Here are my answers to this week’s SYW challenge from Pensitivity101

When shopping, do you prefer to shop online or in person?

Where I live, I don’t have a choice. There is no online food shopping available – yet! I am sure it will be an option soon, as this town is growing at an alarming rate.

I do make use of Take-a-Lot for other kinds of shopping. Delivery is usually within three days of the order.

Do you take/stick to a shopping list?

Yes, I usually take a shopping list but I also like to browse and might buy something that I’d forgotten to add to the list. I am lucky in that my hubby often shops alone. I give him a list but invariably he comes home with more than what was on it – eg chocolate which he insists is for me!

Do you shop around or are you store-loyal for convenience?

We only have one major supermarket, OK Grocer, in my town. This used to be an inadequate little shop but it has moved to our new mall and it is now quite impressive.

If we want to go somewhere else it’s a 30km drive to Bredasdorp. This we do once in a while. We used to prefer Checkers but now I have discovered that Spar has more sugar-free products – rusks, jelly, crackers etc.

Roughly how long does it take you to do a weekly shop

I would say we don’t spend more than an hour in the supermarket but when we go to Bredasdorp to do various other chores, we might take two to three hours. This will include breakfast at a restaurant.

Gratitude
Sometimes, Time is something we need to gift to ourselves.

Happily, I can say that finally after a busy and fulfilling career and raising two families, I have plenty of time for myself As much as I loved my life before retirement I did feel that I had to split myself into many pieces so that everybody got a little bit. Yes, I did take Me-Time – but now I don’t even have to think about scheduling that in. And I can honestly say that I did not experience empty nest syndrome at all. Perhaps, it’s because we moved away and started our retirement as a new adventure. Eight years later and it’s still an adventure in spite of the usual trials of growing older. Of course, we still see our kids and grandkids often but we’re happy they have their own lives and we have ours.

Here are my answers to this week’s challenge from Di

 Do you prefer a duvet, quilt or sheets and blankets on your bed?

I have a down duvet on my bed. In the winter I top that with a blanket. Making a bed with a duvet is easy. Changing the linen is a different story!

Do you sleep with one or two pillows?

Two. But only one under my head. One is goose down, and the other is a sort of memory foam that is not too puffy. I have six in my home and want to replace them but I can’t find that exact type. Instead, I have covered them with pillow protectors. They are the most comfortable pillows ever! The shop I got them from no longer exists and there is no brand name on the pillow so I can’t even order them online.

Do you prefer a single, double, or king-size bed?

I have a queen-sized double bed. This past weekend we stayed in a B&B and requested a double bed expecting it to be a queen but it was tiny! However, we were perfectly comfortable – well I was!

In the winter, do you have a hot water bottle or an electric blanket?

I have an electric under blanket which I switch on for about half an hour before going to sleep.

Fun question: have you ever slept in a hammock?

I think a hammock is the most comfortable thing once you’ve managed to get into it. I have never owned one and never actually slept in one. I would imagine it would be fine for a nap.

Gratitude:
Enjoy what you have, it may be all you need.

When we moved from Cape Town I thought I would not be able to live without Woolworths. (South African chain store that supplies a variety of items including homeware, fashion, food etc. Their quality is superior to any other store in the country!) But guess what? I survive and I only miss them a tiny bit.

I didn’t want a Nespresso Coffee Machine but received one for my 70th birthday from my kids and now I love it!

But seriously it is true how we grow if we let life take us on our destined journey and learn to love every step of the way.

Here are my answers to this week’s Share Your World

How well do you know your immediate neighbours?

I know them by name. The neighbours on the left are semi-permanent meaning they are here erratically sometimes for weeks and sometimes just days. He works off-shore and she has business interests in Cape Town. We usually have a meal together if they’re in residence. On the other side, we have a friendly couple and their only child who is now about eight years old. When he was a pre-schooler he would pop over to visit us from time to time but not so much anymore. (Now he only comes to fetch the cats – see below.)

We have spoken to most of the neighbours around us and are on friendly terms with them. Most are weekenders or here for holidays only.

Do you notice changes in your neighbourhood : ie. new car, new dog, home improvements, etc.

I don’t but my hubby is more aware. Of course, major changes are noticeable and I did see solar panels going up next door.

