(Jan 1 – Jan 7)

So here’s the first diary post of 2018. I expect the format will change between now and December, but for now this is how I’m gonna try it: a weekly post broken down into various sections as below. First up is a summary, in which I’ll attempt to pick out a ‘theme’ of the week …

This first week of 2018 felt very much about getting back into the routine of things and, though it may be the same routine as last year, I’m still approaching it with the sense of starting something new.
After abandoning all routine over the holidays, I’ll admit to finding it something of a relief to be returning a bit of structure to my life. Structure means I know what’s happening day-to-day and I don’t need to think about it too much. It means getting back into my morning shifts (which have been completely neglected since just before Christmas). It means days at work, which gives my eyes a change of scenery, and my mind the chance to focus on different things.
In other developments, my Dad and his wife are visiting from the UK (and will be here until late February) which adds more of a family element to the next several weeks. The Kinderbesten started their VacSwim swimming lessons—and are loving them. I had the chance to catch up with the Elderbeast’s trainer on Friday and she said two things that made me very happy: she told me that he was trying very hard, and that he was listening to her. If you spent any time reading my blog last year, you’ll know that this is a big step up for the Elderbeast and is hopefully a sign of the year to come.

Next up comes a quick breakdown of each day. This is mostly for me to me leave notes for myself, but I’m going to leave it in for now with the idea that I can use this section for specific details or highlights …

Jan 1

New Year’s Day! Enjoyed a lazy morning before the UK folks came over for a roast chicken dinner. Meanwhile the Elderbeast headed out to see the Scorchers play some cricket.

Jan 2

Went to Yanchep National Park today and managed to see ducks, koalas and kangaroos. A nice way to spend my almost-last day off work. The Elderbeast has been talking for several days about spending some of his Christmas money on buying his very own takeaway pizza—so tonight we did that. I refused to let him pay for delivery, since it ends up costing about three times as much, and it’s a nice drive down to our local Dominos in any case. On the way we made the surprising discovery that the fastest 4g speeds we’ve yet encountered are in one of the backwater country roads on the way—a whopping 120mbps!

Jan 3

Last day off work and I feel absolutely exhausted. Decided to take down the Christmas decorations (instead of saving it for the weekend). However, I did leave the fairy lights up that I’d strung around the sitting room because they look awesome (and fairy lights are not just for Christmas).
The Elderbeast began his Gratitude Journal, which I bought him for Christmas. In another amazing development from last year, he simply sat down and wrote what he needed to write without any whinging, bargaining, or excuses. This time last year it would have taken at least half an hour’s struggle just to get him to sit down with a pen and paper.

Jan 4

First day back at work. Very quiet (as both expected and hoped). Spent much of the day sorting out my inbox, which proved a hugely therapeutic way of starting the New Work Year.

Jan 5

The quiet return to work ended today with a major outage of the website. It didn’t last long, and was resolved reasonably efficaciously, but it did put a damper on my plan to continue sorting out my inbox.

Jan 6

A classic #childfree Saturday: did my food shopping in the morning, then spent the day watching old timey Doctor Who and doing various sundry chores (organising finances, cleaning out the freezer, cooking meals for the week, tidying up the various lighting around the kitchen and sitting room). As always, there weren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done, but I feel pretty good about getting back on top of the finances.

Jan 7

Monthly Pathfinder game with friends. Much fun as always.

Finally, a section for me to list what I’ve watched, read, and eaten during the week. This section has already changed from the below, so I’ll talk more about it next week …

Watched

  • Dirk Gently
  • The Good Place 2×03-2×07
  • Groundhog Day
  • Heroes 1×01, 1×02
  • The Babadook
  • Dr Who (Tenth Planet)
  • Dr Who (The Visitation)
  • Mad Max Fury Road

Read

This section is intended to inspire me to get into a more disciplined reading habit this year.

Hasn’t worked so far.

Eaten

  • Heston Blumenthal Roast Chicken
  • Pizza
  • Chicken stir-fry
  • Freezer meal
  • Tarka Dal
  • Traditional Childfree Dinner