Our Youth Minister, Miriam, has planned today's service, and the link it HERE
I am grateful to God for my mother, and my mother-in-law, both wonderful women who taught me so much. And for my daughters, now mothers themselves. We have been so blessed
Many today are grieving. I pray for those who have lost their mothers, or children - and those who long to be mothers but are not. I pray for those who long to be with their families but covid19 separates them
My heart goes out especially this morning, to Sue, the mother of Sarah Everard, and to Gabriella, daughter of Nazanin Zagari Ratcliffe.
Lord, comfort the Everard family in their grief - and strengthen the Ratcliffe family as they hope and pray for a true reunion.
For years I was involved with the Girls' Brigade at church. Our Captain was Miss Johnston, and she was a gifted music teacher - who worked at the Girls' Secondary Modern School and then spent all the rest of her time working with GB. She was utterly committed to sharing her faith, and to encouraging girls to grow into capable, independent young women.
This is the Explorer group in 1969 - Captain asked me to be one of the Young Leaders, and help with this group. I'm still good friends on Facebook with two of this crowd [Lesley and Joan - centre front - still awaiting their uniforms] I'd rush home after school, do my homework and be back at church by 5.15, in full GB Uniform. First I helped these little ones, doing badge work, telling Bible stories, playing games, singing etc. All great preparation for a teenager who wanted to be a teacher - then it was time for the older girls to arrive.
As I have sorted and packed old photos recently, I have reminisced a lot about 'the old days' and my time in GB. Our programme was very varied- based on four sections- Spiritual, Educational, Social and Physical. We did drill and Figure Marching, and learned to swing Indian Clubs. [initially nobody wanted to do that, it seemed bizarre and old-fashioned. Then my Dad craftily pointed out that it was really good exercise for developing the bust. We all signed up then] We learned an incredibly diverse number of crafts and skills, and flower arranging was one which has proved useful ever since. My collection of flower vases is too big to take to Cornerstones - this week I have passed on three through the "Ferndown Kindness" Group [where you can recycle free items] I haven't had much need for figure marching or drill though. Bob has an excess of woodworking drills - so he's sold a vintage drill on another local site
All the money from our online sales is going into the Removals Fuel Fund. Even doing it ourselves with a van is going to be quite costly - it is a 400 mile round trip and the van will have to make a couple of journeys.
In the downstairs cloakroom is a little dish with some soap in it. A small sliver, and a larger piece- both came from hotel bathrooms. We rarely stay in such places, but I know that when you leave, they throw away what's left of your tiny tablet. That seems such a waste, so I put the soap into my sponge bag.
Like everyone else, we have done more handwashing than usual this past year - and my store of little soaps has gone down. Scientists generally suggest that bar soap is just as good as liquid handwash, it is the efficiency of your technique that matters. Do check out my Handwash Song, posted on 4th March last year
Soap is something that most of us take for granted. A survey of handwashing in 51 countries around the world, conducted between 2010 and 2013 showed incredible variation in the availability of this basic commodity in some areas - in Ethiopia, less than 0.1% of households had any soap. And yet we know that simple handwashing reduces the spread of disease and prevents many child deaths.
In the 19th Century Semmelweiss, a Hungarian doctor, and Florence Nightingale working in the Crimea both made the connection between clean hands and health. He noticed that mothers of new babies didn't get the same fatal infections if attended by midwives who washed their hands- whilst the Lady Of The Lamp noticed that wounds healed quicker if kept clean, and tended by nurses who were strict about hand hygiene.
But for poor people, soap was a luxury. Annie Chapman one of Jack the Ripper's victims, had been in a brawl three days before her death with another woman- an argument over a piece of soap. Another victim, Mary Ann Nichols possessions were listed as a comb and a piece of soap - and Catherine [Kate] Eddowes had six pieces of soap at the time of her death.
I remember reading those facts when we studied The Ripper at school - and thinking that soap seemed such a trivial thing to me - yet it was a prized possession for them. A Social Worker I knew told me that for many homeless people today, the inability to be clean adds to their sense of worthlessness and loss of personal dignity.
