glimpses

of spring

in my garden

eggs

Today's Thursday Theme is Egg.

So here is some more about my frogspawn.

There is a nostalgia about frogspawn and tadpoles, for me (more than easter eggs or chocolate bunnies in fact) as something associated with childhood, with primary school classrooms and spring and family outings to countryside ponds with jam-jars at the ready.

Outings such as this in fact:

which is from Further Doings of Milly-Molly-Mandy by Joyce Lankester Brisley,  this copy given to me by my Auntie Chris and Uncle Pete on the occasion of my 4th birthday.

Milly-Molly-Mandy went on exciting excursions like this with her friend Billy Blunt 

and what better time for such excursions than a Bank-holiday Monday?

(do other countries have Bank holidays?)

She did other largely more girly things with "little-friend-Susan" and was quite a well-rounded and appealing character.  

I am sure that you'll be reassured to know that Milly-Molly-Mandy and Billy Blunt did indeed catch tadpoles, and also that they later returned the tadpoles to their natural habitat.

Last year my frog pool had no frogspawn or tadpoles, though I did catch sight of a shy but reassuring frog or two, just once or twice in late summer and autumn.

The year before that I had imported tadpoles from a friend's pond into my little pool where they grew and wriggled and thrived and then hopped away.

This coincided, 2 years ago,  with my mother's last few weeks of living and dying - and I find myself, actually, without words - though I'd intended to write something about the significance, for me, of the tadpoles and froglets and process and season.

But I do (as nearly always) have a picture - this was taken last Sunday, a week after the "emergence"  of the frogspawn: 

I can age-stamp the spawn in this photo fairly exactly because I was a witness to the process of its production - not intentionally, I hasten to add.  It took me a while to realise there were two frogs there, not just the one.... they were so still!  and I did then creep away not wanting to disturb them - or to appear "disturbed" myself.

This reminded me that when I was a student, years ago, I came across mention of a textbook of Roman Catholic casuistry - a book listing and categorising sins.  

Recommended bedtime reading in the C17th no doubt.

This particular text apparently stated that watching the procreation of mammals and/or large animals was a mortal sin [Big Bad = eternal damnation unless "dealt with" through the sacraments of the Church]  but watching small animals or insects or birds "at it" was only a venial sin [Little, Less bad = purgatory at worst].

I can't remember if frogs were mentioned specifically.  I imagine they came in the latter category.

Lets hope so, eh?

Since I took this photo, the frogspawn are significantly more tadpole-shaped, and the blobby jelly seems to be almost completely dissolved. So I suppose they are actually nearly egg-less now - hatched, in fact -  but they don't yet show any signs of wiggling.

I check on them daily.

I think part of the reason this is so all fascinating is that frogspawn and tadpoles allow us transparently to observe a process which is normally hidden away secretly,  inside the egg or womb.  We can watch and wonder at the whole amazing transformation from blobby egg to springy spronginess.

how fantastic!

I will keep you updated.

I've had a day full of satisfying home and garden activity and really wanted to post something, but my brain seems rather empty.

My mind does sometimes shut down these days, as if to tell me that its done enough thinking lately and has nipped out for a break, leaving the office unattended.

It could, of course, be age-related but I prefer to think that this is another symptom of my newly discovered and greatly-prized ability to say "NO" sometimes.

Or else maybe the physical therapies of messing about in the dirt, cleaning windows and sorting out storage problems has lulled the poor tired grey cells (I prefer to think of them as green, actually) into a happy trance from which they are reluctant to emerge.

And rather than try to kick-start them into activity, I shall just lapse into silence now and leave you with whichever random recent photo takes my fancy:

cranes in central London, near the British Museum

and with this from my latest music discovery, Bat for Lashes, who I think is just FANTASTIC:

TEN

10 p.m.

10 a.m.

10 24/7

"Ten" thanks to  Theme Thursday

lithops

Reya asked for a picture of my new computer, so here it is, but it did occur to me that it looks scarcely very different from the old computer which has appeared here before, in situ.  A bit shinier maybe, cleaner and brighter.  And a far superior keyboard which will no longer hoard toast crumbs and general spong.

Otherwise, much the same, at least on the outside ...

But next to my new computer is a new plant which I'm also rather pleased about.

 

I remember a college friend having one/some of these, I was fascinated at the time. They are called lithops - literally "stone-like" - and they really are like little pebbles.  Also rather like little brains or aliens.

I found and bought this one with another London blogger at a delightful nursery in North London, where we didn't find lunch but we did find lithops.

