HUSH

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE


Last Thursday when I got up, the sky was overcast, and , according to what the naughty weatherman had said the night before about Brittany ( heavy showers and mist),  I thought it was the right day to declutter my study room. After last Summer carelessness that place was the worst clutter hotspot, and, little by little it had turned into a daily offender !

So, I rolled up my sleeves, set my timer for one hour and I tackled my deadly boring task.
One hour later, I had torn and thrown away a stack of useless papers  (drafts,leaflets,reminders I was clueless about, and so on ..), my precious
tools ( eraser,ballpointpens and lead pencils) were having a break in a drawer while waiting to get back to work, in short my " den " was spick and span. Every nook and cranny had been combed through.
I was wondering which room to continue with, when, fortunately, a ray of sunshine came through the window to free me from my devilish cleaning binge.

Great ! The rising tide had cleared up the clouds, and a wonderful Breton sky was calling me outside. 
With no time to spare, I put on my rubber ankle boots, slipped on a windbreaker, just in case, and off I was !

I was clearing myself a path through the undergrowth ( Jeez ! Brambles grow
at top speed off my back) when suddenly I tripped over something and nearly fell.
I knelt down to find out the alleged culprit, and what I discovered under a 
layer of fallen leaves and chesnut burrs really blew my socks off !!
A notebook !! I'm not going to lie : I was flabbergasted !
What the hell did that mean ?

I sat down on a stump, opened the notebook and read :

Name :               Mrs Deer
Address :            Perky Busy Bee's Undergrowth
Nationality :        Breton
Marital Status :    Single with one dependent child
Job :                   Animal lovers'entertainer

I glanced at the top of the page and read the title :

Mrs Deer's personal diary

I flew back home with my treasure, curled up on the couch and started :

The Undergrowth Chronicles

I am pretty engrossed in my new bedside book, but I'll let you know ...

To be continued

OFF TO A GOOD START

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO


Last Monday, while catching the last rays of Summer sunshine,I was wondering what to start this week's chapter with.
Don't get me wrong ! Of course, I already had my leading thread !
Rambling with Ulysse,my faithful and devoted courier, on the moor among heather and gorse, playing fetch with Canaille, my tireless goalkeeper, and last but not least, burning off Summer-stored calories on my bike give me a fair bit of time to craft my little stories ! The only snag is their beginnings. After all those months'blogging, starting to write is still a daunting project, and I often freeze up at the sight of my blank page !
So, last Thursday I was pondering about that prickly issue when it came to my mind that you were partly responsible for my mild anxiety. Yes, you readers !
Let me explain that.
Once, I heard a book reviewer say that the beginning is where the reader decides whether to keep reading, and now his remark flashes through my mind whenever I am about to write a new chapter !
If I hook you right off the bat, my readership will skyrocket. But, if I fail to grab your attention, then my blog traffic will plummet in a wink.
So, first thing to do today is to thank you for your loyalty, your leniency and, of course, for your advice and comments. Some are breezy and timely, others are teasing, but none nondescript ! You are more and more numerous, and this is hands down the best booster ! Thanks a million !!
Now I'll stop congratulating you, otherwise you'll get too big for your boots !

So there ! Bob's your uncle ! You see, I have started my chapter on the sly ! I hope you don't mind ...

Anyway, I don't want to be a pain in the neck, and, even though it is Autumn this week, I won't ask you the spoof question : " What is your favourite
season ? "
All throughout our school days teachers used and abused that topic and we had to rack our brains to write a witty essay !

Yet, let me point out that for weight watchers like me, Autumn is an enchanted interlude. I can say good-bye to uncomfortably revealing cotton
T-shirts, and hello to lovely cable-knit pullovers and corduroy trousers. Fall clothes are flattering without being bulky !
Another good thing : picking apples (a lot of stretching because either the apples have grown higher or I have shrunk) and chestnuts (a lot of bending
up and down on sloped ground), then racking up big piles of crunchy leaves will jump-start my energy level and improve my muscles tone !
With all those awesome outdoor workouts, I am willing to bet I'll win next stage hands down !
So, ready, steady, go !!

