Catch up day....

A day for dealing with things left behind this week.......well, they could wait, couldn't they??

Paperwork, housework, shopping and a long doggie walk for dear Alice - three times around the village field and we managed it all before it became too dark.  With the nights drawing in, we shall have to get a move on and get out there before it's completely dark.  Just as long as we take her out for three walks each day, Alice will be perfectly happy!!

And this evening, catching up on the newspapers for the last two weekends because we've been kinda busy , and there is now a pile of discarded newspaper waiting to be thrown out tomorrow and, thankfully, my fingers are not covered with newsprint!

I well remember when I was daily travelling up to London for work, and sometimes wearing white cotton gloves, just how dirty my gloves were at the end of the morning's ride?  I bet you can imagine that...but you see some of us did, amazingly, wear white cotton gloves when going to London by train.

I also remember wearing my silk headscarf, on the underground, even when it was absolutely boiling and we were all gently humming with the heat; with everybody packed in like sardines!!

Mad hey, just mad!!

However not always mad...and this year, on this last day of November, I can happily say, I've actually bought and even wrapped up most of my family's Christmas presents, with only one or two little gifts still to find.  Even my darling daughter is amazed at this state of things, for she is normally more organised than me, but she has been extra busy this year, with two lovely little boys to care for, her husband to feed and an interesting job to cope with.

Walkies time again, for Alice is pacing the carpet pile and giving me long mournful glances.  Hey ho and off we go again.

Cheerio

Daisy

There and back again?

Last Sunday morning I got the call all Granny's love - please, please will you come and look after the children, sick with conjunctivitis?

And of course, one is mentally packing even before the 'phone goes down on its cradle.  Ah ha, the cradle, and the hand that rocks it, and the pleasure and the joy which comes from being the hand chosen to help in a time of family emergency.

Apart from coping with a sick and much loved grandchild and supporting your grown-up children, you are given the chance of cuddling the youngest members of your family and isn't that wonderful?

Our children grow up so quickly, it's shame not to hug them as much as possible, and little boys in particular, seem to get to that stage fairly quickly, and then you have no chance of hugging your little darlings.  And grandparents and grandchildren can bond so well and have so many glorious times together.

Getting up to London was a sore trial, for there was a motorway accident to cope with which kept us drivers waiting for an hour to actually get on to the road; and then the delay of getting past the scene of the accident, where we were waved quickly forward.  Then lashings of rain all the way up to London's boundaries, when it suddenly ceased to be a problem.  Driving through the crowded streets was interesting and challenging and, ultimately, rewarding

And here I am again, at home, drawing breathe after playing with track and trains, watching favourite DVDs, reading Thomas The Tank books, and taking trips to the swings and climbing frames in the park.  Phew - but what fun!

Byeeee,



Daisy

New beginnings with love

Yesterday twin baby girls were born to the family and today they were taken home by their Mama and Papa and their big brother and I was there to see them on their way home.  They were squeaking a little  bit and their Mama couldn't wait to get them home to bed and to rest as well, but it was so lovely to see them and now I can't wait to hold them.  Perfect, just perfect.

And for our new beginnings at home - today the dear SO cooked his first roast lamb joint in our new kitchen.  His roast potatoes are absolutely wicked and oh boy, does he cooks a mean roast dinner.

All my Christmas presents have been posted off to Australia, the last one went today, and I'm just wrapping up the last home presents this evening - hmmmmm!  It's not my usual method, getting everything done so early, apart from the posting parcels, but, and but again, this year there's a few other things to be getting on with.  I mean to say, we're down sizing, moving into this new property; I expect you realised that and frankly, it's every bit as hard as I knew it would be.

We all buy the things we see and want, those little knick-knacks we earnestly desire the moment we spy them on a store shelf, not to mention the magazines we all drawl over.  Yet not only do we buy these things because of a want, but also because of our  experience of  a deep seated  need to buy and possess all kinds of objects, clothes, books, to antiques , jewellery...well, whatever really.  I mean whatever takes our fancy...don't you think?  And quite often we spend considerable amounts of cash buying these yearned for delights, the likes of which are absolutely guaranteed to make our lives perfect in every way, or so we totally convince ourselves?

And yet, and yet, sooner or later our hoard of utterly unliveable-without possessions gang-up on us, turn the table, so to speak, and possess us.  By the time we realise this attachment, we're hooked, line and sinker, and the very thought of dispossessing ourselves, their tentacled grip is virtually impossible to ease; and of course, there's that valley of sadness  engulfing one at the veriest mention of the words "clear out" and "recycling bins".

