Tag: hangover

Dad No Dad – 29th June 2024

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 1 Comment

It’s not your fault you couldn’t be
A good or bad father to me
Dying when I was only three
I never even knew your face

And son, although I never had
A chance to learn to be a dad
It never made me feel so bad
I’ll do my best for you

Submitted to Ovi Poetry Challenge – dad

The following is a letter from July 17, 2023, delivered today from the past

Dear FutureMe and FutureAmy,

Today is 17th July 2023 and Amy has just come back from Australia for one month and has whizzed around cleaning the house and getting it up to her standard of cleanliness.

Of course, she will have to clean it again when she comes back again in October!

Writing this today I feel quietly hopeful that Amy will be able to find herself again in Thailand. The onset of the pandemic at the end of 2019 really disrupted our plans to do some kind of business on our land or somewhere in Chiang Rai.

I think we all went a little stir-crazy being stuck at home so much, though for me I am quite comfortable sitting back and enjoying our little paradise.

I hope by the time this letter arrives that Amy hasn’t run off again to another part of the world in frustration. But whatever has happened I will support her. I have resolved to stay here and see out the lives of our cats and I am fine with that, whether Amy is here or not. Wherever she is in the world I can feel her with me. I want her to be happy.

When you receive this email it will be your birthday my little moo. I never know what to get you because I have already given you all that I have. Know that wherever you are, you have all my love.

Happy Birthday for another year, little Amy
Love you,
Shauny

Today I’m feeling:

A bit dusty after my first night of drinking this year.  I fell asleep in my clothes last night, half expecting to be dragged up again. At some point, I must’ve undressed as I was naked when I got up at 10am with a whiskey mouth.

Today I’m grateful for:

The staff at La Favola who took care of us tonight for Amy’s birthday dinner. We had a great time, overloading on their buffet, especially the oysters.

The best thing about today was:

Besides late morning coffee and dinner, the rest of the day was mostly spent either sleeping or reading in bed. 

The best thing was going out for a fancy dinner and having a good feeling of being together tonight.

Something I learned today?

The AFL usually quickly puts up videos of the last two minutes of very close games and I happened to see that there was one for the Swans game today which is a bad sign. Did we manage to scrape by or just lose? I’ll find out tomorrow.

Bury Me High – 8th April 2022

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

Racing to the rooftops
Why is it colder closer to the sun?
All around there’s silence
As if this day had never begun
Shattered constructions bleached
Ghosts tread lightly long forgotten
Every wheel that’s turned
Cycles from beautiful to rotten
All the dragons sleeping
And here the lady forever lies
Buried high on the earth
Reaching toward the skies

That something is difficult must be a reason the more for us to do it.

Rainer Maria Rilke

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful for today’s hangover. Reminding me not to waste any more time with alcohol. I didn’t drink a lot and it just put me to sleep and not a good sleep either.

In The RV – 21st December 2021

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

The power’s gone out
And there’s snow on the roof
So begins the test
If you are living in truth
There’s no heat now
Time for another sweater
“The sacrifices are severe
But the rewards are even better”

Inspired and quoted by interviews with Christmas tree sellers in New York at the Cafe Anne newsletter
11th Nov 2024 – Shared with Word of the Day Challenge – sweater

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful to see the almost full moon on one side of the sky this morning, followed by a red sun rising over the mountains on the other side of the sky.

I didn’t sleep well on the 19th (Fui told me there was an earthquake and that may have woken me up.) and skipped school, not that I would’ve had much to do anyway with kids at home. Still, a couple of them sent me their work, which made me happy.

I spent most of the day reading comics in bed, which was excellent!

In the afternoon, I dropped over to Bruno’s and we went off for a good walk that took me over 10,000 steps for the day and I felt pretty good after that. I unloaded a lot of complaining on Bruno. He knows and understands the kind of things I’m going through with school. He listened sympathetically whilst we took a trip around the hilltop village near where Laetitia used to live.

I would like to do more walking, especially in these cooler days but my dodgy feet are holding me back. I should go and get them checked out at the hospital – see if the insurance gives me any cover for that.

25th Sep 2025 – I still haven’t done this!

