Check Out That View

I went over to the garden centre today as it was so lovely and saw these lovely daffodils in the grounds. I took a picture, much to the dismay of the people in the car behind me ( I had pulled over). I thought I would post it for this week's Check Out That View, which you can link to by clicking on the button below.

My hubby and I have spent a busy day outside - watching our son play football and winning through to the final of the cup, then lunch with my father in law, then gardening. I have renewed the cover of my little greenhouse and planted primroses in the front garden. All in all it has been very satisfying!

Allotment, March 2015.

I have had my allotment for a few years now. It started as a piece of wasteland, covered in nettles and couch grass and over the years it has become a proper vegetable patch. Some years it gives us plenty of fruit and veg. Other years it ticks by. Last year was a quiet year. The weather was grim and I wasn't inspired. This year though, is different. Having had a year of keeping the allotment tidy and ticking over I plan on growing lots. The thing with allotments is that they take a lot of work. Little and often is a good idea.

allotment

 Since I started with my allotment it has been interesting to see people come and go. Of the 12 plots on our site there are only 5 of us who have kept going. Four of the allotment holders have been there longer than me and the other seven plots have been taken over and given up several times over the last few years.

rhubarb, garlic and fruit bushes

 If you start an allotment you need to realise that its a long term commitment... Once the initial enthusiasm has worn off you need to keep plodding along. You never stop learning and some years are better than others.

onions

I went up there a couple of times last week, planting garlic and onions. I have Charlotte potatoes chitting in my kitchen, ready to plant this week. I love having everything neat and tidy and there's nothing better than having veg fresh from the ground.

When the weather gets warmer I shall plant pak choy, lettuce and beetroot, as well as French beans and cabbages. I shall start reading through my books too, to give me ideas as to what I might fancy trying to grow this year.

At the moment my rhubarb is starting to sprout... All is good!!

rhubarb

Je Suis Charlie.

Before today I have to admit that I had not heard of Charlie Hebdo. I had not read their satirical articles or seen their cartoons. Now, however, I do know about them and I will never forget them. I am not a journalist, but the horrific events in the Charlie Hebdo offices in Paris has made me realise and appreciate the courage of those journalists around the world who speak out against wrong, who speak out.

Today two gunmen walked into the offices of Charlie Hebdo in Paris and murdered twelve people - 10 journalists and two policemen. They called by name for the cartoonists and executed them.

The journalists were in an editorial meeting and stood no chance against men armed with automatic rifles. They were armed only with pens, with their keyboards.Time will show that the pen is mightier than the sword or the automatic rifle, but today, and for those men and their families, the gun proved to be more brutal than satire.

What the gunmen did not foresee was the mass outpouring of grief and support for the team at Charlie Hebdo. All over the world people gathered in town squares and online to unite in solidarity with those journalists and the courage they showed in exercising their right to Free Speech. In Paris people stood silently holding pens aloft. Their gesture moves me to tears.

photo courtesy of Huffington Post

I hope that the courage of those journalists lights a fire amongst the people of the world. A flame of defiance that will burn in spite of threats from extremist organisations. Every human being has the right to Free Speech. No human being has the right to murder another. Other people's opinions may offend, may even insult, but that gives no one the right to kill. Yes, fight back with words. Argue for all you are worth, but violence such as that we have seen today is wrong. It is the option of the fundamentally weak.

The problem is that the violence we have witnessed today is frightening. The editor of Charlie Hebdo, Stephane Charbonnier, was already under police protection for his cartoons ridiculing Islam and both he and his body guards were killed today. I have noticed how very careful most people in the media are when discussing Islam and surely this is in no small part because of the fear of reprisals by fundamentalists. How many writers do not think hard before saying or writing something controversial or satirical?

Will this attack spur more people to write what they really think? Or will it frighten people into silence? Only time will tell, but I call to mind a short poem I read when I was young and by which I try to live my life. It was written by Martin Niemoller ...

First they came for the Socialists and I did not speak out

Because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists and I did not speak out

Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews and I did not speak out

Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me ...

And there was no one left to speak for me.

The journalists who risk their lives, and that is what they do, are there speaking for all of us. They are the ones who tell us, in our nice cosy houses, about what is really going on in the world. Those journalists who have the courage to write and who shine a spotlight on events we might not otherwise be aware of are brave. I might not always agree with what they write, but I will support their right to do so forever. Free Speech is essential in a free world and today has shown that the vast majority of people hold that to be true. The shock and outrage at these awful murders is deep felt. I hope that the tragic deaths of the journalists in Paris give people around the world the strength to say "Free Speech is our Right!" But there is a little part of me that is afraid that these murderers will achieve what they set out to do. When the outrage dies down and a writer wonders whether or not to write a piece or draw a cartoon, will a little voice in their head urge caution? Will they look at their son or daughter and choose another topic?

