Rode Hall snow drop walk.

Gallanthus, the Latin name for Snowdrops. They are out in force at Rode Hall gardens near Scholar Green, on the North Staffordshire/ Cheshire border. It’s off the A34 between Stoke-on-Trent and Congleton. The snowdrops are in flower right now and you can buy little bags of them (in the green) wjuch means you get bulbs with the leaves and flowers and you plant them directly into the ground under trees so they can spread out. They have many different sorts of the flowers that brighten the grounds of the hall. The snowdrop walks are on till March 3rd? And open till 4pm.

We walked through the grounds and gardens of the hall. Winding paths lead through bushes and trees, up and down little hills and slopes, past pools and woven willow sculptures down to the lake at the end of the longest path. There you can see a wooded island where Herons are starting to nest. I got blurry shots of four herons flying around the tree tops.

Back up past the hall we had a meal and coffee at the cafe and then on to an old barn to see an Exhibition by three local art groups that is on till the start of March.

It’s great to get out into the world and see it changing. The snowdrops were in such great clumps on the ground that it truly did look like they were patches of snow under the bare trees. It’s a great place to explore.

 

Lake view

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Good to get a good image of this painting I did a year ago. The owner has kindly sent me a HD image of it.

Acrylic on canvas, it is a lake view where the trees are back lit by a setting sun. Approximately 12 x12 inches square.

I wanted to paint a view that was crisp and fresh. The colours contrast nicely and the reflections in the water Shimmer with ultramarine blue.

I’m happy to paint anything you would like to commission. Just contact me to discuss.

I keep forgetting my phone.

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I did it again today,

Forgot my phone.

I didn’t have it with me

I’d put it down..

Somewhere…

My mind was elsewhere

Just not here.

So I put it down

And forgot….

That phone has a camera

A way of seeing

And recording my life…

To add to an album

Of happiness or horror.

But without my phone

I am no one

Only memories to remember…….

 

Coffee and cream?

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Hot coffee with cream, a slice of black forest gateaux. She sat and stirred the cup, hearing the spoon tinkle against it.

Only an hour ago she had been running to catch the bus into town. She’d told Al that she was meeting a friend….

This isn’t a trashy romance story, she told herself. Just a meeting with an old friend. But she couldn’t help feeling excited. He’d sounded just the same on the phone as he had all those years ago at college.

The cake was delicious, but she only tasted it, she was too nervous to eat. Too many butterflies in her stomach, too much anticipation and anxiety.

Oh god, she thought. I’m too old for all this, what will I say? Should I put some more lipstick on? She was also thinking about Al. How could she tell him about this. No it would be her little secret.

It was half an hour later, he was 20 minutes late… He promised he would be there. She remembered a tall young man. Long hair, a leather jacket and jeans. Black doc marten shoes….. Where is he? She thought.

Just then the glass door opened. She saw a once tall man, now stooped over. A bald head, what hair that was left was grey and in a ponytail. A walking stick, a gold medallion.

She decided not to say hello. As he walked into the room she went to the counter to pay her bill. On the way out of the door she felt mixed guilt and grief. Had she done the right thing?

She looked in the window and caught her reflection. Her once slim body was wider now, her hair not just grey, but white. Oh well she thought. At least I have Al.. …

Moon

sketch-1550491668382The moon danced last night

Leaping across the sky

It sang of silver shadows

Falling far and wide

The moon rang with music

Notes of heavenly tunes

Rising and falling

moon bows shining bright

The moon smiled last night

As it travelled overhead

Bathing the world with glimmers

And frosty gauzy white

The moon breathed last night

Cool breezes soft and sweet

Gentle dreaming sighing

Sleep in silent flight.

Tulips

Joyful tulips. Gentle flowers.

Mixed with some white flowers that look a bit like roses, but are something else. These were my valentines day present. They are keeping well. I love the way they open up. The stems bend and buckle depending on how much water they have. When the water level falls they droop. I’ve given them a bit of plant food to keep them going

I was thinking about why a lot of my flowers in my garden had kept flowering late into November and December last year. Then yesterday I heard a report that about 40% of the world’s insect population has disappeared in the last few years. Could it be that they are not around to pollinate my garden flowers. And if they are not here for flowers what about fruit and crops.

Recent bans on nicotinoid pesticides may be lifted although they have been implicated in the death of bees.

The world’s ecology must come first. Otherwise the life of all plants that need pollenation by insects may be seriously at risk.

Panto rehearsal update….

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I would love to show you photos of today’s rehearsal, but that would spoil the surprise for people coming along to the performances. We are having one more dress rehearsal then on Thursday, Friday and twice on Saturday the show will go on!

Many months of work has gone in to put Robin Hood (and his merry men (and women))on the stage.

Instead of importing a script we have the honour of it being written by one of the directors.

I can’t reveal much, but the cast includes a feisty Maid Marion, a well groomed Robin Hood and a Sheriff of Penkhull who is obsessed with taxing the poor. Instead of an archery contest Robin is challenged to take part in another sporting tradition.

In the second act the cast (possibly) travels around the world to resolve the love story between Marion and Robin.

As you can tell there is a lot of fun to be had at the panto! Next week is going to be busy … But hopefully hilarious!

 

Aurora

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“And what is Life?—An hour-glass on the run,
A mist retreating from the morning sun,
A busy, bustling, still repeated dream;
Its length?—A minute’s pause, a moment’s thought;
And happiness?—A bubble on the stream,
That in the act of seizing shrinks to nought.”

[From ‘What is Life?’ (1820) by John Clare]

I just read this quote and thought about what I would love to see. My friend recently visited Iceland and was lucky to see the aurora borealis. I decided to try and draw it since I haven’t had the opportunity to see one. I was surprised to find out they can be colours other than green which is caused by Nitrogen ions in the atmosphere. The pink is from Oxygen.

The magnetic North Pole of the Earth is drifting towards the actual North Pole at several kilometers a year. There is speculation about what is causing this. But as the Earth’s has a molten iron core it causes a magnetic feild generated by the movement of the Iron. The earth’s magnetic feild may flip (it has before) and so the aurora may drift further south.

The magnetic feild lines emerge from the poles like a bar magnet. This is where the Earth’s magnetosphere is at its weakest and the solar wind, which is made up of charged particles, comes down the magnetic lines and causes the gases in atmosphere to glow.

I wish I had more knowledge about it and I hope one day I will see it.

Old film projector.

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I was looking through my old photos and came across this from about a year ago. This is a film projector that was used for a local cinema. I have no idea what all the bits are for. But it’s interesting to see what used to be used before digital came in. My partner once did a training course to learn how to project films. There is usually a splodge marked in one corner of the film so you know when the next piece of film  (reel) is due to start. Apparently some films could have up to eight reels. I don’t know enough to describe it properly. But these machines are beautiful, so well made, which allowed classic films to be shown to audiences. There is a national film and cinematography museum in Bradford, England, which is well worth a visit. I think it still has an IMAX cinema which shows twice the normal sized film. I think it’s 70 millimetres instead of 35 and the film has to be run on its side…. I might visit again soon.

 

Keeping track

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I can’t keep track of things… I want to but social media can be overwhelming. If its panto rehearsals, craft fairs ,art exhibitions. .. A lot of the time I just have to delete things. It’s not that I don’t want to do stuff, just my head is full of things I need to do and I end up stationary instead of getting things done. I’m hoping this will change soon, maybe for the better.

Then there are emails, I don’t know how people manage their accounts with WordPress. I think I’ve said before that it’s hard to keep up with them all. I want to, but then two hours have passed and I’m still sitting in the same place!

Apologies if I don’t always respond to your posts.

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