Saturday, 22 September 2012

Poetry Saturday . . . Meg Merrilies



Old Meg she was a gipsy,
And lived upon the moors;
Her bed it was the brown heath turf,
And her house was out of doors.


Her apples were swart blackberries,
Her currants, pods o'broom;
Her wine was dew of the wild white rose,
Her book a churchyard tomb.


Her brothers were the craggy hills,
Her sisters larchen trees;
Alone with her great family
She lived as she did please.


No breakfast had she many a morn,
No dinner many a noon,
And 'stead of supper she would stare
Full hard against the moon.


But every morn, of woodbine fresh
She made her garlanding,
And every night the dark glen yew
She wove, and she would sing.


And with her fingers, old and brown,
She plaited mats o' rushes,
And gave them to the cottagers
She met among the bushes.


Old Meg was brave as Margaret Queen
And tall as Amazon;
An old red blanket cloak she wore,
A chip hat had she on.
God rest her aged bones somewhere;
She died a full long agone!
~John Keats

 John Keats

John Keats was told the story of 'Meg Merrilies', a Scottish Gipsy woman, by a friend while they were on a walking tour of Scotland. This is a light-hearted poem describing the beautifully free; though hard and lonely; life of the homeless gipsy.

I quite fell in love with it.  I've always wanted a gypsy caravan.  Some people use them for garden sheds . . . I'd fancy one as a studio.  I think I would feel quite, quite inspired within it's walls . . . that or a 


Shepherd's Hut!  Yeh, that would be just the ticket!  With heating and electrics it would be the perfect studio!! 

Speaking of studio's, I went to the gallery yesterday, Funky Aardvark, here in Chester and I am going to become a member and some of my work will be there all the time.  I was thinking of beginning with an assortment of my cards and prints, and some of my matchbook dolls.  They have monthly seminars too, on marketing etc.  It's a way to get my work out there and exposed.  Every little helps!

We have a very busy day ahead of us today.  The dog groomer canceled the other day as they were ill, so we have a make up appointment this morning.  We're off to Neston to the dog groomers for 10:30 and then when we get back I have supper to prepare. We've invited our good friends Audrey and Peter around.  The four of us all have birthdays in August/September and so we usually get together to celebrate.  A bit late doing it this year, but they do say better late than ever!

Whatever your Saturday holds for you today, may it be filled with little pockets of sunshine and joy the whole day through!

"We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have,
but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have."
~Frederick Koenig


 

Cooking in The English Kitchen today . . . delicious Apricot & Prune Puddings with a Lemon &  Butterscotch Sauce.

 
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Friday, 21 September 2012

Corners of comfort . . .




“And still she slept an azure-lidded sleep/In blanched linen, smooth and lavender’d.” ~John Keats 

When I lived in Canada,  there was a show on the television regularly called “Martha Stewart Living.” We’d only get it in Canada early on Sunday mornings.  It was early enough that I used to be able to watch it before I left for church.  Martha . . .  who has been a great North American icon for a very long time, despite her time in prison . . . would lead us all through the merits and niceties of house-wifery in a wonderful way. I know that she was not every woman’s cup of tea, but she was mine.




 I always loved to see her neat and orderly drawers, everything all lined up and organized . . . indeed with a place for everything and everything in it's place. Her kitchen shelves were orderly as well. Everything in her home was neat and orderly actually, but my favourite part was her linen closet. All of her linens were  neat, pressed, folded and sorted according to size and color.

All the bath towels were stacked neatly and together, as were the face cloths, pillow cases, sheets, etc. It was a wonder to behold. Lace edged, deep wooden shelves  holding  row after row of neat and tidy willow baskets piled high with perfectly folded sheets, fluffy blankets, soft terry towels, crisp tea towels, pillow slips . . . some antique, others not.

Although I could not smell it through the television, I just knew it had to smell as wonderful as it looked. Crisp and fresh . . . however, with five children running about, . . . four being in their terrible teens, as well as having a very active toddler to care for . . .  it was hardly something I could accomplish for myself, and I knew it deep down in my soul.  I was happy with it being just a dream . . .




Now, there are only two of us here . . .  Todd and myself . . . and I do aspire to have something close to that. I have a large airing cupboard.  I think it's actually a closet in the spare bedroom . . . but since we rarely ever use that room for sleeping or anything else (although it is set up as a guest room), I have designated that closet as our airing cupboard.   For the past two years I have been determined to pick the lavender from our front garden to hang in this airing cupboard to help scent everything delicately with it’s lovely smell, but each year I have waited too long. (I’m not sure I know exactly how to do it at any rate, and if anyone could tell me how, or what to do, I’d much appreciate it, so that I know what to do for next year.)