I remember working in one school where the staff were really concerned about two sisters, in their early teens, who were being teased 'because they smell'. It transpired that they came from an incredibly poor family where they had no proper laundry/bathroom facilities, and so they came to school in the same clothes for days on end. I'm glad to say that discreetly and without being patronising, the head was able to sort things out and improve their situation.
If I'm contributing items to a Foodbank Collection, I often pop a bar of soap in along with the foodstuffs [freshly bought - not one of my own Hotel Leftovers!]
Handwashing is often seen as symbolic of 'cleansing the soul' - and many of the world faiths practise rituals involving washing. Francis Bacon spoke of cleanliness proceeding from reverence to God, and John Wesley popularised the phrase "Cleanliness is next to Godliness"[it is a popular misconception that this is a Bible quote- it isn't]
But a little bit of soap really can make all the difference
A recent article in the Guardian referred to the increasing popularity of cookbook-memoir-hybrids. Not just recipes, but anecdotes and life stories intertwined.[eg Nigella's latest offering,"Cook, Eat, Repeat"] As usual, Liz is ahead of the curve here. Last summer, when I was in Norfolk, she lent me Laurie Colwin's 'Home Cooking' and then last month, her follow up 'More Home Cooking'. Thanks, Liz - I have loved these - they're the lockdown answer to comfort-eating but without the calories: comfort-food-reading!
I reviewed the first one last summer. This one is just as good - forty or so pieces [magazine articles, notes from talks etc] about all aspects of home cooking. I have fallen into bed exhausted after a day of sorting our possessions [pack, giveaway, discard] and taping up boxes - and indulged in reading a chapter or two of this book. And now I am reading it through again [to remind myself of bits I forgot in my tiredness]
Her chapter titles are as intriguing as ever
The Case of the Mysterious Flatbread
Desserts that Quiver
The Beet Goes On
Turkey Angst
The Glory of Chutney
Biscuits
I should point out that when Americans say biscuits we Brits say scones [Laurie calls them 'twin sisters'] She refers to a lot of her favourite cookbooks - and intriguingly, a high proportion are by British Cooks [she was writing in the late 80s] Jane and Sophie Grigson, Mary Norwak, Rose Mabey - many of whom were producing great cookbooks before the age of the TV celebrity chef.
I am not sure I will ever attempt succotash, but peach pizza - a summer dessert- sounds worth a try. Like Julia Childs, Ms. Colwin is Very Fond of butter [watch the film "Julie&Julia" starring Meryl Streep and listen to the unctuous way in which Ms. Streep/Childs says the word butter!]
"After you have been a very good person for a very long time, and are as thin as a bean, you may decide to fall briefly into sin. You want something simple and elegant that cannot be made without butter. There is only one thing that will do - shortbread. I would rather eat shortbread than any cake or cookie in the world...it is the essence of butter"
I have often said that I cannot read Nigel Slater's food writing without my mouth watering - that is true through much of this book - but more than that, I find myself quietly smiling. This is about making meals for the ones we love, without the sort of fuss that leaves the cook unable to enjoy the fellowship round the table, because the time in the kitchen has left them in an exhausted, sweaty heap.
Her chapter Real Food For Tots closes with these words
"Food is not fuel. It is not nutrition. It is fun, educational, horizon expanding, delightful. It is consoling, transporting and a comfort...If it is delicious, there is a good chance children will eat it. We want our children to be independent thinkers, happy sweethearts, and cheerful parents, and it is not too much to ask that they be cheerful cooks and eaters too"
I'm both amazed, and thrilled, that my girls have achieved all those things, and they are passing them on to the next generation. It has taken me years to relax in the kitchen, and I know that Bob and the girls are much better at cooking than I am. Reserve Ms. Colwin's book from your library now, so you can collect it when they re-open!
Genuine Offer - Having used Ziffit so much this past year to reduce our library, I can really recommend them. And they have just sent me a code to pass on- get an extra £5 on your first trade with this one ... IYBRCFFMI
Back in 1653, a guy called Izaak Walton wrote a book of poetry and prose celebrating the joy of angling. I have never read it - sitting on a cold damp riverbank all day waiting for a fishing line to twitch is not my idea of fun! But until recently it was the only example I knew of the word "compleat" where one might normally use "complete" But the word is back again - to define zero waste food. Things we can eat compleatly.