UNEASY RIDER

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

I have already told you about my smoothly-running method to stay consistent in blogging. On weekdays mulling over an idea while walking the dogs ( which means a fait bit of time as Canaille and Ulysse are warring brothers and can't even do their business together !).Then,on Sundays, collecting my thoughts to try to build a well-crafted story.
Till last week things were going like clockwork, but I had not reckoned with my " Tour de France winner training "...
Jeez ! First, I didn't know that pedalling could be so grueling, secondly if I  had not skipped anatomy classes at grammar-school,I would have gained a better understanding of how muscles and bones work together.
After my fourth day ride, I felt a kind of muscles soreness, but no pain, no gain !
On the fifth day I found it difficult to stay on track, but, anyway, I leaped out of bed and jumped on my beloved bike.
Well, on the sixth day I was sore all over and barely able to move. Delayed Onset Muscles Soreness, better known as DOMS, was Mr Google's diagnostic.It's an acronym that fitness buffs are said to wear with pride !
Rather foolish pride, isn't it ? Or, maybe, I am not really a gym buff.
I was so washed-out and listless that I even had to resign in disgrace from my duties :

My hubby was promoted dog-walker.
Mr Picard managed our meals ( better than I do, actually).
The feather-duster dismissed the hoover.
Last but not least, I had to shelve my computer ! Poor me, even typing really was agony ! It was as if someone had stabbed my shoulder blades with a hot knife and then just left the knife in there !

Had I gone overboard too quickly ?

Yet, the reviews on my new hobby horse sait it provided workouts easier on one's joints than running on a treadmill. But easier doesn't mean easy, and of course, doesn't mean as easy as ABC, either. 
They also said it toned legs, hips and glutes. Well, I must be the exception that proves the rule..
My legs are like cotton wool and I can't sway my hips anymore. As for my glutes, they demand thick-padded seats !!

First, I thought I should kick back, but no snap decision : Rome was not built in a day, so I will pull my socks, keep pedalling, turn a corner to cross the line.
Sooner or later, the yellow jersey will be mine !!

Don't chuckle to yourself and in the meantime no blabbing, please !

BURNING FAT FESTIVAL

CHAPTER THIRTY


Last week I proposed a toast to celebrate the end of Summer holidays and I hope you had one ! Don't you think it is uplifting and energizing to celebrate little things in life ? Well, I do ! Long time ago I read in a book of wise sayings that we should enjoy the little things, for one day we may look 
back and realize they were the big things. Those words are still etched in my mind, and whatever happens, I try to remain optimistic and look on the bright side.
Anyway, we have to face the fact : Summer has really come to an end ! Fewer holiday-makers, backpacks and back-to-school stationery on display, quieter seashores, noisier school playgrounds, yes we do have to bid farewell to Summer time. It's high time to turn the page and take a fresh start. 
Doesn't September feel like New Year for you ? For me it does ! I enjoy making post-summer resolutions : it does help me to face my friends' departure,shorter days, falling leaves, let alone all the Autumn snugs such as the Tax Property sheet crouching in the letter box, or even worse my bathroom scale's evil eye !!
Indeed, with that monster in my bathroom it is quite impossible to enjoy a gentle waking up ! Hopping onto it is more like a crash landing ...
So, moving on will be my one and only September resolution !
When I say " moving on ", I really mean it. I don't mind all my past defeats,
I'm ready for a new challenge. No more basking and lounging around. The muffin top hunting is open !
Don't get me wrong ! I am not the physical type, so of course I won't take the plunge and go bungee jumping, for example ( even if I jump head first off a high bridge with a tiny elastic rope around my ankles, I guess my extra kilos won't stay on the bridge rail, our relationship is too tight).
Going to a gym club, you said ? Forget about it ! Just to think about all those twits and other divas preening and fixing their hair and headbands to ensure they look super cute in their workout gears make me sick ( not to mention 
the cost of a membership card doomed to be never recouped, of course).
No, I think my home, sweet home is the best place for an efficient workout
routine : no sweaty neighbours, no prying eyes, just me, my muffin tops and my birthday present...Guess what !!
A new tracksuit ? New trainers ? A health and fitness tracker ? No, I have 
already got all that stuff.
No, a home recumbent bike ! It has got a comfortable seatback, the pedals are out in front of the body instead of below it, so I can pedal and read or watch BBC news at the same time ! 
I have already started my 20-minute-cycling daily workout and I do enjoy
it ! 
Fat better watch out ! Dany The Perky Busy Bee is back on track, and even if she has a rough ride, she will ride the obstacles out, and why not next Summer slip on the yellow jersey !

LET IT BE SAID !!

PS about the title of this post :

Don't confuse Burning Fat Festival and Burning Man Festival. The former takes place in Brittany, the latter in Nevada.
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