The Yin and Yang of Winter. Flik, Victoria and Their Sleek Technique.

The days might be short, the nights best for snuggling under a doona and the mornings best slept in for as much as possible but the pace is hectic right now at SSG Manor 2.0 and its surrounds. Such is the yin and yang of my life in winter.

Scarf – Zabavushka from Hermes, jacket – OzSale (the matching skirt and trousers were tragicomically too small but the jacket’s perfect), scarf ring – Mai Tai Collection.

Sometimes there is little more that you can do but put your best face forward (thank you Hourglass and I owe you one, La Mer super strength eye balm), arrange a scarf that makes you smile about your neck and pull on a pair of black skinny jeans with really deep pockets that look a bit corporate from a distance and swipe yourself into work.

A miracle worker. Allow yourself to be seduced by the soothing words of your local Mecca sales assistant. You won’t look back.

It also helps if the people you work with share your vision of how to get through those mad, mad days at the coalface. By also loving their Coke Zero as much as you do and denying the existence of No Sugar Coke with every fibre of their being. It’s one way to team build, I guess.

This was me at 3pm on Friday.

We realized that there was still around 4 hours of work left to be done before 5 so I did what I had to do as ‘the boss’ (sometimes this is a term of affection rather than a title that actually confers the recipient any real power around here but there you have it). I lead by example. By which I mean that I actioned a short break during which I hot footed it down the stairs (to ‘give my heart a walk’ as the signs in the stairwell implore us to do) and bought Coke Zeros for the team. Change is an evil word on chaotic work days so I had to walk past the ‘No Sugar’ Cokes at the vending machines and took my business to the gift shop where not only was there a full shelf of Zero but it was also half price. I’m happy to report that those Zeros turned our day around and life after 3 was a relative walk in the park.

Meanwhile at home, Purple the monkey has just emerged from the spa that is our front loader’s 15 minute express cycle and a half measure of Cold Power. Doesn’t he look fresh and newborn like with those staring eyes and clumpy just washed hair? I was a bit concerned that the tumble dryer would be a bit much for that delicate purple fur so he’s had an air dry overnight with day under the sun thereafter.

www.kmart.com.au

If your days are punctuated by at least one cycle of preschooler related washing and then, consequently, a cycle of drying you might be interested in these waterproof mattress protectors. Both Kmart and Target sell them for single beds at around $20 but only my local Kmart had them in stock this weekend. The Kmart version is a snugger fit than the more expensive one we have (that’s currently still drying after a couple of goes in the dryer). I need two on rotation at the moment and it wasn’t a bad price. Will let you know how it washes and if it does a good job at waterproofing.

Other than that, I’m taking it easy today. Been pottering around the house this morning getting not much done at all. Gasp.. I didn’t even go for a run or do any cardio this morning. Just because.

via Google images

I did research some exercise though. Have you head of Sleek Technique? It’s a set of ballet inspired cardio workouts created by Flik and Victoria, both professional ballet dancers with the most gorgeous British accents (because only would be persuaded by the accents when selecting a fitness app). I’ve downloaded the basic bundles to my phone but there are also ‘live’ streamed classes via their website. I’ll let you know how it all pans out. At this stage, I’m planning to ‘train’ with Flik and Victoria on Sundays. Possibly in my pyjamas. Perhaps that was giving you just a little too much of a mental image….

Be well and here’s to a week ahead that I hope will be less frantic than the last.

Sydney Shop Girl

The Yin and Yang of Winter. Flik, Victoria and Their Sleek Technique.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply