Twist and tear
Let light scratch up
Twigs and branches
Silhouette the clouds
Weather pleasant to come.
Getting chilled for Christmas.
Read the weather from the sky.
Hug a mug of coffee
See Dawn in and out.
Light patterns
Category: Uncategorized
Morning
A blue bar of cerulean sky contrasts with sodium lighting as the sun creeps back up the sky. Of course it is the Earth turning on its axis that makes the sun appear to rise when it is actually us turning towards it.
The cloudy skies have prevented me seeing a fuzzy green comet which is in the sky somewhere above Orion, possibly near the constellation Gemini. I’ve tried looking out each night but the weather is too murky. I probably need to take the car out into the countryside to see it.
More cloud has blown across the sky so it’s actually got slightly darker. I heard a brief song from a bird about half an hour ago but the dawn chorus tends to be muted at this time of year. It improves in spring and early summer when the birds that inhabit the garden start to look for mates.
Listening to radio 4on the bbc and hearing news from around the world.
Life continues, partner is snoring. I might be soon. I think I will catch another 40 winks…
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Winter Solstice
Dark continues to increase during the winter until two thirds of the way through December.
Today is the shortest day, the 21st this year. The least sunlight, the cold drifts in under the doors. Subtle shades of black cover the sky. The dawn seems a long way away. Lights twinkle through chilled air and a steady drizzle drives into every crevice, making clothes damp and uncomfortable.
That dark is such a contrast to 6 months ago when the temperature soared to over 30 degrees and the sun had barely set before it sprang back up again. Bathing in heat then, we now sit in yellowed gloom from cheap low energy light bulbs. Colours are washed out, paint seems hard to differentiate from colour to colour.
Is it any wonder that northern lands cling to the classic religions that celebrate their most important ceremonies at this time of year.
Wassail and messiahs meld into a grand charge against the darkness. Dragging us forward into the new year and the return of the Sun.
An oil 40 years on
Forty years ago I painted my partner and I still have the painting (and him).
It’s oil on canvas. The shine at the base was because there is a table lamp in front of it.
It must have been snowing as the background view shows white covered hills outside.
I used to stretch my own canvases, then prime them with white emulsion paint. Oils also require turps or substitute turps and linseed oil to thin the paints down and create glazes.
I found that they were more workable because they stay wet for days. You can cover an oil painting up with cloth and it will still be workable a day or two later.
I wonder what my art would look like if I still used oils.
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Horses
I have only ever ridden a horse on two occasions. Once on holiday in the lake district and the first time at a nearby village where we were visiting a friend.
I used to cycle a lot, so the first ride (well sitting on a small horse being led on a halter round a feild) didn’t feel too scary, except when the horse lowered its head to crop the grass. I felt like I would slide down its neck. I still felt safe because it was under supervision.
The second time was a few years ago, before I got creaky and was still able to climb up onto a mounting block. First we had a little amble around a fenced in square of concrete. Then after being showed how to hold the reigns, we went for a short walk on some flat land between the rolling green hills of the south lake district (near Barrow I think).
I tried kicking and clicking my heels to get the horse to walk on, but it would only go when the other horses were moving. We gradually wended our way up an overgrown lane. High on either side with tall grasses and nettles. I regretted wearing ordinary shoes as some of the nettles were tall enough to sting my ankles!
Luckily the horse had thicker skin so as it was in the middle of the bunch it continued its stately waddling walk up the lane.
We finally got to a gate that led onto the main road, but thankfully we turned round and started off again. I realised we were heading slightly down hill and had the familiar vertiginous feeling as the horse dropped its head to nibble at some juicy flowers.
I was glad to dismount, which was a bit of a struggle! I was not used to riding horses and found it quite uncomfortable.
I’ve never been out on a horse again. I doubt I could climb aboard now. I still have much respect for horses, they are beautiful animals, and all the ones I have seen have been friendly. I really respect anyone who can horseride. That must be a wonderful skill. How they can stay on while the horse gallops along underneath them is beyond me.
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Looking two ways
Remember the future
Wait for the past
How do we know
Times arrows flow past ?
Broken to mended.,
Crumbled to fixed…
I know its happened
Days before this.
Weather makes patterns
Time takes your mind
Going to sleep
And wake up past this.
Go forward and backwards
Through times tangled forest,
Caught in the branches, twigs and boughs,
Only returning slowly to now.
A small amount of progress
I thought I would post this progress picture even though I haven’t progressed that far since the last one. I do need to change some of the angles. I’m trying to give it a late afternoon glow to brighten the brickwork. I’m going to add some clouds to the sky to give it more depth.
The canvas is about 30 inches by 24 inches. I’m using acrylic again. I need to get some more blue and white for the sky.
Well that’s it for now. Christmas is coming and I’m getting busy, but I will try and post more over the next couple of weeks.
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This cat is sat…
This cat is sat
On the mat,
On my feet,
You can feel the heat,
Of his body
I’m pinned to the floor,
Can’t reach the door.
His big white paws
Rest on my feet.
Cat sat on mat,
He must be fat.
he’s heavy
And he isn’t moving.
Warm purrs arise,
I’m stuck
Curled cat.
A thought for the day.
I listen to radio 4 on the BBC network and they have a programme called “thought for the day” which is why I have added an A to the front of the title incase I’m infringing copyright.
The radio programme is what it says, a thought, but from a religious perspective. A lot of people have been calling for non religious thoughts to be included. Sometimes it seems as if the talk is non religious but then there is a twist at the end.
Why is it assumed that only if you are religious can you have morals? Why are we still held by the assumption that good things are only possible with the will of a deity?
Don’t get me wrong, I do not think religions are bad. I have been bought up in the Christian faith and I have many friends who follow various religions.
My main quibble is that some people do good because they are promised a reward in heaven. I don’t know what I think of an afterlife but I do think that if you are not religious you can still be good. In fact if you do not have a religion and are not expecting a reward and just do things for the greater good does that give a moral superiority?
I don’t go as far as that, but I enjoy giving people help and assistance. Humans need to care more for one another and not base their ideas on what tribe we belong to. Perhaps that is something we should consider if we want this planet to continue
What do you think? Why not comment ….
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Bridge 🌉
Prompted by Martha Kennedy Ragtag Daily Prompt “Bridge”.
I’ve walked and driven over a lot of bridges lately. Strangely I only regularly go back over one….the road over the canal leading into and out of Stoke-upon-Trent the town that the city of Stoke is named from.
That is a little road bridge which then takes you under a railway bridge which is the main line to Stoke Station.
Other bridges are the footbridge in Rhyl that was recently made (built?).) pictured). It is a beautiful, shiny metal object. The central section has a steel mast rising up to the sky. Somehow the bridge can rotate to the allow boats further up the river channel, although I haven’t seen it in operation.
Finally I’m thinking about the Humber Bridge in Yorkshire. This spans the Humber River. It crosses from South to North into the city of Hull. You can tell you are arriving at something very imposing as you drive along the road towards it. There is countryside on either side and the bridge looms up in the distance. It’s one of those optical illusions where it seems to diminish as you get closer. Then you are paying at a toll booth and onto the span of the bridge itself. It is very high and long. A beautiful example of engineering.
Then on the news today. The Severn Bridge between England and Wales has just had its toll booths removed. No charge for crossing it any more!
Now don’t get me onto the Forth Bridge! That’s another story.
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