Start of the season ....

It seems to be the start of the Flower Festival season, and I`ve been to see one today. My friends invited me to theirs for the day and then after lunch we went on to Long Sutton to see this beautiful flower festival. The theme was The Streets of London, and here are a few of my favourite displays....

The Old Curiosity Shop

Lost Property Office
(we had to smile, when we saw the "top secret" document in the briefcase!)

The Gerkin

The Fish Market

Fleet Street.

There were many other beautiful display - maybe I share a few more tomorrow

Twenty six.... or more?

Watching the start of the London Marathon yesterday, seeing the amazing sight of the thousands of people running for charity I got to thinking.......

.....Surely, a lot of those runners actually do far more than the 26 miles of the marathon, after all, only a few of them start off on the actual start line, those further back have a much longer to run, as they all have to go to the same finishing line.

I wonder what distance those at the very back of the crowd that set off actually cover??

Perhaps someone who has run it can tell me the answer to that?

Wild flowers

Looking out of my dining room window earlier this week, instead of seeing the normal dreary lawn full of weeds - I saw this - almost a wildflower meadow!



I went out to have a closer look. Tucked away, hidden from the view from the window in the depths of the grass, I discovered these tiny, dainty violets amongst the daisies, dandelions and primroses.



Even looking at the "weeds" - the daisies and dandelions - there was great beauty in the flowers when looked at closely, and the words "a weed is only a plant in the wrong place" came to my mind. And I realised the truth in that.

Yes, this really is a dandelion - it looks quite similiar in this close up to a chrysanthemum doesn`t it.

What are these birds flying in for?.......



Here`s the answer.... Driving along the coast this afternoon we stopped by the sea wall at Walcott. It was a breezy afternoon, and gulls were soaring over the waves as they broke.
I remembered that I`d got a few bread crusts in the car, so got out to throw them for the gulls, but the wind being strong blew the bread back onto the seawall and pavement. The gulls seemed too timid to come and take the bread from there, so I got back into the car (I didn`t want to be had up for dropping litter! - can one, I wonder, be charged for bread thrown and not eaten by the birds??)


I`d not been back in the car many seconds when I spotted one of these smaller wading birds land on the sea wall, then two, then three and very quickly about a dozen or more of them appeared. They really seemed to enjoy the treat they`d found.

New Life

A Happy Easter to You All

I always thrill to see the shoots of new life, and these come from something I set on Shrove Tuesday - can you guess what they are?

A Miracle of Life

I was always under the impression that bulbs needed soil and water to grow, but just look at this.

I was given this daffodil bulb after I`d planted all my others and kept forgetting to set it. It just sat in a saucer on my kitchen windowsill. Then I spotted a few weeks ago that it was beginning to grow. I left it as it was to see what would happen- and this was the result - a beautiful flower.

Good Friday

I`ll let the picture speak for itself today.

Progress??

Are we really living in a more advanced world?

A shop in the town where I live, this week, had only one of its five tills working for two days, and then closed for a time - why? - because the computer had a virus and the tills had to be disconnected from the internet.
The same thing happens if there`s a power cut - tills and other devices cease to work and there`s no fall back solution.

So, are we really living in a more advanced world?

Working in a shop in the 1960`s & 1970`s, if the power went off, one just inserted a handle into the side of the till, cranked it round for each item the customer purchased and continued working and serving, keeping the shop open and business flowing.

Surely, with all today`s technology someone, somewhere can invent a back up system so as to not inconvenience us shoppers!

Shells

As I walked along the beach the other day, found myself resorting to a childhood pastime - picking up and collecting shells




But, I did more than just pick them up, I began looking closely at them, and feeling their texture. Some, like this delicately shaded pink one, were so smooth to the touch whilst others, like this collection of them, had a ridged feel, and a crinkly edge.

And, what struck me even more, was the fact that they were all different. No two were alike.

A bit futher along the sand, I came across these larger shells. At first I thought they were pebbles, but they caught my eye because they were almost glittering as the sunlight caught them. I picked one up and studied it. It was quite thick and heavy and you could almost see the age of it, but the layers of the shell.

And, it set me thinking - how like the shells we are - all different, all with our own characteristics, yet all part of the community and the world.


How many grains of sand were there on that beach? Far too many to even begin to count, and a verse of one of my favourite hymns came to me

We thank thee Lord, for sunshine, dew and rain,
Broadcast from heaven by think almighty hand
Source of all life, unnumbered as the sand,
bird, beast and fish, herb, fruit and golden grain.

Peace & Tranquility

The sun shone.... it felt like spring in the air.... so I went to one of my favourite places for a walk



It`s so hard to capture in a single photo the feeling of the vastness and beauty of the miles and miles of golden sand.



It`s one place where I feel really close to God. There is just such a "special atmosphere" there to me. I find as I saunter slowly along taking in the sight and vastness of it, thoughts come up from deep inside me - some from times past, some current, some sad, some happy, some problems, some worries, but there they seem to be put into perspective. And I come back refreshed.

Sheer Peace & Tranquility

Successful Surprise

The event I`d been planning in secret for over two months now, took place today.

During those weeks over 50 people had been sworn to secrecy. I was rather doubtful whether the secret could be kept from the one person I didn`t want to know about it until today, but it had.

Today was my Mum`s 90th. birthday, and to celebrate it, I`d planned a surprise party. Invitations had been sent out in January and responses received, the church catering ladies had been consulted and liaised with, a friend had been briefed to bring a camera..... and now today was the day.

