January 2024, Back In Donegal.

 Hello again my lovelies, I hope you are doing well. Clearly, I am still behind with this Blog, but the good news is, I am now on the right year, haha! Hoping to catch up with myself soon. Yes, I'm aware I have said that a few times! ;-)

Moody blues and brooding Glashedy.

Late afternoon walk on Pollan Beach.

Stormy seas, Pollan Bay.

Golden light, Pollan Beach.

I spent the first week of January reacquainting myself with my views after two weeks away. It felt like I'd been gone forever, and I had missed this beautiful place. So, I made sure to take several long walks and soak up the scenery again. I will never get tired of these views! Even in January, there is so much colour, and the light is constantly changing, so it feels to me that every moment of every day is a new view. I will never understand how people can think this is a bleak place to live in the Winter. Maybe it's my artist soul, but I am endlessly comforted and inspired by the landscapes here.

Glashedy Island, Pollan Bay.

Blue skies over Trawbreaga Bay.

Selfie with excellent lighting.

Guinness 0.0 at Nancy's Barn.

I had a lot of work to catch up with as well as my views, so I was kept busy with that, and some more online classes. I also had plans to upgrade my home studio, so I did some online shopping to that end. Once I was all caught up with work, I treated myself to a trip to Nancy's Barn at the end of the week. Retail and restaurant therapy is always fun!

Winter Colours.

Perfect Rainbow!

December 2023, Christmas in Shrewsbury.

Hello my lovelies, and Happy New Year! Well, not really, but with this post I am officially all caught up with 2023, so I think it's worth saying again, haha!

Sky giving mixed signals over Glashedy.

Rainbow over Pollan Bay.

Here are just a few photos from the last two weeks in December. As I mentioned before, my last few Christmases haven't been the best, because I was either in solitary confinement, or spent most of my time in immense pain waiting for surgery. So, I was more determined than ever to make 2023 a fabulous Christmas, and thanks to all my wonderful family and friends, my wish came true! I flew back to England, stayed with Gareth, and got to see so many other people while I was there. I got to catch up with friends I hadn't seen in decades, go to my niece's Christmas concert, take part in a festive pub quiz, spend Christmas Day with my family, and Boxing Day with Gareth's family, all while sporting my best Christmas jumpers, rocking out to cheesy Christmas music, and drinking non-alcoholic mulled wine. It felt so good to really spend quality time with loved ones, and not feel rushed, or be unwell, and I was truly grateful for all of it.

Off on my Christmas Holidays!

Rainbow at Derry Airport, seen from the plane.

Shrewsbury Christmas Lights.

Shrewsbury Christmas Lights.

Having said that, by the end of the trip, I was VERY much looking forward to flying home to Ireland. I was a little concerned by the intensity of my desire to leave, if I'm honest. And because I have a tendency to overthink, I started second guessing things, and worrying myself. It didn't feel right that I should feel so happy to be leaving Gareth and heading home, and I wanted to get to the bottom of that. It took me a couple of days, and some deep thoughts and meditation, but the answer seemed so obvious once I got there. The truth is, when I lived in America and came back to England on trips, I felt miserable going back to the States, for multiple reasons. America was never home for me, and while I lived there almost 18 years, I was always homesick. Plus, I was working stressful jobs, with too many hours and not enough pay. My health issues were so much worse when I lived there, not surprising with the extra stress, and it cost me SO MUCH MONEY to just be passed around from doctor to doctor, most of whom clearly did not have my best interests at heart. Obviously I had to put down some roots, and I made some wonderful friends there, but I was living in big, noisy cities with high crime rates, and that added to the mental load. I just didn't have much to look forward to when I returned to America after a trip back to England.

Christmas Eve Celebrations.

Christmas Eve Jolabokaflod.

Christmas Day with my Beautiful Sister.

Guinness Zero waiting for family.

Now, however, I am finally living my dream life. I am living in the area where I have always wanted to live, and I am surrounded by beautiful scenery which inspires me every day. I LOVE the peace and solitude here. I love the wide open skies and the rugged beauty of the Wild Atlantic Way. I love my house and everything in it, and I have the space, both physically and mentally, to create and pursue my dreams. And the truth is, as much as I love going back to Shrewsbury and seeing family and friends, I really miss my house and my views here. And this is a GOOD thing! It is a good thing to be happy where you live, I just never knew what that felt like before! Even when I grew up in Shrewsbury, I felt stifled, I always had the urge to travel, and I never lived alone, so I never had the solitude my soul craved. This surprises a lot of people, but I am very much an introvert. I can be "on" when I'm in social situations, and I love spending quality time with people, but I need to be on my own afterwards to let my batteries recharge. Now that I live in such a remote area, I finally have the peace and quiet I have always craved, and after spending two weeks  of non-stop socialising over Christmas, I was more than ready to get back home and recharge.

