Midweek Ramble

Oh I do hate to start banging on about the weather, but it really has been cold and dreary again. Four or five days in a row of dreariness is just a bit much. I have a memory of a warm and sunny spring when AP and I pulled our living room rug out onto the patio and set up a table and chairs outside and we spent the whole day out there in the sunshine. I have photos of it somewhere. I know we used to have proper spring weather!

I had to work in the gallery again and I needed a book to read and so on my out the door I grabbed a book off our bookshelf that I read about three years ago and I’m enjoying it all over again:   French Spirits by Jeffrey Greene.  It’s a memoir of life in a French village while renovating an old house. Just as I re-read that sentence I know that it sounds lackluster, but the book is beautifully written. I am instantly transported as soon as I start reading and it has some laugh-out-loud moments, too.

I hope, wherever you are, you are enjoying some sunshine and good books.  Feel free to tell me about it!

But Sometimes I Just Can’t Help Myself…

The following is an email exchange between our MP, Jeremy Hunt and me, wherein he explains the government’s position on austerity and I explain mine.

Thank you for your email concerning the Government’s austerity measures. I appreciate your concern. However, this Government inherited the highest structural budget deficit of any major economy in the world and the highest deficit in our peacetime history. Action must be taken to tackle this problem, which is why the Coalition’s Programme for Government set out that deficit reduction, and ensuring economic recovery, is the most urgent issue facing Britain.

The OECD, CBI and every business organisation in Britain believe the Government has the right plan. Furthermore, the Government’s plan is working. We have cut the deficit by a third in just three years. The private sector has created more than a 1.25 million new jobs since the election and we have seen the fastest rate of new business creation for decades.

More spending would mean more borrowing and the markets would lose confidence in our ability to pay our debts and would see our interest rates spiral. We would end up like Greece. Under Labour, this country borrowed its way into trouble and now we are going to earn our way out. At a time of such global instability, it would be reckless to continue to live well beyond our means, accumulating ever more debt. Increasing borrowing would add to our debt and see our economic recovery put at risk.

I appreciate that this may not be the response you were hoping for, but I hope that this information clarifies the Government’s position.

Best wishes

Jeremy Hunt
.
Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt MP
Member of Parliament for South West Surrey

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Dear Mr. Hunt,

Thank you for your response to my email concerning failed austerity measures here in the UK.

The UK was a part of a global economic crisis brought on by wide scale fraud of the banking industry, largely assisted by  lax or non existent government regulations.   The UK inherited “the largest debt” because we have the largest banking sector, largely enabled by the Tories.   Sadly, banking regulations remain lax and banks are continuing to commit acts of fraud.

The financial crisis was not specifically brought about by the Labour party, however, I can’t condone their policies either since they are so much like Tory policies that there is scarcely a difference when it comes to protecting the corporate elite.

At the moment the UK is printing money and giving it to the banks.  Why not invest this money in the people by creating jobs, improving education and healthcare and sustainable energy policies?  An educated and healthy population is a much better investment than insolvent banks.  Yet, the financial industry continues to prosper while the working people of Britain continue to suffer from low wages, no wages and the rising cost of living.

Finally, let me just end this correspondence by stating that austerity is nothing more than an opportunity for the conservatives both here and abroad to finally enact their long-time agenda of slashing and cutting every social program possible and to privatize as much as possible, thus lining the pockets of the corporate class and most wealthy in the society.

As your constituent and as someone who is active in the community, I feel that it is important that I voice my concerns to you and let you know how immoral  and cruel I feel the austerity measures have been to the people of this country.

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 I wonder how these people look at themselves in the mirror.  

One Friday Tidbit

My friend, Sofia, came for a visit yesterday. We spent the whole day together which meant that I had to be on my toes from 9 ’til 5. Sofia is an easy going toddler…but she IS a toddler of the 2.5 nearly 3 year old range. I am most definitely not an expert in children but I do know that this is the age when they want to be in control. Like teenagers, they need to find out who they are and they do this by challenging adults and trying to manage their world.

