I am a bit of a star gazer and so frequently check out NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day site and look what I found! How beautiful is that! I have a fancy to get into a bit of space photography but need a bit more kit to be able to get stuff like this, it is do-able though! (Family and Friends - Watch my Wishlist!)
I post quite a lot of music on this blog and while I think I have great taste in music I also know that not everyone would agree BUT if you only do one thing ever for me listen to this track, I swear its groove personified! You'll love it!
I am a big fan of poetry, both writing and reading, and given my recent blue obscession thought I would seek out a blue poem. Poetry is very subjective and often when I go searching for a new verse it takes me ages to find something that strikes a chord, not so tonight. On my second search I came across this lovely little piece! (Although I have to disagree with him slightly, for me roses yellow are best.)
Blue Roses - Rudyard Kipling
Roses red and roses white
Plucked I for my love's delight.
She would none of all my posies
Bade me gather her blue roses.
Half the world I wandered through,
Seeking where such flowers grew.
Half the world unto my quest
Answered me with laugh and jest.
Home I came at wintertide,
But my silly love had died
Seeking with her latest breath
Roses from the arms of Death.
It may be beyond the grave
She shall find what she would have.
Mine was but an idle quest Roses white and red are best!
My lovely man bought me a Kindle for Christmas and collaberated with my parents so I also got a lovely case and light for it. It is an amazing gift and is supporting my ever growing thirst for reading. It has also made downloading books a little addictive!
Anyway, another thing I have been doing since having it is reading several books at once which is a new thing for me but something I find more achievable with the Kindle. I am currently reading 6 books. If you are interested in what I am reading there is a list on the left hand side of this blog, and lower down there are lists of what I have read for the past three years.
This evening, thanks to my Kindle case and light, I was able to enjoy a candle lit bath with my Kindle. My chosen book was A Great and Terrible King, by Marc Morris, which is about King Edward I. He is a character I became interested in having recently read a historical novel about Robert the Bruce (another interesting character.).
I read twice as many books last year as the year before and predict that this year will be even better. My Kindle goes everywhere with me and makes it so easy to grab a few pages of what ever takes my fancy. I now find myself longing to be kept waiting anywhere I go to grab a few minutes of reading. Speaking of which, I may have to get nack to it!
Ah that is so much better! I came onto my blog today and immediately could not stand to look at the orange any longer! Not sure why!! But cold and cooling has been my theme for a few weeks now. I like being cool and having fresh air about and this blue blog is working for me!
I really thought I had changed this blog look for the last time, and I think the orange lasted the longest, but they say a change is as good as a rest!! Atleast I managed to change my blog this time without making a complete mess that takes hours to sort out!
Ok, I am feeling very bloggy but there are pups to walk and shopping to do so I will scoot for now.
I thought I had better get a post in before January dissappears! I am finding it hard to keep track of what month it is at the moment. Life has been very busy and I had a re-visit from the migraine demon over the holidays which really changed my perception of Christmas and New Year, in a way they kind of didn't happen.
Don't get me wrong I had a good time and like all migraine sufferers made sure I had me some fun the moment the pain, nausea and lethargy stopped until the next outbreak, but I still don't really feel like Christmas and New Year have passed.
I was not even sad when the decorations came down, infact the room looked, clear, uncluttered and lovely! What's that about!!!
Anyway, I am really starting to feel back on track this past week having had a good mental chat with myself about letting things get on top of me which is generally when the MGB's (migraine bouts) tend to strike. I do have an appointment at the Migraine clinic in February and am interested to hear how they can help and what they think about it all. I have a very detailed MGB diary to go through with them and a long list of triggers to discuss!
However, I have spent far too much time talking and thinking about the MGB's over the past few weeks so moving on...it's 2012, the world may end, it may not, I am reading lots of fabulous books, getting my work life and home life ratio sorted, looking forward to Spring but enjoying Winter and feeling very happy about finding my way back to my Blog. I have missed it and my fellow bloggers a lot!
As all pet owners will know this is not a great time of year for animals; it would be but 'the powers that be' do insist on selling small explosives to the public! I have to say it has not been too bad around here this year and thankfully although our dogs are not completely happy with the firework associated noises they do not get really distressed.
