Still November

A discussion on the radio this morning echoed a conversation my hero and I had shared in John Lewis yesterday.

Is it Christmas yet?

No!  It’s still November!

I found myself nodding in agreement with Janice Turner, whose Times article from last year sums it up pretty well and leaves me with one and a half feet in the Turner camp even if I just can’t quite drag that last foot completely from Kirstie Allsopp’s sparkly Christmas grotto.  Whilst I enjoy some aspects of Christmas, I just can’t bear how early it all seems to creep up on me and that FOMO effect propels us into it all regardless.  I fear that some would have Christmas all year round given the opportunity, but wouldn’t that take all the joy out of it completely?

Needless to say, I can’t quite resist some of the offers which reward early shoppers though, and when I spotted cute polar bear wrapping paper on offer, of course I bought it.  Olaf took good care of it until I found a home for it.

The arrival of a box of goodies in preparation for my December journal arrived yesterday and also demanded my attention.  Our small friends are coming over after school tomorrow to begin putting together their album and so I thought I’d better gather a few things together for them which meant getting out the box of Christmas bits and pieces.

So, even though we were pretty determined to avoid being swept up in it all until next weekend at the earliest, as you can tell, we’ve caved in.

I pulled out the basket of December journals ready for the girls to look through and of course, couldn’t resist revisiting a couple of them myself.  I need to set up my album for 2015 and before I do, I thought I’d see what works and what doesn’t.  One of the discussions in the craft forums has been about the front covers, because some make very elaborate creations indeed.  However, as you can tell by the broken and damaged front cover decorations of some of these, the best ones are the simplest.  I’m not going to be over zealous about creating anything special for that, then.

My first December journal was from 1989 and it was fun to look back through it. 

So cute!  My journals contain so many happy memories and are much loved.

Even those tinged with sadness contain reminders that life goes on and there is comfort to be found in family traditions.  Looking through these reminds me why I continue to make these journals every year.  We all love them!

Some years, my journals are more complicated with bits and pieces stuck in there and there’s no doubt, the early pages are usually far more elaborate than those closer to Christmas itself!

As the pressure builds there is usually a sense of “get it done”.  That’s fine with me.

I think all of them have a page which prompts us to utter “remember that year when….”  this one was when Waitrose “forgot” our turkey order!

There are recurring themes in each of them and I know that these will feature in my 2015 journal too.  How will I make them different this year?  I have no idea!  (Maybe I won’t?)

Whilst choosing how big to make my 2015, I’m thinking that I don’t need to worry about running out of space because I can always create fold-out pages.  Sometimes, too, those fold out pages allow me to tell a more personal story, especially if I hide it behind a flap.  Hmmm.

So, taking a quick look through 2014 and remembering some of the pros and cons of that particular size/format, I’ve decided how I’m going to tackle 2015.

So, like Andy Pandy and Teddy, it’s time for them all to return to their wicker basket until the next time they come out to play.

Because it’s still November!

Roaming in foaming billows

Not really a reference to the weather this weekend, but to the performance of Haydn’s Creation by the St Anne’s Choral Society which we heard on Saturday evening.  Our drive to Lancashire was accompanied by the sobering news from Paris which made us feel particularly thankful for the comfort and company of good friends.

Actually, the foaming billows might also have been a reference to the clouds of chocolate cream on the top of my Tiramisu Latte before they were squashed by the lid.  Our hot drinks took the barista an age to prepare as he diligently followed the recipe for each one before covering his handiwork with the takeaway lid.  I’d paid scant attention to what was going on and as a result, was surprised to find gold stars sticking to my teeth as I drank, prompting me to take off the lid and investigate further.

I might have harrumphed at this point.  No wonder we had to wait so long in the queue.  No wonder that drink cost £3.65.

Gold stars indeed.

I think we’d both built up a bit of a grump listening to Saturday Live in the car, wincing at a couple of liguistic forms – surveilled ?  Shortly after we’d got over that one (and I’d looked it up and identified which part of the world the speaker had acquired that one from)  came  “I’d like to caveat that”.  What?  Again, perfectly correct, I discover, but it doesn’t sound right and there has to be a more elegant way to say the same thing, I’m sure.

Then came instinctual.  Ouch.  What happened to instinctive?

By now, we were inured to it all, so much so that a discussion centred on  Design and Beauty produced no more than a sideways glance and a raised eyebrow.  I mean, how would you react to consuming a product which would make you sweat perfume?  A colour?  I really don’t know what I think about Lucy McRae’s description of her work in the beauty continuum (for heaven’s sake!)  I’m generally pretty positive about new developments and consider scientific research to be essential to creating a better world for us all, but most of this made me question where we are going with all of this.

Gold stars on a cup of coffee?

Thankfully, friends whose bookshelves look like this provide the perfect antidote to any such nonsense and an evening of Haydn, intelligent conversation and a bit of nostalgia (40 years of shared history in some cases) accompanied by a glass or two (or three…) is the perfect way to restore the spirit.

Until the next news bulletin, that is.

Are we having fun yet?

The jury was definitely out on that question earlier in the week when the new tumble dryer was delivered at 9.30pm on Monday evening with a 4mm indentation on the outer surface of the door.  Since then, I think we’ve probably spoken to almost everyone in the call centre, each one of whom has been utterly charming and appeared to do their best to resolve the situation.  Suffice to say, however, that we are still awaiting news of a replacement but do at least have permission to use this one for the time being.

