Look What I Dug Out

I am still in the midst of cleaning and purging things, although in the purging dept I am not doing that well. I just know that when you get rid of something you will want that very thing before long. It doesn't matter that you didn't even remember that you owned it... just one of those "Murphy's Laws" type of things I suppose.
One of the things I dug out to try to make headway on is this quilt.

I am embarrassed to say how long this has been a work in progress. I really love it and am not quite sure why it is not finished yet, but I do know that I will never get it finished if I don't work on it, and I won't work on it if I don't leave it out where I can see it. I'm going to aim for one hour a day of hand stitching. I may even leave a little journal beside my chair to actually record the time spent stitching...
Are you tired of vacation photos yet? I'm not...I have spent hours over our photos trying to decide which ones are my favorites; which ones I want to frame; which ones I should get rid of. I mean how many pictures do I need of Big Ben?
How about a few amusing and curious shots?

One of the many "human" statues along the Queens Promenade in London...quite entertaining.  I have played around with the color a bit.

Sign in the window of a wool shop in York. It was only 9:15ish so I missed out.

Trees growing from the chimneys.

Complicated eaves trough, but I had to smile at the living greenery over the doorway.

I have a Henry vacuum at the cottage. Didn't know they were made in the UK

 

Ancient "indoor plumbing" in The Tower of London. Enough said!

Not quite so ancient, but often seen in public "loos".

Another public "loo" curiosity. "One stop shopping" so to speak, (well not quite one stop). Press left button for soap. Press middle button for water. Press right button to dry.

In case you are wondering I am not fixated with restrooms, but you have to admit,  these were a bit different.

In St. Ives the streets are rather narrow; yes? The highways are not a whole lot roomier. There were many times when we had to stop and back up when meeting another coach on the hi-way. 

Easy to understand why we saw these road signs quite often.

10-10-10

10/10/10 is a special day.

A steady stream of brides and grooms exchanged vows in Toronto on Sunday, hoping their weddings would be perfect 10s on a day that comes around just once a millennium.
Couples were lining up to get married on the 10th day of the 10th month of the 10th year, or 10/10/10.
Demand at Toronto's city hall was so high, ceremonies had to be moved to a downtown hotel. Weddings were booked to take place every half-hour, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Couples from Chinese cultures said the day is considered "lucky," while followers of numerology called the day "magical."

Toronto's 23 ceremonies Sunday had nothing on Shanghai.
More than 10,000 couples exchanged vows at the city's wedding registration offices, breaking the previous record set on 09-09-09.
And people from all over the world travelled to South Korea, were 7,200 couples said "I do" in a mass ceremony.

That's not why it was special to me though.
10/10/10 is our 40th wedding anniversary.
Yup; 40 years ago today Mr. O and I said "I do"



I would do it all over again in a heart beat. Happy Anniversary Mr. O

Rome Wasn't Built in a Day

      I didn't get as much accomplished as I would have liked, but I think the biggest accomplishment was just starting. I got some shelves cleaned, two kitchen cupboards cleaned a few drawers tidied and sorted. Took down 3 light fixtures and cleaned them, cooked a nice supper and even threw in time for a walk.


Not too much going on today; I signed on for a drawing class. Should be interesting.
Do You remember Jon Gnagy?

When I was a young girl we used to watch a television show. Jon Gnagy, Learn To Draw. Did you ever watch it? Jon made it look so easy and really whet my appetite for learning to draw? More than once I put a "Learn To Draw Kit" on my list to Santa and I know for sure that I received it at least once.

I have always doodled, but Jon you may be pleased to know I am going to try again. We'll see how much I remember. 

Just like my "Spring Cleaning" it won't all happen in one day, but I am curious to see if it still interests me as much as it used to.

While on my walk yesterday I was approached by a neighbour who is doing major renovations. She knew I was looking for a couple of window frames and had one for me. We are still going through our vacation photos, but I am hoping to decide on 3 to put in this frame and hang in our bedroom.

Scottish images

Some of these were captured through the window of the coach on the fly, so they may not be the best quality, but aren't the moors and highlands beautiful?

Heather

Loch Ness

Eilean Donan Castle near The Isle of Skye

Wild Blackberries so abundant

One of many, many, many stone walls with so much character.

