Old TV shows

Posted on August 28, 2023 Posted in Memories, UncategorizedTagged Childhood, dailyprompt, dailyprompt-2042, Life, Memory, Programme, Prompt, Sci fi, TV, variety2 Comments

What TV shows did you watch as a kid?

There were a lot of Sci fi programmes when I was growing up. The Tomorrow people, Thunderbirds, Star Trek, UFO, Space 1999, Dr Who, each one had it’s theme and ideas. Some were more idealistic than others, some were frightening. The variety of adventures were fascinating. Some of the sets were very shaky, you could see the walls move if an alien bumped into them! But it was the storyline that was important.

They really seemed to be more thoughtful than modern Sci fi. I think because they didn’t have fantastic special effects, and the English versions were less lasers and cowboys in space type stories, and slightly more philosophical.

It’s surprising how much I remember after seeing this prompt. I’d like to see some of these shows again just to see if I remember them correctly. I’ve recently watched Fireball XL5 on a station that shows old TV programmes. I used to love it when I was little… It’s awful now!

Juggling

Posted on August 28, 2023 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged #bandofsketchers, Art, Artrage, Doodle, Juggling, Photodirector, Sketching, talent2 Comments

#bandofsketchers prompt “talent” I decided to use juggling as my theme and digital drawing/graffiti as its method, more of a doodle than a sketch….Artrage app and photodirector were the apps used. I did actually learn to juggle, but not very well!

Biddulph Grange

Posted on August 28, 2023 Posted in Memories, UncategorizedTagged Biddulph grange garden, China area, Day out, Egyptian garden, Japanese garden, National Trust, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trent, Swiss cottage2 Comments

Somewhere I’d like to visit again. We haven’t been this year and I miss it.

Biddulph Grange garden is run by the National Trust and is a garden built on a slope that is made up of seperate areas… The Japanese garden, Egyptian garden, Swiss cottage, China area and other sections. The Daliah walk should be in full bloom. There is also a lovely tea room within the Grange building, although it can be quite busy.

It’s one of many attractions that are within a short distance of the city of Stoke on Trent in Staffordshire. So if you are in the area check out its visiting times and prices. Worth a day out.

Yesterday’s tomatoes

Posted on August 28, 2023 Posted in Memories, UncategorizedTagged cold rain, Facebook memories, Gardening, Home grown, Last year, Overcast, Summer, Tomatoes2 Comments

Actually my small 2022 crop.

I only put in a couple of small plants this year so we have had about 8 or 10 tomatoes this year. I just haven’t had the heart. Then this appeared on my Facebook memories and I’m amazed at the sunshine. This last few weeks have been a succession of grey, wet days, Atlantic lows storming in with chill winds. According to the weather forecast September might be slightly better. I’d like something summery please, not too hot, not to cold. X

Afternoon

Posted on August 27, 2023 Posted in Memories, UncategorizedTagged Afternoon, Colour, dailyprompt, dailyprompt-2041, Flowers, Fun, Light, Poem, Poetry, Primary colours, Rhyme4 Comments

What’s your favorite time of day?

When the sun is overhead

Light shines down on bright flower beds

Makes the hazy colours shine

On plants and flowers and bees divine

At the stroke of noon I see

Primary colours, one two three..

Red and blue and yellow too

And the other colours hue

Make me want to paint and draw

All the beauty that I saw

Afternoon is the key

Makes my mind feel oh so free

Mornings are OK I guess

But post meridians are the best!

Trying to add a mosaic round the cat.

Posted on August 27, 2023 Posted in Cat, Sketching, UncategorizedTagged belly, Black and white cat, Cat, design flaw, Mosaic, Pattern, sprawled, Thinking, Tuxedo cat2 Comments

My cat was lying, belly up, looking at me. He was on the Sunday papers so I decided to add a mosaic to the background. The only problem is the tool has a pointer that magnifies where you are drawing but it doesn’t line up with the edge of the image. It also means a lot of filling in if you use a small nib, and overlap if you use a larder one. It means if you try and draw round the outline of something like the cat it often overlaps and you have to use the back toggle or add a bit of extra drawing to cover over the uneven areas. Still it looks better than when he was sprawled on the newspaper.