Use every part of your loaf of bread, whether it is fresh or stale, a middle section or a crust, a slice or some crumbs.
If you eat an orange, save the peel for another recipe
Cut your broccoli florets from the stalks, and use the stalks as a side vegetable in another dish
Where possible wash fruit and veg but don't bother to peel them.
Rinse out the end of the marmite jar to get a rich stock to perk up soups or gravy
If you cut fat off a piece of meat, render it down to use for frying
If your carrots come with leafy green tops, whiz them up to make pesto
Turn your chicken carcase into a stock
These are thrifty habits which not only save money but reduce food waste, and save the planet by helping to fight climate change. I regularly do all the things in that list above. Kezzie did a brilliant post in February about regrowing vegetable ends. Look at these lovely beetroot leaves and onion tops. You can find regular hints on the Guardian's Waste Not section, and Abel and Cole, the veg box people have tips on their website. Riverford - the another vegbox company produce a weekly online magazine called WickedLeeks [no connection with Julian Assange] full of great tips.
I was born in the fifties, just as rationing ended, and Food Waste was still considered Deeply Immoral. I am pleased people are taking it seriously once more.
What are your best tips for compleat eating? [please note, I am not interested in Slug Casserole, Banana Skin Curry or Coffee Grounds Brownies].
When we left the charming village of Kirby Muxloe, where we'd lived for two decades, my young friend Hannah [who I'd known since birth] sent me a lovely postcard, with a quote from Jane Austen's "Northanger Abbey". I've treasured the card- not so much for the quote, but for Hannah's thoughtful farewell message on the back. But as my word of the year is 'adventure' here's a picture of the card.
The little houses look Flemish, and in 1947, Bob's mother left her Belgian village to travel abroad to England, when she married Dad. A brave adventure.
Kirby is a super village - and yes I did have great adventures there - but there have been adventures in the past six years in Dorset too. In Austen's time "abroad" meant away from home, or over a wide area, not necessarily in a foreign country.
I'm going back to village life again- utterly confident that adventures will befall me there too.
To quote Agatha Christie...
“Well, my dear,” said Miss Marple, “human nature is much the
same everywhere, and, of course, one has opportunities of observing it at
closer quarters in a village.”
[not that I'm expecting Swanton Morley to rival St Mary Mead, in terms of crime statistics!]
Ferndown really does have a rather dull sign, imho!
Nine months ago I had a Rant. HERE Now I'm even more upset. How can a government which awards huge contracts to cronies, without open accountability, now justify a measly one percent pay rise for key workers? My friend Claire designed this last year. Read what she said then. I'm putting #NHSfundit merchandise on my birthday wish list. [find all her products HERE]
[design copyright Claire Cooper. Not to be reproduced for profit]
The weeks seem to be passing very quickly - we are already at the first Sunday in March. It was good to have so many people participate in the Day of Prayer with us on Friday [that service is still available] This morning's worship from UCF includes communion. The link is HERE - and we will be focusing on Ananias and his encounter with Paul in Damascus.
There are too many picture frames in this house! When we emptied the loft on Tuesday I found a whole box of family photos and random pictures - and many of them were in good frames. Then there was a box of 8 smaller wooden IKEA frames left over from a Holiday Club craft project, and the box of "pictures we formerly had on the walls in Kirby but not in this house".
Bob helped me remove all the photos, and we amassed about 25 frames for which we have no use [if we hung all the artwork on the walls at Cornerstones, it would be like the National Gallery - 30 pictures in every room] I posted in the Ferndown Kindness Group- and a lady has been to collect the frames. No point in trying to sell them, and if a Charity shop were open for donations, this lot would rather swamp them.
We've kept three IKEA "Ribba" frames- because we used to have a wall of black and white family photos all mounted in these frames, in the lounge in Kirby. I've found a few more pictures that I'd like to add to this and we will display them in the hall at Cornerstones. But all the rest are going.
