The Rules Were There For A Reason...

December 2020 -  Rick and Angela - the generous couple who gave up their Christmas morning to cook lunch for around 50 people who would be alone that day - and the team of masked and distanced volunteers who helped get those meals out to the recipients. Following all the covid protocols

April 2021 - Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, sitting alone at her husband's funeral. Following all the covid protocols

November 2021 - where my beloved cousin Gillian spent her 65th birthday, and the kind staff apologised to us that they were unable to give her any sort of party. Visiting was strictly limited, even for the dying. 

Following all the covid protocols

December 2020. Conservative Party HQ, London. The party  invitation has just been disclosed to the press. Following all the covid protocols????

I am not in the least surprised that many people are desperately sad, and very angry, right now. 

Proceeding From The Heat-Oppressed Brain

 I really do not handle hot weather very well. It is too hot for me to think straight. In times like these, I'm grateful the Lord did not call me to be a missionary in hotter climes. Meals are easy, I'm not going to slave over a boiling stove. Fortunately Bob enjoys cooking some meat on the bbq while I toss a cool salad. Or we have a simple one pot dish which cooks itself. Months ago I ripped a Yotam recipe out of a magazine, and we enjoyed for lunch after church [total time at stove around 5 minutes at the start of prep, and another 5 cooking a couple of flatbread. 

I love it when mine looks like the picture - and tastes good! 

Yesterday was really busy. Church in the morning included an AGM [We gave our report on holiday club] Then Bob went to the Hospice for one of their regular memorial services. In the evening, the Installation of the new vicar in our village [Rachael and I have already become friends, we have heaps in common]

 After lunch, I indulged myself in 100 minutes of pure nostalgia on BBC 2. 

I love C S Forester's books, and the film of 

The African Queen is a classic. Katherine Hepburn as the upright, tea drinking Edwardian maiden missionary, paired with Humphrey Bogart as the gruff, gin-drinking dissolute steamer captain. Fabulous cinema! 

At the beginning of the film, Hepburn is playing the harmonium at the mission station where her saintly, caring brother is preaching. And as I sat dozing in the summer afternoon, I suddenly noticed an alarming resemblance between the late actor Robert Morley and someone else much in the news lately... 

I'd only been drinking tea, not gin, I promise you... 

God Created...

... and calls us to be good stewards of Creation. But are we? 

This reworking of an old song reminds us of the need to collaborate, and work together to make things better 

Earnest Hemming Day*

The end of term approaches. This year I'm not involved in School Plays - but I AM helping out two teenagers with their Prom Dresses. As usual the frocks are too long, and even with their new high heels [which they are not used to wearing] the hems are trailing on the floor. So I'm adjusting the length

There are five layers to each gown. Three outer layers of floaty tulle, two inside layers of opaque soft satiny fabric. In my childhood this was call Art Silk. I was so disappointed when I discovered that meant artificial. Nowadays I can't decide which is worse - weaving non biodegradable acrylic, or boiling poor little silkworm cocoons.

There are metres and metres of fabric to be trimmed away - a 10cm strip round the bottom of each layer. 

Fortunately the tulle does not need to be hemmed, just trimmed. The silk frays, and even with a Teflon foot, it's hard to control the machine. So I prefer to hand stitch. Slower, but you get a better finish.

Top Tips:

1. Get the wearer to stand on a stool [or her Dad's work platform!] so that the dress hangs right down and measuring is easier
2. "Pin" the hem of the lining layers level with the bottom of her heel, so it clears the floor and won't get caught by the heel of the shoes. 
3. Use knitting clips or clothes pegs rather than pins which may snag the fabric. 
4. Make sure scissors are sharp
5. Hang the dress from a high hook [or curtain rail] gather up ALL the layers except the innermost, clip them out of the way and sort 1st layer. Then let down layer #2, etc, until you finally get to trimming layer #5. It looks odd, while you're doing it, but it works. 
6. Have plenty of space to drape dress whilst you are pinning hems - I stand at the sofa, and drape the rest of the dress over the sofa. When I'm handstitching, I put the hem on my lap, and the rest of the dress is spread out on the coffee table in front of me to support the weight. 
7. Remind wearer to practise wearing the shoes round the house in the week before, and also to sort out underwear. Stick on bras are very popular. [Anne Summers, 3 pairs of cups for £6 are good value, especially if there are a group of you]

This is going to be a busy Saturday as I complete the task. I'm glad I can contribute to their special evening. As the song says... Momma's little baby loves shortening! 