When we first got married I think Todd had about 3 bath towels along with  two sets of old threadbare sheets. I suppose as a bachelor, he really didn’t see the need for having any more than that. It was a situation that soon changed with my arrival, however, and I have spent the past twelve years gathering towels and sheet sets so that we now have a comfortable number, and are quite prepared should anyone come to visit or in the case of an emergency.




I determined early on, that I only wanted white towels and sheets. I do so love to see beautifully white sheets and towels lined up and folded neatly . . .  and I just adore crawling into bed between crisp white sheets that are free from wrinkles, smooth and cool . . .  and oh so comfortable. Sadly none of them are antique and lace festooned, but one can dream . . . and I often do.

I have always wanted a set of pillow slips with dainty ladies embroidered at the edges, wearing beautiful and lacy crochet skirts and big southern bonnets. I do have a huge bundle of lace that I bought on sale once upon a time . . . and perhaps one day I will be motivated enough to sew it on the edges of some of my flat sheets and pillow slips . . .  but for now, I am quite busy with other things it seems.   I do have a favourite set of pillow slips though. We bought them at one of the larger department stores when we were living down south . . . and while they are not totally white, having a pale blue panel on the tops . . .  they do have the most lovely silk  ribbon embroidered flowers scattered across the white bit. I love seeing them, all freshly ironed, laid out on the top of my bed, wrapped around my plumped up pillows.




 I don’t think men ever really understand a woman’s fascination with fine linen’s and airing cupboards. I know Todd could care less about where our sheets come from or where they are stored . . .  or even what colour they are, just so long as they are clean and on the bed.   I do the laundry in this house, as I am very pedantic about how it is done . . . I also hang it up to dry for the same reason.  He would hang it up any way . . . I like to snap the wrinkles out of things first and line them up just so . . .

He does do the ironing (I know, I’m a lucky woman) and does a super job at it too, but I don’t think I’ll ever be able to convince him that the sheets and pillow cases need ironing, and lets not even get started on the kitchen towels. I did have a burst of energy one afternoon a month or so back and take out all the kitchen towels and iron them up, and they did look really nice all stacked neatly in the kitchen towel drawer. Perhaps one day I’ll be able to do the same thing with the sheets and pillow slips.   A few weeks back we organized all the towels and face cloths. They are all sitting neatly on the shelves on one side of the airing cupboard, now all I have to do is organize my sheets and pillow slips.




I think I will always have an eye for pretty things and I’ll always aspire to have them all neatly laid out. I get such comfort in surrounding myself with dainty feminine things . . . lacy doilies adorning the table tops, pretty bedspreads on the beds, crisp, white linens in the airing cupboard, little pockets of potpourri in crystal bowls placed here and there.

I guess it is a female thing . . .  the nesting instinct kicking in. How well did Keats know . . . “A thing of beauty is a joy forever.” and that applies to linen closets and other hidden corners of our lives.



It looks like rain out there today . . . it's actually not been a very nice week weather wise.  We are off into the city this morning to pay a few bills and I am going to stop into that gallery to see what they have to say.  Wish me luck with that!  I think we'll treat ourselves to  some fish and chips at our favourite fish and chips place for lunch as well . . . I always get a small piece of fish for myself and then pinch a couple of Todd's chips.  It's cheaper that way and we are both happy.  I get a little taste and I don't blow the diet completely out of the water!

Wherever you are going and whatever you get up to today . . . I hope you find and feel the joy.

"Look at a day when you are supremely satisfied at the end.  It's not a day when you lounge around doing nothing; it's when you had everything to do . . . and you've done it."
~Margaret Thatcher



Cooking in The English Kitchen today . . . An Autumn Salad of Fresh Plums, Ham Hock and Lentils.


 
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Thursday, 20 September 2012

Thursday ponderings . . .




