Curtain twitchers...

There has been so many blog opportunities of late, but no time in which to get it all down! I guess the problem is that you have this constant stream of thought, prompted by your ever changing surroundings; sometimes you are in a position to log on and jot it down, other times you are busy and by the time you think of it again the moment has passed and something else comes along. It always seems to be the everyday things that prompt a response on some deeper level; ultimately, whatever it is that sparks a thought is often so random, I am often startled by where my thought chain starts and ends.

The other day, as I was driving home through the 'burbs', no less than four people with a dog were happily exercising their little fur balls, four people...there were also five children playing street cricket, two people washing their car, a lady gardening, a window cleaner up a ladder and a tree surgeon working on an overgrown birch...oh, did I mention the partridge in a pear tree!

All of this activity in one street, not my street, a friend's who I am staying with whilst my flooded house is repaired. I am officially living in suburbia...which got me thinking - in some ways it was nice to see so many people, all of whom would know one another and look out for one another etc, but in another way I felt like an intruder, as there was no acknowledgement for me, just a few stares, blanks and the odd twitching curtain!

This incident happened a couple of weeks back and since then, given all of the dog walkers, gardeners, window cleaners, small children and curtain twitchers would have seen me drive home every day, it appears that I have been accepted into the suburban fold. I now receive the occasional nod, afternoon and sometimes a cheeky smile or wave from one of the street urchins!

So, now I have 'made it' what does this mean - does it bring new responsibilities; am I on neighbourhood watch, should I tell someone if they have left their washing out in the rain, is the bouncy castle now a communal toy for all street children not just the ones that live in my house?? Is there a suburban code of conduct?

I am not too sure, but there is a little part of me that likes being accepted into the group. Interesting for me, as when I initially noticed how everyone behaved I was defensive and a little agitated by the cliques - now I am a 'member' the irritation has been replaced with more of a protective kind of feeling and so I can understand why I initially got the cold shoulder from those simply protecting the 'club'.

Anyhow, the point of this was merely to say that whilst we appear more independent and less community orientated, I believe that not to be the case. It seems to me that we still desire that sense of community, but the bonds we form and the structures that mould our mini worlds are less traditional. It used to be family, regardless of interest, status or ability to get on and now it is all about core beliefs, convenience and lifestyle. In a way, we are chameleons who blend in and out of our environment as and when it suits and then shed skin and move on when we have had enough!

Disaster, well, of sorts...

Discovering that your new house has been seriously flooded whilst you were away is not the greatest of news, but then on actually seeing the damage and realising that you are homeless for the short-term and in for weeks of mess is much worse.

My new home; full of stuff, my stuff...trashed. Carpet and bed propped up against the outside wall, damp floors and watermarks on most of the walls and ceilings...a mess! The upside is that all photographs and my prints were saved, along with my little red box of memories.

Now that it is sinking in, I have realised a couple of things. Firstly, my friends are just the best; offers of help, places to stay, legal advice...just awesome and as a result I am now residing in Mariano Manor, with gin on tap and a 24hour all you can eat buffet!

Secondly, I realised that stuff really is just 'stuff'; it can be replaced very easily - confirming my theory that to an extent, what you own ends up owning you; however, memories, experiences, relationships and friendships are the most valuable and irreplaceable items, so easily forgotten in our materialistic existence.

So, this weekend I discover that a glitch in the matrix (and in the grand scheme of things, mine is a piddly little glitch!) is sometimes just what you need to make you realise what matters in life; you can never indulge in the highs if you have never felt the depths of the lows.

'Treat all disasters as if they were trivialities but never treat a triviality as if it were a disaster.' - Quentin Crisp

3D...

Life is an ever changing state in my mind; sometimes the days are flat and featureless, other times, days, even moments seem alive. Something lights up inside of you to reveal life in technicolour; people, places, a song, a sensation, a smell, a view, a conversation...it can be everything and nothing, but it is real and causes a spark that surges through the very soul of your physical being.

I live for these moments and however few and far between, it is worth putting up with the daily drudgery and hang on in there for these magical nuggets.

Sometimes I get so caught up in the day to day routine of life that I wonder what it is all about; then, when I least expect it, I have a 3D moment and I realise what it's all about; feeling alive, energy, passion, chemistry, spark, laughter, living in that moment for the briefest of seconds and holding on for as long as you can before it fades out and lands you straight back into reality.

So, I write this blog as I swiftly fall from grace; the moment is fading, but it has given me hope of brighter things that lie ahead and hope is a one powerful thing! As a wise, old, bald man once said to me in his infinite wisdom...

'Keep the beast to the East and your eyes on the prize!'