Scavenger Hunt - February (director's cut)

Okay folks this is my first scavenger hunt and, as the title states, it is indeed a 'cut' version. In truth I have been mad busy and have not had time to fulfil all the categories but still wanted to post something. 

So here goes.

Flowers

Spring bouquet

Love / Heart

From my favourite valentine 

Number / Price

Imperial bliss

Favourite colour

Green - such optimism

Bird

With a bird's eye view

On the road

My favourite stop off place for free range eggs

Tap

Not particularly attractive but one of the hardest working parts of the garden

A corner of my home

The best place to snuggle up with a book

 

Next month I will be more organised. 

I hope.

Thanks to greenthumb for organising. If you fancy joining in with the scavenger hunt for March you can have a look at the next list and other linkee's (!) here.

Jane

xxx

Begone evil feed!

If you've ever been in the position of receiving unsolicited feed read on!

When I first started blogging I was in the excited blur of discovering new people, influences and friends. I signed up to follow many of those that interested me and have received regular updates ever since via my blogger feed.

However several months ago I noticed that one of the blogs had changed beyond recognition. The blog name had stayed the same but the language had most definitely changed - both literally and figuratively. Although I am not fluent in Spanish it was apparent - from the preview pane alone - that the contents were undeniably pornographic. Some words need no translation. I responded to this 'invasion' by never clicking on the link and hoping that if I showed no interest it would eventually 'go away'.

However tonight when I was bombarded with twelve simultaneous feeds from the same link I decided enough was enough. After much trawling of the web and various help centres I found out just how to get rid of this insidious connection. I only know how to do this in Blogger but hopefully it might help some of you in the same position.

The first thing you need to do is to click your My Blogs section. This will then display the reading list of all the blogs that you follow on the left hand side of your screen.

To the right of where it says 'All blogs' there is a gear symbol. Click on this to manage your settings. The screen will then change to something more like this. It might take a while so be patient.

(So sorry about the quality of these pictures - the only way I could find to upload them was to take photos of the screen)

Find the offending blog and click on the settings option on the right hand side of the screen.

Again this can sometimes take time - I had to right click and open link in a new tab.

This should then take you to a link page which will ask if you wish to continue following this blog. This is your chance.

Click stop following and give yourself a pat on the back. You've done it. Not only should you have banished the blog forever but you should also have got rid of any previous posts. Freedom!

I hope this has been able to help some of you.

It's nearly Spring!!!

Jane

xxx

The Charging Rhino

It hasn't quite turned out as planned. 

After a fairly gruelling start to the year the half term break had been hovering just ahead like a sparkly oasis. Time to breathe I thought. Maybe visit some new places and take some much needed restorative walks. 

Renew my perspective. 

Look forward.

But then came the tickle.

Just a little one but significant nonetheless.

The tickle that is soon followed by hot eyes and a runny nose.

The charging rhino had come to a stop. 

Now before I  continue I had better explain the analogy. Apparently when one is under a certain amount of daily pressure the only way to get through it is to put your head down and barge through. This stops you from getting attacked by wild animals and eaten. However once the threat/pressure/ situation has passed it is time to stop charging and relax. And just when you do so those sneaky little critters catch you from behind and before you know it you've got a cold. 

Or at least it goes something like that.

And so it goes that I'm writing this from my bed, surrounded by tissues, blisteze and old magazines.

Of course I'm very fortunate. Mike is also on his break and keeps popping in with much welcomed cups of tea and home made soup. I've got a roof over my head and a warm bed to sleep in.

But things have still been going on.

On Tuesday we had some new carpets fitted. I know you'll be enthralled to hear more but all I'm going to say is that after twenty years of children, dogs and rabbits skipping about we now have cream carpet adorning our stairs and landing. That's right. CREAM! What were we thinking? But it does look lovely even if any trip up and down stairs now demands clean feet. And our bedroom, where we have insisted on keeping hold of our original Victorian boards even though they were scarred with woodworm trails, is now covered in a luxurious tuft!