*I couldn't resist this play on words either 

Goodbye Glenda!

It must have been around 2001, Liz was a student in London, and one Saturday afternoon she telephoned me, very excited

"Mum, I've just seen Glenda Jackson in the Garden Centre in Blackheath!!" 

"Oh Wow! Glenda Jackson the actress? How fantastic!" 

"No Mum, the Labour MP..."

And I suddenly realised that this brilliant woman had given up acting to become an MP when Liz was about 10, and so Liz only recognised this woman for her second career in politics. 

When I was 16, I loved watching this fiery woman portraying Queen Elizabeth I in the BBC series-  from the feisty young woman to the tired old monarch, it was riveting viewing [we only had a black and white TV then, sadly]

She was superb. Her working class roots meant she understood grim poverty, but she also was wonderful in Shakespearian roles, and film adaptations of DH Lawrence books.

In 1971, she received an Oscar for "Women in Love" - and 18 years later in "The Rainbow" she acted as the mother of the character she'd played in the earlier film.

From 1957-1992 she was in films,on TV, with the RSC and acting on Broadway. 

But all the time she held strong political values - fighting for women's right, protesting against the VIetnam War, supporting Oxfam and the International year of the child. A lifelong member of the Labour Party.

She left the stage and in 1992 became the  Labour MP for Hampstead and Highgate [later Hampstead and Kilburn], serving till 2015. She stood no nonsense, and spoke her mind. A champion of the underdog - she really did care about making the country and better place. 

And then aged 79 she retired from Parliament and returned to the stage again in 2015.

At the age of 80 she played the title role in King KLear to great acclaim.

She is one of only 24 people to win the Triple Crown of Acting Awards [Oscar, Emmy, Tony] But it took her nearly half a century to do it!

Oscar in 1971, Emmy in 1972 - and the Tony in 2018. 

In her last role, based on a true story, she plays the wife of a WW2 veteran [played by Michael Caine]who absconds from his Sussex care home to go to France for the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings. I am looking forward to seeing The Great Escaper.

Having been friends for years, Sir Michael led the tributes when her death was announced this week

What did she regard as the best moment - she always said that the apotheosis of her acting career was appearing as Cleopatra in the Morecambe and Wise Show.

She was so popular, that she was invited back again.

Thank you Ms Jackson - for your wonderful acting - and for the years you spent working on behalf of your constituents and your country. RIP

Something To cHEW On

Last week a number of bloggers [like Sue]were writing about Ultra Processed Foods - the harm they can do to our bodies, and reasons for avoiding them. Dr Chris Van Tulleken and others were on TV and the radio, explaining the issues. It appears that in the UK we are eating a ridiculously high percentage of these foods. 

But I have not really picked up much news about this being HEW - Healthy Eating Week.[June 12th-16th] This is an initiative by the British Nutrition Foundation. Full details on their website HERE

They have produced resources for all ages from early years through to adults, with five different topics for each day of the week. Today we are encouraged to be properly hydrated.

These are all good ideas to put in place. I hope that schools, preschools and workplaces have tried to encourage these principles, and get both adults and children engaged and talking about it. 

I haven't quite caught up with all the UPF programmes yet, but I have been reading an interesting book about superfoods, which I will review shortly.

I know that staying properly hydrated is one of my failings. However this hot weather has certainly made me reach for more fluids. 

There is a video about HEW at work too

According to the BNF, Healthy Eating Week 2023 is supported by Kellogg's, General Mills, Quorn Foods, Sodexo, Agriculture & Horticulture Development Board (AHDB), Coca-Cola GB, UK Flour Millers and Waitrose & Partners. AHDB is a statutory levy board, funded by farmers, growers, and others in the supply chain [and Defra] helping to create a better food and farming industry. Waitrose does try to maintain high ethical standards, particularly relating to quality food, and 'green' issues [but their prices are definitely beyond many families]

I am trying not to be too cynical here - but Quorn is most definitely ultra processed, many CocaCola and Kelloggs products are high in sugar. and General Mills are the US company behind Betty Crocker, Cheerios and Pillsbury. But if this week makes people review their diets, that is a good thing.

