I hope I Get It !!!

 My favourite lisping choir is on bloody good form this morning

Silvia was loving it wasn’t she ?! 

It’s so joyful 

They are too.

It’s Friday morning and I’m off to London with Janet  to enjoy her birthday and Christmas gifts 

Tonight it’s A Chorus Line at Saddler’s Wells and a meal in soho.

Tomorrow it’s Buckingham Palace , and gardens, which is a first for me. 

A bit of everything 

I’m excited as it’s the first night for the Chorus line revamp. 

The atmosphere should therefore be electric .

I’m lucky I have Janet to go to these things with. I can’t always rely on Nu, and the older I get , the more difficult it is to find a buddy to buddy up with. I miss Gorgeous Dave who has sadly disappeared off the radar this year. 

I’m sad about that. 

Novelty Veg ( or fruit)

 I’m a bit short of novelty veg photos for the flower show. It’s August 1st today and the show is in three weeks ! So if anyone has an artistic bent please send me your entries. I will exhibit them here before judging.

Please send to jgsheffield@hotmail.com

Weaver Update & Come From Away

 Weaver is doing ok. She’s suffering from fatigue which, for a person in her situation , is normal but terribly debilitating to say the least. 

She waves a hand from North Yorkshire

 Come From Away is a musical everyone can identify with because it just about ordinary people caught up in something bigger than their lives have ever experienced before. For those few that don’t know, it centres upon the subsequent efforts by the 6 thousand strong local Canadians to process, feed, clothe and support several thousand people ( and animals) from all around the world who had been grounded in Gander , Newfoundland after the 9/11 bombings. 

Wisely, the ensemble cast centre itself on half a dozen people from the planes A gay couple from Los Angeles, a stiff Brit who falls for a gentle American Texan woman, the first female American Airlines pilot, an AfroAmerican woman waiting to hear about her son, a fireman in New York City all have their lives changed by the kindness of strangers and it these true life kindnesses that make the audience cry again and again because we all know that they are real and live within each one of us  

At the end, as in every performance nationwide, the audience stood as one and cheered.

They were cheering not only for the experience of an uplifting and likeable musical 

But for the fact, that all people, all of us,  have the capacity for unselfish, altruistic kindness 

And that’s a blessing.

I went to supervision this morning which was useful as we discussed transference and counter transference  relating to my client 

I bought itsu broth, noodles and vegetables for support and a punnet of grapes for lunch. 

For Yorkshire Pudding

Tonight I’m going to see Come From Away, and so I know it is a paperwork and Flower Show catch up  day. There was a bag on the kitchen wall, left over the weekend. A simple canvas bag decorated with a square of ordinance survey map of Trelawnyd and its surrounds. I have no idea who sent it, but a big thank you is there for the taking. 

I sorted out my on line banking (a nightmare) then set up pages of the village websites and Facebook publicising the show. I collected meds for a neighbour, delivered a score of  schedules  before  having cheese and crackers , with salmon and tomatoes drizzled in olive oil.  

As the Welsh watched 

Sharing the odd piece of salmon as a treat

The village looks glorious what with Milenka le Vay ‘s planters in full bloom around the telephone box and the pond , clean and ready for its next visitors 

I share my shame with Helen Sharman

 Bloody hell, Jill Archer ( Patricia Green) sounded frail on The Archer’s last night. 

It doesn’t sound like the actress will survive long enough to win the Victoria Sponge at the Flower And Produce show this year, which is sad 

All this Olympic chatter reminds me of the world student games which was held in Sheffield in 1991.

I was one of the 25 thousand capacity audience at the Don Valley Stadium who saw former Astronaut Helen Sharman DROP and EXTINGUISH the flame before reaching the bloody cauldron . 

Oh God she must have felt dreadful ! 

The crowds, as I recall were kind. 

See below Student Games Memory number two!!!

I love embarrassing stories. This one is an old one but I think it's worth repeatingBack in 1991 I was celebrating the multicultural social events organised in Sheffield when the World Student Games were held in the city.

