Caronl, well done on getting into that new kilo band. Re: roasting asparagus, it sort of depends on how stout the stems are and how much bite you like. I’d guess around 15mins though …. sorry not to be more help, but I just sort of wing it and don’t take too much notice on the timing, it’s just ready when it’s ready.

Julz, your horsey wins sound great and thanks for your kind words.

My positives for today ….
1 Enjoyed a grocery shop and trip to the farm shop.
2 Freezer very well stocked with meats and fish and lots of lovely veggies in the fridge.
3 Lovely sunny day with clear blue skies.
4 OH ventured out to do a job today, to no ill effect.
5 Did an unintentional 24hr fast today.
6 My oldest rose bush is sporting it’s first bloom of the year.

What positive did you find today?

I haven’t posted a positives list for a while, so here goes!
1. Windy morning but mild today which made the day enjoyable.
2. Did a good swim and some bopping around exercise in the pool. Lucky to have a pool, and am making myself get swimming ( which I’d neglected the past couple of years) so I can keep a little fit during Covid. I really do enjoy it and seeing some progress in how many laps I can do each day. It is a big positive!
3. Had a lovely telephone chat with a girlfriend tonight. Great to catchup.
4. Cooked grilled salmon and steamed veg for dinner, with a slice of low carb ricotta cheesecake I made yesterday.
5. Another warm day tomorrow before a week of rain and chill sets in. So I plan to make the most of it!
And a shout out to Duckie, Birdy, Elky, Kafin, 6Ts, Amz and LouiseK – hope you are still catching up with the posts sometimes.

Hi, just want to say ‘hello’ and thanks for all your uplifting posts.
I do have some positives despite the world going mad …..
1. Sun has shone for most of today.
2. Had lunch in the garden, a rare treat.
3. Had yet another ‘warning’ today to keep shielding now until the end of June. But …. had a chat to my GP a few days ago who says this is a ‘recommendation’ not an ‘order’ which somehow puts the whole issue into perspective …. I’m now ‘choosing’ to stay home! Oh dear how we fool ourselves!
4. We are all keeping well here …. who can ask for anything more!
Hope everyone is well, both physically and mentally. We will reach a new normality but we just have to hang on in there.
Following MerryMelba’s lead I hope that all the ‘old timers’ like Allie, Essie, Violinist, California girl and Sunshine-girl , to name but a few, are all well ….. do let us know if you are still reading this thread.

Merry, how lovely to have you posting again and how wonderful to have your own pool.
V, I spoke to Allie today and she is fine. She asked about you too and I assured her you are still with us here and posting when you can. It was an ideal day to dine al fresco here too …. not that I did.

Positives from my little corner……
1 Sunny day allowed me to garden, drenched the roses with neem and zapped some weeds
2 Long chat with Mum and she and Dad continue to stay well
3 More house martins have returned to their nests on the front of our house
4 Made a delicious Indian aubergine dish for dinner
5 Friday date night dinner all planned
6 Fresh sheets on the bed for tonight.

Do please come and tell us about your positives no matter how small.

Thanks for the update Sunny x

Hi folks,just popping by to wish you all a great weekend!
I’m on an internet diet and using the ( too much) time spent online to do other things.!
Been checking emails twice a day tho,to enjoy reading all yr positives! 🌷🌷🌷🌷
Mine are…
* Out clapping for NHS at eight last night,there was a rainbow in the sky!magical!
* Really enjoying reading an absorbing book about Rumi, the 13 th century poet
* Excited to receive a supermarket grocery delivery! Sadly tho,V,no unasked for bottles of gin included.😄 Also a Holland and Barrett ( other health stores available!) delivery Ive been waiting for since 30 th March arriving today!🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
Happy VE day 75 th anniversary and Bank Hol to all in uk xx
💜 Remember folks,to flourish you must nourish!xxxx 💜

Never mind Yowzer, maybe next time! Just have to say the Rose & Pomegranate gin is a revelation, taste like my memories of Fry’s Turkish Delight!
While I’m here a few positives…….
1. Sun shining again today. Let’s enjoy while we can. Winter is due again on Sunday!
2. For the first time ever I gave up on a jigsaw today. The positive is that I now have a lovely new one to keep me occupied.
Last but not least, wore a ‘holiday’ dress today as my garden is likely to be my place for ‘holidaying’ for the foreseeable future!
Hope VE day is a memorable one for everybody.