After taking my Mum out to dinner and for a ride along the coast in the afternoon, I manage to time it perfectly to get her back to our church where I`d arranged for the party to be held, having asked all the guests to be there before that time.

Once at the church, on the pretext of collecting some mail, I got the wheelchair out of the car and asked Mum if she would like to come in with me. She still seemed not to suspect anything. I wheeled her through into the hall and everyone started singing "Happy Birthday" to her, and then she realised that the group of people were there for her.


I think at times she was quite overwhelmed by the amount of love she was shown, and though the 70 birthday cards she received and all the presents too. People were so kind and generous, and it really "made the day". The surprise party ended with some entertainment of sketches and songs by some of the church members.

I thinks its a day she will long remember - I know I will too!

Sunny

As promised a few weeks ago, here is a picture of my pet.

Unfortunately the angle of the photo makes him look a lot fatter than he actually is - guess that`s true for a lot of us at times!!

Why have I called him Sunny?..... well for two reasons, obviously his colour and secondly because he brings a ray of sunshine into my home every single day.

Daylight Robbery!

There was daylight robbery going on across the street from where I was today.

I watched it from my office window. Yet, I don`t think anyone else saw it, as they busily went about their everyday business.

It wasn`t a job for the police.

For several days now, I`ve been watched two collared doves trying to build a nest on top of some poles under the eaves of the building opposite. The poles go onto a ledge around the building. These birds have been so busy, back and forwards, up and down picking up bits of small twigs. I`m intrigued to see if they will succeed, because as fast as they take up the building material, pieces seem to drop off down again. Then, I became aware of a different bird on the ledge - a pigeon, and it was "thieving" the bits of twigs as they dropped and flying off to a building about two futher along, and I guess using them to build it`s nest there. I had to admire it`s resourcefulness and cheekiness, but I felt sorry for the doves losing their hard earned bits.

Whether the doves will ever succeed in building a secure nest, I`m not sure, but I am so impressed with the persistance they have, and the amount of time they`ve been trying to do it. It made me realise how hard they do work. I`d love to see them have a nest there and watch it`s progress.

I got to thinking too - how many people had walked by on the pavements below, all totally unaware of what was going on above them. Just how much do we miss by being so busy with things that we don`t make time to look all about us. Ofcourse - when the birds dropped unwanted twigs onto the pavement, they may landed on a passer by who might look up and wonder where it had come from!!

Spring beauty

Looking out of my kitchen window the other day, I spotted a speck of white amongst the dead leaves in the border. Going out to look, I discovered to my joy, that they were very tiny snowdrops.

I always marvel at the way something so small, fragile and delicate looking can push its way up through the earth. A real sign of hopefulness and of the coming of spring.

They are one of my favourite flowers.

Help!!....man wanted!

I came home from my parent`s the other evening, unloaded the car, put the light on in the hall... and then I saw it.... a big, and I mean big, black spider. Now, as I think I`ve said before I hate spiders. I felt myself shake.

What on earth shall I do? I went in the front room and shut the door, but reason said to me, that`s no good, even if you wait for it to disappear, it might then go into the bedroom and climb on me during the night.... ughhhhhhhh. There was no one I could call.

I peeped out of the door, it was still there, looking menacingly at me, from its place at the top of the wall in the hall over the stairs. It had ofcourse, got in one of the most inaccessible places. Trembling, I went and got the hoover, fixing on the dusting pipe attachment, I hoped it would be long enough. I looked at the size of the diameter of the pipe, then at the spider. Would it fit in? I had dreadful visions, that instead of going down inside the pipe, it would end up running down and onto my arm.

Plucking up courage I made a quick, sharp thrust at the spider...... and..... the hoover sucked it up. Was I relieved! I stood there for about 5 minutes with the hoover still running and the pipe still held up straight above my head, just to make sure that it didn`t climb back out again. Then I hoovered all around the house, to make sure it was well and truly secure in the bag.

I just hope it hasn`t got a family that will come looking for it!

A Sign of Spring

I bought this bunch of daffodils a fortnight ago when then were in the pencil stage (buds straight up) and have watched them gradually bend their heads and slowly open to reveal the beauty of their flowers, and this is how they look today. They really brighten up the kitchen, and cheer me whenever I look at them. Not that I`m sad, but they somehow just can`t help but lift ones spirits even higher.

Why in the kitchen, you may wonder - well for a couple of reasons. Firstly that I spend quite a bit of time in there, secondly because it`s cool, so they last a long time and I can watch them as they change from bud to flower, a small change every day, until they come to their full potential and beauty.

What joy a single bunch of flowers can give.

Treasure? (2)........

In the very back of the cupboard, I found this very old pot. I remember seeing it years ago but had forgotten it was there. It`s about 9 inches tall (22-23cm for those who don`t use `proper` measurements! It`s a kind of glazed earthenware as far as I can tell - glazed inside as well as out. It`s got a fancy kind of china - not fine china, lid which just lifts off and sits on a kind of ring of the pot.


All around the side is a deep band of pattern, almost hieroglyphics, looking as if it`s trying to replicate an Egyptian feel about it, - or at least, that`s how it seems to me.


I know it`s a family piece and not something we`ve bought. I think it comes from at least my grandparents era, on my Dad`s side of the family, who were fishermen. But - I`d love to know more about it. Was it perhaps used as a salt jar; or for salting and storing fish; was it for flour..... or what would be its purpose? And, what would be it`s age? And is it unusual, rare even?
Guess, I shall never know. But, it remains an interesting item.

