Lucifer has theories

Arriving suitably late to the Heated Rivalry party.

I did try to get into it last year- my brain was not braining in the right direction to make that feasible. I suspect a lot of that might have been due to the uncertainty of whether a second season would be happening and I didn't want to get invested in something only to have it brutally yanked away. (I'm still furious that My Lady Jane didn't get a S2).

I had a day off on Tuesday, spent the afternoon noodling around online as I figured if I couldn't get into the show I would at least enjoy the unhinged glory of watching soundbites of the cast interviews and reading and bunch of articles. (Yes I'm aware of Ember and Ice, and yes I will be listening to that too).

One thing led to another and I started watching Heated Rivalry at 7pm thinking I'd do an episode a day.

UM.

By 1am Wednesday I'd watched all the eps, bought the books and was whatsapping (ravurian and gingerpig) tragic messages along the lines of "yes I'm 4 months late, talk to me about HR".

I was also patting myself on the back for having the foresight to 'add to memory' a lot of the DW posts that had been on my circle over the last 4 months clarifying the timeline (thank you mific) and making videos and fic recs.

First rewatch completed today and fully expect to complete another by the end of the weekend or I might dive in to the EmptyNetters reactions which I gather are highly recommended.

All of which is a longwinded way of saying I am down for talking about the show, the delightfully unhinged cast interviews (a gift that keeps on giving), the soundtrack, the books (I'll be finishing Game Changers this weekend), and anything related to the upcoming S2 which I am led to believe starts shooting this summer.

I realise it's only mid month but February has been a MONTH.

( The Oh Noes cut for those who'd rather avoid them- not personal ones cos I'm OK )

7. It has been grey and wet here in London for ever - at least from the start of the year with maybe 2 days of blue skies and sunshine and it's taking a toll.

8. Went to Wales last week and only took one of the two cats. The other hid and so stayed home with a pile of food. Athena - the usually quiet reserved cat - came with me and we had some bonding time without her sister getting in the way. Artemis, the little fiend who stayed home, has been making up for the fact that she was cruelly abandoned - in a warm flat with plenty of food and water and oodles of toys - ever since!

9. Relatedly having spent the week in the cosy, tidy cottage I'm even more determined to subdue and sort out the utter chaos of my living situation in London where I have tried to effectively cram the. Contents of a 3 bed house into what is essentially a two room flat.

10. I've not been able to get to the allotment or do any gardening because WET. Not amused.


The Hell Yes's

1. I spent last week working remotely from the cottage which also included a lot of naps, TV, good food and a ridiculous amount of crocheting. And though it took me 2 days to get the cottage warm - it was Wales and the mountains looked fancy with a good dusting of snow. I beached myself on the couch and barely moved from Monday to Saturday (it was grey, wet and cold there too). Of course coming home on Saturday the weather did change and for a few precious hours there were blue skies and sunshine.

2. I gave myself a pass this week and lived on ready meals while trying to bring some order to 3 work related email inboxes and 2 personal ones. I'm getting there.

3. Work has at least been productive if not enjoyable. But tomorrow I'm going to a Park colleague's community planting day for a couple of hours, next week I'm spending a day handing out free trees and the week after we are having our borough wide seed swap - all of which should be fun things.

4. Crocheting has been super productive - at the beginning of the month I finished a blanket I started the week before Xmas, I've got about half a hexi cardigan finished (even though I have to frog some back), I've almost finished the granny squares for two project bags (just need to stitch them together, line them and make handles), and I'm just over halfway through some Wednesday evening classes to crochet an Easter/Spring wreath. Crochet club every Friday from 1 to 2:30pm is the non-negotiable in my diary. Time to be creative, learn new stuff, have a chat and hang out with 5-7 other fun women.

5. The ex is at the cottage this week which means I get to use his washing machine tomorrow before and after work (2-3 loads of washing) and do some more if needed early Saturday morning.

6. On that note I'm taking myself off to bed with a giant mug of Horlicks and a couple of eps of Starfleet Academy!

Having said I'd try to be more consistent about the weekly check-ins I completely flaked on week 2!

HOME: progressing with the declutter and sorting out of 'stuff'. I'm #orjenise100-ing again but am about a week behind. However things are getting moved around, piled up, recycled, donated or dumped. My bedroom is looking slightly better and I aim to finish by the end of the month.

