30 Complaint-Free Days 

Day 26

20,225 steps!

I did this in 1 walk to Waitrose and back, plus walking round the house. Will I still be able to walk tomorrow?

I chose a very hot day to walk and drank over a litre of water. It brought home to me how fortunate I am to have easy access to clean drinking water. Many people have to walk far farther than I did just to collect dirty water to drink. 

At lunchtime the latest newsletter arrived from WaterAid - a charity I support. It made me realise how lucky I am.

Being Friday it was also bed change and house clean day. As I changed my bed I pondered how blessed I am to have such a comfortable bed and a selection of clean sheets to change. I would think that the majority of people in the world don't have this. Cleaning the house made me aware how fortunate I am to have a roof over my head and a house to clean, so many don't enjoy that privilege.

Then there was ironing! Now I do like ironing - I find it a very creative activity. But I also realised that I am so lucky to have a change of clothes (well, several actually!) and so I enjoyed the ironing even more - with a glass of Pimms to celebrate achieving so many steps.

We really are very blessed in this country and I finished the day with a greater sense of this.

I wonder what tomorrow will bring - and how many steps?

30 Complaint-Free Days 

Day 10

A lazy day.

I felt tired and quite cold so didn't do much apart from read.I finished my book,"The Swallow & The Hummingbird" by Santa Montefiore, which I really enjoyed reading.

Then visited the RNLI station just along the road at Kilkobben Cove. Very interesting.

I was grateful that I have not had cause to be rescued - it must be a frightening experience. I also developed a new appreciation for the RNLI crews who risk their lives to save people. Such incredible bravery.

It came out sunny and dry, which was lovely - but I still didn't go for a long walk. I even had an early night and a good, long sleep. Will feel refreshed and ready for action tomorrow!!

I suppose it isn't surprising how being cold and tired saps energy. I am just very grateful that I have a lovely cottage to stay in. The reality for many hundreds of years ago would have been a hard life with conditions much colder than this. We all have so much to be grateful for.

Today I even got to see one of my favourite views ever - as you reach the village end of Beacon Terrace and come to the crossroads in the village centre there right in front is a superb view of the sea. I love it every time I see it, and when I am here I get to see it every day.

30 Complaint-Free Days 

Day 4

A much better day for complaining. I do believe that the only complaining I did was to myself about myself, which is interesting.

I have been able to accept everything else from everyone else - but not myself.

I suspect most people are the same - kinder to others than they are to themselves. I have read about the way we wouldn't speak to anyone else in the same way we speak to ourselves - and I am doing just that. I am complaining about so many things that I do and how I do them. I eat too much, drink too little water, don't do all the jobs on my list .....

I could go on.

So I clearly need to work out a way to develop tolerance to the fact that I am not perfect and I am doing my best. I wonder how best to do this?

They say that people should talk to themselves in the same way they would talk to a dear friend and be as kind and patient as they would be with that friend. It makes sense because if we can't be our own best friend and show others how to treat us then we can't expect others to treat us well.

I still need to be a little more disciplined though. Trouble is, I am ultra-disciplined when I am working (i would never be able to get to work by 7am or get anything done if I wasn't) but when I am not at work routine and discipline go right out of the window! Hmm.

That needs a bit more contemplation.

On a positive note, my Fitbit seems to be working well. I have done over 20,000 steps over the last 2 days and it doesn't automatically skip to distance now, which is good. I'm still not convinced that it isn't counting my typing and cooking as steps, but we shall see.

And, I came up with a 'recipe' for my own gluten-free cauliflower cheese grills today to use up some leftover cauliflower mash. They were delicious. I will develop the recipe further, but the first attempt was an accidental  success.

Onwards and upwards.

30 Complaint-Free Days 

Day 2

Day 2 began well. 

I have been pondering ways to make being complaint-free an easier option and so far I have come up with 2 strategies to help.

1. Feeling grateful. It isn't possible to be critical, judgemental or complaining when feeling grateful.
2. Doing things that make me happy.

So I have used these 2 strategies throughout the day to help.

In fact I used strategy 2 last night after I had posted my first update. I signed up for a 12 week course of Tribal Fusion Belly Dancing! Woohoo! I am so excited. The course doesn't begin until September, but it should be so much fun and is something I have wanted to do for some time. I prioritised my happiness on this issue and it feels good.

Challenge 1 came when driving - traffic jams, traffic lights and other irritations. So I let people go in front of me where possible, took my favourite route along the seafront because I had time and remembered to be grateful that I wasn't in a hurry to be anywhere.

I had my hair cut - always a fun thing to do. I always enjoy my chat with Amy, my hairdresser and the rest of the crew. Today Amy had a tickle in her throat and cough she hadn't been able to shift which I could see it was getting to be a problem for her. So, after paying I popped into the local supermarket and bought her a bottle of honey and a bottle of lemon so she could try that combination in hot water to see if it helped. I dropped it into her before going to the car. She was so surprised which made me happy! 

I had lots of other successes in the course of the day - I managed to get a fitbit that I hadn't been able to get for a few weeks (I have no idea how to set it up and use it, but when it is working it will help me move more and get in at least 10,000 steps most days. I am 60 so keeping fit is a priority for me.) I signed up with a new dentist and  made an appointment, I chatted to people and had a few laughs. Life was fun.

I did some knitting - I made 6 little bees (picture of them when complete later in the week), I did some exercise on my exercise bike and watered the plants in the garden - the water butt is now full again thanks to the rain. I really love the evening ritual of watering the pots and checking out the growth. There is another chilli that will be ready for picking by the weekend. 

Yes, I was beginning to complain when I was stuck behind some slow-moving people in the supermarket but I remembered to be grateful that I am able to move quickly and easily. It also reminded me that I could probably do with relaxing and slowing down a bit - after all, I am on holiday.

So far, so good. I am enjoying the challenge and the happy results.