Treasures?..(1)

Are your feet cold?...... How about trying these?!

Emptying out seldom used cupboards ready for my decorator the other day, I came across a few "treasures". These are two of them.

Can you imagine having these in your bed to warm it, and to warm your feet on. I shudder to think how many bruised toes one would get in the night, hitting oneself against them.

Wonder if they`re valuable or rare? Not that I`d sell them anyway, they`re part of our history, but it would be interesting to know.

Look out for another, even more unusual object tomorrow!

Refund, please.....please......!!!

If you buy something from a store that doesn`t work and isn`t suitable for the job, you return it and get a refund - right?

Not so!

I decided on Friday that I needed an additional indoor clothes airer to dry my washing on. So off I went to our nearby Argos store, having conveniently reserved the item online first. Bought it and brought it home. Good, I thought, now I can put it up and put my laundry on it.

Wrong.

It had come in shrink wrap plastic, so I carefully cut up two sides of it, removed the Airer, removed all the plastic metal ties on it, and the label. No instructions on the label as to how to put it up. I spent over 30 minutes trying to get the thing assembled. It was like one of those children`s metal puzzles, but whichever way I tried, it just wouldn`t stand up, like it should.
I gave up.

Next day, I took it back to the store for a refund, as it clearly wasn`t suitable for our use.
I was told in no uncertain terms by the young man on duty that I could not have a refund as it was not in its original undamaged packaging! I pointed out that one could not get an item out of shrink wrap packaging without opening the packaging. He still refused to give me a refund. And said that I shouldn`t have opened it if it wasn`t suitable.
"How can we know it`s not suitable if we don`t open it to try it", I said.
"We cannot resell it because its been opened" he said, "so I cannot refund it".

Eventually after a lot more to and fro of comments, I had a brainwave
"Can you show me how to put it up then" I asked.
Cockily, he said "yes", taking it from me, he then proceeded to...... try and erect it....."it goes like this" he said, lifting the top rungs - "yes, I got that far" I said.

He struggled with it for a few minutes, turning it this way unable to get it erected, and by this time some of the connecting bits were flying off of it!
"I can`t fiddle with this" he said giving up!
"So, it must be faulty", I commented.
"I can replace it, if it`s faulty" he eventually said.
"OK," I replied, "but with a different model please".
To do that, he told me, I must go to the cash desk with my receipt (which I`d ofcourse got) and get a refund then order the one I wanted.

I went and got my refund........ and left!

I have however, written a letter to their head office, to complain about their Refund policy. It will be interesting to see if I get a reply.

I shouldn`t laugh.....

I shouldn`t laugh....... but I just couldn`t help it.....

The postman`s just been and I`ve just opened my mail. In it I received an article for our next church magazine. It was quite a normal thank you to put in after someone had died, that is - until I got to the last line which was about the sum of money donated in the persons memory. I`m sure the writer didn`t intend to be interpreted the way I read it.

It said "the money will provide farm training and a local cow in memory of L...."

Having known the person.......... I`ll say no more!!!!

Just in case.....

I wonder how many items others have that they`ve kept "just in case"... they might be useful or needed in the future?

After the pleasure I got from having my front room redecorated last year, I`m now going to have the back room done. This afternoon I therefore set to, by starting to move items in readiness for the chap to come on Monday morning (assuming we don`t get snowed in again by then!).

On diving into a couple of cupboards, because I need them painted inside too, what a load of junk I`ve found, things that have been kept `just in case`. -
Eight or nine empty biscuit tins, some starting to go rusty.
Another tin with a selection of odd, old kitchen tools - many now past their best, as the cupboard was a bit damp.
Some very old discoloured stumps of candles, which were once white. (plus some whole ones, which I have kept `just in case`)
An assortment of little empty cardboard boxes.
A tub with some medicines in - some pre-decimal days by the prices on them.
A large spider..... thank goodness it was dead! (I did panic until I was sure it was deceased)

What will I be doing tomorrow?... making a trip to the local tip!

Genius

I`m a genius !!!!!! And, I didn`t even know it, till I tried this!

Your result for The Commonly Confused Words Test...

English Genius

You scored 100% Beginner, 100% Intermediate, 93% Advanced, and 80% Expert!

You did so extremely well, even I can't find a word to describe your excellence! You have the uncommon intelligence necessary to understand things that most people don't. You have an extensive vocabulary, and you're not afraid to use it properly! Way to go!

Take The Commonly Confused Words Test at HelloQuizzy

Living in the Past

I feel at the moment that I`m living in the past.

Why?

I`m having a boil a kettle to get any hot water! .... I`m not just talking about making a hot drink, I`m talking about having to boil the kettle to, have a wash, do the washing up, and all the other tasks that one needs hot water for. Having a bath is out of the question!

My hot water immersion heater, which heats the water for my house (I`ve not got central heating so haven`t a boiler) packed up working on Saturday. It couldn`t go wrong on a `work` day, so that I could get a man out, could it? Oh no, it had to do it at the weekend.

It`s taken my memory back though to my childhood, when I can remember how Mum used to carry jugs of hot water upstairs for her bed & breakfast visitors so that they could wash on the washstand in the big china basins. No, bathrooms in those days.
I can well remember bath night - the washing machine put on to heat the water, and then being transported in metal buckets into the old tin bath in front of the coal fire in the living room. Later, a bath was installed in the kitchen. Yes, in the kitchen, covered when not in use by a big wooden top, which doubled as a kitchen work top........ What would health and safety people say about that today!!!!! But, we survived.