We shall see. Each writer will make their own choice. For those who choose Free Speech despite the risks I have nothing but total admiration and respect. Without them our world would be in darkness.

Je suis Charlie.

Changing lifestyle & Walking to be Fit.

Over the years I have been fortunate to be pretty fit and healthy.I have tried my hand at various sports and although I've never been particularly brilliant at any of them I've not been awful either. My basic level of fitness has been good. Six years ago I ran the London Marathon and before that I was running four times a week in order to train. I've enjoyed playing football once a week, tennis, skiing.

Blimey! I sound like a complete sports freak!! But I'm not and as I say I have never been particularly brilliant at any of this. The main thing thing though, and the most important thing, was that I was getting out, trying my best and having fun. My heart, lungs and muscles were active, as was my mind.

Over the last couple of years my activity has slowed down, dropped off and has been replaced by ... well, basically by sitting on my fat backside eating crisps and drinking wine...

This has begun to worry me. I am 50 now and I don't want to turn into a big fat unhealthy couch potato. I find running harder these days because I end up with sore knees and hips and its just not as enjoyable as it used to be. So I have started to create a new regime of exercise. I have begun yoga classes once a week and plan to practise yoga at home too. I have also started adult ballet classes once a week.

But I have been wondering what else to do that will raise my heart rate, be enjoyable, but not pound my joints. I read a really interesting blog post from Morgan Prince today over at Shaking Away the Cobwebs. She was saying what I had been thinking. She goes out walking, makes time for a 30 minute walk each day and she has started yoga. She shared a great yoga video for beginners too. I read it and thought Yes! This is the way!

The thing is, we all are in such a rush these days. My Granny used to walk everywhere, even into her 80's and she was as fit as a fiddle. Now we want to get everywhere quickly. The journey is an inconvenient part of our day that we want over as quickly as possible. Even the times I have walked to work I have been worried about how long it has taken, how long it will take me to get home. Hurry, hurry, hurry.

So today I have decided to take a leaf out of Morgan's book and make time for myself. My walking will be 30 minutes to an hour of exercise, probably 3 or 4 times a week - sometimes more, sometimes less. And in that time I can take photos, fill my lungs with fresh air, think and get my heart working. I went out this morning ...

I had such a lovely walk and my heart rate went up, my muscles were working, my lungs were working. It felt great and I could wear my normal clothes. No changing into sports bra and running kit - just put on my walking boots and head out the door. I came back happy and full of beans. 

If I can keep doing this I will be walking about 6 to 10 miles a week as well as my ballet and yoga. And the walking is free, which is excellent! I am determined not to let my body go to seed and I want to invest in my future. I don't want to look at myself in 5 years time and think "God! What went wrong?!"

We only have one body and I have been lucky enough to be fit and healthy for the last 50 years. Now I need to make a conscious effort to try and be fit and healthy for the next 50!

Halloween Face Painting and Ghastly Lychee Eyeballs.

Not long now until Halloween... Halloween is one of those nights that wasn't too much of a big thing when I was a child. We didn't go trick or treating and I really don't remember the shops being full of orange and black merchandise as they are nowadays. As my boys grew up Halloween seemed to become more and more popular and it became a bit of a tradition to dress up, go trick or treating and make Halloween type food.

Now my boys are "big" they don't trick or treat, but we do enjoy getting our house ready for the little ones who do come around. We are lucky where we live in that there is a sort of unspoken etiquette that surrounds the whole Halloween thing. If you are happy for people to knock and collect sweets you put a pumpkin on your front step, lit with candles or tea lights. The odd freaky spider or web will help people know that you are ready. Children come round in groups with their parents and they don't usually visit past the age of about 9 or 10. Also, people don't come round past about 6.30 pm or 7.

I know some people really don't like Trick or Treating, and I can totally understand their feelings if they have had bad experiences, but we have been fortunate enough to be visited only by excited groups of little witches and skeletons who chorus Happy Halloween and politely thank us for their packet of sweets. Its rather a nice community event.

A ghoul and the monster pumpkin we grew on our allotment!

This year I have been asked to face paint my friend and her teenage daughters who are going to a Halloween party. They have given me photos of how they would like their faces painted and I am excited to paint them! I shall put photos of them on here when they are done! Last year I painted my son and his friends ...

I find painting these ghoulish ghastly images very enjoyable! You can really let your imagination go wild!

