dolce far niente

never forget

2010-09-11T00:01:00.001+01:00

kis

2010-09-10T11:29:00.003+01:00

(keeping it simple)

sometimes only one thing will do - after the week I've had, I know what it is and where to find it!

I hope that you're having the same success today

<--- has just realised what she's been humming

2010-09-08T22:08:00.004+01:00

(all day) (today and yesterday)

.
how many times do I have to try to tell you
that I'm sorry for the things I've done, but when I start to try to tell you
that's when you have to tell me, hey... this kind of trouble's only just begun
I tell myself too many times:
why don't you ever learn to keep your big mouth shut?
that's why it hurts so bad to hear the words that keep on falling from your mouth
falling from your mouth, falling from your mouth
tell me... why

I may be mad, I may be blind, I may be viciously unkind
but I can still read what you're thinking
and I've heard it said too many times that you'd be better off, besides...
why can't you see this boat is sinking?
let's go down to the water's edge, we can cast away those doubts
some things are better left unsaid, but they still turn me inside out
turning inside out turning inside out. . .

this is the book I never read, these are the words I never said
this is the path I'll never tread, these are the dreams I'll dream instead
this is the joy that's seldom spread, these are the tears...
the tears we shed
this is the fear, this is the dread, these are the contents of my head
and these are the years that we have spent and this is what they represent
and this is how I feel, do you know how I feel?
'cause I don't think you know how I feel, I don't think you know what I feel
I don't think you know what I fear, you don't know what I fear

ANNIE LENNOX

playing travellers

2010-09-03T22:50:00.006+01:00

whilst in Cornwall, we went to the circus. . . to see a performance of one of the most beautiful productions that I have ever seen, a play called Sorry, by The Footsbarn Travelling Theatre

apparently they travel to all the world's six continents, so when they are next in your neighbourhood - go see them!

wanderlust!
otherness!
diversity!

treat day!!! and when

2010-09-03T09:30:00.001+01:00

an ice cream van parks right in front of the viewit's too subtle a hint to be ignored, really, isn't it? I'm sure you agree! so, what do you fancy then. . .

and I quote:

2010-09-02T21:27:00.005+01:00

"say hi to all ur bloggers for me!" a gift from the smallest and youngest member of the household, here at I,LTV Towers:

click me!! click me!!

(\__/) this is a bunny
(='.'=) copy/paste the bunny into your sig
(")_(") help the bunny achieve world domination

Not So Mini-Teen was here... (-:

2010-09-02T11:03:00.001+01:00

pinch punch

2010-09-01T11:50:00.003+01:00

yadda yadda

(you've heard it all before)

a change is as good as a rest! so, I'm vaguely

2010-09-01T11:30:00.000+01:00

toying with the idea of flirting with dating againremind me, dear reader, just what are the pros and cons of a relationship. . .. . .before I give up on the whole thing once and for all. . .
.

. . .please!

2010-08-31T20:50:00.000+01:00

you can hear them, can't you? squarking (is that a word? it is now!) away as the tide comes in. . .

2010-08-30T20:42:00.002+01:00

one day, when walking on the cliffs, I saw a set of stones that seemed to mark out a path. . . I followed the path and this (up arrow) was at the end of it

I wondered, at the time, what the path led to the heart for (I've tried, but I can't write that any more grammatically)

now, however, on reflection, I'm just glad that I had my trusty phone camera to hand

(-:

2010-08-28T12:08:00.000+01:00

this Friday we'll go out, shall we!

2010-08-26T21:05:00.001+01:00

(they do soft drinks, too)
(and very excellent coffee)

2010-08-26T21:03:00.000+01:00

(this wasn't actually the desert list
- apparently it's a poster from IKEA)

for mig and Mel

2010-08-26T12:28:00.000+01:00

another tap!

2010-08-25T23:41:00.003+01:00

P A D S T O W
FINE ART

(it was OPEN at the time)

(just in case you were wondering!)

2010-08-25T12:11:00.000+01:00

having a whale of a time!

(crazy golfing in Padstow)

2010-08-24T22:59:00.004+01:00

(I have a tea-towel with this image* on!) (*as photographed by the very talented Ella Doran) (the above - up arrow - photo is by yours truly) (moi) (*MWAH*) (geddit?) (x)

a small aside from the holiday memories. . .

2010-08-24T14:26:00.004+01:00

. . .autumn is here already!!!!

yesterday I was waiting at a bus stop (for a bus) (y'all know that I don't have a car) and the bus wasn't coming (they never do) (and then, y'all know the "punchline" - three of them turn up at once) so I wandered about a little. . .

. . .and I looked up and saw a tree full of acorns

I do so like acorns!

I'm kinda betting that most everyone
has a soft spot for an acorn or two, eh?

more holiday photos tomorrow!

2010-08-23T12:27:00.001+01:00

splash!

2010-08-22T18:30:00.004+01:00

one of my favourite taps,
from one of my favourite gardens. . .
.
(-:

raku

2010-08-21T13:23:00.007+01:00

remember I told you a while ago about Penny McBreen? an artist whose work I have been buying since the mid 1980s? the photo above is the detail from a beautiful piece of work I saw in her gallery
.
of which, more later; oh, alright then. . . here's a little more. . .in the meantime, this is how she does it (raku, that is) (the way the glazing is created)
.
"An aluminum can is used in raku firing is working as a reduction tube: a container with a small hole that allows carbon dioxide to pass through. By closing the container, a "reduction atmosphere" is created. A reduction atmosphere needs to be created because of the effects of oxygen on the clay and its color. It also has extraordinary effects on the metals inside the glaze. Reduction is a decrease in oxidation number. Closing the can starves the air of oxygen after the combustible materials such as sawdust catch fire, forcing the reaction to pull oxygen from the glazes and the clay. A reduction agent is a substance which electrons are being taken from by another substance that is being reduced. The reaction uses oxygen from the atmosphere within the reduction tube, and in order to continue, it receives the rest of the oxygen from the glazes. This leaves ions and iridescent luster behind. This creates a metallic effect, pleasing to the eye. Pieces with no glaze have no where to get the oxygen from, so they take it from clay. Such an atmosphere will turn clay black, making an unattractive, matte color, with no sheen whatsoever. The science of oxidation reduction gives each piece its unique color and texture, and by understanding the oxidation process, we are understanding the process each clay piece goes through."

Friday!!!

2010-08-20T12:21:00.004+01:00

today I offer the humble beetrootdelicious in salads (I've not tried it in deserts, so can't vouch for that) no gluten! vegan friendly! and, according to some people, they make your pee a more interesting colour. . .
.
(I've never looked, so can't vouch for that)

moody yet magnificent

2010-08-19T00:31:00.001+01:00

2010-08-18T11:45:00.000+01:00

a sea gull in Port Isaac
(long story - will tell you later)

a present from Padstow

2010-08-18T00:14:00.003+01:00

I will be awarding a prize to the person who guesses correctly what this image is a photo of (yeah yeah yeah, I know that's not grammatically correct, but do I care? do I? do I!) (go on, bite me) (I dare you) (no, not you - Vicus!) (it has nothing to do with Padstow, by the way) (the subject of the photo) (oh, I give up)

2010-08-17T12:44:00.003+01:00

NB do not point the view at the SUN, got that? good!

