I have to apologise for my tardiness in blogging of late. I have not been skiving, honestly! As I promised myself when I hit the BIG ONE last September, I have finally got my head down and got stuck into writing my book. It's based on and around Bardies, with a huge cast of characters, some sympathetic, some not. It's based on an idea that I have had for a long time but, beyond that, I'm keeping 'schtum', largely because I don't want to tempt providence! I have really been enjoying sitting at my laptop, surrounded by mountains of books, with Billie Holiday, Serge Gainsbourg, Jacques Brel and Miles Davis keeping me company on the sound system.
I have become addicted to research. When I think back to my days of wading through catalogued library resources as a history student in those long, dark days [and the three day week!] before the internet, I find it hard to believe just how long things like a dissertation would take. Nowadays, with JSTOR and other amazing research tools at the click of a mouse, it's possible to find the most amazing snippets of obscure information without moving three feet from the woodburner! Winter work has never been easier and I love it!
This autumn was the perfect time for research. Trips out and about were an utter joy. The daytime weather, largely crisp, dry and sunny, was inspirational. Every morning I woke with the thought that maybe it would be a dull, drizzly day. But, no, the gods were with me. As December came and went, I garnered my scrappy bits of paper and hastily scribbled notes, and closed the shutters. I am closed for business, literally and metaphorically. I am turning into a grumpy old woman, swaddled in jumpers and warm shawls and living on a diet of soup and leftover mince pies and stollen! Right now, I do not want to surrender valuable hours to haute cuisine!
When the days lengthen again and I emerge like a chrysalis waiting to burst open and fly away, I will be back to my old, extrovert self, have no fear! Service will be resumed in the not too distant future. As the first wild snowdrops peep up, when the sun tempts them from their winter slumbers, I am ever aware that these days are precious. The hurly burly of spring will soon be upon us all, and what a joy it will be to feel the sap rising again and our energies restored. There will be little time for philosophising and navel gazing then!
There is something about the light at this time of year which makes me reflective and, lo and behold, amazingly productive. I am sorry if I sound smug, but I am very pleased with myself. Now that the kids are back at college and school, I begin to think of myself again. Someone once said that a family's joyful Christmas was a month of a mother's life sacrificed [was it me, I wonder?]. I wouldn't change it for the world because I know that one day they will want to spend Christmas with their own friends or new families but it is nice to reclaim my time and space, if only for a little while.
The evenings, tucked up by the log fire, afford none of the distractions of summer and I have become addicted to the lonely life of a scribe. Apart from anything else, I haven't had to concern myself with the needs of others. Scrambled eggs suit me just fine! Oh, bliss. Oh, joy! My hair's a mess, pyjama bottoms have become my new tracksuit chic and my daughter's old black 'Uggs' have been requisitioned as cosy footwarmers. The electric blanket is in overdrive, as I sit up until two or three in the morning reading my way through the mountains of books that I have accumulated for my project over the last year.
So, it's back to the grindstone for a little while yet. Bear with me, dear friends, for I haven't forgotten you. I haven't dropped off the planet; I'm just floating around in cyberspace and having one hell of a ride.....and I can't believe that we're almost half way through January already. Incroyable! So, a bientot, mes amis. Watch this space!
