2025-01-19 • weeknotes • 631 words
(This is entry 74 of 100DaysToOffload, and my weeknotes for the week 2025-01-13 to 2025-01-19)
Decent week in all, but of course the main thing that takes up too much of my time is work.
My mum noticed I have gotten somewhat of arrhythmias over the weekend, so I called up the GP to book an appointment for next week. Just to check up and make sure all is ok. (Later in the week it's resumed to normal, though I still kept getting a tight chest. Not sure why - could be the excessive garlic I ate over the weekend, or stress.)
In the evening, I tried to change my guitar strings. I ended up breaking the G string (probably didn't give it enough slack), and when I tried to put the old G back on that broke too.
I made a butternut squash soup for work that was quite nice, with sweet potato and coconut milk in it.
As of Tuesday, I have officially completed my month of low phone use for 25 for 2025.
In the evening, I went to see La Boheme for the all under 25s Royal Opera House event. It was great fun. I took the train from Bank to Holborn, went to Bow Street, ate dinner at the Zizzis there (pizza, olives, bruschetta) and then went to the opera house. La Boheme is absolutely hilarious - I also didn't realise that it was where Quando m'en vo soletta comes from. Then the second half after the interval (I was chatting with some people about the cider, called Curious Cider, that they sell there - we were wondering what makes it so curious) was a lot more serious - I teared up at the end. Absolutely amazing, and I think the opera might just be something I really, really do like a lot.
I ended up rearranging my bedroom after work. I am not sure on the redesign, which has a strangely placed chest of drawers in the middle of the room, as a sort of separator between my bed and desk. Behind it, my instruments (guitar, mandolin, violin) are lined up against the wall, which I feel looks nice.
Work.
I went for a decent walk in the morning, part on my own then circling back home to pick up my mum. From eight until half four I worked. I ate an excessive dinner, and met up virtually with a friend as is sort of custom on a Monday and Friday.
I went to the cafe and studied, though frankly I didn't get much studying done. I did read a decent bit. I dug out the old blue guitar from the basement, but it needed restringing. I bought a quite nice suit-jacket, for only £7 from the charity shop, which I may wear somewhen (next opera house visit, perhaps).
Read, played mandolin. Went for a walk with mia madre.
I planned this day in a certain day, but it didn't go strictly to plan. Still, I went for a walk to pick up the guitar strings (two sets). I caught up on a bit of work (ugh) too.
I sorted out my finances a little bit as well, went shopping too.
I restrung the blue guitar I dug up from the basement. The guitar sounds so good with new strings! I've got two sets of mandolin strings too, and I sort of want to try restring the mandolin too, but I'm not sure if it is too soon, or if it is even worth it. I know I'll need to restring before I perform, but also I would like to give it a try at least once to restring. I would like to keep on re-stringing regularly though, to eventually improve: at the moment, the head of the guitar looks a bit ugly. I need to get something to cut the strings, too.