(sun?
in Cornwall in August?
ha ha ha)

my worst hole

2010-08-16T11:58:00.000+01:00

magical Trevor

2010-08-15T13:42:00.006+01:00

my XY Teens, walking along the beach later they serenaded me with this wonderful tune:

.
Everyone loves Magical Trevor
'Cause the tricks that he does are ever so clever
Look at him now, disappearin' the cow
Where is the cow heading right now?
Taking a bow, it's Magical Trevor
Everybody seen that the trick is clever
Look at him there with his leathery, leathery whip!
It's made of magic, and with a little flip
Yeah, yeah, yeah, the cow is back
Yeah, yeah, yeah, the cow is back
Back, back, back from his magical journey
Yeah!
What did he see in the parallel dimension?
He saw beans, lots of beans, lots of beans, lots of beans.

Oh, beans lots of beans lots of beans lots of beans.
Yeah, yeah!

.
and then this one:

Narwhals, narwhals, swimming in the ocean
Causing a commotion cuz they are so awesome
Narwhals, narwhals, swimming in the ocean
Pretty big and pretty white, they beat a polar bear in a fight
Like an underwater unicorn they got a kickass facial horn!
They're the jedis of the sea!
They stop Cthuly eating ye!
Narwhals they are narwhals, narwhals!
Just don't let them touch your balls!
Narwhals, they are narwhals!
Inventors of the shishkebab!

.
it was quite charming, in an I'm-a-mother-and-I-love-my-boys kind of way. . .

(altho I'm sure Vicus and Mel would have found it entertaining) (click Narwhals or Magical Trevor to listen to slightly rougher versions - my boys have better voices; personally I've always liked this one best) (and of course, we musn't forget the llamamamamas, must we?!)

so, why do I go to Polzeath whenever I can?

2010-08-14T14:33:00.002+01:00

. . . there are no words. . .

and finally. . .

2010-08-08T12:51:00.005+01:00

. . .the sun comes out!

(in fact it's so bright that I can't actually see the image above. . . it should be some kind of lotion that will protect my delicate skin from burning to a cinder whiost enabling me to look as tho I've actually been on a beach for three weeks) (not that a suntan is a definition of a holiday, well spent or otherwise, you understand, but it would be nice not to look like a vampire)
.

(I hope you're enjoying your summer,
dear reader)

(X)

it's enough to drive you

2010-08-02T13:42:00.005+01:00

crazy

due to the brightness of the Cornish sunshine, I can't quite see the details of the image above, but I'm fairly sure that it is exactly the same as the crazy golf course that The Teen and I have been competing on in the late afternoons before we adjourn the day's proceedings for cocktail hour

for those who know about such things, it is a par 9 course (if you are skilled enough to get 9 holes-in-one) (if you see what I mean); it can take anything from twenty minutes to two-and-a half-hours to go around the course (depending on how many families are playing ahead of you) (and how stroppy the fathers and grandads of the children are) (it seems most mothers use the opportunity of the option of crazy golf to fill a cloudy chilly afternoon, when the grown-ups don't want to be on the beach, with the option of taking a little "personal time" at the cafe instead) (my good self being the exception that proves the rule); I don't think that Christie Kerr has anything to worry about (altho given his recent performances, The Teen could give Jack Nicklaus a run for his money)

I hope your summertime
is full of amusements,
whatever the weather

XXX

struggling. . .

2010-07-27T20:13:00.002+01:00

(the connection)

so, it having taken me three-quarters of an hour to get this far, I think I'll give up and write you a postcard instead (ZigZ and dinah and mig and anyone else, please please email me your addresses!)

hope you're doing wonderfully,
dear reader, wherever you are!

XXX

one of the most frequently asked questions

2010-07-26T13:18:00.008+01:00

when on the beach is "how's the water?"since I've not actually been in it today, the ocean that is - I paddled in a rock pool or two and strolled up the beach thru the stream - I'll tell you about what I'm drinking. . .

it's cool, clear and quite delicious, but somewhat bizarrely labelled: no sugar, no caffeine, no fat, no carbohydrates, carbon neutral. . . my version might be: sourced in Cornwall, bottled in Cornwall, sold in Cornwall, drunk in Cornwall and depending on the local waterboard's water treatment systems quite possibly recycled in Cornwall too

I'll leave you, dear reader, with that utterly charming thought as I leave The Teen, and his technology, to go off and purchase a real drink

(coffee)

(-:

(don't forget to let me know your address for a postcard!
I promise to write something far more interesting on it)
.

XXX

feeble wave

2010-07-24T15:54:00.004+01:00

(rubbish internet connection)

(do mobile-phone-internet-dongle-techno executives never visit Cornwall on their holidays?) (I tried visiting you guys, but didn't have enough strength to comment) (perhaps I should try and fix up a blog meet with Dave and get him to sort me out!)

erm, ok, so it's not great but. . .

2010-07-23T10:43:00.001+01:00

it's all that is available

(insert image of dried up old sandwich
with oily sweating cheese slice and limp lettuce hanging out of the edges
- I'd share the real thing with you
only I'm going thru an internet connection blackspot it seems)

(train menus aren't what they should be!) (on the other hand, what can you bring to the table dear reader?)

two on a train!

2010-07-23T10:25:00.008+01:00

(I know, I can hardly believe it either

it almost didn't happen at all -

the cab didn't turn up and then I lost the tickets and the money. . . but after a minor panic (or three) everything sorted itself out and here we are. . . in the relative luxury that is C21st train travel travelling at high speed southwestwards towards Bodmin in Cornwall via Reading, Exeter, Plymouth and along one of my favourite stretches of English coastline railway where the train sits on a narrow ledge at the bottom of steep red sandstone cliffs and the sea between Dawlish and Teignmouth
(I'll try and find some images to share with you!)

two down

2010-07-22T12:08:00.008+01:00

two to goTeen Too is a minimal packer and knows that even tho he's already a couple of inches taller than his father - also a minimal packer - his father is the caring, sharing type - between them they could barely fill a matchbox. . . . . .but both always look immaculately turned out

on the other hand, we have Mini-Teen (almost 13 years old, going on 25) who trekked off to her father's with a suitcase full enough to comfortably style an entire Africa nation(she had selected enough outfits to clothe the entire continent of Africa thru winter/fall 2011 and spring summer 2012, but I made her leave some items behind); I waved them a bit of a sad goodbye, as I won't see them for two weeks - but they are going on a lovely hol to a simply divine hotel with their father and I know they will be well taken care of and that they are going to have a brilliant time. . .

I, on the other hand, am off on a holiday of the self-catering nature so only need to pack a few essentials. . .

(it would be easier to take the whole house,
but one just can't find the staff these days)

talking of staff, The Teen's gentleman's gentleman was not impressed with his packing but did approve of the luggage

(yeay! I'll be able to blog from the beach!!)

if I have to wash one more load of laundry

2010-07-21T21:22:00.004+01:00

before I go on holiday

(just saying)

so, you recall I'll be on me 'ols soon? guess

2010-07-20T17:47:00.008+01:00

what! it's supposed to look like/as tho this. . . but in fact, looks as if/like this. . .
oh well! I don't care it's not as if/like/as tho I go on holiday in England for the weather now, is it?
.

