A Place of Interest in England

The current Hereford Cathedral, located at Hereford in England, dates from 1079. The cathedral is dedicated to two patron saints, namely Saint Mary the Virgin and Saint Ethelbert the King. The latter was beheaded by Offa, King of Mercia in the year 792. Offa had consented to give his daughter to Ethelbert in marriage: why he changed his mind and deprived him of his head historians do not know. The execution, or murder, is said to have taken place at Sutton, four miles (6 km) from Hereford, with Ethelbert's body brought to the site of the modern cathedral by 'a pious monk.

Nostalgia

Nostalgia is part of leaving the old year and entering the new.
We look back on the special family times–Thanksgiving and Christmas, a graduation in St. Louis, Mother’s Day with a daughter’s family, our England trip and spending time with the family there.
Most of the year 2008 was filled with what I call an adventure in the unusual. In January a close family member told me about a place called Etsy, which is a place to buy and sell all things handmade. By the end of the month I became a member. I opened my shop called "milarks’ Creative Connections" with a few of my handmade articles and began creating in earnest after that. Sewing, quilting, knitting and crocheting took on new meaning because it was something I could share. Digging out some Vintage items served a double purpose–emptying shelves and drawers as well as finding someone with a new appreciation for those things. How rewarding has been all the friendships that have developed through being part of Etsy.
Then the Larky Lady’s blog was created. What fun to tell about our various endeavors with plants and growing things. What fun to share pictures of our England trips. What fun to include the awesome pictures EG took of the pelicans and their extended stay on a nearby lake. What fun to include submitted recipes by friends and family. Yes, all that has been fun. Not so, telling about the tragedy of a tornado or a flood, or two little girls with serious illnesses.
So the year was filled with memories to cherish. Rumblings about what’s in store for 2009 make us uncomfortable. We may choose to look at the bleak picture of our future, or we may trust our faith. The choice is ours, isn’t it?
Warmest of wishes to all my blog readers.

Statue of Another Lady & The Bard's Birthplace

Promised Pictures

Here are two pictures taken in Banbury, England. (See previous article for story.)

Banbury Cross Statue and Lady on a White Horse Statue.

Actually the Lady is on a horse, but it isn't white.

A little humor though--notice how I caught her with a chimney on the top of her head.

December

To the cold December heaven
Came the pale Moon and the stars,
As the yellow Sun was sinking
Behind the purple bars.–
Charles Dawson Shanly, Canadian poet, 1811–75

Yes, December is cold and already snowy. We had 5 inches over the week-end and more predicted for Wednesday.

The Old Farmers' Almanac tells about this special event--

Sky Watch
The planets and the Moon are putting on a show! For a few nights, brilliant Venus, bright Jupiter, and the crescent Moon blaze in a striking conjunction. They first formed their brilliant triangle last night, 15 degrees high, in the southwestern sky. The three celestial objectives will continue to stay close together as seen from Earth even though the planets are millions of miles away.

Happy Thanksgiving

So many things to be thankful for--
Faith
Family
Friends
Freedom
Food
Health
Happiness
Home
Church
Community
Comforts
Neighbors
This certainly isn't everything, but what I could think of right now.
Do you have some you could add to the list?

Banbury Cross

Do you remember the nursery rhyme?
Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross
To see a fine lady upon a white horse
Rings on her fingers and bells on her toes
She shall have music wherever she goes.
We drove to Banbury one day where we saw the two statues -- one of Banbury Cross and the other of the lady on the horse.
The words of the Banbury Cross nursery rhyme are often attributed to the "fine lady" Elizabeth I of England. One day she travelled to Banbury to see a huge stone cross which had just been erected at the top of a steep hill. When the Queen's carriage started up the hill a wheel broke and the Queen chose to ride the cock horse to the Banbury Cross. The people of the town had decorated the horse and the Queen was attired in her fine jewellery, as well as shoes with pointed toes. The fashion of the day was to attach bells on the toes of those shoes.
Thus the nursery rhyme. The original cross of the rhyme was demolished in 1610.

