Four slices of bacon and a maulifuff

Bacon butties are the tradition when Jack comes.  I use very nice bacon.  Dry cured.  From my butcher.  It's rather expensive but I buy a kilo at a time and wrap packs of two rashers which makes a very generous filling for a bread roll.

Last time he came I took two packs from the freezer the day before so they could defrost overnight.  And could I find it next morning?  No way.  I searched in all likely (and quite a few unlikely) places but it had disappeared.  I thought it might have got caught up in rubbish for the bin.  I took two more packs from the freezer and we had those.  

I said a few weeks ago that my plan was to sort the dining room before Easter.  Well there are are still two weeks to go but I have to report that I have been an excellent maulifuff.  (Maulifuff is an old Scottish word for a woman devoid of energy, who would happily do nothing for hours on end.)  Very little has changed in the dining room.  I hope this is no surprise to my fellow maulifuffs.  

However, a somewhat drastic situation meant that I decided to collect all stray paperwork from all over the house.  I'm sure you will have guessed what comes next.  I'd put the four slices of bacon, carefully wrapped in greaseproof paper, among a heap of papers.

I think that makes me a gold star maulifuff !

Maulifuffing check-in

It's nearly six weeks since I mentioned maulifuffing but I'm sure many of you have been doing your best for the great sisterhood.  (New readers may not know that maulifuff is an old Scottish word for a woman devoid of energy, who would happily do nothing for hours on end or a woman who appears to keep herself busy but achieves nothing.  The masculine equivalent is maulibum.)  

Even longer ago I said one of my hibernaculum projects would be to sort the dining room.  In the proud tradition of maulifuffs the intention was good but the activity was zilch.  Or rather, there was a lot of activity in dumping more and more stuff in there.

So, for the next seven Mondays, I shall do a maulifuff report of how little I have achieved.  On present showing, it will be very little.  But I may raise a few rueful smiles.

Calling all maulifuffs!

 

Back in October I called all maulifuffs* to stand proudly together.  A few of you took time out from being busy doing nothing and signed up. 

December is not a good month to be a maulifuff but if you managed it, have a gold star.  For myself, I am quite proud of how little I achieved, but I have no partner, children or grandchildren.  I took a couple of services though which reduces my maulifuffing score which I am far too lazy to calculate anyway.  By the way, if there are men in your life, I have discovered they can be maulibums (or so Susie Dent from Dictionary Corner says).

January is a month which can make or break us.  New Year resolutions and all that.   For maulifuffs it is fine to make them, better to break 'em.  

*If you haven't a clue what I am on about you may like to know that maulifuff is an old Scottish word for a woman devoid of energy, who would happily do nothing for hours on end.

November in the hibernaculum

 As Novembers go, 2025 has been quite good.  

I've been getting lots of lovely food made and frozen, some for Christmas and some just for those days when i feel rubbish and can't be bothered.  

I went swimming just once.  There must be at least three of us, and health and other commitments have got in the way.  

I went to a craft session making iris folded cards.  And another making a pottery tree (not yet painted).

I was treated to a couple of meals to celebrate my birthday (which was in October).  And I've cooked a couple of meals for friends.  

I had a couple of days away meeting friends.

I've done a lot of decluttering and have found a willing recipient for some of my fabric stash. I have also been quite good at maulifuffing.  

I made my annual visit to Donna Nook and checked on the seals.  They are still wonderful.

And amongst all that I have plodded on with Christmas preparations, met with friends on line, on the phone and face-to-face and stayed happy.

Discombobulated

 

I don't often get chance to use that word but it's how I was yesterday.

It was ridiculous.  Our swimming session was cancelled and it completely threw me.  You'd think an unexpected morning of leisure would be wonderful but I just couldn't get my act together.

I wandered into the dining room to do a bit of decluttering but I couldn't get my head around the mess.  I sorted the ironing but that's as far as I got.  I thought about making butternut soup, then I thought, "Nah". 

I managed to visit a friend to sort out an on-line identification for me.  Fortunately she did the whole thing or it wouldn't have got done.

But at least I got a good day of maulifuffing done right at the start of the week.  I can be proud of that.  

Hibernaculum

Maulifuff is a word which has definitely grabbed me, but another word I want to appropriate is hibernaculum.  It's what Roman soldiers used to call their winter quarters but these days it also means or a place for over-wintering plants, or the lair of a wintering animal.   The web has lots of information on building hibernacula for wild animals but I want to use the word for the lair of a wintering Mary.

I've acquired a new fireplace which has certainly made my sitting room feel more cosy.  I won't be using real candles but I hope to acquire more LED jobbies.  Last year I treated myself to a heated throw which will soon be in use.  It's not only cosy, it's also a very energy conscious way of keeping warm.  

My next task will be to tackle the dining room so I can use it as a sewing room.  I'm not the only person who uses "spare" rooms as dumping ground but I am pretty good at it.  My hibernaculum can't just be pretty and cosy: come the spring I want to know that I have used the time well.  

Hail, fellow maulifuffs!

Maulifuff - a woman who appears to keep herself busy but achieves nothing

Following Saturday's flood of enrolments in the Maulifuff Sisterhood, I feel we need a few suggestions for activities.  Here's a few to set the ball rolling.

1.  Write a to-do list and then lose it.

2.    Start a blog post but don't finis