Mother's Day 2015

[Doolhof]

Hi everyone. Mother's Day can mean so many things to different people. I am wondering how you all think about Mother's Day?

Do you have a close relationship with your Mum, Nana, Grandma, Mother in law, Aunty or a lady in your life who is like a Mother to you?

If you are a Mum, how do you feel about that role in your life? If you have never been a Mum due to choice or circumstances, how does that make you feel?

For me, Mother's Day can be a sad and lonely time, and at the same time I can celebrate with my Mum and my Mother in law.

Am I a Mum? Yes and no. I have been pregnant 5 times but have no live children.

I have a Mum whom I try so hard to love and care for but who also has mental health issues so the relationship is often strained and hard to live with at times. It seems often that Mum is not aware of how much pain she causes people. But she is still my Mum.

So are you looking forward to Mother's Day or are you dreading it?

If it is the latter, then try to come up with things you can do now to ensure you do not feel too much sadness, regret, misery and pain on Mother's Day.

We will be catching up with my Mother in law this year and I will phone my Mum as she lives too far away for me to visit unless I stay over night. I will be thinking of my babies with lots of love and may mark the day with flowers for myself, or I may light some candles.

I will leave this for now and see what replies I receive.

Cheerio for now, from Mrs. Dools,   Lauren

[the_motorcycle_boy]

Hey Lauren,

Am out of town again and here the weather is pretty ordinary. I couldn't access a computer until Mon afternoon. Sorry for the delay.

I'm sure Quake, the computer game, would rock your socks off! Haha!

Eating pizza while watching a play sounds great. Is the play in Italian by any chance? lol You could throw olives if it was bad!

That's no good you have no viable medication to take. There are lots of anti-depressants out there as far as I know and there could be one amongst them that you could try. I'm on one from the tricyclic family. Best of luck with it.

That sounds awful, your local anaesthetic not working. I could just see you giving your dentist a real sock in the jaw!! lol

So, you are after a cat. Would you consider getting a Siamese red point? I had one once, a gift from an elderly lady whom I used to take shopping. The cat used to almost talk and it was a great companion! Affectionate and loyal to only one person, me!. A kitten costs around $500 but I think the expense is worth it. Anyway, by the time you read this, you'll probably have one.

My cat was named Boris. He died at age 4 from some Asian cat respiratory disease. He was great and used to hide around the corner and we would chase each other up and down the stairs. Sometimes he'd get out and go for a walk across the roof tops. I was always worried that someone would pinch him. He was a great friend.

Well, once again I've had a very quiet weekend spent with a friend watching the footy and eating well. We cooked up these honey, mustard pork chops with vegetables...delicious! The main excitement has been figuring out what flavour chips to eat (just kidding!)

I finally got my music CD from Hong Kong (why Hong Kong I'm not sure) and on first hearing I didn't like it at all. However, I remembered this was the case with previous listenings of this, my favourite band. Sure enough when I listened to it a few times it began to entrench itself in my brain and I started to enjoy it. The Fall have been described as "always different, always the same" and it is so true!

I also got another Blu-ray on Friday called "American Sniper" starring Bradley Cooper which I am looking forward to watching. I seem to like Clint Eastwood directed movies.

This mightn't interest you but it does me and that is what matters Haha! just joking. There is a really good TV, a 55" 4K Ultra HD for approx. $2000 which is a great deal. The TV I have is still pretty good but the new one is tempting me no end. The better picture the better I reckon.

Hope this finds you fully well, am thinking about your health. Until next time

All the Best

from TMB

[Doolhof]

Hi TMB,

By the way, do you actually own a motorbike or do you just like them? I had always wanted one, but have never bought one. I have had friends and relatives with motorbikes, including my brother in law who owned a farm. I used to like riding my cousin's dirt bike at an isolated beach.

The play we watched was "the Addams Family and it was a very good production. The table we had was front and centre right next to the orchestra. Our two friends who are in the play are so very talented musically.

I also happened to attend another play on Sunday with other friends called "The Last Resort". That was rather funny and I enjoyed a good laugh. A friend of ours is right into theatre and plays and conducts play reading evenings once a month. I might go along to see what it is all about.

