Unmindfulness and the flu

Today's one of those veggie chicken soup days... I'm feeling lousy with aching limbs, sore throat, headache, runny nose, usual collection of symptoms that conspire to get us all at least once a year. I thought I'd avoided the flu this time round and colds don't usually bother me too much, life goes on and and I try to distract myself with things I enjoy - usually either playing guitar or knitting. Sadly I've had to concede that this one must be flu and I really feel the need for a large dose of comfort food. So I'm making my usual panacea - onion soup with plenty of garlic and anything else I can throw in with anti-flu properties.

Last night was my friend Kate's birthday bash. She's just got back from three months working in India and brought her very own pawpaw back for pudding. Never having tasted it before, everyone assured me as I coughed and spluttered, that it has many healing qualities and should help to see off the flu. Fingers crossed it's already started its magic and I'm on the mend!

I wasn't exactly feeling great before I got the lurgy. I've been reading a book on mindfulness, recommended for carving out peace in the hectic lives we lead. Ironically while in Wales mindful I was not... I walked smack into a plate glass window at full force, thinking the conservatory door was open when in fact it was very definitely closed. OUCH, that hurt almost as much as the flu, leaving head, nose and cheek on one side considerably worse for wear. 

So all in all I'm feeling a bit sorry for myself right now, sitting by the fire with a large mug of honey and lemon tea swaddled in my new shawl, trying to feel better by writing my blog. 

Don't think I've shown you this one yet, I finished it in Wales and the colours remind me of the saffron robes of Buddhist monks. I'm enjoying wearing it a lot, the hot colours warm me up almost as much as the gorgeously luxurious MadelineTosh merino I used to knit it. 

It's another shawl in my Croissant series for my class on Knit France. It proved to be a perfect example of necessity being the mother of invention  as I ran out of the one hank of red yarn which should have completed that crescent and instead had to start the striped border sooner than intended. However, I'm pretty pleased with the result. What do you think?

Meanwhile the kitties had a whale of a time in Wales, full of the joys of spring, chasing each other at full pelt around the garden and playing in the large grasses that rustle and make an interesting cradle for them to swing in.

 Off to stock up on tissues and chop onions now...  x