Shambolic Living

NO MORE SCHOOL

Janine — Sat, 29 Sep 2018 06:24:07 +0000

As of about a week ago I am no longer a school mum. There will be no more creative writing of sick notes when the child was not really that crook. No more having to come up for an educational aspect to attending a Taylor Swift concert during exam period – look I didn’t check...

Weekend Notes

Janine — Sun, 23 Sep 2018 10:10:29 +0000

WATCHING I went to see Fiona O’Loughlin last night. She’s the comedian who survived alcoholism, a two week coma from not realising, in her drunken state, that the heater in the dive she was living in was leaking carbon monoxide. Then went on to spend five weeks in an African jungle with a variety of...

Weekend Notes

Janine — Sun, 16 Sep 2018 08:54:47 +0000

Watching We headed to the movies this weekend and saw the latest Spike Lee film, BlacKkKlansman. It’s the story of the first black cop in the Colorado Springs police force, Ron Stallworth, who in the late 70’s managed to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan. It’s loosely based on Ron’s book Black Klansman. In the film Ron makes...

The Widow Goes On A Date

Janine — Wed, 05 Sep 2018 11:23:43 +0000

The last time I went on a first date Bob Hawke was Prime Minister, Liam Hemsworth was being born, Madonna was singing Vogue on the radio, Macaulay Culkin was being left Home Alone and Kevin Costner was Dancing with Wolves. It was a long time ago people. To be honest I’ve never been great at the dating...

Another Father’s Day

Janine — Sun, 02 Sep 2018 22:26:39 +0000

Hi Simon, How’s things going up there? Did you have a beer with your Dad for Father’s Dad? We blatantly ignored the day here. Just pretended it wasn’t happening. We still think about you every day. I didn’t post anything on Facebook because it seems a bit of a killjoy to be mentioning Dads who...

Hellooo Again

Janine — Sat, 01 Sep 2018 07:37:56 +0000

Hi, I’m just here unwrapping the dust covers, brushing down the spiderwebs and sweeping up the left-over dreams of my tiny little space on the internet. I know I’ve been gone almost 12-months. I’m not even sure how that happened. A full-time, stressful job. Two daughters morphing into adults where they need you less,...

Three Years Later

Janine — Wed, 05 Apr 2017 22:22:13 +0000

Dear Simon, So it’s been three years since you left us. You must have settled in up there by now. Have they put you in charge of the heavenly workshop? I’m pretty sure your idea of nirvana would be endless days of making stuff … with all that time on your hands up there you might...

And Now I’m 49

Janine — Fri, 25 Nov 2016 05:54:52 +0000

It was my birthday this week. On Monday. My third birthday as a widow. I haven’t enjoyed birthdays the last few years. Each year I was getting older than he ever got to be. It seemed like the distance was growing between us. This time, I did enjoy it a little more. Perhaps it’s a sign...

A Blogging Anniversary

Janine — Thu, 15 Sep 2016 11:15:53 +0000

So WordPress tells me this week I have been blogging for five years. Boy, a lot can happen in five years. Back in September, 2011 I was working part-time, we were still very much in the building phase of the house-that-will-never-be-finished. The children were 14 and 11. Good god we still had a child in...

Meternity Leave – Could It Be a Thing?

Janine — Sun, 01 May 2016 23:42:42 +0000

There’s a woman in America causing a bit of a stir. Meghann Foye has written a book titled “Meternity” where she argues every working woman should get paid maternity leave even if she doesn’t have kids. Apparently when Meghann was childless professional in her early thirties she got a bit jealous of all the mums clocking off...