Christmas carols bring tears to my eyes. I can’t explain why. Some affect me more than others. Hark the Herald Angels sing, oh come all ye faithful and oh little town of Bethlehem particularly. Choral music especially when it’s in close harmony is wonderful.
I think its from hearing them in childhood, their sentiment stuck with me. That gentle music touched me. Sung at school and church. The music raises my spirits.
I know that when I hear the Christmas service of nine lessons and carols on the radio I have to stop and listen to the beautiful sweet voices singing wonderfully. I love going Carol singing with friends and that can make me feel teary. I can’t really say any more than that.
I like blogging because I enjoy thinking about things. I like to write small pieces of fiction, short poems, share my art, and answer prompts like this one.
If I can share my ideas and make a difference to someone elses life that’s a bonus. I’m not looking for fame, or saying that I want to be a famous blogger or influencer. I just enjoy doing this.
I hope I’m not boring, and I also try and produce a blog that is honest and factual as much as I can be. I would hate to share information that turns out to be incorrect, and I try and communicate clearly.
If you read my blog don’t expect me to stick to one subject. I guess I could call myself a jack of all trades and master of none.
Interview someone — a friend, another blogger, your mother, the mailman — and write a post based on their responses.
I talked to my hubby about being deaf.
What’s it like being deaf?
I have gradually lost my hearing over several years. It can make me feel grumpy, angry and lonely.
When did you first notice it?
I first noticed it when I was working in heavy industry for several years, but I was the child of a mill worker and the children had a creche at the mill, so I was always in a noisy environment. I really noticed it while working at my final job in a warehouse. There were conveyor belts everywhere and trucks, with loud music blaring out.
What can you hear?
I can hear very loud noises but without my hearing aids speech is just a wah wah wah noise.
How do you cope?
I have to try and lip read sometimes unless someone has a really loud or low voice. I can’t hear the higher registers of singers and music is distorted. It frustrates me when people have to repeat themselves and I know my hearing is diminishing. My mind retreats into childhood memories, it’s very isolating and now I’ve retired every day flows one into the next.
What about entertainment?
Subtitles on the TV help but I have to turn up the volume sometimes. I can use a hearing loop with my hearing aids but we don’t go out much anymore to the theatre or cinema.
What other things bother you?
Sometimes I get tinnitus or burbling noises like rushing water. I think that’s the blood pulsing in my ears. It’s hard to sleep when that happens. Also I think my brain fills in the gaps in the silence, I sometimes hear my name being called, or loud noises when there are none, it can be very disturbing.
We hadn’t really talked about it much so I’m glad I answered this prompt. It’s given me a bit more insight into how things are for him. I get frustrated that he can’t hear me, but it must be so much worse for him.
I tried to draw a cat yawning, which made me realise how tired I am at the moment.
If I were a cat I’d have yawned and fallen asleep by now. But I’m doing things, I’ve just eaten my evening meal, and I’m going to be doing things till well after midnight.
But cats have more sense. They come in when they are hungry or cold. They curl up on your lap, or in a little quiet place, a cat bed, or a chair, and then they get up and go out when they have rested. I read somewhere that cats sleep for up to 16 hours a day? I get by on barely 5 usually. Sometimes I’ll catch up. But these last few weeks have tired me out. I realise sleeping on the settee doesn’t help, but I still can’t climb stairs. I wish I could trans(mogg)rify into a cat! I’d get all the rest I need.
What daily habit do you do that improves your quality of life?
For a year I wrote down three gratitudes each day, I spent time thinking of three things I was grateful for even when they were only small things, like traffic lights turning to green at the right time. But when I hurt myself I stopped. I don’t have a spare book to write in. I have almost forgotten what it was like to do it.
I don’t think I do have another habit that I can mention. I haven’t thought about it before. I think life is too chaotic. I’m hoping that when I can get another notebook I will start again. I’m concentrating on getting well again. I’m really looking forward to starting again.
What was the last thing you searched for online? Why were you looking for it?
So I could draw it
I had to do a drawing prompt for an art group that I’m in and I wanted to draw something old with ‘nooks and crannies’ which was the prompt.
I love the phrase, I think of old buildings, of old corridors and priest holes that people could hide in. Like Cavaliers hiding from Roundheads. Of hidden treasures, or pirates gold doubloons.
Mow Cop Castle is actually a folly, it was built on top of Mow Cop Hill that looks out over the Cheshire plain. It was never a ruined castle, but built to look like one, with the walls built to appear like they are tumbling down, and it’s silhouette is very striking as you look up to it. If you go up to it you can see the Jodrell Bank Observatory over at Holmes Chapel.
The drawing is not a good representation but it gives you an idea of how it looks.
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!
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.
Tell us about the last thing you got excited about.
Jupiter tryptic
A couple of weeks ago I was excited that one of my paintings would be entered into an astronomy competition. A magazine wanted to see people’s artwork so I sent in this image. Then I got a message asking me to send in again with a jpeg (it was) as an attachment (my phone sends the image embeded in the email).
I tried again, it did the same trick. I started to walk upstairs to send the image on my PC instead. Snap! That was when my ligament snapped.
Of course I emailed to apologise and explain. I also asked if they had anyone technically able to get the file as I only have my mobile to use as I’m stuck downstairs! I’ve had no response, no reply. I feel dismissed and fed up. Excitement, what excitement?
