Though there were two days when I very nearly didn’t – and ended up posting far too close to midnight… It’s been an interesting discipline. Definitely not one I could keep up forever, but I’m feeling rather smug to have completed the challenge.
Busy weekend ahead – looking forward to making a start on Christmas – and candlelight concert tomorrow evening in the Pavilion – always a pretty treat.
A bientôt?
Two trees landed on the balcony this week – even earlier than usual. We always try to have the house ready for Christmas after the first weekend in December – but there are too many other commitments this year. We realised on Sunday that Monday 27th November was the only slot the grandchildren were free to come and help choose, and they were very keen.
Christmas decorations – and especially tree dressing – are taken pretty seriously round here. There have been wars in the past – including one year when a family member got up in the night, stripped the tree her sisters had done up the day before and completely changed the colour scheme. Another year we reached a compromise – literally a half-and-half set of colours, divided vertically….that was weird. The younger children used to be fobbed off with a small Dog’s Dinner tree of their own upstairs. That one was quite a sight.
This house suits Christmas. It has high ceilings, so it can accommodate a sizeable tree and the fireplace comes into its own – definitely a winter room. Just a question of taking a deep breath and pitching in with the greenery – it does all take time!
Some random photos from previous years, for encouragement. Pity I never got a picture of the half and half tree though….
Literally and metaphorically. This is the time of year when on days that I work – which has been every day for the last month – I leave the house in darkness and return the same way. I know this is the case for most working people, but I don’t like it. The other morning – a rare blue sky day – I defied the clock and went for a walk before my day officially started. My car was parked in the street top right – and I simply walked past it towards the sea and that i360 tower known locally as our giant ‘loo roll holder’. Brighton as you rarely see it, almost as quiet as in lockdown. Which, of course, provoked other thoughts, generating echoes and memories that were not too convenient at that time of day. But I have learnt to let it take its course. It is a truth that is always alongside me, ready to spring out at the most unexpected moments.
We have had a skulk of foxes (yes, apparently that is one of the acceptable collective nouns!) settled in the gardens for some years now. They mostly just got on with doing foxy things – like killing pigeons (seagulls if they were really quick), strewing litter around, making an extraordinary mess of digging up the grass… but we all rubbed along together pretty well. In fact ‘skulk’ is a perfect description – they kept around the edges and had some respect for the humans.
Not so this summer. They became bold and, eventually, rather intimidating. Their confidence was astounding – they no longer backed away from people in their path but brushed past them. They started to invade our picnics. My daughter (and others) refused to take her newborn baby into the gardens at all. And finally, one of the younger foxes nipped the hand of an eight year who was sitting on a bench swinging his arm under the seat. Most likely playful rather than aggressive, but still.
The garden committee (I’m on it) held a meeting and we set about investigating. It turned out that the main difference from previous years was that humans had been interfering. A couple of people had taken to feeding the foxes fresh meat, every day – and getting up close, making a fuss of them at the same time. No doubt well meaning – but no wonder the foxes strode confidently into our picnics! Much discussion ensued. The view of the committee (which I share) was that it is a mistake to treat wild animals as pets. They need to source their own livelihood – and, longer term, the available food supply will control their numbers to a manageable level.
Both neighbours agreed to stop the feeding. But the problem was that, whatever we thought about it, the foxes had already become dependent on these nightly offerings so they had to be weaned quite gradually. Even more important, I thought, was that the neighbours agreed not to hang out with their fox mates any more but just to put the reduced rations on the grass in the usual place then leave.
The fox I mentioned recently who came over to see what I was doing with the bulbs did NOT come that close. He skulked around a bit then vanished into the bushes, just like old times. So perhaps the plan has worked. On the other hand, he did look a bit thin….I hope we have done the right thing. What do you think?
Custom order for Etsy this morning – so busy, busy, busy……I don’t usually get the dyepots out for a single item, so I got quite a lot done in a lengthy session. Acid dyes only – I usually restrict my natural dyeing (with plants, wood, berries etc) to France where I can do everything outside – so much less messy!
Before I could start the actual dyeing, the work today included carding fleece, soaking all the material, mordanting some of it and mixing and preparing the dyes – some in syringes. I used a variety of techniques, including layering, injecting, hand painting and splattering. Such fun, though the clearing up can be tedious and, as usual, I ended up with multicoloured fingers and nails because I always end up ripping off the rubber gloves after about 10 minutes.
SpinningStreak 