Of course this included a mass movement of furniture which started a bit of a sort. Started mind you, not finished. We are now paused - mid sort.

Wednesday saw the cold break but did not stop us visiting the theatre. This time I was accompanied by Mike to see the fantastic John Shuttleworth at the New Vic Theatre in nearby Newcastle under Lyme. Now I realise that drink and drugs should never mix but to be honest I hadn't realised that a small mid interval gin and tonic (always a theatre treat) would react so potently with three days of cold medicine.

Goodness me I haven't laughed so much for a long time. Tears were rolling down my face!

But don't do that at home.

Which brings us back to now. My body has finally said no, stop it, I've had enough. Stop feeling guilty about things you had planned to do and let those little critters have their way. And if that means staying put and being waited on by others then so be it! 

Appreciate it. Let it happen.

A dear friend bought me this cushion at Christmas and the sentiment always makes me stop and think.

Take care and, if your rhino does need to take a breather, watch out for sneaky critters.

Jane

xxx

P.S. Preparations are now well under way for our bloggy get together in Stratford in April. It would be so nice to meet you, so if you're even a teensy bit curious as to what we're going to be up to, give myself or dear old Gilly a shout!

The mystery of the small smalls, or, why are some smalls smaller than others?

I've been flitting about again. My attention span at the moment is that of a very small gnat (although having not been an observer of gnats and their mindsets I may well be doing them a great disservice - but I feel that the analogy makes the necessary point).

So when good old LDJ posted about knickers I was hooked.

 'Aha!' thought I.

'They are nice small objects and thus must be nice and quick to make.'

But in typical impatient manner I wanted to make them then. And there.

So I scoured t'internet for a free pattern and set to.

Now I should have learned from the time that I made a crochet slipper - that's right, just the one - that you should always double check your sizes. How was I supposed to know that a size seven pattern would equate to a size four in the UK. Feeling very much like an ugly sister I tossed aside my 'too small footwear' in a fit of pique.

But this pattern clearly said size twelve.

So off I went.

And very pleased I was with myself too. 

Until I tried them on. Or should I say tried to try them on.

At the point where I realised that I would be lucky if they would reach a thigh I decided to check the size.

The very pretty thigh stranglers on the top

Hmmm.

Surely a size is a size is a size - no matter where you live?

Apparently not!

So I played safe and sent off for a popular kit.

 Would you believe it? The kit worked!

The sizing was correct and - without going into too much detail - my nether regions were suitably adorned.

The free pattern on top compared to the proper size!

Next pair.

Same pattern on a fat quarter.

Hmmm.

A visit to the craft emporium to buy a replica set of fat quarters and eventually more knickers were made (two quarters per pattern if you will - or indeed a fat half)

.

Meanwhile there has been a production line of baby hats for Taciana's worthy project. Again these have been wonderfully quick to make, and I have enjoyed revisiting some of the yarns that I used when the girls were mere twinkles.

Difficult to model them though. Especially when the 'models' keep rolling off.

And last but not least has come a small pair of trousers accompanied by a chunky sweater.

Just about big enough for a mouse.

NO! Glove Mouse.You are far too small!

Just about big enough for a mouse called Bob!

Bob's about to go off to furnish the dusty shelves of my old etsy shop, but before he does I wonder if he's got any ideas as to what to do with the 'too small' knickers?

Thanks Bob!

May you all be well and your smalls be adequate.

Jane

xxx

Something to look forward to!

Thank you.

And I mean that from the bottom of my heart.

The comments that you left on my last post were so thoughtful, so kind and so warm. They have helped both myself and the whole family come to terms with a sad moment.

But I don't want to dwell too much more here.

There is indeed something to look forward to!

Some time ago I met up with some lovely bloggers over at Shugborough. Before we left there was talk of getting together again. Gilly from gilly makes suggested Stratford as a meeting place as that's not only her stomping ground but also the home of the fantastic Sew Me Something (oh and of course an old writer called Bill). 