Obama Victory Brought Euphoria In Britain

Election of the new president in America elicited such excitement in England that radio commentators were euphoric. Words such as "amazing performance, historic event, massive effect, high expectations" were common terms. He "hits the ground running, has enormous prestige, second coming." He's "the people's president, change has come, just believe." One reporter even joked, "now the weather will be better." On a Sunday morning radio program they talked about Obama's message of Hope. A newspaper cartoon had a sign by the White House, "Please don't walk on the water!" On the radio they were calling in and singing songs about Obama. "Barack Kareoke" "Obama Mia, Yes We Can."
Newspapers on the news stands had Obama front page headlines for three days with photos of him and his family. Headlines, such as -- "Whole World is Galvanized." "Obama Mania Across the World." "World Looking to Obama to Solve Problems." "Obarmy Army." "As Obama Gets Elected, the Earth Moves." "Obama Factor Boosts Tourism in America."
This has been very interesting experiencing this frenzy. We were in a shop one day and in conversation with the clerk, after she knew we were from America, she mentioned the election and wondered if I was sorry to be here and miss that. "Oh," I said. "Absolutely not. I really enjoyed being in this country and seeing what happened here with our election in America.
We never would have known any of this if we were home."

Remembrance Sunday in Great Britain

Standing outside by the Redditch War Memorial on a cold, windy Sunday, we took part in the Remembrance Sunday Observance, which is held every year on the Sunday before Armistice Day. It included the wreath laying ceremony, which was preceded by the Two-Minute Silence Observance signalled by the bugler. The wreath ceremony was led by the mayor of the town of Redditch.
Following the ceremony we attended services at nearby St. Stephen's Church. This was a continuation of remembering the war veterans and ended by singing "God Save the Queen," Britain's National Anthem.

Election Day & Guy Fawkes Day

Today, November 4, is Election Day in America. In England it's the day the early 1600s when a conspiracy to destroy the English Houses of Parliament was discovered. Through means of a tunnel 36 barrels of gunpowder were stored in a vault below that House by a group protesting the suppression of the Roman Catholics. After receiving a tip from one of the conspirators, a search was made of the vault where they found the gunpowder and a Catholic Englishman, named Guy Fawkes, who was commissioned to set off the explosives. He was arrested, tortured and later hanged. Today the plot is celebrated as Guy Fawkes Day and the explosion is commemorated by fireworks on November 5. So tomorrow night we will be hearing a lot of "booms" and "bangs" and will see the skyline bright with fireworks.

Yes, England, We're Here!

I don't think England got the message that we were coming. We were greeted with rain the first few days. Then guess what happened! We got snow. A good layer fell last night and it's cold! The forecast is for more cold days ahead. The really bad part is that my Iowa family writes that they are having sixty and seventy degree days! Is that fair?

The other not so nice item--we went to Birmingham mall one day. You would have thought it was the day before Christmas there were so many people! Every aisle was packed. Part of the reason was that there is no school here this week, so many of those were students.

These are just observations, not complaints!! The flight was just fine; everything on time and it was even shorter than scheduled. And we've been spending time with family. All good!

England, Here We Come! Plus Other Bits and Pieces

Next Monday, October 20th we are leaving for England and will be there for four weeks. I will have limited access to a computer, but I hope to make a blog entry a time or two while we are there.
I did my voting last week, absentee. We won’t get to follow the excitement of hearing voting results like we would if we were here, and maybe that’s just as well!! But we will get some information from the BBC. And hint–maybe I will get some emails about what happened.
We had a flock of birds swoop in and feed on the berries in the crab apple tree the other morning. I tried to see what kind of birds they were, but they flitted so much I couldn’t see, and then they were gone. They must have stopped over for brunch and the leader said, "That’s enough, guys. Time to go!"
I had thought at first they might be Cedar Waxwings, because a flock of them usually makes a visit once a year. But I couldn’t see them closely enough. They are so cute with the little tufts on top of their heads.
We did see some Blue Jays, Cardinals and a Downy Woodpecker eyeing the feeder the other day after EG uncovered it. It was completely covered again this summer with morning glories. That adds a pretty touch to all the other flowers around the deck and to the pots full of blues, reds, yellows and pinks on the deck. Now before we leave, the pots will be moved to the garage hoping some plants will winter over and the greenhouse will be taken down.
Summer ends. Winter looms.