And see how many different kinds and colours there are:

image from here

(and when did amazon start selling plants??)

(i'd have ordered one of these if they weren't out of stock...)

image from here

It will hopefully flower in the autumn or winter.

Whilst googling to learn more about lithops, I found this blog.  Isn't that wreath extraordinary?  I also love succulents and have quite a few varieties in the garden (and some indoors) though my succulents are not as succulent as her succulents. 

But I do have a hanging basket filled with them which is coming along quite nicely, it is a sort of tribute to Barcelona after a wonderful weekend there some years ago when I admired the cascades of houseleeks trailing tumbling and dangling from the balconies.

Given the choice of computer or lithops I would indeed choose the computer.  To say otherwise would be just silly talk.

But I am happy to have both.

Springing

back into bloglife

with a bright shiny new computer which is mine.

(for the first time ever in my life. And as a 3rd child I grew up used to hand-me-downs and I have a great affection and respect for second-hand-ness. 

But I love having a brand new bright shiny computer all for me.)

(and for LG whenever she is here and I am not)

(And Logan [kitten] sees my computer chair quite definitely as his)

(along with any random pens, paperclips or small chase-able things)

The garden is also springing, despite the miserable chillyness of this end of the week.

I am springily delighted to report that there is frogspawn in my little frog pool, despite lack of frogspawn last spring. 

I inadvertently chanced upon some frogs in the pool at the weekend, engaged in .... froggy activity....

Frogporn, as LG put it. 

Duly followed by a large splodge of frogspawn.

I  will be posting regular reports and pictures as the frogspawn develops into little wiggly things.

Which before too long, I hope, will be little springy sprongy things.

break

Regents Park tube station, London


Well this has now become a proper blog break, though I'm intending it will be only brief.

In addition to "life" pre-occupations and a week-long visit of the in-laws, my computer has finally given up the ghost and refuses to respond to any kind of coaxing.

Feeling more than a little monetarily reckless and irresponsible - given our uncertain employment future - we have nonetheless ordered a new one for me. Computers have become so central to both our work and other important aspects of life....

....

... justifications over...


I'm just looking forward to its arrival, and I fully intend to return to full and proper blogging once it is in place and all set up.

stair-cat

The stairs are quite tall and steep, for such a little cat, so sometimes he stops part-way down for a rest.




Sometimes he sits like this for some time.


He notices the dust and thinks that it would be a more comfortable spot for sitting if the stairs were hoovered more frequently.




Thursday Theme: animals


Disclaimer: I'm on a semi-blog break, not much visiting your blogs or visiting and not commenting much... bear with me. I hope to be a more interactive blogger again some time.

More Springlike. No sitting.

Greenwich Park


Brighter and warmer than the previous, but still not great for sitting.






Disclaimer: I'm on a semi-blog break, not much visiting your blogs or visiting and not commenting much... bear with me. I hope to be a more interactive blogger again some time.

Spring

Blackheath

Parts of the UK have had heavy snow again in the past week.
Not in London.

But I have enough pictures of February's snow to last for some time to come ...










4 pictures in Greenwich Park




Disclaimer: I'm on a semi-blog break, not much visiting your blogs or visiting and not commenting much... bear with me. I hope to be a more interactive blogger again some time.

Part of the Royal Naval College in Greenwich, designed by Christopher Wren, completed in 1752.

Glimpses of sunlight and left-over snow (same day as picture on previous post).
Where I work. Some of the time. And for the time being.

Site of a lot of filming, including Stage Beauty, Wolf Man and The Duchess.

So there.




Disclaimer: I'm on a semi-blog break, not much visiting your blogs or visiting and not commenting much... bear with me. I hope to be a more interactive blogger again some time.

blog break lapse mute maybe...

Snowman corpses in Greenwich Park last month, looking up from the Maritime Museum up to the Royal Observatory.



Well.

I've been musing about whether or not to continue blogging having felt.... distanced... distracted.... muse-less... and largely wordless as well.


Each time I begin mentally to write a post saying something to that effect, I find myself becoming verbosely wordy. In my head.

Hah.

"know thyself"



And just look at this ridiculous blog title which is just as it fell out of my head.
Once I sit and begin to type, the words are clamouring in my head to get out here. But I'm not at all convinced they are words worth putting on a page.


Well, I really don't want to witter on here with too many words.
But I don't want to stop blogging by default rather than by decision.

And I'm not sure I really want to stop blogging anyway.



So.... what then?

Well, firstly, I do apologise that I'm not getting around to your blogs very much at the moment. And when I do sometimes visit, I am wordless and not commenting...

