Any diagnosed germophobes or hoarders on this forum?

I'm so glad you're feeling cheerful @NatureLover - I trust your extra day at work went well - a special day, being Christmas Eve.

I'm making an effort but not getting very far with the chores. Tomorrow I'll be out again and will catch up with several more family. I'd like to try and make some real progress between Christmas and New Year.

You sound well supplied with reading matter. I'm glad you'll be keeping an eye on the forums tomorrow, it could be a busy day - there's been extra traffic tonight, positive as well as seeking support.

I'm enjoying Carols from Kings tonight.

Best wishes for tomorrow!!!

Hi @Dimity , Happy Christmas, my dear friend! I hope your day out with family members goes well and that you can enjoy it 🙂

I'm a bit alarmed as I've woken up feeling perplexed with not much to give! What I mean is, you know how some days on the forums here you don't know what to say and don't feel you have much to offer? That's how I feel this morning, except that today I really need to have words to offer, as I'm hanging out on the forums today! So I hope I come good later.

(I actually feel fine in myself, nothing to worry about)

I notice you were active on the forums last night with your just-right words 🙂

Thinking of you 💚

Don't doubt yourself @NatureLover I'm sure you'll respond from the heart with authenticity and kindness as always.

Have a great day, and don't overtax yourself

Thanks for your kind words @Dimity ❤

We've lost power now so am on my phone, but won't be able to do as much as I wanted due to battery 😣

Hope your Christmas Day with family is going well...

Hope the power outage wasn't too long @NatureLover .

I had a mixed day. Nice to see a new baby at the gathering. But I wept after my sister cut me short and hung up on me.

It sounds like fireworks outside. People must still be celebrating.

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@Dimity wrote:

But I wept after my sister cut me short and hung up on me.

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Am so very sorry to hear she did this, @Dimity 😢

I'm glad you liked seeing the baby, and that there was some good in your day.

The power flickered on and off for ages then came back on. But the forums were quiet.

I think I will pop into work today briefly just to deal with some emails. I feel a bit restless and unable to settle to much. But it's good I have some energy at least.

Our gardens have been watered yesterday and overnight!

Is there one more gathering for you? (You said you had 3 over a week)

Hope you're feeling OK today...sending care 💚

It's good you had some energy today @NatureLover and something worthwhile to do to focus it.

Yes I have another gettogether Friday. Thankyou for remembering.

I hope tomorrow goes better than today.

I hope your gathering on Friday goes well @Dimity ...

I didn't end up using my energy constructively on the house yesterday! Bother. I will try again today, although I don't have much energy this morning.

I was awake a lot in the night thinking about the fight I had with my dear brother on the 11th Dec. That was over 2 weeks ago now. He's still not talking to me. However I had some useful thoughts in the night, one of which was that saying, "It's better to be kind than to be right." I will need to give more thought to what I might possibly need to apologise for. The difficulty of how to be kind but honest is perplexing...my mother is outwardly kind (usually) but underneath is full of bitterness and resentment and superiority. I don't want to be fake like that. I think the answer might be humility, but I need to give it more thought. Then of course comes the actual doing of the kindness and humility! Ah dear.

It sounds like you may not have had a good day yesterday? I hope that today goes better for you. Are you still in a lot of pain when doing your exercises for your back?

It sounds problematic with your brother @NatureLover - I can hear you want to mend the rift but it's hard if you feel you've been straightforward and you're not sure what to apologise for. Did he take offence at something you said? Sometimes it's an action or omission that upsets someone.

I'm still trying to give my sister the benefit of the doubt but am finding her rude, self-centred and thoughtless - she apparently thinks the same of me, although I've tried so hard to support her. She's having memory issues which doesn't help. She's always been quick to anger, which I can't cope with.

I hope you found more energy today. I tried to get some housework done but am still behind. I worked for a couple of hours. I've skipped my exercises more than I'd like but I'm persevering and seeing some improvement. It's an uphill battle.

It sounds as though you're still at work this week so good luck for tomorrow.

Thanks for your understanding words, @Dimity . Yes, he took offence at me. I was standing up for my needs - it didn't work. I think I've come to the conclusion that it's better to be kind than honest, if I can't be both. Still working out what that would look like if my boundaries aren't respected.

I agree that it's hard to cope with someone who is quick to anger - my brother is, too. In general I'm scared of angry people.

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@Dimity wrote:

I'm still trying to give my sister the benefit of the doubt but am finding her rude, self-centred and thoughtless - she apparently thinks the same of me, although I've tried so hard to support her. She's having memory issues which doesn't help.

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I'm so sorry to hear this 😢 Especially as you've been trying hard to support her. 😢

Well done for working on the house for a couple of hours yesterday! That's big, especially as you are in pain.

I'm glad you're seeing a little improvement from the exercises...hoping you get more improvement 🤞

Yes, am still at work, I tend to work through and not take any holidays, as I take a lot of days off due to my MIs. Plus I don't go away on holiday ever, due to my agoraphobia. Still have not much energy today and am feeling a little down, but I should be able to go to work I think. If I'm only feeling a little down, work can often perk me up.

I hope today is a good day for you and you feel you can achieve some things on the house, if that's your task for today...