Have you heard anything about HEW 2023?

Which of the 5 principles are you really good at?

And which is your weakest point?

PS thank you for all the kind birthday wishes for Jess - a young lady who is very keen on good food! 

Tardis Tuesday [On A Wednesday!]

[This post was delayed, because yesterday was Jessie's birthday]

If you follow Kezzie's delightful Blog you will know that she is into "Dr Who Cosplay" - finding outfits to match the various characters in this long running TV series [It celebrates sixty years this year- way before K was even born!] Because I love sewing, and working on costumes, down the years I've tweaked quite a few garments for her, including these...

In 2015, I loved doing the ? on the collar, and the red collar band, for the shirt worn by the 5th Dr, and also Petronella Osgood

And then in 2019 there was the challenge of turning the green collarless dress into the screen accurate dress with collar and short sleeves for Clara.

This year I've had two challenges from Kezzie - to produce the logo on the back of an Ace jacket, and recreate Sarah-Janes 'Andy-Pandy style dungarees. Kezzie sent me a plain black jacket. I made the logo as a patch using fabric and bondaweb, edged with satin stitch on the machine, Then I stitched it in place by hand.

The patch can be easily removed if Kezzie wants just a plain jacket. I am glad she didn't want me to recreate all the badges from the front.

The dungarees were perhaps the most challenging. Kezzie supplied a pair of candy strip dungarees- but they had spaghetti straps, straight legs, and simple pockets. To be screen accurate, they needed wide straps and dungaree clips, ties at the waist, patch pockets outlined in red piping and red piping and stars on the bib, as well as gathered ankles.

I took off the thin straps and put them at the waist, piped 'faux' pockets, made straps from a similar fabric, piped a rectangle on the bib and then used my embroidery machine to create 2 stars which I handstitched in place. And threaded elastic through the ankle hems;

I am really happy with this one - everything I needed for the alterations to these two garments were already in my stash. The only thing I needed was the software for my embroidery machine to create the stars.For £3 in Etsy I got a great pattern which has 2 styles of 5 point stars, a 4 point [Star Trek style] star, and a 3 point star [as per Mercedes logo] - and these all come in 9 sizes. So I hope to get lots of use out of this star pattern.

I am looking forward to seeing pictures of Kezzie in her new outfits.

Top Tip if you are going round the edge of a patch in satin stitch, you may find that the machine does not stitch evenly and you get lumpy sections. Instead of using wide zigzag with shortest stitch length, use a slightly longer stitch length and just go round twice. 

In 1984 when I was pregnant with Steph, I made some red and white striped maternity dungarees just like this, and a mini matching pair for 2 year old Liz. Sadly we have no photos of these outfits!

Happy Birthday Jessica!

I can't believe it is two years since that midnight dash down the M11 to look after Rosie on the night Jess was born. One incredibly cheerful, chatty child, very fond of her food. Especially potatoes and ice cream. And she absolutely adores her big sister. Happy birthday Granddaughter #2. We love you very much.

Miracle! Miracle! Miracle! Miracle!

There was a plane crash on May 1st in the dense Colommbian jungle. The small plane was carrying a two-man flight crew, a mother and her four children. Army search teams quickly found the wreckage and the bodies of the three adults- but there was no sign of the children. For 40 days the searchers, and their sniffer dogs looked for 13 year old Lesly, and her brothers aged 9,5 and 1. The soldiers were given the code word "miracle" to be used over the radio if they found a child alive.