He who has no money is poor; he who has nothing but money is even poorer." 
~Amish Proverb 

Yesterday was a big day for us.  We didn't stop until gone 8 o'clock last night.  The bath was finally finished and so began the work of putting everything back into it, but in a more organized manner in which it had come out.  We got rid of all the junk that we had been holding on to, but never, ever used.  You know the type of thing I mean . . . bath potions and lotions, gifts from thoughtful friends, but not your cup of tea . . . really.  Things purchased because they seemed like a good deal at the time, out of date creams and medicaments, etc.  It just seemed like the right thing to do . . . fresh new bath . . . fresh new feel.  It just needs a bit of dressing up now as it's very plain, perhaps I will create some special bath artwork, who knows!

At the same time yesterday, just as the builder was putting the finishing touched onto the bath . . .  our new twin beds arrived.  We had saved and scrimped for them for over two years now.  Apparently I kick out in my sleep . . . even when I am resting, I am on my travels it seems.  I am a very light sleeper, and I can't even stand to hear someone breathing in the same room, even with ear plugs in . . . and Todd is a cover-hog.  Yes, it's true.  So anyways, to make a long story short we decided twin beds would be best and so we've been saving up for them.



In August we finally had enough set aside,  and so we went out looking and bought a pair.  I had no idea that twin beds would take up so much room.  Together they are quite appreciably larger than our old double bed so we then had to move everything around in the bedroom.  Poor Todd . . . he would not call anyone to come and help him.  He did it all himself.  We finally finished by about 7:30 last evening.  It's not totally done by a long stretch . . . but it's liveable for now.  I still have to sort out what pictures I want to hang etc.

We sat here on the sofa last evening, surveying our domain and we both looked at each other and said . . . we have a lovely home.  With a touch more organization (think craft room here), it will be perfect.  We may not have a lot of money, but we have all that we need and we are content.  Like everyone, we are feeling the pinch, having to tighten our belts in an economy which seemingly worsens with each day that passes . . . but we have enough.  Sufficient for our needs.  The beauty lies in being able to tell the difference between a want and  a need.  The wisdom too . . .



When I worked in the Big House, I can remember thinking about how terrible it would be for them to lose everything they had . . . that beautiful house, all of their money and valuable treasures.   I think it's very true that the more you have,  the more you have to lose . . . but what makes it even worse is . . . storing up your treasures here on earth, rather than in heaven.  If everything you have, and all of your heart,  is invested in things which you couldn't bear to lose . . . then you really have nothing at the end of the day.  Earthly treasures can always be taken away, lost . . . destroyed.

Far better to invest in things which have real value . . . family, home, relationships . . . faith.  Real joy comes from living simply, loving and being loved, trusting in the Lord to supply all of your needs, serving others, finding beauty in the simple and sublime, good health . . . gratitude.  Knowing that even if all of our physical possessions were to suddenly disappear in a puff of smoke . . . we'd still have everything that truly matters in this lifetime, and in the next . . . that is where true wealth lies.

Yes, we have a beautiful home.  We are blessed . . . but that is just the icing on the cake.  Beneath it all, we have our love for each other, our faith, joy in service . . . our health, peace of mind, and grateful hearts.  This is the real treasure.  It doesn't come wrapped up in a box . . . you can't hang it on the wall . . . you can't eat it or touch it . . . or even see and taste it, but it is more real and has more meaning than any amount of other things that you can see, touch, hold, hang, taste . . .

Finding joy in the journey, no matter what.  Worth it's weight in gold.


"What we love determines what we seek.  What we seek, determines what we think and do.  What we think and do, determines who we are . . .  and who we will become."
~Dieter F Uchtdorf

Happy Thursday everyone!

 

Cooking in The English Kitchen today . . . Refrigerator Fudge Cake.

 
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Tuesday, 18 September 2012

The Simple Woman's Daybook


FOR TODAY, September 18th, 2012...

Outside My Window...
The sun is just rising,and the rain is tipping it down.  I do see a clear spot in the sky though off to the left, towards the North East . . . so I think the rain will clear.  It's only two days though until  Autumn will be officially here.  Still . . . could be worse.  Last year at this same time we were sitting out a hurricane up in Cumbria . . .  Instead we are warm and cosy in a nice terraced house in Blacon . . . with no hurricane in sight and hopefully some sunshine instead.  Every cloud has a silver lining and all that.  ☺

I am thinking...
"If you will call your troubles experiences, and remember that every experience develops some latent force within you, you will grow vigorous and happy, however adverse your circumstances may seem to be."
~John Heywood

As I look back on my life I can clearly see that there have been far more joyful moments than there have been sad . . . and looking back at the bad and the sad, I can see where they have forced me to grow and learn in directions I never would have grown.  Experience is for our own benefit, or to give us the tools to be able to help someone else get through the same situation at some point. 


