Blog Award and some "peeking"!

Firstly, many, many thanks to Sandi over at Ess D' Ess Bears for passing me a Stylish Blogger Award!

The rules are to link to the person who awarded you , share seven things about yourself, and pass it on to 15 more blogs which you enjoy. I can add the 7 things right now , but I do hope you'll all bear with me for the time being in postponing passing it on; I am in the thick of preparing for Hugglets (although I absolutely hate neglecting my little bloggie so I must drop in) In the meantime if anybody would love to grab the award and share 7 interesting things about themselves please do! I consider you all to have stylish blogs :0)

1**  In 1992 I bought a very cute, neglected little bean filled bear (almost unknown at the time) and I'm afraid my husband persuaded me to cut his nasty little tag off (!!&@!) He turned out to be an "Old Faced Brown" Ty Beany, and at the height of Beany-mania he would have been worth over £1500. with his tag on. I wouldn't sell him anyway; he's a funny little chap with a personality.

2**  I went to the same school as Carrie Grant - the TV singing coach (not the old Hollywood movie star!) She was in my "house" (Churchill) and her older brother was in my tutor group. She used to go out with one of my friends so we often went to the same parties ... but I'm afraid as a group we all didn't approve; as she was from the lower school whilst we were sixth formers.Pah! I can't believe I included this in my list.

3** I have managed to be "in the right place" at work for several things - after being prescribed glasses at 18 I went to work at an opticians and got my contact lenses hugely discounted. Soft lenses were hideously expensive in 1982.I've been wearing them for 29 years (not the same pair!!! Lol)
When my parents moved to Egypt for 3 years, after I married, I worked for British Telecom in the accounts department and I got permission to make a call to Cairo on work's time. Errrrrrmm - I confess I rang every other day for 11 months; well they were British Telecom for goodness' sake!!! The one place units whizzing round on the meter were no problem!!

4** Since Christmas I've had either a yukky stomach ulcer , or more likely a hiatus hernia (tear in the diaphragm which the stomach pokes through) which I've recently found out my Grandmother suffered from. So not fun. I have started to feel a lot better in the last 2 weeks.... I'm horrified I felt so awful to start with I wondered if I'd have to give up bear-making! :0o

5** I love The Fall of Troy!(RIP)  "Nature versus Nurture" is my favourite song - and probably the best one ever written.Tom Erak if you ever want a miniature bear I will gladly make one for you for free!!!

6** I absolutely love cooking. I never mind stopping bear-making for getting the evening meal ready; it's a relaxing punctuation to my day. Ever since I got married I've decided on a week's meals on Mondays, and base the shopping on that - this  is currently being promoted everywhere as a good way to economise in our current economic climate, because you only need to buy what is specifically needed. Well d'uh!

7** "Persuasion" is my very favourite Jane Austen novel. I feel it's often over-looked, and definitely deserves to be given an excellent big-screen treatment. Knowing Lyme Regis and Bath quite well (both are settings from the book) definitely enhances the experience of reading it. If I could only own one book I would probably choose Persuasion.

Sandi is also our esteemed leader over at TBACA , and I just wanted to remind you all that the "Be My Valentine" online show starts on 11th Feb to14th Feb.I have 3 pieces in the show, and here are some sneaky little peaksof them -

 

 

Hope you're intrigued enough to come and visit the show!

TaTa For Now,
Ruth xx

High Time I added a post!.........

Wicken Fen, Cambs


We're how far in to the New Year - and this is my first blog post??? In my defence I'm having to type this right now from a stop-gap, rigged up contraption as the "real" computer became decidedly off-colour after Christmas and ultimately refused to play with any of us! I've got no useful library of images to work with any more; just an ocean of empty desk top. No matter- I think the photo I found (taken just before Christmas when we were all still in the vice like grip of Winter) is quite appropriate.

At first glance, when I was flicking through Ashley's camera, I thought it was a bit bleak. A narrow path leading to an unknown destination, cold and uninviting, a shadowy darkness at the edges .... a bit like a brand new year when you're not sure what might happen. I've been feeling somewhat over-contemplative and stressed recently; not helped by PPI medication (acid inhibitors) which can magnify anxiety. Well, I realised that's one interpretation of the picture. Looking closer I noticed the sky; it's natural and surprising beauty would be reason enough to keep walking along that path. The trees and hedges at the sides are likely to be bustling with birds waking up for another new day; the water course is gurgling its infinite way, meandering and leisurely. The scene is actually picturesque. Hopeful.
I may not be making any Resolutions for 2011 (and they always do come with capitals don't they?) but I will be looking for the blue sky .... or an unexpected ray of sunshine, the pretty song of a bird; just little things that chase away uncertainty or stress. Maybe we all need to be a bit kinder to ourselves sometimes, and "re-adjust the picture" by looking for the positive things that make life so much better.

With a belated "Happy New Year",

T.T.F.N  Ruth xxx  :0)