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Fitting out, Sailors, Tea Ladies and Euphamisms
A Bank holiday weekend, in gorgeous Fowey, was full of surprises. We arrived expecting rain but were met with blue skies and sunshine. It may not have been the weather for lazing on the beach but it was pleasant and warm in sheltered parts. We had arrived towards evening and my husband had booked a meal at the local sailing club for our party of three. He had also issued an invitation to a friend who was delighted to accept. Thus, we wandered down at the appointed time. Our friend, who lives in Fowey, was already there. “Did you know it was a Fitting Out dinner?” she asked us with…
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The Value of Turnips
A friend of mine came back from a London seminar this week, with some startling facts and figures. Apparently, the UK was happy to borrow and borrow in the years leading up to the recession, racking up debts to the tune of 1.5 trillion pounds in 2009. Dennis Turner, Chief Economist for HSBC, told his audience that the real issue was the spending and borrowing before the recession. Well, yes, this would make sense. If we’d not borrowed, we wouldn’t owe would we? It would seem we are good to lend to as we pay back our debts and are deemed to be a ‘safe’ country. We don’t riot –…
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Losing the plot
I have been writing a synopsis of my latest novel. This exercise, undertaken only once the novel had reached a stalemate, has been strategically planned to enable me to see what the heck is going on. This novel was started under the banner of NaNoWriMNo. It grew to well over 50,000 words in 30 days. It spoke, it breathed, it fairly flew off my fingers and onto the screen as I typed. It made sense, well, no, actually it didn’t make all that much sense but it had lots of hooks and notes in the margins and helpful inserts/guides for me to follow when, released from the pressure of that…
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Impressing the boys
Flossie here. It’s been an exciting couple of weeks. First, little Doris (now not quite so little) came to stay for the night. Doris and I are still best pals and although she can’t run as fast as me, or corner very well, we get along like a house on fire. Alas, Doris was only here for the night. Last month, she stayed for a week and I quite thought she had moved in. Doris does get special privileges when she is here. Apparently, she is so well behaved on the lead that the little human, William, can take her for a walk! There is a video to prove it,…
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Your child is cute but there is no need to tell me…
There is often much said in the media about those pushy mothers who will stop at nothing to see their little darling shine on screen or stage which immediately makes me think of Noel Coward’s lyrics, “Don’t put your daughter on the stage Mrs Worthington.” Of course, pushy mothers are in no way restricted to the performing arts. They appear in every walk of life and will often stop at nothing to further their children’s careers and prospects. Just where pride and support stops and pushiness creeps in is a moot point. Pushy mothers are one thing. They may be caricatured and held up to ridicule but many a child…
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Very Inspiring Blogger…
Stop Press: I have been nominated for, the Very Inspiring Blogger Award, by J.P. Lane. http://jplanewrites.blogspot.co.uk/ I am delighted to accept of course – so, thank you Joan, so glad you enjoy this blog and find it inspiring. Joan’s blog explores the history and foibles of fashion and I urge you to visit. All I need to do now, according to the rules, is to tell you 7 things about myself. Since my blog tends to tell you everything you need to know about me, this could be tricky and I know I have told you seven things before. However, never fear, there are always more! In the spirit of…
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So, what are you doing these days?
“So, what are you doing these days?” Don’t you hate that question? Doesn’t it throw you? It is fine if you have just come back from exploring the Antarctic or something similar. A few stories from your adventures and you’re done. (I have never explored the Antarctic I hasten to add.) Otherwise, unless you are talking to your mother or a close family member, you probably have about ten seconds to grab your interrogator’s interest or at least, to let them know you are not a total waste of space. It happened to me the other day. “Ladies who lunch” had invited me to join them. In the past, this…
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Dognapping and Mischievous Mutts
Flossie here. Dog napping? Really? Yes, it seems to be the case. There have been several reported incidents of dogs being snatched from their own back gardens of late. Golden Retrievers and other pedigree mutts, appear to be the target. I have borrowed time on the Boss’s computer to talk about this terrifying subject. No one has actually bothered to mention it to me, officially, of course. Oh no, I have just had to eavesdrop on what are normally, mind-numbing conversations. I have learnt over the years that when the Boss sits down with a cup of tea in hand and there is another human nearby, they will sit and…
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Sweeping away the Cobwebs
‘tis a wonderous thing, writing. I am now, perhaps, three fifths of the way towards the completion of my latest novel. This is the novel written entirely in November under the strict, “no edit” instructions of NaNoWriMo. December arrived in a flurry of festivities, the New Year with more of the same (including the unfortunate incident with the sausage). There was barely time to sit back and ponder the niceties of sentence structure or plot continuity and no time at all to contemplate denouement. So, with unfinished chapters and unanswered questions, ringing in my ears, I put the novel to one side and concentrated on family and friends. A break…
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Sausages, Santa and Royal Connections
We have had a variety of invitations over the Christmas and New Year period. There were the usual pre-Christmas parties to start of course, plus the annual get together of the Barker family in Essex and the birthday celebrations of eldest daughter, just a few days before Christmas—because it took the birth of two children in the month of December to happen before her parents realized things could and should be planned a little better. A workplace Secret Santa was postponed until the New Year, hence we managed to extend our festivities until twelfth night. Meantime, we had a wedding to go to, the New Year to see in and…