We had no choice but to notice that our neighbours on the right had new cats as these beautiful Siamese popped over the wall to introduce themselves to us. They are curious creatures and come right into the house and as we no longer keep pets we are really enjoying their visits.

I have met complete strangers in our town who say they know exactly who I am because they see me walking! So others are more observant than I am!

A man I always greet at the end of our road often comments that he hasn’t seen us and asks where we have been. (We’re often off caravanning or visiting kids in Cape Town or Plettenberg Bay) When I tell him, he says he wishes he had enough money to travel as much as we do! Choices, dear man, choices!

Should new neighbours move in next door, do you introduce yourself once they are settled in?

When we were the new neighbours nobody came to introduce themselves and as our movements were quite erratic for a year we did not bother to introduce ourselves either. Also, most, at that stage, were temporary and seldom in residence.

When we got new neighbours on the left we introduced ourselves. The ones on the right introduced themselves, warned us that they would be doing renovations and brought us chocolate! We like those neighbours.

Have you ever had to complain to your neighbours?

No. We are not the complaining type. Dogs barking, sounds of lawnmowers, children laughing and playing etc. do not bother us at all.

Gratitude:
Be the best you can be, no one can ask more of you than that.

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I certainly hope that I am the best I can be. What’s more important is to look for the best in others. We all have a good and bad side.

Here are my answers to this week’s Share Your World from pensitivity101

 Do you like change?

Yes and No. I don’t like change when something I was using perfectly well – like my birding app – gets updated and then I have to learn how to use it all over again. However, I usually find the changes are for the better and I get used to them and start to enjoy the new app.

I also enjoy new experiences and try to say yes to new opportunities when they present themselves. Live in the moment – tomorrow may never come!

When I was younger change was great and I embraced all the technological changes with great keenness. Now that I’m older I’m not as excited about change as it takes me longer to wrap my head around new techniques. The problem is that things are changing so quickly. In my lifetime I have gone from party line telephone to video calls, from no television to Netflix and from standing in queues at the bank, within certain hours only, to instant online banking at all hours. And the world is continuing to change at an alarming rate. So I’d better like change. I can’t stop it and I can’t choose when to check out of this planet!

Can you remember the last time you had to use an operator service?

I would have put a long-distance call through via an operator many years ago.

What is the best and worst ‘hold’ music you have had to listen to?

I get irritated with any hold music but I can’t say I have a worst or best. The school I taught at used to play the school song – which I thought was a cute idea.

Do you find numerous ‘options’ annoying when connected to an automated service?

Not really – what I do find annoying is being passed on to somebody who can’t help me.

Gratitude:
Beauty surrounds us, but sometimes we are too preoccupied to notice.

The above is something I can go on about all day! We really need to stop worrying about all the little irritations of the day. There is so much around us to take pleasure in. At the moment, in my neck of the woods, the spring flowers are everywhere and they are quite breathtakingly beautiful.

Here are my answers to this week’s Share Your World Challenge

How do you get on with your in-laws/partner’s family?

I have been with my husband for 40 years. We had both been married before and took on each other’s kids and families. On the whole, we all get on pretty well. We also keep in touch with my husband’s late wife’s family and my relationship with them all is excellent.

What is the nicest thing anyone has ever said to you?

We helped our daughter raise her two sons and the nicest thing I’ve ever heard from anybody was when my grandson said, “Gran – I’ve had an awesome childhood!”

What was your favourite ride/stall at a fun fair?

The best ride I ever went on was at EuroDisney when I was forty years old. It was a Star Wars Space kind of ride. I almost believed we’d blasted into outer space and were fighting aliens!

Would you like to be a child growing up in today’s world?

Life is very different now but I do believe that we’re built for our own time. Kids today will be fine because they’ll adapt to what is required to live in this century.

I on the other hand am grateful for being privileged enough to have experienced rapid changes. My childhood was free and happy and uncluttered by adult supervision. In my thirties, I started to grow with the changing technology and computers changed my life for the better. I feel as if I have been a time traveller going from the good old days to the extraordinary future. Air travel was not as easy when I was a kid. Now stepping on a jet plane is like stepping on a bus! I’ve gone from party line to cell phone, expensive long-distance calls with a delay to video calls that cost nothing. What a privilege to have arrived in the future.

