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The Appointment

She felt she was being judged. She didn’t want to look at the woman across from her. Would her judge think her a fraud, or worse, incompetent and weak?

“What is a good day for you?” the disembodied voice across the desk asked.

How to answer that? Think, think, but the thoughts came too slowly. Silence filled the room. She felt so weary. A psychiatrist’s couch would have been welcome at this point.

Then, “A good day is when I don’t have to rest in the car for an hour before taking my groceries inside.”

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

As she left the office, she could feel the doctor’s eyes boring into her back. She wondered what her gait and posture said about her, but she no longer cared.

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Festive Cheer, Or Not

Welcome to my regular Friday song/tune day and general ramble, ladies and gentlemen, where I pick a piece of music that reflects my mood or the times, to share with you.

I don’t really feel like Friday song day today. My well of songs is drying up. I realise that is a cop out because it is not all about me. Every now and then we all feel obligated to put on our happy face. Many people struggle with their mental health and for them, Christmas and other national festive occasions, can be particularly challenging. If you can see that your loved one is struggling, ask them what they need. It may not be the stress of a big family get-together. Sometimes a chat or a warm/cool beverage and a familiar face may be more than enough.

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Getting Smart

Welcome to my regular Friday song/tune day, ladies and gentlemen, where I pick a piece of music that reflects my mood or the times, to share with you.

Today I’m dedicating my song/tune choice to all the people in Melbourne, Australia, who are doing their bit to reduce the number of Covid-19 infections in their state of Victoria. It hasn’t been easy. Recriminations abound, but the rest of Australia owes a debt to Victoria. That’s what I think anyway. Others may see it differently.

Restrictions ease slightly from Monday. Stay cool, Melburnians. Stay smart. Stay safe. I’ve got an idea for you.

You know how dentists use a suction tube/straw? I wonder if that could be modified to attach to a coffee cup so that Melburnians could drink coffee with a mask on. This innovation could be called the Suck-cess. What do you think of that idea?

That was a bit of fun. As is the Melbourne Ska Orchestra. Enjoy.

Stay safe, stay sane and stay kind, everyone.

As for me, two out of three ain’t bad.

Kind Regards.
Tracy.

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Spatially Challenged

Welcome to my regular Friday song/tune day, ladies and gentlemen, where I pick a piece of music that reflects my mood or the times, to share with you.

How are you feeling today? Are you, like me, feeling sl…ee…py? No that’s not the song I picked for my Friday song day, although it would be very appropriate too. I’m sure you know the one I mean. Yep, I’m feeling oh so tired. Nope, it is not that song either. However, it does feel like I’ve been here for my whole life, never knowing home [and a decent night’s sleep]. In the words of the Little River Band, “I live for the day when I can hear people saying that they know and they care for everyone.”

It’s A Long Way There, so get out your air guitar and let’s get going.

Stay sane, stay kind and give everyone some breathing space.

Kind Regards.
Tracy

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Peace of Mind

Hello dear readers, I hope you are all of sound mind and body. If not, and even if you are, you will love Mark Berkery’s nature blog, Nature’s Place. Mark is a gifted photographer and exponent of macro photography. His photographic subjects are primarily insects, spiders and other small critters. His photos are exquisite. Mark is also a firm believer in nature’s healing power and combines this with meditation. If insects, macro photography and/or meditation interest you, go check out Mark’s blog. For those of you who live in Southeast Queensland (Australia), Mark is proposing some meet-ups in a public park. So if you are looking for a bit of quiet time (an hour or so) in the great outdoors and would like to go along, check out the details of the meet-up here. Fostering good mental health is a very important part of learning to live with Covid-19. Mark is doing his bit to help others who may be struggling.

I do not know Mark personally, and cannot vouch for the actual state of his mind, so readers must make their own judgement regarding the bona fides of the invitation. Whatever you decide, definitely check out his blog. It is fantastic.

Kind Regards.
Tracy.