For years now I've been endeavouring to build a wall of possessions about me to protect me against the winds of aloneness, self-determinism and "I can-buy-so-why-not" bravado, with my children looking on and urging restraint, throw-away remarks and constant encouragement along the lines "you'll feel so much better and lighter without all these things clogging up your life!"  I did eventually manage a few good attempts to de-clutter my life and persevered beyond their wildest imaginings.  But now it's come to a point where I simply have to de-clutter all over again, and it's a very difficult learning curve to climb.

Today, however, a dear girlfriend told me an amazing thing.  She had just built five large mountains of precious possessions and arranged for their removal, and now she's contemplating relieving herself of even more clutter.  And this dear lady has, in a full and resourceful life, managed to amass an enormous amount of cherished possessions - clothes, shoes, handbags, china, books, videos and knick-knacks + more and more!.  Yet she has done something quite exceptional believe me, so...if she can, then so can I, if I really have to; and I do believe this is the time to go forward with bright confidence and begin to re-energise my capabilities and offload some or all, of my mostly unused possessions, while the spirit is willing within.

I bet you'd agree if you could, hey???

And it's never too late is it?  Tomorrow is just a few short hours away and, after I've walked Alice and checked my emails and Facebook page, I think I'll retire for the night and have another new beginnings day tomorrow and take it from there!  I mean, who knows how far I'll get on with determination, bravado and
a good strong breeze behind me.

I'll keep you posted........Daisy x

Ah ha, 'tis the season to be......

wrapping presents and making ones own gift tags, even presents and decorations, and today I made time to wrap up presents for family overseas, and finding none of my tags over from last year - doesn't one always buy too many.  You keep them safely for the whole year, only to discover when you finally go to use them, that you simply cannot find them.  Isn't that so, hey??

So, having card, a photograph, a Stanley knife, and good thick cutting board, I embarked on the sometime difficult task of creating an own individual  and unique Christmas item.  I'd been in all day awaiting delivery of books which, ultimately didn't arrive, for some unknown reason, leaving myself with very little time to find something suitable in the nearest shopping experience, a large supermarket store, and unfortunately for me, although they had seasonal greetings cards and chocolates and tins of festive biscuits, not any present tags, which is how and why I came to design and make my own.

And actually, they're not bad!

Monday evening was my book club get-together and after arriving late, had a thoroughly enjoyable discussion of this week's book - Claire Tomalin's, Charles Dickens -  A Life, which came out last year.  I've only managed to consume about a dozen pages but already I'm finding it a brilliant read.  We shall carry on our discussions next week too, for several members were unfortunately detained elsewhere.
I'd taken a couple of critical observations of the author and her book to our meeting and read out bits of them, which was fun; and at home I was keeping back a newspaper article on the latest film version of Great Expectations which is out any day now.  I must say, I'm really looking forward to viewing it and comparing it to that wonderful earlier film with Edith Evans as Miss Haversham and John Mills as Pip.  In this latest offering, Helen Bonham Carter is cast as Miss Haversham.  I'm quite a fan of her performances - did you see her in A Room with a View, wasn't she good?  And I must tell you, I have the very slightest connection with the accomplished actress, for many years ago, as a Young Conservative, I'd danced at a masked ball held in the Bonham Carter's family home in West Sussex.

My fifteen minutes of fame??

Monday and Tuesday day light hours were exhausted by organizing my change of address notifications to family, friends and all and sundry, waiting for books to arrive and walking Alice.  And today we had so much rain, it was good to be having to be on hand for my book deliveries, even if they didn't arrive!

Perhaps tomorrow they will?

The dear SO's daughter was flooded out of her house today, and her neighbours too.  Thankfully, not too greatly, but certainly enough for them to seek a home elsewhere, while the waters subside and their homes dry out, and repairs put in hand.  Amazingly, I'd no idea so much rain had fallen and it just goes to prove, how localised our weather systems can be.

Tomorrow, it's posting day, if I can get out, of course. and  if not, He will have to post them for me; and my parcels for Australia.

A busy day again, I think....and we're still moving furniture into our new home and sorting out parcels of forgotten objects.  He's fervently hoping I'll find more "stuff" to squash down into his vacuum-condensed bags.....isn't down-sizing an awful bore?

Cheerio,

Daisy

Hi there.....I'm back again!