Some Saturday positives from me….
– still managing to do lots of walking and still finding it very therapeutic. However I’ve been nominated to run 5k and donate 5k so will have to give that a bash today…. can’t say I’m overly looking forward to it. Haha.
– we saw a little tawny owl sitting in a tree last night when walking. It was very cute and hubby was super excited as he’s always wanted to see one in its natural habitat, just sitting on a branch. Lovely.
– tonight is family night so I’m cooking for dad. Pork slow cooker stew this time, I’m going to try and make cauliflower mash to go with it along with some green beans and broccoli. I eat salad for tea all week (which I love) so I really look forward to something different on a Saturday.
– we’ve had some much needed rain and more due tonight. Who’d have thought I’d be delighted about that. Downside is some very grubby horses when they roll in wet muddy bits.
– I took the opportunity when it was raining to wash horses tails, 2 boys have white tails which are no longer yellow. Very satisfying.
– all fit and well in our household which is good. Looks like hubby and I will be able to keep working from home to begin with when lockdown is lifted – neither will be first wave back so that safeguards dad a little.
– Opportunity to watch with interest as Norway relaxes restrictions, we have a Norwegian branch at work and they are ahead of us with virus management. Lots of restrictions are changing and it’ll be interesting to see how their big cities respond. Our offices there are in lower risk areas which is useful. Feel bad for finding it an interesting ‘opportunity’ but…
– I’m SO close to a bit of a milestone weight wise…. next week hopefully!!

Have a good weekend peeps.

Yowser, thanks for posting positives even whilst on your internet diet. Thank you.
V, life is too short to force yourself to do things like completing a dreadful jigsaw or reading a terrible book. I used to make myself finish every book I started, but no more.
Julz, how lovely to see an owl in it’s natural habitate.
My positives are …..
1 Very pleasant evening with OH last night. Good meal, good company.
2 Bought a cordless hedge trimmer at Lidl yesterday afternoon, something long desired.
3 Glorious sunny day today, just begging to be used for outdoor activities.
4 Consequently, most of today was spent gardening, mainly in the front garden this time.
5 Front garden blitzed, lilac and two rose bushes pruned all the cuttings chipped and whole area regravelled.
6 Front of house now looking much smarter, had been looking very scrappy.
7 Bay tree trimmed with new hedge trimmers 😊, was so much easier than with hand shears.
8 Weeded, fed and watered various pots and plants.
9 Three lovely healthy new salvia plants arrived by post today, will wait for the threatened frost on Monday to pass, before I risk planting them out. They’re currently enjoying the conservatory.
V, it occurred to me when they arrived, I didn’t answer your question about where I’ve been purchasing plants. It’s been a mix, Lidl, the local farm shop but mainly online … Suttons and eBay mostly. If buying obline, I’d advise avoiding the online plant sellers Crocus. I used them once last year, but the plants never arrived and I gave up trying to get a refund, as it all became too difficult.
Hope you are all enjoying this bank holiday weekend and will be telling us about some of you positives when time permits.

Thanks Sunny. Looks like the garden centres may be open again shortly so I think I might wait now. Strangely enough Crocus was one of the online retailers I had been looking at!
Will pop by later with some positives.

Mmm, well looks like it might be a little longer before garden centres open after all, V …. although that wasn’t overly clear from Boris’s announcement 😞

Positives from me today are ….
1 A little more done in the garden, but just gentle pottering today though.
2 Gathered plant pots with vulnerable plants in a sheltered spot and covered them, in case we get a frost tonight. Have also protected my oleaner as it has lots of young growth on it.
3 Heard that our neighbour in Turkey continues to make reasonable progress, a week after coming out of intensive care.
4 Cut OH’s hair, which was getting wild and wooly.
5 Sold an item on eBay, which had been on a long-term listing for the last 5mths ….. had actually forgotten the listing was still running!

Think that will do for today. Hope your day has been positive and you’ll find a moment to come and tell us about some of it.

So it looks like those of us in Wales can go to garden centers starting next week, but all our Exercise still has to be taken locally, so no going to the beach or having a picnic. – But if you are in England you can go to the beach just as long as you do it as a day trip, but you can’t go to a garden center !

