Back yard work

Posted on September 11, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Art, Back yard, Colour, Floral, Flowers, Gardening, Hanging baskets, Life, Microclimate, Nature, Plants, Summer, SunnyLeave a comment

Today we had the task of replacing the plants, hanging baskets and pots in the back yard that we had taken down to have a new fence put in. The next door neighbour had allowed us in to get at his side of the wall so we’ve helped him by clearing back the brambles and Ivy and cleared his path so he can get to the back gate.

Now the pots are back I can see which ones have suffered from drought and the cold. They were all crammed together in our garden (on the other side of the house) but it was cold last night so some things have wilted. We have a real microclimate in the yard and it’s always a bit warmer there. Hopefully they will bounce back in the coming days.

Roses round the door.

Posted on September 10, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Horror?, Life, Mystery, Myth, Plant, Rose, Roses round the door, Short story, Spooky?, Very short story16 Comments

When I bought the house I noticed a small rose bush. I thought nothing more of it. Then I moved in and everything was lovely. At least at first.

As time passed the garden grew, I tried to look after it, but it just kept growing. The roses were beautiful, white, perfumed. But it kept growing, entwined in the fence, creeping over the path.

But inside the house I felt safe. It was warm and comfortable, the colours were muted, pastels, old soft furnishings, blankets, a happy place.

Then one morning, I tried opening the double front door, the handle would not move, something was wrapped around it? I looked out of the window, sideways, I saw it. The rose had grown round the door handle, as I watched leaves sprouted and perfect white flowers appeared. The house was happy, the rose was happy. But me? Not so much.

Prompt ‘wood’

Posted on September 10, 2020 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged Art, Band of sketchers, Buddliea, Drawing, Gardening, Green, Life, Pear tree, Pine, Sketch, Sketching, TreesLeave a comment

Our prompt from band of sketchers today was wood, so instead of drawing some brown furniture I decide to draw the trees outside including a pear tree, buddliea, pine tree and other trees, lots of wood. Our garden is a thicket! I hope you can see it OK, lots of leaves. The pears on the tree are growing larger every day. X

I’m voting Penkhull!

Posted on September 10, 2020September 10, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged #penkhullflag, Flag, Fun, Go Chicken!, Go Penkhull!, Life, Penkhull, Semi- final, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trent, Today, Twitter, VexillologicalLeave a comment

Penkhull flag is in the semi-final of the @flaginstitute World Cup of flags today till 11am tomorrow. This is part of the vexillological festival to make up for not having many sporting events this year.

Penkhull was in the doomsday book and was then called Pinchetel. Penkhull means ‘Hill hill’ and is a very steep basalt volcanic plug that sits above the majority of Stoke-on-Trent. It is known as the village in the heart of the city.

The flag was only designed recently. The green represents the village green at the heart of Penkhull, with four roads leading up to it. The Cockerel (also know as a rooster or chicken) sits on top of St Thomas’s Church that is in turn on the green.

The flag was created for a competion run by the residents association to raise community spirit. I’m pleased to say that I partly helped to design it.

So if you would like to join in and vote you can find the vote over on twitter. Look for #penkhullflag #WorldSeriesOfFlags

Thank you. X

Farewell Diana Rigg

Posted on September 10, 2020September 10, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Death, Diana Rigg, Emma Peel, Life, Mrs Peel, Patrick McNee, Rest in peace, Sad news, Steed, The AvengersLeave a comment

Rest in Peace Diana Rigg. She has died aged 82. Famous British actress and star of the 1960’s cult TV show ‘the Avengers’ alongside her co-star Patrick McNee who played Steed.

She continued to act and was always a brilliant character actress. Many people who grew up watching the Avengers with all the style and humour it bought to the small screen will mourn her passing. She was always dressed in stylish 1960’s clothes, but was never just a ‘dolly bird’ and was seen as clever and capable. She will be missed.

But why?

Posted on September 10, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Blank page, Ink, Letter, Life, Paper, Random, Strange, Waste, Why2 Comments

Two of the pages in a letter I just got had this printed on them: ‘this page has been left blank intentionally’.

Why? that’s two sides, a whole page left blank, but it isn’t blank is it? It has ink on it! And why not start a new section on the back of the page where this is written? I wonder how many thousands of pages are wasted. How many trees it would save? Make text 1 font size smaller. See how much that would save. And if the page is meant to be blank, leave it blank, to save ink!

Aunty socials piano keys?

Posted on September 10, 2020 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged Art, Black and white, Fun, Life, Music, Musical notes, Piano keys, Random, Sketching, Spiral2 Comments

Auntysocial.wordpress.com is asking for a design for her old piano keys, 88 of them, because she’s dismantled her old upright piano. The keys are black and white (over 100 year old ivory). There are photos on her page of what other people have done. I’ve tried to draw something after failing abysmally on a drawing app that let’s you draw circles but not spirals. Anyway this is wonky but I thought some wall art, a square shaped white panel, and with a spiral or two of keys on it, plus some musical notes painted on it. A bit random…. I don’t know.

Cat got out!

Posted on September 9, 2020 Posted in Cat, UncategorizedTagged Back door, Blogging, Cat, Cat flap, Life, Outside, Stuck, Time, Went out4 Comments

Loud rattling at the cat flap! Something trying to get in…. I went to open the door, but there was just darkness. I went back to preparing out evening meal. Then. More rattling. I went to the door and opened it, our boy cat was outside in the dark, trying to get back in. He dashed into the kitchen and proceeded to give me the biggest headbump ever. Just pleased to see me.

Talking to hubby, we decided he must have sneaked out when hubby went out to put some food in the shed for the hedgehogs.

Exhibited three years ago.

Posted on September 9, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Acrylic on canvas, Art, Batik, Colours, Design, Etruria Artists, Etruria Industrial museum, Exhibited three years ago, Life, Warehouse12 Comments

I mmust have been feeling cheerful when I did these paintings plus a batik picture of some fish. The first bottle oven painting is an attempt to do a clarice cliff design. If I did it now I would make the building more curved. The batik is sort of a Pices idea. The dragonfly was an interesting compositon and the half bottle oven is meant to be mirrored by blue sky or water in a canal. It is slightly remenicent of a yin yang symbol. The exhibition was held at the warehouse at Etruria industrial museum at Etruria, Stoke-on-Trent three years ago. At the moment we cannot use the building because of covid19.

Where have you been?

Posted on September 9, 2020September 9, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Floating, Fun, House, Humour, Life, Playing, Poem, Poetry, Space, UniverseLeave a comment

Monday: Closed
Tuesday: Closed
Wednesday: Closed
Thursday: Closed
Friday: Closed
Saturday: Closed
Sunday: Closed

Where the sky

looks like sea

and houses float,

where the light is reflected

and you move by boat,

skulling around

and into the air,

following tides

no one knew was there,

washing the sky

with electric blue,

enjoying the world

with a higher view.

A dream like world,

a better place.

A planet in

a different place.

A brand new universe,

To explore in space.

And no WordPress I don’t want to display opening times why won’t you let me delete my mistake?

Mallaband-Brown

Tag: Life