Cold

Posted on August 27, 2023 Posted in Cat, UncategorizedTagged August, Autumnal, Bank holiday, Cat, Chilly, Cold, cost of living, shivers, Summer, WeatherLeave a comment

It’s cold in our house today- on a grey overcast bank holiday Sunday. I was having a rest on our sofa, but woke up to a cold shiver down my spine. This is British Summertime so what do I expect? I’ve lived long enough to see snow in June. So this is nothing. It’s just I don’t want to put the heating on. Cost of living and all that!

So what do I do? Add extra layers, curl up and keep out of draughts. Have a hot cup of tea or coffee. I don’t think I will see steam rising! It’s not quite as cold as that, but I’m…. brrrrr… Cold… I’ll try and get a cat to sit on me x

Sherry Trifle

Posted on August 27, 2023 Posted in Memories, Sketching, UncategorizedTagged #100daywalkingchallenge, Blancmange, dailyprompt, dailyprompt-2040, Food, Jelly, Port, Recipe, sherry, sugar free, Tasty, Trifle, Whipped cream6 Comments

What’s your favorite recipe?

Trifle, my favourite treat.

A layer of jelly, a layer of blancmange or custard and a layer of whipped cream.

I make up a sachet of sugar free jelly with three quarters of a pint of boiling water and a quarter of a pint of port or sherry. I add that to large bowl and add chopped strawberries or raspberries or blueberries to make the jelly stronger when it sets (I don’t use trifle sponges as they are full of sugar) once cooled I put it in the fridge to set.

When the jelly is set I mix up a pint of blancmange with boiling milk (you can use custard) this comes in a variety of flavours. I use a sweetner instead of sugar in the mixture, one that doesn’t have an aftertaste. Once the liquid has been boiled and thickened I put the saucepan in a larger one filled with cold water. The blancmange cools enough so that it doesn’t melt the jelly when you add it to the top.

Once the middle layer is set I take a large tub of double cream and whisk it till it is stiff and makes peaks. This is spooned onto the trifle.

You can add decorations such as sprinkles (hundreds and thousands) or glacé cherries, grated chocolate or chopped strawberries etc.

I make it as sugar free as I can, but it is high in fat. You could use skimmed milk for the middle layer.

This is a Christmas or Easter treat in our house. And sometimes I make it for birthdays instead of cake.

Waiting

Posted on August 26, 2023 Posted in Cat, UncategorizedTagged Black and white cat, Brother, Cat, Inside, kitchen floor, Life, Outside, Sister, Sitting, Tuxedo cat, WaitingLeave a comment

What’s in a cats mind? Waiting for something, but what? No sounds outside, no rustling leaves, but he waits. His sister or brother outside. Is it them he’s sitting, waiting for.

The cat likes to be patient, it’s in his nature, will he see a spider cross the floor? I wrote this, then looked up. A click or clack and he’s out the cat flap, to explore.

Night sits over the house. Will he see a mouse? Will he wait and stare some more, or pounce? No presents please. I don’t need the hassle. You sit and stare, at peace.

Pretty

Posted on August 26, 2023 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Flowers, Fun, Gardening, Hanging baskets, like fireworks, Memories, nursery, Ordered, Plants2 Comments

I do love how my hanging baskets grow. They build up and then splurge like a firework exploding in slow motion. Petunias (Surfinias) and Begonias are the main flowers, then small flowers and trailing small leaves. There are also fushias in some of the other baskets.

I rely on the small nursery where we buy them to create a wonderful summer spectacle. They never fail to give me joy over the summer. I usually plant up other flowers to fill in the gaps around the yard, although my touch has been lacking with everything that happened over the last several months. My hubby has added some extra plants, sunflowers, clematis, montbretia, a few osteospermums. Missing are pelagoniums, I think they were bought before I even thought of getting some. Still it’s been a good display. I will try and get some closeups if I can safely get out of the back door.