Wonder how busy Welsh garden centers on the border with England will be? But be warned, Welsh politicians are making much of the polices right to slap fines on anyone breaking the Welsh Government polices, so no sneaking off for a walk while shopping. 🙂

Hi everyone,
A few positives for me this week.
1. My little balcony garden is doing very well at the moment. Everything is enjoying the sudden warmer weather we’ve been having. I harvested my second cut of salad greens today and there is enough for 2-3 meals.
2. The temperature hit 30 C today. Quite a shock to the system as we’ve had a very cool spring up till now. I went for a walk in shorts and t-shirt in order to take full advantage and get some vitamin D and some UV light on my eczema patches that always appear in spring after a long winter without much sunlight.
3. I think I have finally solved my egg shortage in the supermarket problem. I have not been going into supermarkets during Covid as I’ve been struggling with asthma (although that finally seems to be getting better too!) and I haven’t been able to get eggs in my pickup orders at the supermarket so have been sourcing them from smaller shops and farmers’ markets instead. However, everywhere I had found up until this week was a place where I still had to go into a shop to purchase them. This week I discovered that one of our local farms has a state of the art egg vending machine. It takes tap cards and involves minimal touching of keypads, etc. The eggs were super fresh. I was so excited to find this place, and I think I will likely always get my eggs there from now on.

Arctic, I’m loving that solution to egg purchasing. Really fresh eggs are a delight.

Positives from me today ….
1 Went to post office and supermarket and minimal queues at both.
2 Threatened frost didn’t happen, so rose buds are safe …. phew!
3 Made a small batch of sauerkraut with Wendleg’s help and encouragement. Fingers crossed 🤞it will be edible.
4 Did a slow cooked pork curry for dinner which was lovely.
5 Made rhubarb chutney to go with the curry.
6 No gardening because of the cold wind, but planning for the new trough planters 😉

That’s me for today. Hope Monday blessed you with some positives too and that you’ll come and tell us about them.

Some mid week positives are good for the soul……
– I did my fist long fast yesterday, completed 23hours and had dinner at 17:30. Think i can build this into a weekly routine
– my ‘comfy’ big nickers look kinda baggy hahahaha
– Sun is out (tho it is really very cold!)
– I discovered a new favourite salad using halloumi and chirizo
– Discovered a new feature in Strava where it gives audio prompts….on the rare occasion i run, this will help!
– I’ve walked / ran a total of 98.2km so far this month – enjoying recording it all on my app! Between that and all the food going into FatSecret its rather interesting to trend.
– family friends and loved ones all ok and coping.

Julz, congrats on that extended fast and on that amazing accumulation of km! The big knickers thing made me smile …. time for some new ones I think.

Positives from me …..
1 Yesterday had a three way video chat with Turkish friend and his daughter.
2 Video chat today with youngest g/daughter.
3 Made smoked salmon souffles ready for starters on Friday evening.
4 Made a new spice mix to use on my roasted cauli tonight …. dry mango powder, ancho chilli, turmeric and salt.
5 Watered plant containers.
6 Looking forward to a visit to a garden centre in the bot too distant future …. probably next week.
V, I’m guessing you will also be making a garden centre visit soon too.
Hope everyone is staying positive and finding positives. We’d love it if you told us about some of them.

Good evening!
Really no positives here just at the moment apart from the fact that we wake up in the morning, great …..
and we are thankful just for that,
then we ask … ‘what day is it?’ ….. and then
…. what will we have for dinner tonight?
Life is certainly different …. BUT …. we are well, for the moment, what more can we ask for?
Hope you are all well.
Here’s to ‘normality’, most probably a ‘new normality’ , but whatever….. more than ever now, as sunshine-girl says …..we just have to keep on keeping on ……..

Oh Verano, that made me a little sad. Take care of yourself.
Also reminded me of the farmer’s wife who used to be our neighbour – her response to “how are you?” (or ‘fit like?’ as we say up here) was “aye, livin'” basically meaning, “yes, fine, I’m living”. with a big smile! So I’m glad you are living, waking up and each next day keeps coming! Its a luxury not everyone gets!

But remember, life is different, and it will take a long time to get back to ‘normal, normal’, but normality is what we make it, we WILL get through this, every day is a step closer – though we dont know how many steps are needed, all we can do is march on!
“Keep Right on To the End of the Road
Keep right on to the end,
Tho’ the way be long, let your heart be strong,
Keep right on round the bend.
Tho’ you’re tired and weary still journey on,
Till you come to your happy abode,
Where all the love you’ve been dreaming of
Will be there at the end of the road.”

Ohh!!! Windy I’m really so sorry. I hadn’t meant to sound low or miserable and I’m not really. But thank you for your concern and the little ‘ditty’. I guess we all get a little melancholy just at the moment. .
My first positive for today ……
The sun is shining brightly!!!!!
Have a good day!

I agree V, it can be difficult to identify positives, when the days almost seem to blur in to one, so I understand your opting for the simplicity of acknowledging being alive. And let’s face it, it is a positive!