I hope the sun is shining
for you today,
wherever you are
.XXX

so, what's been distracting me from

2010-07-17T11:16:00.013+01:00

all you good people? colours, basically. . .

azurite greenand moss greena heather purplethe pink that you find on the inside of a mussel shell (kind of a lavender pink, almost a sky blue pink)a deep dusky rose pink a bright fuscia pink (midway between fuscia and gerbera)a pale pink (that I can't find a match for and won't try to explain); a coral colour similar to orange tomatoesand a bright poppy red yes! you guessed it: my randomly striped acrylic (*GAK*) jumper has taken shape (a shape of my own devising, if you recall - floppy oversized not-quite-a-roll neck with raglan shoulders and a simple rib on the sleeve and body cuffs)

as I knitted away contentedly I was aware that perhaps the only colour missing was a malachite blue. . . (in fact, if I had been knitting with wool it might have been like knitting with gemstones. . . . . .but acrylic yarn is much brighter in its own chemically false way so it's more like knitting with children's plastic beads) (the sort that would be thrown at you during a carnival procession) (I had a friend from when I lived in NYC who was at uni in New Orleans and every year she'd send me a huge envelope filled with Mardi Gras necklaces)

(that's almost what the colours in this jumper remind me of
now I come to think about it)

if I'd added the malachite in, the blue would have made all the other colours sit differently together and that wouldn't have worked at all - see, if the moss green is next to the dusky rose, it looks totally different to how it is next to the orange tomato coral pink and different again next to the magenta of the fuscia; I love it when colours do that - sometimes they blend together seemlessly, sometimes they zing

I hope that whatever project
you have set your mind to today
is completed with total satisfaction
or at least that peaceful feeling of
"good enough"

XXX

2010-07-17T11:15:00.000+01:00

spend all your time waiting for that second chance for the break that will make it okthere's always some reason to feel not good enough
and it's hard at the end of the dayI need some distraction, oh beautiful release memories seep from my veins they may be empty and weightless, and maybe
I'll find some peace tonight

in the arms of an angel, fly away from here from this dark, cold room, and the endlessness that you fearyou are pulled from the wreckage of your silent reverieyou're in the arms of an angel, may you find some comfort hereso tired of the straight line, and everywhere you turn
there's vultures and thieves at your backthe storm keeps on twisting, you keep on building the lies
that you make up for all that you lack it don't make no difference, escaping one last time
it's easier to believe in this sweet madness oh this glorious sadness that brings me to my knees

in the arms of an angel, far away from here from this dark, cold room,and the endlessness that you fear you are pulled from the wreckage of your silent reverie
in the arms of an angel, may you find some comfort here

SARAH MCLACHLAN

sometimes only one thing will do

2010-07-16T09:55:00.003+01:00

(-:
.

XXX

2010-07-13T18:46:00.007+01:00

In the summertime when the weather's high,
You can stretch right up and touch the sky,
When the weather's fine, you got women,
You got women on your mind. Have a drink, have a drive,
Go out and see what you can find. If her daddy's rich,
Take her out for a meal, if her daddy's poor, just do as you feel.
Speed along the lane, do a ton, or a ton and twenty-five.
When the sun goes down, you can make it,
Make it good in a lay-by. We're not grey people, we're not dirty,
We're not mean. We love everybody, but we do as we think.
When the weather's fine we go fishing
Or go swimming in the sea. We're always happy,
Life's for living, yeah, that's our philosophy. Sing along with us. . . Dee-dee-dee-dee-dee, da-da-da-da-da... Yeah, we're happy happy,
Da-da-da-da-dah. When the winter's here, then it's party time.
Bring a bottle, wear your bright clothes.
It'll soon be summertime, and we'll sing again, we'll go drivin'
Or maybe we'll settle down. If she's rich, if she's nice, bring you're friends
And we'll all go into town

MUNGO JERRY

three. . . two. . . one. . .

2010-07-13T08:17:00.008+01:00

. . .and she's back in the room

dear reader (uh-oh, you know that's not a good start, don't you) (don't worry, I'll spare you) (it's not that bad!) (actually, I'll stop and reconsider)
.

so, with the embroidery progressing well I decide to distract myself by starting to design and knit another jumper (I knitted one recently that I didn't tell you about) (kind of like a cricket jumper) (only banana yellow) (this one has raglan sleeves and a roll-neck jumper that doesn't roll but kind of flops in an overlarge-by-design-manner); the colours are wonderful - they were my inspiration, yarns I found down in Bournemouth (think I forgot to tell you about that as well) - a tweedy deep purple, a gentle lavender, a dusky pink, a verging on turquoise green, a moss green, a tomatoey red, a really bright coral and a vibrant magenta for which blogger doesn't have similar colours, a pale orange. . . sadly the yarn is acrylic (*GAK!!!!*), but then again if it had been anything else then I couldn't have afforded to make the purchase: there you go, needs must and beggars can't be choosers and all that

Mini-Teen (only a month to go now before she is thirteen) and I have been replanting lots of plants from the courtyard (mainly lavender and bay, some bamboo, a couple of thyme) into the front "garden" (the planting possibility of which comprises a small strip of dirt in the gap between two sections of brick wall)(oh, and a couple of window boxes) - which has involved digging up and moving all the nasturtium I planted in the gap earlier in the year and many many trips thru the living room with an overfull watering-can, which has involved much spilling and mopping up (it's the upstairs loo saga all over again, only this time it's voluntary)

I would *sigh* but actually the results are rather wonderful!

(-:

.
so good in fact that I then got the XY Teens to move my thinking bench from the courtyard thru the living room to the front "garden", so I can sit behind the bamboo screen, that now separates the pavement from my gap between the wall and the house windows, and think in dappled sunlight
.

*happy sigh*

.
and now it's raining
.

:-/

.
(but, the plants and gardens need the rain, more than my living room needs flooding, so I'm not going to quibble)

sometimes I think it's a good thing that I don't have a more engaging hobby to distract me - like kissing frogs

sleeping on the roof

2010-07-10T11:01:00.008+01:00

the sky at night

so there I was, dozing on the hammock (it's amazing how cool it is up there!) star spotting. . . finding the North Star (α UMi / α Ursae Minoris / Alpha Ursae Minoris, commonly North(ern) Star or Pole Star, or Dhruva Tara and sometimes Lodestar; the brightest star in the constellation Ursa Minor; very close to the north celestial pole, making it the current northern pole star; about 430 light-years from Earth; Polaris has numerous traditional names: Alruccabah, Cynosura, Dhruv, Phoenice, Tramontana, Angel Stern, Navigatoria, Star of Arcady, Yilduz, Mismar, Gwiazda Polarna, Polyarnaya, Midnight Star; Cynosūra is from the Greek κυνόσουρα "the dog’s tail"; Yilduz is from the Turkish word for "star"; the most commonly known name is the Pole Star), The Plough. . .remembering the ryhme "follow the arc to Arcturus. . . . . .then speed on to Spica"(only Spica was below the horizon when I eventually drifted off, and when I woke up at half four the dawn had dawned)

