A one way street....and a kind gift

I have just received a lovely newsy e mail from one of my oldest friends Nia.(above) She was sort of apologising for not keeping me abreast with the news of her imminent birthing but quite rightly blamed her lack of correspondence on the blog! (and no I don't think you are are -in your words- a lazy fat tart!)
She reads Going Gently regularly (bless) from her home in Australia, so of course feels as though she knows everything of our news (not that much really happens) where as we know little of her news...perhaps EVERYONE should have a blog...then nobody would bloody pickup a phone or meet for coffee........no Nia it was MY fault for not asking about your news and I am sorry!

Anyhow the day has shot by in a frenzy of weeding. I have picked broccoli and black currents for jam too and was busy digging a live mouse from under the bed when the Postman dropped off a brown paper package.

In it was a jar of Elderflower and gooseberry Jelly (a wonderful gift from fellow blogger Kathy) at-http://the-cottage-gardener.blogspot.com/
And it tasted great!.....perhaps I should have said nothing here as Kathy now may be inundated with requests...
Thank you Kathy, it was very kind of you

The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Hellfire)

With all the plaudits being thrown at Toystory 3 , I wanted to flag up some of the more overlooked animated movies, which are in my opinion are classics of their own.

This is Tony Jay's towering performance as Frollo in Disney's Hunchback of Notre Dame

Cracking

Sherlock

I really enjoyed the modern take tv pilot show SHERLOCK shown on BBC1 last night. No longer surrounded by Victorian myth and slum, this is a updated twist on a tried and tested formula but having said this the pacy plot did remind me of those 80 minute classics starring the hawk nosed Basil Rathbone.

The modern version has Holmes ( a Dr Who- ish Benedict Cumberbatch) as a freelance police detective whose blunt but sharp deductions have alienated him from the authorities who refer to him as "a freak". Holmes wryly even refers to himself as a sociopath and there are even oblique self references to an asexual homosexuality lurking beneath the genius but thankfully this psychobabble is kept to a minimum as the galloping storyline takes over.

For me, it is Martin Freeman's calm and collected Dr Watson that makes for the most interesting twist in the new aged characters. A veteran medic and soldier from Afghanistan, his boyish demeanor belies a steely hero who is a dead shot and who has a deep need for a lost adrenalin rush obtained from conflict.He makes for a quiet and warmer foil for Holme's rather lonely Sherlock.

The chemistry and humour between the two leads works very well but after an hour I did feel as though I was watching a sort of hybrid Dr Who,what with the cracking one liners,constant action and flashy screen technology.....I was not surprised to learn that the series was co founded by Dr Who producer Steven Moffit.

I look forward to see where this series actually goes

Worry Not!

This Century old needlepoint is on the wall of the cottage right next to the fireplace. and I am resolved to take a lesson from it.
Looking at the weather forecast for the next week, it looks as though my sister's flower show and the allotment open may be rather damp, but I refuse to worry about it all. It has rained every year we have held it!

Statues

Ina in Alaska sent me this wonderful photo of a sculpture entitled The Last Blue Whale by Josef Princiotta .Now I love public sculptures and have my favourites amid the many I have experienced over the years.
The Veiled Lady....the most delicate and serene sculpture in the main gallery of Chatsworth House

Dozens of metal figures standing and staring out to sea just North of Liverpool makes for a rather chilling display, but Antony Gormley's statues on Crosby Beach kind of take your breath away when you see them for the first time

...and of course my favourite...the Angel fountain in Central Park.........I took this photo the last time we went......lovely

Babies no more

Aged just 5 weeks and babyhood is over for the goslings.
Although not quite feathered up, they are hardy enough to be transported into their own shed on the field and have already stood up to the bullying antics of the slate turkey, Jane.
Content in their own company, they still follow me everywhere but now have that slight faraway look of adulthood.

Open Garden Day

The village Conservation Group holds a two yearly "Open Garden " event in the village, and today a dozen or so gardens were open for the public to wander around and to admire.
The conservation group is an entirely different entity to our Flower Show Committee but it has a similar objective to raise monies for village improvements.
The weather has not been kind today, as it remains overcast and wet, but the gardens I did venture round looked lush with the recent downpours we have experienced.
(Below "angel's fishing rods" in my friend Pat's garden)

I picked up a programme of events at the memorial hall, where I hopefully conscripted a guy selling his own vegetables to set up a stall at the Open Allotment day next Sunday. The village Jungle telegraph had been working overtime a many people came over to ask how our neighbour Trevor was. ( They had heard that I had rushed the 86 year old in to hospital yesterday which was not quite the case). I reassured them that he was doing ok and said that I had visited him this morning and he seemed comfortable enough but was rather vague with the workings of his new mobile phone. (I gave him a quick lesson in texting, dropped off some pyjamas and promised to feed his cat daily when I was there!)
Being single, elderly and sick must be a scary experience in today's world....having said that, the show of support and solidarity from the village for one of their own has been admirable
Anyhow the garden open seemed to be a success despite the weather.Above Pat in her typically English garden complete with herbaceous borders and below the chap from Anchor House and his AstroTurf patio!!! (Which incidently worked very well!)

A matter of perspective

I posted this photo in response to some of the comments from the last post, that thought that Nell's death was awfully sad. Poultry of all sorts often live for the shortest of times! that is why if left to their own devices, they will breed like rabbits ...so somewhere like the field would be overrun by eager beaks and scratching feet. Now don't get me wrong, some characters like Boris, the buffs, Mary the bantam and of course Jo and Winnie have wormed their merry way into my heart almost as deeply as the dogs have done, but generally I am never really sad when one of the birds dies a natural, timely and peaceful death.
Above is Lilly with her three young chicks..the little wyandotte bantam (left) is a real sweetie