My positives for today …..
1 Bright sunny day …. even if it has been cold.
2 Another long video chat, this time with a friend and included plenty of laughs.
3 Messaging with another friend. Pleased to say although he’s been rather depressed recently, he seems to be more upbeat at the moment.
4 Friday date night dinner all planned and two courses prepared.
5 Fermenting sauerkraut is looking okay … nothing nasty developing on the top at any rate.
6 Three sweet little campanula plants arrived in the post today… they’re having a drink and will be planted out tomorrow.

Hope there have been some positives for you today …. and if you can find a moment, please tell us about them.

Have had a very pleasant day, so easy enough to find some positives….
1 Very enjoyable evening last night. The smoked salmon souffles were very good.
2 One of my most recently acquired rose bushes has bloomed for the first time and it’s so pretty with a lovely scent.
3 Lovely and warm today.
4 Spent lots of time in the garden, tidying and feeding.
5 Planted in the 3 new campanula plants, which arrived yesterday.
6 Found that the pieris I thought was dead, still has green wood, so hoping it might recover.
Seems most of my positives are garden related, but it has been a real salvation during lockdown. I so enjoy the tranquillity of being out though, checking to see what new blooms there are and listening to the bees buzzing.

Hope you have had a good day too and will take a few minutes to tell us about the high points.

Monday positives are good for the soul……..
– we went for a good walk last night, walked 7km (to add to the 4km I had already done) but even better than that we saw a baby tawny owl in the tree we previously saw an adult. And hubby had his proper camera with him so he is very pleased with his photos!! Funny how having an owl at the furthest point of our walk has inspired him to come out with me more!
– I comfortably fitted into a pair of size 12 jeggings yesterday – they’ve were bought by accident and have been hidden away in a “maybe someday” drawer. Was so delighted with myself!
– Ive recorded 126km walking so far this month, aiming for 200k by the end of May – looks achievable!! Finding big walks very therapeutic.
– household still fit and well, me and hubby still working (although it is getting a bit monotonous) but i have to go to my workplace tomorrow to begin the prep for a phased return of people who are currently working from home. I’m a H&S Manager so its been full on planning and now need to go do some hands on stuff.
– amazing watching the flowers and trees change up and down our road – the daffodils which were so vibrant are dying back and new things are popping up. The trees are greener and the sound of bird song at 9pm is lovely. The world really is an amazing place. And taking time to recognise the small things is good. I’ve been inspired by the keen gardeners on here and felt a bit bad for not utilising hat we have!
– the weather looks set to be warm this week – amazing seeing as we had frost last week! Funny old scottish climate!
– we have finally started to address the “garden”! This is a big space accross the track from the house which had trees cut down just before we bought the house 13 years ago. WE have never had time or money to do much so its been a bit of a jungle. We ahve started to clear it so we can make use of the space which is lovely now the edges have trees and such back. Lots of work to do but pleased with the progress we’ve made in just a few hours work!

Howdy friends,still on my online diet,but enjoying reading yr inputs,thank you xx
Sorry to be a partypooper!
Craving sweeties today but trying to bear this in mind!
~ “ 🌷All the flowers of all the tomorrows are in the seeds of today 🌷”~
Happy Week everybody xox

Julz- I’m so envious of your owl sightings. Not surprised your OH is keen to take a walk to see it again.
Yowser- have really missed you being part of the positives thread and I’m hoping you’ll be back with us properly soon.

Didn’t post positives yesterday, as they were all garden related again, but let’s see what there is from today …..
1 Floors mopped and laundry done
2 More of my lovely roses are blooming and water iris has flowered – it’s a lovely delicate blue.
3 Friend dropped off some lovely fresh laid eggs from her hand.
4 There is a pair of goldfinch that has started to visit our garden.

Look out for those positives and please let us know about some of them too.

Positives from me for today are …..
1 Went to the farm shop and got some fresh beetroot with leaves still attached (love eating the leaves) and some veal scallops (they are for Friday).
2 Dropped by to see daughter. Had a ten minute chat catching up on news face2face for a change … at an appropriate distance of course.
3 Had an email from someone I’d sort of lost contact with. Was lovely to find out what she’s been doing and from today we’re connecting on WhatsApp as well too.
4 When driving past today, I noticed the little local garden centre has reopened, so will pay a visit there in the next couple of days.
5 A lovely sunny day and there was a bird of prey soaring high as I was traveling home from shopping.

Whatever you have been doing today, I hope there have been some positives to raise your spirits. We’d love to read about them 😀

Lovely to see your positives Sunny. Chuffed for you that you could chat face to face with your daughter and catch up with an old chum. What sort of birds of prey do you get near you? We get buzzards, an occasional red kite and an occasional sparrowhawk. Lovely to see them, though all the small birds get distressed when the sparrowhawk is about.