Gratitude:

Everyone is entitled to a bad day in life, just don’t let it run into a week.

The above is so true. My life is certainly somebody else’s fairytale. A positive attitude is very important. I can’t bear negativity.

Here are my answers to this week’s Share Your World from Pensitivity101
1.  Expensive or sentimental, what is priceless to you?

I really had to think about this question because I always say stuff isn’t important in the greater scheme of things but then I thought – but I love my stuff – both expensive and sentimental. The expensive stuff like my jewelry also has sentimental value as most of my pieces were gifts. The home we owned back in Cape Town was a wrench to part with as it was filled with so many happy memories and I miss it still. So each thing I own has sentiment attached to it. But some things can be replaced while others can’t like a little yearbook my Grade One class made for me several years ago. I would be heartbroken if that disappeared because it is truly irreplaceable.

2.  What do you consider to be ‘a quiet night in’?

Most nights are quiet nights in with my hubby. We have sundowners at 5, dine at 6, and are usually in bed watching our favourite TV shows till after 10! Once or twice a week we entertain at home or dine out with friends. These evenings are also quiet compared to our very busy social lives from yesteryear.

3.  Do you believe in Soul Mates?

I absolutely do and I believe I have a few.

4.   Can you dance? (for example: old time, disco, jive)

I can dance with my husband because he leads very well and we just get into the rhythm and do our own thing. If our song, Lady in Red, is playing, we get up and dance whether there’s a dance floor or not.

Gratitude:

Concentrate on what we have, not what we want.

What a privilege to have all that I need and more and that I am surrounded by loving friends and family and am able to truly enjoy my golden years.

I have a few loved ones who are not well right now but they’re in good, caring hands, and for that I am truly grateful.

Once again Di from pensitivity101 asks some fun questions. Here are my answers

Do you like to sunbathe on the beach or by a pool?

When I was young it was the thing to be tanned and if you had a pale skin in summer you would be teased for having a “London Tan.” Living near the beach meant that we were always in the sun but our clever mom insisted we wear sunscreen and tried to keep us out of the sun between 11 am and 3 pm – unsuccessfully of course. However, lying in the sun was not something I enjoyed. I would try to get just the right amount of sun to tan but seldom got badly sunburned. Now that I am older and wiser, I never lie in the sun either by a pool or on a beach. I do walk along the beach almost every day in summer and sometimes in winter too. I used to swim in the sea but now prefer a pool.

Have you ever used a fake tan or a sunbed?

I never felt the need for a fake tan and I have never used a sunbed.

Have you joined or wanted to join a gym?

Yes. For most of my adult life, I belonged to a gym. I still take exercising seriously but now I do my own workout and walk a lot. I think belonging to a gym got me into the habit of exercising and kept me flexible so that now in my later years I can still do it at my own level and pace.

Good health permitting, would you prefer to go hiking or take a walk in the woods?

Because I’m a bird watcher I used to go on bird walks quite often. They would be in the mountains, in the woods near rivers and lakes, or just about anywhere. I have never done an overnight hiking trail.

Gratitude:
Birdsong is Nature’s symphony when you’re feeling down and the last thing you want to do is sing.

There is nothing like hearing the dawn chorus to cheer you up when you’re feeling down. I am grateful that my garden attracts a number of birds who bring great joy and entertainment to my life.

Here are my answers to this week’s questions from pensitivity101

If money was no object, what would be your ideal holiday?

If money was no object then a world cruise would definitely be something I would consider Having said that, a cruise is not my ideal holiday. I am lucky enough to have had many different kinds of holidays and cruising, and caravanning in game reserves are the type of holidays I enjoy most. I always enjoy travelling and I’ve stayed in both luxury and budget accommodations. It’s the experience that matters to me. There are holidays that I enjoyed when I was young that give me the most pleasurable memories but I won’t do those again because I know Age is against me. This is why I tell younger people to embrace every opportunity and not put adventures off because ‘one day’ will be too late.

Do you save for a holiday or put it on plastic to pay off later?

My holidays must fit my budget. Paying later is not an option for a retiree. I would love to go on a very expensive 50-day Pacific Ocean Cruise but I can’t afford it so I think the next cruise will be a shorter one somewhere more affordable.

