David and Helen and the girls had a super super time at Center Parcs. In view of recent events they both deserved a complete break and, of course, it all must have been stressful for Sky and Brooke too. Being young doesn't make you immune from sadness.Picture 1 is the view from their villa. They had three bedrooms and all mod. cons and the site was chock-full of interest. Much wildlife in general and lots of birds could be seen from a wildlife-hide. Woodpeckers, bullfinches, green finches and lots more.
I spoke to Helen first this morning because David had gone to do a job at Swarkestone Sailing Club where they now have a mooring. David rang me later in the day and from our conversation Picture 2 is included specially for me because he knew I would love the strong diagonal of the log boundary fence vanishing into the distance.
Quite right my boy, I do ! And I like the way the 'line' continues by apparently turning right along the water bank where the log fence finishes.Other highlights included swimming at night in the outdoor heated pool with its beautiful lights and an extra special meal on the Thursday night in a restaurant on site where the food tasted as if it had been cooked there and then and just for them. So unusual these days.
David did tell me about the 'blue tree' but I've forgotten. No doubt somebody will refresh my memory.
Here we have enjoyed a quiet day. The chilli, as usual, was even nicer second day, and Y did some cherry pancakes with ice-cream for pudding.
I took some photographs but they can wait
before I publish them. Three is just right and I do like guest pictures provided they are lively and have a little zizz !The above all have that quality.
My responses to your previous comments
Yvonne ..... I think, while discussing your comment this morning, you googled for a memory-jogger, that it was John Bloom who became a well-deserved millionaire by introducing the Electrolux twin tub.
Jill ...... I think you are right about 4 Ticks's mangle. And I bet it is quite photo-genic too. Although we have been to Reg and Maureen's, I've never gone on a 'rotting-mangle' search.
Re Mittens .. How rude of someone to find fault with something that has been knitted for them. You are quite right to strike them off your list of potential recipients.
Your knitting day out by train sounds great fun. A sort of Girls Own or Bunty day !
Bob ..... Your difficulty with the upper-centre bird is entirely my fault. I should have made sure the composite pictures of the collage were in the same scale. The bird, my experts tell me, is a female chaffinch, and no where near as big as it appeared. Sorry !
By using the term 'record shot' I was intending to include buildings, some landscapes with current hardware therein, like pylons and telephone wires and, of course, crowd scenes and pictures showing what people are currently wearing etc. I feel these are so important as a record of our times.
Good 'ol witty you - about the Emu Oil and the risk of being rendered flightless ! If I can get hold of some its a chance I'm prepared to take because in back/leg ache terms the last few days have been horrendous. It even finishes up giving me testicle ache which the doctor assures me is only 'referred pain'. So be it !
Some day I'm going to 'have a go' at sketching the layout of my maternal grandparents colliery house at Stonebroom with the mangle in the front yard. For posterity - but, as you know, the quality of my drawings embarrasses me.
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Tonight we aim to watch 'Christianity: A History' and Jeremy Paxmans 'Victorians'. I will report back
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Quotation time ......
"Only the old are innocent. That is what the Victorians understood, and the Christians. Orininal sin is the property of the young. The old grow beyond corruption very quickly."
"Sleep tight - catch you tomorrow"
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Sun 22 Feb 09
ReplyDeleteNo offence intended, but I doubt that, by describing your suffering as ‘referred pain’, the doctor meant that you should tell everyone about it.
But, in the absence of Emu oil, might linseed oil solve the problem?
Another possibilities (from Roget, and depending on the nature of the pain): ‘groundnut oil’.
Jill:
Re the thumb hole being too big:
Are you sure it was a complaint and not a constructive criticism. There is a significant difference.
Did you invite comment by asking if they were satisfactory?
Quote:
“All advice and criticism should be freely given on the understanding that it may be equally freely ignored).”
Oscar N Bacon
(the above does not preclude a pithy response !)
Thanks for the info on silicone handles.
190C is Gas mark 5 which covers quite a lot of cooking.
I liked the collage of all the birds. I don't know why we don't get any chaffinches around here?
ReplyDeleteSon and his family have had a couple of holidays at Center Parcs, very satisfactorily.
Emu Oil - presumably you rub it in rather than ingest it? Have you tried any other oils - I would have thought it is the action of rubbing in that is efficacious rather than the actual oil. R has a tube of Voltarol Gel stuff,you can get it in tablet form too, off prescription, as you probably know, but R thinks the Gel is better.
I enjoyed Paxman last night, and he seemed to be enjoying it too! Before that I watched an interesting prog. about Sissnghurst on BBC4, about how the present incumbents (grandson of Vita Sackville-West) is at loggerheads with the NT, he wants to change things, but it all has to go through various committees, etc. His wife is a cookery writer and wants to change all the food in the restaurant, doesn't approve of meat and 2 veg, wants to bring in cous-cous, oriental cuisine etc. I think it must be a series, it didn't sort of finish. I don't know if you can find it somewhere?
Poor Graham has been suffering with his back and leg. We wonder if our new doctor will approach the problem from a different angle - our old doctor was marvellous but I think she was running out of pain-reducing suggestions.
ReplyDeleteThought the 'Victorians' was most interesting but I would have liked to see more of the pre-Raphaelites (not to everyone's taste but certainly to mine).
Unusually tonight, I'm going to watch 'University Challenge'. I want to see this extremely bright Gail Trimble who has attracted so much negative comment - what's wrong with being bright? It would have caused no comment if she'd been a man ...........