1. The Sid Love Blog - where getting what you want isn't always the best thing ... 16 people have already entered this one, and I'd love to get to 20!
2. The Booklikes giveaway - which is proving surprisingly popular. 17 people have already requested a copy (3 are available). I wonder if I can reach 25? You never know ...
In other news, I've decided to try to focus on a little more poetry again, after having written nothing for about a year or so. Here is a selection, only one of which is new:
Leaves
The crunch under my boot,
remnants of a faraway summer
golden, brown and crimson
already disappearing
as I kick my way along
in this autumn chill.
Crackle and drag
of blistered sound
while I walk towards winter
is as addictive to my feet
as bubble wrap to my fingers:
deliciously futile thrill.
Returning
The silence has wrapped me
so long that I forgot
how to make words
dance in the sky
and all I’m left with
is the certain faith
that once I knew
how to fly.
Scarlet Joy
The rose I find
written in red
beneath the lattice
knows its own glory
and radiates the strength
of this dying sun
into a different life,
another story.
TV Heaven
Sunday nights
are for murder,
something cosy
with a hint of spice
to get your teeth into,
not gory enough to put you off
your cocoa and cake
but with enough blood
and interesting corpses
to give a certain zest
to the cheese and biscuits.
It’s an essential bridge
from the deep deep peace of the weekend
to the frantic hurly-burly
of the working week
so sit down, switch on
and don’t speak.
Life News:
A lovely surprise when I returned to work on Monday after a week away to find that my former colleagues in Student Services had bought me a gift of flowers and chocolates to say thank you for my nine years in their team. I was really touched! Many thanks indeed to all of you - the chocolates were lovely, and the flowers look beautiful and are lasting well. On to my new life in the Registry now, which certainly looks set to be an interesting experience - in the best possible sense, of course.
In the garden, we harvested our first home-grown apple, a James Grieve - and it was really tasty. English apples are indeed the best in the world, and I speak as an apple farmer's daughter, so I know it's true. As it's a very small baby tree, there are only 2 more apples left on it, but K and I are looking forward to finishing the harvest soon. It's quality, not quantity, after all ...
Not only that, but last year's hibiscus which didn't flower has now decided to grace us with its glorious presence. And the Harlow Carr roses are having a second autumnal flush. As it were.
Yesterday's cake was Coffee Cake, and I used up the last of the Smarties as the decoration - it's a rather tasty combination, I must admit.
K and I visited the lovely Hinton Ampner yesterday - where the dahlias look stunning - and picked up some more shade plants and autumn bedding (pansies and violas) as we were out. We also restocked on the essential compost as we were running frighteningly low, yikes. Not a good position to be in as garden lovers, believe me.
Today, I'm taking it easy as yesterday was a rather rough night (women's problems - no, don't ask ...) - so I hope to drift around all day with my smelling salts. Hey ho.
Have a great Sunday.
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