Cure the summertime blues

Hi,

Another Friday, another post at YATGB! 🙂

Well, except for… umm… the few times the mojo isn’t quite working and I call it quits until Saturday 😁

Back of the bus

While out with the Ever Lovely Mrs J, we spotted this awesome allyship 🏳️‍🌈

A right to choose? Very much so. Thank you NCT 💜

Homefront

The home repair issues seem to be back on track and – not to tempt Fate – okay at the mo. With that in mind, my stress levels are lower. As a friend alluded to, it’s not taking away one of your [mental health] spoons. Amen to that, sister.

On Thursday I whipped round with the vacuum, having got my outfit bag sorted quite quickly. Oh, and then I had to fix the vacuum because of course. If any of you are thinking I should have cleaned more regularly, knickers! 😁 I’m going to say it’s a design flaw in the usually get well behaved cordless vac, but then I would say that.

So, a clean and tidyish house. While I won’t be getting a House Minimalist award any time soon, things are better than they were. Jeez, I hope my hyperfocus doesn’t lock on to cleaning… 🙄 Gah.

What you preach

I had one of those Life Lessons earlier this week. No doubt you’ve picked up on the nonsense doing the rounds about not showing kids & teens anything to do with LGBTQ+ stuff. Yeah, I know: same ol sh**, different decade. Meanwhile, I see parts of the Mediterranean have firestorms and the hottest summer on record…. 🙄

Anyhoo, I’m firmly in the camp that education and inclusivity are very good things. To any non trans folk – or more accurately, sceptical non LGBTQ people – reading this, a lack of representation doesn’t keep us ‘normal’ – it’s a long, slow, and rocky path to find who you need to be. No one walks it for a laugh or because they’ve seen it on TwitInstaBookTok.

On sensing my smugness, this happened. I was in a review meeting talking about some training packages an external party was developing. I was conscious of my fear that if we tell folk about this be service, won’t have cause a rush of….?

Ah, isn’t that the same thing as don’t tell folk about LGBTQ+? 🤔

I’m going to say yes and no 🙂 No because it’s not exactly the same and yes because perhaps that fear reaction is perhaps more common than I’d realised. Also no because I’m not using a fake culture war to distract that the planet is a mess and I want to rescind equality 🙄

Perhaps then, the lessons here are be wary of judgment and also watch out when it’s fear talking, not thinking.

Ah, life lessons eh? Or, as I’ve been told before: every day’s a school day 😁

Chams

With the luck of cooler temperatures at Jones Towers, I dared to dream I might get a fancy night out. It does seem to have been a while! I should add that’s through no fault except my own shortcomings.

Despite falling asleep on the sofa after work – whoops! – I wasn’t too late out of the door. Annoyingly, it seemed to get hotter as I drove around Nottingham, but I guess that’s the urban heat issue: lots of hard surfaces, car fumes, not as many trees, etc.

I had planned to go with jeans and a pretty top because, well, middle class and 50 something. However, I always pack alternatives! So I switched over to something of thinner material and bare arms. Hopefully the fake tan hid the milk bottle skin tone 🙂

I think I need to contact the our friendly neighbourhood wig experts, as the beach waves have dropped. That or up my game to learn how to use the straighteners to put them back in.

Despite having been in Cisville – at least in body – I think I managed to remember how to put my face on. I did, however, forget to put any earnings in, so Not So Little Miss Clueless strikes again. On the upside, if that’s the least of my worries, that’s not a bad thing.

The evening itself was quite busy given the bright summer evening and there was plenty of conversation going on. Some new folk came along too, so I tried to keep them settled and involved.

The evening didn’t drag nor flyby, so was a very pleasant time with friends 🏳️‍⚧️

Hollywood Corner was quite busy as people wanted a photo to remember the moment. As I said to one of the new attendees, it’s a way to help remember that we do get out, that we do look okay, and that we’ll be able to be ourselves again.

On locking up, I looked down and smiled to myself as I wasn’t completely back in Bloke Mode. Perhaps a bit much for the school run, even if it is the holidays 😁

L x