I am very grateful that I was able to communicate all of this to Gareth and he wasn't offended. He understands me, supports my dreams, and wants me to be happy. It's a wonderful feeling! The plan in the future is for him to move to Ireland with me. After spending so many years living alone, this will definitely be an adjustment for both of us! Luckily, we are able to have completely open and honest communication with each other, and he does not feel offended if I need to say something like, "Hey, I love you, but I need some alone time." And since we are able to talk about all of this now, it will only be that much easier to adjust in the future. I'm looking forward to the day he moves here, but in the meantime, I love the life that we have now!

December 2023, Making The Most Of The Daylight.

Hello again my lovelies, I hope you're doing well? I'm trying to post as often as possible so that I can catch up with myself, so I apologise for the bombardment, but hopefully you enjoy seeing these photos as much as I enjoy reminiscing about them.
The second week in December I got to go out on a few nice walks, and I combine trips where possible so that I can run errands while I'm out and about. I haven't had a car since I left America in 2022, and while sometimes I miss the convenience, I can't justify the expense. Plus, I really enjoy being able to walk to where I need to go. Pretty much everything I need is within walking distance, and if you can time your trips to coincide with good weather, it's a pleasure to do it. The issue at this time of year is squeezing everything you need to do into the daylight hours! And me being the night owl that I am, I am rarely up and about early, so often it's getting dark by the time I get home. I did get to see some incredible sunsets though!

Evening light making things look like a painting.

Pollan Bay.

Selfie with good lighting, haha!

Winter berries, Mullagh.

Guinness 0.0 at Nancy's Barn.

Evening light over Pollan Bay.

More good lighting!

Stunning sky over Gaddyduff.

Beautiful Sunset.

Ballyliffin lights.

December 2023, Hermit Mode With Great Views.

 Hello my lovelies, how are you all doing today? I have some photos to share with you from the first week in December last year. It was a quiet week. Once Gareth left, I had a lot of work to catch up on, and there was some really bad weather, so I went full hermit, hunkered down, and got on with things at home.

As you know, I quit drinking back in August, and was doing really well, but I anticipated that the festive season might be a little more difficult. To help with that, I bought myself a Non-Alcoholic Beer Advent Calendar! I had fun trying all the different beers and most were ones I hadn't seen before. It really is great that there are so many NA options these days!

I finished making my Christmas cards that week, which is always a good feeling. I hadn't been able to make them the last few years, since all my craft supplies were boxed up in storage, so it felt extra good to get creative with them this year. I even taught myself to use a sewing machine so that I could use some fabric up. I had had that piece of fabric for about 25 years, knowing that I would get to use it one day, haha! (There is hope for all you craft hoarders out there!)

I have not been focused on my art the last few years, but if you'd like to look at some past work, you can see more on my art Blog, HERE, or on my OriginalSinArt Instagram, HERE.

Pretty clouds over Glashedy.

Rainbow and Glashedy.

Rainbow over the Green.

Rainbow over the Green.

Blue skies over Glashedy.

Blue skies over Glashedy.

Blue skies over Binnion.

NA Stella from my Advent Calendar.

One of this year's Christmas Cards.

One of this year's Christmas Cards.

November to December 2023, Winter Walks and Early Christmas Festivities.

Hello again my lovelies, how are you all doing? I have quite a few photos to share with you in this post, as the week at the end of November/beginning of December last year was a full one. I had guests coming, so I was busy getting the house cleaned and organised, as well as doing my usual work and going out for some nice walks, of course. Gareth arrived early on the Thursday morning, and as always, it was so good to see him after weeks apart. On the Saturday night I invited a few friends over for an early Christmas party, with lots of nibbles, cocktails and mocktails. It was lovely to see people!

As you know I put my Christmas tree up earlier in November, and I was determined to feel extra festive this year. The last few years while I was in America I spent Christmas on my own, which was lonely, and while I was back with family for Christmas in 2022, I ended up needing surgery, and spent most of the holidays in immense pain and barely being able to move. So, this year I was determined to enjoy all the festivities! As well as having friends over for a little party, Gareth and I went to check out the Christmas Market at Swan Park in Buncrana. And when we weren't out taking long walks, we were snuggled up on the sofa and watching Christmas movies together, while I drank non-alcoholic mulled wine. Spending quality time together like that means the world to me. And Gareth doesn't mind that I love listening to Christmas music, so we had that blasting on all the car journeys we took, while I belted out Slade's Merry Xmas Everybody!

Pollan Strand.

Glashedy Island, Pollan Bay.

Glashedy Island, Pollan Bay.

Morning light on Binnion.

A dusting of snow on the hills, Ardagh.

Fabulous breakfast at Nancy's Barn.

Sheep, Mullagh.

Looking towards the Isle of Doagh.

Calm waters in Pollan Bay.

Evening light over the Isle of Doagh.

Evening light over Crockaughrim.

Sunset over the hills.

Sunset over Bulaba.

Evening light over Trawbreaga bay.

Snow and mist as evening falls.

Incredible sunset over Swan Park, Buncrana.

Rainbow and Glashedy.

Rainbow and Glashedy.

Evening light over Binnion.

Feeling festive with my love.