a treat for the heat

2010-07-09T10:45:00.000+01:00

cucumbers. . . sliced. . .how would you like yours? with freshly grated black pepper and tomotoes?
in a jug of ice water? in an interesting drink?
(I might pop my cucumber slices on my eye lids and just lie down somwehere cool!)(cucumber slices: brought to you by I,LTV: no gluten and vegan friendly)(*MWAH*)

turnaround, she said

2010-07-09T10:36:00.004+01:00

turnaround, every now and then I get a little bit lonely and you're never coming around; turnaround, every now and then I get a little bit tired of listening to the sound of my tears; turnaround, every now and then I get a little bit nervous that the best of all the years have gone by; turnaround, every now and then I get a little bit terrified and then I see the look in your eyes; turnaround bright eyes, every now and then I fall apart; turnaround bright eyes, every now and then I fall apart; turnaround, every now and then I get a little bit restless and I dream of something wild turnaround, every now and then I get a little bit helpless and I'm lying like a child in your arms; turnaround, every now and then I get a little bit angry and I know I've got to get out and cry; turnaround, every now and then I get a little bit terrified but then I see the look in your eyes; turnaround bright eyes, every now and then I fall apart; turnaround bright eyes, every now and then I fall apart; and I need you now tonight and I need you more than ever and if you'll only hold me tight; we'll be holding on forever and we'll only be making it right 'cause we'll never be wrong together; we can take it to the end of the line your love is like a shadow on me all of the time; I don't know what to do and I'm always in the dark, we're living in a powder keg and giving off sparks; I really need you tonight; forever's gonna start tonight; forever's gonna start tonight. . .

once upon a time I was falling in love, but now I'm only falling apart - there's nothing I can do, a total eclipse of the heart; once upon a time there was light in my life, but now there's only love in the dark, nothing I can say - a total eclipse of the heart. . .

turnaround bright eyes, turnaround, every now and then I know you'll never be the boy you always you wanted to be; turnaround, every now and then I know you'll always be the only boy who wanted me the way that I am; turnaround, every now and then I know there's no one in the universe as magical and wonderous as you; turnaround, every now and then I know there's nothing any better and there's nothing I just wouldn't do; turnaround bright eyes, every now and then I fall apart. . .

BONNIE TYLER

.
Mel's thought for the day reminded me of this - once such a signficant song for me, and now not; it's quite wonderful not to be troubled by love, quite liberating; I don't really miss it, well not much; I don't yearn for it; if only I'd found that balance a few years ago; but I didn't, I have it now, and I'm grateful for that; memories are bittersweet, aren't they

be brave, be very very brave

2010-07-08T11:00:00.006+01:00

I,LTV returns to. . .
. . .hungry cats

. . .dead houseplants

. . .you don't want to know what was going on in the bathroom. . .

. . .if it was that
(up arrow)
I'd be a somewhat happier bunny

beach hut boogie

2010-07-07T15:30:00.000+01:00

that would be a great name for a song, wouldn't it?

(more later - I was absent for three days, you can just imagine what I came back to, can't you!) (you can't? oh, how I wish I could say the same. . .)

what a gas!

2010-07-07T15:24:00.004+01:00

over the weekend I partook of some Cream. . .. . .which took me to this. . .

enjoy!
.

(-:

I,LTV takes it all back

2010-07-05T10:00:00.006+01:00

I'm totally in love with my new netbookI haven't charged it for three days and the battery is only just now on its last (proverbial) legs; I'm sure I ought to be sharing with you what a wonderful time I'm having, but I'm so busy having it I haven't had an opportunity to write about it
.

I hope you have a great day
.
(-:
.
XXX

blogging from the beach

2010-07-03T11:57:00.006+01:00

from here in fact. . .

(-:

(might have to relocate I,LTV Towers to a beach hut for a while. . .)(NOBGM says even one of those might be slightly out of my price range!)

The Teen learns to cook

2010-07-02T08:22:00.000+01:00

(Nigella's dense chocolate loaf)
(well, almost) (this is kind of how we did it, but not quite) (I mean, how he did it)

surf's up!

2010-07-02T08:20:00.003+01:00

(well, it's choppy anyhow)

I love the way the French say

2010-07-01T21:10:00.002+01:00

/ʒɥi.jɛ/

(the first syllable is the same as the Z sound in treasure, then there's a we sound, then there's a yeay! sound) (Z-we-yeay) (or try this)

time out

2010-06-30T10:14:00.013+01:00

as I purchased my newspaper this morning I couldn't help but notice the cover of this week's Time Out magazineno, not the image above, but one of a naked man "blogging": his laptop covering his laptop (if you can visualise that) (better than the alternative, I think) (most things are better than the alternative, wouldn't you say)

the cover story being how London bloggers reveal the details ("all the details", according to the tagline on the cover) of their sex lives: never fear, dear reader, you won't find such smut here, will you? no, not because I don't actually have a sex life - but because I don't blog about such stuff (as you, dear reader, know well)

instead I shall share with you the fact that second flower box of the cafe (I had to come out for coffee, having used up all the milk making smoothies for the POVS yesterday) has been replanted - no more weeds, but at least seven different varieties of lettuce (green leaved, red leaved, crinkly leaved, raggedy edged leaved, lambs lettuce leaved, red with white veins leaved and something quite indescribably) (I'd take a photo to give you a full visual, only the camera on my phone has given up the ghost again, so I'll leave it up to your imagination)

I was somewhat perturbed to find out, whilst searching Mrs G Image a while back, that my new haunt is frequented by various glitterati of the SWsomethingorother London scene, including, amongst others, a certain Colin Firth Esq and a Mr Nick Clegg. . .

Colin and Clegg consuming cappuccino in my fave cafe

both might be known to you in one guise or another (one for best chest in a wet 'n' wild linen shirt competition a few years back, one as being Chief Fag to GB's Current Head Boy) (and seeing as I don't do politics here either, I'll leave it at that) (and no, when I write the word "fag" I don't mean nicotine stick in this case, I mean this) (see, I might not "do" politics or sex, but I do "do" education) (in the broadest sense of the word, you understand)

not much of a competition, is it?

never one to force my opinion on anyone, I'll leave it up to you; but it does bring to mind something The Teen shared with me the other evening. . .

he'd been reading a magazine I'd carelessly left lying about (Vogue) and showed me a page that interested him (I really do worry about that boy): the advert for an expensive rental apartment (now you understand my concern - mag full of scantily clad girlies and he's looking at the property pages) (on the other hand, he is his father's son I suppose), the details of which he found quite fascinating. . .

"what's a Guest Cloakroom, mum?" he asked excitedly, expecting - I think - that it meant the flat came with something equivalent to a personal Jeeves for each and every visitor and if not that then at least the space for people to hang up their coats and hats in a different closet to his own such that upon leaving noone would ever depart with either his topper or his Panama (yes, I treated him) by mistake

you'll understand how disappointed he was when I explained; another part of the listing also confused him: the Plant Room (I had no idea what that actually was, but told him I didn't think it was where occupants might nurture their lilies, orchid or other delicate flower collections)

I,LTV Towers: a hot bed of confusion (so what's new?) (not much)

(anyhoo - as expected, being the second week of Wimbledon, the skies are clouding over and I can sense impending rain, so I'll be off for the mo) (x) (have an unconfused day, dear reader!)

a quick check

2010-06-30T08:14:00.000+01:00

on my mind

2010-06-29T09:10:00.000+01:00

no, not running thru the streets half nakedsomething about incomplete circles? gentle spiralling movements?

swirling, blowing in a breeze? lightness, billowing, arching, dancing?
I'm not sure. . .