I asked Nic about screen plays as well and he explained that very well to me. So all the best with that side of your life.

My dear husband has now decided we can not have another cat as our existing cat will have her nose put out of joint! I told him that as the cat does not like me to hold or pat her, then he had better get used to me hugging him...which he doesn't like either! Ha. Ha.

I get most of what you mentioned regarding the t.v. but what does the 4K bit mean? My parents only got rid of their black and white t.v. about 10 years ago! No kidding! My sister and her husband bought them a new flat screen recently and they are totally gob smacked by it!

You mentioned chips, have you tried sweet potato and beetroot chips? Like the oven baked potato chips, but cut thinly and cooked until they are crisp. They are delicious. 

Not having any medication to dull the raw emotions of depression at present is rather interesting at times. I need to keep telling myself "these are only thoughts and feelings" they are not reality and to a point I can deal with them!

Finding distractions is also a good thing, so I have been keeping busy with odd jobs about the place.

Time is disappearing. I need to head off to work soon, but first need to feed myself, the fish, canaries and chooks. Shame we don't all eat the same thing! It could be easier. Ha. Ha. 

Cheers for now, hope you have a great day. Did your team win the footy?

 from Lauren

[the_motorcycle_boy]

Hey Lauren,

How are you? Going good I hope. Has the anti-depressant been sorted out yet? I'm going alright, realizing I need to get out of the house more and interact with people. My illness is quickly fading so I have no more excuses to remain indoors.

My name the_motorcycle_boy is a bit misleading. As you know I am not a boy and secondly I have no real passion for motorcycles. I got the name from a Francis Ford Coppola film called "Rumble Fish" made in 1983. One of the main character's in it was called TMB. It's one of my favourites so TMB it is.

The "Addams Family"and "The Last Resort"sounded very good. Play readings evenings sounds interesting too. Thanks for the encouragement regarding screenplay writing. Did Nic say they are incredibly hard to write?

4K resolution, also called 4K, refers to a display device or content having horizontal resolution on the order of 4,000 pixels. In English that means it has a high resolution and therefore a sharper picture which is what I'm after.

I would have loved to see the look on your parents face when they got the new flat screen! They even have curved screen tv's out now!

I have never tried the sweet potato and beetroot chips but I will keep my eye out for them. I eat salt and balsamic vinegar rice biscuits. They are low on calories and taste delicious!

You poor woman! No AD's and having raw depressive emotions and thoughts must be hellish! and incredibly hard to handle! You are very brave! That's good you are dismissing the thoughts and feelings as not real. Please feel free to talk about this more if it might help. My thoughts are with you. Finding distractions is good, it works for me too.

My team in the footy had the bye this weekend so that's an easy 2 points. They play next Fri night against a pretty good side. My team won the grand final last year but something is wrong this season. They seem undisciplined and lacking cohesion and spirit. Time will tell.

You could try feeding your pets and yourself bread. Would that work? lol

I've had heavy machinery at the doorstep all day. At one stage my computer was vibrating! Hopefully they'll be gone tomorrow.

Great talking to you as usual, hope your meds are sorted soon. Hang in there and don't forget to write more if need be.

All the Best

TMB

[Doolhof]

Hi TMB,

Thanks for the explanation regarding your title. I do recall the movie
Rumble Fish" I will check it out and refresh my mind.

I do like motorbikes and always have...but never actually owned one. Maybe that will be my thing to do with my mid life crisis when it hits...buy a motor bike, even if it is a dirk bike, to ride around the tracks close to home.

I don't think my clients would like to be hoisted onto t motor bike when I take them to the hair dresser. Ha. Ha.

Regarding the medication, I am still feeling the effects of coming off the jolly things a couple of weeks later. My Dr wants me to be totally clear of them before he decides what is next.

My dear husband has totally surprised me with two nights accommodation at a sea side hotel this Sunday and Monday! Just me! I am so looking forward to it. I will enjoy walks along the beach, watching the sun set, will book a massage, will have a choice of restaurants for lunch and dinner, shops to check out, more time at the beach, and time to just rest and relax and gather my thoughts.