And secondly, I plan to post much more frequently, but primarily picture posts.


Unless I find myself thinking of words.
Words which aren't woeful... or witless...
... or too wordy.



Hows that for a plan?

My band's first album

This is a fun little 'thing' which is going around Facebook and which I thought some of you might enjoy.

According to the rules, this is my band's first album:








Ironic, n'est ce pas?




And heres how you find out yours:


1 - BAND NAME Go to "wikipedia." Hit “random article” or click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random

The first random wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.

2 - ALBUM TITLE Go to "Random quotations"
or click http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3

The last four or five words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.

3 - COVER ART Go to flickr and click on “explore the last seven days”
or click http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days

Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

4 - Use photoshop or similar to put it all together.

5 - Post it to FB with this text in the "caption" and TAG the friends you want to join in. (be sure to tag me, so I can see your creation)




(my album cover from: http://www.flickr.com/photos/27665395@N05/3309241063/)

frivolity

Frivolous post as promised in the context of the penultimate and complaining post.

What better encouragement in frivolity than a kitten?

Anything can be a toy :

from bits of used sellotape to feet to dustbunnies
from purloined socks to rubber bands, plants to stairs
from a seemingly innocent and motionless but obviously suspect pencil to chunks of old plaster.

I'm not sure where he finds the latter, I suppose I should be worried about the state of the walls or ceilings somewhere in the house...


Sleeping is serious of course.



Sleeping and eating are most serious.



But everything else is fun and interesting.

Library

I had interesting ideas about what to do and post for this Thursday's Theme, but I ran out of time and steam.

But this is a photo of the old British Library reading room, which used to be at the British Museum. I spent some time studying there during a year's temping in London, when I was preparing to become a postgraduate student. How I wish now that I could go back and take photos of the stereotypically eccentric and often creaky old gents who used to study there. I always felt self-conscious not only for being so young, but also for being female. Significantly in the minority on both counts.

I remember wearing dungarees and probably looked about 15.

Sometimes there would be a long wait while the little old men (as I remember them...) brought the books you'd requested up from the stacks, and delivered them on trolleys to your desk.

I expect its changed quite a bit now, and not only because of its new location near Kings Cross.


And here are some library pictures from New York:














First photo found here (where there are some other fab. library pictures) and on other websites, but I couldn't find an attribution for this one. There are some similar (possibly better) here.

Other photos - NYC public library, taken by me, July/August 2008.

complaining

...about complaining

(don't worry, neither long nor a rant)
(at least, thats my intention)

First instance of national complaining
Apparently there were 15,000 phone calls to emergency services during the unexpected and atypical snow here in the UK -

15,000 calls from people complaining about snow ball throwing.



In the face of this statistic*, I find myself without the words - or even, indeed, the will - to make any further comment.




Proud to be British?
meh




Second instance of "national" complaining:
Some of the bosses / ex-bosses from major banks were in Parliament this week, and all over the news and papers, apologising for their part in the crash.

They also proffered the information (presumably in their defence) - is it too much to call this a complaint? - that they too had suffered losses of £££millions.

Again, I find myself almost beyond making any further comment.


Almost.

These losses are through bonuses taken primarily in shares.
Bonuses given, of course, on top of £££million salaries.

We the British public are, also of course, complaining about this.
I have no confidence that our complaints will be heard by those who "matter".


After Obama's cap on the salaries of bosses of US bailed-out banks, our bank bosses have apparently been scrabbling frantically around to get out bonuses for the current year before the various loop holes which allow for this are closed.


Despite their currently huge salaries.
Despite the recession.
Despite the loss of savings and pension affecting ordinary people on low incomes.
Despite the £££billions of public money recently put into saving their banks.


Despite...despite...spite...spitefully...spitting...sorry, mustn't rant.


Will Gordon Brown might follow Obama's example?
I have no such hope.



Complaint over. I hope this was neither too long nor too ranty.

My next post will be much more frivolous.



In the context of thinking about this, I loved and thought most brilliant this cartoon by Martin Rowson from last week's Guardian:





Cartoon: Martin Rowson, The Guardian Saturday 7/02/2009
* source of information: Marina Hyde in The Guardian Saturday 7/02/2009

Fish

I was a bit flummoxed for photographs for today's theme, until I remembered my last trip to the London Aquarium - some years ago, near the beginning of my snappy habit.

I'm restraining myself to only 2 pictures (in fact, I think I did a blog post about it at the time).

There were some weird and wonderful and disturbing fish there.
But these are among my favourites.



Who would have thought that fish could be comforting?
... especially jellyfish.