I already had an email conversation underway with the manufacturer of the pocket pages I use for my Project Life album which are irritatingly inconsistent in size.  As a result, some of my 4 x 6 inch photographs are too big for the pocket and have to be trimmed down further whilst others are too small and don’t fill the pocket at all.  Good customer service means that my comments are taken seriously and action has been taken to replace them, but it’s another thing to think about and deal with (adding to an ever lengthening list right now).  I don’t know about you but when comparatively trivial stuff like this is happening at the same time as other, more important concerns, it’s really hard to settle and get things done.  This was the case at the start of the week, then, when my mind was definitely elsewhere for much of the time.

Yesterday, though, was one of those magical days when a tumble dryer with a damaged door and dodgy PL pages were forgotten.  I met a couple of friends and we went to Mary Howard’s  Christmas Fair at Hullavington.  When I was a young Mum doing the daily school run, a whole bunch of us would go to the fair every year in search of fun things for Christmas stockings and nifty little gifts which couldn’t be found anywhere else.  It was always a grand day out and I have many happy memories of those times.  Like many such events though, the novelty wears off, we move on and it’s quite some years since I’ve made the effort to go along.  When the invitation came this year, though, we decided to give it a go again and I looked forward to rediscovering the fun, hoping that the same magnificent organisation would make it as memorable as ever.

We weren’t disappointed!   I’d booked lunch too, which meant we had a table there in the restaurant with our names on it and a selection of freshly prepared dishes to tempt us.  We’d all stashed several bags at the collection point by this time and though I’m not going to give away any secrets here, let’s just say the shopping was excellent

We gathered a fair bit of inspiration too – we think Margaret could easily assemble a reindeer from a few dried citrus fruit, don’t you?

After such a successful and enjoyable day, there was already a smile on my face when I went to my WI meeting, then.  I’m not sure my photo is clear enough to reveal the subject on Tim Mayo’s tie: There is nothing like a Dame!

I’m rather hoping that the make up advice he offered won’t be taken too seriously by the members!

He told a great story though and had everyone in stitches – quite a transformation, isn’t it?

Much as I enjoy a day out with friends followed by an entertaining WI meeting though, the magic of the day was mostly as a result of a phone call with the news that the family government affairs professional has a new job with a larger portfolio (and hopefully, a smaller phone!) 

Two proud parents basked in the news of his success last evening.

In the pink

As we watched the first in the new Simply Nigella series last week, I sat up a little when she drew our attention to her new pink and green theme.  It’s not exactly the colour scheme I’d choose for my kitchen, but then I’m not a brand, nor am I in the business of creating a visually appealing scene in which to cook!  But it’s no secret, I do have a penchant for that particular colour combination, particularly the hues which could best be described as “rhubarb”.

On a dreary day in Gloucester on Friday, then, it will come as no surprise that my spirit was lifted by my colleague Harriet’s arrival at our meeting, especially the moment when she plonked her bag down on the table.

I had been doing my best to uphold the visual interest level at my end of the table.

But really, my 2016 diary was outshone.

(You probably guessed the colour of the 2015 diary it just replaced?)

I don’t realise that I steer quite so strongly towards these colours until I upload a bunch of photos to my Picasa album and find that there’s a strong colour trend amongst the thumbnails on screen.

In my November album there are a few photographs of birthday flowers, sent by faraway friends who seem to know me better than I realised

Then this morning, I was uploading pictures taken over the weekend, including this photograph of the table yesterday when Tra was with us and I used our favourite Vietnamese runner to brighten up the kitchen table.  I’d singled out these three gerberas from my birthday flowers and cut them short because their stems had wilted.  Pure chance that they looked good with the lotus design on the cloth – or perhaps my favourite colours are known by sweet friends in Vietnam too?

In the meantime, thank you Sue and Stasher for identifying the name of this plant which is putting on such a riotous show in our garden. 

I peered over the edge of our garden fence yesterday and spotted the likely source, as well.  Has our little clump earned its keep or will it go?  The jury is out!

The excitement today is the arrival of a replacement tumble drier though. 

Can’t wait.

November. Really?

The clear blue sky and mild temperatures today would contradict the calendar this morning.  Can it really be November?  We have lit our stove just twice so far and really, have not been cold at all.

Yet.

A week or so ago, I came across this.   Mira Jurecka shared her ideas for a small book celebrating Autumn and looking out of the window at the gorgeousness that was outside, I just had to take my camera into the garden and capture the magic.  Because, in the wonderful way the Germans have of saying it how it is,

Es herbstet sehr…

The kitchen window overlooks this little burst of colour and I’ll admit to not having taken a great deal of notice of it lately, because I’ve been terrorised by an over-friendly robin.  He seems to have moved on now, so perhaps I’m safe to venture out into that corner? 

A recent shower of rain had left everything slightly drippy.  I think that just adds to the joy and began to click away, forgetting some of the tips and ideas that Mira had shared in her blog post.

I was immediately into my “usual mode”, I knew where to look for bright colours and interesting shapes.

I knew to head for the summer house and the little maple tree nearby, which has outdone itself this year in terms of colour.

I was distracted by the pattern and colour from these self seeded things – I don’t know what they are but I’ll bet Stasher does!

A rose in November.  Of course I had to take a photograph of it.

Actually, it was one of many, so I took several.

There are still a few hypericum flowers too so I took a couple of photographs of the raindrops on those.

But then, I remembered Mira’s suggestions for “different” photographs.  I didn’t have company in the garden, so there was no chance of taking their picture and it was too wet to sit down and set the autotimer.

But I could do this…

I could put my camera on the wall of the raised bed and press the button to see what happens.

Not bad!

I moved to a different spot and tried again.  Interesting!  I love the light at this level and the autofocus makes it very simple to do.  I took a few more shots.

You know, I think I’ve found my new favourite angle. 

I haven’t made these photographs into a mini-book or done anything else with them.  But I’m delighted to have spend half an hour with my camera, enjoying the fresh air and getting some new ideas for capturing the moment.  Thanks Mira!