My first job today...... ring the chap to come and mend (hoping it can be repaired), my immersion heater. Still, it`s made me appreciate and be thankful for one of the things I normally take for granted.

Time is a Great Healer

"Time is a great healer"... I lost count of the number of people that said that to me on this day seventeen years ago, and in the following weeks. And I disbelieved it. Infact, it hurt me when they said that. In someways it felt uncaring, unsympathetic. I was feeling devastated - my Dad had just died - my world had fallen apart.

Yet, today I can say.... they were right. Time does heal - slowly, very, very slowly.
Today, I`m not feeling sadness. Time has eased the pain. Time has brought back many memories of happy times with my Dad. Memories of things I`d not thought about for years and years come back at various times, of times shared together, things he`d said, thing`s we`d done together, things he`d taught me - nothing can ever take them, and him, away from me.

I shall take some flowers up to his grave later today, and will be Thankful for having had such a dear and wonderful Dad.

Magic Gopher

Are you any good at mind reading?

The Magic Gopher certainly is. Have a look at this , which I was sent by a friend the other day, Try it - it`s quite amazing! How it`s done, I haven`t a clue!

Goodbye - and - Welcome

I came downstairs yesterday morning, to find that my little Goldie had died. It was sad, yet I guess the kindest thing for him, as he was obviously suffering so much in the last few days.

I gently lifted him and placed him in a tissue lined container, and he will be buried in our back garden, by our helpful gardener when he comes next week. Then I thoroughly cleaned the cage and disinfected it.

In the afternoon, my parent and I just went to "look" in a nearby garden centre`s pet section..... and ... there were three canaries for sale, so .... there is now a new inhabitant here!

I haven`t decided on a name yet - he`s a nice bright yellow, but has one dark brown wing and a few patches of dark coloured feathers on him. He`s very cute. Yes.. it is a "he". We asked at the shop if they were hen or cock birds, and the assistant said she thought this one was a cock as they thought they`d heard him singing a few notes. She was right. He seemed to settle quickly into his new home, and even sang me a few notes so I look forward to hearing a lot more song from him. Just need to decide on what to call him. It needs to be a different name to any we`ve had before, because Mum says it`s supposed to be unlucky to use the same name twice.

When he`s more settled and used to being here, I`ll try and post a photo of him.

Colours

What colour are you today?

Not literally your skin!..... what colour are you wearing?

Looking out of the office window several times this week, for want of something better to do!, I noticed something. They were mostly grey dull days, and even on the odd sunny day 99.9% of the people I saw passing were all wearing black or very dark coloured clothes. It almost seemed to be a uniform - black coats, black trousers, black jackets, black umbrellas carried, black... (no I`m not in the city, just an ordinary town). A very few had dark brown or dark grey on. Not one bright colour did I see. It looked very depressing - and set me thinking.....

....Why don`t we wear bright or light coloured clothes in winter? It would do so much to cheer up dull days and lift everyone`s spirits.

What colour was I wearing?... blue, and my jacket was a light beige. But then - I`m often the "odd one out"!

Helpless

I`ve been feeling helpless these last few days.

It`s obvious by looking at him that my little bird isn`t well. It`s so frustrating, worrying and sad, that he can`t tell me what`s wrong with him. He is still eating and drinking, so I suppose that is a good sign, but he`s definitely not himself. He just sits all fluffed out, and sleeping a lot. And, now he`s finding it difficult to jump onto his perches, he seems to miss them. I wonder if his eyesight is giving him a problem. - but I`ve never seen a bird with glasses on yet!

When he is awake, he keeps looking at me, as if to say please do something to help me, to make me better. But I don`t know what. I did get a bottle of bird tonic from the pet shop and have been adding that to his water, but so far, it doesn`t seem to have had much effect.

Perhaps I shall know more tomorrow. I called a neighbour in to see him this afternoon (he used to breed canaries), but Goldie was asleep when he came, so he`s going to pop back tomorrow and have a look at him for me.

I`ve infact been dreading coming down in the mornings, as to whether I would find him still alive or not. I do hope he recovers from whatever it is that is wrong. He`s only about a year old.

Trust

I`m so thrilled that my little bird, has now got enough trust of us, to now jump on our hand to feed.
My mum was here for the day today, so I got here to try it, and he straight away jumped on her hand too, ..... so I dashed and got my camera. This second picture isn`t quite so clear as he moved his head as I took it, but I think it`s worth posting.

In a Tangle!

Why is it, that when I put items in the washing machine all the right way out, that they all come out inside out?

And, yet if I put them in inside out, they still come out inside out!

Have I got a mischevious little goblin in my machine?!

Plucking up courage

I managed to achieve something yesterday, that I`ve been trying for quite a while, so I felt really chuffed about it.

No, it wasn`t me that had to pluck up courage to do something it, it was my little bird.

For a few weeks I`ve been trying to get him to sit on my hand to eat some treat seed. Now, this is something that he really likes, and although he`s been tempted to try, and has taken the odd seed or two off my hand by stretching his neck out as far as it will go, yesterday, he actually ended up sitting on my hand to eat it, and stayed there for several minutes as he tucked in.

It was such a thrilling feeling.

A lovely sight

Driving along to spend a day with some friend today, I got caught up in a line of slow moving traffic behind a farm vehicle on the road. At first this caused me a slight annoyance as I wanted to be getting to my destination. But as I trundled along thinking, well, I guess he`s got work to do and I shouldn`t really mind, I glanced idlely into the field on my left.

