How times change

I thought this book might produce some inspiration and ideas to increase my daughter's range of activities a couple of years ago... Picked up at a boot sale it has chapters on joys of a bygone era - leather work, rug work, raffia work, poker work, bead work, metal work, laquer work and enamel work. Not to mention butterfly and moth collecting (ugh) and silhouettes (charming).



What is it that puts her off - are girls scared of being un-cool? Is it the word "work" which accompanies each hobby? Does that make them wary of what might be involved? My daughter isn't lazy by any means. She's been working hard on her GCSEs for the last few weeks, or at least I thought she was. In fact, while on study leave today she e-mailed me at work daring me to guess what she had done in my absence. "Washed up?" I said hopefully. "As if" she responded, "but I have BAKED BREAD!"

To say I was amazed was an understatement. (It's not as if I'm a role model when it comes to being a domestic goddess - I'm more of a fallen angel!) This was her first time and although she had asked me to buy the ingredients a while back I expected to have to provide encouragement and support at the appropriate time. I didn't have the heart to criticise her for taking time out to do something that she has been wanting to try for ages. In fact I was proud that she had done just that. When I got home she was full of a great sense of achievement. Perhaps we could all learn something from that...

I altered this book at the time when she was heavily into MP3 and MSN. She tells me things have changed even since then and that I'm way behind...

Still there is something to be said for the simpler pleasures. Most of mine don't involve trailing wires and spoiling the planet. Oh, unless you count the servers that whirr into action when we all start checking out each others' blogs using enough energy to power a small city!

Love Wend