Helicopters flew low over the dense tree canopy, dropping food parcels, and broadcasting a recorded message fromt he children's grandmother - urging them to stay in one place so they could be found. Led by their President, the Colombian people prayed for these precious little ones to reach safety. One group of searchers gave up - "they cannot have survived this long - there are jaguars and other wild beasts out there". But another officer said "if they were dead, we would have found bodies. It is easier to find a body in the jungle than a small child who is moving from place to place" 

They found a nappy, a hair clip, a piece of fruit with teeth marks, and small footprints - and finally on June 9th, the children were found - emaciated, and covered in insect bites - but all alive

Miracle! Miracle! Miracle! Miracle! 

was sent across the airwaves.Colombia rejoiced

The soldiers tended to their injuries and gave them food ["I'd like a sausage!" declared on of the boys] Lesly said their mother had lived 4 days after the crash, but knew she was dying, and urged the children to seek safety. Lesly took some farina [flour] from the crashed plane, and set off with her siblings

If there were ever children well-prepared to tackle such an ordeal, the Mucutuy family were them. The indigenous Huitoto people learn hunting, fishing and gathering from an early age, and their grandfather Fidencio Valencia [pictured] told reporters that the eldest children, Lesly and Soleiny, were well acquainted with the jungle.Speaking to Colombian media the children's aunt, Damarys Mucutuy, said the family would regularly play a "survival game" together growing up. "When we played, we set up like little camps," she recalled. Thirteen-year-old Lesly, she added, "knew what fruits she can't eat because there are many poisonous fruits in the forest. And she knew how to take care of a baby". 

Their survival story is truly amazing. These children had all the skills they needed, and a close connection to nature and their environment. They knew how to use the resources around them. I wonder how many British children would be as resourceful if they suddenly found themselves lost, and having to fend for themselves without adult help?

In a week when our media has been full of news about liars, cheats, phone hacking, and

violence this story is one to gladden our hearts. I think the choice of radio code word was inspired

Miracle! Miracle! Miracle! Miracle! 

They Also Serve

... Who Only Stand And Wait 

wrote John Milton. I want to flag up the brilliant service of our ambulance crews and paramedics [did you know that as well as volunteer St John's Ambulance workers, there is also a professional paid section, whose teams are currently working alongside the NHS Ambulance Service?]  On Friday I learned an awful lot about these hardworking people. 

My very elderly neighbour X was unwell. Her relation called the surgery, and somebody came out and said she needed to go into hospital immediately . An ambulance was called. She was nervous about going alone and the relation could not go with her. I offered to accompany her. This was agreed by all concerned [patient, relation and paramedics] I said I'd stay till she was admitted, and then Bob would come and collect me from the hospital. As we left, an ambulance pulled up outside my other neighbour's house

We got to hospital just before 3.30pm. And went into a queue. We speculated about neighbour Y. The paramedics were great, so kind to my friend. They fetched tea, and sandwiches and biscuits for her. She needed the loo, so they wheeled her trolley out and round into the hospital. On the way back, one paramedic spotted the other ambulance.

She tapped on the door "are you the crew who were at....with Y? Your neighbour Angela is round the corner in our ambulance with X" 

They brought X back, and said I could go and visit Y who was unaccompanied. 

So I spent the afternoon shuttling between the two, and sending reports to their families. And we waited, and waited... 

At one point there were almost 40 ambulances waiting in the sunshine. Many kept their engines running [to keep the electrical equipment working, I was told] The air in the car park was thick with diesel fumes. 

The paramedics were kind, and resolutely cheerful - and it was well after 10pm before these two elderly ladies were wheeled out of their vehicles into the building. But even then it was just into a holding area, and they were lifted onto different trolleys. A new team of paramedics took over. Our teams finished their shifts, said goodbye to the patients, and went home [they were due to finish at 9pm] X and Y were put on adjacent trolleys. I finally said goodnight, and Bob picked me up at 11pm. 

There was a serious bed shortage at the hospital, and these friends were still in that space on Saturday morning. The staff were obviously frustrated, but did not let that affect their professionalism, nor their care for the patients. "but out of a 12hour shift, I've basically been providing a personalised waiting room for one person for 7 hours, when I'm supposed to be on the road, collecting and delivering many people" said one woman. 

The whole situation was quite surreal. It should not be like this. 

I am sad for these key workers who cannot do their job properly 

I am sad for an uncomplaining 90year old lying on a trolley for hours

I am sad that so many people were misled and lied to

I pray that hearts will change, that policies will change, and that things will get better... 

