Gawd it was a busy shift, somewhat fraught and rather stressful
I’m now drinking a huge gin with a wonderful long slice of cucumber
Watching Sewing Bee
I’d love to meet the three presenters over dinner
Bucket Of Coffee
Bucket of coffee.
It’s a bright morning.
Bracing in the lane.
The wind turbine over the valley at Marian Mawr is working again and there is enough breeze to have it turning, albeit slowly.
The woodpecker is busy.
And early too, as it’s just past six.
I am pink,
Pink after a hot shower
And I feel as clean as you only used to feel the Sunday night before school.
Dorothy is sulking,
And has adopted a strange position in the kitchen reading chair
She knows I’m off to work
kór
Post Covid choir lockdown has seen a sudden burst in new male choristers . One younger man with a higher range has been nabbed by the female tenors, all of whom looked suitably chuffed. The other guy sat next to me .
Jamie , still bursting from his yearly obsession with Eurovision , announced loudly that we were going to learn this year’s Icelandic entry IN Icelandic and I heard the new man mutter “ oh bollocks “ under his breath. It was a euphemism for what have I got myself into ?
I think he enjoyed the session.
Anyhow I think we sounded better than the original to be fair .
I’ve talked before about the power of singing in a choir and tonight I was reminded of the special camaraderie shared voices generate .
The good humour and the kindness especially .
The younger man sang rather well, and it was lovely to see many of the choristers going up to him at the end of the class to tell him so.
The face to face kindness and good humour I mentioned have reminded me that some of the negative and indeed nasty blog comments received recently have really been inappropriate and unfortunate………and bad habits of internet life.
And I’m tired of them and it..toxic and sad as the whole experience has become
My Laburnum
I’ve spent most of the day cleaning away the dust and mess from ten days of workman.
Four loads of washing hang drying on the garden walls, my gates and the field gate and the carpets have been shampooed with hot water and hints of lemon juice.
I had smoked salmon for lunch, eaten with long green beans cooked in garlic.
And had a break in the Churchyard where the blue Alkanet frames the yellow Welsh poppies in an Ukrainian flag display .
Exactly a year yesterday I planted the baby laburnum and when I visited it today I was happy to see it had flowered well and looked straight and tall and healthy.
Taaaadaaaaaaaa!
The new bathroom is finished,
A few minor tweaks need to be done, what with a new shower head and the like but it’s finally done and dusted and finished.
I know it’s just a tiny bathroom, in a tiny cottage, but having the final room in my home changed remains a sort of landmark for me. It’s me, finally putting, my stamp on my home, in my way.
The final ghosts of it being a former marital home, chased away a little more.
It also underlines my a certain balance in my financial independence - and just to think only a few years ago, that independence was in question as the cottage was on the market.
And so here it is, all six foot square of it.
I’ve seen posher
I’ve pooed in posher
But this is all mine
And it’s made me very happy.
Will it, won’t it?
It’s like the end of Eurovision,
There’s a tension in the air
Will the bathroom be finished in time?
Time will only tell.
We’ve had a problem with one of the glass panels,
And I’ve just had to help with the positioning before sealing.
Mrs Trellis popped her head over the kitchen wall to see if things had progressed.
I’ve dropped CBM a curved ball by presenting him with more shelving
It’s humid and we are expecting storms.
Upstairs looks like London during the Blitz
Dusk Sky
While I was at work my sister had replanted the back garden with flowering shrubs and plants and flowers. It’s an early and very welcomed birthday gift .
She left instructions for me to water them all in when I got home and so with due diligence I soaked the dry flower beds as the girls ate their dinners and a dog fox barked loudly from down the Felin.
Jo ,a blog reader from Coventry sent me some gifts for the new bathroom which was kind and fun and my nephew Leo sent me a selfie of himself and his new girlfriend grinning wide at the camera…..and feeling suddenly good humoured I found a bottle of Peroni in the fridge and took the girls over to the field to lie down on the damp grass.
Mary and I looked up at the sky
As Dorothy and Albert just mooched about
I chugged the beer
And as the fox continued to call
We watched the clouds until dusk
Back To Work
With all of the Eurovision hype I had the urge to have some sort of online friend meet up last night.
