Greetings and salutations! 2017 is here in all it’s glory and we all should have shouldered slowly but surely into the year by now. Unfortunately and depressingly some things never change.
I’m back at work and although my mood has improved since that very first day whence I had to return I’ve found it’s very much the same old thing, it’s just a different calendar on the wall. But, I am not going to spend 2017 whinging and whining about work. There is too much to look forward to and I have always concluded that the eight hours of monotony we suffer every day is only a requirement for us which enables a better life to be had when we are not engaged in employment.
Some may have noticed too that my Blog has a new look. I figured it was due for a change and as my posts have been infrequent lately I needed some inspiration and a fresh start. I was also thinking of changing the name of my Blog. “Strange Notations from a Laborious Life” has always seemed a bit silly and jarring and I am open to any reasonable suggestion for a new title. Put your thinking caps on!
I’ve also been drawing a blank when it comes to actually writing a post. This has been happening for a while but all creativity has dried up and I am hoping to get into some useful work this year, write a few short stories and perhaps get a freelance article or two published. I need to read more, be socially active, get those creative juices flowing! Again, I’m open to suggestions for topics for the Blog.
I spent Christmas/New Year in Queensland, the first time I have been in the land of the Banana-Bender for over twenty years. It was a pleasant time staying with Linda’s daughter and her fiance although it was hot! Everyone loves their air conditioning unit in Queensland and the humidity is such that you seem to be in a constant lather of sweat the whole time. My photo of the day was taken at the Wheel of Brisbane and although it is actually a green screen behind us with a view of the Brisbane River creatively inserted into shot, the wheel is on the river near the area they call Southbank I hope Megan and Tristan don’t mind appearing in this post.
I also spent a couple of days in Wangaratta, the town of my birth, attending a family reunion. My mother, her two sisters and two brothers are getting on in years so they try to get together in early January every year. It is only the third time this has happened but it has quickly become a tradition. I had missed the first two reunions so I wanted to make every effort to get there this time and it was a pleasant experience. Leaving Wangaratta at two years of age I never got to spend much time with maternal cousins so I don’t know them all that well. I guess now is as good a time as any to strengthen family ties.
So-what lies ahead in 2017? For me it’s more travel. Linda and I are going to Melbourne in March to see a concert then we are hoping to get to New Zealand in May. Not the greatest time of year to be heading to the Land of the Long White Cloud but a bit of cool weather never phased me. I haven’t made much of it yet, just a thought or two coalescing in my mind but I hope to get over to Western Australia later in the year as I have never been there. That, and improving my employment status and writing more are my goals for the year. How about you? Drop me a line in comments and let me know what you would like to achieve in 2017.
It promises to be quite a year. A new President of the United States, Britain trying to extricate itself against it’s better judgement from the European Union and the continuing threat of Terrorism will all play a major role and be the dominant features of the year no doubt. There is plenty to write about. Plenty of fun to be had. I’m up for it. You should be too.
Have a great day.
Strange Notations From a Laborious Life 