String Theory

Back in March we did macramé at our Monday craft group. Janet said she would do a workshop and we could make plant-holders.  We needed string, beads, a hanging ring, and a pot. I had the ring and beads in my stash, and bought a ball of thick green cotton string. And I had three colourful large empty tins which I had kept, convinced that one day they would find another purpose.

Once I'd got the hang of it, I would make more plant holders and these could hang outside with some sort of tumbling foliage...

At the end of the session, I was about halfway through my hanger. I put the bits in the tin, and fully intended to finish it later. But family trips to Essex, Holiday Club, the Coronation, and Scotland all got in the way.

Finally having posted off my cross stitch and completed another sewing task [to be revealed next week] I got out the project. It had been quietly entangling itself as it languished on the windowsill. And as I looked at it, I could not remember anything Janet had taught me! I was sure we'd had a worksheet, but that was not in the tin.

I found this book in Dereham library, came home, and spread everything out on the garden table. Fanny Zedenius is a young Swedish fibre artist, on Instagram and a website, Createaholic. More to the point, the book had easy to follow instructions and clear diagrams for the basic macramé knots. I managed to complete the plant hanger from my tangled string.

I've put a houseplant in temporarily and hung it up by the old garage. A couple of years ago I posted about the resurgence of interest in macramé and said I thought this was a craft I would leave to others. Honestly? Yes, this escapade has convinced me to leave well alone! having struggled to master** RFSKs, RTHSKs, and WKs . I am going back to my knitting, where K1, P1, tbl and psso are terms I know by heart, and my fingers have a 'muscle memory' for.

Are you into macramé ?

[**Right facing square knot, Right twisting half square knot, wrap knot, and of course, knit 1, purl 1, through back of loop, pass slipped stitch over]

Food In Focus

I wish I'd had the opportunity to study Latin at school [our Head considered it outdated] it would have helped so much with understanding our language now. For instance, focus - the centre of attention - originally meant the domestic hearth - the heart of the home. Which explains why the ancient Etruscans who cooked flatbread on the hearth, called it focaccia.

I picked up a pack of garlic and rosemary focaccia mix in Aldi last week. It was about £1 and said it would make three small loaves. I weighed out one third of the pack. I made the bread in my small round enamel tin. Meanwhile I had some 'fridge scrape' soup simmering in the slocooker - vegetables a butternut squash, some carrots, 4 small spring onions liquids ½ pt of stock from freezer, ½ pt of leftover gravy, a can of tinned tomatoes & juice, water, flavourings salt, paprika, allspice. 

I sprinkled homegrown rosemary on top of the loaf before it went in the oven. The bread was really soft and tasty. It looked just like the picture on the packet!

I put the soup through my liquidiser [I'd made about 2½ litres - so there was plenty to freeze for future days] It made a very satisfying meal.

I usually shop in Lidl or Sainsburys, but if I'm in Aldi I'll look out for this mix again. 

It says you can make a large loaf in the breadmaker- but I feel that would be the wrong shape!

Do you make your own bread? 

and is it 'from scratch' or with a mix? 

can you recommend any good mixes?

and do you do it by hand, or in a breadmaker?

Keep Smiling Through...

Another Tenniel illustration, this time from Wonderland, not Looking Glass.

Because I am indeed grinning like the proverbial 😸.

My lovely dentist turns out to have spent two years in the MaxFax dept at Ipswich Hospital, he has lots of experience of this sort of injury.

Last week he taught me how to massage the area round the stitches to enable them to heal, and soften the scar tissue in my lip. And he spoke so highly of the team in Scotland who had treated me. They did such a good job on the emergency repairs that I have not needed expensive crowns [praise the Lord for that!] 

Yesterday he worked on tidying up their work, and rebuilding one part of a tooth to make it more even.

And he did all that without any injections - it was genuinely all very painless [I hate injections]

And the cost came in at just over £100 [it is a private practice too - they're not allowing any new NHS dentists in Norfolk sadly, despite his request to be one] 

I am so grateful - for Dentist Chris and Dr Navinie in Scotland, for Dentist Roshan in Norfolk, and for all the kind wishes and prayers, and messages of support from so many good friends. Thank you all

The grin will still be here after I have moved on to the next task! 

