This week has been so busy it’s a wonder I’m still alive! Apart from working full days in court, I had Sam to walk in the afternoon and photography courses Tuesday and Thursday after hours. 😉 And if you think that interpreting in court for a whole day is like working in the office from 9-5, think again! People can’t even be bothered to turn on the microphone, they speak without exhaling and they generally lack any sign of professional courtesy. So imagine your head spinning with legal sections and subsections, slightly hungry and fedd up the world and then trying to sit still in class and socialize a bit during the breaks, too. Y-ha! 😉

But don’t you worry, this is not (yet another!) entry about my frustration with the world, I just needed to put my thoughts “on the paper” before I can start tidying up and making goulash- I promised F I’d be a good housewife today. 😉 What are you cooking this weekend, by the way?

It’s been snowing all day, I was done early in court on Friday, took a coffee with my friend and fellow interpreter and I hurried home. While packing my coat tighter I felt such a sense of joy overcome me- the flakes were so pretty, people were hasting about and I was just going home to play with Sam, make myself a cup of tea and just be. And I thought about how this constant running around deprives us of the possibility to just be and how important it is for me. Anybody else feel the same? I mean I can be at home for a whole day and not manage to do much, just pick up some socks, put some clothes back in the wardrobe, make dinner, read and take a bath. But this helps me wake up rested the day after. And feel that life isn’t just a never-ending drag.

And while feeling this tremendous relief I could see my thoughts lining up, as in a library shelf, I could almost take them out and browse through them. Like how we’re more than what we do, which I was struggling to get in my 20s and which still gets me worked up now- the society’s labeling of people into worthy and unworthy. Like you have to be a workaholic to earn your spot into the world. And it’s all kinds of wrong, if you ask me.

A couple of days ago I heard somebody saying something very interesting- “if you don’t have a hobby, it’s a good idea to retire gradually from work, as a means to keep invested in something.” I thought it was a bit sad, the idea of not having any hobbies and letting work define you in every aspect. Not me, I said to myself.

Yesterday we had dog training with Sam since he’s been exhibiting aggressive behaviour towards a handful of other males in the neighbourhood and the evening was for bonding and binge watching series. I made some zucchini pancakes to go with a couscous salad and a fried chicken breast and we shared some ice-cream for dessert. Just laying around in our wooly underwear and dragging our feet to the kitchen to make some tea was a perfect way to end a Saturday and I fell asleep on the couch before 11 pm.

It’s been snowing for the whole day yesterday, but now it stopped. The sky is clear and had I been a child, I’d find my sledge and run outside to play. Instead, I’m getting ready for walking Sam, cutting small pieces of fish pudding to get him to reconnect with me, his true master. Haha!

We’re having guests for lunch and I’m making this warming minestrone with garlic buns to get us through another cold February day. I’ll leave you to your chores and thoughts as I need to get ready for the day’s first walk. Feeling truly blessed to have such a formidable companion as Sam! ❤

xxx, Alina