. . .it's a strange feeling

more thoughts

2010-06-29T08:50:00.005+01:00

some kind of smoke ring, maybe?a raindrop?not a puddle, possibly on a windowpane. . . the way the light works in the droplet. . .this smoke ring, perhaps. . .
I'm still pondering

Cowboy Joe From Mexico

2010-06-29T07:59:00.003+01:00

I found it! a picture of Joe - badge 'n' all. . .

Angela Lizon

distracted

2010-06-28T12:00:00.000+01:00

every single time I turn this blasted thing on it turns itself off again. . . I'm reading another rather excellent book (not as excellent as The Lacuna, but still well worth picking up) (if the life of a teen as recalled by a grown-up is something that is relevant to you)
and I've ditched knitting and crochet for my summer keeping-my-fingers-busy-activity: the beauty that is an Ehrman tapestry. . . at the moment Magic Forest: actually, it might be Enchanted Forest, I'm not sure. . .

which reminds me of this. . .

A song of enchantment I sang me there,
In a green-green wood, by waters fair,
Just as the words came up to me
I sang it under the wild wood tree.

Widdershins turned I, singing it low,
Watching the wild birds come and go;
No cloud in the deep dark blue to be seen
Under the thick-thatched branches green.

Twilight came: silence came:
The planet of Evening's silver flame;
By darkening paths I wandered through
Thickets trembling with drops of dew.

But the music is lost and the words are gone
Of the song I sang as I sat alone,
Ages and ages have fallen on me -
On the wood and the pool and the elder tree.

Walter de la Mare

I hope you have some enchantment
in your day today

(-:

yesterday evening on the beach

2010-06-28T11:55:00.004+01:00

(this image show one of those waves which suddenly stretches much further up the beach than the uninitiated expect, soaking belongings at the best and washing them away at the worst - if you look carefully you'll see that the ice-cream van is in danger of becoming stuck in the wet sand) (such excitement!) (I was there once when a van much further up the beach than this one became swamped due to a far reaching wave, the ice-cream man tried to drive off, the wheels sank further into the sand, a helpful cafe owner hooked up a rope to back of his Land-Rover and tried to pull the van out, people were ferrying ice-cream cartons from the can up the beach into cafe freezers, the Land-Rover became stuck and eventually when the two were almost submerged a local farmer brought his tractor down to tow them both out) (such hilarity!)

21 years of World Book Day

2010-06-25T08:08:00.006+01:00

and still counting

"off with their heads"

.
having three children means that I've done my stint with seven years each at primary school and the requirements it places on a parent - it was with a sigh of relief on my part when, one by one, my three moved up to secondary school, as it meant that I, so I thought, would NEVER AGAIN have to contribute to World Book Day; don't get me wrong, I'm all for it - books and reading (as you know) and I initially enjoyed the primary school aspect of this one special day, as, being the middle-class well-meaning mother I was, my children had a very well equipped dressing-up box; what I wasn't up for was the competitive nature of prizes for best costume: what happens to children whose mother's are not able to provide a proper dressing up box? hardly fair to penalise the child, is it!
.
at secondary school the pressures are even worse no longer is every mother quivering and shaking in her proverbial footwear as to whether or not her small beloved(s) will be at least recognisable and at best prize-winning. . . no no no it's far worse than that, one quivers and shakes as one waves goodbye to the child on the doorstep, as they not only have to survive the day having first travelled to school on public transport but then are subject to peer pressure (teen peer pressure is almost the same as the pressure middle class mothers place upon each other, only far far worse)
.
over the years, between my three, we've had a prize-winning hat wearing cat. . .

a prize-winning rather cleaner and less smelly version of one of my own childhood favourites. . .and a prize-winning very jolly Milly Molly Mandy. . . I was spared having to make a feathered costume, altho I will share with you one of my lots best ever bedtime reads. . .have you ever read this totally charming series? well worth it, even in adulthood. . .and the one which always brought a tear to my eye as the lights went out. . .

but back to today - the boys aren't at school (something to do with teachers needing training) and even if they were I'd think there'd be a revolt about having to wear clothes dictated by a book; Mini-Teen has decided to go for the costume of the film of the book, rather than do it properly (she sorted the costume herself, I wasn't going to quibble) (altho I did have to spend almost an hour in hair and make-up with her) (at seven o'clock in the morning) (ho hum) (my other contribution was to make a flamingo croquet mallet for her, altho - sensibly - I'd prepared that one earlier in the week)

and who did she go as, I hear you ask! you can't guess?

off with your head!

who would you
dress up as?

do you have a passion for passion

2010-06-23T19:10:00.007+01:00

fruit?

I love it! it's so gloopy and slurpy (apart from when you crunch the seedy bit); kinda reminds me of a more palatable oyster. . .

GAK! ok, so maybe I shouldn't have brought oysters into it (sorry!!); anyhow, back to the plot. . . which was the deliciousness that is a passion fruit - they kinda remind me of a bittersweet lychee, only more gloopy and slurpy and slightly less firm in the bite (and you don't crunch the nut thing in the middle) the insides of a passion fruit look a little like frog spawn. . . in a slender aubergine eggshell. . . don't they, whereas lychee - - -
.

blast, I'm all confused now

.
this week I discovered the wonderful passion fruit in the most perfect form: as a gloopy slurply sauce on top of a smooth coconut milk panecotta

YUM!

(the only problem is that for some reason the silly people who make it
just had to add beef gelatin to the recipe: GAK!)

a view of The View

2010-06-23T08:29:00.007+01:00

one day last week, the lovely mig floated past one of my favourite places to hang-out with a cup of coffee, on a canal boat; if I'd been more organised, I'd have taken a photo of her as the tide whisked her boat upstream

sadly I wasn't - but I am in her photo (above) (no prizes for spotting me)(or The Teen, who kindly accompanied me to watch mig whizz past) (he even waved) (wonders will never cease)I'm also in the cropped version of her photo (doesn't it look so much nicer with The Tower chopped off? the only good thing about The Tower is the view from inside it) (rather a wonderful one, it has to be said)

if the sun comes out again today, I might wander back down to see what there is to see today

for KAZ via dinah

2010-06-21T15:15:00.000+01:00

staff. . .
friend. . .
hide. . .

with lots of love

XXX

is it midsummer already?