Then I looked again, as something caught my eye. There, standing amongst the green of the crop was a small deer. The first time I had seen one in the wild like that.

How glad I was that the farm vehicle had made me go slowly by! At normal speed of the road I wouldn`t have seen it.

A New Year

I wish a Happy, Healthy and Peaceful New Year to all readers.

Having reflected yesterday on the year just ending, I`ll share some thoughts today of some of the things I want to aim to do in this new year.

Are they resolutions? No, I wouldn`t call them that, - infact I heard on the radio today that its bad for your health to make New Year Resolutions!!!

So, what am I aiming to achieve in 2009?

• to be more organised at home, by filing mail items as they arrive, rather than putting them to one side to do later
• to spend more time practising playing the piano
• to set out earlier when going to work or anywhere, instead of leaving everything till the last minute
• to learn to sometimes say "No" instead of "Yes"
  
• to write my blog each day, and to restart my "Blessings day by day" one
• to complete the needlework picture I started 3 years ago!

Time to Reflect

Another year draws to a close, and I find myself thinking back over the events of the year.

It has been a year of change in many way. If anyone had told me at the start of the year, just how much my life would change in 2008 I wouldn`t have thought it possible.

It hasn`t all been smooth sailing, there have been some rough and turbulent times, times of worry and upset, but following all these storms, calm came.

In the course of just a few months, I was promoted to a job (within the same firm) which is far more fulfilling and enjoyable to me, the type of work I`ve always wanted to do; I found the strength to stand up to getting my parent living in a place more suitable for her decreasing mobility; and took on the responsibility for organising a large event at our church.

I feel I`ve grown in confidence during the year; I`ve made some new friends; I`ve got the freedom of living on my own; and I`ve even given my blog a new look ready for the new year!!
All in all, it has been a good year for me.

What I wonder, will 2009 hold?

Contents

To round up a "loose end", if anyone wondered what on earth I was talking about in this blog post the other day, I`ll explain.

I don`t know what brought it back to mind, except seeing one word..... it goes back many, many, many, many years, to when I was a small child. Well, perhaps not so many! I remember my Dad one day picking up a milk bottle - yes milk came to the doorstep in glass bottles in those days!, and from it he read aloud "Cows ought not to eat nasty turnip stalks".

"Where did you see that", I remember asking

"On the bottle" was his reply, with a smile.

I took the bottle from him and scrutinised it all round. I can`t see that written on there, I said to him puzzled "where does it say that?"

After teasing me a bit longer, he took it from me, and pointed to a word - "there" he said, pointing to the word.

Cows Ought Not To Eat Nasty Turnip Stalks
or, if you look at it another way....
Sam Takes Nancy Every Tuesday Night Out Courting !!

Yes, it was the word - Contents.

29th. December 1969

I wonder how many people can remember what they were doing on this day thirty nine years ago?

I know I certainly can.

It was 39 years ago today that I walked nervously as a teenager into the place where I was to work. How big that building seemed on that morning. How strange it felt. Little did I know then that I would still be there all these years later, having gone from being the junior, to now the longest serving member.

What changes I`ve seen in those intervening years too! Some good, some not so good, some bad. The premises have been altered with major building work at least twice. The warehouse when I started being further down the alley, so that in the winter when it was icy it was a perilous job with a sack-barrow bring stock into the store, - what Health and Safety regulations today would have said to that, I shudder to think!! The position of the main entrance door being changed twice.

I`ve gone through at least 8 different managers as well as a few temporary ones! Been in the employ of 6 different companies as the business changed ownership. As to how many colleagues and staff members I`ve worked with, I couldn`t possibly count them all up, so many have come and gone, yet there are a core 4 or 5 who have also been there now for over 15 years, so in a way are a bit like another family as we know each other well.

Yes, I`ve had times during those 39 years, when I`ve felt like walking out, but I`ve stuck it, and am now very happy in the position and work which I am doing.

Presents

Thought I`d share with you today a look at the Christmas Presents I received. As you can see there are a lot of chocolates and biscuits!

These are a close up of some of my favourites from the presents.
I think the present that surprised me most was when I went into the office where I work on the Friday before Christmas and found a box of chocolates and a box of biscuits with a Christmas card from my boss. That really made my day as it was so unexpected.

And, below is the oddest present I received. I still can`t work out, why the chap gave me a ball of string and a set of record cards!, along with 2 hand warmers and a set of playing cards. - very odd.



Wonder what other bloggers favourite, surprise, and oddest presents were?

The Twelve Days of Christmas

A friend sent me this, which I didn`t know, and found interesting, so I`ll share it with you all today.

"There is one Christmas Carol that has always baffles us.

What in the world do leaping lords, French hens, swimming swans, and especially the partridge who won't come out of the pear tree have to do with Christmas?

From 1558 until 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. Someone during that era wrote this carol as a catechism song for young Catholics.
It has two levels of meaning: the surface meaning plus a hidden meaning known only to members of their church. Each element in the carol has a code word for a religious reality which the children could remember.

-The partridge in a pear tree was Jesus Christ.

-Two turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments.

-Three French hens stood for faith, hope and love.

-The four calling birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke & John.

-The five golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament.

-The six geese a-laying stood for the six days of creation.

-Seven swans a-swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit--Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership and Mercy.

-The eight maids a-milking were the eight beatitudes.

-Nine ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit--Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control.

-The ten lords a-leaping were the ten commandments.