My London Walk to view some of the Livery Companies in the City of London was immensely satisfying, and very enjoyable.  An English Heritage Members Only event and hosted by a most affable and knowledgeable chap, we walked our way from St. Paul's Cathedral, to Cheapside, on to Gresham Street and then to Basinghall Street, finishing back again on Cheapside.  We viewed some ten or so Livery Companies and our guide provided a short potted history on each one, as we marvelled at the buildings' decorative features and questioned our leader on particularly interesting thoughts and ideas.

We had the most glorious late autumn weather, warm, bright and sunny, and the City was buzzing with  life, with polished chauffeured cars patiently waiting for their suited and booted occupants from business meetings and gatherings.

And I found Bow Lane off Cheapside, from where my maternal grandfather sold boots and shoes.  I've not been able to ascertain whether it was his own shop, or just a rented property, but I shall be following up on his history again fairly soon now, and hoping to discover more of his life story.

However, I also follow the events of my own generation and our children, for it's good to look forward as well as backward onto the lives of previous generations, and I  must say it all keeps me pretty busy.
I'm also very fortunate in that I have three sets of grandparents, two maternal and one paternal set, for my birth mother died when I was just five year's of age, and when my father re-married, I acquired a stepmother.  My goodness, family connections can become very complex, don't you think?

And here's a thing which is becoming annoying, rather than complex, and that is the inability to remember or recall, the name of something you've known all your life.  This happened just recently and when after much thought and research I still couldn't come up with a name, I asked my sister, who luckily did know.  The things name I couldn't think of was the well-known plant  Montbretia, and also called Crocosmia, which my sister thought  was a new name but that isn't so, as I've since discovered.   Like every other plant, it has a variety of names, depending on local and worldwide custom. I've now discovered that it's  called  Coppertips or Falling Stars in the United States.  I'm not too sure about my ability to keep two names in my head, let alone four, so to help me remember, I've decided to institute an on-going list on my kitchen blackboard, just to keep the information readily to hand.

And my second list addition is the term Mass Observation, which was the phrase coined for the national  record keeping of people's daily lives during and after WW2, when our Government needed to know how citizens reacted to events of that time. Now we are both very interested in that period of our  history and have many books about WW2, so the phrase is well known to us; until we forget it, of course!!

No, no, we're not losing our marbles...just rather too busy with our renovations and decorating and removals which, my goodness are keeping us very occupied just now; and our heads are full to over-flowing with ideas buzzing about, rather like bees around a beehive homing in with their catch of nectar.


Cheerio....Daisy

Moving Times....

Well, here we are at last....our new abode, and doubtless in time it will become our new home, and we shall become accustomed to living here.   For a period!

But my goodness me, the last week has been a whirl of activity, you'd never guess just how busy we've been?

I have a great many interests and hobbies and, being me, I've always found it expedient to keep l my various activities neatly separated into all manner of bags and carriers.  Then last year I'd bought myself a huge wicker basket, the size of an old-fashioned travelling trunk, into which I'd crammed as many of my carrier bags as could possibly be squeezed in.  Thus when it came to begin moving, I was just able to empty this lovely container and bring everything over to our new property, in my lovely little Mazda.

Of course, this meant doing a very great many journeys to and fro all day on Monday and Tuesday, and then again on Thursday and Friday.  Alas, not so on Wednesday.  His car had become troubled by an odd clunking noise on Monday, and clearly sensing something was terribly wrong, the dear SO drove over to his garage, where they proceeded to discover what had occurred to produce this very odd sound.

By sometime on Tuesday, the fault had been ascertained and they fixed a time, on Wednesday, to put it right again, as soon as possible.  And finally it was OK and drivable again...late on Wednesday afternoon!!

So there I was, trapped and without a car.  However, apart from the packing to do, I still had to keep an eye on a recent on-line purchase, which had gone a little awry; and trying to organise change of address letters for my utility companies, etc. and my friends, so it was very good to be at home.  And I wasn't a bit upset about my not being able to get out driving, and the dogs loved the extra attention and walk in the afternoon.

I was actually beginning to think we should get everything together and be able to move during this week but then suddenly realised I would not be around on Wednesday and Thursday, for I'm going up to London on a walking tour of the City of London's Livery Companies, which I am very much looking forward to.  The walk has been organised by English Heritage and we're all meeting up at Saint Paul's Underground Station on Wednesday morning, and I'm sure it's going to be a most fascinating jaunt.

Then, I'm off to the Guildhall Library to look up my maternal grandfather and great grandfather in the archives of the Cordwainers' Livery Company, for I believe their names may be recorded there as they were both boot makers.  The archive material is recorded onto microfilm, which I've never viewed before, so its all terribly exciting actually doing something very new and positive for my family history.