2010-06-21T08:23:00.002+01:00

I find that hard to believe. . .
. . .because it feels so nippy still

today I went to the RA Summer Exhibition

2010-06-19T17:07:00.008+01:00

and The Teen kindly agreed to accompany me

I saw work by artists who I really admire, Donald Hamilton Fraser who sadly died last September; Fred Cuming (can't find many images of his on the web, so follow the link to the RA site to read more about him)

The Teen liked far more pictures than he did when I took him to last year's show. . . which I consider a bit of a result (and just goes to show how much difference a year can make at this age) and he was a great gallery companion (ditto); we both really liked a painting by Elizabeth Magil; he introduced me to the work of Bill Jacklin, an artist he has talked about before but whose work I was not familiar withit's not all serious stuff tho, paintings at the Royal Academy, and he bought a postcard of the following image for Teen Too (on the basis that T2 didn't name our cat who is called Jo Joe) (if you see what I mean)

Cowboy Joe from Mexico
by Angela Lizon

(this image is cropped, Joe has a sheriff's badge as well)

I couldn't resist another peak!

2010-06-18T08:15:00.001+01:00

*happy happy happy sigh*

(how I wish I could be that lone surfer walking down the beach)

something cool

2010-06-18T00:01:00.002+01:00

your choice of a FAB or a ZOOM

(they're probably a little more than 6d these days)(well, I know that they are)(and the sugar strands on the FAB don't cover as much of the lolly as they used to)(and I don't think that they are allowed to use the food colouring that made the top of the ZOOM so green anymore)(not that I'm moaning about the good old days!)(or am I?)

happy happy sigh

2010-06-17T08:23:00.008+01:00

(-:

what's so wonderful about Polzeath (well, it's probably true for most beaches in our part of the world, isn't it) is that the tide sometimes hangs around the middle of the beach - as it is in these photos, the neap tide I believe - and other times, spring tides, it would be so high up the beach that you'd see no sand in one of these photos and also so far down the beach that almost all you'd see is sand

(in the 11:30 photo, in the image just below the boat you'll see something on the beach by the shore line - this is the surf school! eight or nine pupils lined up on the beach, learning about the tides and the rip and hopefully learning enough to keep them safe in the water)
.

(gotta feel kinda sad for the guy who's been sat in that ice-cream trailer all day, haven't you?)(mind you, I suppose a job's a job)

2010-06-16T21:40:00.004+01:00

just kidding!

it was inspirationally sunny and beautifully warm here today, quite breezy (for England). . . I sat by the river and it reminded me of being on the cliffs in Polzeath - blue skies above, hardly a cloud in the sky, rather nippy, tide racing in over the shingle; fewer seagulls and not as much chance of being burnt to a cinder but pretty good for London Town, all things considered
.

I hope you had some relaxing moments in your day
.

XXX

lemon drizzle cake anyone?

2010-06-15T12:41:00.006+01:00

"oranges and lemons" say the Bells of St. Clement's "you owe me five farthings" say the Bells of St. Martin's
"when will you pay me?" say the Bells of Old Bailey
"when I grow rich" say the Bells of Shoreditch
"when will that be?" say the Bells of Stepney "I do not know" say the Great Bells of Bow
here comes a candle to light you to bed and here comes a chopper
to chop off your head, chip chop chip chop - the last man's dead
(some mistake, surely? Ed)

so, I'm baking again! what are the chances of the POVS actually being interested in my cooking? well, it doesn't really matter. . . apparently this cake improves if carefully wrapped, so I can always save a slice for you, dear reader, for your Friday treat. . .
.
. . .can't I
.
"The reason for the sinister last three lines of the lyrics of Oranges and Lemons is easily explained: they were added to the original rhyme, some time before 1783 when the infamous public execution gallows* (the Tyburn-tree) was moved from Tyburn-gate (Marble Arch) to Newgate, a notorious prison for both criminals and debtors, hence 'when will you pay me?'.
.
"As the words to the poem indicate, the unfortunate victim would await execution on death row and would be informed by the Bellman of St. Sepulchre, by candle light, hence 'here comes the candle to light you to bed', at midnight outside their cell, the Sunday night prior to their imminent fate.
.
"*The origin of the saying 'on the wagon' - meaning a person has stopped drinking alcohol - derives from the transportation of prisoners Tyburn Gallows on a wagon, they were allowed one last drink in a pub on the way to their execution. If offered a second drink by a sympathiser the guard would reply, 'No, they're going on the wagon!'"

slightly exasperated

2010-06-15T08:37:00.004+01:00

(but not wishing to complain)

everytime (every single time) I want to use the new netbook, it insists on turning itself off again in order to "install updates"

I DON'T UNDERSTAND!!!! it was new last week, how is it possible that it needs updating already??? actually, don't answer that - it will only confuse me; (erm, I'm sure I had something else more relevant to share with you - but the update wiped it)

blogging from out-and-about (again)

2010-06-13T16:09:00.008+01:00

I must just tell you that it's very noisy here - police car sirens, traffic in general, other people in the coffee shop (yes, more annoying étrangers) (actually, it's not so much the people, more their accents) (why oh why does this bother me so?), to name but a few disturbances of my petit sojourn au extérieur. . . also the weather is very changeable - within seconds it goes from hot and sunny and balmy (I take off my cardigan and order a coke with lots of ice) to windy and nippy (I put the cardigan on again and try and attract the waiter's attention to bring me another coffee) (it's such a hard life, eh) (altho I do not expect any pity whatsoever!!)

so, a little more about the cafe, just to put you in the picture. . . from here I can see bay trees and rosemary plants in the adjoining restaurant (I don't think they'd distract an outside diner from the traffic, double red lines and tarmac of the South Circular - but at least someone's tried); a large blue and orange sign reading "Budget" (which I'm sure is useful if you want to hire a car, but it spoils my outlook); and a banner proclaiming "Virgin Active" (quite clearly not aimed at my good self, seeing as I am neither) (*sigh* those were the days, dear reader - youth is wasted on the young, is it not?)

here the front boundary of the place is planted on one side with some kind of weed (not dandelion, but it has yellow flowers and is quite pretty) and trays of six or seven types of lettuce on the other (I think the weeds are meant to reinforce the cafe's green credentials, I hope the lettuce - with its proximity to the traffic fumes - will not end up in someone's salad); the awning flaps about in the breeze and blocks out the sun which would otherwise be shining down on me, in between being itself blocked out by the clouds which are scudding across the early summer sky (is it summer in June, or merely late spring? I never know if summer comprises June, July and August or July, August and September) (but weird, eh, that the longest day of the year approaches and I haven't yet had one opportunity to avail myself of the bonus long well lit evenings)

before my arrival I purchased a newspaper just in case the netbook's battery gives out, or the internet connection wouldn't connect; it remains in my bag and will probably stay there until it ends up in the recycling - how much of the bulk that is a Sunday paper do you ever manage to get thru?); I also brought along The Lacuna, which I finished last night

there was one passage in almost the final section which I marked by turning over a page corner: having written the other day of my piece of "knitted fabric" which was unravelling and ripped to shreds, I then read a similar analogy in The Lacuna (my copy purchased before it won the award, published before the cover will be emblazoned to that effect), so page 613 in my book, the narrator describes "knitting away at the front of the long knotted scarf that will have to be unraveled at the back"

ho hum

is there such a thing as an original thought anymore? I know I've touched on that topic before, but the notion returns time and again like a piece of driftwood bobbing up and down on a shore on the incoming and outgoing tides; not that I'm particuarly bothered, despite it coming to my attention so frequently the same thoughts spoken by a different voice still have their own degree of uniqueness, don't they?

in the words of the world's most famous bunny

2010-06-12T13:15:00.002+01:00

what's up?
you tell me and I'll tell you!

and for today

2010-06-11T09:35:00.004+01:00

a light snack gently steamed asparagus. . . I like mine with some freshly cracked black pepper and lots of butter (and sometimes a poached egg, but don't tell Vicus) (actually don't tell Vicus about the butter either)

how do you like yours?

not navel gazing

2010-06-10T18:02:00.006+01:00

(for a change)

when I was young (stop snickering at the back - I was) (once) (okay, so it was a very very long time ago now - but not as long ago as some of you) (guess who's snickering now!)

where was I? oh yes! being young. . .