What could be better? 

After a recent flurry of emails a date was set and we oh so hope that some of you will be able to join us. Gilly has posted all the details over here - take a look! I know some of you might feel a bit shy about meeting up but I can assure you we will all be in the same boat.

So check your diaries and get in touch - either over here or at Gilly's.

Look forward to meeting you!

Jane

xxx

Sad news

Some of you lovely followers out there will probably be aware that our poor old Jessie dog has not been too well of late. At sixteen she was almost blind, pretty much deaf and struggling very much with her back legs. Yesterday it all became too much and the decision was made to have her quietly put to sleep. It was a decision I'd been dreading but we've known for the last few months that things were getting worse and there was a sudden nosedive this week. 

Today I've had a quiet day. Not working on Fridays, I decided to stay close to home and found myself on auto pilot - cleaning, washing, and generally trying to keep myself busy.

 But it was hard. 

Jessie used to follow me everywhere - she had no manners with regard to following me and staring whilst I visited the bathroom! I found myself automatically stepping over where her bed had been, and saving her some crusts from my sandwiches. When I answered the door earlier I automatically put my hand out to hold her collar. It's going to take some time to get used to.

But I have some lovely memories.

We 'rescued' her from a dogs home when she was six months old. She had a strong sense of wanderlust and would often take herself off on an adventure while our backs were turned. She sometimes got returned by complete strangers looking very pleased with herself. It was as though she'd found some new friends and was very glad to introduce us! She was picked up by the police and spent a night in the cells when they went off duty, she visited various offices on the local industrial estate, and once even made it across quite a busy dual carriageway to be found in the kitchen of a popular restaurant. On several occasions we would have a call from our local dvd store whose automatic doors would generously allow her entrance - 'Hi there - we've got Jessie here again - don't rush!'

And of course whenever she was returned people would say the same thing, usually along the lines of 'Oh but she's so lovely - and she does enjoy a custard cream!'

She adored our girls and put up with many years of being snuggled and squeezed by gaggles of toddlers.

When we had fourteen ducklings hatch in our garden she would lie there patiently while they waddled around and over her on the way to our little pond. And Ned rabbit could often be found stretched out next to her in a sunny patch of grass.

She really had the sweetest nature and gave us years of unconditional devotion.

She was gentle, loving and fun.

And we will miss her.

Jane

xxx

You like?

The very fact that I am starting this post with an excuse might indicate just how many doubts I have about my most recent of purchases.

The fact that I am going to reveal said purchase slowly so as to minimise the visual shock might emphasise this further.

You see Mr K - who shall thus forth be known as Mike for that is his name - insisted on popping in to our local charity centre. As I duly followed him in I was feeling fairly nonchalant about the prospect. Having had a conversation on our way there about having too much 'stuff' I had resolutely stated that I'd have a look around, but really didn't want or need anything at all. I was there purely to support his quest for some old cameras.

It nearly worked.

Then Mike spotted something I'd missed.

Something with a lovely pattern.

And an interesting shape.

Maybe a feature?

Or two?

At this point I feel it is only fair to warn you that if you possess a modicum of taste you might want to stop here.

You could imagine I have bought a beautiful old vase.

Or bowl.

Maybe a dainty cup or a tea set for summer picnics.

What you probably won't expect is this.

A fine example of a prettily patterned pottery dog!

And if you're still here you might be thinking 'how could this get any better?'

I'll show you how.

A pair of prettily patterned pottery dogs!

They made me smile.

I chuckled all the way home.

Today the chuckle has been tempered by many doubts. Am I turning into the sort of person who throws taste out of the window in favour of a cheap thrill? Will my twilight years see me surrounded by hordes of prettily patterned animals? I have never given much heed to popular taste and have always fancied a wall full of cuckoo clocks.

Is this a slippery slope?

HELP!

Jane

xxx