Chimes

 

An old friend sent me a wind chime at Christmas
I opened it today and hung it under the honeysuckle by the front door this morning.
I feel a bit flat today and after walking the dogs at 8 am I went back to bed in the spare room with Dorothy who licked my feet more out of duty than of want.
Roger had opened his bowels during his mad half hour runaround last night on my double bed
And the duvet cover is now drying on the field gate.
It’s blustery today.
Coldish
I’ve been sat on the sofa for over an hour, trying to get myself going
I had no idea it’s Friday.
I listened to the sporadic chimes, ringing gently through the letterbox and finally collected in the Christmas cards standing on the window ledge 
In my friend’s card he had written carefully “Hear the wind and think of me “ 

And so I did.

74 comments:

  1. Anonymous2:49 pm

    I love chimes and yours sound lovely. I hope you are not beating yourself up about having a flat day. It’s good to express it and I send a virtual hug and a big mug of coffee or I think you would prefer a scotch egg to help you. It’s not a nice feeling and I hope it will pass soon. Take care of yourself. Noreen

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    1. I’ve been a bit flat for a few days now..it will pass x

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  2. I think a lot of us have a flat day between Christmas and New Year. I would love wind chimes but can think of nowhere I could hang them where I could hear them. And that Roger needs a good talking to - he is old enough to know better!..

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  3. Not a lover of wind chimes, sorry! I'd rather hear the wind and the bird song. It's that sort of nothing time between Christmas and New Year. Best to just go with the flow. Obviously, Roger and Dorothy are feeling a bit out of sorts too. xx

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  4. Wonderful present, wonderful sentiment.
    Fluff your day up!
    Doesn't it feel so good to have someone think of you fondly.

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  5. Chimes gently sounding in the breeze is lovely. Your friend chose well. As Pat says, having an off day happens around this time. You must think of your good friend, just as he/she asks, and listen to the soft sound of the chimes. What's gotten to Roger? If your garden is totally enclosed, I'd push Roger outdoors, every morning to do his business "outside."

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    1. He’s overwhelmed by his erection …..I can forgive that ….

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  6. Yorkshire Liz3:30 pm

    This strange time between Christmas and New Year is always flat, as neither one thing nor another. You just have to accept it as such and move on. I have spent all day thinking it is Saturday even though it is Friday, which is another 'tween times tradition, isn't it?
    Young Roger needs a boot up the verbals, he is indeed old enough and looked after well enough to know better; he does not need to do these attention getting nuisances any longer. Wind chimes are quiet and calming - apart from the bamboo ones which are too clunky -and the fairies like them. Especially mixed with honeysuckle. What a thoughtful gift. All best wishes going onwards and upwards into 2023, John.

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    1. 2023 has to be be better for most of us,..
      2022 was a relief to be finally out of covid , but it’s been a pretty dire year all told

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  7. Time to join the modern world and buy a dryer!

    Is the spare room what is or will become your ''office"? I seem to recall you redid it within the past year or so tho?

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    1. I gave it a cosmetic make over. This time I want to boot the change up the arse

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    2. Many people over here who already have tumble driers are not using them this winter, due to the dreadfully high energy charges in the UK at present!
      Our power bills are horrific compared to those in the US, plus many of us live in smaller houses, so don't have room for yet another appliance.
      Although I have a drier, and am fortunate that the higher charges do not bother me, I try to dry my washing outside whenever possible, it's far kinder to the planet!

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  8. I love wind chimes! So peaceful and charming.

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    1. Like my friend here I don’t enjoy bamboo chimes, I much prefer the tinkling

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  9. Anonymous4:58 pm

    Wind chimes are lovely unless they belong to someone else then they can be annoying. A neighbour has them hangng in their garden and I'm sick of hearing them! A peaceful time in the garden meandering and pottering can be ruined by someone elses noise whatever it is.

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    1. Tell me about it!!! Winter has meant I’m shielded from the incessant yapping of next doors dogs

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  10. Anonymous4:59 pm

    John, I have been reading your blog every day for four years and I immediately thought of you when I listened to this TED Talk. It is compassionate and wonderfully heart-warming, done by cardiologist and father of a gay son.

    Enjoy, dear Blogger.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Khn_z9FPmU&t=1002s

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    1. I’ve seen something similar by him , though not this calm , sweet and pragmatic essay

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  11. Anonymous5:16 pm

    Well why not just hit Grinder or Tinder John and get some hot man company! That would warm you up quickly!
    Sally (too old for Tinder!) xxxxx

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  12. I often give nice wind chimes as a wedding present. I love them so. Yours sound lovely.

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    1. They arnt mine ,lol , I couldn’t quite be bothered downloading a recording , so it’s a YouTube recording xx

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  13. I used to go from room to room wth a tibetan bowl to cleanse the aura - It made a nice sound but occasionally the tone stuck especially upstairs - My wind chimes are from an area in U S - I can't recalI where but it is a waterfall somewhere x 🌬

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    1. You never fail to surprise me flis

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    2. only purchased from a garden centre John x

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    3. Anonymous9:33 pm

      A waterfall somewhere - Niagra Falls?

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  14. A wind chime is a great gift. I had my grandmother's wind chimes for years and I always thought of her when they rang.