😀
 

Jam Tomorrow, And Jam Yesterday...

 ... But Never Jam Today

So says the White Queen to our heroine when she travels through the Looking Glass.  I was thinking about this recently when Sue was discussing marmalade on her blog. 

She was commenting that her jar of home made lemon marmalade was three years old, so having opened it, she is now keeping it in the fridge.

Various comments appeared about keeping preserves - jams, marmalades, pickles and chutneys. Surely the very name preserve implies something can be kept for a while before eating?

I hate waste- especially if some food goes 'off' before I have got round to eating it. My last batch of marmalade lasted ages, because I was trying to lose weight, and Bob rarely eats it. And one or two 'foodie' gifts at Christmas meant we had more pickles and chutneys than usual [and I already had multiple jars of my own apple&ginger chutney in the cupboard]

Yes, I agree with Sue - once opened, I prefer to keep these things in the fridge - partly because they stay fresher, and also because they don't get pushed to the back of the shelf and forgotten until too late. I don't think commercial jams keep anything like as long as they used to. Here are my top tips for using up preserves - the savoury and the sweet kinds

• Put a dollop of chutney or pickle into your casseroles to give a bit of added oomph
• If you have a lot of jars of pickle/chutney each with just a spoonful or two in the bottom, then make a couple of River Cottage Brown Sauce. Recipe below.
• If you make your own sausage rolls, use Jamie's tip and mix a tbsp of pickle or chutney into the sausagemeat.
• Blitz mango chutney with cream cheese using a stick blender to make a dip for crudités
• Spread chutney/piccalilli/etc on toast before topping with cheese and grilling. 
• Puree chutney with a little water for a ham glaze
• Cranberry Sauce is not just for turkeys! Use it in desserts too - a spoonful on top of vanilla ice cream, or as the topping on a sponge pud, or stirred into plain yogurt.
• A leftover jar of mincemeat will make a brilliant Belgian Cake
• Marmalade can glaze a ham beautifully
• Sieve out the peel and use marmalade in place of apricot jam for holding marzipan onto a fruit cake
• Marmalade adds a fresh citrus zing to simple sponge cakes [loads of ideas online]
• Top a sponge pudding with marmalade
• Use the end of a jar of jam in 'thumbprint' biscuits
• Swirl jam into homemade icecream
• Blitz jam with a banana and milk for a pink milkshake

River Cottage Brown Sauce from Gill Meller

Assemble your nearly-finished jars of chutney, pickle, relish etc.Scrape all the stuff into a large saucepan, [add a little boiling water from the kettle if it is very thick] 

Bring to the boil, and simmer for 10 minutes. Then taste for flavour. If needed add in some more salt/sugar or vinegar [I add a tsp of tamarind paste] . Gill suggests that some mango chutney will add 'brightness'. Now purée with a stick blender/processor. Boil for 5 minutes more, stirring constantly. Pour into sterilised bottles. Screw on caps firmly.

From jars to bottles in about half an hour. This sauce should keep for a year. Once opened, store in the fridge.

How do you use up leftover preserves?

MayDay To Whitsun

Over the weekend, my cross-country-collaboration package arrived from Kirsten. Having been unwell at the start of the month, she didn't get going as soon as she'd hoped. But her stitching is a great celebration of the month of May.

Beginning with mayday on 1st, she listed some significant events of the month - 6th, Coronation, 18th Ascension Day, 28th Day of Pentecost and 29th Whitsun Bank Holiday. It is a very traditional sampler piece, combining lettering with motifs- lovely use of random variegated yarns to give the idea of fields of wild flowers, the inevitable golden crown for our new monarch, anf bottom left, the Dove for Pentecost and the gift of God's Holy Spirit [sorry, I cannot seem to photograph that properly - it has a fine golden yellow outline]

I really like the figure 8s which are created with two overlapping diamonds.

The 'flat gift' is this cute  "Little Alphabet Book" which will get its own review at some point.

