About | Blog

Hello

Welcome to Tall Tales and Ramblings.

At the beginning of 2024, I was approaching the age of 59. This is the age my mum died at, from ovarian cancer, when I was pregnant with my son. It was a big deal. Not because I thought I would die at that same age, but because I realised how quickly life goes and I start questioning whether I was happy, and was this how I wanted my life to pan out.

I kept crying - at a restaurant with friends, at work, at every opportunity actually. It was a weird time: I came across a list of podcasts one of which - to me - stood out in huge bold letters, as if telling me to listen to it. I met up with 2 friends I had worked with over 35 years ago and one of them said something that really hit home, and then I talked to other friends who also started telling me things they'd never said before. All this resulted in me standing up for the first time in my life and putting ME first. I was not at all happy - I hadn't been for years - and it was time to do something about it. I filed for divorce in March (we would have been married for 30 years in September 2024!).

So this blog is about life after that major decision.

My Story

I'm originally from West London, and I lived in Wales (due to a dream my ex had of living in a field in the middle of nowhere) for 20 years until moving back to England in November 2024.

I have 2 gorgeous kids. My daughter lives in Sussex and my son is with me at the moment.

I am a senior digital content officer for a London council, and work from home in Herefordshire. I sit on my bum from 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday, in front of the computer working on a website, an intranet and I train staff on building accessible documents.

My hobbies

I love watching films, going to the theatre and art galleries, reading books, listening to all types of music and I enjoy podcasts too.

I've been taking art classes on and off for nearly 20 years; I've tried drawing, watercolour, acrylics and pastels. I've only recently started quite liking some of the results!

I also enjoy doing cross stitch and embroidery, and I've just bought a sewing machine!

I've always enjoyed swimming, but a few years ago, I started cold water swimming. I loved it. I swam in the sea at the beautiful Bigbury at Christmas twice in the last few years and I swam in Keepers Pond, on the Blorenge near Abergavenny a few times. Unfortunately getting in and out of the pond isn't easy, and the last time, I slipped and got really muddy and of course I couldn't put my new Dry Robe on whilst I was covered in mud! I should have just got back in the water, but didn't think of that. I stood wiping the mud off for ages but then got very cold, and felt really odd. I somehow managed to drive home along the lanes, but it was scary because I felt so rough. I was poorly for days! (A similar thing happened when I went whale watching in Canada - I got really cold and wet and ended up in bed!). I'm frightened of feeling like that again, but miss it, so in 2026 I will do an intro class to get my confidence back.

My dream is to one day live near the sea or a lovely river, but I think I'll need a pool nearby too because of what the bloody government is allowing the water companies to do. Don't get me started on that though! I am a member of Surfers against Sewage, and also, on a completely different topic, I'm a member of Dignity in Dying.

I suffer from a lot of pain. When I turned 40, my joints started falling apart. Since then, due to osteoarthritis, I have had my right hip replaced, and revised twice (due to a metal on metal implant that caused blood poisoning), and my left hip replaced. My right knee was replaced 3 years ago, and I'm about to have my left knee replaced. I also have degenerative disc disease and fibromyalgia. It can be hard to deal with some of the time, but I do try not to let things get me down. I've learnt (nearly) to pace myself. However, recently I've started seeing someone who I think is really going to help me and I'm expecting lots of improvements in the next few months and I am hopeful that I won't even need my walking stick soon!

So that's me. Let's see what adventures unfold. Come along for the ride.