Sunday 16 September 2012

Indian Summer

 Well, weren’t we lucky?   We went away to Northumbria for 4 days with some friends – who’d have thought that we’d have such good weather, it was wonderful.   On the day we arrived we had a lovely walk at Alnmouth and the next day we visited Howick Gardens on the coast, near Craster.   On our last day, we did a whistlestop tour of all the places we love on that coast – Budle Bay, Bamburgh, Seahouses, Beadnell and Dunstanborough.   The other day, we went to Newcastle itself to look at the Tyne Bridge and the Millennium Bridge.   We also went to a really interesting gallery, The Biscuit Factory, a contemporary art gallery in a Victorian warehouse -  plenty to see, paintings, photography, sculpture, ceramics, glass and some textiles; it  was a real treat.    On our way home we detoured to Gateshead to see the Angel of the North ,  Antony Gormley’s  sculpture.   Although I expected it to be big, it was larger than I had imagined and most impressive, although I  have to say it doesn’t beat Another Place which is, for me, far more moving.
Before we went away I did some felting – a book cover inspired by birch trees in an autumn landscape – which I’ve now completed only to have my granddaughter fall in love with it, so I’ve had to make another one.   Since we came home I’ve made another bookcover depicting yachts in a seascape –that was much admired today in Borrowdale.
 I have made great strides with downloading photos – I’ve even caught up enough to start working on those I took at the Motorfest – not great so far, but it was difficult to get clear shots with all those people milling about
Last Sunday,  I went on a nostalgia trip to see the church which I had attended until the mid 1950’s – it had been superseded by a modern building in 70’s and was open just for the  afternoon.  What a lot of memories it brought back, but sad to see how much it had deteriorated and how small it seemed to me 50 odd years on.   Still, there is a move afoot to attempt some restoration,  I hope it is successful.
On Friday I attended a workshop on making masks – it was very messy and great fun, my effort is presently sitting on top of the washing machine drying, very slowly.   I’m hopeful that, when it is fully dry, and I peal it off the mould, it will be quite effective.   Watch this space!
I do remember saying in a post in August, that  I was never going to do an outside event ever, ever again.  However, I had already booked and paid for today’s event in the Lake District.  The idea was to take our long-suffering husbands to Keswick for a night in a hote, l with a good meal thrown in, and then to attend the Borrowdale Show and Shepherds Meet the next day.   So, on Saturday, we left with high hopes of a pleasant walk around Derwentwater before our evening meal.   Because of a very long delay on the M6, we didn’t get to Keswick until  4.30 p.m. so a walk  was out of the question but we had a little walk around Keswick before our meal.     This morning, it only started to drizzle as we arrived at the show ground so unpacking wasn’t too awful.   Then it started, heavier and heavier, and it didn’t stop all day.    The showground got soggier and soggier, the cars had to be towed off the field which was being used as a car park and, all in all, it was pretty awful.   How sad for the organisers.   Despite the fact that we did sell a few things and, again, met some fascinating people  that is positively the last time outdoors in the English Summer..

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