Last Saturday, Bob and I walked to the postbox, and noticed someone had a load of 'free' stuff on their lawn. Is that a Ribba? I said - then reminded myself we did not need it. A couple of days later, on another postbox stroll, I saw the frame again- at the top of the road, this time smashed on the pavement. Had somebody picked it up, then dropped it by mistake? If so, why didn't they clear it up? Next to it was a child's plastic wheelbarrow.
It was almost 3pm, and time for the children who were at school to come home - there are often adults, children, toddlers, and dogs on the path mid afternoon. I came home home, got gloves and a cardboard box, and went back to retrieve the glass. When I got back to our house, I discovered it was like a RIbba, but different proportions. It's all been carefully disposed of now. My neighbour said she'd noticed a family with a small child pushing the barrow full of stuff, and it tipped over. Maybe he'd collected the freebies on his walk up the hill. [The barrow has gone now]
Cornerstones is in a much quieter close - very few children going past. I'll miss that. But my youngest neighbour there, who has mobility issues, has just got a fantastic new TomCat trike. This innovative company specialises in bespoke trikes for those with special needs- enabling them to enjoy the fun of cycling, and safe exercise in the fresh air. I look forward to chatting to her this summer as she pedals by with her Mum jogging behind.
I seem to be up to my eyes in Zoom meetings lately - a year ago I'd never been to one! Last week, Rosie had two 'birthday family Zoom' events. Then on Sunday it was the usual afterchurch coffee. Wednesday the Church Prayer Group, Thursday a friend's book launch party. [report to follow later] Today is World Day of Prayer Day
Tonight a WDP follow up Zoom coffee & cake session with members of Thrive [the Baptist Support network, where all the readers in our service came from]
Don't forget you can find this year's Vanuatu Service at anytime on YouTube HERE
And if that isn't enough online activity, it's also been Fairtrade Fortnight - focusing on climate change, with loads of online stuff
I love sharing good news stories, and things about people who have been doing good stuff in bad times. Two stories I noticed this week...
Krystyna Pasko is an 18 year old Polish girl. She's in the Scouts and created a Facebook Page for her Warsaw Scouts group, and has long been interested in Human Rights.
She was concerned to read about people affected by Domestic Violence who were unable to access help - and that a French Pharmacy had a system whereby asking for a particular type of face mask was a signal that a person needed help.
She decided to set up an online fake cosmetics company., called Camomile and Pansies.
The idea is that an abuse victim can hide her requests for help by pretending to be shopping on line. When a customer asks for cream for a skin problem, a psychologist [not a regular shop assistant] asks how long the problem has been going on, how does it react to alcohol etc...and these are coded ways of determining what is happening- if the customer 'places an order' and gives her address, then the authoritieswoill visit the home to offer help.
The Polish Women's Rights Centre, an NGO are supporting the site by supplying psychologists and lawyers who work with the site. Since the launch nearly 400 people [mostly under 40, and 10% male] have been in touch. Krystyna won an EU Civil Solidarity award [with a £10,000 prize] for the idea, which enabled her to set it all up.
I am so impressed that this young woman has recognised a need, has seen that her generation are happiest communicating on the internet - and has provided a way of helping those who are desperate for escape from abuse. Well done Krystyna! [full story here]
And here's Jonathan Cunningham- the sort of guy I really admire. Having finished University he joined the Army- serving in Bosnia, Northern Ireland, Iraq...and then he had a cardiac arrest. This changed his outlook on life, work and family, He made a full recovery and was promoted to chief of staff over the NW Army. Here he rolled out a plan to engage with disaffected youth in deprived areas. It was a huge success, in 2009 the Queen awarded him the MBE.
