My Wants

[callistra]

Today is a fallow day. This means a day to recharge and relax. People think one equals the other, but I would disagree. Relaxing is letting the stress and angst and everything from the last week go. Recharging is adding back to your mental health, giving yourself leeway to more energy rather than just survival level energy.

So, My Wants for today is this: I want you to go outside. Yep. OUT OF THE HOUSE. And then... I want you to sit in your garden. I don't care if it is a dustbowl or a grassed area, a vegie patch or weeds run wild, I want you to grab a towel, a cushion, a chair, whatever, and go and sit outside for five minutes. And then I want you to come back to me and tell me what you saw. If you really want to ace things, take a cup of tea out there, hot scalding and sweet, and sip it slowly while you listen to what's happening outside. See what's going on in your neighbourhood. Feel the world around you.

I am sure every one can find 5 minutes for this. It takes no prep, and just GO! Take your friends, family, pets, lovers, partners whatever out there for 5 minutes with you. And if they whine about it, tell them it's my fault and to do it anyway!

Comments

[mynxii.livejournal.com]

I was outside walking the puppy, enjoying the cool air and the sunshine, and her happy tail wagging running about. Then i was sitting outside at the dog wash with the 2 ladies with dogs who also get theirs washed, chatting and catching up :) It was lovely. The flowers were bright, the bees were buzzing, the native birds were flapping and squawking together happily, it was lovely :)

[vegetariansushi.livejournal.com]

Hee! It is -15 here without the humidex, so I will have complicated fantasies about living in a house with a garden, okay? We will call that rejuvinating for today. <3

[msvyvyan.livejournal.com]

I have a choice of four balconies, but no garden. No balcony can be seen out of when sitting down. I have a cat chasing insects and yowling at me, and a partner smiling at me from indoors. Surprisingly enough, I dig this. :) This inner city lifestyle is my choice and one with benefits that seem worthwhile at this point in my life.

I can smell the effects of the ongoing sewer improvement work being done around here, I can hear traffic and an aeroplane.

This is my week off, and it is good to reflect on what it is one is exchanging one's time and energies for. :)

[fe2h2o.livejournal.com]

I took water instead:-) Tea would have been much more pleasant, but water is more important at the moment.

Didn't hear much other than traffic, no hoons though, just normal passing cars.

Usually there's magpies, but not today. (It is the middle of the day though, probably they were there earlier, and will be there later). I thought it was still, though, until I got outside. Not much breeze, but a little. The sky was fabulous, deep and blue. The bougainvillea is still flowering in bits. There was one long stem sticking out against the sky, the deep, hot pink was glorious (I came in to get my camera... sadly the error may be getting worse, but I did get a photo... before the battery died...)

The ground was warm under my feet. Not as hot as I was expecting, given the middle of summer.

There's a bit of pruning I need to do. The mulberry tree has finished fruiting, so I should do that. There's another tree near the gate, that if I removed a lower branch (shin height) would be a great place to put a blanket down (aside of course from traffic noises) and watch the world... it has great shade.

I'll aim to do this again. I don't go and be still in the garden often enough.

Back to work:-)

[hkneale.livejournal.com]

For the past three nights I've gone outside about sunset time and had some Commune With Nature time.

The first night I drove down to the beach to discover the biggest beach party I've ever encountered. So I chose an empty spot on a picnic table overlooking the beach, put The Beatles on and stared up at the sky for half an hour.

The second night I did the same thing (and it was the same beach party), only I took the daughters with me, since I told them I would the last night, but they'd fallen asleep. We all sat out on the same picnic table and stared upwards for about half an hour.

Last night we didn't go to the beach, but sat outside on the grass, wrapped in blankets because it was unseasonably cool, and stared heavenwards.

We'll probably do the same tonight, for the beautiful McNaught comet will still be visible, and will continue to be visible for the next few nights.

I'd forgotten why I'd fallen in love with astronomy all those decades ago.

Now I remember.

[aphd3l.livejournal.com]

Beautiful weather, wasn't it?

I saw the GirlChild blowing bubbles, birds eating grass seeds, cars driving and parking next door, then moving off, smelt the cut grass on the breeze from the people in the street gardening, felt the breeze, and happiness at the joy a simple bubble can bring.

Hearing didn't really come into it, surprisingly. Mostly just the feeling and smelling....Wonder what that means:)

[lilysea.livejournal.com]

I did this before I read your blog!

I was visiting dalekboy, and he said "let's go outside and wait for shazgirl (who was due home any minute), and so we sat on the steps at the side of the house for maybe 10-20 minutes, looking up at the blue sky, chatting about writing and characters and Joss Whedon. We saw a cricket which was all different shades of light and dark brown, like pottery.

Then I got home around 6pm, exhausted and headachy, read your blog and thought, 'no, it's far too hot to sit outside today, and besides, there's no private outside space - it's all communal and open to all the residents in the complex of 8 flats, I guess I'll skip this exercise... ...wait, I've already done it before I read about it!'

[lucretiae.livejournal.com]

I saw our patio framework going up :-) Now all that is needed is the polycarb roofing sheets to go up (to be ordered this week) then we can add the cafe blinds (already purchased) and we have another huge room on the house!
It's exciting!

[kremmen.livejournal.com]

I went outside the "house (http://www.trinity.uwa.edu.au/conf/index.html)" a lot on Saturday. There were always people running around doing crazy things. Or eating. Or shooting each other with laser weapons. Oh, and there was a kookaburra sitting in the big tree near the BBQs watching some of the action. ... Not really relaxing though.