-The eleven pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples.

-The twelve drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in the Apostles' Creed.

So there is your history for today. This knowledge was shared with me and I found it interesting and enlightening and now you know how that strange song became a Christmas Carol.`"

Today`s the Day!

Happy Christmas Everyone!

I`ve written before about my love of stained glass, especially stained glass windows in churches and cathedrals, so, when I spotted this hand crafted stained glass nativity at a craft fayre just before Christmas, I couldn`t resist treating myself to it.

Views of Christmas (2)

My Mum bought me this lovely poinsettia last week. I`ve never had one before, but it`s a real sign of Christmas coming, isn`t it.

It got me thinking - why do we seem to associate the colour Red with Christmas?

is is just because it`s a nice cheerful warm colour for winter, or is there more to it than that?

Views of Christmas

One of the things that always says "Christmas" to me, is a Christmas tree, so here is a photo of mine. As I unwrap all the decoratons from their tissue papger and hang them on the tree, they bring back so many happy memories. Some of the ornaments must be about 50 years old. Gosh - until I wrote that I didn`t realise just how many years we`ve had some of the baubles and
early plastic decorations. And, even older is the little doll which my Dad was given in the 2nd. world war in Belgium, which always has pride of place on the tree.

I discovered that taking a picture of a Christmas tree with it`s lights on, isn`t easy to do (or is it just me?!). After numerous attempts, with results of fuzzy picture of the lights, this one was the best I could come up with. If anyone has any tips on how to take a better photo of a Christmas tree I`d love to hear how to do it.

Santa & Jesus

Time to celebrate!.... no, it`s not Christmas Day, ...yet, ....
but this is my 1,000th post!
How shall I celebrate that?

It surprises me to realise that it`s four years since I started sharing my thoughts here. My first one was written on Boxing Day in 2004, because I had nothing to do that afternoon, little did I realise when I did that, that I`d still be scribbling away (or should I say typing away?) in 2008, and aiming to continue into 2009.

So here`s something I was sent which I think is worth sharing as my "special" 1000th. post.

* * * * * * * * * * *

Jesus is Better than Santa

Santa lives at the North Pole.
JESUS is everywhere.

Santa rides in a sleigh
JESUS rides on the wind and walks on the water.

Santa comes but once a year
JESUS is an ever present help.

Santa fills your stockings with goodies
JESUS supplies all your needs.

Santa comes down your chimney uninvited
JESUS stands at your door and knocks.. and then enters your heart.

You have to stand in line to see Santa
JESUS is as close as the mention of His name.

Santa lets you sit on his lap
JESUS lets you rest in His arms.

Santa doesn't know your name,
JESUS knew our name before we did.
Not only does He know our name, He knows our history and future

Santa has a belly like a bowl full of jelly
JESUS has a heart full of love.

All Santa can offer is HO HO HO
JESUS offers health, help and hope.

Santa says "You better not cry"
JESUS says "Cast all your cares on me for I care for you".

Santa's little helpers make toys
JESUS makes new life, mends wounded hearts and repairs broken homes.

Santa may make you chuckle but
JESUS gives you joy that is your strength.

While Santa puts gifts under your tree
JESUS became our gift and died on the tree.
It's obvious there is really no comparison.
We need to remember WHO Christmas is all about.
We need to put Christ back in Christmas.

Jesus is still the reason for the season.

Remembering words

Isn`t it strange the things that spring into ones mind without consciously thinking about them.

Doing something at work this afternoon I suddenly got this phrase jump into my memory from many, many, many years ago, - "cows ought not to eat nasty turnip stalks"!

And then later today another one came back to me "Sam takes Nelly every Thursday night out courting" !

No, I`m not going mad (or at least I don`t think I am) - there was a purpose behind those phrases, and there`s a link between them too - wonder if anyone can work out what it is? Answer in a few days time, but my next post needs to be a special one.

Move along please!

I had to be a "traffic warden" this evening!......

I collected my Mum early this evening to go to a carol service at our church, and with it being a bit of a foggy evening left early to give us plenty of time so got to the church about 6.05 p.m On approaching the road to turn down into the church car park, it looked to be blocked by an enormous, and I do mean enormous, lorry.

Turning in, I found there was just room for me to squeeze my little car past it. We drove onto the car park and sat there for several minutes and although the lorry had a few lights on, it didn`t show any signs of moving. So, I thought, I`ll go and put the church lights on to show we`re using the church and need the road clear. Having done that, the lorry began to move.... good I thought, he`s going.

But he didn`t he just shifted a few inches nearer the kerb. Then stopped the engine and put the lights out.

So, I plucked up my courage and went out and over to him - it was an enormous vehicle stretching over half the length of the road opposite the church door, and the bottom of his window was above my head height. Anyway, he put the window down when I went over to it. "You`re not going to be stopping there all evening are you?" I asked him "only we`ve a carol service on and they`ll be lots of cars needing to get up and down here". "Yes, I was going to", he said!

He was very polite and reasonable though and said that he`d take it along the road, there is a parking place along there isn`t there, he asked. To which I replied yes, there is a car park very near, [I don`t know why he didn`t go there in the first place!] I said, "you can come back after 9.30 with it if you want, we`ll be gone by then", or, park it and come back to the carol service!

I know it is a public road, and we can`t stop anyone parking there, but I thought I`d better try and do something about it.

About me meme

Having nothing much to write about today, I thought I`d have a go at this, which Dave had put on his Blog the other day - but, it`s much more difficult than I thought. (most section answers are not in any particular order of preference!)

