Cut To The C[h]ase

Did you know the phrase "Cut to the chase" is a century old? It comes from the early days of silent cinema, in the USA. Film makers shot lots of film, but it was hard to make dialogue interesting. The rapid chase scenes were exciting however, so superfluous footage was excised- the editors phrase was "Cut to the chase". Now the phrase means "forget the trivia, get to the point"

The point of this post is a case. Specifically, a case to help you cut. I recently purchased some folding scissors, and was intrigued to realise they would fit perfectly into a square case - the same size as our TwoByTwo patches. I decorated two squares of lilac felt. One side with three Boteh motifs, and the other with a letter K [for Kirsten] The crimson K is decorated with running stitch and coloured seed beads - the other side has sparkly sequin embellishments. The squares are attached on three sides, open at the base. I threaded a ribbon through the scissors and then through a hole in the top corner of the case. And attached a pair of buttons at the top.

When folded, the scissors are inside the case. But they can be pulled out, unfolded and used. The little buttons retain the ribbon. 

This should fit tidily in a sewing bag, and when folded, all the sharp points are safely enclosed. 

I included this as Kirsten's "Flat Gift"

I am becoming quite fascinated by the constraint of having to work on these little squares each month! 

Working At Warp Speed?

James Doohan, who played"Scotty" in Star Trek, was the grandson of a Scottish weaver. It is said that he suggested "Warp Speed" for the extremely high speeds reached by the Starship Enterprise, as a reference to the flying shuttles he had watched in his childhood. I was pondering  on my October Two-By-Two patches, and realised I'd done a fair bit of mending and fixing for friends and family recently. So I thought I would decorate this months patches with darns.

I dug out my Speedweve darner. I picked some Autumnal colours, and used some white Aida even weave cloth to keep things neater. Here are my two patches

You start by threading the WARP using the hooks to make a tidy top edge. Then you WEAVE THE WEFT from side to side. It's fiddly but fun. I like the way the colours blend and remind me of the falling leaves.

In the way these things turn out, Kirsten sent me a link [after I had begun working on the idea] to the website of Jessie Mordine Young, who had an exhibition of her 'woven year' based on a collection of daily pieces created on a small loom.

K. had no idea what my October patch would be about - but I am fascinated by the way similar ideas come to us as we are planning...
By the way 'Speedweve' is a bit of misnomer. This one took ages - and these are patches #3 and #4, as the first two just weren't up to snuff!

Putting The Clocks Back

It is odd how we talk about 'gaining an hour' this weekend - when in fact it is just making up for the hour we 'lost' in the Spring. Time rolls on, whatever we do. Joyce Grenfell wrote this great poem, simply called Time...

When I was a girl there was always time,

There was always time to spare.

There was always time to sit in the sun;

And we were never done

With lazing and flirting,

And doing our embroidery,

And keeping up our memory books,

And brushing our hair,

And writing little notes,

And going on picnics,

And dancing, dancing, dancing, dancing--

When I was a girl there was always time to waste.

Thank the Lord.

When I was a young woman there was always time,

There was always time to spare.

There was always time to walk in the sun,

And we were never done

With going to weddings,

Our own and our friends',

And going to parties,

Away at weekends,

And having our children

And bringing them up,

And talking, talking, talking, talking--

When I was a young woman there was always time to enjoy things.

Thank the Lord.

And when I was an elderly woman there was no more time,

There was no more time to spare.

There was no more time to sit in the sun,

For we were never done

With answering the telephone,

And looking at the TV,

And doing baby-sitting,

And talking to our friends,

And shopping, shopping, shopping, shopping,

And washing-up, washing-up, washing-up,

Writing letters, writing letters

Rushing, rushing, rushing,

And we were always hurried,

And we were never bored.

When I was an elderly woman

There was never time to think.

Thank the Lord.

But now I'm an old old woman,

So I want the last word:

There is no such thing as time--

Only this very minute

And I'm in it.

Thank the Lord.

I think I am at verse 3 these days, but at every stage of life, I have learned to thank the Lord for his blessings.

Mysterons, Ergatrons And Magnetrons

This is the voice of the Mysterons, we know you can hear us...
Do you remember Captain Scarlet? Another character from Gerry Anderson's "Supermarionation" - the Mysterons were from Mars and had ' a war of nerves' with the earthmen. It was a follow up to Thunderbirds, but not as good, imho.

This week I came across Ergotrons. Well, almost. I was looking round a hospital with a colleague, and we kept find weird triangular patterns of screw holes in the consulting rooms. "What are these?" she asked, and was told "Oh, that's where the Ergotrons were". The staff member was unable to give any further information. It transpires that they are wall mounted bits of kit involving monitors and keyboards etc. They had been removed, but nobody had got round to filling the holes or making good the walls [we were doing an inspection of the premises] We giggled as we walked back to our meeting room, about The Invasion Of The Ergotrons...

Then I had a a bit of a scary experience. I switched on the microwave [bought just 5 weeks ago] and it started smoking and making odd noises [smoke, crackle! pop!] I switched it off, promptly. Bob said "switch it on again, and take photos this time". So I did, somewhat nervously. Bob said "I think the Magnetron has gone"

Bob contacted John Lewis customer services, who communicate via WhatsApp. They put him through to the technical department. The guy did not seem to know much about microwaves.

Bob sent a picture of the microwave full of smoke. Then said "Would it help if I told you I have an MA in physics, and trained as an electrical engineer, and I believe the magnetron has gone?" The person on the other end accepted this diagnosis - and said if we packed it up, we could take it into JL Norwich and exchange it for a new one. We did that, hoping the mysteron,ergotron,magnetron lasts longer than 5 weeks this time. Or I shan't know what to do-ron -ron-ron

PS IF YOU ARE IN THE UK, DON'T FORGET TO PUT THE CLOCKS BACK TONIGHT!

