Diary of a busyish woman

Habits are funny old things. We talk of the ' habits of a lifetime' or 'breaking the habit '. Habits are part of a routine be they good or bad. We also talk of 'addictive habits ' - a work colleague took me to one side, when I was in my 20's, and explained how easy it is to fall into the habit of drinking too much alcohol. Easy to get the habit and can be brutally difficult to lose it! He was, and still is, a member of Alcoholics Anonymous. I often think of him and the influence he had on me for long-term good. September and January herald new resolutions:- increasing fitness; losing the holiday kilo/pounds; healthier lifestyle. The problem is that after the first few weeks, so many of us slide right back into same old, same old. We don't tend to appreciate our environment half enough because it's like a habit - always there and we are unaware of the small imperceptible changes that happen daily unless of course there is a catastrophe. Autumn Co...

Hi. Please bear with me because I'm not a psychologist/psychotherapist/counsellor or someone with a qualification on modern society. Recently, I met with a group of schoolfriends, one of whom I hadn't met since 1978/79! That's a heck of a long time and the conversation could have been awkward, because we have all gone in different directions; achieved different ambitions or not; married, single, divorced... The variables were incredible. What transpired was, for me, truly special. At one point, I was asked if I was ok because I was so quiet! I was revelling. There were no sides; no competition, just a genuine interest in how we were all doing. It was fantastic. We were all comfortable with each other. I'm fairly forthright and honestly, at this age if people don't like me or some aspect of my lifestyle (including the fact that I prefer to read a book/cook & bake/write my blog to doing housework, which will still await me tomorrow), I really don't mind. I...

Many moons ago, I was a year behind my peers when I eventually struck out on my own and headed to Cork to begin an intensive secretarial course. My parents decided I should stay in a hostel and that proved to be a learning curve. I always viewed it as a stepping stone but met people who had spent years living there! I became a 'joiner'. It was a case of anything but sitting looking at four walls and I was never the person who'd been involved in sport so voluntary organisations were the natural outlet for me. One organisation very often led to another so that when there was a N.Y.C.I  - 80's Revisited ( National Youth Council of Ireland ) gathering in The Mansion House , Dublin recently, I was delighted to go. From Scouting to church organisations and political, this umbrella organisation crosses many a divide and those people who were involved in voluntary organisations 30 and 40 years ago are still willingly giving their time to the same and other organisations in thei...