You know, there’s something about dancing around flowers which makes my soul shine so bright. Everywhere I looked colour was there dancing back. A really joyous moment. I feel peaceful, happy, strong and open inside.

3: This may well be the beginning of my marching band career : )

In order to get decent internet, we may have gone to a weird ass cafe in a snow dome, we may have had to drink this green matcha latte (it tastes as good as it looks 😫), but having steady flowing internet is worth the sacrifice. Celebrate your speedy connections people!!!!

2: I talk about how I’ve learnt to appreciate the art of decluttering.

I read that when a Siamese cat looks into your eyes, you can see the love they have for your radiating out of them. I felt that today. It felt good.

Dinner time.

Another catto lives here too but he’s so elusive I’ve only just managed to get a photo of him now. Fetch the wanderer and Spooks my little imp fren.

A mischievous pixie being an absolute cute pest.

My incredible dancefloor.

Bright flowers I danced with today.

1: I’ve done it. Hooray. I’ve recorded my first podcast. Full of colour, a bit of history, a dance story, a catto. I enjoyed it very much.

I’ve been a bit lax lately. Been eating more sugar. More dairy. Quite a few ice-creams. I can feel the results. The biggest thing is a sore foot. It has left me not wanting to walk much the last few days. It’s inflamed. Alarm bells are going off. I need to fix this. And fast. I instinctively know it’s because I’ve been eating more junk. My diet has slipped.

Luckily it’s easily rectified. Thank goodness. It just requires willpower. So no treats this week. And wonderfully my body doesn’t want them. It’s been easy to say no to the vast selection of yummies in the supermarket. I’ve had so much decadence recently that I’m actually bored of it. No one ever thought that was going to happen. No one ever thought I’d be excited to eat porridge for breakfast. In the summer. Oh yeah.

There’s something else though about this pain. And my emotional state. There’s definitely a link. I’m exploring it.

I’m so excited to be in this new housesit. It has got so much SPACE. I’m in heaven. No clutter here. No hoarding. No mess. No trinkets. Nothing extra to the essentials. Just wide corridors, big rooms and well made furniture. Peace and calm. A place to give my brain a rest from other people’s stuff and get some clarity.

Last night I danced in a deliciously huge conservatory. I started on a yoga mat, kneeling down and practised some belly dance moves from there. It worked surprisingly well. Lots of hip slides. Knees got a workout too. I was still wary of my foot pain. In the end though the music took me and off I went soaring upwards onto my feet. The foot pain disappeared as I shimmied and sailed around the room. Lots of hip thrusts and leg lifts along the way. Arm stretches too. Since my recent sea swimming expeditions, my arms have gotten stronger and they very much want to be included in the dance mix.

So all of a sudden no more foot pain. Interesting. Music took me beyond pain. Into a realm a liberation and ease. And fun. When I dance, pain disappears. I’m happy. I feel connected to something bigger than me. I want to celebrate. I want to move. The layers of music build me. Bind me. Hug me. Hold me. Melodies and beats engage me. Make me vibrant. I’m in tune. I feel elated and powered and free. I awaken a bit more. I’m in love.

So when pain enters into me, I feel it’s because I’m not totally happy. Life is feeling like a struggle and my emotional pain manifests in different parts of me as physical symptoms. As traumas. In the past these emotional parts of me have manifested as migraines, a stiff neck, an eye twitch, throbbing body aches and pains (lumbar region especially) or a sore foot.

Dancing is a way to shake out all this emotional build up. I release fear and stress. I whoosh away the cobwebs of anxiety and worry. I energise myself away from boredom and lethargy. By moving to my favourite kind of music I keep remembering to be grateful for every opportunity I’ve been gifted and every positive idea I have.

I adore Estiva’s album Spectacle. Rainbow is a super happy sparkly shiny track.

The coolest looking thing I’ve seen all day (except for a catto with bright blue eyes anyway).

This is pretty much my dream come true. Holding and loving a sweet Siamese catto. The same kind of catto I grew up with. Amy was my partner in shine throughout childhood. She’s in his eyes, in his demanding meow, in his cheeky monkey spirit. I’m feeling so very hap.

What a beautiful catto you are.

This is Spooks. I’m totally smitten. I’m currently playing As the World Falls Down by David Bowie to him on the harp. Softly. The Prince needs his rest. 😻

Got taken out to dinner tonight by our new housesit family. What a super generous couple they are. I ended the evening with a snuggly cuddle with catto ‘Spooks’ having drunk a Butterscotch Espresso Martini. I totally melted when he looked into my eyes. Can it get any better?! 😻

Selby Power Station. The biggest one in England. Once a huge smokey blot up North. Now a forward thinking biomass production facility. Good work Selby. Love the nature around here too. And the juxtaposition it has with industry.

My last walk in York for a while. Old and new. Our car of blue. Ancient walls. Bye bye York. See you again soon I hope.

Yes I’ve got a thing for strawberry sponge cakes at the mo. And yes it was as good as it looks. 😍

Moving out of a housesit always presents a different set of challenges. Here are a few examples:

The place could be cluttered so a lot of time and concentration are needed to locate everything in all the rooms.

There may not be parking right outside the house so every trip backwards and forwards takes ages.

It may be raining cats and dogs outside then all the bags/boxes get soaked.

There may be inquisitive cats jumping into your car as you load up, ready to spray all over your luggage and claw up your seats.

Sometimes we end up working as a kind of defensive relay team through the house to make sure our things are safe from the territorial beasts. We’re getting it down to a find art now. I love the process actually. It means a new adventure is on its way in a new area, in a new house with a new catto. I get excited.

It’s exhausting too. I packed and organised and cleaned to an eclectic and edgy dnb soundtrack today. It gave me some energetic attitude. I danced and lifted and loaded and felt strong. I also listened to this song and wished for a few extra helping hands/tails. 😃

The Little Coffee House, Selby. Strawberry and White Chocolate cake for me (nom) with a cappuccino. Super friendly vibe on the outskirts of York. Happy atmosphere, smiley people. Great coffee. Squidgy cake with sweet butter icing. My fav.

I connected with my inner child this morning. With memories of innocent youth. I sat on the shore as ripples of water caressed my legs. I dug my hands deep into soft, squidgy sand and smeared it all over my legs. I played in the gentle waves slowly floating further out into cold, crystal waters. I float easily. I’m a seal. It’s useful. It means the rhythm of the tide can take me and do as it pleases. I fly through sun dappled water gliding to and fro. I watch crabs marching on by. And do handstands. And feel bubbles tickling my face.

I thanked the sea once again. For making me weightless. For teaching me new things about my body. For reminding me I have more power and energy than I think. For giving me a break from standing on the ground.

And I told her I’d be back as soon as I could. To be held by her once again. Because I always feel so very held. By that shining blue expanse.

Photo

Mamãe Yémanja

The Queen of the Sea