Remaining as possible as we can…… so I’ll make some notes…..
– warm and windy here today, nice weather to be a horse in! (to be fair its almost always windy here – we are very exposed!)
– made it through lunchtime with just coffee while hubby had lunch, going for 1 meal today to fix average daily calories a bit as I’ve been struggling!
– drank 5 pints of water so far today – seems fasting makes me thirsty!!
– Work is still busy – Im certainly not going to see any let up for sometime – keeps me gainfully employed!
– all still fit and well.
– started playing with a scrabble app…. thats gotta help my vocabulary!
So much to be positive about although im beginning to find the days a bit more monotonous, still walking lots but even the lack of variety there is beginning to show! And thats despite living in a beautiful place.

Hope others are still finding positives in their days?

Think it was a Red Kite I saw today, Julz, but we get buzzards as well …. sure there are others about too, but not sure what they might be. Good to see you have some positives too … well dine on all that water!

My positives for today are ….
1 Couldn’t resist, visited the garden centre today😀 very pleasant way to spend half hour or so
2 Bought a purple rose with single petaled blooms … yes, another rose! And also a basil plant.
3 Messaging with grandson – really nice as we haven’t been in touch for awhile.
4 A lovely half hour WhatsApp chat with my friend in India
5 My attempt at fermented red cabbage seems to have been successful!
6 OH has found somewhere he can buy the decking boards to build my trough planters … yippee!!

What were your positives for today?

Where are all our positive posters? Julz?Verano? Yowser? Wendy? Has nothing positive happened to anyone in the last 24hrs? Do hope that isn’t the case and someone will be posting about their positives soon.

Meanwhile, here are mine for today ….
1 Set up some more veg to ferment
2 Bought some new solar lights for the garden. Just three, but if they work well I’ll probably get some more.
3 Replaced toilet brushes and holders with nice new ones.
4 Got a birthday card for son …. just need to write and post it.
5 Skype chat with friend in US
6 Looking forward to a gardening session tomorrow.
Please consider letting us know about the positives in your life if you can. Thank you

I’m here and positive….. I think.
– managed to persuade hubby to at least look at his sugar in take and maybe make some changes to swap for alternatives. He’s gone all day with no chocolate, refined sugar or sugar replacements. This is a win.
– young horse doing well after a brief set back – he’s a sensitive soul, never had one this tricky to get started.
– pretty productive week at work despite feeling like all I want to do is read recipes all day. Must stop thinking about food all the time.
– new Spirts bra from M&S arrived today. Hope it fits. It’s smaller than usual size…. I must be feeling optimistic.
– got Saturday night dinner for us and dad planned. Chicken with haggis, mashed cauliflower & parsnip, roast broccoli and maybe extra greens. Neeps n tatties for the men.
– had a nice hack with horse and my neighbour with her horse today. 2m is easy sustained and it’s essential exercising etc. Nice to have a chat.

Think that’ll do.

Positives! It’s Friday then….🎵
Has anyone seen this Friday video on Youtube? I LOVE it it really gets me in the Friday
mood: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=cjgldht4PKw
So…
1) went to the on-site gym today @ 5 and did a weights workout and have booked in twice next week! Such a mini victory to get back in the exercise groove .. I normally love it but since lockdown I have been woefully bad .. so a win!
2) met my Friday mini goal on the scales .. so it means 8lbs down in the last 1.5 weeks .. had a big smile on my face.. I now am where I started last time I did the Fast 800.
3) it’s FriYaY! I don’t know what it is about Friday but I love it… even though I will be busy and still working a bit at the weekend it is just my favourite day of the week!
Thanks everyone for the positives and weekly threads, you are all totally inspiring! 🥦

Sunny B, I know this is the positives thread but hope you don’t mind me asking what veg are you fermenting please? Do you have any tips? I did my own kimchi which I loved but can’t get any ingredients for it at the moment…so any easy recipes would be wonderful! 🥦

Just popping in to say hello!
Hoping you are all keeping well.
All good here but must admit I’m starting to get a bit tired of cooking EVERY night!
Anyway, I’m still able to look on the bright side of life ……. so no problems.
Have a good Sunday!

