Monday 27 December 2010

IT'S BEEN AND GONE

It has gone. No! I don't mean Christmas.
I looked out of the window and for the first time in over a month it is dark.


The beautiful white sparkly stuff has disappeared.
I wished it away and now I am missing it.
I think I would rather it stayed away though.

Thursday 23 December 2010

SEASONS GREETINGS

  Busy, busy, busy. Just time to say:-

                                  "MERRY CHRISTMAS"
                                                       



              

Friday 17 December 2010

The Memory Tree

Alright I've relented, Christmas is reinstated.
The "Old Grump" has been up in the loft to get it. It smells a bit musty and dusty, it's even a little bit rusty, bits have broken off of it and been wired back on. It leans precariously to one side and has to be positioned carefully so as not to topple over, but it can not be replaced, because it is:-

                                          " The Memory Tree".


Now I'm going to decorate it with memories.

Saturday 11 December 2010

Cancelled

I've cancelled Christmas.

Too much hassle.

Grrrr!!!

I love my varifocals, I don't know how I would manage without them. The pair I'm wearing now are so good that I forget I am wearing them, so I've put off changing them for as long as possible. Four weeks ago I decided the time had come. I'm having to use a magnifying glass to stitch, so off to the opticians I went. I've been to the same highstreet optician for years and never had any problems, but that optician has just been taken over by another big highstreet name. Oh dear! It may be just coincidence but things have not gone well.
The sight test and choosing of frames went smoothly enough, one pair of varifocals and one pair of varifocal sunglasses ordered. Two weeks later I went to collect them, tried them on, couldn't read with them. Dispensing optician was called, various things tried, measurements taken but to no avail, they had to go back for new lenses.
A week ago I got the call, glasses ready,but there was so much snow that I didn't get to go for them until yesterday.
Young woman goes into back of shop to get glasses, I was beginning to think she had got lost, where has she got to, is this a bad omen? Yes it was. They were better but I still couldn't see as clearly as I should through them. Young woman just sits looking at me with no comment. I suggested that perhaps I should try on the sunglasses. Couldn't read at all through them. Young woman says "It' probably, because of the tint". "What!" There's almost an argument in the shop, but I restrained myself. I suggest that the frames may just need a slight adjustment. Young woman says " Yes but I'm not trained to do that, you'll have to see the dispensing optician". Good, I thought, I may be getting somewhere. Young woman sits looking at me. "Well, aren't you going to get him?" "It's his day off." I didn't think that was good enough, there were eight members of staff milling about, but they only have one dispensing optician. Young woman sits looking at me. I pointed out to her that something had to be done, because the glasses weren't right for me. "Well, can you see the next print size up" she asked. My blood's beginning to boil by now. " I need to see the small print." Then she says, "You could see the optician". " Yes, I'll do that". Click, click, click on the key pad. "You can see him at 2.45 this afternoon". This was at 10.30am. I gave up. I've made an appointment to see the optician on Monday. Please, keep your fingers crossed for me.

Sunday 5 December 2010

It Grows No More

My icicle obsession is over. 9am this morning it had reached 46 inches. 10.30am it was gone.  :-(

All in pieces.

Saturday 4 December 2010

Can't Keep Up

With the wild birds that is. Half a sack of seed has gone in one week. I think we will have to put them on rations.
I tried to take a picture of them, but they were disturbed by something and flew away. I'm thrilled to see that we are being visited by a couple of Tree Sparrows. They were plentiful when I was a little girl and now are a rare sight. I remember my Dad teaching me the difference between the House, Tree and Hedge (Dunnock) Sparrow, the lawn was full of all three of them eating the scraps we had put out.

Bad light, steam on the window, too cold to go out. All makes for a terrible photo :-)



The icicle has grown. 42 inches now. 



It isn't growing where anyone is likely to walk below it, but I wonder if  it is safe to leave it there?
Look how grey the sky is.

Friday 3 December 2010

Icicles.

We've got some beautiful icicles hung from the roof. I couldn't get the longest one in the camera frame, no matter what angle I tried. I should have opened the window, but I didn't want to let the cold in the house. So I put on a coat and tried from outside, but that didn't work either. I think it must be nearly three feet long and two inches thick.


I've just had a tape measure out and it's roughly 32". I wonder if it will have grown tomorrow?

A Tribute

I would like to pay a tribute to our milkman, who has valiantly slipped and slid his way through all this awful snow to deliver our milk. He's a star. I've just seen my neighbours coal being delivered as well. Resourceful, luckily his other hat is a farmers.

Wednesday 1 December 2010