I am thankful for...
I am thankful that the bath is, to all intents and purposes,  a faite accomplie!  I am enjoying my morning showers and the luxury of not having to heave my aching body in and out of a tub every morning, of being able to wash my hair much easier, not to mention the lovely fresh new look of it all.  I have never had a new toilet or sink or anything even remotely resembling them in my life.  This is bliss!  We are blessed.

From the kitchen... 
I have some leftover crumb cake, but that's it. I have been thinking I might like to make some bread.  We'll see how the day progresses.

I am wearing...
A pink M&S Nightie, my robe and my slippers.  Yet . . . cold weather has landed.  It's time to begin wrapping up.  (I do like my M&S nighties don't I!!)

I am creating...



Working on my Christmas cook-booklet, and have it about 3/4 finished!  Yayy!!  It will soon be available for purchase.  This one is a bit larger than the past couple of ones.  I am up to 33 pages and still have two more sections to finish!  So it's a big-un!!  

I am wanting to make one of these finger pin cushions to tuck into the Kitchen Match Box sewing box I am making for a swap in December.



Source: etsy.com via Marie on Pinterest


Isn't that just the cutest finger pin cushion you've ever seen?  I know!  Sweet, sweet, except mine will have a rose theme.



Then there are my little matchbox dolls.  I want to make some more of them.  I may even try selling some.  We'll see.

 

I finished my afghan!!  It looks lovely sitting on the back of the sofa.  I have picked out a new pattern that I am going to start soon.  I just have to save up for the wool.

Crochet Pattern - Trailing Leaves Afghan

I picked up the pattern on Etsy for less than £2, so not bad . . . and I already have the hooks.  I just need the yarn.  I won't be doing those colours though.  I think purple, gold, green and cream are what I will use.


I am also really liking these!  I think we are going to do Thanksgiving this year.

I am going... 
Todd is taking Mitzie to be groomed today and she badly needs it.  She's a right mucky pup.  I am staying here at home because they are going to be exchanging the toilet for a shorter one today.  I also have things I need to really be doing here at home.  Tomorrow afternoon I am having my hair cut.  Then on Friday night there is a going away "Dessert" bash at the chapel for a young couple that is deserting us to move to Australia, and on Saturday we are having our good friends Audrey and Peter over for supper.  Usually every year the four of us get together to celebrate our Birthdays.  We've done it for years.  We're late doing it this year, but at least we are doing it and I am looking forward to it!  I don't know what I will cook yet, but it will be something good I am sure.
I am reading...




Call the Midwife, by Jennifer Worth
I really enjoyed the series by the BBC and thought I would like to read the book. Books are always a lot more detailed than films or television shows. I am really enjoying this book. It's fabulous and I am glad that I picked it up to read. It details the life of a young midwife in London's East End in the 1950's and is a real peek into the way of life which existed there during that time period . . . the hardship, the poverty, the sadness, the joy, etc. I highly recommend.

Still reading this.





The Last Concubine, by Lesley Downer

The Last Concubine tells the story of Sachi, who grows up as the adopted daughter of an innkeeper in a rural Japanese village, knowing nothing about her true origins. Her world changes forever when an imperial princess, on her way to marry the shogun, passes through the village and takes Sachi into her entourage. In the secluded, formal, traditional world of the women’s palace in Edo, Sachi eventually becomes the last concubine of the last shogun — but that’s just a prelude to the turbulent events she’s about to be caught up in as Japan erupts into civil war and the world Sachi has grown up in, a world that seemed immutable for hundreds, even thousands of years, changes almost overnight.

Lesley Downer has created a wonderful character through whose eyes we are able to view the upheavals in Japanese society in the 1860s: because of her complicated background, Sachi is able to move and interact with people at a variety of different social levels. She’s uncomfortable, as any Japanese woman of that era would be, with stepping outside rigidly prescribed social roles, yet recognizes that because of the unique situation she finds herself in, she often has to do so. She also falls in love, in a society which doesn’t talk about or celebrate the concept of romantic love (or even have a word for it!) in the way we do in the West, and she has to struggle to fit her emotions in with her concepts of duty and social order. She also gets to see the beginning of the rapid Westernization and industrialization of Japan following the civil war — a fascinating story in and of itself.

