News location:

Canberra Today 12°/16° | Saturday, March 30, 2024 | Digital Edition | Crossword & Sudoku

Fludun / Lines that must not be crossed

RECENTLY, I unearthed a wealth of unfinished projects – things I had started but never completed and some never started at all.

Sonya Fladun.
Sonya Fladun.
I always have the best of intentions and no shortage of ambition. I am a great one for buying lots of fabric to make all sorts of things, useful and decorative. I have enough balls of wool to clothe a regiment in every colour under the sun.

I have some lovely papers and hat boxes for decoupage, and no shortage of paints for the most ambitious of art projects (there are spare canvases and an easel).

I’ve got a big box of beads and wire, all ready for when I restart my attempts at jewellery making.

There are unfinished tapestries and an old table I’ve always intended to restore.

The computer’s hard drive is clogged with half-finished drafts of kids’ books and novels.

Having recently packed up and then unpacked our home, all these things have been looking accusingly at me, reminders of a persistent failure to complete holiday projects.

Every now and again, when I have some down time (usually January), I’m looking for something to keep me busy, something different, relaxing and a break from work and stress. But time is always short, especially when holiday are filled with activities with our kids.

Blink an eye and the holiday break is over and the year’s project is heading for a packing box, to be finished in that mythical state of being known as “when I have time”.

However, this year I might try to pick up something I’ve already started, I’ve got my eye on something that might just be achievable.

Adult colouring is a new fad, but I think it’s got a lot going for it.

It can’t be too difficult. After all just about anyone can colour in – even me. The patterns and pictures look pretty cool and there are plenty of ideas available free on the internet. Pencils don’t cost much, although I’d want to get some good ones because one needs to do things properly.

It’s something I can do with the kids, especially my girl who likes nothing better than colouring in, always very carefully and always between the lines.

It might not be ambitious, but I reckon it’s a good recipe for holiday relaxation. Pencils, a sharpener and an intricate butterfly pattern ought to keep me happy. And who knows, I might just finish something.

Who can be trusted?

In a world of spin and confusion, there’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in Canberra.

If you trust our work online and want to enforce the power of independent voices, I invite you to make a small contribution.

Every dollar of support is invested back into our journalism to help keep citynews.com.au strong and free.

Become a supporter

Thank you,

Ian Meikle, editor

Share this

Leave a Reply

Follow us on Instagram @canberracitynews