. . .when I was young I used to try and draw pools of water with leaves floating on the top and fish swimming down below - not in black and white, like Escher. . .

and not as reflective as Monet

(I suppose I wanted the water to be more transparent) (altho - let's face it, I'd have been very happy with a result to either of those standards) (yes, it's alright to laugh now. . .)

I never managed it: perhaps I'll try again sometime!

(and while I'm on the subject, the top image reminds me of the book I'm currently reading - every night I can't wait to turn the pages, it is quite wonderful and I keep meaning to mention this - and then today I saw that it has won a prize; don't know if that makes it more desirable or less, but do try Barbara Kingsolver's The Lacuna and see if you enjoy it) (a little like a rockpool, it's not very deep, completely transparent but is full of interest)

all it takes

2010-06-09T13:33:00.008+01:00

"All it takes is for a single fearful, angry person to shift their perception about a situation or a person, and then make a better choice about their own behaviour."

Dear - for you are dear - reader,

My heart is heavy; so heavy. So heavy; I do not wish to stop for a moment unless I am weighed down and thence unable to move again. Not that I am moving very far at the moment. Mostly round and round, in a circle. Sometimes down and down, in a spiral. Often in and further in, in a concentric ellipse (if there is such a thing).

It is as if I knitted a beautiful garment out of a marvellous yarn, a yarn unusual and much desired. A wonderful garment that offered comfort and joy: it was warm in the cold months, cool in those that were hot; it could be folded and used as a pillow for a tired head, could be flung casually over shoulders - like a loose embrace - and almost forgotten about until it was needed again, present but not intrusive. Almost the perfect item, if there is such a thing.

Having given the garment as a gift, it was well worn for a while: then the person who wore it outgrew it - not a situation I had foreseen. So, in good faith, I took it back and unpicked it, row by row, stitch by stitch; carefully I rewound that stunning yarn into a fresh ball and put it to one side. Yet, as the yarn was so desired, I reknitted it - stitch by stitch and row by row into another garment. A simpler one. I gave it back.

It transpires that a blade has been taken to the garment. The delicate fabric I had created, which I thought quite robust, lies in pieces. I didn't realise for a while that this was the case, however eventually I glimpsed some shreds of broken yarn. Perhaps I ought not to have looked. Perhaps I ought not to have given the gift. Perhaps. I feel many things, but there is nothing I can say. Nothing I can do. Apart from be patient and wait to find out what will happen now.

I don't want to sadden you, dear reader; I understand that life is not simple, not always full of pleasures, sometimes we receive what we deserve and sometimes we do not. I am waiting whilst still moving slowly. Patiently. Trying not to be too heavy.

Yours - as ever - I,LTV

one of those things that's so good

2010-06-07T22:54:00.004+01:00

we'll do it twice

All love comes back to you, it's all giving and taking
Don't ever be a fool and try to mend the heart you're breaking
A thought is but a thought when a heart is not behind it
Love can't be sold nor bought but if you get some you must repay it
If one day you do find just what you left behind, then ring a bell
and make the spotlight clear - you'll see magic will appear
Give me love and I'll bring it back to you
That image in your mind it might be past or present
But since time we can't rewind you better stop and take it's lesson
Give me love and I'll bring it back to you
.
SIMON LYNGE
.
*. . .look around, all of this is inifinitely you. . .
SIMON LYNGE

multitasking

2010-06-07T11:38:00.007+01:00

woo-hoo!! (@ Wallace & Co)

I'm here!! at the cafe!! (no, I'm not the grey haired man in the picture, I'm actually sitting just to the side of the butcher's block at the middle right of the image); and the multitasking? sitting (as explained), drinking (coffee), smoking (fags), reading (paper), blogging (you don't really need an explanation of that one do you?)

crikey - I can't believe I made it ("it" having taken me about an hour: 55 minutes to sort out my aforementioned bag and then 5 minutes to sort out the dongle and its connection to teh webnetinterthingy) and actually, I'm quite in need of a spot of relaxation now, so if you'll excuse me I'll leave you alone for a bit while I recover. . .

O Mistress Mine Where are you Roaming?

2010-06-07T11:20:00.000+01:00

O Mistress mine where are you roaming?
O stay and hear, your true love's coming,
That can sing both high and low.
Trip no further pretty sweeting.
Journeys end in lovers' meeting,
Every wise man's son doth know.

What is love, 'tis not hereafter,
Present mirth, hath present laughter:
What's to come, is still unsure.
In delay there lies no plenty,
Then come kiss me sweet and twenty:
Youth's a stuff will not endure.

OUR WILL

Roaming In Thought (after Reading Hegel)

2010-06-07T11:00:00.000+01:00

Roaming in thought over the Universe, I saw the little that is Good
steadily hastening towards immortality,
And the vast all that is call'd Evil I saw hastening to merge itself
and become lost and dead.
[The end]

WALT WHITMAN

I just thought you'd like to know that this

2010-06-07T10:59:00.002+01:00

is a large blue butterfly

(it would be larger, but the new netbookthingy won't let me crop pictures) (there's nothing I'd want to do to make it bluer. . . I mean - who am I to mess with nature?)

further thoughts

2010-06-07T10:33:00.000+01:00

(on roaming)

one is subjected to the noises of traffic (I think I'm sitting slap-bang next to the inner London circular style traffic system) (quite why all these trucks can't drive about at night, when there are fewer people sitting next to the road I don't understand) and the conversations of the other people in the cafe (if I say I'm fed up with hearing the voices of Australians, would you forgive me or dismiss me as a miserable old cow?); erm, I think those are my only two grouches

and others (the Australians, probably not the truck drivers) are subjected to my snorts of either laughter or derision as I sip my coffee and read thru the paper, cover to cover (fortunately I didn't snort the coffee out of my nose). . .