I have only just started this book. As you know I am very intrigued by Oriental culture. I am enjoying this very much thus far.

Still on these books, but have added another one . . .


Breaking Night, by Liz Murray
It's an autobiography written by a survivor against all odds. Murray is the daughter of drug addicts who died of Aids. They neglected her, scandalously, but loved her in their own hopelessly dysfunctional way. By the age of six she was accustomed to watching her parents shoot up (her mother was almost blind, so her father had to help her do it). She left home at 15, carrying with her a crumpled snapshot of her mother, taken at a similar age – a girl with a storm cloud of hair and an unnervingly absent stare. It is the only picture reproduced in the book – her talisman. No wonder Murray preferred the photo to the reality. I have only just begun this one.

All are on my Kindle. It's so much easier to manage in bed than a book, and a lot easier on my wrists. (Nothing has changed. Still working on the same books!)

I am hoping...
The sun just broke brilliantly through the clouds.  I am hoping it stays!

I am hearing...
Nothing new really. Mitzie is snoring on the couch. The clock is ticking . . . my fingers are clicking on the keyboard. I have some soft music playing . . . and the cuckoo clock decided to start working again yesterday.  One of life's great mysteries I am sure!

Around the house...



Now that the bath is complete it is time to start working on my craft room.  It is a right tip.  I really need to do something in there. I don't have a lot of money to spend, so it will have to be done cheap, cheap, cheap.  I like this look here, but this is for a sewer.  I do sew and have a sewing corner.  But the majority of what I do in there has to do with pencils, paper and paint.


I love this craft "Closet."  We have an old Wardrobe in there that I might be able to convert.  I just have to find a place to put Todd's things.  haha   Poor Todd.



Another great idea, it is an old door and some posts turned into a work top!  I am really loving that idea.  We have an old door in the shed too.

One of my favourite things . . .



I love old quilts.  I don't have any, but I wish I did.  My mom has one that my Grandmaman made which I just adore, and she had one that her mother made, but somehow it got lost.  I can remember laying on it and feeling the different fabrics when I was a girl and thinking about what they once were . . . I loved the colours and textures . . . laying on it was like laying on her lap.  Very comforting.

Something new about me ...
Source: google.com via Nick on Pinterest

I am terrified of spiders . . . no matter how LARGE or how small they are.  They give me the willies.  I can't stand them.  One was in the bedroom the other night.  A really big one.  It kept looking at me and every time I tried to get it, it would disappear.  I only wanted to hurt it a little bit . . . I hardly slept a wink.

One of my guilty pleasures ...


Creme Brulee.  I've only ever had it once, but I think about it all the time.  I am not sure just what that says about me . . . but it's probably not anything good!! lol

Pet Peeves...We were pulling out of the drive the other day and I noticed that some generous person had left us their empty soda bottle, pushed into the side of our hedge.  That was so very kind of them don't you think?

Here is picture thought I am sharing...



"We always have a tendency to see those things that do not exist, and to be blind to the great lessons that are right there before our eyes."
~Paulo Coehlo

We are afraid of that which we don't see or understand.  Ofttimes it is these fears which keep us from progressing, from realizing our great potential, from becoming who we were meant to become.  That boogie man beneath the bed . . . he may only be in our imaginations, but we will never know unless we take a leap of faith and jump out of the bed.  And . . . if it turns out he really was there all along . . . having the ability to run like hell could come in really handy.

soverypretty:

As a closing thought I would like to leave you with this:

It was when I was happiest that I longed most . . . 
The sweetest thing in all my life had been
the longing . . . 
to find the place where all beauty came from.
C.S. Lewis

And there you have it . . . my day book for this week. Don't forget to hop on over to the Simple Woman to check out the other day book entries! (Or better yet, do a simple day book entry yourself! It's not that hard and I am betting you would enjoy it! 



Cooking in The English Kitchen today . . . a very scrummy  Fresh Blackberry Tart with Spiked Creme Anglaise.


 
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Monday, 17 September 2012

Much ado about nothing . . .




I am sitting here this morning in front of my computer screen, and for the first time in a very long while, my mind is blank! Most unusual. Well, not blank really, but I just don't have any idea of what to write about, which isn't like me at all.  I am usually full of words that can't wait to jump out of my head and onto the screen.

