“One of the best pieces of advice I ever got was from a horse master. He told me to go slow to go fast. I think that applies to everything in life. We live as though there aren’t enough hours in the day but if we do each thing calmly and carefully we will get it done quicker and with much less stress”

Viggo Mortensen

In my last post – a somewhat impressionistic piece entitled “Hard and Fast” – I attempted to put into words the unforseen and unlooked for feeling that – though we really are both now retired (at present, anyway) – the pace, complexity and severity of current events across the globe has inhibited us from experiencing that state as the anticipated relaxing pay-off for a demanding life of work.

As one might expect this sensation is by no means the result purely of external forces and influences. The Girl and I are in the habit of synchronising our calendars monthly, in the vain hope of not getting caught out by some event that one or other of us should have known about but had forgotten. We are somewhat perplexed by the discovery that the quantity of such events has is increased rather than diminished since we came ‘to rest’.

In my ‘start of the year’ post – back in January I wrote this with regard to our plans for the year:

These things, however, we are anticipating:

• A week in Puerto Vallarta in Mexico, during the College’s reading week in February. Right now The Girl and I both need to feel some sun on our shoulders
• Some overdue maintenance on our lovely home. We need a new hot water tank; the roof needs to be de-mossed; I am contemplating putting underfloor heating in my studio and we are long overdue in making a start on dealing with some of the clutter that seems to accumulate through modern living
• We are hoping to host some visitors this year – which is always fun when it also turns into a holiday for us
• There will be music-making – no doubt – and I may serve a turn on the executive of the Peninsula Players (who presented the pantomime with which I was lately involved
• We will definitely aim to entertain in our garden just as much as the weather allows

The splendid week in Mexico has already been well and truly reported upon in my February posts.

We have been busily engaged in carrying out the second element of the schedule. The new water tank has been installed (providing us with copious quantities of gloriously hot water on demand. The roof has been cleared of moss (well overdue – but better late than never) and we have made a powerful start on simplifying our lives by stripping away many of the unneeded accoutrements that have found their way into our home whilst we were looking the other way.

Last year at around this time I was obliged to replace the device (called a ‘backflow preventer’) which stops water from our irrigation system from backing up into the public water main. This year I found that the ancient semi-manual controller for the system had finally given up the ghost and I had little choice but to purchase and install a swanky new digital device. As is usual at this time of year the garden requires a serious sprint on my part to try to catch up with all of the uncontrolled growth that has taken place whilst yet we sheltered from the late winter storms raging outside our windows.

Music making continues and, as predicted, I am serving a turn on the executive of our local community theatre.

So – busy, busy, busy! For further news on these and the other items on our list – watch this space.