And he changed direction again - first becoming a director in the Wirral Foundation Trust Hospitals, and then setting up a consultancy, speaking on business models, resilience and counter-terrorism. And now he and his wife run Rosebank - a care home specialising in dementia and learning disabilities. He has been incredibly vocal during the pandemic, accusing the PM of throwing the Care Home Sector 'under the bus'
But he doesn't just complain - he acts. A shortage of proper PPE meant he had to devise alternative ways to protect his staff - so he bought them ski goggles and kagoules. And he knew that lack of contact is a terrible thing for a dementia patient- he is aware that they need the reinforcement of visits from loved ones, and mental stimulation. He devised all sorts of creative ways to enable them to keep in touch. So his latest move? He has bought an electric rickshaw and equipped it with an all round perspex screen.
And now this caring, witty, intelligent bloke takes his residents for rides - along Lord Street, Southport's Victorian Boulevard, even enjoying the occasional icecream, as they feel the breeze, and the sun on their faces. What a true source of joy for everyone involved! Keeping his residents safe during the pandemic has been a great burden he admits- but says his years in the army taught him to be responsible for the men in his care. And being a family run home, he is not answerable to the 'group protocols' of large chain care-homes.
Jonathan's passion for life is evident, he says this "Live life to the full, exercise every single day, love
people and do things that scare you! Life is about putting back, adding value
and always improving people’s lives. Life is short - let’s do it!"
Thank you Krystyna and Jonathan - youchallenge and inspire us - God strengthen you in all your efforts to bless and help others.
In 1986, I had a book published. It was called "Get It Taped" and it was a guide to recording and using audio cassettes in church. Ken Jackson, who ran a small publishing company called "Jay Books" asked me to write it as part of his Acorn Series. It was one of a number of practical handbooks for using modern technology in church. In those days, cassettes were 'modern technology'!! It is totally irrelevant now, and out of print. But it had its own ISBN [0951008633] and I made as much money, in real terms, from royalties as PDJames made from her first book. Sadly, unlike PDJ, I didn't go on to write dozens of best sellers!
"Taping" music and sermons is old school these days- everything is digital or on CDs. And "taping" now means what it did years ago - fastening together with tape.
Here's my top tip for the month- if you have to tape a lot of boxes, whether you are packing to move, or packing parcels to post, invest in one of these. Years ago, we just wrestled with rolls of packing tape, then we got a strange plastic device that came with a pack of rolls- but finally we invested in this strong hand-held device, with a metal section to hold the reel of tape, and a viciously sharp tape cutter [with safety guard]
It is so efficient and makes the job faster and easier. I estimate that it has taped at least 1000 boxes since we bought it - at less than 1p a time. On Monday it helped me to turn a potato masher and a sink plunger into a Dalek. Yes, I know it uses plastic tape - but on the other hand, it enables us to recycle and re-use removal boxes multiple times. Judging by the labels on some of our boxes, they've already done three or four moves!
After this move, we shall flatten them, and give them to somebody else.
My dear blog-friend Kezzie is celebrating her 40th birthday this week. She is very fond of 'Whovian cosplay' [dressing up as a character from the Dr Who TV series] and she suggested that as a sort of virtual birthday party, we might like to join her in this today - one of her regular TARDIS Tuesdays. You pick a character and recreate the scene - if possible listing where you obtained the garments.
Longtime followers of this blog will know that I love that sort of challenge - but there is a major problem for me right now- almost all my clothes are packed up, my craft materials are packed up - I have the absolute minimum of clothing available. But the kitchen packing is still in progress. I decided to be creative with the materials to hand. The kick stool in the kitchen is affectionately know as The Dalek because of the way it glides along. I just added a few bits and pieces...
I don't think this looks too bad. Then I remembered Bob has a long overcoat and a floppy felt hat - and I am knitting a stripey weather scarf. There are 40 days to go with that- so I had to conceal a ball of wool and the knitting needle with stitches on up my sleeve.
Here is the 4th Doctor [Tom Baker] recreating Doctor Who and The Genesis of the Daleks from 1975 - six years before Kezzie was born. And below is my take on it
Today is St David's Day. Unlike Patrick, George and Andrew, Saint David [Dewi Saint] is a native to the country that regards him as their patron. I have found six facts about him
He was born in a thunderstorm
He was a fine preacher
He was a teetotal vegetarian
He performed miracles
His symbol is a white dove
His legacy lives on in Wales
Born in the year 500, he died on 1st March 589 - now marked as St David's Day. The week before his death he preached a sermon including these words
‘Be joyful, keep the faith, and do the little things that you have heard and seen me do.’