Hope the machinery noise has stopped in your area.

Where we live, we have three roads close by that all seem to have trucks travelling on them 24 hours a day. When ever there is an accident on the highway, the trucks are diverted to the two roads closest to our house, only about 50 to 100 metres away.

This happened last week when I had my migraines happening! Trucks diverted to our roads for about 12 hours! Horrid.

Yes, Nic did mention how hard it was to write a screen play. I am intrigued and will ask Nic if he has any books on this kind of thing or check out the library.

I was thinking of taking the lap top to the hotel with me to start work on my story again, but have decided against it as some of that is a bit too heavy and I need a cheery time right now!

Today I have some training to attend in the morning then I will be taking a dear lady tot he shops and the hair dresser. She certainly would not like me to pick her up on a motor bike!

Apparently a great Aunt and Uncle of mine used to have a motor bike and side car. One time while out riding, then ran into a turkey, so Uncle turned the bike around, Aunty scooped up the turkey and they took it home for dinner.

Remind me to tell you about my Mum's run in with a turkey!

Hope you are travelling okay.

Cheers for now, from Lauren

[the_motorcycle_boy]

Hi Lauren,

You have got me imagining you scooting around town on a dirt bike, little old ladies screaming as you take them to their appointments! Pulling their hair out before arriving at the hairdressers! It's not good. Haha!

Regarding Rumble Fish, I am curious to see what you think of it. I liked everything about the film but some critics panned it.

That seems sensible what your doctor is doing with your meds. Hope the transition isn't too rough for you.

Am also curious to see what you think about writing screenplays. From what I have read and learned, it is the hardest job imaginable. The only comparison I can make, is to playing an extremely complex game of chess!

When you are writing you have to take into account literally hundreds of principles in order to have a satisfactory outcome. It's the hardest thing I've come across! and I marvel at the quality of finished Hollywood scripts. I  download them from the internet to read.

Meanwhile, I am waiting with baited breath to hear of your mum's run in with a turkey! Sounds hilarious!

Wow, you're 2 days away sounds idyllic! Very nice of your husband. I can tell you are looking forward to it, your excitement jumped off the screen! lol. I hope you have a marvelous time! Walks along the beach and beautiful sunsets, fantastic.

So, you know what it's like to have heavy machinery close by. When they were working outside my computer was literally shaking from the vibration!

Well, I had enough of self-sacrifice so today I went into town with the intention of spoiling myself. Why not? I thought. After an enjoyable bus ride I entered a shopping complex and  went and got myself a Thai massage. $40 for 30mins! It was great. I was pummeled every which way but it felt so good!

That done, I went to JB HiFi for a look. After browsing for half an hour, I purchased 3 Blu-rays for $28. One I got, had an Oscar for Best Original screenplay so I'm keen to investigate that. And to finish my splurge I caught a taxi home! Mission accomplished. Now, I cringe at the money I've spent, just kidding!

All set for a good weekend, have a friend coming down, I hope, and will be going to the big markets on Sunday.

I am going pretty good, improving every day.

All the Best

from

TMB

P.S. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! for Sunday. " 21 today, 21 today... "

[Doolhof]

Hi TMB,

Life is feeling pretty average for me right now and I am struggling to keep my head above water. So these couple of days away will be very beneficial...I hope.

I will be leaving shortly, will go to Church and hope for a little spiritual healing there, then to a girlfriend's for lunch, and my last stop for the day will be the hotel at Glenelg for two days!

Had a birthday dinner with family in a restaurant last night and really had to fight to keep myself there. It was all a bit too much. I had wanted a gathering at home but Michael had insisted we went to the hotel. He is a little controlling at times and even tried to tell me what cake to buy for my birthday.

He means well I know and tries to show me how much he loves me and cares for me in his own way. It isn't always the way I need though!

Never mind. I am off to the beach. I grew up near the sea and it has always calmed me.

Mum and the turkey! Mum was driving along a country road, when out jumped a kamikaze turkey! It smashed into the grill, damaged the radiator bounced across the bonnet, smashed the windscreen, then bounced along the roof of the station wagon.