We are however, planning a pet friendly fire works night and celebrating at home. We have been out to displays in recent years which I love doing but this year we are staying in and having baked potatoes and tomato soup. We are also planning to watch V is for Vendetta which is such a wonderful film in the spirit of rebellion and revolution, and the evening will culminate with sparklers in the back garden! I figure that if we leave the dogs in the house with the curtains closed they will be unaware of our small explosive celebration but we still get to light something!
Does anyone still have children coming round with a home made Guy for the bonfire? I have noticed that the bonfire aspect of Bonfire Night seems to have dwindled, certainly at the displays we have been to in recent years anyway, and it has been decades since anyone came round asking for a penny for the Guy.
Anyway, what ever you are up to have a fabulous evening and I leave you with this:
Well I have mentioned a time or two before that is has been a slow blogging year for me, all for good reasons, but since term started again there has been even less time! I am back to thinking about lots of potential posts but not having the energy or time to create them!
Teaching is so much fun, I am currently doing pests and diseases, woodland management, business management, forest and woodland skills, investigative project, commercial experience, tree biology, taxonomy, soil science and woodland ecology...phew!
The rest of my time is made up of dog walking, house keeping, sleeping and devouring the current series of books I am reading: A Song of Ice and Fire by George R R Martin (On TV as Game of Thrones). His books are those odd ones you come across that mean so much you cannot wait to finish them but dread them ending! The first book was just shy of 800 pages, the second marginally longer, I am on the third and there are 5 in total!
So fellow bloggers my plan for this evening is feet up, wine corked, nice tea (not sure what yet) and more of heros, villains, swords, dragons, destiny, tragedy and the trials of my favourite character, Tyrion Lannister. Happy weekend to you all!
We had a fabulous holiday in Wales again this year. I was reading a historical novel while we were away which had some Welsh history in it which really brought the countryside alive for me and made the trip we made to Caernarfon Castle much more meaningful too. Here is a selection of our snaps taken at the tent, the castle and on the many beautiful walks we did.
Its nice to know what that amazing place name means! I still cannot say it in Welsh but Mr Dancin can!
The mid point of a great walk on Anglesey and a chance for the dogs to have a swim!
A huge Crab Apple on the way to Aber Falls.
Aber Falls.
A farmer with a sense of humour!
Storm front moves in!
The beautiful Snowdon seen from a third of the way up Moel Hebog.
I got this made before we went on holiday although I did not have time to put the picture up. 6 jars and one tub in total. Not bad for my first attempt! (Friends and family be warned, I will be bringing some with me on any visits planned soon.)
We are now on the final count down to our summer holiday! Yey!!!!! I have been starting to collect up the camping gear and the camping lists are printed and updated. There are a lot of little items we do not want to forget but have done on many previous holidays. Oddly enough the most common forgotten item is sheets for the airbed!
We are going to Wales again this year to stay on a friends farm in Snowdonia so I have been looking through our photos from the last visit there two years ago and have been remembering the amazing walks we did and what a great time we had. Here is a small photographic summary which you can click to enlarge.
I can't wait to get there and get the tent up and the camp fire lit!
I have to say Scotland is my favourite holiday destination and when we don't go there for our summer holiday we are both always a little sad that we will not be exploring a new area of Scotland, but Wales is beautiful and does not have midges!
Well the apples are drained and have yielded about 6 litres of fluid which smells and tastes lovely, I am actually loathed to add sugar to it! Here is is:
I tried to take a few artistic shots of the tubs it is currently in and failed miserably so thought I would just go with a close up of one showing the beautiful colour. It's in plastic containers at the moment hence appearing cloudy.
I may experiment with some of it and try and come up with a few soft drinks as it really does have the most lovely flavour as it is.
In addition to the farmers being out harvesting their crops it is time again to pick the crab apples off the tree. The past few years we have been able to leave them until we return from holiday but the long Spring and Summer seem to have caused them to ripen early and I did not want to risk loosing the fruit. So yesterday I cut 12 lbs of apples from our lovely, small John Downie.
The apples are currently stewed and draining in the kitchen and the smell is wonderful.
I am making Crab Apple Jelly this year although on the suggestion of my Mum will be trying Crab Apple Wine next year which sounds lovely. I have found a couple of recipes for it here and here.
I have not made either Crab Apple Jelly or Wine before although from the looks of it the wine will be more of a challenge but I look forward to having a go and enjoying the results the year after.
It has been a very long week this week and so I am starting my Saturday in the style of days gone by. I am sat on the couch, wearing my goony (dressing gown) and drinking tea. The only thing that is missing is something cool on the TV!
