I phoned you
You didn’t answer
I phoned you
I left a message.
I rang you
There was no answer
I tried and tried
Unknown number
I rang again
There is no service for this number.
No whisper, no sound
No contact
No sign
No signal
Brrrrrrrrr…………. . ……….
Tag: Life
Candle light
The candle flickered and guttered as the front door opened. Jim entered the room with a flurry of snow. The cold air made a hole in the warmth.
‘You OK’ he asked? ‘Yes just about’ , said Sarah. ‘I kept the wood stove burning all day, but the power went out half an hour ago so I lit a candle ‘.
The weather had been mad since the 20’s. Global temperatures had continued to increase, but this winter had been wild. Snow had fallen for three months now. Sometimes they managed to get out to the shops, but they had to walk down the hill over the fields because the lane was full up with snow. It was one of those deep lanes which had been worn away over the centuries. The land around it was about 6 foot higher. In this snow it was impossible to get along because of the drifts.
‘So how many tablets have you got left?’ asked Jim. ‘Five’ she said. ‘I will have to get down to the village soon’ he thought for a second. ‘What about the weather?’
‘I heard the report before the power went off – bad for two days, then it might break?’
Jim looked at his wife, pale and thin. She was shivering with cold. ‘I’ll fetch you a blanket’ .
Later as they lay on a mattress infront of the wood burner, he looked at the ceiling and watched the last glimmers of the candle. He listened to her uneven breathing, a harsh rattle sometimes breaking into the rhythm of sleeping breath. ‘ Oh lord ‘ he thought, ‘let the snow stop, let me get her medicine, let things get better’ .
Three weeks later as the snow turned to rain, and the land flooded, the local police came looking for them. Inside the living room they found their bodies..
A note was on the table under a burnt down candle. ‘I can’t live without her’ was the simple message he had left.
Berryhill fields
I’ve just visited Berryhill fields in the centre of Stoke-on-Trent. It’s one of the green lungs of our City, a country park between Fenton, Longton, Bentilee, Sandford Hill and Bucknall.
I took some lovely photos of the view, including the TV mast that dominates the skyline. The white blossom along the pathway up from Arbourfield drive is floating like a pure white cloud alongside the path.
I’m worried that this green lung of the city could disappear. The local Conservative and Independant council wants to build 1300 houses on the site, this despite there being a covenant on the land to prevent this. In fact there have been protests over its use in the past. I know we need new housing but why destroy the environment. Yes there are industrial patches around the site. Why not build on brownfield sites in the city instead?
In a world where pollution and environmental degradation are on the increase we should preserve what we have left of our green spaces.
I was up there with Labour councellors and candidates. We were filming and taking photos of the parkland to raise the issue with the voters in the upcoming local elections
Minton Tiles
I had the pleasure of being invited to a behind the scenes visit to our city archive today. I had been asked if I wanted to go along by a friend who is doing an art project about the pottery manufacturer.
We went up to the third floor of the city library and were shown round the back of the reception desk into the staff only section. There the city archivist showed us some of the fading pages in the ledgers. They were images of pots that various pot banks made in the history of Stoke-on-Trent.
There were pattern books for tableware and tiles ledgers with the cost of making the ware and details of workers. The old pottery firms did not collect a lot of details and a lot was thrown out when they closed down. But once we had been in the air conditioned archives we were allowed to sit and (very carefully) look at selected pattern books including prints of tiles to surround hearths, doorways and floors. Some were mundane but others were breathtaking. Art nouveau and art deco masterpieces.
I’m very pleased I was invited.
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Weeping willow
When I was a child I would sit next to your trunk
Hiding from view being your green screen.
Your roots must run deep down in the ground,
Water running through the earth,
Turning your leaves green before other trees.
Skeleton twigs surround you
Dark evergreen screens you
But only you swirl and wave in the breeze.
Dancing a ballet of soft leaves,
Your dress curves and waves in folds.
Once fully grown with green
Your leaves will make my hiding den again.
Sunny day
The sun was warm today although it remains low in the sky. These tall grass heads were back lit by it. The sun was also reflecting on the metal fence. I couldn’t see the image properly as the sun was dazzling me.
I’ve done a few edits to the photo in black and white…
The negative image in particular looks quite alien.
Growth
Growth and growing are part of life and economics, but maybe we don’t need growth as much? The world does not have infinite resources and the population keeps rising. Perhaps we need to seek a balance and an ability for renewal instead of just consuming everything in sight.
We need to use less plastic and less energy. To save resources for the people that come after us. Maybe buy one less peice of clothing or fill up a water bottle again instead of buying a new bottle.
I sometimes think that people are like a virus, growing exponentially. Covering the world with our rubbish and disease.
We need to be able to eat, drink and find shelter. Why don’t we try and care for everyone? I can probably remember back to when there were only 5 billion on the planet, now its over 7 billion and rising. And yet we are still growing? Is it any wonder that there are wars? I think we should share technologies so everyone can have better lives and education… .
Ow my legs
Ow my legs! Our female cat loves sharpening her claws on my legs, she sticks her claws in my trousers and then arches her back and pulls down. Sometimes she gets flesh too. I found blood trickling down my leg earlier on today. I love her to pieces but as soon as I realise she’s doing it I have to brush her away.
She rushes round and plays all the time. She fights with our boy cat but only in play, she puts a paw on his head or he puts a paw on hers and then she pushes him away with her back legs. One thing neither if them do is the strong fast kicking movement so neither of them get hurt. And they only nip each other, there is no going for the scruff of their necks. Basically it’s like slow motion wrestling followed by fast chasing.
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Spelling?
Can you spot the mistake? It’s funny how the brain works – writing the word “buidling” instead of “building” is just an example. Apparently if you have all the right letters and the correct first and last letter of the word, your brain can unscramble it. For instance if I write :
The qcuik bowrn fox jmpus oevr the lzay dog?
You should still be able to read it.
Spelling only became regularised when the dictionary arrived. Once the spelling of words was written down with a definition the spelling was more fixed. But spelling is still quite phonetic, based on sound sometimes. For, four, fore all sound the same but have different spellings and meanings.
The example above is more likely to have occurred because of a computer mistake when the author or designer did not proof read the art work.
I guess I make a lot of mistakes too. I do rely on spellchecker but even that gets it wrong sometimes.
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Blue
Bold blue
Bright blue
Blue shadow
Ultra blue
Strong hue.
Added flowers
April showers
Blue curves
Ultra marine
Lapis lazuli
Cerulean
Show me a blue
In the sky
In the sea
Show me bright blue