But I find these so appealing - their beauty and implacability and... just plain weirdness... as they drift serenely through the blue blueness.




And whoever would have thought to call a music group Jellyfish?

but I like them
and I like this one


and I do do do wanna stay home

and drift serenely...

the white stuff

It seems that some of you heard about our recent weather, even from across the Atlantic.




No doubt parts of the UK (the North and Scotland) were sniggering about the fuss we southerners made, being themselves quite used to such degrees of whiteness. And some of you reading this from other parts of the world would find 8 inches of snow nothing to write home about. Or write blog posts about. But it was snow in unusual quantities for us, especially in London. So please bear with me - it was exciting! we had fun!



LG set off for school, feeling very hard done by and with a note explaining why she was wearing non-school-uniform trainers, but was back home before very long as there was no public transport and walking would have been quite an unpredictable trek.

The school sent an All Parents text around some time close to 2 pm announcing school closure (tch!) by which time we'd been out trudging, crunching, photographing, wondering, wandering, fighting, throwing and generally playing around with the lovely stuff. And, in between times, sitting in front of a roaring fire.


Classes at University were also cancelled for 2 days and so, as a friend put it, it was like a surprise holiday somewhere different.

Somewhere better, with much more beauty, fun, mucking about and damp clothing drying on the radiators.










Monday was full of heavy whiteness and the sky was thick with snow all day.




Tuesday was clear and bright, the sun casting exquisitely blue-white shadows on the still-crunchy sparkling snow.




Our garden still has a few patches of snow and ice, but the forecast of "heavy snow" again for tomorrow has now sadly changed to a prediction of "sleet". Won't that be nice?


I'm still in the process of sorting through the many photos I took, but heres a selection:

headless

Poor nymph, her head seems to be long gone and she sits patiently sightless, deaf and dumb in Crystal Palace Park, South London - on the site of the original Crystal Palace itself.


A statue rather to match my mood at the moment,

but I really don't want to be a miserable blogger, so here is another statue of a less gloomy kind:



Not only headless but armless too, but she looks as though she could be having a bit more fun than poor nymph...




This is a Thursday Theme post - details here.


1. Headless nymph, in Crystal Palace Park, South London
2. "Mankind" by Eric Gill, in the Victoria & Albert museum.

work pants

I feel the need to vent a bit and may or may not publish this...

All work-related.

Work is pants.

So much in my life has grown and improved over recent years, but work steadily becomes more and more difficult and stressful.

We have a fairly new manager who was, no doubt, brought in with a mandate to be ruthless, to cut back, shake up, make hard decisions, get us into leaner meaner shape.

(after all, isn't that what education is about? being lean and mean...?)

She seems to be following a slash and burn policy, bludgeoning through controversial changes with little (or no) consultation, with too little time to allow for thought or reaction and with no sign of concern for the wellbeing of her staff i.e. us.

Everyone in my section of the institution is stressed, confused, anxious, angry, feeling powerless, undervalued, unable to make even minor predictions about the near future and fatigued. What constitutes a "normal" workload seems to have doubled over night. A low-level but persistent air of panic and paranoia lurks in the corridors.

Good management, huh?

When I'm in the classroom and/or with students I am happy, I love my work. My classes are going well, a lot of students are enthusiastic, engaged, learning... My job is worthwhile and I know I am good at it.

As soon as I begin the walk across to my office, I'm back down into the grim and uncertain reality. The total pants-ness of it all.

I wish I was in a different job.
I wish I was 10 years older and could think about - and possibly afford - early retirement.

And I do not wish to be wishing these things.

Oh for a job - even a boring job, a difficult job - where I could do my hours, shut the door to leave and go home with no work-related thoughts or responsibility in my head.



Its not easy, amidst all this, to keep a balance, to remember to breathe. On the whole I'm not doing too badly, though its hard to keep my mind from constantly returning to it, but I am angry, despondent and very weary of it all.

I see my Mission, for the weeks and months ahead, should I choose to accept it, as a mission to be as preoccupied as possible with Living Life.

I'm a tasks-oriented kind of person.
If I can focus on family, friends, textiles projects, decorating the dining room (begun last.... um.... June...), getting back to swimmingyogacyclingwalking, photography, blogging, gardening as the weather gets better

then

maybe

work pants will have less power to discomfit and I'll be better able to take them off at the end of the day and just leave them

on the floor

under a chair


maybe logan will even carry them off and hide them?

Sorry for the rant.

Here is a picture of the lovely Logan who certainly wouldn't let work pants - or any kind of pants - discomfit him.