HEALTH: I spent far too much time closely following the news/being on social media at the end of week 2 and had to take some mental health time last week. There was a lot of sleeping involved and diving into rewatching comfort viewing when not napping.

LIFE ADMIN: I have ticked off a few thing - subscriptions reviewed and renewed/cancelled, the car got its MOT and they also valeted the inside and washed the outside! Money has been shuffled around, paid off a chunk of my 0% credit cards, set up some more savings. So yes - things have been ticked off that list!

DIGITAL DECLUTTER: email is still hovering around 11,000; have uploaded more things from tablet to dropbox, deleted a few apps and loads of images from my phone, then took a load more screen shots!

GARDENING/ALLOTMENTING: nope - too cold and/or wet.

COOKING/EATING: batch cooked for week 2, snacked my way through last week. Having gone on the 'must hibernate or melt down' spiral last week and sleeping/napping a lot I only really needed one meal a day.

READING/LISTENING: now reading Lessons in Desire, book 2 of the Cambridge Fellows Mysteries by Charlie Cochrane. Edwardian murder mysteries. She's describes her books as "mysteries with a dash of slash". They're the kind of suitably lightweight thing I need right now. Also pick up Audible again and finished The Hanging Tree (Book 6 of Rivers of London), A Rare Book Of Cunning Device (Book 6.5 of Rivers of London) and am now on Lies Sleeping (Book 7 of Rivers of London). I've downloaded the free Storygraph app to track reading and am also going to try and remember to update Goodreads.

WATCHING: Still not caught up on Stranger Things and have only managed one episode of Heated Rivalry. One advantage of the end of Stranger Things is the sheer volume of delightful interview clips of Jamie Campbell Bower that appeared all over my IG and the algo is still delivering. I've enjoyed watching those and may have also done a sneaky rewatch of The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones because there is no downside to JCB Jace Waylanding it over my screen. In terms of comfort viewing I inhaled Stargate SG1 Seasons 1-3 which were pretty much playing consistently last week as I napped my way through the days. My comfort viewing is always going to be the Stargate series, Buffy and Angel, Higlander and Hercules plus Krycek eps of X-files. My usual raft of TV shows are coming back and I'm happy that Sanctuary - A Witch's Tale and The Hunting Party got second seasons.

CREATING/LEARNING: two weeks of crochet club under my belt and I've finished the blanket I started in mid December. I now need to block the original granny square and Halloween blankets and stitch them together. Then I can start on the utterly mad boho blanket. I've signed up for a 3 week hexi-cardigan class (first session this coming Saturday and then 2 more later in Feb) and our teacher is also running a 1 day bag session on Sunday 1st Feb and an 5 week make a spring wreath session on Weds evenings starting 4 Feb. So its going to be a busy andcrafty start to the year.

CATS: all good.

VOLUNTEERING: first meeting went well - only 1 task to do from it.

SOCIALISING: nope. I was back at work week 2 and then a proper hermit last week.

WORK: enjoyed being back in the office from 5th onwards then was out last week.

Plan for this coming week - work from home Monday, Wednesday and Friday, two long office days Tuesday and Thursday.

For the last few years I've been setting some annual goals - though to be honest they're more aspirations because there's enough goal settingelsewhere in my life.

Anyway here are my ASPIRATIONS for 2026

( HEALTH )

( HAPPINESS )

( WEALTH )

I've had a very restful break (last day at work was 18 Dec). Up to today I've lolled around, watched tons of TV, visited with ravurian on Christmas day and done some gentle cleaning and decluttering.

HOME: more or less maintained tidy kitchen, bathroom, hall, landing, stairs which is a win.

HEALTH: pretty good!

LIFE ADMIN: not done much on this the last 2 weeks.

DIGITAL DECLUTTER: email is back up to 11,500, phone images desperately need sorting BUT I did archived a lot of stuff off my tablet on Xmas Day so that's a win!

GARDENING/ALLOTMENTING: still haven't done the living room windows boxes or been down to the allotment.

COOKING/EATING: I have eaten all the things and have a fridge mostly full of healthy food.

READING/LISTENING: nope.