Describe Scotland in 20 words or less.

Castles, battles, stone walls, castles, heather, highlands, moors, mist, blackberries, sheep, (did I mention castles?) pipes, kilts, plaids, and of course haggis!

Spring Cleaning

 
 Every fall after starting to move back from the cottage we bring in boxes and totes and bags of things we have shuffled from one living space to the other. Then I have to find a place to put them. Now you would think that the space I "took" them from would be empty, but it never seems to work that way and I feel like I am surrounded by stuff that is slowly closing in on me.
When my home feels cluttered my mind feels cluttered. When my home is tidy and clutter free I mentally feel so much better. So today I am going to start my "Spring" cleaning. I know it's October but I have been playing catch up for over a year now so for me it is Spring Cleaning time. I have painting that needs to be done, drawers to be tidied, closets to uncluttered, curtains to be washed...Looking at it now, the job seems insurmountable but I have read where Mark Twain said,


"The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one.” 


That's my plan, one small job at a time.  


Here's a few vacation pics ( and a little history lesson before I go.)

See the sign on the gate? This is a working church; and so quaint in comparison to all the huge cathedrals we looked at.

 This is a little church  in a community called Heddon-on-The-Wall. Strange name for a town, but not if you know some of the history. It is built beside the remains of Hadrian's Wall. 

In actual fact most of this ancient little community is built with stone/rock from Hadrian's Wall.

Hadrian's Wall was built by the Romans in AD 122. It was planned as a continuous wall with a "milecastle" every Roman mile and 2 turrets equally spaced between each mile. The wall with it's defensive ditches and large forts stretched from coast to coast; a distance of 80 Roman miles (approximately 120km). It formed the northernmost frontier of the Roman Empire. It was not all built to the planned 3 meter width, perhaps to save time and resources. At Heddon is the longest surviving section of the broad wall. Some of the foundation stones weigh over a tonne each. It is a Unesco World Heritage Site

Detail over the entryway into 

 Rosslyn Chapel. It is touted as being one of the most mysterious places in Scotland. It is feautured in the book, 'The Da Vinci Code', as the place where the holy grail is supposedly buried.

Inside detail. 

It is also a working church.

I detested History when I was in high school and I really can't imagine why, because I find it so interesting today. I still don't have a head for all the dates, but the events are so intriguing.

Mind you we had a tour director that made it sound so interesting and with his BBC acting background he made some of the scenes come alive!

Mr. O standing at the 18th hole at St. Andrew's Golf Course. What a spot. Just to the right of the 18th hole is a marvellous beach...you may recognize it from a scene in Chariots of Fire.

Awesome scenery. While there we were treated to an air show featuring a spitfire and 2 other planes honouring the anniversary of The Battle Of Britain.

Well I am off to start my "spring cleaning" on this beautiful October day!

Okay! Enough is enough!

I keep thinking I am feeling better and then that dreaded sore throat strikes again. I had what I thought was a pretty good day yesterday. We had company for dinner...I felt good. This morning I woke with such a sore throat again, it makes me think that I am never going to shake this bug. We had a nice meal with friends yesterday, but I didn't take time to document it with photos...
How's your imagination?

Can you imagine my soup tureen filled with this?

It was pretty yummy.

Ok, how about this?

See that big platter? It was filled with onion and mushroom roasted pork loin. Add some sage stuffing, fresh cheese rolls, marinated greek salad, hot mulled apple cider, assorted pickles and relishes, and a few other sides and don't forget good friends to share it with.

Tuck in some fresh flowers

( I couldn't find candy corn to put in my little fall colored dish; had to settle for gourmet jelly beans..what hardship eh?)

add a few seasonal decor items

a beautiful view from every window

Now that I rethink this, I am so blessed and thankful to have what I have I really shouldn't be complaining of a simple sore throat. Shame on me!

Starting to feel Human...