Full of information about words, and idioms and digraphs and phonemes - and all that stuff from the Literacy Strategy. Ms Palmer loves words, but shares my frustration with some of today's phonics teaching. 

Kirsten knows me well, and recognises how much I will love reading this carefully, savouring every nugget of information. Thanks K!

I've been busy doing some other sewing and knitting recently , and we are nearly through the first week of June, best get a move on with my stitching for this month.

I was talking to a friend on the phone at the weekend, who I've not seen for about 10 years. She was saying her son - now a young adult, has taken up cross stitching with a passion. He is producing some amazing designs, on very fine evenweave fabric.

I suggested he googled "Bristol Orphanage Redwork" to see how young people were doing it 200 years ago.

Voyage Of Discovery

As a child I knew a little about Scott and Shackleton, who had explored Antarctica in the first quarter of C20.

I think there was much more regard for "heroes" than for "celebrities" 50 or 60 years ago. The guests interviewed on "This Is Your Life" were more often people who had contributed something to society than just been TV entertainers. We were encouraged to aspire to do good things, be good people - not strive to be "rich and famous".

 I watched John Mills in Scott of the Antarctic**

Personally I could not understand why anyone would want to go somewhere that cold, and far away, leaving young wives and children behind... But I understood that they wanted to learn more about the world and share that knowledge. Shackleton and Scott were inspiring leaders, and there seemed to be no shortages of applicants to travel with them.

So I was pleased that we'd have the opportunity to see their ship RRS Discovery when we got to Dundee. These people were the celebrities of their day, and any company which supplied food or equipment to the expeditions were quick to advertise it. Their clothing was so heavy and thick - no "performance" fabrics, lightweight fleece garments, or Goretex waterproofing. And it was far too cold to strip off and change. 

Can you imagine wearing the same clothes for 93 days? [even girls doing the 100 day dress challenge wear fresh underwear daily, I hope] 

As we looked round the exhibition, I was struck by the men's diligence in recording all they found. Edwin Wilson made meticulous notes and drew beautiful illustrations of the flora and fauna. They entertained one another with concert parties and a newspaper produced on a typewriter. 

As we went round, it was Wilsonwho fascinated me most. He was amazingly gifted - a trained doctor, a gifted artist, an enthusiastic naturalist. He was Assistant Surgeon on the 1901—1904 expedition with Scott and Shackleton on Discovery, then returned in 1910 with Scott on Terra Nova for the ill-fated Polar Expedition. Wilson's drawings were meticulous, and he was clearly a valued member of these expeditions. He was a good and gracious man, a reliable friend, always thinking of others. In his student days he had done volunteer work in a Mission in Battersea helping the needy. It was here that he met his wife Oriana - and left her just a few weeks after their wedding to go to the South Pole. How incredibly sad! 

The officers and ratings had very different quarters on board ship. Lower ranks were squashed into a small space, and took turns in sleeping in hammocks. Food was served on enamel plates - but the officers had separate cabins, and dined at a mahogany table, with white Irish-linen-and-lace cloth, and fine china. Actually the officers were in the coldest part of the ship - the men living cheek by jowl in the room next to the galley kitchen were much warmer. 

Although RRS Discovery is in dry dock, I did not really enjoy going below decks, I felt that the ship was creaking and moving in the water. Bob felt fine, he said it was my overactive imagination [in my defence, my damaged glasses did mean I found it hard to focus!] 

Were these men brave, or foolhardy? Or a little of both? Three weeks on from my visit, I am still pondering... 

** coincidentally this film is on TV this week! Wednesday, 3pm on the Talking Pictures channel. Grab a blanket and a mug of cocoa, as you will feel cold when you see all that ice [even though it was filmed in the Ealing Studios!] 

Forty Five Years Ago

Great Aunt Amy's Desk Calendar from the 1920s. It is showing today's date. Actually it always shows Sunday 4th June, because this is the date on which we met in 1978. It was 8pm, and the communion service at Spicer Street Chapel St Albans had just finished.

The tall bloke in the brown leather jacket turned round to the short girl in the pew behind, looked at her college sweatshirt and said "Not another teacher?!"

The rest is history...