I used to love Saturday morning TV as a small child. We would watch The Flashing Blade, Champion the Wonderhorse, the Six Million Dollar Man, the Monkeys and the Banana Splits.
I know nowadays there are lots of great shows for kids on the TV, and dedicated channels for them, but I don't think they have the appeal that some of my childhood favourites did.
I have recently been thinking about Monkey, which was another childhood favourite, and The Waltons which I loved and also associate with the weekend after it was last repeated on Sunday mornings. I even looked at the box set of The Waltons on amazon but that show has kept its value a little too well!
I looked out some images of the shows I have mentioned to remind you (in case you needed it) and this image of the Banana Splits really made me happy to look at, I thought therefore they deserved a full page spread! I remember very little of the show but have the most amazing associations with them. They really brought much joy. Although the second one from the left still scares me a little...not sure why!!!
I get the same feeling when I see Basil Brush although I do remember why I loved him so much, he used to make me howl with laughter!
Monkey, or Monkey Magic was always a bit weird but I loved it. And the Monkeys were great and are touring as a band at present. I heard an interview with them recently and the list of song writers who wrote for them is very impressive. They had some great songs.
Well Saturday morning TV is pretty grim I have to say but at least it seems I can rely on E4 playing repeats of Friends forever!
I went to the library in my local town today to return some books and get some new ones out. I tend to get 4-5 out in one go, dependant on what catches my eye, but I always return them as I read them so that someone else has the chance to take them out and also for the experience of visiting. It is such a peaceful and quiet place and despite my recent decision to get a Kindle at some point I will never loose my love of being around books.
I like to wonder round and view the shelves, searching for a title or cover that attracts me, and I came away today with some great books. I got the next Giles Brandreth mystery book featuring Oscar Wilde, and two books by Ian Mortimer AKA James Forrester, centred around the Middle Ages which is a favourite historical period of mine.
Its an odd time. I always fantasise myself living happily in that period given the simplicity of life but from reading about it know that the reality was quite a different story and I would have been lucky to survive to adulthood given the disease and poverty.
I am currently reading Stieg Larsson's trilogy The Girl With/ Who, and a Sci Fi book I got free on Kindle called The Honour of the Knights by Stephen J Sweeney. I don't usually read two books at the same time and will probably default to one or the other once I have bonded with the characters.
It has been a great year for reading though and I have nearly read more books this year so far than I read last year in total.
Mr Dancin in reading The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett at the moment which I read last year and loved. Its great to get a summary of where he is in the book when he finishes a reading stint and remember with fondness the plot and characters.
Well who knows where I would have waffled onto but Mr Dancin has just arrived home so there's tea to be served! Happy Friday Bloggers! The weekend is finally here!
Well as the year continues its still very busy but exciting! And I have been managing to keep up on my reading which is great. I joined the public library recently and have been raiding their shelves, and have also downloaded the Kindle software onto my PC to make the most of the free books.
The experience has really sold Kindle devices to me, having originally thought they were not for me, my favourite tools being the immediate access to books and more impressively the dictionary tool.
Often when I am reading I come across a word I do not know the meaning of and as it is not always practicable to grab the dictionary every time to look it up I often move on, missing some of the meaning of the material I am reading.
I now at the click of a button can look up a word and swiftly move on. I have especially noticed the benefit of this while recently reading some older literature such as my current book The Tales of Sherlock Holmes, Arthur Conan Doyle. Anyway, the Kindle is a purchase that will have to wait for a while but I really think I may get one at some point.
I have just finished reading Truman Capote - In Cold Blood, a factual story of multiple murders and the consequences. One of the books I suspect that anyone involved in the judicial service and related professions has been made to study and discuss.
I was originally attracted to the story when the film 'Capote' came out as Truman Capote is played by one of my favourite actors Philip Seymour Hoffman and I watched it on a plane earlier in the year however, I did not manage to catch all of the dialogue and wanted to read the book to get more detail out of the story.
I don't think I am quite ready to discuss it yet, it is rather disturbing on so many levels, but I actually think the process of writing a discussion of the book would help me!
It was good to read something factual though and I really do think I have learned a lot from it. It has certainly been thought provoking, and as I read it in one day and finished the book shortly before bed time was also nightmare provoking too! So I will be moving onto something a little lighter hearted for my next read!