“I wanna do it!” is a favorite sentence when you’re trying to tie shoes or put on their coat.

Yesterday, at the very end of the day when I was absolutely knackered, Sofia asked, “will you play wif me?” We had already put together our puzzle, done some ipad games, went to the park, played a board game, and read a book.

Then I remembered that we still had a big box of lego from when the boys were little and so I dug the box out from under the bed and brought it downstairs. They were dusty, though, and so I got a wet cloth and set about washing them.

“I WANNA DO IT!!!!” the little one screamed.

“Have at it, girlie!” I said and gave her the cloth. She spent the next 30 minutes washing each lego and she was very pleased with herself, indeed. I think she felt that she had triumphed over the adult and mastered the situation.

I just smiled.  And drank a cup of coffee.

Rainy Day Ramblings and Things

Oh it’s a drizzly grey old day. Pickles is giving me the stink-eye because she wants me to take her outside and, because she glances at the dog treat cupboard in between stink eye looks, I know that she’d like a biscuit as well. Trust me, she will get both before the sun sets this evening.

I’ve been busy in the workshop! I’ve had a few orders to fill and the student show is this week so I’ve been out in the shed every day for the past week, cutting, hammering and soldering metal. It’s slow going and sometimes I am friends with the metal and sometimes I’m not. Sometimes I have to put down all of my tools and leave it for awhile so that we both can cool off. Then I return to the shed, rested and ready to make amends.

Today I had to work in the gallery as part of the student program. I quickly took these photos with my iphone before leaving.

Happy Tuesday.

Mother’s Day USA

This is a photo of my mom when she was only 17 years old.

She married my dad at that young age. Can you imagine?!

And would you look at this photo of them! I was sorting out old pictures when I was visiting my mom after my dad had died. It’s so strange to see them as the young lovers that they were. My aunts told me that my dad was so in love with my mother that he walked around for days, all moon-eyed and swooning.

My mom is 83 years old and life is not so easy for her. She is extremely stubborn and independent and it’s hard for her to ask for help. Sometimes this gets her into predicaments which cause my sisters and I to implore her to use her cane and not go down the basement stairs.

I worry about her every day and I so admire her determination to deal with all the crazy blows that life sends her way. She doesn’t complain…never demands…she just does what she can each day and has gratitude. In other words…she’s a “glass half full” kind of person. And aside from going up and down the basement stairs, she’s pretty sensible, too!

Happy Mother’s Day mom.

Another Creative Soul…

I first met Sandy Binion when spending a long weekend with my friend, Carol. Carol lives on a lake in northern New Jersey and we were up early one morning, sitting on the dock in our pajamas and drinking coffee. We also had a pair of binoculars because Carol was showing me her neighbor’s houses some of the natural wildlife in the surrounding environment.

“Oh look – Sandy’s out landscaping again…” said Carol as she handed me the binoculars.

Sure ’nuff. I saw a woman in her overalls and boots, picking up rocks and moving bags of sand around her front garden. When she saw Carol and me out on the dock, she jumped in her little rowboat and rowed over to us. And so I was introduced to Sandy. We spent the morning chatting – Carol and I in our pajamas and Sandy in her work clothes with her feet propped up on the side of the boat.

Sandy is an artist. She wears many hats and wears all of them very well. She is in theatre, can sing beautifully, and has energy from I-don’t-know-where. She works in the costume department for various Broadway productions and helps put the wardrobes together for Broadway shows. As noted above, Sandy also landscapes her own garden and has a gorgeous, gorgeous home on the lake that she has carefully decorated with that artists’ eye. I fell in love with her home when I first saw it.

And let me tell you something.

It wasn’t her house that made me jealous. It wasn’t the fact that she has worked with some very high profile Broadway stars that really got to me. There was a twinge of jealousy when she met and had her photo taken with Bruce Springsteen. Oh yes. That stung.

But what really got to me was when she decided to learn silver smithing and then unveiled her beautifully crafted silver and stone jewelry.   I wanted to stand up, close the macbook, walk out to my shed with my automatic fire lighter and set my whole workshop on fire.  But I didn’t.