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Feel The Love

Welcome to my regular Friday song/tune day, ladies and gentlemen, where I pick a piece of music that reflects my mood or the times, to share with you.

How are you feeling today, ladies and gentlemen? Depressed? Stressed? Anxious? Frightened? Lonely? All of the above? These last six months have been really awful, haven’t they? I dedicate this week’s song to all those needing a bit of love, a hug, a shoulder to cry on, a kind word. For all of you, sit back, close your eyes and breathe. You are not alone. On the other hand, if you are one of the few who have your shit together and some lightness in your heart today, you are not off the hook. I want you to sit back, close your eyes and let your love flow, or if you are feeling up to it, sing it out.

Take care, everyone. Stay safe.

Kind Regards.
Tracy.

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Corvid-2020 Weekly Challenge #9

Welcome to Week 9 of my Corvid-2020 Weekly Challenge.  Corvids are birds belonging to the Corvidae family, encompassing ravens, crows, magpies, jays and nutcrackers.  So peruse your corvid photo, poetry, music and story archives and join the challenge.

You can participate in the Corvid-2020 Weekly Challenge by creating a pingback to this post (my pingback approval settings are set up for manual approval, so it may take a little while for your pingback to appear) and/or by leaving a hyperlink to your submission in the comments.   Tag your post Corvid-2020 or C20WC.  I really do hope you will join in. Read more

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Waiting Or Anticipating?

A black hat perspective.  Welcome to my regular Friday song/tune day, ladies and gentlemen, where I pick a piece of music that reflects my mood or the times, to share with you.

After a buoyant few days, I’ve stopped to think.  It is necessary, albeit depressing, but it helps me get things weirdly acceptable in my head.  I still haven’t heard anything definitive about how much of the new corona virus, Australia, is prepared to live with.   Some apparently.  However, no-one in authority is yet prepared to be upfront about the costs of this suppression strategy.  It is one thing to be reassured that there will be a (net?) benefit, but without being specific about what is being traded off — who and what is to be sacrificed — how can the community have ownership of any virus-related actions and outcomes? Read more

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Framing Reality – Looking Below the Surface

This post contains images that may offend my mum some readers.  Sometimes, ladies and gentlemen, it is difficult to distinguish between reality and fakery, especially in the online world.  How many of us can say, hand on heart, that we are completely honest about our online persona?  I present myself as an environmentally conscious person, nature lover, mother and artist.  My blog is called Reflections of an Untidy Mind, but some of my devoted readers, have been kind enough to comment that my mind does not appear as untidy as I make out.  Maybe I’m just using the old reverse psychology trick to make myself look good?  (That’s a rhetorical question, folks.) Read more

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Chip Off The Old Block

I come from a long line of procrastinators.  It is kind of genetic.  There is always a tension about what constitutes over-sharing and yet it is apparently important to speak up about mental health issues, despite the discrimination this induces.  I’ve always had problems concentrating and getting started.  Organisation is not my forté.  I’m not sure whether anyone noticed.  Girls are good at hiding that stuff.  Plus I was kind of smart and I had compensation strategies that got me by.  I got through my first degree somehow (burning the midnight oil and eating a lot of chocolate).  I got a job in the government and worked my way through some of the ranks (burning the midnight oil and eating a lot of chocolate).

I was the Taskforce queen.  I could pull it out of a hat when deadlines were tight (it takes a lot of adrenaline to get my mind out of first gear).  Routine jobs?  Tedious and stressful (probably because they involved organisational skills that I did not possess).  I live in nuance, and that is often an uncomfortable place to be for a policy adviser.  (I do have some sympathy for our former prime minister who was constantly being criticised because he couldn’t give a simple answer.)  It is hard to sum up complex policy considerations in three talking points.  Still I managed, because you know, hard work.  It is the solution to everything, right?  At least that is what I thought.

Trigger warning.  This post contains material that may distress some readers. Read more