365/133 Self-portrait

I thought I'd struggle here and end up offering one of those teen 'at arm's length' type phone-cam shots, but then I thought of this page..

...as it turns out the pictures were taken during the fishing trip mentioned below during Ken & Jean's Golden wedding weekend..but the 'pieces of me' page is all my own work, for me, about me..

Looking at it now I can see that although the sentiments reflect a time in my life where I was adjusting to being an elder in the family, taking responsibility for both the older and the youngest members of the family, things were changing and I am much more settled and content and understand now what it's all about.. just a shame you have to cry a lot before it all makes sense and you can accept it!

.. thanks to Linda at Just Scrapbooking, it was a lovely page to do.. I should retake the picture as it is pretty poor quality but hope you get the drift!

P.S. have a look at the next blog entry for an up to date scrap self portrait from last year!

365/132 Unforgettable..

..the 'unforgettable' things which come to mind when I consider a story and picture for this day are generally some event or another, fairly simple* occasions with food and family and a feel good atmosphere.  I have already blogged those which have taken place since the blog began, but I thought I'd mention my in-laws Golden Wedding weekend which took place over August Bank Holiday weekend 2008.  I only began blogging a short while after this so the event was never quite 'covered' from a blogging / reminiscent point of view... and that is something I should start putting right..(be prepared for some recent nostalgia in coming weeks!)

Col's Mum and Dad were raised in Liverpool and both had quite tough upbringings and they had worked hard to make good lives for the two boys. Ken had been unwell in his younger days, and when attending a Silver wedding party when still engaged Jean said that she wondered if she would ever have her own 25th Anniversary.

Well, their Silver Wedding came and went, they moved to Cornwall in 1985 , celebrated a 40th in 1998 just after we all started living here together and in the run up to the 50th when Jean was unwell it always perked her up to plan her Golden Wedding weekend. 

Plans started for a big meal, but who to invite, where to eat etc etc, and eventually we decided on our favourite.. a Ceam Tea afternoon.. but not just cream teas, just about every cake or dessert you can imagine.  Family came from up north and Jean's brother, the now famous (in my blog) Uncle Bill travelled over from the USA and all their pals from local bowls and village socials came to join the celebration.

Lisa had had Lilly a month previous but she was young enough to just enjoy being held, so she pitched in too and us girls loved running the tea rooms!  The boys did their bit, the infrastructure: gazebos if it rained (or in fact if the sun was too much) and plenty of tables and chairs..it was like a Village Tea Party ..

 Over the whole weekend we also did loads of other things with the closest family, a family fishing trip to give Ken an outing as he was generally so committed to being there for Jean, plenty of 'cupso'tea' visits to friends and in the evening of the party a big fish & chip supper. (* Suddenly on  rereading this I reconsider how 'simple' an event the weekend it was..!)

My scrapbooking had been kick started in earnest for the event as I started classes just before I began an album for their Anniversary.  I had a few great evenings with Jean & Ken looking back through the tin box of photos, big and small which charted the family's history from the early days in Anfield, through the several house renovations to where we were then.

It's evenings like those, with no great plan, but which when they are reflected on are what looking after your elders is all about.. just being there, asking who this one is or that one.. 'you know, the one with the beehive hairdo and the mini skirt'!, sucking up the stories and letting them remember and talk about how it used to be..just like I do now I guess!! 

We gave them the album the day before the party, during a barbecue and outside fire evening with all the visiting relatives and friends, it was so cool.  We photocopied the scrap pages so they could be displayed at the cream tea and I was / still am really proud of it.. as ever for our best days, photos courtesy of Uncle Bill..

(oh dear, this recent nostalgia trip has me not quite able to see the keys..I love these days, these pictures..amazing how in the few short years since then so many people have left us, both our mums and so many of their friends..but boy, great memories..)

Woven extra!!

 

Just remembered this lovely woven chair from our holidays...

I think one of the images is vintaged on my HTC but like the holiday, a distant memory as to which one.

365/131 Sandy.

Living so close to the sea I should have found this easy but we are kind of 'not-beachers'.. but I also thought I'd give you a potted history of Zac's first half of his leave...

...well first thing home he got his joining info for the next ship and his Australian visa..(!) has bought another suitcase and is going to do a Competant Crew course, live-aboard next week in Falmouth, he missed a paintball session but made up for it with a mini college reunion and earlier in the week he and Ross went paddle boarding.. (here on the sandy beach)

 we're hoping to have a bit of a bash next weekend....fine weather is booked and fancy dress costumes are being discussed.. the theme is kind of Rock Stars and Super Heroes as the kids all have people they want to be..anyone 'larger than life' I reckon and Col has a secret weapon planned.. if his Seaplane Pilot for New Year was anything to go by he'll be a big hit!  

The kids all seem to want to be Avengers and that's not Purdi or Honor Blackman!