7 things to do before I die

• Relearn to play the piano
• Have time to "be me" and enjoy life with no work and no ties
• Make a will
• Learn to say "no"!
• Become a better flower arranger
• Complete a needlecraft picture I started a few years ago
• Take a last breath
  

7 things I do now

• Work!
• Photography (not expertly)
• Cook
• Clean the house
• Feed my pet bird
• Enjoy driving
• Try and write a daily blog
  

7 things I can't do

• Draw or paint (wish I could)
• Pick up a spider (or any creepy crawly!)
• Stand the sight of blood
• Speak in front of a large group of people. I can read aloud to a group, but not stand and speak.
• Swim
• Be in a confined space
• Push a wheelchair up a hill
  

7 things I find attractive in the opposite sex

• Gentle strength
• Nice hands
• Sense of security emanating from them
• Kindness
• Sense of humour
• Thoughtfulness
• Quiet spoken
  

7 things I say most often

• Hello
• Please
• Thank you
• Is it?
• Did you?
• Yes
• Morning
  

Celebrities I most admire
Difficult one this, as I`m not into films, tv (very little), sports, etc...etc... but here goes....

• Cliff Richard - for the way he is so open about his faith
• Alan Titchmarsh - for his way of imparting knowledge and information in such an easy way
• those who genuinely help charities, without it being a big publicity stunt
• those who don`t brag about themselves
• Jimmy Saville
• Lifeboatmen - who become "local celebrities" for a short time after they`ve gone out of their way to save lives in difficult seas and conditions.

7 favourite foods

• Fish & Chips
• Jacket potatoes
• Toad in the hole
• Roast goose (at Christmas)
• Ice-cream
• Steamed ginger syrup sponge pudding
• Chocolate orange trifle
  

Pearls of Wisdom

Having written those two quotes at the end of yesterday`s post, it gave me the idea for my next post!

I`m looking for "Pearls of Wisdom" - No, not literally pearl (stones) but wise sayings. I don`t mean the well known sayings like "Too many cooks spoil the broth", as that can be opposed by "many hands make light work".

What I`m looking for, for a particular purpose, are Pearls of Wisdom. You know that kind of thing I mean, sometime in conversation a person will say something, and you think "that`s a little gem", it could be good advice, inspiration or practical good advice.

Anyone got any ideas?

Mind blank

My mind has been a complete blank on what to write on here the last few days - and I`m still stuck for inspiration.

Wonder what that says about me?...

...maybe that my life is uninteresting? - yet, I don`t feel that it is, well not to me anyway. I`m very contented with it. Maybe I just feel its too "ordinary" to write about; that it wouldn`t make interesting reading.

....What have I been doing over the last few days?...... well, I had friends here for lunch and tea on Sunday, which was nice, but it doesn`t really give much to write about, does it? It`s actually nice being able to have people here and "entertain" now, something I`ve never been able to do before in that way.. and since I`ve had the lounge redecorated, I feel comfortable to have people in too - the room is not now a "furniture warehouse" in the way it used to feel and look.

....I also met a blog friend, Lorna, for a short time on Sunday, and that was really good.

...I`ve been working each day - so not much to write about there. Except,- I`d like to know why it is that when I`m checking lists of figures against others on the computer screen that have to match, that if there`s a mistake in them, its almost always towards the end of the last page - which means that I have to close the computer programme, correct the wrong figure and then go through the whole sheets again! Why can`t the mistake (if there has to be one I`ve made previously) be in the first few lines of work?!

I`ll see if I can "do better" with something to write in a day or two.... or maybe even tomorrow - but as they say "tomorrow never comes" - maybe that`s why they also say "don`t put off till tomorrow what you can do today".

A Snowy Day

It looks as if I`m going to have a white birthday, tomorrow, instead of a white Christmas!

Or, as I asked a few days ago, have we skipped a moth and this really is December?

This was the scene in my back garden an hour ago, after it had been snowing constantly since I got up this morning.

Pretty isn`t it? But I wonder where all the poor little birds have managed to get to keep warm and dry out of it?

Alone and Scared

I`ve been awake nearly all night and feeling very alone, worried and scared. Now thankfully it`s morning.

Since Monday, I`ve had a bit of a pain in my left side and my chest, but last night in bed, it got really bad. I couldn`t lay on my side, my front, nor very comfortably on my back. I nearly got up to write this at 2 a.m. this morning but daren`t move. I lay there, thinking: did I ought to ring someone?, should I ring for a medic? is it my heart? is it cancer? is it just a muscle?

My first job this morning, as soon as the surgery opens will be to go and make an appointment to see the doctor and try and find out what it it - although I`m scared of what he might say it is.

UPDATE
Going into our Health Centre as soon as they opened at 8 a.m. the receptionist was very helpful, and said there were 2 emergency doctors on duty and that one of them would ring me in the next couple of hours. So home I went.

About half an hour later the phone rang - it was the doctor. After trying to describe where the pain was, etc., he assured me he didn`t think it was anything too serious and nothing for me to worry about, but would I like to go up and he would check it out. Appointment made for 9.10 a.m.

I duly went up, saw the doctor chap, he did several tests and examinations, and is fairly sure that the pain is coming from my somehow damaging the muscle around my ribs. How I`ve done it, I don`t know. Still at least it`s none of the life-threatening things I was fearing. Painkillers were prescribed, and I`m told it could take at least 2 weeks to clear.