Hi, like V I am just popping in to say hi and hope everyone is keeping well. It should be the day my family arrive to spend a week with us but obviously that is not going to happen. It is not the not seeing them that hurts so much as they not knowing when we will be able to see them. Here are my blessing for the day.
Talk to daughter everyday and grown closer than ever with youngest grandson (aged 11) with weekly chats when I am supposed to teach him French. Mainly we just chat.
Today we picked up a take-away meal from our nearby (20km) Michelin star restaurant. 3 courses for €35 each. Vichysoisse soup and it comes with a little tub of parma ham, parmesan cheese and grated truffle, Main is roast veal (boil in the bag) with green asparagus in hazelnut oil and a naughty dessert of ‘Paris-Tremolat’ which is a choux bun with praline and walnut cream. It comes with a menu card with instructions to serve on your best dishes and take photos to enter into a competition. Such a treat.
Swimming pool reached 23 degrees on Friday and I had a 30 min swim. It has cooled down after some overnight rain but will soon be back in action.
Keep safe everyone.

Had a glum day yesterday so didn’t post, but back today feeling brighter.
GreenGal – apologies for not responding to you question about which veg I’m fermenting. So far I have a completed batch of red cabbage ‘kraut’, but also have some sweet potato with shallot & garlicon the go; plus a batch of rhubarb with ginger and cardamom ‘brewing’. Wendy is our resident veg fermenting maestro, so give her a shout out if you need guidance or advice. There used to be a fermentation thread…. will dig it out and drag it to the top of the listing again.
V, lovely to see you posting. Know what you mean about cooking every night … have told OH he owes me a good few meals out once we have that freedom again!
Sunshine, sooo envious of that Michelin star meal! Hope you really enjoyed every bite of it.

Anyway, these are my positives today …..
1 Having a lazy weekend … mainly in pyjamas!
2 Bright sunny day and more roses are coming into bloom.
3 A lovely ribeye steak for dinner, with a whisky and thyme sauce.

That’s me for today … not going to be greedy 😀.

Hi everyone !
It’s too late now but I promise to check in with my positives as soon as I get a moment .
Greengal I replied to your query about fermenting on the Weekly Thread
Sunny has also bumped the BSD Fermenters thread which I intend to read too !!

Hi all, just to say that although the meal was absolutely delicious I wouldnt have that sort of meal too often nor would I encourage anyone else to have it but these are strange times and, yes, it was a wonderful treat.
Positives
Got on scales and positively must do something about my weight – crept up 3 kg since lock down.
Feeling motivated
Going for a swim later today when the weather cools down a bit. Absolutely blessed where we live and having a garden and pool so I really cannot complain. Much….
Keep on keeping on…

Warmth and a pool sounds lovely sunshinegirl!! Glad you have the motivation, everything is much easier with it!!

I’m pretty positive for a monday, definitely have found some motivation – long may it continue!! That is my single biggest positive!! Other than that:
– felt so good i took myself for a short run at lunchtime, did 3km and found it fairly easy (I hate running and really struggle so it was less than fun but def easier than the 4k i struggled with on saturday) IT was all down hill so i had to walk 3km home uphill. haha.
– Wind has dropped eventually – has a fairly wild Friday and Saturday and it stresses me out, we are very exposed and the animals all go a bit nuts.
– made some progress with the “garden” over the weekend – it is a bit of ground that never was a garden, had treees chopped down 14 years ago adn has been wild since – its a lovely space adn we want to use it. So masses of ground clearing to be done!
– had some needed down time over the weekend. Think its helped get my head together after a tough week last week. lots of reflection time.
– realising i have many good friends even though I’m happy hibernating through these times, the good ones are there, even if theres not masses of regular contact.
– getting a ‘day out’ on wednesday – i need to go into work to look at COVID risk prep for office workers returning, have a plan and need to go and arrange some of the fixtures adn fittings – will actually be nice not to spend 9= hours of the day sat at my computer!
– i have just realised, although my job is quite desk based, I never normally spend ALL day at my desk – no wonder the past weeks of lockdown have been tough – long days, all desk based. I havhe had breaks but still. Perhaps i can forgive myself for feeling a bit fed up and uninspired!
– inspiration is back!!

How you all staying positive??

Sunshine – sooo envious of your pool and the weather to use it in! Glad you enjoyed you special meal. Great that you are feeling motivated and I’m sure you’ll sort out that 3kg soon.
Julz – sounds like you have your work cut out for you in the garden … good exercise though. What with that and your running, you’re going to be supper fit. Please do forgive yourself for being a bit low and demotivated.
My positives for today are ….
1 A lovely productive few hours in the garden this morning, mainly pruning my two lilac trees.
2 Thrilled that most of my rose bushes now have at least one bloom on display.
3 Taking time to smell the roses 🌹 … literally😁
4 Two goldfinch visiting the garden
5 Pair of house martins have started to build a new nest at the back of our house
6 Our neighbour in Turkey is at last home, after being in an induced coma for close to a month.
Hope the day has brought something positive your way and you’ll find a few minutes to tell us about it.