I wanted to laugh a bit.
It didn’t work out, which I was sort of thankful for as I’m working today and although Eurovision probably didn’t finish until midnight I did dip in briefly
I watched the stupendously dreadful disaster movie Moonfall instead.
That was two hours I would never get back .
It left me feeling fed up
It’s been that sort of covid positive then negative shitty week.
I’ve revisited lockdown with all of those horrid isolated connotations
I’m sat at the kitchen table with my bucket of coffee.
It’s 5.45 am
My GP rang me on Friday and asked me to stop my long term antibiotics
I refused as I’m still waiting review by my urologist but he insisted that he at least change them to a different type. Which he did
Subsequently I have the start of a urine infection this morning
Eurovision
I popped in briefly
Spain was very good ….very Jay lo, with legs like Cyd Charisse
Ukraine got a massive cheer and will probably win
Azerbaijan was cute a button with his beard (above)
I loved Greece’s gentle covid ballad had me in tears,
Iceland’s sister act was sweet too.
Sweden was rated but I was bored a bit
Australia was a camp feast
I stayed until Sam Ryder with his big smile came on ….he’s was sooo sweet.
Sam Ryder
Then I went to bed
Feeling like a wallflower at a Jane Austen ball
Flower Moon
The present routine continues for another day
Up at 7.45 am walk the dogs briefly then put them in the car with the windows wide open.
Make CBM a coffee and have it ready for him as he walks through the door at 8.20 am
Take dogs for a long walk.
Park in the shade at Sainsbury’s and have breakfast with a large bucket of coffee.
Read the Daily Post from cover to cover
Drive home and drop the girls off at Trendy Carol’s
Mull over what to do.
With the bathroom and covid I’ve not planned for much and I’m feeling a bit lost today.
It’s a glorious day and there’s a food festival in nearby Rhuddlan and a bee festival in pretty Llanasa but I can’t quite get going enough to go.
I haven’t had a shower since Saturday so I think that has something to do with it.
And so I’ve clambered over the workman’s tools and have holed up in the office surrounded by towels and toiletries and bathroom shite.
Here I will catch up with paperwork, emails , banking and bills.
I’m feeling on edge and unsettled .
As if I’m waiting for something big to happen.
My online thought for the day tells me I’m upset because of the Flower Moon which is expected tomorrow evening.
Flower Moon’s, according to the Algonquin people, bring with them change and a fork in the road for many.
A change for the better…..
Americans In The Village
The American was the descendent of Thomas Parry, the builder who rebuilt my cottage in the 1860s and the man responsible for the refurbishment of the old Church into its present state. Him and his wife had already photographed the Church and my cottage door over which is a inscription detailing the deed.
Islwyn had already met them in the graveyard and had pointed them in my direction, being the “ unofficial historian of Trelawnyd”
I suddenly remembered that I had a key to the Church.
Now I know that the Church officially closed a while ago, but I thought I’d see if the locks had been changed .
Surprisingly they hadn’t and I showed the American into the Church his ancestor built so long ago
It was much more moving a moment that I expected
Unfortunately moments later, and out of nowhere the vicar turned up like Batman and gave us a brief lecture on health and safety and insurance and the like. He also told me the locks would be changed shortly.
Of course I apologised , and so did the Americans
And Of course I was in the wrong,
But I was secretly happy that the great great great grandson of Thomas Parry had stood inside the Church he had built when Trelawnyd was known as Newmarket and when the village population was double its present size.
I emailed the vicar apologising again for entering the church without permission and voiced my concerns that several artefacts inside the church are of historic value and interest to the village and should be kept there. He’s kindly forwarded me onto someone else in the diocese who may be able to help.
I know for a fact a few interested people in the village will join me as will my contact at the Daily Post
Hey ho
Finishing Touches
It’s still very dry here.
Too dry for the garden flowers which have had a much needed water in order to keep their blooms .
The alliums and aquilegia have filled the borders as usual and I’ve tried to use every container I have to showcase little bursts of colour about the cottage. An old cast iron piece of guttering is now a hanging basket or sorts with little yellow eschscholzia growing in it.