Autumn colour

I`d always thought of spring as my favourite time of year, with the new growth and fresh green everywhere, but this year the wonderful colours of the autumn trees is making me really appreciate and enjoy the autumn too.

Just take a closer look at some of those leaves - what a variety of colour there is in them



Both on the trees and on the ground!

A Different Sunday

Today, for the first time in weeks and weeks - no longer than that, months and months, I didn`t go to church. Yet, today I experienced a time of worship, that was very touching.

Let me expand on that.

I didn`t even get up until later than normal this morning, because I`d agreed to go over and have Sunday Lunch with my Mum in the care place she is at, because they were having a visit this afternoon by a visiting Young Peoples Salvation Army band.

Knowing that our morning service wouldn`t finish in time to enable me to do that, I decided not to go. So I spent a bit of time at home, trying out playing a few hymns on the piano before setting out for Mums. The Sunday Lunch, (served in her room) was very good - roast pork and all the trimmings, followed by a delicious chocolate trifle.

I then pushed her into the Communial Room where the Band were to play. There was a few other residents there when we arrived, and Mum soon transferred from her wheelchair into one of the easy chairs, and I had one beside her. As we sat there, more and more residents gradually made their way into the room, and all the seats began to be taken. I then gave my seat up to another lady, and sat the other side of the room to the side of where the band were to be.

The local Salvation Army captain, (who I knew) and one or two other officers from the local corps came with the youngsters of the band, and the afternoon started. Hymn sheets were given out to everyone, so that we could join in singing. We sang about 6 or 7 different hymns, listened to a reading and a very good short talk on the reading and the afternoon concluded with a prayer.

That may not sound `out of the ordinary`, but to me, from where I was sitting, I could see all the residents, and just to see the way they knew the hymns and were joining in singing along with them, and the look on the faces of some of them as they did so, was so moving, somehow. And so inspiring to see the youngsters aged from 9 upwards, really committed to the band.

And, in that room with that group of people, I really felt a sense of God`s presence there with us. It was a unique time. During the prayer, I for some unknown reason, felt tears come to my eyes. Not tears of sadness or distress, but of being somehow deeply moved by just being there.

So, although I didn`t go to church today, I found a real place and time of worship.

Christmas already?

Today IS the 15th. November, isn`t it? Or have I lost a month somewhere?

Why do I ask?.......

...........Because......

...opening my mail, brought by the postman a few hours ago, I find my first Christmas card! I couldn`t believe it.

And, no, it didn`t come from abroad, it came from someone in a village about 6 miles away from here!

I`ve not even had my birthday yet, that`s still 9 days away. I definitely don`t expect to receive Christmas cards, before I`ve received Birthday cards. (That`s of course assuming I`ll get some birthday cards!)

So, what am I going to do with the Christmas card? - stick it in a drawer until a lot nearer the time, I`m certainly not going to stand it on the mantlepiece yet, it would look ridiculous so early.

An Orange Scene

It was such a beautiful sunset this evening, that even the water at this beauty spot turned orange! Isn`t it a beautiful world we live in.

Tinkling the Ivories

So, what was it I was doing the other evening?..... here`s the answer.....



I felt strongly urged somehow to rekindle my efforts of piano playing.

My earliest memories of first touching the keys on a piano, the same one as still stands in my room, go back many years to when I must have been about 5 or 6. My Mum used to sit and play hymns on the piano, and as a little child I wanted to have a go too, so she used to show me one note on the keyboard and each time she had to play that note, would say "now", and I would hit the note my finger was on (an octave higher than she was playing). I realise now how hard it must have been for her to play and keep saying "now" every time it was that note. And then as I got a bit older she would show me the one note on the line of music and I began to recognise it and so, when to hit it.

Anyway, from there I went on later, I suppose from the age of about 8 - 10 or round about then to have piano lessons at the home of one of my school teachers after school. How well I remember that house - it always smelt strongly of boiled fish! (The teacher had lots of cats, and cooked fish for them.)

As I got older, I did less and less practice and playing and eventually none. How I wish now that I had kept it up.

Sitting down at the piano the other day, I found that I can still read to some degree the right hand music, and so long as I know, in my mind, how it should go, I can make a fair stab at playing an easy hymn tune or two. As for the base notes of the left hand.... that will need a great lot of practice! But now that I`ve the house to myself, I really think I will try and master playing it again and particularly getting the left hand for the base notes working again. There`ll be no one to hear all the awful discordant sounds that come from the instrument whilst I do so, so I shan`t feel self-conscious trying them out.

I`ll report in due course how things progress....if they do!

Magnetically drawn

I`ve been magnetically drawn over the last few days, towards something in this room, something that I`ve not touched for years (other than to dust it)! But, since having the room decorated and decluttered of furniture, so that I don`t need to move anything to get to it, it`s been beckoning me for days.

I`ve sat here tonight, with work I should be doing, but the thing I can see out of the corner of my eye, keeps somehow trying to draw me to it. Could I still do it, I wondered? Dare I try? At least there`s no-one else in the house to know if I make a mess of it and fail.

I got up, and went over to it. Lifted the lid. Picked a book up. Sat down. Thumbed through the book. Set the book on the stand. Then, tentatively with my right hand touched it.

In fact, I became so engrossed in it, that looking at the clock expecting to see I`d been there about 10 minutes, I discovered that over an hour passed! And, I`d actually enjoyed it.

So, I`m feeling quite pleased with myself this evening.

What was I doing?.... if you can`t guess, I`ll tell you tomorrow... or the next day!