A Hint For Etsy Sellers

When I read that an Etsy Seller had "cream tea" as part of her name, it made me take real notice, because as I wrote sometime before, that was a yummy dessert I had on our first trip to England. So I wrote to her commenting about that English treat.
Just before that I read on one of the threads a remark about the importance of showing shipping charges for other countries. Since she was from the UK, I thought she would be a good one to ask about it. I have had many times that God has sent someone into my life at such an appropriate time. She did have an opinion on this topic, I thought, from which all sellers could all profit. I have tried to make International buyers welcome by asking them to write for shipping charges.
Here is the gist of her comments.
"As a buyer I never write and ask about posting charges unless it is something I desperately want and cannot get anywhere else. This has happened once in the 3 years I have been selling and buying on Etsy.It is all about impulse buying and in a site such as Etsy, with such competition it is essential to grab the buyers and make the process as easy as possible. Plus on an international site it can lead to delays in answering convos (conversations) because of the time difference. Therefore a loss of sale if they have bought elsewhere in the gap.
Plus another point...if you only list shipping charges for your country, it may be perceived that the other countries aren’t seen as being important. You don’t even want to hint at that."
I know I am going to try to add some international shipping charges to my listings. Maybe this will help you, too.

Here It Is!

The mystery plant opened to a beautiful white blossom. Don told us what it is--datura innoxia. We looked up more information and found all parts of it are poisonious, but this very white blossom is so pretty. The mystery of how it got into the pot of soil has not been solved. And yes, slight pressure on the leaves does give the smell of peanut butter.

Another Plant Mystery

At least we knew where the first mystery plant came from, but this one is a complete mystery. That one was from a packet of Forget-Me-Not seed. But this one , we have no idea.
I had decided I needed to start some rosemary cuttings one day this summer. So I got the pot ready for them, filled it with soil from the bag that had been used before for other plants and inserted the little cuttings.. After a few days, we noticed a lot of little plants coming up. We couldn’t understand where they came from and didn’t recognize what they were. We left them until they got too big and crowded the rosemary. So I transplanted several of them into individual pots. We had to keep some of them to find out what they were. Well, we still don’t know what they are, but they are different from anything we have had before.
So where did all those seeds come from? They were only in this one pot and so many of them. And what are they? Also interesting when we look at the five plants in the picture together, they are in all stages of growth before the bloom. I will add more pictures when the blossoms open.

Someone Special

Look what someone special did for me--

http://spottedcowsoaps.blogspot.com/2008/08/more-herbs-less-salt.html

After she purchased the first cookbook, she said she would be back for another. I had forgotten all about it; then one day there was the order for the second one.

So heartwarming to find these special people who enter our lives. I am truly blessed.

Garden Progress

Maybe there should be another title for this, because of how BIG some of the things are. We are quite shocked when we find each one.
Brandywine tomatoes are huge. We had one weigh 1 lb., another weighed 1 lb. 2 oz. and then we found the one pictured which weighed 1 lb. 8 oz. In the second picture you can see it in comparison to some also large sized tomatoes. Shown in the picture are a few Chocolate Drop tomatoes. They are like a cherry tomato, but are dark colored like chocolate. Very tasty. The small oval shaped ones are Baby Girl and very sweet.
Then there is the large cucumber. What can you say? It just grew big. We gave it to a friend who is into making relish.
EG has a large dahlia bed, of which he is really proud. He keeps me supplied with bouquets every day. But of this yellow one, he is especially proud. It measures 10 inches across! What a beauty! So enjoy looking. We’re happy to share with you.

Garden Beauties

These are some pictures we just took of things that are growing in our yard. First of all on the deck we see a beautiful canna. This was grown from the seed of Princess Di Canna, but it doesn't look like the parent plant. Then there's the lovely red hibiscus grown so tall with a profusion of huge blossoms. The last two pictures show one plant of Brandywine tomato with its twelve large fruits plus several small ones. Just beginning to ripen, a taste treat awaits us!