The sea pinks (armeria martima) in an old French egg basket have bloomed again and the sweet peas have filled an old galvanised bucket by the garden arch ready to climb alongside the wisteria which had returned more robustly than it did last year.
Even the Rosemary I squeezed into a burnt 1930s saucepan last autumn has held its own
My second covid swab was clear so I will be covering a sick colleagues’ shift on Sunday.
The CBM is here today and tomorrow
The finishing touches are taking an age!
Siân Owen’s clock
There is one historic painting that is synonymous with Wales and the Welsh culture and that is the Edwardian watercolour Salem painted, strange as it may seem, by an Englishman Sydney Curnow Vosper.
I first saw a copy of the painting when I was around 18 , where it was proudly displayed in the house of an old girlfriend of mine. Her father was a Welsh Minister and the subject matter, the arrival (late) of a welsh woman Siân Owen to chapel is iconic for it is a depiction of Welsh religious piety as well as a beautiful rendition of Welsh traditional dress.
It’s also more famous for it’s suggested depiction of the devil’s face, hidden in the folds of Siân’s rather luxurious shawl. This “ hidden” message was only one of three or so said to present in the painting .
The clock on the wall hints that Siân’s entry to her family pew is late and and it’s is said that her beautifully adorned entrance is a comment about pride and ostentatious dress.
If you look closely there is also a ghostly face at the chapel window too.
I have seen the painting at the Lady Lever Art Gallery in Port Sunlight a few years ago so I understood the reference to the artist and to Siân Owen when villager elder Gwyneth Jones once stood in my front room waiting for me to wrap her some duck eggs into a brown paper bag and I remember well that she pointed to my grandfather clock and said in her thin welsh voice
“ It’s the clock in the painting “ she explained “ The sister painting to Salem”
The painting she was referring to is “ A Market Day in Old Wales” which shows Siân Owen unpacking eggs and provisions in her welsh country kitchen and in the corner is my Grandfather clock complete with scrolls and pillars
The Clock’s scrolls are hidden by the beams
:
My cottage ceiling is somewhat higher but still shows the beams
Accessories
A quiet day today, as CBM is off taking his missus to the airport.
No more Whitney Houston no more Pet Shop Boys belting out in a Geordie accent.
The sun is out but there is a cool breeze and the cottage windows are wide front and back making the honeysuckle curtains in the front room sway energetically.
I left the ignition on in Bluebell yesterday so had a flat battery this morning.
As usual Islwyn came to the rescue and jump started her for me.
I gave Bluebell a good run, and recharged nicely dropped in to the garden centre for a final smooch for bathroom accessories like any middle aged gay man worth his salt would do.
To add to the black and white theme, I bought some houseplants and planters there, a penguin designed toothbrush and some “bespoke” soap were delivered from Amazon today
It’s all a bit much I know, but I don’t care, I’m having fun.
My elder sister popped around yesterday with sweet pea plants, hostas and tomato plants which I will put into the garden this afternoon. She also bought me A White Company scented candle for the new bathroom.
Quite a few people are getting vicarious pleasures from this makeover…
Hey ho.
Ps it’s my fifth day post positive swab today ….it’s negative I have to test again tomorrow
What’s Schnell in Welsh ?
I’m isolating at home and isolating from the CBM
I’m a social pariah all told.
With his lovely tendency of wanting to chat, even though I’m in the next room, I’ve taken myself off for a long walk on Colwyn Bay prom , where I can utilise the WiFi and drink coffee safely alone , my face freshened in the wind.
And he can finish the tiling
At the next table there is a group of ten who are having a conversation in German .
It’s sort of learn German by chatting group , but because of the off shore wind everyone seems to be shouting and the whole thing feels like a German war film which has given me a fit of the giggles
I’m waiting for “ Raus !!! Schnell !!!”
I missed choir last night. Jamie ( RAF moustache etc) sent us all a link which features the choir on a Welsh mental health radio programme.
We don’t sound half bad…..and our piece is featured around 8 minutes in
Schnell in welsh is Cyflym btw
Pig Pen
I haven’t had a shower since Saturday
A strip wash in the kitchen sink hasn’t helped that much
I forgot the soap which is hidden under tons of detritus in the spare bedroom, so had to use fairy liquid.