Amazing what a plane ride across 5 time zones can do to you. You think, okay I may need a day to catch up, but you would be wrong...so wrong. Especially when you get blindsided with a cold and sore throat. All week I have felt like I have been hit by a truck; today not so bad...the sunshine may have a bit to do with it. It is so nice to look out and see the fall colors. I always say I am a Winter child, and I do love winter, but I think I love Fall just as much. It is mesmerizing to just stand at the window and look at all the colors, and it is such a treat because it seems to change every day , so you just never seem to tire of them.

note: see how fast time flies it is tomorrow already. I was sitting at the computer writing away on my blog and thought , " I should go take a picture of all the fall colors for today's entry."


Well one thing led to another; I started tiding up, which led to something else, and I just never got back to finishing my post and here we are into Friday! Seems I do that a lot these days...start one thing which leads to something else, which leads to something else etc and before you know it I have several unfinished jobs on the go. If you are a quilter you may have some idea of what I mean.
I was noticing my list of UFO's and I think it may be time to rethink them. Let's face it, there are just some things you lose interest in and know you will never finish and I think there may be a few there. It will feel good to get them off my list...whether I finish them or give them to someone else to finish and love makes no difference. Done is done!
I will leave you with a few more pics from our trip...

This is called THE  LONDON EYE and aptly so. There is quite a view of the city from the top. Mr. O wanted to go on this and I was  not really that interested, but it is not like a circus ride at all. It takes over 30 minutes to make one revolution. Each pod holds approximately 25 people and on a clear day you can see as far as Windsor Castle, which is quite a way out of the city. This wheel holds 32 pods;  one for every borough of London and it was built to celebrate the new millennium.

We rode it on a quiet day and there were only 4 of us in our pod. The pod that followed us however had 20 people that were being served champagne to celebrate some occasion. Apparently they even cater to weddings!

Here is one shot of our view from the top. It gives you an idea of just how high we were.

Previous pics taken from ground level showed just how tall Big Ben and the Parliament buildings were and if you look closely you can see Westminster Abbey dwarfed in behind Big Ben. 

Anne Hathaway's cottage in the Cotswolds.

London Bridge

St. Paul's Cathedral (they build 'em big over there!)

90 metre spire from a cathedral in Coventry England that survived an air raid during the 2nd World War. The new cathedral was built among the ruins as an act of forgiveness and reconciliation. It is like a phoenix rising out of the ashes of the ruins. They have incorporated one wall of the ruins as part of the replacement cathedral.

Last one for today...

Just look at the detail above one of the doors of the York Minster Cathedral (enlarge for details)

Master craftsmen worked on these buildings for many, many years. Some of these churches took 40 years to build and when you look at the attention paid to details that can hardly be seen you can understand why. More tomorrow...

p.s. Sharyn, nice to hear from you. Hope you are rested after your long trip home. I have no other way of contacting you but here. Enjoyed your company on tour!

Pussy cat pussy cat where have you been?

I've been to London... to visit the Queen! It seems she was still at her summer place so I missed her. Too bad...

at Buckingham Palace

I am still wondering how it all happened so fast. Seems like not all that long ago I was saying just 120 more sleeps, and now it is all a fond memory. We did have a wonderful time though. If I was to try to tell you about it, I am sure I would forget half, but I do have about 3000 photographs to jog my memory. Mr. O and I have been working at editing them, but it is a long slow job.

Mr O and myself all packed and leaving for the airport.

We saw so many wonderful things and it is absolutely mind boggling to see so many things that have stood the test of time. Our country is just a baby in comparison.

Big Ben-London   note: I always thought Big Ben was the clock, but we learned that it is actually the bell in the tower!

at dusk...mesmerizing!

We had a wonderful tour director, who had such a vast knowledge of history and an amazing memory for dates and names. We really lucked out to get him. He had a wonderful sense of humor and just didn't seem to get ruffled no matter the circumstance; and there were a few. 

We went through 3 bus drivers; hope it was not a reflection on us as a group...just kidding. While in a somewhat remote part of Scotland on the Isle of Skye our original bus driver was taken ill (his appendics burst). We were able to get a driver to fill in for 2 days to get us to a bigger centre and then Trafalgar set us up with a driver to finish the tour. I am sure it is a trip that he will remember for awhile. Besides taking ill; the first day out of London while driving through the Cotswolds he was pulled over for speeding..he was going 1 mile per hour over the speed limit; that is not a typo people, I was in the front seat and he was actually doing just ONE mile over and he got pulled over. It seems the local authorities were having a slow day and needed a little entertainment; either that or speeding is a very serious offence in England.