I went with a friend to the Crucible Theatre which was hosting a free night of folk music and dance (in the foyer!)...as usual I was dressed down for the event (t shirt and ripped jeans! - remember the fact I had ripped jeans on)
but as the whole event was very relaxed I kind of blended in!
Anyhow I remember sitting on the steps of the bar looking down at the singers and crowds below..and one guy, who was sitting at a table with some friends caught my eye!
I looked at him.....he looked at me! and suddenly I thought "my lucks in!!!"
Anyhow this game of glances carried on for a while ( I remember the guy looked a little like a bearded Jake Gyllenhall) and I did that half smile and hair toss flirting thing! before I caught sight of him downing his pint then weave his way through the tables to walk to where I was sat up on the stairs!
He leaned over slowly so I could smell his after shave and whispered gently into my ear
"Hey mate...I wanted to tell you that you have a rip in your jeans and one of your b*lls is sticking out!"...he suddenly left and went to sit down again!!
What happened to me?..........well I died .....died in a pool of rancid shame

 I’m slightly pissed off

A sunny day reported and I’m on nights again .

The garden looks lovely,

Slightly damp but colourful  

I made scrambled eggs and put my face to the sun until I fell asleep 

And am off to bed after dribbling

Tempos Fugit

 Hit The Road Jack shows The Grupo Talia Choir at full lisp.

I adore it. It’s almost as if the choristers have too many syllables to deal with in one sentence

I can’t believe it’s Saturday late afternoon already. 

The Welsh have been at Trendy Carol’s all day when I’ve been asleep, both have had short haircuts which suit the summer’s humidity.

They are home now and watch me carefully from the kitchen reading chair. My movements soon will indicate to them whether I’m going to work or not tonight

Is it me or has 2024 flown ?

Bittersweet Paris

 Not as good as the London ceremony , The Paris Ceremony shone brightly in spurts.

The galloping horse up the Seine was inspired, and literally took your breath away

As did good old Céline who nailed Piaf’s Hymne á L’amour halfway up the Eiffel Tower

God that was an emotional watch.

I’ve only been to Paris once and that was back in 2001. It was a slightly upsetting jaunt as my then boyfriend ( and husband to be) ended our relationship just as I was enjoying the lighting up of the Eiffel Tower 

Happy days

The Gangs Of New York

 Chester Storyhouse, houses the professional Grovenesor Park Outdoor Theatre each year.

We went to see the impressive production of The Gangs Of New York by Kieran Lynn last night and we’re pleasantly surprised to me more entertained than I ever was with the awful film version.

The messages about how corruption, power and American politics go hand in hand were not lost on the audience or the ad-libbing  actors and although the drama was often played for laughs the violence on stage felt visceral, graphic and at times shocking. 

Great performances by Hanora Kamen, Yondola Ovide, and a rather sexy but menacing James Sheldon as Bill The Butcher.

A lovely evening

My girl

 

 

My laburnum, like us all, is another year older.

The council workmen and gardeners came for their first grass cut of the year at the Churchyard today and I found myself hurrying like a pioneer woman in an Indian Attack to the stockade which was the Church wall to check on the safety of my laburnum.

I should not have worried

Standing firm and with a mop of grand leaves, she stands strong and robust against the other trees d,And

I’m proud as any parent would be

No Twins

 Yesterday left me feeling , if not sad, certainly a tad melancholy.

Subsequently all those little jobs I had planned , didn’t get done, 

And the cat flap has yet to be fixed.

The kittens ( who will be henceforth now be referred to as the twins ) will not be arriving today as planned either,

Lily’s hernia is not quite right and because of that the Cat Manager agreed to keep her under observation at home until the 5th of August, the day I’m back after London, and of course Weaver will be staying with her. The twins will have their own room upstairs until they are more robust. 

It’s already decked out with cat litter, a few toys and old copies of the Guardian 

The next three videos are random, my favourite Italian cook, who hangs her tea towel on her bra strap ( love that) a video of the Gop Hill behind Trelawnyd at dusk and Conwy Castle ,the beautiful castle I see everyday going to work.