Great positives…everyone!
Sunny B .. thanks for the response .. going to look at the thread and get some ideas, I like to try different recipes and was making my own ginger beer before I decided to get back on the wagon, will definitely get something fermenting this week, your recipes sound unusual & yummy.
WindyJulz, impressed with the running you will be building lean muscle and incinerating that fat well done and especially as you don’t like it it’s even more of a positive that you do it!
So I have a positive or two..
1/ I am almost through a 42 hour fast, I can’t say it’s been easy and I found the 23/24 hour ones more achievable but I’m going for it! Mantra .. “food is fuel”.
2/ Had a brill workout on Sunday, was expecting to feel a bit weak due to carb restriction but felt great and really pushed it with the weights .. really want to build some muscle to help torch that excess fat!
Thanks for the support everyone and tchau for now GreenGal 🥦

Fab positives GreenGal! Food is indeed fuel – I’m gonna keep that in my head today and this evening!!! No one needs fuel just before bed right!! I’m impressed with the 42 hour fast – best I have done is 23 hours….. I’m going to do one meal today but it wont be a long fast due to 9pm salad based snaxident last night! But should be about 19 hour fast which is good practice! Your work out sounds good – I’m really starting to miss gym classes and weights, walking with a bit of running as taken over , but with one road to go up and down it is getting a bit dull. May has been walking month, I think June will be work out and weights month.
Sunny – I’m picturing you with your nose right inside a rose having a big sniff!! Your gardening skills are rather motivating!! We are blessed with lovely garden birds, highlights are redpolls and siskins. Great news about your neighbour!!!

Positives….
– my 200km target for walking / running in May is in sight – Ive done 184.3km this month, recorded on strava so I’ll easy get the next 16k over the next 5 days.
– we have a glorious day here, annoyingly stuck inside working most of the day but i will have a long lunch and an early finish i think.
– More garden work last night – used our quad and harrow to help shift dead grass and weeds and loosen rocks.
– I now have a rock collection…… can hopefully use them once garden design commences.
– all fit and well and riding the storm.

Just a quick pop in to post a few positives…
1 Put together the village newsletter today.
2 Successfully downloaded the photos from my phone to main pc, as I have a new phone arriving soon.
3 Fed the roses.
4 Fermented rhubarb has worked really nicely. Tried some with yogurt for lunch.
That will do for me today… how about you?

WindyJulz, I love that you set a walking target and have nearly reached it! Fabulous! That is such a positive and you are inspiring me to do the same.. I might even join you for June..
1/ I went to the gym this morning again, minus my usual partner who wouldn’t get out of bed, but I went anyway and crushed a weights workout and added a stair workout at the end. I ran up and down the stairs 6x I’m going to aim to increase it.
2/ I feel my mind set is improving, the mind is just as important to my success and I have made a few good choices over the past few day and feel I am getting stronger mentally.
3/lts ’hump’ day whoooop (Wednesday) we are almost over the hill and it’s downhill skiing all the way to the weekend!
4/ just about to enjoy a delicious cup of coffee ☕️ and … relax!

Hi folks,So happy to see you posting lots of positives in many varied ways!
* Seeing you all here putting a positive slant on things helps me stay feeling good as lockdown continues 🌻🌼🌻🌼
* You’re all proof that we can still find ways to live a quality life..and in many ways,a better way of living! 🌷👍🏻🌷👍🏻
* Right now Im enjoying the pluses of spending less time online
* At the end of this I will have a lot of things sorted out which otherwise wouldn’t have!
*Plus watching a lot of films I wdnt have otherwise got around to.
* Walking most days and getting on my trampo for a gentle bounce 😄 so getting exercise,and the weather is lovely!Yippppee! 🌈🎉🌈🎉🌈🎉🌈🎉 XX

¸¸ 🐝*•.¸🌼¸¸.•*¨🦋¨*•.¸¸💞¸.•*•¸🌿.•*¨¨*•¸ 🐝*•.¸ ¸¸ 🐝*•.¸🌼¸¸.•*¨🦋¨*•.¸¸💞¸.•*•¸🌿.•*¨¨*•¸ 🐝*•.¸

Yowser, good to see you posting again, but glad that your tech detox has proved a useful exercise for you though.
A few positives from me today ….
1 OH has bought me a lively new phone, which I am now trying to get used to😏
2 Chat with two friends on Turkey (on different calls). So nice to be able to catch up with them.
3 Another gloriously warm day …. could almost believe it’s summer😁
That’s me for today – nothing amazing, just little things, but they all count. Hope your day was blessed with a few positives and that you might tell us about them too.

