Getting Geared Up for 2016

I am going to steal Jane's alphabet letters from her blog Beyond Eden Rock. I always enjoy it when she does her list. I, like many bloggers always enjoy a good list whether I run with it or not, always a joy to read.

I am wrapping up 2015 because as usual, when December rolls around, I am well and truly ready to move on. I know, wishing my life away, but blank slates are most appealing and that is what lies ahead.

2015 was a year of downsizing, de-cluttering and making changes in the way I think, act and participate in life.  I dropped some very negative people in my life and befriended several positive ones. Photography, photoshopping and writing groups found other active, inspired retirees who don't moan and groan all the time.

I have also been lucky enough to finally get an invite into a book club I have wanted to join for more than a year.

I have been in Fuller's book shop club for several years. Although it has been fun it has been pretty prescriptive and once the 90 minutes of discussing books is over there is no  more social interaction.

This book group meets in the lounge of a very nice hotel on Hobart's waterfront. Coffee and wine is available, the group is small as numbers are limited and members often go to films together, pick a couple of books per month and have a busy Facebook page.  My first meeting will be 27 January at 7:30 pm.  The books up for discussion are The Gilded Hour by Sara Donati and Flying Tangines and Magic Lobster by James Whaley.  I have heard of the Gilded Hour but not the James Whaley book. We are to read one or the other or both. I think I will begin with the Gilded Hour.

Now before I get too involved in talking about the past year and before I really get started in our next year here we go......

A is for the Advent Colouring Calendar I sent my sister that she is now working on. Each day has a  
    different Christmas picture to colour. The colouring craze really is amazing.


B is for Buying New Books for Christmas and my Secret Santa person

C is for Colouring Book craze that I admit to being a small part of. I like to
    work on the detail while listening to an Audio Book before bed.

D is for Dogs running around the house and yard and their excitement over
   very small things. We can learn a lot from dogs.

E is for the Emma read along I am currently participating in with Dolce
   Belleza (here). It is not too late to start if you're interested.
   We're reading Part this week. I am reading  my Penguin classic
   that is a beautiful book but listening to audible.com as well so I get the English accents. Great fun.

F is for Friends. Friends are the most valuable people in the world. Where would any of us be without  
   them.

G is for a Gilded Hour which I realise is quite thick and I need to have it read
    soon into January.

H is for Harried, which I always feel this time of year. I am so glad once it is
   over and the long days
   of summer lie ahead with no shopping or cooking for people.

I is for interesting things going on in Hobart. There is always a festival, a
   lecture, a rally on Parliament lawns and the summer only makes it more so.

J is for Jumping on my scooter and heading to the rural Op and Book shops to hunt for Penguin books.  I plan on continuing that tradition in 2016.

K is for kickstarting the brain and paying closer attention to my new
    photography skills and writing group. Both are very challenging.

L is for lying in a chaise lounge on a sunny warm day and reading. I
    am really looking forward to that.

M is for meeting up with friends over coffee and creme brûlée tarts at
     the book shop cafe.

N is for my lovely (k)neading cats who settle beside me at night and pummel my sides, or my head.

O is for Other People cooking as summer means eating out a bit more and enjoying country show
    foods.

P is for preparing Penguin Books history presentations to
   community groups. I have completed two one hour sessions and
   have two, possibly three more groups to share the joy of my
   Penguin collection with.



Q is for the quirky things I need to wade through when visiting the Op and Tip shops for my vintage
    books.

R is for Reading. Reading, reading, reading. I look forward to talking about more books next year
    with friends, book groups and posts with blogging friends.

S is for my Samsung phone which I loved and killed when falling into a river at the dog beach last
   week. Tried the rice immersion and reset but it really is dead.

T is for Thursday and alternate Wednesday midweek bike rides with
   my motorbike group where we ride from bakery to bakery in the
   beautiful country side.

U is for Under the Japanese Maple Tree where my previous pets
    now lie in peace and planting summer flowers in their memory.

V is for the book The Lady in the Van which
    is our March read and the film with Maggie
    Smith is soon to follow. Love Maggie  
    Smith.

W is for Water. Water at the Dog's beach, cold Water to drink on hot summer days, Water for the garden. Water for the Bush fires that crop up every summer.

X is for my annual x-ray of my head to see if I have more MS lesions for the
   year. So far they have all been stopped and I am thankful for that. I am
   also thankful that they actually find a working brain.

Y is for the Yellow Mini Cooper I dream of owning but  need to
    win the lottery first.

Z is for Zeitgeist and what it might reflect for 2016.