain forums will know, the last few weeks haven't been good with me with family health worries and  a particularly graphic flashback that left in state emotionally  so a large part of being away was to get away from that and play more.
The day had started off rather sunny and and was quite warm so the first thing I did after hanging up my coat and taking off my shoes was to take my bags with me and change so I changed into my dark navy and white gingham school dress with short sleeves as that would be cooler.
I not usually much for short sleeves especially dresses as that's one area where body image connected dysphoria is strong in me (not feeling comfortable in your skin is so not funny) but thought this was a good setting with people to try it.
Plus it's so it's so middle/little and that above all was where I wanted, nay needed, to be so I just got on with it with my white bowed long socks on and came down the stairs.
 With me I had my Frozen colouring book and two sets of pencils which I spend most of the two days colouring two pages at a time to try to keep some continuity in the colouring although I do sometimes make minor changes across a related set of pictures.
Colouring is something I find I need as the process of thinking about the characters, colour schemes takes me out of groan up space very quickly working more with my emotional age and responses.
Also I had Jessica my 18 inch Gotz dolly with me to play with  which I got on with while Jennifer made her way  to join us.
We had a cold meat spread with salad and potatoes and an Indian cake based sweet with syrup - I like syrup heaps -  with ice cream and drank white elderberry as I don't do alcohol talking about many things some connected with littles life and others like the progress or otherwise of renewal in the Black Country and Birmingham.
I talked to Susan a dear friend of ours for a short while.
As was noticed, I soon started falling to sleep and then trying to stay awake so it was I was seen to bed which isn't a bad thing for anyone to do if I'm like that and with you as when I'm like that that's what really needs to happen and at least I just got on with getting to bed without any arguments. Sometime after that Jennifer departed.
I woke up around 6 o clock noticing it was light and sorted out things ready for later on and proceeded to get a wash.
I put  on a long-sleeved stripy top with my red sweatshirt  over the top and green pleated skirt and white socks and made my way downstairs to discreetly play and colour some more until Andi was up.
I'm not one for waking people up if it can be helped so while she got on with some business she needed to I continued colouring until it was time for a full British breakfast  of bacon, sausage, fried egg with fried bread. with fruit juice.
We talked as I did Yet More Colouring until it was time to set off to catch the first train to Wolverhampton which was on time  and despite the best attempts at delaying things at Birmingham New Street  kept time throughout.
I had a pleasant conversation, laughing with a group three disabled passengers who got on at Coseley, one of whom as in a motorized scooter before catching the train toward the big rail Junction of the North-west Midlands and having a laugh with some more passengers before catching one bus. The second bus did a no show which wasn't very nice at all as I had to limp across a mile in the countryside to get to our estate.
I think I needed that time away from groan up distractions to just enjoy being little me playing and colouring after the last few weeks so I'd like to thank Andi for her her hospitality and food and Jennifer for company.


* Picture NOT brought to you Associated Rediffusion but as I has no smart phone and selfie stick (dangerous given my computer usage issues) this is as close as you're gonna get AND see, I is for real.

Frozen colouring

On a bright sunny not as warm as it was yesterday morning I went in to town, which is almost a history trip in  itself in our district and ventured into the local branch of McColls, the newsstore group in Cheshire passing the weekly outdoor market with the fashion and fruit stores with the store holders engaged in sales patter.

Well with some of my up and down emotions of late I felt the need  to have something to do  that would be enjoyable so I picked up this  Frozen colouring book I could work through armed with my stack of coloured pencils.
I so need this.

Junior Art

Most of us encountered art either around us on maybe on the things people bought us such as books, packaging of toys and so on.
As you slowly and for some of us definitely slowly developed your fine motor skills  you may of started to doodle on pieces of paper, done some colouring before doing art in the nursery or infants class usually around the things you know starting say with faces of siblings and so on.
Later on in juniors you'd of had lessons where you might be given a subject to interpret and draw which in my case included drawing things like branches, pussy willow, acorns and flowers that we'd seen in nature study. In my case we went outside to draw them too!
A while ago I did draw some Canada Geese in pencil as I'm a bit of a techophobe when it comes to using tablet and computer software and here is the picture.

Yes that's a Hello Kitty pencil I used to draw it with!

Christmas 2012

If you have just come to this site you probably did not expect me to publish a Christmas edition as I had said elsewhere I wasn't doing one before Christmas as I was going to be very busy organizing stuff for other peoples Christmas's, visiting and the like.

You might be thinking what is a Joanne Christmas like?

A Joanne Christmas is unapologetically a little affair, simple, very childlike wrapped around some groan up parts such as being with relatives so while they may do sophisticated things and talk about groan up stuff, I don't cos I'm the child.

I woke up, got dressed and spend most of the morning  in full uniform and I see I wasn't the only one in our community that spent at least some of our time like that today.

We went out for Christmas lunch where apart from having some lovely well cooked food, I played a small springy man with a sucker that holds it down for a minute before it goes pop and jumps up in the air landing all over the place. I had loads of fun doing that and Mommy was okay with it too. Having a Mommy that'll let you do this in public is so awesome.

Below is my present pile with an unexpected present on the top.

Hmm I wonder what it might be cos it came from a borderline lg colleague of mine who really knows what makes me happy.

Oh look, she bought me a Hello Kitty selection box with chocolate and other candy in it because when she saw it, it reminded her of me. It was so sweet of her as knows all about my little side.

I had some money cos really most groan stuff doesn't really do anything for me at all so I bought this years super annuals by Jacqueline Wilson who writes lovely children's books and yes a Hello Kitty annual with games,activities and other really fun things to do in them like colouring.

 As well I had this the 75th Anniversary annual of the British Comic the Beano with special stories, jokes and other things in them that make me happy.

In a Joanne Christmas, new childrens books feature as I love reading about people and their adventures so there's Emerald Star, a follow up to Hetty Feather and Four Children and It by Jacqueline Wilson in their hardback editions.
Mommy bought me some pastel pink super soft slippers that's she's happy for me to wear around her, a pair of soft snuggle socks and Scottish shortbread. I had a tin of chocolates to share cos well sharing is a 'very good thing tm' although Ill have to change some gloves as my hands are small, the fingers are smaller than Mommy's even and these are way too big.
I have record coming just after Christmas too as it was in the Christmas Eve sale too.
Now the funny thing is people this is so similar to the Christmas's of of the past and you know what? It just feels so right.

Online colouring

Just while checking this photo program out, I went over to a colouring book site site that links to online colouring books where you can can  click onto virtual paint and colour in.

 It's listed on the favourite sites page on this blog.

Here's one I did earlier:

As you can see the tools are well laid out so you just click to load your brush (cursor arrow), move to where you want and click to paint that part.

It's also the first post entirely made from the laptop as I've had to learn where everything is stored!