Similarly I love making Halloween food ... a real favourite is my Halloween Eyeballs ...

lychee eyeballs for Halloween

All you need is a tin of lychees ( stoned ), some blueberries and some raspberry jam. You just spoon some of the jam into each lychee and then pop a blueberry in the lychee hole. The jam spills out like blood and they generally look pretty disgusting, They taste delicious though! Sometimes we have some for trick or treaters who are brave enough to try one! Not many are!!

So ... that's what we do at Halloween. I've posted a little early this year in case anyone is looking for Halloween recipes and wants to have my Eyeball idea. I'm looking forward to doing my face painting and seeing what other people get up to. I hope you have a very Happy Halloween!

Ballet Class as an Adult Beginner.

Yesterday I went to my first ballet class. Well ... I say first ballet class, and it is as long as you don't count about 4 classes 45 years ago. I had always wanted to be a ballet dancer. There is something about the way they move, the shapes they create, that mesmerizes me. I have spent hours drawing and painting their feet in pointe shoes ...

And now, at the age of 50, here I am, in little pink leather ballet pumps standing at a barre attempting to tease my feet into various positions with toes pointy and chin aloft!

I am so thrilled to be doing it! The teacher makes the class fun, but its hard. She tells us what moves to make in French ... none of which I can remember right now! But I enjoyed it so much. 

I don't think I am a natural ballerina, but I love the feeling of holding in my tummy, lifting up my core and holding my legs just so. I don't really care what I look like on the outside. On the inside I am Darcey Bussell, Margot Fonteyn and Tamara Rojo leaping for joy!!

As for the fitness side of it I think I am going to end up with thighs of steel because they certainly hurt like Hell after the class yesterday!!

MurleyDance 'Hail Britannia' 2014 ... A Review.

When I was a little girl I wanted to be a ballet dancer. There was something about ballet that touched my soul... the beauty of shape, the elegance and precision of en pointe dancing, the  way the dancers brought the music to life through the movement of their bodies. I didn't ever become a dancer - that's another story - but I do love to go to the ballet. Last night I went, with my friend, to a performance of Hail Britannia by the MurleyDance Company.

We were both very excited to be invited to the Shaw Theatre on the Euston Road to watch this young dance company's touring show Hail Britannia - a celebration of  aspects of British Culture. MurleyDance were only formed in 2012 and since then they have appeared at the Edinburgh Fringe and as part of Resolution! at the Robin Howard Theatre in London. They are London based and led by David Murley. Their vision is to fuse classical technique with theatricality.

Last night's performance consisted of four pieces, danced by the fourteen dancers of MurleyDance. Hail Britannia began with Shaadi, the story of a young Indian couple preparing for and going through their marriage. I loved this piece! It was vibrant, both in colour and dancing exuberance! Not only did it show an Indian marriage in Britain today, it used a mix of music from both cultures. Opening with the colourful strains of an Indian song they then danced to both Brimful of Asha and I'm Getting Married in the Morning. The effect was a joyful fusion of Anglo/Indian celebration and we loved it!

photo courtesy of @MurleyDance Instagram

Anaish Parmar did a great job choreographing this piece and we were both excited at what was to come. The dancers were all obviously technically very skilled so we were looking forward to the following three parts.

Next came Wayward Kinship, choreographed by Richard Chappell - the story of the relationship between Thomas Becket and Henry II. This was a very different piece. It was very dark, very atmospheric.

photo courtesy of MurleyDance

Richard Chappell is only 19 years old and when you consider his young age this piece was very good. I really liked the emotional interaction between the two male dancers in their red and purple velvet. Not only were their costumes striking in their simplicity and impact, the shapes they made in their dance were beautiful.

dancers in rehearsal courtesy of MurleyDance

rehearsal photo courtesy of MurleyDance

The only thing I would say to the negative was that the space at the Shaw Theatre was not really big enough for the ambition of the dancing here. The dancers were not able to really let loose and so their steps were, at times, a little confined. 

Now for the third piece, Frisky Claptrap, choreographed by David Murley himself. Its premise was the journey of three backpackers on trains around Britain and the eccentrically named towns they visit. Well... what can I say? If I am going to be honest this was such a disappointment. It was more like a sixth form sketch, with very little dancing and a lot of ridiculous slapstick and innuendo. It was rather self indulgent and a waste of the talents of this ambitious young troupe.

