Thanks for dropping by. I'm a writer and teacher with interests in education, mental health and community. I like to wonder aloud about everyday life, hope and the silly, incongruous things that shape us and make us who we are. I also like hats, cake and those tiny little snores cats make when they sleep. On the Home page, you'll find around 100 wonderings, all different in length and content. On a pc, you'll see a 'Select month' menu at the side where you can choose a piece from the last 8 years. I'd love to hear your comments below each post. Have a good day. Deborah
'Happy New Year.' It's probably time to stop saying it now, but we still do, particularly if we're seeing someone for the first time this year. Then they say it back to us because they don't want us to think that they don't want us to be happy. I'm not sure when we stop saying … Continue reading How happy is yours so far?
'I am a textbook people-pleaser. You can't trust me. I probably need help.' This is my (slightly adapted) favourite quote so far from a series my daughter introduced me to recently. She had been telling me about it for ages, to the point where I agreed to watch a couple of episodes just to stop … Continue reading Living to please?
My OH has views about coat hangers. These consist mainly of a) they should stay in wardrobes b) they should only hang one thing c) when stored, they should be tied together in same-sex bundles with twisty wire. Since my first-week-of-the-hols wardrobe mega-clearance, this is how I've been storing coat hangers: - For some reason … Continue reading What do your storage habits tell me about you? (Nothing)
Social distancing can be awkward, can’t it? Maybe you're more relaxed (I'm what I call a rulie not a floutie). But you may not have asthma and such a history of bronchitis that you can't say it out loud in case your chest hears and immediately convulses. I'm out and about now, as we all … Continue reading Social distancing moves for Brits
Did you know London begins on the A22 just outside Whyteleafe? Unless you're on the train, and then it's probably somewhere like Purley Beeches. This is when you're travelling from Sussex. Of course that's just my opinion. There are actual signs up on roads that say things like 'Welcome to the London Borough of Croydon'. … Continue reading Boundaries, baldness and the art of listening carefully
'Even Michael McIntyre never had to perform for 6 hours solid,' says Fran Hill, author of new book Miss, What Does Incomprehensible Mean? released tomorrow, 21 May. But can teaching really be that hard? Charting the life of a secondary English teacher over the course of an academic year, the book is testament to the … Continue reading School – the best days of your life?
Like you, at this (*Do not use the word unprecedented! DO NOT use the word unprecedented!*) unprecedented time (sorry), I'm noticing the mood swings. I guess we all are. Some days I feel sad and pensive, weepy even. News of the spread of the virus, of the death toll, of friends who have contracted it … Continue reading Why rainbows?
For years I've been saying inappropriate things. Sometimes people noticed, sometimes not. It probably wasn't obvious most of the time *hopes*. As with everything, you find ways to cope - lip reading, nodding, watching others- a bright smile, laughter, anything to help you join in. But the truth is, you often feel you're observing life … Continue reading Hearing aid
Don't overplan - On the 20th, last year, you locked yourself out of the house, your car filled up with water and your hubby broke down on the motorway in a rented van. Didn't plan for that did you? But you survived. Go with the flowHowever busy you are, it's a good idea to wrap … Continue reading Next Christmas – Notes to Self
stillwonderinghere 