Sunday 10 December 2023

The day improved with keeping

 I've been feeling very down the last couple of days, especially so this morning.  After Keith had had breakfast, I sat down with the Archers Omnibus in the background and wrote out a few Christmas cards.  They had been nagging me for too long.  Some had a brief note in.  I wrapped Emma's gifts.  Just have half a dozen to do for family - we have kept it a very low-key Christmas.  Some things I have bought locally from the individual traders in Builth, helping the local economy.

I secured the box of books going to my dear friend G in Dorset, and then spent a frustrating 15 minutes of so trying to purchase Royal Mail postage (that I could afford!) and to get it picked up from the house tomorrow as I don't want to use the car unless I have to.  So many alternative choices of sending it, prices etc, but I prefer not to use Evri and the like if I can help it.  I printed my own label in the end - you can chose for Royal Mail to bring a label for no extra fee.  I will be glad to get it on its way anyway.

As I was wrapping a gift, I heard a "can-you-spot-me - look up HIGH?" miaow from behind me and turned to find Pippi doing a headstand by my favourite bits of  china on the top shelf of the dresser! How to give your human a heart attack!!!  This his her having abandoned the headstand and thinking about coming down as I'd told her to!  The little pictures you can see usually adorn the back of one of my display stands when I'm at a Fair.  They are good-amateur scenes (the buildings) and a scenery one from a 1960s calendar. The white ceramic horse is a Unicorn with a lock of my horse Fahly's mane by him (not cracks on him!)


This afternoon, here she is - butter wouldn't melt in her mouth would it?


Anyway, then I spent ages preparing and cooking our main meal of the day in what turned out to be the only dry spell, and by the time we'd eaten, it was chucking it down again.  Another storm (Fergus?) coming through tonight.  Glad we don't live near a river or on the Somerset levels.  By the time I'd done a huge pile of washing up, I was happy to relinquish the idea of a walk anyway and instead Keith and I watched an old Ealing comedy - The Titfield Thunderbolt, which really cheered me up and made us both laugh.  Made in 1953 and filmed just outside Bath.  

I had a phone call from "Little" Lin which also cheered me up no end.  We go back a long way (senior school days) and she reminded me of the first time she came to see the ponies (Trish, Rosie and I had young New Forest ponies) at Mr Stark's.  She was grooming a pony, still very much learning as she went along, and it stood on her foot.  She reminded me that when she said, so-and-so is standing on my foot, I just told her, never mind, he'll move in a little while!!  Wasn't I cruel?!

I've just send for another death certificate, this time for Herbert V. who was a first cousin of mine (two generations ago anyway).  He died young, only 38, of Kidney disease - Nephritis euraemia - in the Workhouse Infirmary.  Makes a change from the TB which too so many in the family trees of Keith and I.  His "wife" seems to have carried on without him at the end of his life, as she had two babies when he was clearly very ill - and they were her boyfriend's (who she eventually married, 14 years later, having had all her babies out of wedlock but with the benefit of a sham wedding ring).

Tomorrow morning I am up early to take delivery of the sand and cement for my greenhouse base.  Then, weather permitting, it will be put in place on Wednesday, and the greenhouse get erected once it has set.  Progress.


18 comments:

  1. I hope that Pippi hasn't learnt the fun game of 'Let's see what I can knock down'. Here, Speedy (13 years old) finds it hard to resist any pen lying by my keyboard especially when he thinks I should be getting him his dinner.

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  2. Oh yes Ruta - it's called "Let's see how well this bounces!" She's broken a couple of things off there - fortunately replaceable ones. There's always one cat that likes high places.

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  3. Pippi is so cute. Our son's cat loves high places as well.

    God bless.

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    1. She's very talkative too and funniest of all, if she is sleeping and I laugh or talk to loud, she tells me off! When she gets up where she knows she is not allowed, of course she has to announce it loudly to give me a fright!!

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  4. Oh, what a little stinker! Best to take all the irreplacebles down...it will surely happen.

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    1. And so innocent with it!! The irreplacables are up there FOR safety . . . Then she took to mountaineering . . .