WATCHING:i think there's something a bit "Emperor's new clothes" about Pluribus so many people have raved about it but I find it boring. Still liking the newest iteration of Robin Hood. Have continued watching random detective shows on Acorn but think the time is approaching too cancel my subscription for a while. I'm a season or two behind on Stranger Things and haven't started Heated Rivalry.

CREATING/LEARNING: still going to crochet club. Have almost finished another blanket, plan to finish off my original granny square and Halloween blankets in January and then will be starting on the utterly mad Boho blanket.

CATS: all good.

VOLUNTEERING: we've had an Xmas break.

SOCIALISING: on 15 December met up with I (who had a spare ticket) and saw an interesting production of Twelfth Night at the National - Sam West as Malvolio. Christmas Day was spent with ravurian eating good food, having a long catch up and, in my case, napping through Strictly!

WORK: none since 19 December and I really, really needed the break!

This coming week will be busy as I do ALL the things I haven't yet done including any epic pile of laundry!

So to combat the general feelings that we're rapidly heading into he'll in a handbasket I'm attempting December's 31 days of gratitude challenge.

Pretty simple rules:

Commit to writing in a gratitude journal daily for 31 days in December. Just 5-10 minutes each day listing what you're thankful for can transform your mindset, improve relationships, and boost happiness. No special skills needed — just a notebook and willingness to appreciate life.

* Write Daily: spend 5-10 minutes writing 3-5 things you're grateful for each day.

* Be Specific: instead of "I'm grateful for my family," write "I'm grateful for my sister's encouraging text today."

* Feel It: don't just list items - truly connect with the feeling of gratitude as you write.

* Mix It Up: include big things and small moments, people, experiences, and personal qualities.

* By hand: write it in a dedicated journal or on a piece of paper by hand. The physical act of writing is important here.

It feels like I'm in a flat out and uncontrolled gallop to the end of the year and that whooshing sound is all the deadlines I'm failing to meet on both work and personal fronts!

As I was away from 13-17 November (lovely break, lots of napping and oodles of good food) and frankly lost most of last week was recovery this is more of a look forward than 'what I did over the last fortnight'.

#ORJENISE100 still need to catch up with the prompts I missed!

HOME: I've maintained the cleared areas of the flat, am making very slow progress on my bedroom and am ignoring the living room until the first week of December.

HEALTH: pretty good!

LIFE ADMIN: nope.

DIGITAL DECLUTTER: email has gone up a bit as I need a couple of hours to sort out a few folders, no progress on phone images recently. In fact, I've added to them by taking lots of screenshots. GAH!

GARDENING/ALLOTMENTING: just have the three living room windows boxes to do. Lots of tidying to do in the tiny back garden (which will likely have to wait to Xmas hols) and I still have lots of bags of compost to take down to the allotment and bulbs to plant. Fingers crossed for a few fine hours this weekend.

COOKING/EATING: ate like royalty at Horbling, waddled home and lived off leftovers for a few days and then was seduced by Sainsbury's 3 for £10 offer on deli items so have been eating those with large veg portions. Won't really need to think about cooking until the weekend.

READING/LISTENING: nope.

WATCHING: Started new show Pluribus which I'm undecided about and quite liking the new Robin Hood

CREATING/LEARNING: back to crochet sessions on Monday evenings and Friday afternoons. Currently making a super simple beanie hat, and crochetings Xmas trees and stars to do a small garland for the flat. Apparently we'll be doing an Xmas challenge on Friday.

CATS: all good.

VOLUNTEERING: a few minor things I need to chase up following our first post AGM committee. We let a plot holder take over our social media and she has changed the email and passwords and now forgotten them so we can't get back into our Insta account. Grrrr.

SOCIALISING: yes - went for a roast this Sunday past in Greenwich with visiting friends from the US and ravurian. Good company, good convo and delicious food.

WORK: I'm at the point where I'm wondering if I could retire sooner rather than hanging on to 2030!

Temperatures have dropped here - when we drove to Horbling on 10 Nov it was a balmy 15 degrees and sunny and we were in t-shirts. Temps dropped last week and now nights are 0 or -1 and days are 5 to 6 degrees.

Winter is Coming. Brrrrrr.

Swings and roundabouts this week - progress at home but work was meh.

#ORJENISE100 no specific prompts completed but I have generally beenchucking/recycling stuff.

