Mid afternoon

What’s your favorite time of day?

I can’t post a picture because my WiFi is not working. But I can describe mid afternoon. On a sunny day, a gentle breeze. A patchwork of blue sky and fluffy white clouds. There may be a scent of rain after a passing shower. Ideally I would be looking out over a valley with a small stone built village at the bottom next to a stream. In my memory I can see large oak trees, ash trees, beech and weeping willows. There are blue or purple hills in the distance.

Birds are singing. Robins, blackbirds, skylarks. Looking for food for their broods of fledglings. Sounds of running water from the stream and ducks quacking as they glide across the local pond.

The UK can be overwhelmingly green in the spring and summer. Autumn isn’t always as colourful as fall in America. But what it lacks in reds and oranges is made up for with fruit ripening on blackberry bushes, raspberries and the mushrooms snf other fungi in the hedgerows. And I love a quiet winters afternoon with white snow.

The hedgehogs will be sleeping on autumn days, waiting for cool and misty evenings. Life can be calm in these dreamy days. It’s not all wonderful but I’m thinking of an idyllic day.

Gerry Anderson programmes

What TV shows did you watch as a kid?

I remember so many Gerry Anderson classic TV shows from my childhood. The first ones were puppet shows:

Fireball XL5

Stingray

Thunderbirds

Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons

Then mixed puppet and live action

Joe 90.

Then sci-fi live action

UFO

Space 1999

I also watched

Dr Who

The Tomorrow People

White Horses

Star Trek

Blake’s 7

The Champions

Department S

The Avengers

Is it any wonder I’ve always been interested in Science fiction?

It hasn’t changed

What’s your favorite recipe?

It will always be trifle

Ingredients

Jelly powder or cubes to make up about a pint of jelly. Choose your favourite flavour.

Fresh fruit, I use raspberries, blueberries or strawberries.

Blancmange powder or if preferred custard powder to make a pint.

Pint of milk.

Two tablespoons sweetner or sugar.

Fresh double cream, choose how much you want.

Toppings, can be glace cherries, or chocolate sprinkled on top or hundreds and thousands.

Make up a pint of jelly /sugar free jelly with about 3/4 of a pint of boiling water and a little slosh of port or sherry and add raspberries or blueberries or strawberries or a mixture of all three (I don’t use sponge fingers as they are too sugary.).

Let cool then store in the fridge overnight to set thoroughly.

Next mix blancmange powder or custard powder with a small amount of milk from a pint and sugar or sweetener to taste.

Put the rest of the milk on to boil, as it starts to boil carefully pour into the custard or blancmange powder mix, stir it in and then pour back into the pan, bring to the boil while stirring and let it thicken on the hob over about a minute.

Turn off the heat and let it cool. To stop it being too hot to pour onto the jelly (it will melt) place the pan of custard/blancmange  into a larger pan of cold water (without getting the mixture wet) this allows it to cool, stir it every few minutes to stop it going lumpy and setting. When it is cool enough pour over the jelly.

Finally whisk the cream into stiff peaks and put on top of the custard/blancmange.

The sugar free version is nice to have if you are diabetic but still want a treat.

Serve in nice glass bowls if you can. This gives 6 good sized portions.

Water storage

How would you design the city of the future?

Cities are working out how to store water and prevent flooding, with massive tunnels below them to allow water to flow away. Storage spaces to trap water then release it slowly as the waters receded. Having beavers upstream in rivers to dam and slow the flow of water downstream. And also reinstating rush beds or filter beds to hold onto the fluid and clean any sewage that has leaked into waterways. You could also build buildings up on higher ground or stilts. Or raise buildings in heavy rain or storm conditions. There is still a lot we can do to combat climate change.

At the moment? Resting

What motivates you?

Those who read my blog know I haven’t been well and I’m currently waiting for test results. My doctor has told me not to overdo things, so I’m motivated to protect myself and I’m resting. That doesn’t mean I’m not doing things, but I have to do them slowly and carefully. I’m even having to use a walking stick. My friend explained i  had it set at the wrong height. Too long.

I have for that reason been a bit slow at blogging recently.

Top ten movies

What are your top ten favorite movies?

  1. Close Encounters of the third kind. Good Sci-fi movie from 1977
  2. The Theory of everything, biography of Steven Hawking.
  3. Goodbye Mr Chips. 1940s film about school life.
  4. Shenandoah, western with James Stewart.
  5. Harvey, James Stewart and a giant invisible rabbit
  6. How to train your dragon, animated film.
  7. The cat from outer space, 1960’s Disney film
  8. Born Free, set in Africa about a lioness called Elsa
  9. Jurassic Park, because Jeff Goldblum is in it.
  10. A fish called Wanda, Madcap caper.

I can get into the country

What do you love about where you live?

North… Cheshire and Peak District, Staffordshire Moorlands, East – Derbyshire, South- Staffordshire, West – Shropshire and Cheshire. Further West – Wales. Also Stoke-on-Trent has good road links to motorways and A roads. Sometimes they are a little congested, but you can usually get out into the countryside in 10 to 20 minutes. It is interesting because of the variations in geology depending on the direction you take. Farmland and flat land South and West, with the hills of Wales and Shropshire in the distance. North and East hills and moorland including the start of the Pennines.

Stoke-on-Trent is situated in the North Midlands of England, it also has canal and train connections and the local area has many countryside attractions including National Trust properties, historic railways and museums, Alton Towers is nearby and Jodrell Bank observatory is a few miles north west. You can even reach the seaside in Wales or the Wirral in about 80 miles.

I struggle

What brings you peace?

Last night I wanted a peaceful night’s sleep. I was tired and it was hot. I don’t sleep well these days

I tried to do some relaxation techniques but they didn’t work. I tried listening to the radio on low, but no use. Then I came downstairs and put the TV on quietly. Sometimes that works. Finally I found an app that plays the sound of waves, with video up to 11 hours. It promised peace and rest. I must have had it on too loud, I listened for a couple of hours. The only thing that happened was that I nodded off for a few minutes, then the cat jumped on the bed and woke me up again. Argh! Finally I came downstairs again and fell asleep in exhaustion.

Medicine

What profession do you admire most and why?

I admire the skills and knowledge you need to practice medicine. That’s not just doctors and nurses, but radiographers, sonographers, physiotherapists, psychologists, occupational health, and not only those that deal with human health, but veterinary experts and their skills and knowledge that is essential to the care of so many animals. Without these skilled people how would many of us would  survive? We would be plunged back into the pre industrial ages or further back in time perhaps to the dark ages, where scam remedies and quackery might take over.

Having knowledge of basic first aid is a good thing too. You never know you might save someone!

My art and friends art.

If you were going to open up a shop, what would you sell?

My digital drawing of an apple

I’ve accumulated a lot of physical and digital art over a lifetime of being an artist. A lot of it is still in my house. I would set up a shop to clear some of it so it could go to good homes. I’m sure friends would do the same.

I realise people like to be clutter free, and now AI is creeping in they could press a few buttons and make something. But wouldn’t it be nice to have a creation made by a human that suits your taste and is created with love and attention? Go on, give an artist a try.