Moving swiftly on ... we were shown the Highgrove Suite. This was a ballet performed to The Highgrove Suite, a piece of music commissioned by HRH The Prince of Wales to celebrate his gardens at Highgrove House. This, again, was choreographed by David Murley and it revolved around the journey into womanhood of a young girl.

photo courtesy of MurleyDance

I particularly liked the mother and daughter in this piece. The dancer playing the mother was elegant and precise, capturing the emotional pain she was feeling perfectly. The daughter was a lovely dancer. If the dance had revolved purely around the three or four main characters then this would have been beautiful, but for some reason there was also a flurry of backing dancers tip toeing around the main scene for no discernible reason. They didn't add to the piece in any way and I found myself questioning why they were there. Again the stage seemed too small for that many dancers and their movements suffered from the confined space.

Of course, a fledgling company cannot pick and choose their venues and so they are bound to perform on smaller stages, but perhaps this should be considered when choreographing? I love the ambition of this company and the sheer enthusiasm with which they approach their aims. They are clearly a talented group of dancers with a strong desire to fulfill their aim to create a fusion of ballet and theatre. It is early days for MurleyDance and although I'm afraid I didn't feel my soul touched this time, I think that in the future they have the potential to be great. I am really grateful to have been invited to see them dance (I was kindly given complimentary tickets) and will watch out for them in future.

If you fancy attending the remaining performance of Hail Britannia they will be in Cheltenham on Saturday 25th October.

A bit late but ... Happy Halloween!!!!!

My friend was complaining about Halloween the other day. She was saying that Trick or Treating was really just legalized begging and that she hated the way children came round to her house asking for sweets. Her thoughts surprised me as, for me, Halloween has always been a fun night full of community spirit.

For me Halloween is about dressing up, painting faces, decorating the outside of our house  and welcoming the children who come around for sweets. We are fortunate around here because there seems to be an unwritten code of practise ... if you have any sort of Halloween decoration on your front step then you are up for Trick or Treaters. If your step is empty and your house dark then it means "Move on, we're not interested".

Usually we have family around for something to eat and even though my boys are a bit big to go out Trick or Treating themselves they like to have their faces painted to open the door. For me, face painting is like therapy! Before I worked in my current job I ran a little face painting company, going to children's parties, so I love to paint and am there with my sponges, paint brushes and glitter at the drop of a hat!

What I love about the children around here is that they dress up and come round with their parents. They were, without fail this year, polite and friendly. I know that if I lived in an area where people were aggressive and frightening then of course I would feel differently to the way I do ... but I can only judge from what I see...

One of my favourite things to make n Halloween is lychee eyeballs ... They are so simple to make and very tasty ... if you can get over the way they look!! You need a tin of lychees then spoon in some raspberry jam .... then pop in a blueberry and Bob's your uncle .. eyeballs!!!

Happy Halloween!!!!

How do you know when sweetcorn is ripe?

Someone asked me the other day ... what do you do to relax? My answer was that I go to my allotment and I dig. If you had told me 5 years ago that my idea of relaxation would be digging manure into soil or shoring up Brussels Sprouts I would have laughed at you!

I have fallen into my allotment.Well, when I say that I've fallen into it, I mean I started it accidentally. I still wonder now - what on earth am I doing planting potatoes and building fruit cages? Who knew that growing fruit and vegetables could be so enjoyable? And I have learnt so much.

I know how to dig. I know how to set leeks and I know when sweet corn is ripe enough to pick. I know that you don't plant 35 lettuce seedlings on the same day, unless you plan on eating a heck of a lot of salad a few weeks later as they will all be ready at the same time!

There is a sweet logic about growing vegetables. You plant, you weed. you harvest, you dig over and then you start again. There is something so satisfying about seeing a plant grow strong  and tall, then bare fruit. And I love making sure that the earth around them is clear and weed free - deep chocolate brown and rich in nutrients.

My latest discovery is sweetcorn. I grew them and they bore lots of cobs. But I wondered ... how do you know when they are ready to eat?? Do you peel back the leaves? What do you do?

Well ... each kernel has a little filament attached to it and when the cob is ripe and ready to eat they all turn brown like the photo above. Inside the leaves the kernels are sweet and yellow and the filaments creamy, but at the sharp end of the cob they are dark brown and shrivelled. Cue butter and melty sweet goodness!!

The season is coming to an end. Soon all of the green you see above will be in my compost bin. I will cover my raised beds with weed mesh and just keep a few things going over winter. In October I will plant garlic and onions which will be ready next summer.

We have had meals this year where all of our veg have been grown on the vegetable patch ... potatoes, lettuce, beetroot, French beans, broad beans, cabbage, cucumber, courgette, marrow ... although not usually on the same plate at the same time ...

Now Autumn is drawing in and when the frosts come I won't be doing any digging, but I still love to go up there, just to have a little look ...

And you never know ... before long the garden might look like this again ...