HOME: cleaned the kitchen again and put a few items away to leave clear space for the ex when he's on cat feeding duties this coming weekend. Finally got all the clutter off the stairs. Sanded and painted gate at the front of the house (2 coats)! Varnished the back door - finally! Another quick pass at hall/landing to make sure recycling all packed and ready for Wednesday. Started on my bedroom.

HEALTH: pretty good!

LIFE ADMIN: nope.

DIGITAL DECLUTTER: down to 11,500 emails and archived 100 images off phone.

GARDENING/ALLOTMENTING: front garden pots complete including extras. Now on to window boxes and pots by kitchen/living room windows and houseplants. Oh and bulbs/winter planting for allotment.

COOKING/EATING: mostly eating down contents of fridge before weekend away - so balti veg curry, haked potatoes and grazing on random bits!

READING/LISTENING: nope.

WATCHING: Started new show Pluribus.

CREATING/LEARNING: crochet teacher is still prepping/competing at a cake comp in Rome.

CATS: all good.

VOLUNTEERING: AGM for allotment society was Sunday afternoon and all went well.

SOCIALISING: nope other than AGM.

WORK: nearly threw my toys out of the pram so had a mental health half day on Friday.

It's really the annual Horbling weekend this coming weekend (after last week's SNAFU) so there'll be a bit more frantic clearing up over the next 2 days!

As many of you know I've been going away with a bunch of friends for an annual long weekend since 2005. We originally met through Buffy/Angel fandom and if you't told us that first year we'd still be going 20 years later we'd certainly not have believed you.

We settled on the weekend of or after Bonfire Night as being the most convenient for everyone. We still go to the same place - a fab 17thC farmhouse in Horbling, Lincs that can sleep up to about 12-16 people. The owner charges us "mates rates" as a regular booking who leaves the place tidy and strip all the beds before we go. When we are up there we confirm our booking for the next 2 years so we can get dates in our diaries.

You can see where this is heading can't you?

Since 2024 I've had the dates in my dairy for 2025 as 6th-10th Nov and for 2026 as 5th-9th November.

As usual I leave everything to the last minute so I've been scrambling around trying to get work and home stuff sorted so I can leave early on Thursday. Texted my mate last night to say I'd be on the road between 7-8am Thursday so should be with her by 9-10am only to get a confused face icon back and a "Horbling is next weekend" message.

Yes I had somehow anaged tonout the wrong dates in my diary, and overlooked the group Whatsapp message confirming the date change late last year and the recent WhatsApp about food cutoff ordering being 12 November!

So yesterday evening I moved my leave back a weekend, reorganised my day job work, replanned personal tasks around clearing up the flat and gardening, let my allotment society know I xan attend the AGM on Sunday and confirmed the ex is free for cat feeding duties next weekend.

For the first time in years I'll be approaching this getaway in planned rather than chaotic fashion.

Today I've taken an extended lunchbreak to finish potting up some of my winter windowboxes and plants and I'll be able to get the rest done on Saturday.

Fairly quiet week last week.

#ORJENISE100 now catching up on prompts.

HOME: maintained - getting ready to tackle my bedroom, dealt with some paperwork and recycling.

HEALTH: improving - almost back to normal.

LIFE ADMIN: some unanticipated expenses and 2 parking tix - whoops. Noticed a couple of fraudulent transactions on one of my credit cards which are being investigated.

DIGITAL DECLUTTER: maintained my main email account down to 12500 emails. Need to get back to decluttering that! Transferred stuff from tablet to Dropbox. Started sorting 900+ images on my phone.

GARDENING/ALLOTMENTING: bought plants/bulbs to finish winter planting of front garden and pots.

COOKING/EATING: too tired to cook properly - a week of soups and takeaways.

READING/LISTENING: nope.

WATCHING: still enjoying Murder Before Evensong.

CREATING/LEARNING: made more crochet pumpkins and managed to attend Friday's crochet club.

CATS: all good.

VOLUNTEERING: sorted skip delivery Friday morning but didn't go to workday.

SOCIALISING: nope.

WORK: almost caught up. Fingers crossed for a quiet November.

Taking today - Monday - as a day off because I want to plant stuff bought yesterday, varnish the backdoor and do a tip run!