Today is a good day, here are my positives
1. I had a great day at work (aka the bedroom…)
2. It’s amazing weather, which looks like it is staying for a while
3. I love my garden at the moment
4. My children have somehow managed to entertain themselves the majority of the day
5. I have somehow adjusted my diet goal from ‘lose as much weight as possible’ to ‘complete 8 weeks of bsd’. It makes the whole thing a lot lighter.

Britta, that deceptively small shift in thinking, will reap benefits I’m sure. You will do your 8wks and by doing that, you’ll be dropping pounds and improving your health too.

Positives from me today ….
1 Visit to local farm shop and got some lovely veggies.
2 Put together two more veg ferments … fingers crossed they will work.
3 Nice long Skype chat with friend in US.
4 Sipping a small glass of Retsina on the patio this evening. It tasted like a summer evening.
5 My old number successfully transferred to new phone (admittedly after a frustrating call to the network provider).
Please do come and tell us about what’s positive 8n your life right now.

Positives from me…..
– had a nice trip to work yesterday to begin the plans for returning to office working. It’s not going to happen for a while but we will be organised when it can happen.
– felt refreshed if a little tired with a day away from home. Managed a 23hr fast while I was at it. Want to try a 36hr fast but I’m just not sure…..
– went for a wee run this afternoon, Ran 3k & walked 3k and reached two key achievements reached – clocked up 202km so far in May, smashes my 3k PB and ran it in 16mins 56secs.
– worked two horses this evening in lovely weather, hacked one with a neighbour (suitably distanced) and had a nice catch up.
– weather forecast is lovely. We will need rain again soon but I’ll enjoy the sunshine while it’s here.
– Saturday night dinner plans are in progress, roast beef, I’ll do cauliflower fritters and Bergius roast veg for me, tatties & yorkies for the boys. I’ve made peace with having no alcohol with it this week.
– got a message from a good friend of my late mum today. They are doing fine and she’s going to be a granny for the second time. Life goes on eh.
– should have some time for the garden over the next few days.

Keep positive lovely people.

My positives for today are …..
1 lovely evening yesterday … very nice meal and good company.
2 really good dose of vitamin D today 😁 sunny all day
3 pretty much all day spent gardening, it’s all looking really good out there.
4 OH made me four new wooden planters today – 2 rectangular and 2 square.
5 ate dinner outside this evening

Hope your day has been a good one too … why not tell us what the high points were?

Just wanted to pop in and say ‘hi’ and to move this wonderful thread back to the top!
Hope everyone is well.
All good here.
Lovely to see the ‘One Week at a Time’ thread, still thriving. It’s so great to see so much self-help and sharing, just like the ‘old days’!
I’m approaching nearly four years of eating this way and I know Sunshine-girl’s anniversary is very soon too. I can’t imagine eating bread, pasta, rice and potatoes again. I do eat Ryvita but my blood sugar is well within normal levels and has been for way over three years now ….. that’s my major positive for today.
I have so much to be thankful for in finding and following BSD and finding such great travellers during my journey.
Anyway, my positives today are very much around my ‘journey’ rather than just today. Hope you are all feeling ‘positive’ !

Lovely to see you here Verano … thank you for posting. Congratulations on your successful 4yr BSD journey. Pleased to say there are a few of us who have been around that long, me included. It’s amazing how far we have come and like you, I’m so grateful for having found the BSD and this wonderful forum too.
I have been tardy about posting here over the last few days, for which I apologise. I do have some positives nonetheless ….
1 Have been busy painting garden fencing … four panels done and four to go. Paint is a dark teal blue and the planting contrasts with it nicely.
2 Painted the most difficult panel today. It has a very thorny rambling rose weaving through the trellis on the top of the fence. Surprisingly managed it without getting scratched or punctured! And there was only one small patch I couldn’t reach through the thorny maze.
3 Glorious weather for my outdoor painting project. Loving these summery days.
4 Delighting in all the beautiful roses on my garden and I make sure to take time to smell them ever day too 😁
5 Time to start planning Friday’s special dinner, gives me an excuse to flex my culinary muscle.
6 Enjoyed a long exchange of messages with my friend in India.
Hope others are finding plenty of positives right now and it would be lovely if some of them would drop by to tell us about their high points.