Sometimes, just holding on, and doing the little things is all we can do - and they are the things that often matter most. Especially now
Saturday was not our best day - we both had quite a reaction to the vaccine, at 10pm Friday night, feeling achey, and shivery. I had a bad headache and Bob was feverish. But we took Saturday slowly, and finished all the recording stuff for this morning's servicefrom UCF. By teatime we were still tired, but generally feeling heaps better.
I do love this hymn, written by the Catholic Hymnwriter Dan Schutt.I found these words on his website in a piece entitled "Finding Hope"
We live in difficult times. Every day it seems we hear news
that eats away at our efforts to live in hope. I’m not talking about those
immensely tragic things that break our hearts, but rather, the little things
that one by one add up and become a dark grey cloud that obscures the light …
Being hopeful is not just about nurturing a positive outlook on life. Rather,
it has much to do about becoming aware of hand of God touching the world around
us, especially in the little things, and trusting that God has a future
prepared for us that is full of joy
Will you come to the Mission, will you come, come, come?
There's a nice cup of tea and a bun, bun, bun...
Bob maintains Terry Pratchett wrote this in one of his Discworld books - but I have this distant memory a Sally Army girls singing it. Can anyone help me out here?
We had the injections, very efficiently done, thank you, at the Wallisdown Pharmacy [including a pleasant chat to the woman doing the administration - a local head teacher who is released from her school every Friday as a volunteer for the vaccination roll-out] I made one purchase in the pharmacy, then we picked up milk and bits in Aldi, collected something from Bob's Office at church - and came home for a nice cup of tea- and we shared a Belgian Bun.
My purchase in the pharmacy was one of these - a hair clamp. My hair has got SO long, and it is really annoying me when I am cooking, or packing boxes, or walking outside in the wind. I bought one of these clips about 30 years ago and kept it until quite recently, even though I'd gone back to a shorter haircut. I dug it out last summer - and discovered that the plastic had started to degrade and half the 'claws' had snapped. I threw it away. But now I know a haircut won't happen for at least two more months. I splashed out £2,50 on this pretty blue piece- and then persuaded Bob to trim my fringe. [He did it remarkably efficiently, and I am grateful]
I have swept the fringe to one side- I don't suit the Claudia Winkleman look - nor yet Lucy Worsley's schoolgirl barrette. When I was an officer in the Girls' Brigade, I wore my hair in a proper, formal bun, formed around one of those bizarre nylon "doughnuts"
I do hope that I shall soon be able to get my hair cut but of course, I shall have to find a new hairdresser in Norfolk.
My last haircut was March 12th. And tomorrow, my 'temporary' dental filling will be one year old. I am still diligently chewing buns etc on the right side of my mouth, as I am terrified of dislodging or cracking it. I shall have to find a new dentist in Norfolk too.
But I am happy to have my hair off my face and out of my eyes again!
I knew that the 'cat' ie the catalytic converter on my Toyota needed replacing. And I knew it would not be cheap. "After Christmas..." I said. I'm hardly using my car at the the minute. Then the Ferndown Post Office closed because the staff tested positive for covid19, as did the replacement team due to come and stand in for them.
I had to drive to another PO- and on the way back, my airbag warning light came on. And went off. And came on again - all the way home. Help! is it going to inflate halfway down Church Road? I thought.
So the car went into the garage to have the new cat fixed, and then once the part had arrived, they fitted a new 'air-bag squib' [this is all to do with the wiring to the Gas Generator and it sets the bag off if there is a collision]
David Smith Motors, on the Ferndown Industrial Estate, have looked after my car beautifully for 6 years- and I guess this is the last time I will take it there. [Thank you DSM]
But these jobs are not cheap - cats require lots of rare metals [palladium etc] so what with the garage bill, and the cost of booking a van for The Move, the last couple of weeks have proved Very Expensive.
We needed cheering up.