. . .I'd tell you about the most interesting things I have learnt this morning (traffic and foreigners aside) only I think the battery might be running out, so you're spared

I,LTV mobilises

2010-06-07T08:09:00.008+01:00

now, apparently, my new netbook travels

without the need for a power cable - amazing! - and, so long as it has something called a "dongle" attached, apparently, it will connect to teh web - incredible!!

so, perhaps, if I get my act together, I could transport it in my handbag* (as above, only gold in colour) to a nearby establishment (one which serves the very decent cups of coffee I've been having recently) and browse teh web whilst sipping wonderful coffee**

*(yes, I'm a girl, I have one of those) (actually, that's a fib) (no, not the bit about being a girl) (the bit about having a handbag) (being a bit of a girl, I have hundreds of those) (this fact prompted a debate at I,LTV Towers recently. . . when a teen boy complained that teen girls - and their mothers - needed to have more than one bag) (hand or other) (I pointed out to the teen boy involved that he had more than one xBox game) (ha!!!! how to call a teen boy's bluff or what, eh)

**now. . .that might be true - I'll have to find out for myself (not the sipping coffee bit, but the browsing teh web bit)

only first, I have to empty said bag of its contents in order to fit the netthingy into it

don't hold your breath - I may be some time

Alice visits Lilliput

2010-06-06T16:01:00.008+01:00

I suppose - she admits, somewhat grudgingly - that I should be pleased that I can still get to my little chink of cyber space (and all the wonderful chums it contains)

even tho I find its size a strange restraint

and I'm confused and annoyed by the fact that nothing is where it should be (altho most of everything is still here) (I mean, you - the most important of anything - still are, aren't you?) (but for some reason, I can't crop images in my picture file - now, why is that I ask you?) (and no, not my wonderfully overstuffed, dog-eared, scrap book of images, collected during the life of my laptop - but a new, empty file. . . *sobs*)

if there was something I could do to fix this, I would - but nothing is on offer (at least Alice had cakes and beverages on hand)

oh well (I,LTV pauses for a moment to take stock of the situation) it could be so much worse, couldn't it

I'll pull myself together, like my favourite pair of curtains, and make the best of it

the very best of it

(that's a promise!)

HELP!!!!

2010-06-05T19:45:00.000+01:00

so, I have this new netbook thingymejiggamebob
the keyboard is too small
the screen is very tiny
and my email isn't where it used to be

<--- not happy

2010-06-05T19:37:00.006+01:00

Take all your chances while you can, you never know when they'll pass you by
Like a sum the mathematician cannot solve, like me trying my hardest to explain
If I had the chance to start again then you would be the one I'd come and find
Like the poster of Berlin on my wall, maybe there's a chance our walls might fall

It's all about your cries and kisses
Those first steps that I can't calculate
I need some more of you to take me over

I know because I can't calculate how to respect you, how to start again
.
It's all about you
.
ATHLETE

erm, it's Friday, isn't it?

2010-06-04T10:45:00.002+01:00

perhaps some watermelon will help cool my frazzled mind - you're very welcome to some too (is your mind as frazzled as mine?)

2010-06-01T12:59:00.003+01:00

the lake isle of Innisfree

2010-05-31T16:28:00.005+01:00

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made; Nine bean rows will I have there, a hive for the honeybee,
and live alone in the bee-loud glade.
And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;
There midnight's all a-glimmer
and noon a purple glow and evening full of the linnet's wings.
I will arise and go now, for always night and day,
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore; While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements gray,
I hear it in the deep heart's core.
.
WILLIAM BUTLER YEATS

not a full house

2010-05-29T12:48:00.004+01:00

they are all gone
not even just a few blocks away - but to the Emerald Isle

compared to this time last week, the house is very very quiet; I took the opportunity to sleep in, altho while that happened I had a very strange dream about a girl I was once at school with, a teacher, a rather bizarre forest, tree cutting equipment and a ship with an enormous sail

I need a cup of extremely decent coffee, so I must leave the house; I won't be gone a long time, altho I'm not sure if I'll be straight back (errands to run, you know how it is)
.

I don't think that I knew (or if I did, I certainly didn't understand) that there would times like this, way back whenever it was that my life took its current path - but the person I am now knows (and understands) that I just have to get on with this life and make the best of it, the very best of it
.

I hope that you are able to enjoy
what your life offers you today

(-:

bagels! (the good bagels)

2010-05-28T10:23:00.007+01:00

today I offer you bagels (my favourite bagels)freshly baked! any type! (gluten free!!)
from H&H

(-:

I've had this riff on my brain for days now. . .

2010-05-27T08:48:00.011+01:00

Between the eyes of love I call your name, behind those guarded walls

I used to go, upon a summer wind there's a certain melody
Takes me back to the place that I know, on the beach, down on the beach

The secrets of the summer I will keep, the sands of time will blow a mystery
No one but you and I underneath that moonlit skyTake me back to the place that I know, on the beach, down on the beach
Forever in my dreams my heart will be hanging on to this sweet memory
A day of strange desire and a night that burned like fire
Take me back to the place that I know, on the beach, down on the beach
CHRIS REA

a litany of woes*

2010-05-26T14:11:00.005+01:00

don't expect the worst* it'll seem better in the morning*

Dr Pepper! what's the worst that could happen?**

(*to quote my mother***)(**to quote a rather bizarre advertising campaign)(***it is the morning!!! why doesn't it seem better???)(ok, so I know the worst isn't going to happen. . . but still. . .)

what would be in yours?

2010-05-26T10:26:00.002+01:00

my laptop is on its last legs. . .

2010-05-25T08:23:00.008+01:00

. . .but while it had a brief respite. . . . . .I noticed that someone somewhere has been looking for a Rob Ryan font. . . (you recall, dear reader, how much I admire the work of Mr Rob)so I wandered around the internet to see if such a thing existsand it does!

<--- very happy

I hope your day is full of simple pleasures

(-:

XXX

dolce far niente

never forget

kis

<--- has just realised what she's been humming

recommended reading

playing travellers

treat day!!! and when

and I quote:

pinch punch

a change is as good as a rest! so, I'm vaguely

this Friday we'll go out, shall we!

for mig and Mel

a small aside from the holiday memories. . .

raku

Friday!!!

moody yet magnificent

a present from Padstow

my worst hole

magical Trevor

so, why do I go to Polzeath whenever I can?

and finally. . .

it's enough to drive you

struggling. . .

one of the most frequently asked questions

*feeble wave*

erm, ok, so it's not great but. . .

two on a train!

two down

if I have to wash one more load of laundry

so, you recall I'll be on me 'ols soon? guess

so, what's been distracting me from

sometimes only one thing will do

three. . . two. . . one. . .

sleeping on the roof

a treat for the heat

turnaround, she said

be brave, be very very brave

beach hut boogie

what a gas!

I,LTV takes it all back

blogging from the beach

The Teen learns to cook

surf's up!

I love the way the French say

time out

a quick check

on my mind

more thoughts

Cowboy Joe From Mexico

distracted

yesterday evening on the beach

21 years of World Book Day

do you have a passion for passion

a view of The View

for KAZ via dinah

is it midsummer already?

today I went to the RA Summer Exhibition

I couldn't resist another peak!

something cool

happy happy sigh

lemon drizzle cake anyone?

slightly exasperated

blogging from out-and-about (again)

in the words of the world's most famous bunny

and for today

not navel gazing

all it takes

one of those things that's so good

multitasking

O Mistress Mine Where are you Roaming?

Roaming In Thought (after Reading Hegel)

I just thought you'd like to know that this

further thoughts

I,LTV mobilises

Alice visits Lilliput

HELP!!!!

erm, it's Friday, isn't it?

the lake isle of Innisfree

not a full house

bagels! (the good bagels)

feeble wave