River

Posted on June 16, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Cliff hanger, Creative writing, Environment, Life, Short story, tension, Very short storyLeave a comment

Standing on the bridge looking over into the turbulent waters of the stream. She did not realise that in a few hours the water would be flowing above it. Mud and rocks were being washed down from the local hills, trees had slipped down the hillsides, branches had been broken from their boughs by a storm.

She walked along the waters edge, seeing the beauty of the land, green and verdant. She heard the rumble of thunder but it sounded hushed and far away. She walked down stream into a narrow valley, the birds were singing loudly, the sound echoing from the rocks.

She felt a gust of wind and realised the storm was getting closer. She hurried along the path, the road was half a mile away….

Now the wind and rain were rushing past her, each minute the squall grew stronger. She heard a rumbling sound and turned to look. A wall of black mud, tree trunks, churned towards her. She started to run and climb up the steep sides of the valley. Would she reach high ground in time?

Thunder

Posted on June 14, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Blank verse, Environment, Lightening, Poem, Poetry, Short poem, Thunder, WeatherLeave a comment

Thunder unravels the sky

Lightning flashes coruscate over the ruins

The world spirals around you.

Forcing the trees to bend down to your power.

Thors hammer beats the ground.

Another flash, a bough falls.

Stones crash and crump

Thudding down onto the ground.

Your hands conduct a symphony of gestures.

One more flash, then you are gone.

Out of touch

Posted on June 13, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Driving, Environment, Life, Lodge, Motorways, Rain, Travel, Weather, Wet, Wood, Yorkshire2 Comments

We have just come back from a very wet Yorkshire. We stayed in a lodge in the woods. It was very nice, but damp.

There is a lake at the place where we stayed and we saw ducks and geese with youngsters walking through the woodlands. The only shame is that they are going to cut down some of the trees so people can get WiFi. I’d rather go without it and keep the trees.

We drove out to Fountains Abbey and I tried to draw it but the rain was coming down and the ink pen ran. However we had some very nice food in an Italian restaurant by the side of the River Wharfe.

Now I think I need an early night. I will try and catch up with WordPress over the next couple of days.

Moss

Posted on May 30, 2019May 30, 2019 Posted in Cat, UncategorizedTagged Church, Environment, Garden, Hill, Hump of moss, Life, Moss, Photos, Soft, Stone, WallsLeave a comment

Found this lumpy moss on the church wall. It was lovely, little blobs growing on the old stone, even though its close to a busy road. It’s at the top of the hill so the wind scours across the hill top. Sometimes the wind is so strond it could blow you off your feet..

Moss is an interesting plant, the reproduction is by spores I think, and it needs damp conditions to live in. I’m sure people know more about it than I do. Anyway I took a couple of photos as an idea if what it looked like.

I then did a duplicated picture of it because it made an interesting pattern. IMG_20190530_144539

Hope you enjoy.

Raining

Posted on May 27, 2019May 27, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Climate change, Cloudburst, Damp, Environment, Hail, Life, Microclimate, Rain, Water, Weather, WetLeave a comment

We haven’t had much rain lately but today it bucketed down, rain was falling so heavily it overwhelmed the gutters of the house and was pouring so fast it filled up two empty milk bottles outside the front door. There was hail mixed in with it. Small lumps of ice hitting your windows and bouncing over my tomato plants outside.

Rain storms seem fiercer than the gentle rain of heaven from Portia’s speech in Shakespeareof yesteryear. Now we have cloudbursts, like a sponge being wrung out. All the water dumped like being under a waterfall.

I don’t know about “singing in the rain” more like swimming in the rain!

Finished Nankeen Kestrel

Posted on May 26, 2019May 26, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Acrylic on canvas, Animal, Australian, Bird, Environment, Life, Nankeen KestrelLeave a comment

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I’ve worked myself to a standstill with this. I’m getting rather tired but I’ve got a lot more to do so I won’t stick around for long. Just having a breather.

Hare minus bells

Posted on May 25, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Acrylic on canvas, Animal portrait, Animals, Art, Countryside, Environment, Hare, Harebell, Life, Nature, Painting, Photo from a magazine, WildlifeLeave a comment

I went out this morning to go to the Orme Art group. We were supposed to do limited pallette paintings, white, red, yellow ochre and black. I cheated and used some cerulean blue in the background. I want to add harebells, a beautiful bell shaped flower found in the countryside. The image is an amalgum of a photo from a magazine that I’d taken a photo of and a photo off the Internet. I’m not sure if I will finish this or any of the other paintings at the moment. Every time I feel better I do stuff, then I feel ill again. I guess I’m trying too hard. But I wanted some really strong paintings for the exhibition. I hope they look good. Anyway I’m having a rest for half an hour.

Green hubby

Posted on May 20, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Art, Environment, Green man, Hubby, Model, Possible painting6 Comments

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I had an idea for a green man painting but needed a model, my hubby volunteered. I wanted him to look menacing, but he just looked cheerful! I’m not sure if I will do this or not. It’s a portrait challenge if nothing else. What do you think? Shall I?

Ouch

Posted on May 18, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Blackberry, Blogging, Environment, Finger, Garden, Gardening, Gloves, Humour, Ouch, ThornLeave a comment

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It took me 24 minutes to draw this and you won’t know what it represents unless I tell you.

Four days ago I was cutting back blackberry stems that grow through our fence from next doors garden. We pick the fruit but the stems have a tenancy to grow sharp thorns which I sometimes get caught on when I’m tending my plants.

Anyway I didn’t bother with gloves because a) I couldn’t find any, b) it was only a small task.

Ouch! I got thorns in my fingers. I pulled them out quickly, but I could feel a sharp pain in my right index finger. But I could not see the thorn.

Hoping it would work its way out I ignored it. But the next day I still felt a sharp pain.

I prodded it but no sign of the thorn and nothing came out. Finally this morning my index finger felt really sore. What to do. No choice. I got a needle and found the thorn. It was tiny about a millimeter long, but it had gone straight down into my finger instead of along parallel to the skin surface. It is amazing how painful a thorn can be.

Anyway after about half an hour of gently sticking the needle in my finger (ouch) I managed to work it free. Got some salt water and washing up liquid to cleanse the area. Hopefully that’s it. But Ouch! Not a nice way to start your morning!

Owl

Posted on May 16, 2019May 16, 2019 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Acrylic on canvas, Bird, Blogging, Environment, Great grey owl, Life, Owl, Work in progress2 Comments

I started a new painting last night. It began as a spiral, but then I found a photo of a great grey owl so it’s morphed. I’m quite happy with it as it is as a sketch, but I will finish it. I’ve got a few half finished paintings but I haven’t had the energy to do them over the last few days. Anyway the background is going to be of acer leaves, the ones that look like fingers, because I want to give it a feel of autumn.

Might do a bit more today. I usually do a lot of things on a Thursday but I’m not up to it. _20190516_205231

Done some more x

Mallaband-Brown

Tag: Environment