The water rush

My sons and daughters-in-law get this from kiteboarding. Me, I get it from my water pic.

I bought one recently at the suggestion of my dental hygienist (yes, I'd asked). It took some getting used to, I can tell you. At first I felt as if I were giving the whole bathroom sink and vanity a shower, not to mention the mirror behind which needed wiping every time. But now I'm loving the fresh feeling the it brings. I don't think I've had so much rushing water in my mouth since the time I tried water-skiing.

That was far away and long ago. In the Knysna lagoon, actually, while I was still at university. Despite leg muscles made strong through ballet, I never actually managed to get up on the skis. Now, the lagoon is tidal, but I'm sure the level went down because I swallowed so much water. Ah well, I was never the sporty type.

Although, talking of the lagoon, I've done quite a bit of sailing on it. The surroundings are surely some of the most beautiful in the world, but the lagoon has shifting sands and channels. And so I once had the opportunity to push a small yacht over many a sandbank. Maybe I should rather have persevered with the waterskiing in order to be on top of the water instead of trudging through it!

Getting rid of garbage

Friday mornings is garbage collection in our neighbourhood. My husband gets up early and wheels the bin to the road, then takes out the recycling after seeing whether it's paper or glass, plastic and cans. That's okay for distribution of chores, I reckon, seeing as I clean the toilets.

This morning I was kind of marvelling how good it feels to get the garbage out of the house and disposed of. It's like a small burden lifts. Clearing out stuff works too on a grander scale but takes more effort. Plus, you have to deal with it yourself rather than leaving it to those sneezing-brake trucks.

Today however, I'm going to do some clearing out of the garbage on my computer. I've just sent off a requested submission to an editor (hold big thumbs, folks!) and now I can drag those unnecessary old files into the trash. Then the folder won't be quite so crowded. Hopefully this will also bring good energy.

Writing black and blue

Here's a confession. I still prefer to do my creative writing (not the blogging!) using pen and paper. Other writers like the speed of instant composition on the computer. Me, I like the space between. i.e. The thought appears, and some words to convey it (hopefully!), but that small pause between brain and hand somehow provides me with the opportunity for serendipity, for the words to rearrange themselves, perhaps, or for some unheard music/rhythm to happen.

But there's another aspect I've wondered about recently. Does it make a difference if I use a blue pen rather than a black? My husband definitely prefers the blue. In fact, I used to like writing with a pencil best of all because there's more traction on the paper. Then I found the graphite was more difficult to read over after a lapse of time and switched to what we used to call ball pen. Of course, years ago, after reading Nathalie Goldberg's 'Writing Down the Bones' I went out and bought the fountain pen she recommended. Did that make a beneficial difference? I don't think so. It was more nuisance than anything else.

So now, I suppose a blue pen brings something gentler, more ruminative perhaps, than the black. Anyhow, I'm going to give it a try.