A few weeks ago, Lauren and I waved goodbye to Casa Grundy and took the 55 minute Uber ride to our new home:
Fort Grundy.
We’re enjoying life here.
We can raise up the drawbridge, peer out from our battlements and plan our defence for when Lauren’s bun in the oven joins us.
We’re expecting our baby at the end of January.
But I hadn’t foreseen an unexpected guest joining us in December too.
An unexpected guest of a furry different kind.
See, Lauren and I were lying in bed a
few nights ago just about to fall into the arms of Morpheus when we heard a strange sound.
It sounded like a quick rattling/scuttling noise.
I thought it was the wind.
But then I heard Lauren say:
“Tom, we’ve got a mouse in the house!”
We’ve called the mouse Jerry.
And while I’d prefer Jerry not to be rummaging in our eaves, I shouldn’t be that surprised.
Fort Grundy is full of cracks, crevices and perfect little hideouts for furry squatters.
Moreover, there has been a lot of cheese in the house. Lauren and I hosted a small soirée a few evenings ago and there was enough Brie, Cheddar, Comte and Manchego left over for Jerry to invite Mickey and Minnie for an all-you-can-eat buffet.
Thing is, there always seems to be
something not quite right with my living arrangements.
When I first moved to London, I lived next to two French guys who insisted on playing euro drum & bass at 4am in the morning.
I then moved to a flat above a
quiet neighbourhood bistro. A few months later, the bistro closed down and turned into a trendy late night cocktail bar.
Even at Casa Grundy we had issues. Anyone reading this newsletter in January might recall my never-ending dishwasher saga.
So I was keeping my fingers crossed it would be plain sailing at Fort Grundy.
Alas not.
But what I’ve noticed is that there’s always something to fix if you look hard enough.
Not just with living arrangements, but in all parts of life.
And it’s so easy to focus on the next niggle, and then the next one, and then the one after that, until the day comes when life has been nothing but non-stop niggles and
we’ve missed all the moments that really matter.
By the way, I’m certainly not immune to this.
But nowadays I do find myself with more balance, clarity and joy, even amidst chaos and challenges.
I’ve got the Subtraction Method to thank for that.
If you’re ready to stop letting life’s little frustrations take over, burrow your way over here:
https://waitinglist.followingfulfilment.com
p.s. welcome to the family Jerry!