I won't bore you with all 3000 photos but here are a few...

a shot of the Parliament buildings from a bridge on the River Thames.

at night while walking back to our hotel. This was actually almost the same view from our room.

Westminister Abbey; just a nice walk from our hotel.

I have posted the pics kind of small, but if you click on them you can see a lot  more detail.

Back in Tabu

Oh it is good to be back at the cottage; even if it is only for the rest of this week. ( coincidentally, John Denver is singing, "hey it's good to be back home again" while I type away at this blog posting.)
 Next week will be spent back at home attending to several things that need done before we leave to go away. Did I mention Mr.O and I are heading for "jolly ole England" in just 12 more sleeps? There are still several things that need to be done. I had hoped to be sitting pretty with all my errands finished, but being away for an unplanned extended time in Ontario has changed that so I will be rushing to get ready this week. Oh well, no surprise, I always have such good intentions, but usually always end up scrambling at the last minute. Makes me feel better to have an excuse though...

I started a baby quilt in my "spare time" while I was away. Hope to get that finished this week. Also want to finish up the cushions I had started before I went away.

Obviously I will not be getting time to work on my red and white quilt, but it will wait for me, and when I return I have a weekend quilting retreat scheduled for the last weekend in October, so that will be lots of time for me to finish things up and still have time to get it quilted before the snow flies.

While I was away I bought myself a water bottle. Here is a review about it.
This is what my "anti bottle" looks like. It is BPA free, reusable, foldable ( but stands like a regular drinking bottle), dishwasher cleanable, attachable, identifiable, and freezable. It comes with an ECO-ALERT on the package. "Frequent use will reduce your carbon footprint." I love it. I am really trying to drink more water. It is so important and it sure hits home when you spend a lot of time in hospital seeing so many people so ill because of their lifestyle.

Want to see what happens when you don't hydrate enough?

Want to see what happens when you don't hydrate at all?

Oh dear...

Mr O is so diligent about keeping things ship shape while I am away. He really does well, considering he works full time, commutes almost 2 and 1/2  hours a day and still keeps his running schedule up as well as laundry, lunches, meals, shopping for groceries... He even cleans the bathroom!

However he did fall a little short in the plant watering department. I think these ones may beyond help...

Home again

Not me, but Mom. I brought Mom home from hospital yesterday around supper time. Gonna give it a couple days to see how she does and then I hope to book my ticket back home. I had planned on getting so many things done before the big trip, but that will surely not materialize. Oh well..it is what it is...

Just 3 weeks and 3 days till we are winging our way to The UK. I can hardly wait.

Packing light

Anyone who has ever had me come to visit overnight has probably noticed that I generally don't pack too light. I am guilty, I know I am...but I try, I really do try to pack lighter. I think I must suffer from separation anxiety.
I start out with good intentions and about 3/4' s of the way through I start "tucking" in things I might need. I need sweaters if the weather turns cold and sandals and t shirts in case it is warm, sneakers and socks in case I get time to go out walking, and of course I need needlework for the trip, and maybe an extra project or two just in case I finish one, or am missing something to work on a different one. I need a little something to read...not just a novel but magazines for browsing when I am tired of stitching. ...and the list goes on and one and on. Well Mr. O and I will be leaving on our much awaited trip to the British Isles in less than a month and we are only allowed one suitcase each. Not just any size suitcase either; it must be no more than 30x18x10. I will have to pack everything I will need for three weeks in one suitcase and still leave enough room to bring home any little "trinkets" I may discover along the way. I will definitely be doing a practice run in the packing dept.

There is something to be said though for packing  a couple extra things for "just in case" because I am in Sault Ste Marie Ontario right now. The original plan was to make a quick trip here to be with Mom during some important meetings concerning last years accident. I was to arrive Tuesday afternoon and be winging my way back home by 6 a.m. Friday. Here it is almost Tuesday of the following week and I still don't know when I am going home because Mom has taken a bad spell and is in hospital again. Hoping to have her improve enough to be home this week, but one never knows....