I was pretty down at the weekend. Post alcohol malaise, I think, and I’m a little worried about when Amy is not here. She helps keep me steady and motivated at times like these.

I’m sitting in House at the moment and feeling a little anxiety as there are many things I want to do and I feel like I’m rushing things. Not teaching the kids online (and just assigning work to complete) has definitely made me busier as I spend more time following up on them. Oh well, I feel like I’m doing the right thing. Time to make calls for my next class.

Some Days – 19th December 2021

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 1 Comment

Some days are shit, that’s the way it’s gotta be
How you gonna know if good is all you see?
In the end, there just can’t be another way
Some days are shit and that includes today

I enjoyed the whisky last night but the write-off for today just isn’t worth it. I feel slow, sluggish and depressed. I don’t feel like going to school tomorrow but I should be all right by then. Just have to talk myself around.

Poems on this day – 5th July 2021

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

Another Week

Another week is here
Another Monday of fun
How many have I seen?
How many more to come?
Time runs away from me
I can’t keep up these days
On the downward spiral
Running out of plays
Lazy summer Sundays
Now filled to overflowing
Oh, to be bored again
With no idea where I’m going
Regret no past mistakes
It was all a knowledge to seek
Savour every living moment
So begins another week

Uprooted

Uprooted from all you know
At the age of just sixteen
Still growing into your world
But following your parent’s dream
A better life is on its way
Though you may not see it yet
Take up this challenge
Make the most of what you get

I’m teaching a sixteen-year-old student who is moving with her parents from China to Australia. A tough time for someone that age.

Four Rats

Four rats run around Tokyo
Stealing all her food and drink
Too slow in her reactions
Those rats are smarter than you think
Sniffing the air in excitement
Whiskers twitching from their keep
In the drains and shadowy corners
Whilst Tokyo remains asleep

Tokyo is my friend’s pup, the sneaky rats are well-fed!

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful for a long day of rest yesterday with nothing much to do. I could recover from my hangover just watching TV or playing with the cats and dogs.

Poems on this day – 18th June 2021

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

Hangover

I wonder where
I left my underwear
My socks are wet
Why? I forget
Ugh! Back to sleep
Drifting deep
Think more later
Drink more later
Go back under
Where’s my wonder?

Wasting Time

When someone wants to waste your time
Be ready and bring something else to mind
There’s plenty of things to do and find
Wasting time – it’s yours to lose
There’s so many things you can use
It’s always there for you to choose

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful that I woke up this morning, early in the morning and couldn’t get back to sleep. I was thinking too much and I hope I got it all done so that I don’t keep thinking too much during the day.

I wish there was no stopping me now – 23rd January 2020

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

Stuff that really makes us happy
– wanting the right parts of what we already want, activating your signature strengths

Character strengths are ubiquitous, fulfilling morally valued, not able to diminish others, opposite of a negative trait, trait-like, measurable, distinctive, paragon, prodigies, select absence, institutionalised.

Signature strengths = most essential to who you are, where you flourish most. So, seek out a career with your signature strengths.
Practice = use of your top strengths in a new and different way every day
Using top 4 strengths are best

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful for the kids who greet me with happy smiles in the morning. I can appreciate the connection I have with them.

The only thing that can ever truly destroy a dream is to have it come true.

Mark Manson

To-do list

  • More exam preparation.
  • Be curious about someone today. ½
  • Run after work.
  • Start booking flights.
  • Think, shut up, speak if it adds. ½

Didn’t achieve so much this day and I put that down to alcohol consumption and lack of sleep. I actually felt OK in the morning but ran out of energy around 3pm. The day was quite enjoyable – I really do enjoy the connection I have with the kids.

Ellen called in the evening. She was upset at Rob (her on/off boyfriend) again and I tried to soothe her and calm her down telling her much of what I’ve been learning myself. We are all at different stages of our journeys.

Tomorrow is the last day of camp – it’s been fun though useless for the students. I’m fine with the break.

Tomorrow I need to pull things into some focus and maybe just concentrate on a couple of things and drop the others. I love to learn but maybe just taking in too much from too many places at the moment. I really have to book these flights tomorrow too! And follow up with venues!