And I love ya, Sandy.  We’ll have to catch up the next time I’m at the lake and you can give me some tips on bezel forming and stone setting.

Chez Sampo

My friends, Richard and Viki, are two of the most talented people I know.  They are the kind of people who lay their desires at the door of the universe,  and then sit down and figure out how to make their dreams come true.  And they do not seem to know the words “I can’t” or “it’s impossible”.

They are both musicians who write, produce and perform their own music.  

They bought an old barn with dirt floors and only three walls — but they had vision.  Oh yes.  They knew that there was another purpose for those  stone walls and timber beams.  They worked tirelessly for a year.  I saw photos of them both with plaster dust and big smiles on their faces, standing on scaffolding, holding chainsaws and hammers.

And when it was complete, we just stood in amazement at the beautiful job that they had done on this house…almost all of it with their own two hands.

Viki  has made the soft furnishings for her home — plus a little dress for herself.  The dress was designed by her.   She said that, outside of a few hiccups,  it was simple.  She has always admired fabrics and designs and so about four months ago she sat down and taught herself how to sew.  See? Easy.

Attached to their home is a guest house and retreat, also rebuilt and renovated by Richard and Viki.  My friend, Tess, and I stayed there this weekend and it was just  about the most perfect place for a holiday that I could imagine.  The integrity of the ancient building was maintained with ceiling beams and fireplaces — and each guest room had its own en suite facility.  Amazing.

Tess and I did the Thelma and Louise thing during the day. We rented a car and drove to the beach…we walked arm-in-arm in the coastal towns and found places to shop and eat. In the evenings we went back to the guest house and put our feet up and watched the sun go down over Viki’s back garden.  We could see her out there, lovingly planting and weeding while Jour J, the cat, patted back and forth, snoopervising the whole operation.  It made me smile.

So if you want some rest, relaxation and inspiration, I highly recommend Chez Sampo.  A big hat-tip to R & V.

French Cats and Macaroons

First things first. Meet  Mimilli and Jour J.  They live here in France with my friends, Richard and Viki.   Are they not adorable? Mimilli  reminds me of Henri, the existentialist cat,and I’ve been told that he can be a little naughty and cannot be fully trusted. This is why, here at chez Sampo, you may see Mimilli saunter out of a room followed by a torrent of French words uttered by Viki. He merely swishes his tail, puts his ears back and pays her no mind what-so-ever.

Jour J is just here on earth to be beautiful and utterly sweet in nature.

Next let me introduce you to the macaroon:

I’m a little embarrassed to say that I’ve not had one until yesterday. They are melt-in-your-mouth divine.  This is not the best photo, I know, but no photo could capture the deliciousness of these little sweet things.

There is more to tell but I will save that for another time and another day.

Viva la Difference

AP is a proud British national.  If you come to England, he will gladly show you around this tiny isle and he’s well versed in factoids of history and geography so that he could easily compete with any tour guide.

He loves the English countryside and village life.  He is very proud of Wimbledon, the BBC and the NHS.  And he loves the character of the British people:  Reserved, self effacing, creative, and upbeat in the face of disaster.

And so you will understand AP’s shock and dare-I-say pain when he heard me tell my cousin that the best thing about living in England was that it is close to France.

“WHA?!  Wha?!”  he stammered.  ”I cannot Be-lieve you said that!”

It’s not that I don’t appreciate England.  One time I got teary when I saw the rocky coast of Devon.

But France is all like:

Plus they speak French. And cook with butter.
And in parts of the country they close up their shops at mid-day and go home to have a long lunch and a nap.

I am very happy there.

And guess where I’m going tomorrow?

 

The Week Begins –

Have you ever been so tired that you just want to flop down on your bed and stare at the ceiling and never get up?

That’s how tired I am today.

My belle-mère is visiting us and we have been hitting every flea market and antique shop in the area.

My legs.

My back.

It will be an early evening.  Big pajamas and fuzzy slippers will go on just after dinner.  Rockyann will be in bed by 9.