Tree by river

Posted on December 13, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Cold, December, Flood, Photo, Rain, River, River Trent, Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent, Tree, Trees, Walk, Water, WinterLeave a comment

Tree or trees? One limb broken. The grey path reflects the grey sky. Water rushes down the river, brown and muddy. In speight, almost overcoming the banks. The rain is trapped on the pathways, the grass sodden and squelchy. I walked along there this afternoon as part of a long walk. I can feel the wet mud between my toes overtopping my shoes, pulling at their soles. Water is like glue. Stronger than gravity. My feet lift out of the shoes as they lift from the ground. My feet still feel cold and are aching hours afterwards. Perhaps I need a bowl of hot water to soak them in. I wish I’d got some bathsalts! Time to rest.

Owl

Posted on December 13, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Calling, Environment, Loss, Memiry, Nature, Poem, Poetry, song, Tawny owl, Time, Toowit toowooLeave a comment

Toowit toowoo

Male and female

Singing to each other

Across the night.

Tawny owls

Once I heard them

Up, beyond the house

In the trees.

Calling

Toowit toowoo!

Ow gone

Sad memories

Lost

Purple, today’s prompt

Posted on December 13, 2020 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged #bandofsketchers, Art, Band of sketchers, Drawing, Drying, Felt pens, Picture, Purple, Settee, Sketch, WetLeave a comment

My purple coat that I walked nine miles in. It’s still wet! #bandofsketchers prompt was purple. Sitting on the settee with a stripey cover on it. I’m surprised how mant purple felt pens I’ve got. It is one of my favourite colours. X

Bibendum

Posted on December 13, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged 1980's, Bibendum, Coal mines, Factories, Michelin, Northern, Pottery, Staffordshire, Steel, Stoke-on-Trent, Twentieth century, Twenty first centuryLeave a comment

Bibendum is the name of the iconic symbol for Michelin tyres. There was a large factory near us run by Michelin. Sadly the factory has mostly closed now, its mostly a training facility. The one improvement is that the smell of vulcanising rubber no longer hangs over the city. Like many of the factories and manufacturing in Stoke-on-Trent the jobs have gone. Potteries have been badly affected. Steel manufacturers have gone and other jobs like coal mining went in the 1980’s. Northern areas of the United Kingdom have been badly affected over the years of the late twentieth century and twenty first.

Geminid Meteor Shower

Posted on December 13, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Astronomy, Geminids, Life, Meteor shower, Night, Sky, Tonight, Too cloudy, Wikipedia, Winter skyLeave a comment

I tried to view the shower a few years ago. We drove miles, but we’re stuck under a cloud base that was miles across. I gave up after forty miles. Tonight it’s the same, cloud everywhere. But if you get the chance try and see it for yourself!

The Geminid meteor shower is tonight. (morning of 14th December 2020). I looked up the information on Wikipedia I’m afraid as I don’t know enough about them:

The Geminids are a prolific meteor shower caused by the object 3200 Phaethon,^[4] which is thought to be a Palladian asteroid^[5] with a “rock comet” orbit.^[6] This would make the Geminids, together with the Quadrantids, the only major meteor showers not originating from a comet. The meteors from this shower are slow moving, can be seen in December and usually peak around December 6–14, with the date of highest intensity being the morning of December 14. The shower is thought to be intensifying every year and recent showers have seen 120–160 meteors per hour under optimal conditions, generally around 02:00 to 03:00 local time. Geminids were first observed in 1862,^[1] much more recently than other showers such as the Perseids (36 AD) and Leonids (902 AD).

Pinched from Facebook

Posted on December 13, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Facebook, Feminist, Fun, Humour, Joke, Laugh, Photo, Tickled my funnybone!2 Comments

Just a photo for men who call women ‘kiddo’, see Martha Kennedys blog…..

(it references a very patronising piece of writing about the first lady elect)

Walked 9.2 miles!

Posted on December 13, 2020December 13, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged 9miles, Aching, Cold, Exhausted, Rain, Third of a marathon, Tired, Walk, Wet, Wind, Winter6 Comments

It was a filthy, wet day, rain, wind, cold, puddles! Of course I could have said no. But I need exercise. So off we trudged along the canal down on a flat route to a main road, then right and down hill to a large retail village. Only problem? I’d forgotten to bring a mask or some cash (I had thought I could catch the bus back), that was the five mile mark. We got a bit dry in the ladies loos, then my friend popped into a couple of shops while I stood outside. Then. Back along a dual carriageway. More wet steps. When we got to the roundabout that would take us back via the main road or along the river, yes you guessed we chose the river path. Cold, wet, rushing river, the paths were inches deep in water so I waded through the grass that was muddy mush. I’m glad I’d taken a big brolly. It made a good walking pole. Finally the path ended and we were back in the city…. I havent walked that far in twenty years!

Terracotta pot

Posted on December 12, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Clay, Cold, Flower pattern, Frost, Money plant, Photo, Plant pot, Terracotta, Terracotta pot2 Comments

Decorated terracotta pot from outside. Our money plant got too big so it’s in this enormous, heavy pot now.

I’m glad in a way. I love the flower decorations that are on the outside. If the pot was outside in the cold and frost they might crack and split if ice got into it.

I need to see patterns, if I don’t, if everything is plain, I get bored! I don’t know why. Some people like clean lines, simple colours, bare walls.. I don’t.

Tiny diamonds

Posted on December 12, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Diamonds, Duplicated, Looking, Photo, Setting, Tiny shardsLeave a comment

I ccan’t work out where the diamond ends and the surround starts. I tried zooming in, but the image is too fuzzy so I duplicated it several times. I think the setting is meant to look like flowers. Anyway it makes an interesting pattern..

My indoor boy cat

Posted on December 12, 2020 Posted in Cat, UncategorizedTagged Brother and sister, Cat, Don't forget the other two, Friendly, Indoor, Integrating, Life, Outdoor, Pets, PlayingLeave a comment

While I’m caring for an abandoned cat I must also continue to care for my other two. They have both been patient with me but I do feel guilty especially for my boy cat who loves to be loved. I think he’s a little jealous of our interloper and because he’s smaller than outdoor boy he sometimes takes it out on his sister. There’s been a lot more chasing and play fighting than before. That they have been so calm about the new cat comes, I think, from living with eighteen other cats (I took them in as rescue cats). I think they will all integrate, just wondering what we will do if we go away on holiday.

Mallaband-Brown

Author: artbychristinemallabandbrown