A Gay Funeral

 

No kittens today, I will collect them tomorrow.

Sunday, I heard that it was an old friend’s funeral today. 

Not a case of bad news travelled fast

It didn’t. 

I wanted to go and did so without reservation, this is the second such funeral I’ve attended

I’d dated David sporadically in the 1990s up to the Millennium  but he was in the closet and my temper wore thin with secrecy . So I finished my relationship with him to date a more volatile  and handsome Philip

Who was only slightly less closeted than David

It wasn’t a good time lol.

David and I romantically crossed paths only when I was single. When I was in a relationship my rules were always platonic and he respected that. 

He was the last friend I had that still wrote proper letters 

My last to him was only three months ago. 

Our last meet was in 2022 at the Ibis Hotel in Chesterfield

I met his partner this afternoon. An old Yorkshireman with a ready but sad smile 

“ I’m sorry , I don’t know who you are “ he said to me in the Crematorium line 

“ an old mate from the 90s “ I told him 

There were a few single guys my age dotted around  I noticed, a few smiled when Laura Brannigan was played as the curtains closed

Good Practice

 I have always focused my nursing on best practice 

And I have always made it a priority to praise good practice when I see it.

Both here and within the clinical areas.

Best practice isn’t always evidence based , and research supported .

It is often the small, and vital and the very human 

And I see it every day 

I once decided that a support worker was going to be a good friend by the way she brushed a patient.’s hair

She sang feed the birds as she did so

Thankful - Grupo Talia

It was warm when I got home, and dusk allowed me to lie on the damp grass of the front garden for a little while. Roger under my right arm, Mary under my right

After a 12 hour shift, it’s the best way to clear your head, 

Listening to my lisping choir, gently pulling their punches

I’m two thirds through my counselling course and am actually on track with my academic work and my practical assessments and experience.

I’m working to finish my final nursing revalidation this month ( the last time I will need to prove to the NMC that I am a nurse worthy of practice) 

I am expecting new kittens on Tuesday and the 49th Trelawnyd Flower Show takes place next month 

In ten days I’m in London seeing A Chorus Line at Saddler’s Wells followed by the trip around the gardens and state rooms of Buckingham Palace. 

Trips to see Come From Away, The Gangs Of New York, and some old friends from Sheffield plug some of gaps 

I’m 62

There’s a lot to be thankful for

Asparagus and pea

 The bin men have just been.

As usual Roger has been bouncing up and down at the kitchen wall in order to greet them. 

They miss Dorothy and said so, as big gloved hands patted smiling bouncing Terrier on the head.

Mary can’t be bothered.

Last night I went to Chester with a friend and we say Ghost The Musical.

It was dreadful 

We walked out at the half time interval, but laughed a lot.

It was an amateur production, which of course, you make allowances for, but dire is dire is dire and We are too long in the tooth to waste too much time on crap.

The sun was still shining when we talked out so we sat in the still crowded market place and ate cake and people watched. 

It felt as though we were on holiday.

Today, I have nothing planned , no films, no lunches out, no company.

I’m working all day tomorrow, to today will be rest day

However

I am going to make an Asparagus and pea risotto now thickened with lots of Parmesan 

Bloody lovely

Weaver and………

 I wasn’t swayed by the cuteness overload, I’ve never found kittens or puppies totally adorable if the truth be known , but Weaver turned up unexpectedly followed by a sister, on which I found a tiny hernia, only minutes after handing her.

12 week old kittens are vaccinated, chipped and spayed nowadays and after getting assurances the little one had gotten the hernia repair sorted, I have agreed to adopt them both next week. 

Meet Weaver and Lily

String

 

And there it was tucked into the flap of my passport cover.

A small piece of black string perhaps 8 inches long.

I recognised it as soon as I pulled it out .

2019 Sitges 

Snogging a guy called Jon on the beach lounger

That was my one and only proper venture into a recent romance 

Four years ago now.