The insurance company said there was that much damage done they wrote off the car! Ha. Ha.

Sounds like you had an excellent time for your day out. Some times we just need to go out and have a splurge or at least do something totally different to break up the routine and feel like life is worth living again.

You really have me totally intrigued with this screen play business so I am going to have to investigate it further.

I asked Nick if he had any screen plays, but he only has theatre plays. Even some of those would be interesting to read. I might even attend some of his play reading nights and see what they are like.

For now I am focused on the beach and hope it is warmer at the coast than it is here in the mornings with today being 2 degrees outside at 8.00 a.m. and yesterday it was only 1 degree.

I will catch you later on in the week. Hope you have a good one and you keep on improving!

Cheers for now from Lauren

[the_motorcycle_boy]

Hi Lauren,

Well, first let me say that I hope your 2 day holiday was just what you needed. I'm quite worried about your state of health and hope you have had a big improvement. So, when it suits please let me know how you are going. And I hope to hear how your mini-vacation went too.

Glenelg rings a bell for some reason but I have no idea where it is. lol.

Your birthday dinner sounded extremely stressful and some of Michael's behaviour not that good for you. No wonder you were looking forward to being near the sea! I find it very peaceful too. Did you go for long walks on the beach?

"Mum and the turkey" was a humourous tale! After it, the car was a turkey! lol. I supppose there wasn't much left of the turkey either.

Yes, getting out and doing something different is essential for mental well being. I could go out every day but it costs money to do things and I'm on a tight budget. Having said that, there are plenty of activities that require little or no finances.

The screenplay business is very intriguing. It's a whole craft that cannot be taught like other subjects. It is extremely complex. For instance, I have 10 or so books on how to write screenplays. But none are really straightforward because it isn't a straightforward thing.

One, "Aristotle's Poetics for Screenwriters" reveals "Storytelling Secrets from the Greatest Mind in Western Civiization". It is very, very useful but not a solution.

Another by Lajos Egri is the systematic breakdown of the essentials for creating successful, realistic plays and screenplays effectively demystifying the process of creative writing. Though enlightening, again it is not a solution.

Each book is different with different things to learn. Even after studying nearly all of them, there is no clear cut way left to write a successful screenplay.

You can download free scripts or screenplays from the internet. Just do a search like "silence of the lambs script" and see what comes up. You should be able to find a free one. If you like, download some of your favourites. Reading a screenplay gives you a good idea just how difficult it is to compose one.

Since we last spoke I have been busy on the computer playing Quake and responding to posts. Have also watched a little tv and a few movies that I got from Sunday's markets. There were a lot of people there, thankfully it was sunny!

Hope you had a great birthday!

Welcome back Lauren, BB and I have missed you.

Cheers for now,

from

TMB

[Doolhof]

Hi TMB,

This is my second post to you. The first was a little too negative! Honest...but negative.

Thanks for the "Welcome Back". I certainly needed the break from being here at home. I am now needing to put a lot of positive thoughts into my days to keep me feeling more able to cope with life!

Glenelg is a popular sea side superb of Adelaide, and after Kangaroo Island, it is one of the first places settled by early white settlers in S.A.

I was given a free upgrade at the hotel so received a room with a balcony over looking the city. In the mornings I made myself a cup of tea and watched the sun rise from the bed. The garbos woke me at 5.00 a.m. one morning and the next it was jack hammers at 6.00 a.m.

The buffet breakfast was wonderful and I enjoyed making fresh fruit and vegetable juice for myself. I spent a lot of time walking along the beach, watched the sun set both nights, enjoyed seeing a couple of pelicans fishing under the jetty one night  and picked up a bag full of shells.

I had a massage as well. The sweet little Asian lady really found all the sore spots!

My depression is rather rough and raw so I am looking at ways to control that.

My husband isn't the most understanding of guys and can be rather controlling at times without realising it, so I need to step up more and look after myself and my needs.

Yes it was wonderful he organised this time away for me. He hoped it would make me all better and he wouldn't have to put up with my depression any longer. He told me how much it bothers him and he shouldn't have to put up with it.

It is a good thing there are forums like BB and plenty of other help out there for people who have very little support or understanding at home!