He was working as an electronics design engineer at Marconi Instruments, I was teaching [maths and RE] in Grove Hill Comprehensive, Hemel Hempstead.

Neither of us had a 'significant other' nor were we looking for one. Within three months we were engaged. We married on 25th August 1979, so next year will be our Sapphire Anniversary. When we got engaged, my Dad sent us a verse from Song Of Solomon chapter 8. Here it is in a modern translation...

Love is invincible facing danger and death. Passion laughs at the terrors of hell. The fire of love stops at nothing— it sweeps everything before it. Flood waters can’t drown love, torrents of rain can’t put it out. Love can’t be bought, love can’t be sold— it’s not to be found in the marketplace. 

I am truly grateful to God for 45 years with this wonderful man who is more loving and patient as the years go by. Each day brings new joys, challenges and surprises - and faith, family and friends remain the cornerstones of our life together.

Girls' Day Out

The greatest outcome of my visit to the Castle Museum in January last year was this amazing, ongoing stitching collaboration with Kirsten. But another thing was that I was given a free ticket for The Museum of Norwich.  But as a Museums Season Ticket Holder, I did not need it for myself. It has remained in the back of my wallet for nearly 18 months. 

This place is a little gem- packed full of stuff about the history of our fine city. So on Thursday, when Bob was on Hospice Chaplaincy duty, I took Rosie into the city centre so we could look round the museum together. She's great company. We had sandwiches in M&S [children's meals are free at the minute] then walked down to the Museum. The building has a fascinating history

Rosie loved all the exhibits- carefully laid out in a way which is accessible for children, with signs saying "look in the drawers" - where you can find other intriguing objects. She loved the Spitfire Cottage Doll's House.

There were baskets of toys in many rooms, appropriate for bored toddlers - and opportunities to dress up. Be a city gent in one of the coffee houses, in a powdered wig and tricorn hat. Or try on a hat from the store of the eccentric but talented Norwich entrepreneur Rumsey Wells.

Let's dress up! cried my companion gleefully, and who was I to demur? She selected a top hat for herself and a pith helmet for me. And grabbed the curly wig to wear under her brown tricorn.

If you look very carefully, you can see there is still some swelling [but not much] on my lower lip, and really close inspection will reveal the temporary repairs to my incisors. But honestly, my mouth has healed up incredibly well in the 2½ weeks since it happened, thank the Lord.

I was able to enjoy my M&S prawn sandwich. Rosie explained that she has to be careful with food too, as she has a number of wobbly teeth at the moment.

It was a lovely afternoon together - we walked back to the Forum and read books in the children's library as we waited for all the family to arrive. 

Jess was very cheerful in the library, finding Hey Duggee books for grandad Bob to read to her. The place was packed with families enjoying the books and other activities. 

I nipped into the American Library . Last time I was in there, I mentioned to the staff member that I wished they stocked "Real Simple" in the magazines section. She took the details - and lo and behold, now they do have it there on the shelf. Brilliant!

What a great day out with a great little girl.

Drop Through The Letterbox

My Gardener's water saving kit arrived on Wednesday. 

It contained a selection of items and info sheets. 

Thanks Anglian Water

• A water mat, to place under a pot plant - supposed to keep it hydrated for a week, while you are on holiday
• 2 packets of Swell gel [plus money off coupons]
• A box of 'seed bombs' to plant wildflowers and bee friendly plants
• Various leaflets

Sadly the 'water stick', which is supposed to alert you to your pot plant drying out, was missing. Never mind. It was all free.

I do not understand why people in Suffolk who get sewerage and drainage from Anglian Water [but their tapwater comes from Essex and Suffolk Water] do not qualify for this freebie.

Rosie and her cousins were at Mundesley beach this week. Sadly they were unable to paddle or swim due to the raw sewage in the water and on the tideline. I find this very disappointing.

🏊‍♀️😢🌊😢💩😢💩🌊😢🏊‍♀️

 

A New Page

 
There have been a few things 'niggling away' of late - but the calendar reminds me that God loves me unfailingly, whatever happens. And that gives me courage and hope for whatever each day might bring. [I do enjoy turning over a new calendar page each month!]