He was getting over a destructive gaslighting  relationship and was not only brittle and very sad, but had insight and an openness to new beginnings 

He was staying on another two weeks on his own. 

I was flying back the next day

And so pragmatic me saw it as a holiday snog, nothing more, a couple of days after we me

But he was tall and good looking and emotionally intelligent and 

It did me the world of good, even though I thought he was out of my league 

To be fair to him, he never gave that impression.

He tied the black string around my left wrist when we were curled up on the sun lounger

It should be red, he told me, in order to ward off the evil eye

Black isn’t as powerful, but it will do the job well enough.

I’m not a lover of bracelets, I can’t even wear a watch, but I liked it’s simplicity even though as a nurse I couldn’t wear it full time 

And yesterday there it was , curled up in my passport cover. 

Jon lives in Brighton with his new boyfriend now, they met the week after I left.

We all met up in London a few years ago, for a drink between jaunts. 

Jon looked happy, but his boyfriend didn’t trust me as far as he could throw me

And it was what it was

I’ve been wearing the string, as will do so until my next shift

Funny what you remember.

Hot & Sweaty

 I’m hot and sweaty

It’s humid and hotter than I’m used to recently.

Supervision this morning was useful, she’s making me think hard at other levels and I came out with a good headache. 

Walked Welsh on the beach then long chat with Sarah at the animal rescue about Weave. She wants me to review all of the kittens up for adoption, in order to select the best fit.

I didn’t have time today so Friday will have to suffice.

I went to Chester

Had pad Thai noodles at the market

Then treated myself to a one off showing of the 50th anniversary showing of Frances Ford Coppola’s The Conversation at The Storyhouse.

I’ve never seen this neo noir thriller and I enjoyed it even though it was a cold affair all told.

Got home late and talked to Nu in the car on the drive as the Welsh barked a welcome through the broken cat flap I need to repair before Weaver arrives

Old Friends and New

Time to share again, this time it’s the lisping Spanish Choir ( with their junior Choir),The Metropolitan Orchestra and the gentle Unidos Por Un Seuño by Alejandro Vivas.

I love the way the music and voices swell together.

A few days away from writing has been useful and allows for some perspective. 

I’m not hear to be insulted, or taught a lesion, or even to allow a benign old blog to become a school ground for silly bickering or personal attack.

Things will just stop if they’re need to and no messages will shared.

Like I said before, I have plenty else to do

Dear Pat from http://weaverofgrass.blogspot.com/ has said her blog goodbye in her usual diplomatic, and gentle way. She was blogging before me in the early 2000s and is a dear friend, I’ve never met. She has asked me to relay messages to blogland in order to update it on her condition and I am moved to be asked to do so. 

So today I’m back. The Spanish Choir’s piece today was first performed during lockdown and originally saw each performer in their own home, performing to camera . 

Was it 4 years now since we did that? With Mary and Albert in the background watching the proceedings with mild interest and some confusion.

Singing at full pelt, with earphones is a scary scene, even if you can sing well

Yesterday I went to the animal rescue to look at the cats. Only one potential caught my eye, and after some thought I filled in the show an interest on line paperwork last night.  

Most rescue places will physically check your home to see if it’s suitable, so I’m hoping for a phone call or email presently. 

The kitten reminded me of Albert when he arrived at Bwthyn y Llan. He settled in when I had three dogs on the go and the new girl has that same look. 

Scruffy and serious 

And wide eyed

I’ve been mulling over several names already but chose the right one as soon as I saw her.

If she arrives, as planned

She will be called Weaver

Be Kind

 I’ve turned off comments 

Yesterday the blog became ridiculous with immature, angry, and nasty reply’s  filling the comment boxes. These  can’t all be filtered pre post and most ( though not all) come from the same person. 

I’m not upset at the content of these posts ( they are easily enough deleted)  but I am a little tired and concerned  that the troll is escalating her output. 

I just don’t understand how someone can hate another person they have never met. 

And so I am having a break from GoingGently , not for long, as on normal good days the writing of a blog entry is such an enjoyable pastime.

I’ve got plenty to do