Well today the sun is shining and it promises to be blue skies all the way! I have some prep work to do for teaching on Thursday but got most of it done yesterday. I also got the house cleaned yesterday and so have the luxury of a day sprawling before me in which the dogs and I can do as we please...well almost as we please. I am pretty sure we would all love most to go to the beach for the day but it's a little too far for a day trip, especially starting out at this hour! I really must get a beach trip planned in soon though!
Ok, time to get started! Happy Tuesday Bloggers! I hope the sun is with you.
Hello Blog! Compared to my output last year I have been pretty absent from the blogging world this year but all for good reasons. Things have really kicked off for me personally with my photographic hobby, and professionally with work abroad and a change in career paths. However one of my favourite things about blogging is creating a record of just what you have been up to in the time you have which flies by so quickly.
Someone told me the other day that the older you get the quicker the time flies by which is a little worrying however I have found that when I record my events for future reflection it does remind me that I have actually been achieving a lot, so although my perception of time is that it flies by in the blink of an eye, I know I have used some of the time wisely, by my standards.
So here I am today, taking note of the of the events of the year. Its half term at the moment so I am not working at the college this week although I am using the time to over prepare for the coming term. I am really enjoying teaching and it is making me study all over again which is great. It is quite frightening when you revisit your own college notes and realise just how much you have forgotten.
I also like to over prepare as when I was at college my lecturers were inspirational to me, and as keen students we bombarded them with questions from all angles. I want to make sure I am prepared for any such questions. Arboriculture bleeds into so many other subjects and the depth you go to in some of these subjects needs to be set. For example, I am teaching pests and diseases so we are looking at the entomology of insects, and the varied and complex relationships between trees and fungi, and other diseases.
As you can imagine before you know it you can be buried in biological terms and processes that although interesting are not part of the course curriculum. There has to be a limit when teaching such subjects so as not to confuse students and to make sure they learn the important aspects of the interactions between trees and pathogens. I do however like to know the answers to as many periferal matters relating to the subject so I am prepared for any question they may have.
I am also doing some business development this week for the photography and am looking at local venues to try and sell my photographs.
I have a list of tasks in my email calendar so that I can individually record all of the things I want to achieve and tick them off as done!
Its been an interesting couple of weeks on the music front and we went to our third Rush concert the weekend before last which was amazing, in fact the best yet! I have decided that Rush are not only the most talented guys in Rock 'n' Roll but also the nicest!
I am sad to report that Gil Scott Heron died last week; a much loved artist that I never got to see, but I did remind myself that he lived an amazing life and did what he wanted to do, and through his music and writings he is immortalised. I also realised that the reason there seems to be a spate of musicians I like dying of late is related to my musical tastes and my age! Most of my favourite musicians herald from the 70's and as such are now 20+ older than me. As I turn 40 next year they are all 60+ and sadly succumbing to the ravishes of old age.
I also wanted to note here that Jeff Conaway died last week. He played Kenickie in one of my all time favourite films Grease.
Both of the afore mentioned went before their time.
Well I have recorded most of what I wanted to! And added my latest book to my reading list. I am devouring books this year which is great. I have also recently downloaded Kindle onto my laptop so I can access the free books via the Kindle shop and have really been enjoying reading them and utilising the instant dictionary feature, which is probably my favourite Kindle tool.
I am not going to get a Kindle itself but when you can access so many books for free electronically it is too good an opportunity to miss!
Ok, chores are calling! Happy Wednesday Bloggers! Enjoy some Gil!
John Sullivan died last month, he was only 64, well writing that's put a song in my head! Anyway, he wrote one of my all time favourite shows, Only Fools and Horses.
There was a short tribute show on yesterday which I watched and subsequently learnt that he also wrote many other shows I watched and loved over the years, most notably for me Just Good Friends and Citizen Smith.
Additionally he wrote for comedy shows such as The Two Ronnies, another family favourite.
I have many of the Only Fools episodes on DVD. In addition to being a huge fan of the show and all of the characters I am a massive David Jason fan...and I do mean David Jason and not just Del Boy although I feel much affection for his character in Only Fools.
So I thought I would treat myself and look up a few classic clips on You Tube for some of the episodes I don't have copies of yet, and share them here, in tribute to a comedy genius. Enjoy!
There are loads more clips on the wonderful You Tube if you fancy some more, I am going to finish with the opening theme music, which contains that great line, 'Why Do Only Fools and Horses Work?'.