Have you ever been on a cruise?

The best cruise I did was in 2019 – wasn’t that lucky – just before COVID hit. It was from Mauritius to Venice and took 30 days. My blogs about it are headed, Cruising with Costa.

We have also done a few shorter cruises. Last year we did a 7-day pelagic cruise with BirdLife South Africa which took us from Cape Town via Marion Island to Durban. This year we did a 2-day fun cruise from Cape Town to nowhere and back with our children daughters and grandsons.

Do you send postcards or buy mementos?

I don’t. I blog as much as possible while travelling so that friends and family can see my own photos and know that I am enjoying myself. I might buy one or two mementos if I really see something I like. The South African Rand does not go very far overseas so I am very careful spending unnecessarily.

Gratitude:  Sometimes, just having someone by your side is enough.

I am grateful that my hubby and I are by each other’s side 24/7 and that we are usually on the same page when making decisions about what to do each day and where to go on holiday!

Here are my answers to this week’s Share Your World from pensitivity101

Growing up, were you closer to your mother or father, or was it a balance of both depending on the circumstances?

When I was small I was a real Daddy’s Girl and I adored my father but I was definitely closer to my mother. To me, she was everything a mother should be and I felt sorry for the other kids because their moms were not as lovely as mine. She was a perfect mother to a teenage girl and encouraged me to reach for my dreams.

My father had a huge influence on the lives of my siblings and me. We all had to be in the lounge when he came home from work as from then until bedtime it was family time. He would talk to us about all sorts of things and was always interested in what we had been up to. He was a great storyteller and we learned many life lessons at my father’s knee. He was also an amazing grandfather and all his grandchildren adored him.

What was your favourite toy as a child, and do you still have it?

No, I don’t have any toys from my childhood. When my baby brother was born my sister and I both received life-like baby dolls for Christmas. Those dolls were our favourites for many years and did last till we were adults but I can’t remember what happened to them in the end.

All my children’s toys were donated to others when they outgrew them except for a few. My brother gave my youngest a Paddington Bear when she was nine. She is now 43 and still has it.

My girls owned wicker dolls prams and we still had them when our baby grandsons came to live with us. The girls used to play with them gently. The boys on the other hand had Teddy flying out of them as they did wheelies down the passage. The younger boy could still fit into the bigger pram and his brother would push him at a great pace around the house too. I still have the smaller pram and it is being used when my domestic helper brings her little girl to work with her. It is an absolute winner!

Did you have any secrets?

I am sure I did but I can’t remember now what they were! Oh yes – there was the time, when I was 21, and my boyfriend gave me a kitten that he had rescued from being drowned. We had a dog and my mother didn’t like cats and would definitely have said no to having yet another pet. So I hid the kitty in my bedroom and fed it in secret and hid a litterbox under the bed. After a few days, my baby brother (14) discovered my secret and ‘the cat was out of the bag!” So I had to find a home for Linus. My boyfriend and I decided to ask our friends who had a five-year-old little girl if they’d like a pet for her. We took the kitty around and knocked on the door. They couldn’t believe their eyes! Before they’d put their little one down for her nap she’d said a prayer, “Please Lord Jesus, send me a pet cat!” So when she awoke her prayer was answered!

What did you want to be when you grew up, and are you anywhere close?

I used to think about being a teacher quite a lot when I was small and loved playing ‘school-school’. Often I would say to my friends, “If I ever become a teacher, I will not do what Miss X does!” Not that any of our teachers were bad. I just thought I could do better. Anyway I never actually fixed on the idea until my last year of high school. My parents had suggested I take up subjects like accounting, typing, and shorthand so that I could go straight into a high-paying secretarial job. They were probably right – I would have been an excellent secretary and I don’t regret learning those skills but I got ‘the call’ and ended up as a very happy primary school teacher.

Gratitude:
There is something to be grateful for every day, embrace it.

It certainly is a feeling. Every so often feelings of gratitude overcome me like when I look at our beautiful little harbour, walk along the long white sands of our beach, watch the sunset after a perfect day, and have a sushi supper at the harbour restaurant. I am so privileged to live in this beautiful safe little town at the southern tip of Africa. Priceless.