I shall probably have a little saunter about St. Paul's before dashing off to meet my daughter and going to collect my two darling grandsons from their nursery school.  I've not seen them for a few weeks and I'm expecting to find them quite grown since then.  They do grow up so quickly!

So with all this in mind, I simply had to put my skates on and get everything packed up and ready to go on Sunday, thus missing going to church for Remembrance Day, which was very disappointing.  I did manage to watch part of the ceremony at the Cenotaph in Whitehall, on television, which was most moving and very solemn, and which always makes me cry.  I had bought poppies for all of us to wear, which we duly did.

Then somehow we loaded all our parcels, packages, suitcases, boxes, books and carriers into the dear SO's car and away he drove to our new property.  I still had the dogs to walk and to put in some heather and cyclamen plants, plus springtime bulbs, into my pots and tubs, currently nestling in a friends's garden.  By the time I reached our new home, it was dark, very  cold, and a bit damp.  As you might imagine, I was awfully pleased to get inside and sit down with a mug of hot tea.

And here we are, in a muddle of empty and still full boxes, and very little furniture as yet, for it's still all in store, so for the moment we're sitting on camp-side chairs and eating off paper plates.

Happy days, hey!  I did manage to get to my book club meeting tonight to watch the DVD of our latest read - Love in a Cold Climate by Nancy Mitford - which was highly enjoyable and very amusing.  Can't  wait to read Don't Tell Alfred.

Cheerio,

Daisy

All in a day.......Parcels and packages!

Books for Christmas from Amazon arrived today, ready to be wrapped and sent off to Australia for my son and daughter-in-law; and He had parcels of new parts and bits for our  new television service and tomorrow the aerial man could turn up early to sort out why the old one was not fit for purpose.

And today I've been to-and-fro in my trusty MX5 (British Racing Green) with packages and baskets of stuff of mine, getting it to our new property, our soon-to-be abode for a while.  Alice has been with me sometime, but then she was left with Him while I went back for another load.  It was fun and it really felt as if things were getting moving.  We're more than perfectly happy where we presently are, in a lovely 17th century village house, but as we need to be elsewhere, it's best that we get ourselves into our new home for the winter,, before the snow comes.

And before that happens, I need to get myself some gripper attachments for my boots, for I'm awfully good at falling over in the snow, always have been, and that just puts one out of action for a spell.  I've even actually slipped and fallen over a puddle of magnolia petals one year when taking Hank out for his walk; and nursed a bruised and swollen ankle for a good week afterwards.  And who is Hank, I hear you chorus, well, Hank was my daughter's dog but when she went off to university, I took on his care and daily walk routine.  He lived to the grand old age of fifteen years and was a smashing dog.

More parcels, birthday this time for the dear SO's youngest granddaughter and one more parcel for me, because I bought myself a new winter coat today...yipppeee!

Turkey talking got me three fresh birds to freeze for Christmas time, with two just fitting very snugly into our new freezer and the third in the 'fridge tonight, awaiting collection, from another family member who's going to store it at her home.  I could only get so near to the butcher's shop, in my little car, so the butcher's boy had to help me carry them.  This, of course, enabled him to have a  quiet ciggy on his return walk...and a breather, of course!

Well tonight we had a super supper of roast pork and apple sauce, lovely crispy roast potatoes and masses of fresh vegetables, and as I'd eaten very sparingly throughout the day, and so to had everyone else, we all had a smashing feast for the end of a very busy day; all cooked to perfection by the dear SO...he's a very good cook.

His first chore for the day was to fit our new wooden loo seat...it looks smashing, and then off he went to his hairdresser, and then to lunch with his daughter, while I was dashing about the town collecting my turkeys, returning some flat net dryers for my woollen jumpers and cardigans and walking Poppy and Alice.  Which was fine but...my telephone was not working, so of course, I didn't know where He was?

Also not working for me today was my Internet connection and I'm not really sure why not, but our lives are a little topsey-turvey right now, with the renovating and alterations, so I guess I'm just a little jumpy and I do believe my computer is simply playing me up.  The nerve of it!!

While He cooked, we watched some early TV and read today's newspapers, enjoyed a very nice G and T cosily relaxing in the sitting room and I flipped through my new magazine, which had earlier plopped thru' the letter box with the morning's mail.

Cheerio

Daisy

Downton Abbey riding high!

Swell, just swell; that's Downton Abbey tonight, and....the last episode before Christmas Day.  The suspense will be just killing.  I simply don't know how we'll manage to get on without His Lordship or Lady Mary and The Dowager.  It will be awful, just awful.