My Painting Experience

WhenI was asked me to write an article for the church newsletter about my painting hobby, I wondered what the best approach would be. Then the thought hit me that this hobby has led to many adventures. When I bought that first little box of oil paints so many years ago, I had no idea where the Lord was leading with that and how much enjoyment would come from it. It was always a thrill seeing what putting the paint on the canvas looked like, how adding a touch of another color would change the whole effect.
As time went by, I found I liked acrylics, too. Then I went to watercolors and pastels. Along the way I took advantage of a few different classes. One I enjoyed was given by a local artist who gave lessons in oil painting and pastels. The class excursion one of the days included painting buildings on a nearby abandoned farm.
Enjoyable was a watercolor class a friend and I went to in northern Minnesota given by a well-known watercolor artist, Ed Whitney. There we met another watercolorist and arranged for her to give a two-day watercolor workshop in our town to anyone interested.
Another interesting project. A friend read poetry while I did a painting with pastels. We gave the program several times for groups. Seeing the interest in the students when I demonstrated oil painting at the local Christian school one year, was rewarding. On the scene painting with friends through the years has also been enjoyed.
Some of the paintings were displayed in several area places and were hung for a time when our local vacant school had a Gallery. A few times some paintings were entered in various fairs. Quite a few were sold.
Then there were the murals. That all began when two of us mothers of students at that time began painting scenery for Proms and Homecomings. We did a total of five Proms and two Homecomings between 1980 and 1984, usually on pieces of cardboard eight feet tall and of various widths.
Stemming from that there was the request to paint murals in the Steamboat Rock school. Two others helped with that project. We painted smaller ones in the hallways, but two covered the two walls of the study hall. On one wall was the large rock formation along the Iowa River for which the town was named. The other wall was Tower Rock, the tall rock formation near the River, too. That was in 1983, and in 1984 we painted another postcard scene of the town’s old flour mill on the City Hall wall. All these murals are still there today.
Finally, all this culminated in being asked to paint a large mural on big cardboard pieces for Kiwanis of Eldora and that was 40 feet long.
Personal murals were one for my sister in St. Paul and two in my house
Sometime during these years I decided to do an oil painting of our two churches. I wasn’t satisfied with the painting of the new church so that was never finished. I decided now is the time to get the painting of our former church out of the closet and give it to the church.
It has been a long traveled road that brought much reward and enjoyment.

Lingering Aftereffects

Never to be forgotten is the devastating tornado that leveled a large section of the town of Parkersburg, Iowa on May 25 this year. A recent popular event was a fundraiser held by three graduates of the high school which was destroyed. Athletes Casey Wiegmann, Brad Meester and Jared DeVries (Aaron Kampman, planned to attend but was detained on a flight) who are all players in the NFL came back to help their former school and community. Attending the event was one Parkersburg resident in a wheelchair who cut in the long line of people waiting to get autographs. "I think I have bragging rights," he joked. "If people complain I just say, ‘Hey, did you have a house fall on you?’"

John initially wanted to skip his last Butler County Fair, even though he knew that the Fair officials had decided it should go on as planned. After all, his aunt was killed and his parents injured, as well as feeling the loss of their home and business. Also the twister had killed several head of cattle John planned to show at the fair. However, through the encouragement of friends and family he did show two of them. Four were suffering from severe injuries, and John turned his back when they were shot by the police.

An avid gardener Marian prefers working in her garden, but instead she has spent the better part of June tending her lawn, pulling a rake through the grass, periodically stooping to sift through glass, and other material. Nearby, her 12-year-old grandson, Logan, uses a magnetic bar on wheels to collect wayward nails.

After the tornado destroyed the home of Gina and Bruce, they moved into a trailer. After one night, rising flood waters forced the pair to evacuate that. Heavy rain flooded their town. Since then, it's been laugh or cry, Bruce said. He chooses the former. He is comforted by religious teachings that everything in life serves a purpose. Ironically, they weren’t home the night the tornado struck because they had gone shopping for a broken toilet handle.

Residents returning to the area that should include houses, businesses and trees, not open space, piles of debris and heavy equipment, were stunned with mixed feelings. Many look to faith for answers and strength. "This is not something you are going to wake up from."

Finding comfort in his faith, a 75-year-old who lost his wife, says, "Every day is a blessing. It's only through God's will that I'm here, because everything was out of that basement except the freezer and a few other things," he said. "Why else should I be alive?" Indeed, following last month's storm, many friends and neighbors mistakenly believed he had perished with Shirley. The couple had huddled together in the lower level, holding on to each other as the noise grew, overwhelming their senses. "Then all of a sudden there was a huge 'BOOM.' I looked up and the whole house was twirling, and then it was gone. Shirley never said a word, so I think she went to be with Jesus right there."

The business of recovery demands more than a hammer, nails and a blueprint. Some survivors find a positive outlook and thankful heart are also essential.
Quotes--courtesy of Waterloo/Cedar Falls Courier.