John Sullivan wrote and sang both the opening and closing theme music to Only Fools which was something I only found out a couple of years ago. I had always assumed it was Nicholas Lyndhurst singing and still think it sounds exactly like him!
I have just finished a really good book, but for the past three years I have really stepped up my reading and have read so many good stories.
I also watch a lot of films but what has struck me recently is although I think I've seen some really good films they never touch me in the same way books do. Its not just the way that books can convey so much extra detail and supporting information, or that they allow your own imagination to put faces to the characters, perceiving them in your own unique way: its that they so very often impart pearls of wisdom, ideas or thoughts, phrases and sayings, that really hit you hard and make a posative difference to how you see the world and your life.
There have been very few films that have had that affect on me, but many, many books.
At the beginning of last year I read Dan Browns latest book 'The Lost Symbol' which introduced me to Noetic Science. I took so much away from that book, and know I need to read it again as there were so many amazing ideas in it I could not take it all in, but the lasting thought I have had from the book is that human thought is powerful and as a form of energy effects the world we live in. It is therefore our responsability to think posatively at all times, it would be irresponsable to know this and deliberately put negative thoughts out there, if in some way our very thoughts impact on us all.
Anyway, here's a little gem from the book I just finished about 30 minutes ago, Memoirs of a Master Forger - William Heaney.
...the prophet said 'Keep your heart light at every moment, because when the heart is downcast the soul becomes blind'.
As a final note, I like to include images in all posts and went looking for one appropriate to the subject matter of this one; then I remembered this photo. I took this shot from the Hill Fort at sunset last year and I love looking at it. The sky was so golden that evening and it reminds me of a peaceful day when I sat and watched the sun go down from somewhere special to me, somewhere where I feel connected.
Well after the last dog walk I returned home and decided to give the rest of the day over to blogging! A worthwhile pursuit I think! I have created a weekly event called In Bloom over at The Green Man which I hope bloggers will participate in. My intent is to provide a collection of weekly shots from around the globe showing what people are growing and what is growing where they live.
For some time I took part in Sky Watch Friday, a similar weekly event, and it was brilliant to see the skies around the world, I hope the same will be true for all things that grow!
If you want to take part the first post is up and the link list will remain open for the next week and a half while I try and get the word around, just visit The Green Man Here.
I had the biggest sleep in this morning! I am happy to say that I am gainfully employed again and although it is not my usual job it is a job, it's local and I do shifts and so have time at home in the day even when I am working.
I am however still getting used to the new routine and have for the past 6 weeks been constantly tired!!!!! Sorry actually I mean TIRED!!!!!!
I am getting a little fed up of it actually and hope that my body soon acclimatises, it is intefereing with all of the other things I want to do and my family, friends and out of work activities have all suffered.
Anyway, I have a day off today and having slept in until 10.30am!!! (I am almost too embaressed to put the actual time!) I should be caught up on all required sleep. So after spending a bit of time blogging, which is a pleasure I have not had for a few weeks, I will still have half a day to play with.
As usual there is an abundance of activities I could choose to do which range from continueing the spring cleaning to working on my website to taking a trip out somewhere. I would dearly love to make a visit to the coast but that is a days length activity from where I live so that's out now!
Well I will ponder it further over a cup of tea and see where the day takes me.
As I type there is a Blackbird building a nest right outside our living room window in the branch crotch of a small tree. I am delighted that we may have a view of the event from the comfort of our sofa but concerned as it is only at about 1.5m off the ground and in no way safe from cats, of which there are many in the area.
I am loathed to disturb the building...I may have to fashion some kind of cat deterrent. I also hope that the noise that is bound to come from the dogs barking at some point does not disturb them too much.
If anyone has any thoughts or advice I would be happy to hear it.
My lovely man bought me a Kindle for Christmas and collaberated with my parents so I also got a lovely case and light for it. It is an amazing gift and is supporting my ever growing thirst for reading. It has also made downloading books a little addictive!
It has been a very long week this week and so I am starting my Saturday in the style of days gone by. I am sat on the couch, wearing my goony (dressing gown) and drinking tea. The only thing that is missing is something cool on the TV!
I know nowadays there are lots of great shows for kids on the TV, and dedicated channels for them, but I don't think they have the appeal that some of my childhood favourites did.
I have just finished reading Truman Capote - In Cold Blood, a factual story of multiple murders and the consequences. One of the books I suspect that anyone involved in the judicial service and related professions has been made to study and discuss.