Still, there's the American civil war period serial, based on real life, about two families who's quarrels and disputes have gone from bad to worse since the fathers came back from the war.  It's very exciting and as it takes place in Virginia, it makes me think of The Waltons, that series from many years ago, about a family and their neighbours, living through the difficulties of the Depression and the following years.

I absolutely loved the television series, and remember very clearly, having to wait my turn with my local library, for my chance to read the book, eventually.

It's quite shocking how another country's history seems, somehow, more exciting and romantic than that of ones own country.  Our civil war was equally dreadful and terrible as the American civil war was; well, of course, perhaps civil war, any civil war, can always be considered most extreme and most horrendous.

And just like any war, anywhere, horrendous, shocking and terrible.

I've been incredibly busy this weekend trying to sort out all my belongings, ready for our imminent move to our new property.  And believe me when I tell you, just how much packing-up I have to do.  You see, I gather things, and possessions, hobbies, projects, photographs, of course; and letters and cards, my family history, and er.......well, clothes, not to mention shoes.  So I've had to begin my packing-up early for I know all too well, what will happen if I don't?  Very soon now, the dear SO will suddenly announce, without any warning, that today is the day for our move, and well, we'll be off.  And if I'm not ready, it will be pure pandemonium everywhere.  Thus, I'm creating a little space for myself, a calm and serene oasis, to become organised before He does so!

We've had a very wet and windy Sunday but the dogs still needed walking so there we were, out on a deserted village green and on the cricket field and, luckily for me, the rain ceased to fall a little after we left the house, so it wasn't so bad after all, and the dogs had a thoroughly lovely romp.

It's Monday again tomorrow and there's a little more painting to do and more packing up and my book club - we're doing Love in a Cold Climate by Nancy Mitford - another sort of romp altogether; and, of course, it's Bonfire Night with fireworks and a huge bonfire to stand around.

So, hey ho another full day tomorrow.  Phew!

Cherrio

Daisy

Fixings....and twitchings

This morning I decided to buy a piece of dowling for my cafe curtain and from our local B and Q store, which deals with such stuff as paint and wallpaper, plumbing supplies and kitchens, as they also sell lengths of wooden poles, called dowling.  It may be used for all different applications and it is a traditional item for the hanging of lace curtains.

An older type of curtain support was the  thin plastic casing, enclosing a tightly coiled spring which could stretch to fit a chosen width, and had an eye hook at each end, which connected with a nail or something similar at either side of the window frame.  You threaded the plastic casing through the material gully casing at the top of the curtain, and then hooked the end eye hole onto your fixed and waiting wall hook. And, hey presto, your new nets were up and in place, ready to keep the world from looking into your home.

A simple, basic net curtain is not a thing of great beauty, but yet it confers privacy and respectability onto any home, and a barrier between your home life and the world beyond your front door.

And it's such a thing in many households where it's often forgotten and allowed to be overlooked, it being such a thing of seemingly small importance, and a dulled and shabby looking net curtain soon takes on an altogether different character.  It lowers the tone of any home building or life style and quickly becomes the butt of scorn and derision.

Yet as it's such a simple and easy matter to keep these curtains sparkling white and spring fresh, it's odd how some folk completely forget to launder their nets more frequently.  Perhaps for many household, the simple net curtain no longer features in their battery of household additions.  We now have blinds, both roller and Venetian, and fine muslin drapes for window dressing.  You can fill a small to medium sized window with pretty display shelves on which to stand pots of spring bulbs, small plants or summer herbs in season. White painted wooden shutters may be used to keep the world at bay and if you live in a remote area or at the top of a tall building, you may choose to dispense with window dressing completely.  Still, the net curtain is in a league of its own for dressing your window, keeping your home life secure and holding the world at large, at arms length.

And of course, there are many different types of net curtaining available today, and the simple net of yesterday need no longer hang its head in shame, for its unsophisticated beginnings.  Its history is long and worthy and its place in the home guaranteed to be visible and useful for many a household, for many years to come.

Twitching at your nets or peeking around your curtain's edge, has long produced laughter at the expense of the householder, vainly trying to see what's going on outside their home, without their presence being noticed by the world at large  I've often heard tell that folk only poke fun at people or things they secretly like or value, so therefore it seems to me, we still value and like the old-fashioned net curtain, albeit that it now comes in a variety of designs and styles; and smart enough to dress the most fashionable window space.

Long live the net curtain I say, but please ensure it's spotless and fresh and sparkling white, for any state less than this, simply will not do, for the noble and historic net of yesteryear and even today.

Daisy