I am sitting here slightly exhausted after having prepared tea for tonight. It involved pulling every scrape of chicken off the carcass then mixing in tarragon, mustard, cheese and cream. Vegetables and potatoes done. So should anything happen in the next few hours, at least there will be a meal on the table.
Mollie my cat is very quiet, I wonder if she is on the way out, still eating and demanding to sleep on me through the night. She had given me a rest from this the last few weeks by going to sleep in the attic room but now has decided that my room is better.
Listening to 'Ann Cleeves - The Dark Wives'. It is rather good a 'Vera' story but less emphasis on her and more on her two sergeants, Joe and Rosie. Perhaps the author is pensioning her off, real life actress has said she is leaving the series.
The terrible tragedy of the six Israeli hostages killed yesterday, their smiling faces not showing what it must have been like at all as hostages, who killed them is now being argued over. I have amongst my drafts the smiling face of Hind Rajab, the little Palestinian girl killed in a car. All deliberate death is senseless and all break the heart.
Now I have hit a sad note, but not all news is good. William Blake said something, and it really needs a philosophical answer because I am not sure he is right. Joy by William Blake.
Joy and woe are woven fine,
A clothing for the soul divine;
Under every grief and pine
Runs a joy with silken twine.
It is right it should be so;
And when this we rightly know,
Safely through the world we go.
Well in the safe but dull Todmorden, there are two/three big issues. A Cycle track of about half a mile and of course parking near the market. How they rage those car owning fiends. Also against the pedestrianised crossings the poor pedestrians use - too many, too many. Just by pressing a knob, the traffic slows to a halt and we cross in safety. Such minor problems but the breath of the moaning class.
And what about mending the potholes for goodness sake says someone else and Josh patiently points out then rather then do it now, it is best to wait for all the utilities to dig their holes to repair everything and then to tarmac the road. And another complaint comes in, Hebden Bridge is being destroyed by the filming around the town. This highlighting of the town is dragging in terrible stag and hen parties.
Lately, no matter what happens here in the US, each side is always complaining about something. I find it difficult not to be biased about certain issues but have been trying to focus on happier things. I'm old and I can't do much to change the world but I can look for the joy and share that with others. I smile and say hello when I am out for a walk. I compliment neighbors when they are out fixing up their yard. I thank the young man that bags my groceries at the store. Just little things but I hope it makes them smile for a moment.
ReplyDeleteYou have a lovely way of looking at life Ellen, and nearly all people are friendly and here of course in Todmorden 'kindness' is written on the walls.
DeleteCats seem to go through crazes in where they choose to sleep. Same place for a couple of weeks, then won't even sit there for a few months. Then back again. Maybe had some evolutionary benefits.
ReplyDeleteProbably Tasker if they were hunted, although they are the hunters usually. They just love their comfort.
DeleteEnglish village life continues on regardless of what happens in the rest of the world. I love the Ralph meme.
ReplyDeleteYes Andrew the dogs and cats are still lost and mentioned on the forum and cross people who have had their bikes stolen still seek a sympathetic audience. What is useful is that everyone has cameras on their doors and youngsters are captured skulking away.
DeleteCats seem to be a bit capricious in their choices of napping spots--beds are a great preference but other places around the house appeal as well; A spill of sunlight on the floor draws them as does the hearth on a winter day. In this household of several felines I can count on at least two piling onto my bed, sometimes weighting my feet.
ReplyDeleteMost days now we have one 'cooked' meal with sandwiches or leftovers later in the day. I'm astonished to find how much energy can be used in cooking and baking.
I remember Lucy my dog would always follow that 'spill' of sunshine in its constant movement Sharon. Mollie being deaf and very old also has a piercing voice and considers me her slave.
DeleteWilliam Blake was a wise man. How would we know joy if we didn’t also experience woe. I usually think all the busyness happens down south but I see. that you have your share too. I suppose we might call it the Happy Valley effect? I am sure you know Eleanor Farjeon’s poem - “Cats Sleep Anywhere? Any table, any chair … any body’s lap will do. I am currently reading her book about her friendship with the poet with Edward Thomas. (Somebody posted a poem by Robert Frost yesterday, another good friend of ET.) This book is throwing up many links with the West Sussex countryside near me, most notably the Meynells who lived at Humphrey’s at Greatham, the most beautiful in the simplest way imaginable farmhouse that I cycle or walk past whenever I can. Hope you and the family enjoyed your creamy tarragon chicken. I overwintered a clump of tarragon in the veg garden but it’s disapperared now. Sarah in Sussex
ReplyDeleteYes definitely the 'Happy Valley' effect Sarah. Same author, different drama. I know little of William Blake, except he wrote Jerusalem and wrote about Stonehenge. Yes this meal is a favourite, though I do not eat it but the fortnightly chicken is first roasted and then made into this dish.
DeleteMy friend had a cat that always stretched out in a patch of sunlight which fell on his carpet about mid afternoon. As the sun moved so the sunny spot (and the cat) migrated across the floor. Later, as the sun descended, the poor old cat looked accusingly at us as it's chosen spot began to climb the wall.
ReplyDeleteAnimals can be funny John but cats behave in a superior way, no wonder the Egyptians worshipped them.
DeleteI must admit that on the one occasion I visited Hebden Bridge I was not especially impressed by the place. I had been expecting a town more obviously bohemian, bright and lively. Heptonstall was better. Your Sunday meal sounded scrumptious... was it?
ReplyDeleteWell I think it has become a somewhat fashionable hippy place Neil in the eyes of the media. What it does good is there seems plenty of activity in the entertainment and also practical arts. Maybe there is too many southerners there for your liking!
ReplyDeleteThem bloody southerners get everywhere just like COVID.
DeleteYou could say the same for the Northerners. BBC accents are really going downhill ;)
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