365/130 Woolly

.. a little late I'm afraid.. I still love this little hat Colin bought for my Lisa when he was simply the 'favourite uncle', he got it in Bennetton about 23 years ago and just pulled it out of his jacket pocket one day when he came 'round... sadly it's never quite been worn enough, perhaps as it was always too easy for the child wearing it to pull it off!!

... doesn't seem 23 years.. but I guess the pattern isn't quite vintage enough to be recent.. if that makes any kind of sense to you at all!!!

365/129 Prickly.

Mmmmm, I don't think we have any cacti in our house, and prickly is more a feeling or state of mind for me. There's generally between five and nine people living in our house at any one time and mostly things go along pretty well, the odd bristle (another prickly word), plenty of banter but no major league rows.

I feel a bit of a fraud when it comes to blogging some days as I generally try to keep it upbeat and newsy, but rarely moan or groan.. yes, a small smattering of sadness and nostalgia at times, but rarely full on rants and angry stuff..mainly because after the event it's nice to review good times but kind of cringe worthy to revisit bad mood days.. and anyway, the person I may be cross with may unwittingly not even know I was peeved...

...that reminds me of when I was first with Col and raising a young family I would sometimes get what we in Cornwall call 'teasy' about something, but he was (and is) so non-argumentative that I would have the debate with him in my head, and play his role as well..then by the time he got home I had rationalised it, heard both sides of the imaginary argument and it had blown over....and an embarassed face at being cross about nothing was averted..!!

If you are still with me here.. (any you are true blogger pals if you are) please tell me at this point that I was not alone, it was part and parcel of having a houseful of children under eight and feeling hard done to at times! 

..so it came to pass that I discovered I have a default face, one which has been caught on camera and I plead the case that I am just being pensive, thinking about something away from the moment... but to the innocent bystander apparently it looks pretty 'prickly'..



how I scrapped it!



mmm, definitley prickly!





 

I'll see if I can find a pic and you guys can judge for me!!












.. and to update.. Stewart Lee was brilliant  in Plymouth last night.... the non-funny comedy star is quite an acquired taste but I laughed til my face hurt.. he was also at the next table when we went to eat before the show, but we were very well behaved and treated him just like any other stranger eating out!!

365/128 Woven

Tenuous but perfect link..tonight Zac and I are going to see...

365/127 Bumpy.

.. my predominant thought was of Lincoln biscuits.. as a kid I used to call them 'pimple biscuits' but they sure were BUMPY!!!

This is what Wikipedia has to say, very serious it is too..

The Lincoln is a short dough biscuit, a member of the genus, shortcake biscuits. It has a pattern of dots on the top in concentric circles . The McVitie's version had the word 'Lincoln' embossed on to the biscuit at the centre. Recently it has been very difficult to obtain, but recipe books still champion and enhance the basic recipe.



For many years they were known as Lincoln Creams and no one ever seemed to ever question the fact there was no cream or indeed that they do not hail from Lincoln. Lincoln biscuits are still available in Irish supermarkets and dedicated fans can still order a packet at several sites dedicated to providing hard-to get essentials for British ex-pats!! (my exclamation!

.. and as a return to Jones-land reality..
It's been a proper Sunday here, lazy morning, played teen taxi and had quick mozi (never tried to spell that word before so apologies as I'm sure it's wrong) around Next and M&S,bought a little gift for Col's cousins new twins and came home by lunch. The guys had watched a fairly uneventful MotoGP and then we went with Zac for a Newlyn Ice Cream... we only got round the first corner and the bitter wind sent us back to the car. Zac commented that the weather wasn't really for ice creams and despite what you might think, this was the kind of temperature he had in San Francisco in March!


Now evening time everyone is out and we're watching some nice TV on the Indian Ocean.. ahh, that ocean, just the best sealife and blue seas ever..(next to ours which looks great but is like ice!)

365/126 Rough.

.. well I could continue the education on the variety of possible finishes in stainless steel but I'll spare you that!  But no..

Col's back is acting up, so he's taken the chance of a long weekend to nurse it.. I had the grandchildren over yesterday evening and dear Lilly nursed him by loading him with extra cushions and blankets.. looking at the picture I'd call it 'rough love' !!!

365/125 Smooth.

Well I am going to start with an apology in case I bore you all silly today.. currently I don't even have a picture, but the word is taken care of in my head.  Some of you may know that we manufacture industrial equipment,with quite a bit of it having stainless steel parts, which take quite a bit of finishing, whether its wire brushing, polishing, bead blasting or eventually baby-oiling to stop the fingermarks. (hint here for you guys with finger marked stainless kitchen cooker etc!)

..just as it arrived!

So, SMOOTH is the finish we're looking for and recently Colin has bought some nice new machinery which should help improve the process, stop the guys spending hours and hours after the welding is done.. we now have a vibro- polisher unit which is a bit like a big washing machine which you put stainless parts in with lots of abrasive pebbles which over an few hours polished the stainless til it's just right.

Next week we also get an aqua-blast unit so then maybe the boy's toys will be complete for a while.. and the little hint I have is then maybe I can get my 15 year extension done..!

.....mmmm, now what about 'rough'...