I now have a citrus burst kinda smell coupled with an odd slightly slimy feeling skin
Once on, fairy liquid feels like swarfega to get off
When I was growing up in the late 60s it was normal just to have one Bath a week
Nowadays you are considered sub human if you even contemplated such a feat.
The CBM had just arrived singing Whitney Houston’s I Just Wanna Dance with Somebody
He’s tiling today
The old linen fabric of koi carp that I ordered online was delivered and I framed two pieces of it as the basis of the artwork for the bathroom.
Thoughts? Too much fish? Too muted ?
When You Believe…let’s move on
Let’s move on
I’m a sucker for a big finish ….
Ohhh err missus
Mave and flis say nothing
This song is the best thing from the rather dire musical Prince Of Egypt
The girl singing in Hebrew is delightful
I’d love to sing it in choir ….
It would give us shivers
I play it loud in the kitchen often , especially when next door’s Charlie is yapping
I’ve had to cancel choir for tomorrow night 😥 …I have to re swab on Thursday
Today was an odd day because I spent most of it at home.
I’ve not spent much time alongside CBM but he has spent his working day working hard and singing hits from the 1980s which I found rather endearing.
I spent the day keeping out of his way.
I cleaned bluebell, cut the lawn, locked myself in my bedroom and cleaned every inch of it, before rearranging the inside of kitchen cabinets.fridge and attic store.
Mrs Trellis stopped and we had a long distanced chat about the church. She has been a lady of letters recently and has been complaining bitterly at its closure.
She wants to know what the Church is going to do with the historic and village centric items from inside the building, especially the war memorial and the famous I am painting .
She also told me that she had voted for me in the community council elections and was surprised that I wasn’t successful
I informed her out of the six new entrant nominees three had managed to get onto the council thus balancing it out nicely. It was never our expectation that all six would get in over the old guard.
Mrs Trellis’ eyes went wide
Suddenly understanding the extent of our attempted “coup”
The gang of six has been the centre of much village gossip for a few weeks now
Tee hee.
Oh btw Chic Eleanor ( right) and her sister are in Peru doing a sponsored bike ride for the Alzheimer’s association ….chic by name, chi by nature x
Ps the bathroom looks LOVELY
It may be finished by Friday
A Note From The Editor
Last night’s blogging was a rather unpleasant experience.
And generally blogging shouldn’t be.
Life is hard enough sometimes without snide asides, finger pointing and bad tempers.
I’ve been accused of being everything from an unfair blog host and a bad friend, to being Walter Mitty crossed with Vladimir Putin.
One commentator even called me promiscuous
An epithet I never managed to live up to even when I had a 34 inch waist and underpants to die for.
Now can I make a few things clear.
I am a poor blogger in some ways, I will admit that.
I don’t always read every comment
I will sometimes miss a thread or an insult but unlike most of you out there I do work full time and so I don’t have the time to forensically review every one of my words, let alone the comments of others.
Going Gently is my journal and my company. It’s my go to place and is a bit of a sanctuary
I don’t invite people to insult me in my own home, so I except the same courtesy here.
I may disagree with other blog writers on their home turf , and
Contrary to some’s belief , I never mind being disagreed with here on Going Gently
But there’s always a polite way to do it without it being a mission in life.
It’s a fucking blog for God’s Sake
Nothing more.
So there you have it.
I’m not perfect but I will always endeavour to be fair where comments are involved.
If I fail and anger you , all I can say is I’m sorry you are angry, I don’t go out of my way to upset anyone.
I don’t live my life like that so why would I knowingly live my blogging life the same way.
I am almost 60 years old,
I am reasonably emotionally intelligent when understanding my own motivations , foibles and prejudices
And when I want advice, I am rather good at asking for it.
Anyhow If you don’t like the way I blog….
Tough titty, it’s how I do it, warts and all, mistakes and all, inconsistencies and all
If you don’t like it. Just don’t read it .
Ps comments have been disabled for 24 hours
If anyone would like to discuss anything I’ve written further please do so privately on jgsheffield@hotmail.com
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