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  5. I had a climber cat also, was always up as high as a cat can go! I'm sorry you've been so down, and you've sure had reason for that. I'm glad the day improved. It's been very dry here for months. Wish you could send us some rain.

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    1. Don't they love looking down on you :) I have been better today - it is good to actually MAKE myself do that list of things to do and have a sense of achievement. You are welcome to our rain :)

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  6. Little minx! A friend once watched in anguish as no fewer than six Lladro figurines toppled to the ground in smithereens courtesy of naughty cat manoeuvres. They do not bounce. It also ate her favourite pendant, resulting in following said cat with a colander for two days.
    I hope you found the Royal Mail service as good as I did. Very useful as I once traipsed across the city to our post office only to find it closed for the day as no one showed up for work.
    Nearly watched The Titfield Thunderbolt, but opted for the original Miracle on 34th Street instead.

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    1. Oh how upsetting! They really can be little horrors - and as for eating her pendant. Ahem, I hope she got it back . . .

      Postie for got my parcel when he was delivering - back 5 mins later with a wry smile, saying that he'd had a reminder from his app. I was glad I didn't have to carry it the length of the town, having driven very quietly into town. I missed Miracle on 34th Street - saw there wasn't much of it left. Drat.

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  7. I have invested in Museum Quake Wax, and have secured anything that might get knocked. It makes dusting thoroughly a pain, but at least I'm fairly sure it will survive "The Big One" which we are told is inevitable... I'm glad you are feeling better, and achieved so much. We have resorted to an Annual Letter, and therefore only have to write very short notes to go with a few of them - much faster!

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    1. That sounds like a good idea. Wonder if I can get it here? (Just checked, and yes I can).

      I used to do an annual letter but too much worry and down-in-th-dumps-ness to want to create one this year.

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  8. I'd love to see all your interesting bits on the shelf behind the mountaineer!

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    1. Your wish is my command Sue, top shelf just been photographed.

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  9. Isn't Pippi the clever one! I've long since given up having anything breakable on display. Shelby-cat is a particularly annoying climber; Rosie's favorite ploy is strolling across my bedroom dresser knocking bits and pieces to the floor while looking charmingly innocent.

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    1. A bit TOO blardy clever if you ask me! Is Shelby your youngest or Rosie? Oh gosh yes, "charmingly innocent" sums up their expression alright!

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  10. I’m been feeling a bit down too lately, but after yoga today I had a chat to my teacher who’s become a friend over the last year. She said feeling depressed or worried or anxious or ‘feeling’ anything was just that, a feeling and that I need to learn to let these negative feelings go and not allow them to inhabit my mind. We all know how much better we feel when we go for a walk for instance and connect with what is n fact real, whether that be a beautiful view, birdsong, chatting to sheep marvelling at moss or lichen or the colour of yellow gorse or red holly berries or rusty bracken. I can confirm these are all real as I have experienced them all today on my walk! My wool from John Arbon arrived while I was out and I’ve just had a lovely time unpacking the box. I am so happy with the colours I chose - always a risk with choosing from a screen. But now I am going to draw the curtains, switch on the lamps, put the kettle on and cut us both a slice of Dundee cake which I made on Saturday to cheer myself up. Do something real BB, and just let the ‘feelings’ go, because they are just that, feelings! Hope this has helped a bit. Sarah x

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  11. Right, I shall take that to heart. I managed a short but brisk and hilly walk today and looked across at the sunshine on the Radnorshire hills, hoping it might light up one or two of the hidden valleys between the hills. The quarry was in full sunlight and looked busy again. Hah - talking to sheep - yup, did that today :) Said sheep wasn't impressed and walked off out of sight. No gorse on my walk, but plenty of berries on the Ivy in the hedgerows, and little sulphur-twists of spiky thistle leaves clinging to the big chippings by the barn, coloured by recent frosts.

    I'm glad your yarns have arrived and are pleasing. I let go my feelings on the walk and instead marvelled at the fact how, 6 lbs (still!) lighter I can climb the hills much better. Must try and whittle away a few more pounds.

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