On my way home from the beach, I called in to the Animal Welfare League and hugged quite a few cats. One was so cute, it curled up around my shoulders and neck and purred for ages. It was so sweet.

Tomorrow is another day. I might start it by going for a walk.

Thanks for sharing more about screen plays. I have recently borrowed some books from the library so will read those first before I look into anything else to read.

Thanks for being there!

Cheers from Lauren

[Doolhof]

Hi TMB,

How are you getting on? How have you spent your day? Have you been enjoying your latest games and music?

I'm thinking I would love a month off work to catch up on so many things I would like to do! Shame we need money to survive hey! Ha. Ha.

 Today I washed the bag of shells I collected at the beach. I will wait and see how they look when they are dry and that will determine what I decide to do with them. Most of them were cockle style shells of different sizes. Some might come up nicely if I varnish them, so they keep a shine.

I caught up with a girlfriend yesterday and she has suggested a girls weekend away with another couple of ladies I know. That might be a lovely time. I know them from the Salvation Army, so they don't drink alcohol, so the strongest drink flowing that weekend will be coffee! Ha. Ha.

We ended up going for a drive today to a few little country towns for a look around. We checked out some antique and second hand shops. One place was so crowded with stuff you could hardly move once inside the store!

I had a look in an Aboriginal Art gallery as well and really liked some of the art work I saw. I would like to know the story behind the painting and also the artist.

I grew up in a small country town and never really felt like I belonged there unless I was at the beach, close to the ocean. Is there a place where you feel more at home and where you have a sense  belonging?

Or do you just feel comfortable where ever you are?

Do you have any plans for the weekend?

We are off to see another local play that will be played to an audience of only 80 people so it will be quite intimate.

I have asked my husband to not organise anything else for the rest of the weekend as I just want to chill out and maybe find time to be creative one way or another.

Hope you are doing okay and you are up for a chat!

Cheers for now from Lauren

[the_motorcycle_boy]

Hi Lauren, (this is my reply to your July 1 post July 2 is coming!)

Sorry to hear of your struggle with negativity. Best wishes with your positive thoughts. Hope they help with coping. In fact, I'm sure they will.

Thanks for telling me about Glenelg, I knew that I had heard of it before. No white pointers around I hope.

Garbo's and jack hammers, was that part of the package? lol. Watching the sun rise must have been beautiful visually as well as good for the spirit. A balcony overlooking the city would have been nice too!

So, you could make your own fruit and veg. drinks, cool. Beach walking and sunsets, collecting shells and seeing bird-life sounds idyllic. I bet you thought about staying longer. Especially, after your massage. They're great (massages) aren't they? very relaxing.

Yes, you do need to look after yourself especially now that your depression is hurting. Doesn't sound like your husband has much tolerance for your illness. This is unfortunate for you and makes places like BB so indispensible.

I imagine you were very tempted to bring home your new acquaintance from the Animal Welfare League. A cutey eh?

Beginning the day with a walk sounds ideal. Me, I've been indoors for a few days with a cold. Nothing severe just feel a bit below par.

I have been on the computer a lot, writing posts and playing Quake. Have half watched a few movies. I keep falling asleep during them. A warm, comfortable lounge and I'm gone. Consequently, I have a stack of movies to watch. Haha!

Hve also been listening to music. A band called The Fall and another called Matchbox 20. They are very different from each other but I like them both. What sort of music do you like, Lauren?

Growing up near the beach must've been great. Where I grew up there were several beaches around the area. My father taught me how to body surf at a young age and I was like a fish swimming for hours in the surf. I loved it! Still enjoy it today but am far less fit and adventurous. lol. Great memories though.

One other great love I have is fishing, though I haven't been for quite a while. It is just marvelous to get out amongst nature, go bushwalking to find secret spots! I can do this by myself or with another. I also enjoy fishing from a boat mainly for bream and flathead at night.

Well, thanks for your reply, I'm really glad you had such a good time. Too bad you didn't have room for a fur-ball hitch hiker on the way back. lol.

Take care, and I do hope you are feeling better real soon.

Bye for now

Cheers

TMB