And I needed a break from packing and stuff. So I made some biscuits,
I made some of Anna Olsen's ORCs [Oatmeal Raisin Cookies] which I discovered years ago.[Recipe here]
I'm using up the stuff in the cupboards - and had no dark soft brown sugar, so substituted molasses, and also substituted the end of a jar of muesli for some of the oats -they came out fine. I ended up with 50 biscuits [I use my 1" ice cream scoop which spreas out on baking to make 2½" cookies] I've sandwiched just 10 pairs together, and divided the remaining 30 cookies into 3 boxes in the freezer. Today we are having our first vaccinations. I shall need a biscuity treat when I get home!
People have warned me to expect an aching arm, and generally feeling lousy the day after. "Do not plan anything strenuous for Saturday" They've said.
If that's what it takes,. them I shall put up with the brief discomfort.
"Comb your hair, Angela, you look like you've been dragged through a hedge backwards" my long-suffering mother would say. I remember how frustrated she was that the teacher made no attempt to tidy up my locks before the annual school photo. If I hadn't already packed it, I'd share that picture here. You think the PM looks scruffy - I'm told he ruffles his hair before the No 10 briefings - but scruffiness came naturally to me.
The first use of the expression in print is in the Hereford Journal, February 1857, in a report of a
poultry show: “In the class for any distinct breed came a pen of those curious
birds 'the silk fowls', shown by Mr. Churchill, and a pen of those not less
curious 'the frizzled fowls', sent by the same gentleman,
looking as if they had
been drawn through a hedge backwards.”
I was reminded of this phrase on Saturday- there was a great photograph in the Eastern Daily Press.
A 'concerned dog-walker' [let's face it, it is almost always a dog-walker or jogger who discovers such things] rang the police. They had seen somebody apparently motionless, stuck in the hedge.
But fear not - it was not an entrapped bird-watcher, nor yet a grisly murder incident [I admit, I have been binge-watching Criminal Minds recently, I do think Mandy Patinkin is a good actor]
It was just the bottom half of a shop-mannequin, dressed and posed to cause consternation among the Norfolk locals.
But you do have to ask yourself -what happened to the mannequin's top half? Will it be spotted climbing out of a chimney, or stuck in a pavement inspection cover?
You are growing up so fast! I can't believe you are 5 today. The little baby became a cheerful toddler, and now you are growing schoolgirl.
You bring us so much joy - you are thoughtful and funny and bright. We are truly blessed. And despite the restrictions and complications of the the last year, you have learned so much. God bless you today and always. Happy birthday, Rosie!
I am so impressed by the ingenuity displayed by so many people during lockdown. Unable to pursue their activities as they did before, they come up with creative ways to continue with their hobbies - ukulele orchestras practising together on zoom, cooks tweaking their recipes because the usual ingredients are unavailable, businesses completely changing their manner of working to accommodate the fact that things are all online, or their usual outlets have closed [eg food retailers formerly supplying the hospitality industry now selling to the public]
I loved this story about Jan Heath, a retired schoolteacher and self taught artist who lives in Norfolk. She ran out of canvas for paintings, so decided that 'small is beautiful' - and worked out a technique for painting on used tea-bags instead. Great recycling! She began simply, with a mixed box of Pukka Herbal Teas - and just painted the ingredients...
She was running out of space to store large canvas works - this is much more compact - and they are selling like hotcakes
I love the Retro girls - and the "View from the Tate" [happy memories of sitting there with Liz for a coffee, years ago]
The three ginger cats were on bags for ginger tea - and Jan printed Wordsworth's poem "To a butterfly" on one bag before adding the red admiral. I think the washing day one is cute.
She says that friends have kindly supplied her with interesting tagged bags. I'm not sure my simple fairtrade red label are quite 'pukka' enough!
Do check out Jan's Facebook page, she adds new pieces regularly. What a great talent on a tiny workspace!
Preacher, teacher, wife, mother, grandmother, craftswoman. Married to wonderful Pastor Bob since 1979, now happily retired to Norfolk, but still busy. I am blessed with two brilliant grown-up daughters and four wonderful grand children
Our Youth Minister, Miriam, has planned today's service, and the link it HERE
