Feeling Anti-Ish

[bonniethomas06]

I have a confession to make. I am feeling distinctly anti-ish at the moment.

I haven't touched the garden (apart from a little harvesting) since mid August. My OH does the pigs and the hens and sheep. I have been too lazy to sow onion sets or broad beans. There are 5ft high thistles growing in the vegetable garden - the greenhouse is a blight ridden death house (when you can see it, as the grass is so long).

I just can't bring myself to touch it! I am not sure why - but I just don't want to. I have been doing 'ordinary' things, like reading, going to the pub, going for a coffee, watching films, going to a spa and dare I say it, shopping (OK, charity shopping. I am still skint!).

I just don't want to get filthy hands, scrabble around and make things or be frugal. I think my ish is broken!!

Does anyone else go through this from time to time? When the 'good life' ethos wears off and you just want a bit of comfort and glamour from time to time? I am hoping it is just a phase - I am a very 'phasey' person and have had weeks before when I have had a 'break'. Perhaps it is a seasonal thing and I am going into hibernation mode. Just hope it wears off before the digging season gets started!

[gregorach]

Yeah, I get that... Fact is, it's hard, going against the core values of your entire society. Sometimes you've just got to take a break.

[boboff]

Indeed, I get that too.

And at the same time.

When the weeds grow fast, the slugs eat everything and all the stuff you planted is rubbish.

Normally post Christmas I am motivated again!

It's the bloody guilt though! So I am just doing an hour or two a day at the minute, just little jobs, which make me feel a bit better, and hopefully it will encourage me to do more soon.

Happy Days, I think Barbarra had a few off days! Go on just enjoy it, at least your OH is helping, my OH is not ISH at all, see now that annoys me now I have typed it, sorry. Well put it this way, try talking to OH and decide on a Job you can do together, you'll get more done, and it might motivate you sooner, if not just keep doing stuff together, little ishy dates, and maybe the odd rudey in the Pollytunnel?

[gregorach]

I dunno what it's been like in Wiltshire this year, but it's been a bloody lousy year up my way, which really hasn't helped at all. It's not easy to stay motivated when only the weeds are growing.

Ah well, soon it will be time for next year's seed catalogues...

[MKG]

I get it all the time - especially when there's actually any real work to be done

Seriously, though, I really do get periods of can't-be-bothered-ness, especially around now. But isn't that what Ish is really about - doing the bits you choose to do without going whole hog? I'd hate to HAVE to do this.

Mike

[Milims]

Lets face it- being Ish is hard work! I bow down to anyone who could live the lifestyle and do a full time job as well - I'm not sure it would really be possible! I mean how much easier is it to buy a jar of jam or chutney, or a ready meal compared to digging the ground, planting, nurturing, harvesting, preparing and cooking the ingredients? Or buying a new frock compared to making one out of an old one from the charity shop, or kniting your own socks when you can nip into town and buy some. It's no damned wonder we grow tired of it now and then! So sit back for a while, put your feet up, watch the weeds grow - and when you start thinking about putting them in soup, compost, animal feed etc you know you're ready to come back!
Oh and if it's any consolation I bought pizzas for tea the oher day - and 3 Bombay Bad Boys! In my defence I was ill!

[Susie]

I definitely go through this. Your ish isn't broken. It's just having a rest! (In fact that's why we're ish. So we don't have to do it in the times we don't feel like it!).

[Potter's Farm]

My husband and I shared a bag of shop bought crisps today. We felt very naughty and it was a real treat. Its funny, before our conversion to ishishness, a treat would have been a 4 course meal in a restaurant, a new frock for me and maybe even some shoes, and a bottle or two of wine for hubby with the dinner. Our bag of cheese and onion hunky dorys made us feel just as spoilt, and we had a chuckle at ourselves.

Don't beat yourself up, we all need a treat and a break sometimes xx

[greenorelse]

Agreed. You need the break, practically everyone does.

Also, if you're good at something such as environmental stuff, let's say for instance, your personal pollution production is really low, then taking a break from being so good means you're still extremely low on the culpability scale compared with the rump of the population.

[baldybloke]

This is always a depressing time of year, as the days get shorter. All I want to do is curl up in front of the fire, read and drink tea. At least the books are usually garden and ish based. Once we get the festivities out of the way and the whole growing season lies ahead, the enthusiasm will return. Start making plans for next year even if you scale things down, to make it more managable.

[The Riff-Raff Element]

Seems we're all pretty much in agreement that you shouldn't be beating yourself up over this. We all have our moments when we are run down & tired. Cut some slack.

[Green Aura]

Bonnie, I know exactly how you feel and like everyone else here think it's fine to kick back every now and then.

One small word of caution - you've had a big year with all the changes you've made. While they've all been for the better they can still be really stressful. So just have a bit of a personal audit - check you're eating and sleeping OK and that your mood and concentration is good. If all those come out OK then just enjoy the rest.

But remember - those flowers won't grow themselves lady!!!!

[Mrs H]

Wow, am I grateful that I logged on! I haven't been on in a while because of this very reason, we've had a real spate of illness in the house which we can't seem to shift and r sons little rural school is up for closure. So daily life turned into a bit of a slog. The garden looks unloved! The geese n ducks get fed and let out everyday but I've found even the dogs r not getting walked as much as is normal.
Maybe we r programmed to chill out and take a break at this time of year? Roll on spring!!! Xx

[Millymollymandy]

I have a confession to make. I am feeling distinctly anti-ish at the moment.

I haven't touched the garden (apart from a little harvesting) since mid August. My OH does the pigs and the hens and sheep. I have been too lazy to sow onion sets or broad beans. There are 5ft high thistles growing in the vegetable garden - the greenhouse is a blight ridden death house (when you can see it, as the grass is so long).

I just can't bring myself to touch it! I am not sure why - but I just don't want to. I have been doing 'ordinary' things, like reading, going to the pub, going for a coffee, watching films, going to a spa and dare I say it, shopping (OK, charity shopping. I am still skint!).

I just don't want to get filthy hands, scrabble around and make things or be frugal. I think my ish is broken!!

Does anyone else go through this from time to time? When the 'good life' ethos wears off and you just want a bit of comfort and glamour from time to time? I am hoping it is just a phase - I am a very 'phasey' person and have had weeks before when I have had a 'break'. Perhaps it is a seasonal thing and I am going into hibernation mode. Just hope it wears off before the digging season gets started!

OH GOD YES! I haven't read any responses here yet but I've been going thru a mid life crisis the last few weeks and am beginning to HATE my garden and anything Ish and would rather boil my head than make more jam or do any more preserving or harvesting or anything. Thank god for you Bonnie

[Millymollymandy]

Was interesting to read the replies!

I feel like I've been running round like a headless chook and am going to massively cut back the veggie growing next year so I can concentrate on my non edible garden, which is my first love.

This year too has been exceptionally dry, and we have really battled against the elements. It also started early and the harvest of the good things has been exceptional and I can't bear waste and have ended up with silly amounts of everything, which I feel I HAVE to do things with. For example we've been harvesting apples for 2 months, tomatoes for nearly 4, raspberries I'm still picking since end of May, it just won't stop and I want a ruddy frost to kill the garden off, let me get some daffies planted and then I want to get my knitting out!!! Oh and my pond is at an all time low and the October rains never happened and it doesn't look like the November ones are really coming any time soon so it's all so DEPRESSING.

Plus I have a 7 year itch and want to move cos I'm bored with Brittany.

Maybe I'm just menopausal - I really hope so!!!!!!!