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    1. Mine will also prevent Albert from stalking the sparrows when they nest in the honeysuckle

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    2. Anonymous9:34 pm

      You'll probably find no birds will nest near to windchimes

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  15. I think flat days depend on the weather and the hustle and bustle of getting ready for Christmas. For me it is getting older also, yuck !
    Like flis I think my home needs a cleanse also.
    cheers

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  16. Anonymous5:53 pm

    a wind chime outside johns "back door" might never stop chiming!

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    1. Lol you couldn’t be more wrong lol

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    2. reminds me of when someone knocked on my door and said abruptly - " Have you got a crack up your narrow bit " ?! - How coarse - I was quite taken aback x

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    3. I know - we still laugh about him now x

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    4. Anonymous9:36 pm

      well you know all about being coarse flis

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    5. He was trying to con me by saying there was a problem with my property .

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    6. Anonymous10:59 pm

      yes dear of course he was. Now it's long past your bedtime even though it's not school tomorrow so off you go

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    7. not a happy soul are you 🌑

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    8. Anonymous9:28 am

      Ecstatic dear child, ecstatic.

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    9. Anonymous9:32 am

      Judging by the dependence and obsession you have with Johns blog it is surely yourself who is not happy. Get yourself a life that isn't dependent on someone's blog flis.

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    10. Anonymous9:33 am

      Prove your obsession by retiurning yet again to the same post.

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    11. I reply to your insistence that I am a liar

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    12. flis, a few posts ago John asked you to stop commenting in this way.

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    13. I was asked not reply to the troll who enjoys being antagonistic to John - I think it is o k for me to speak out Mike to the troll who targets Me though with their regular Personal verbal attacks - surely you wouldn't like someone broadcasting to all such bile about you Mike.

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    14. A happy place2:39 pm

      Flis, all you're doing is feeding the troll. Ignore them and theyll have no reason to direct comments to you.

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    15. Yes -Thankyou -You are right xx

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  17. Barbara Anne5:59 pm

    I love wind chimes, too, and think of them as calming.
    Since hearing this week called "'twixmas" or betwixmass it's been a pleasure. Some baking, some un-decorating, and good food.
    Peace be with you!

    Hugs!

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  18. I'm hanging out with a three year old and a million other children who are school holidays. They know how to have fun, something I forget sometimes.
    Sending hugs John.

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    1. Enjoy your toddler , they are not small for long x

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  19. Rest, stay warm, find your place, soon the next year will be here.

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  20. “Hear the wind and think of me"...That's what I say when I have eaten too many sprouts.

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  21. Yes, an odd time of year - you're sounding a little flat, but I think a few of us feel like that when we're standing on the borderland between years. My one treat (if it can be called that) at this time of year - along with a glass of good port, are the old 'ghost stories at Christmas' by M R James et al that the BBC and others used to produce - 'Whistle and I'll come for you', 'the Signalman', Crooked House etc. Those DVDs that you mentioned that have gone out of fashion in a previous post, come in handy as the older titles I mentioned are difficult to come across on streaming services. 'Robin Redbreast' - a 1970 Play for Today and 'The Shout' starring the delectable Susannah York, John Hurt, and Alan Bates have kept me going these past few dark evenings. Which reminds me of my New Year's resolution - I must get a life sometime!

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    1. P
      You are a lovely constant here and thank you for that and for the fact you’ve given me some fodder to research . I remember “ whistle” one
      I wish you lived closer

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  22. It is a strange time of the year, caught between two celebrations. Windchimes are such lovely things. I have a set of very long, heavy ones that move so slightly in wind that when they do ring, quietly, they sound like far off church bells. Contrast that with my grandmother's glass ones that tinkle constantly (like Roger, maybe?). I really do love windchimes.

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    1. I’m sat on my couch covered in dogs and Albert in silence…all we can hear is the chimes and the wind

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  23. I have small windchimes hanging high in my kitchen and my grandkids are always thrilled when they become tall enough to ring them with the tips of their fingers standing on their tippy toes! :)

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  24. Nice to have something to remind you of a friend.
    We would like some wind chimes, but haven't found ones we would like, yet

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    1. @gz, Have a look at Woodstock Wind Chimes, they have some beautiful examples.
      We have their 'Bells of Paradise Wind Chimes' which come in differing lengths, but we have the 88 inch chimes, which have a glorious deep tone. I can recommend them!

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  25. You'll have to have a word with Roger. Threaten him with an outdoor kennel, that should do the trick.

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  26. I love wind chimes. I had some in the garden but an anonymous neighbour put a note through the door complaining so I took them down. Maybe I'll listen to this peaceful recording indoors instead.

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  27. Anonymous9:52 am

    Happy New Year John and little family, hope that 2023 is kind to you.

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  28. Happy New Year to you and your family four legged and two legged and all your readers. May 2023 be happy and healthy for all.

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  29. Love me some windchimes BUT only if they far enough away from the house. Years ago we bought these giant Music of the Spheres chimes, good God they weighed 40 pounds! Hung in our back yard under a large tree, they chimed loudly only if the wind was ridiculous. A tornado took that tree out, and we tried to hang them on another tree that was close to the house, and this tree was much more "flexible" and swayed with a mere breath of wind. Those damn things were so loud, we had to take them down. And there they still are, in storage! :)
    A very Happy New Year to you, John, and a big thank you for all of your blog posts - large and small, that always leave me feeling good!

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  30. Here we are at the end of the year ... so, now I shall wish you a safe and secure Happy New Year's Eve and an easy and sane entry into 2023! 😮🎉🍷

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  31. I always want to tear down wind chimes and throw them in the bin.

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