New Beginings

Joey Jones2 Comments

What strategies do you use to maintain your health and well-being?

First off, I would like to thank someone here on WordPress ..G Man thesurvivorshandbook

( As you see G Man, I am even unable to highlight this link to you. What a loser 😆)…

https://tshb.info ( grrr even that didn’t highlight)

Seems a bit random to do so, you’re thinking? Not really. It ties in with the health and well-being vibe DP has going for us today. He ( G Man) has kindly reached out to me to help with some tech stuff I need to learn/do.

An organic shift has been going on with me lately. I’m shunning the chat radio. I’m no longer asking Alexa to play music ( except A Town Called Malice, by The Jam…love that to fire me up sometimes!), and I’m definitely turning my back on the Socials…and those games I played for hours? Gone!. I’ve even taken the battery out of the kitchen clock that’s was getting on my nerves.

I need to make room in my head for a new phase in my life. A refresh, a reboot. Not just a turn it off, turn it on kinda thing. But an unplug at the wall and wait…

All that is gold does not glitter

Joey Jones3 Comments

What are your future travel plans?

‘ All that is gold does not glitter,

Not all those who wander are lost;

The old that is strong does not wither,

Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

From the ashes, a fire shall be woken,

A light from the shadows shall spring;

Renewed shall be  blade that was broken,

The crownless again shall be king.

J.R.R. Tolkein (1892~1973)

Rest in peace, Ozzy..💜

Joey JonesLeave a comment

We grew up six miles apart and shared a  city with a truly vibrant nightlife.

It was busy, it was noisy and Brummie musos were coming out of the woodwork left right and centre. But you, Sir, were the Main Man! Without one shadow of a doubt.

A very bright star has left this world to shine elsewhere.

You will be missed.

Thank you. You did us proud 💜 xxx

John Michael ‘ Ozzy’ Osbourne

( 3rd Dec 1948 ~ 22nd July 2025)

It’s not the radio

Joey Jones7 Comments

What do you listen to while you work?

Until quite recently, I would have LBC London, a chat radio station on in the background for hours…but at the moment I’m favouring silence.

However, at this moment in time, there is a fly going round that earlier must have wriggled through a slightly ajar window somewhere and cannot find its way out, with all doors and windows now wide open.

Then there’s the fridge that hums along for a short while and then shudders and sighs.

A van is reversing somewhere along the street, so his warning beeps are audible.

Squirrel manages to make quite the racket clambering up and down the garden fence as he grabs pieces of apple and then legs it to his crib.

That clock. I’ve had the kitchen clock for many years. Aesthetically, it’s very pleasing, but I have wondered for some time if the tick is getting louder. It’s beginning to grate.

Birdsong. That always delights me. What’s that saying about becoming old/er.? ‘ One minute you’re young, free and a little bit wild The next thing you know, you’re studying the details on the back of a bird seed bag’ Pigeons are cooing. My darlings blackbird and robin try to get a word in, but the crows are dominating the airwaves at the moment. Curious that they are so very loud and yet so skittish when they land.

A police helicopter will whizz overhead at some stage. An ambulance or fire engine will have me giving a quiet thanks they are not present for my benefit.

My dog snores softly, my tummy rumbles. The floorboard will creak as I cross it to put on the kettle, and you will be able to hear the rustle of a bread wrapper and the toaster fires up.

Welcome to my world.

.

Food Glorious Food

Joey Jones13 Comments

What’s your go-to comfort food?

I could write you a very long list of comfort foods that work for me; crunchy peanut butter spooned straight from the jar (whilst standing in the kitchen watching the birds feed)

If it wasn’t for haloumi and Feta, I’d be a fully paid up vegan. But these salty cheeses get me every time.

Oh, and curly fries. I won’t go on and on, but I easily could. To finish up I  must add meals cooked by someone else.

The best food I’ve eaten recently was at The Tremenheere Sculptor Gardens, just outside Penzance in Cornwall. Oh my goodness, the Mushroom Risotto was sublime..

The Games People Play

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What’s your favorite game (card, board, video, etc.)? Why?

A few days back, Daily Prompt asked us what activities we did that made us lose track of time.

I mentioned playing and enjoying Redecor, Zen Word and Woodle Screw on my tablet. Well, that statement was the kiss of death as I’ve already stepped back from two of them.

Redecor, as the name suggests in an interior design game. I’ve played it for years and mostly pay a little each month for enhancements. But enough already! The repeated graphics are becoming tiresome, and I’m properly bored of ‘ beige’ winning every round. Use any form of self-expression and you tank. Simple as.

Woodle Screw is a logic nuts and bolts game, totally addictive, and that’s not healthy.

I shall still play one round/ circuit of Zen Word each day, ’cause that’s why we’re all here, isn’t it?  For the words. The game lasts about 30 minutes, giving my grey matter a bit of a workout.

And that’s about it, really, for today.

Yesteryear, I was taught to handle a pack of cards by Lily and Arthur, my guardians, at that time. I have fond memories of playing Gin Rummy at their kitchen table. Or Patience by myself. Happy days.

You can take the girl out of India….

Joey Jones3 Comments

What foods would you like to make?

I would like to perfect a South Indian breakfast. Having written about favourite foods before, I won’t elaborate. Simply to say it’s divine. Maybe I should learn to master a pressure cooker?

For the majority of the years I lived and worked in India there was a cook in the house. How lucky was I to have my breakfast presented each morning, in such a manner. A daily feast. Amazing!

Often I would drop into the kitchen to see what was going on. It was always such a hive of activity. Pans rattling, wonderful aromas, huge piles of palak ( spinach) and bunches of fresh corriander…local chit chat and a Tamil film score in the background….. wow

50th Subscriber. Thank you!

Joey Jones3 Comments

I re-engaged with WordPress on February 1st this year. Steadily I  have posted  a little each day.

Today, 50 of you gorgeous peeps have

subscribed. Special thanks as always to June, from Fancying France, for being the first.

In truth it could have been lots more, but I got the feeling 20+ accounts added in one swoop and often were probably Bots and not a whole swathe of peeps who thought what I had to say was the best! So I got rid. WordPress has since taken away my capacity to bin subscribers, I think.

So that’s all I want to say, really. I love the folk I have subscribed to.What an interesting crew you are. Eric Foltin, Serial Killer Chic? Omg, it’s going to take a while for that chuckle to disappitate.

Occasionally, with your permission, I’d like to write about you guys. How I perceive the lives you live and what you’ve got to say. I will ask permission beforehand. But what an amazing mix you are.  Absolutely Fabulous!

In the meantime, please add a few words in the comment box if something stirs your soul.

Thanks. Laters x

Yes, I am aware there are plenty of you guys out there with hundreds if not thousands of subscribers, and you may have been posting since time began, but in the words of LJ ‘ I am me and you are you’.  Best wishes

Patch, my muse

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Dogs or cats?
Dogs, but I love cats too

Animals are my thing. I just love them!

Dogs are an absolute passion, I share a life with my Canine companion, and I’d be lost without him.

But it’s cats that really make me smile; their aloofness, the patience they have to sit facing a stone wall for as long as it takes to spot a field mouse. Their way of using that last ray of sunshine  to nap in. Their agility and poise. They way they prowl through my neighbourhood and stop outside just long enough for Patch to pick up their scent and react. I’m sure they do that on purpose. Their curiosity. Their stillness.

‘ Dogs have owners, cats have staff ‘ Margaret Benson ( 1865~1916)