What a difference a year makes

I know 2005 isn't over yet, but then again it started early! I've just passed my blogging anniversary (see 18 Oct 2004). I started out very uncertainly, & didn't post again till May 05. It still took a while to find a voice....

In July, I commented: This was going to be my "make or break" year. Despite the odd stumble that almost sent me scuttling back into my corner for good, I think I'm making it. & looking back, I think I did. Make it, that is. There were some silly moments along the way, but I've emerged with a much clearer sense of who I am & what I can do (& who I'm not, & what I can't).

I feel more settled now than I have done since the early 90s. I leave you with a poem, from a woman who got there before me.

Being Boring

If you ask me 'What’s new? ', I have nothing to say
Except that the garden is growing.
I had a slight cold but it’s better today.
I’m content with the way things are going.
Yes, he is the same as he usually is,
Still eating and sleeping and snoring.
I get on with my work. He gets on with his.
I know this is all very boring.

There was drama enough in my turbulent past:
Tears and passion—I’ve used up a tankful.
No news is good news, and long may it last,
If nothing much happens, I’m thankful.
A happier cabbage you never did see,
My vegetable spirits are soaring.
If you’re after excitement, steer well clear of me.
I want to go on being boring.

I don’t go to parties. Well, what are they for,
If you don’t need to find a new lover?
You drink and you listen and drink a bit more
And you take the next day to recover.
Someone to stay home with was all my desire
And, now that I’ve found a safe mooring,
I’ve just one ambition in life: I aspire
To go on and on being boring.

Wendy Cope