letter #49 (includes the handiest of handy hints)
Better than anything you ever read in The Women's Weekly
My dear friend
An inconsistency of consistencies
I know I told you I’d be writing on Wednesdays on here it is Thursday! In the world of newsletters they say there’s nothing like consistency, but how to be consistent? Well, of course I have lots of consistencies. I think I remember from one of my psych subjects that we repeat about eighty-five* percent of our behaviours day after day. It’s not necessarily the actions that we repeat but the behaviours. That’s why even if we are on holidays we are the same person just in a different place. I was flat-out yesterday with a morning running around in the service of unnecessary beauty treatments (getting my eyebrows done); and the afternoon remounting my wedding dress project. On which note, forthwith some self-promotion.
Consistent in self-promotion
My show Stitches is going gang-busters with brilliant five-star reviews. The final shows are pretty much sold-out, but there’s still plenty of tickets for tomorrow night (Friday) and Saturday afternoon matinee. If you would like to join me (and I’d love it if you would), you’ll need to buy tickets today, tomorrow or Saturday morning.
And if you’d like to come along to the opening of the wedding dress project, it’s Sunday 25 February, 11am at Mrs Harris’ Shop, Jervois Street, Torrensville (all the info is here)
Reading, listening, watching? I’ve done none
In the world of newsletters they also say you need to give your readers something they want that they can’t get anywhere else. For a lot of the newsletters I read that’s lists of lovely, enriching things to read or listen to or watch. I’d love to do that for you, but the truth is that since I last wrote all I’ve read is another seven pages of the latest Thursday Murder Club; all I’ve watched is a re-watch Downton Abbey (don’t especially recommend that unless you’re in a covid fug like I am; outside remembering the script of my show no brain for much else); and all I’ve listened to is the sound of my own voice as I either rehearse or perform the six-thousand words of my script.
Here’s the best bit of this letter:
Remember when ‘life hacks’ were called ‘household hints’
My favourite part of The Women’s Weekly always used to be the page of household hints, and I have never forgotten the hint about cleaning venetian blinds. If you get interrupted or have to leave part way through this essential task, mark your place with a peg so you’ll remember where you’re up to. This was sent in by someone who cares a lot more about getting housework done than I do.
But my friend, I have a life-changing household hint for you. An index book! I used to live by index books, especially in my library jobs. But over the years as we’ve become less analogue they faded from my life. However, their utility is once again surging, particularly as google becomes less and less useful at delivering useful results (and with AI in its toddler phase this is only going to get worse before it gets better). I reinstated the index book next to my computer about six months ago. Life changing. When I need to over-ride the printer because it thinks it’s run out of toner when in fact it still has thousands of pages available, I look in my index book under ‘P’ for printer. Actually, about one quarter of the entries are currently under ‘P’ for printer, but there’s also ‘M’ for mouse, ‘A’ for airdrop, ‘R’ for remote control. Get on it, my friend!
That’s it until next Wednesday
Or the Wednesday after that. Or some other random day. Until then, I hope that you are at peace with your own consistencies and inconsistencies. And if you aren’t at peace with them I hope that at the very least they aren’t waking you at three thirty in the morning.
With love
Your friend
Tracy xx
*inaccurate statistic, just given here as an indication, no idea what it actually is