Our desktop sits right in front of the lounge window which faces the front of our house.  (Note, this is not the view from my lounge window, as much as I would like it to be.) It's not an ideal place, but for some reason that is where Todd likes it to be, mostly I think because that way it can be hooked up to the modem without having to have a long wire stretched around the living room.  I don't really like it here because it sort of makes it the focal point of the living room . . . and that's not ideally what I want as the focal point of the living room . . . perhaps I'll be able to convince him to put it somewhere else.  We'll have to see.  We both have our laptops . . . but I like my desktop for a variety of other reasons . . .probably because I don't really have a lap! haha

Not having a lap means that I have to use the laptop on top of a table and my arms and wrists get tired doing that, but . . . I am working at finding my lap, so maybe it won't always be that way.

 

I just started taking an online Art Course by Tascha Parkison of the Time with Tascha blog.  The course is called Learning with Tascha.  Yesterday was the first day.  (There's still time to sign up by the way, if you are interested.)

Todd doesn't understand why I wanted to do this course.  He thinks my art is good enough, and maybe it is . . . but I haven't been very successful with it really, and I so want to be.  I want very much to be able to make a living with it and so . . .  I think it's a good thing to be able to learn from those who are already making a living with it.  It was one of the cheaper online courses out there, and I like her little dolls and girls, and so I signed up for it.  In this first lesson we have been practicing sketching faces.



These are a few that I did last night while I was waiting for Inspector George Gently to begin on the telly.  I quite enjoyed just sitting on the sofa scribbling into my notebook which was resting on the arm of the sofa.  My pencil wasn't as sharp as I would have liked it to be . . . so I probably could have done better with a sharper one and they probably would have been better had I been sitting at  a table instead of my drawing from the arm of the sofa . . . but I think they turned out pretty ok anyways.

A gallery from Chester (Funky Aardvark Project) sent me a message yesterday on Etsy,  wanting to discuss my work with me with the possibility in mind of either showing it or I don't know what.  I am feeling very skeptical at the moment about this kind of thing.  I don't want to get my hopes up and have it be nothing . . . so I will pop in later in the week when I have some free time and talk to them.  We'll see what happens . . .   I hate being cynical about these things . . . but I would rather be a bit cautious about them and then not be so disappointed if it doesn't pan out.  Like my recent television experience . . . blah.  That one left me with a very bad taste in my mouth.



(When I was a little girl I wanted a pair of red shoes . . . didn't everyone??)

I am the kind of person who thinks that people shouldn't make promises or offers that they can't keep.  I always keep my promises . . . or at least I try very hard to, and it disappoints me when others don't.  Perhaps I am wrong to be that way . . . but c'est la vie.  That's just me!  Hey that rhymed!  I'm a poet and I didn't know it! (something my mother used to always say when she accidentally came out rhyming.  I love my mum.)

We have the MOT for our car today.  For anyone in North America, that is like the yearly safety inspection.  Our car is rather old, about 13 years old now, but it's in pretty good running order I think.  I always dread the MOT though because they always find work that needs doing . . . it's inevitable.  When you live on a fixed income . . . these are the expenses that come up that you could really be doing without.  They drain your savings . . . a lot of things are doing that these days. We just got notice the other day that our electricity rates would be going up in October . . . and they only just went up about six months ago???  I think it's time to look for another electricity provider!  Shop around as it were.

Source: google.com via Marie on Pinterest


The sun is shining brilliantly out there at the moment.  There isn't a cloud in the sky.  I so love England on a sunny day . . . to me,  there is no place more beautiful on earth!  Oh, I know in truth that there are . . . but on a sunny day like today I am exactly where I want to be!  I shall never forget my first impressions of England as I was landing at Heathrow Airport,  some 12 years ago now . . .  it was so green from the air, looking just like a beautiful patchwork quilt in every shade of green you can imagine . . . and then from the train on the journey up here to Chester . . . the green rolling hills, dotted with cotton boll sheep, the ivy covered trees and stone fences . . . those ancient stone churches . . . it was all like a dream come true.

Twelve years later it still feels like a dream come true . . .


Even on a rainy day.  I guess that's when you know you are happy eh?  When you can smile in your heart even when the rain falls . . .

Contentment, that's what that is.  Pure and simple.  I wouldn't have it any other way.

"Don't cry because it's over.  Smile because it happened."
~Dr Seuss

hmmm . . . I guess I had something to say after all!



 

It's all about potatoes over in The English Kitchen today . . . In Search of the Perfect Jacket Potato.

 
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