I thought it was time I wrote down my ramblings in a blog. My trip to Scotland earlier in the year was a great start on blogging again, and out of those posts came a book: Following Claire!

So, here I am today, picking up the virtual pen again, and writing my thoughts in the hope someone else might find them interesting. I love the glimpses I get into other people’s lives through the blogs I read, and so I am offering this wander into life in Te Atatu, Auckland, New Zealand, for you – dear reader – to enjoy.

We’re starting at the very beginning of summer here in the North Island, with a record hot season approaching. I started my 60th year in October, and it has been one of my best so far. You find me at this moment financially bereft, (note: trip to Scotland from other side of the world), and having spent a year doing nothing but explore possibilities I’ve only ever dreamed of. It has not been lucrative by any means, but it has been rich with variety, possibility, and creative expression.

For one thing, I’ve become completely immersed in social media. Just a few years ago I was a dabbler on my own personal Facebook page and that was it. I joined Twitter, and sat waiting to see what would happen. Not surprisingly, nothing did.

And then I discovered Outlander. That is, I started listening to audiobooks of the series while making my way in to work on the bus. I got hooked. Soon after that, STARZ started making the series in Scotland, and I joined all the fan groups I could find on Facebook. A deluge of pictures and posts followed that initial foray, and still flood my newsfeed. When I started posting my memes of OutrageousOutlander on Twitter, the posts suddenly picked up interest. I was stuck with the twitter tag I started with -@sniskybobfry – unaware that I could change it. And now, nearly 3,000 followers later, it is too well known. I kinda like it anyway. Sorry, I’m rambling. . . I’m going to stop now. I’ll pick up this thread on a later post.

Today I’ve taken my early morning walk down by the inner harbour, and enjoyed the myriad of seedheads, daisies, Queen Anne’s lace, and grasses all forming a complex pasture between walkway and sea. So wonderful to breathe in fresh air and start the day well away from screens, computers and  traffic.

I’m back in front of those very screens now, of course, and ready to stop and sit out on the porch for a while, with a cup of tea. I hope you’ll join me.