Comin' Thro' The Rye...

 

A Scottish folk song, words written by Robert Burns in 1782. I was never quite sure about it, but it is something to do with a young couple meeting up in a damp field of grain for a private kiss. And Jennie's petticoat gets wet. It was written centuries before Salinger's Holden Caulfield story. I recently bought some rye flour, and decided I should use it in my breadmaker.
The breadmaker is 6 months old, and I have got into a good routine with it. It makes three sizes of load - M,L and XL. The M size is just right for slices for the toaster, and that size loaf lasts us 2 or 3 days. I usually make a half'n'half white and wholemeal flour loaf with an added scoop of my seed mix.

I noticed in the recipe book there were two recipes - one 100% rye flour, the other 50/50. This is the latter. A good even texture and a pleasant taste. And it toasts well.
I have just been reading Breadsong, a heartwarming story by a daughter and her father, Kitty and Al Tait.

‘If you had told me at 14 when I couldn’t even get out of bed with depression and anxiety that three years later I would have written a book I would never have believed you. But here it is – the story of the Orange Bakery. How I went from bed to bread and how my Dad went from being a teacher to a baker. You reading it means everything to me’ – Kitty Tait

If you want a heartwarming story about a loving family coping with the stress of a teenage daughter with serious mental health issues, this is it. It is also the most wonderful book about bread, and a caring community.
As well as the story of their life changing experience, these two generously share their tried and tested recipes in the centre section of the book. 
The book is written in two different fonts - so you can tell which is Kitty's writing and which is Al's. I reluctantly returned the library copy, [other people had reserved it] but I am putting this one on my Christmas list. 
Breadsong is the magical sound made by bread cracking and hissing as it cools...
*****

You Won't Feel The Benefit...

January 1978, my second term of teaching, living in Hemel Hempstead. HH was a 'New Town' and the New Town's Commission had set aside affordable rented accommodation for key workers. As a teacher, I qualified for a first floor, 1 bed flat with a little balcony. I was so happy there. But over New Year I had developed a really bad throat infection. I was off school, and got a GP appointment at 9am. I walked up to the surgery - part of a little run of shops at the end of the road, using a well maintained footpath which ran alongside the OAP complex. I saw the GP, collected the prescription, treated myself to a cake, and set off for home. It was very cold and there had been a hard frost.
As I turned onto the path, I found a little old lady, standing perfectly still and looking confused. "Are you alright?" I asked "I'm scared. It is so slippery, and I am afraid that if I try and walk I will fall over" I held her arm firmly, and together we walked back to her flat. This took quite a while! 
By the time I got to her door, I knew she was a 90 year old widow, Cora originally from the north of England. No family nearby, but very happy within her community. They had connected, independent flats, with 24/7 access to a warden, and a communal lounge where lots of activities happened. And she had good neighbours too. Cora had been out to buy some bread for herself and her neighbour.

"Please come in for a cup of tea" she said. I went into her tidy little home "Take off your coat , or you won't feel the benefit" She became a good friend, and I visited her regularly, getting to know her neighbours, and the warden. The warden said many residents wanted to have a Sunday Worship service as they could not get out to church - so with others from my chapel, I set up a monthly afternoon event. I helped with Christmas Socials and Summer Tea Parties in their central garden area. And winter or summer, Cora would tell us "Take off your coat , or you won't feel the benefit" Five months after meeting Cora, I met Bob. We left HH in the summer on 81 as Bob began ministerial training 
In those 4 years I had learned quite a lot about how elderly people adjust to the problems of age, health issues, managing on a pension, and coping in widowhood. In July 82, I became the Warden in an OAP Sheltered Housing Scheme near the college where Bob was training.
I was reminded of Cora yesterday when I went into Dereham Library. A young woman, Emma, runs an IT help session every Wednesday for people who get confused by technology. And this week she was promoting a new WhatsApp scheme set up by Norfolk Council - called "Ask Cora". It's designed to give unpaid carers easy access to advice and support. She asked me to pin up a flyer in our chapel - and I left her helping a gentleman who was struggling to use the Smartphone his family had given him.

I wonder who decided on the name Cora? We still say "take off your coat, or you wont feel the benefit" occasionally, and remember our friend from almost 50 years ago. 

I Shouldn't Be Allowed Out!

The last couple of weeks have been slightly surreal, I don't think I have been thinking very clearly about things. 

One day I returned to my car - parked in the field outside the Museum, and I just could not remember where I had parked it. I had to walk up and down the rows clicking my key fob till I heard the doors unlock.

Three days later I returned to another car park, and this time went straight to the car, opened the passenger door and slung my bag into the footwell. Then absent-mindedly I climbed in and was about to put on my seatbelt when I realised the steering wheel was on the other side! I had to scuttle round before anyone noticed.

I have a sewing project in mind, and needed supplies. I complained to Bob "I went through all the craft baskets in the Charity Shop, and I could only see two invisible zips" He couldn't stop laughing.

For six weeks I have been looking for my bottle of M&S perfume. "I haven't seen it since we were last in Manchester" I said. When I fetched my cabin bag down from the loft on Friday morning, I found not only my perfume but clean teeshirts and underwear, and my missing baseball hat.  Fortunately the bag of dirty laundry had been dealt with on our return, but clearly I didn't empty the case before I put it away!

I thought our flu jabs were this week. But last Thursday, enjoying a lazy breakfast in our pjs, Bob looked at his phone, and announced we needed to be at the surgery in 10 minutes time!! We dressed Very Very fast, and walked round to get our shots.

Despite all those crazy errors, I did manage to get from Cornerstones to Steph's house and back without any crises en route!