Saturday 30 January 2010

Project 365: 22nd January to 25th January

22nd January: Behind The Barn

This wek's competition theme was clutter. Something I'm an expert on. I was spoilt for choice but chose this picture of old junk behind the barn behind the chicken shed. Its been there so long only carbon dating would reveal its true age.


23rd January: After The Match

Will's team were defeated but they played a brave game on a freezing cold day. Time for hot baths and hot chocolate!

January 24th: Sunday Dinner

Sunday means roast dinner, which has to mean yorkshire puddings. Made by Mac who has perfected the art. Unlike me. Mine are so flat they have been renamed Cambridgeshire puddings.


January 25th: Off To School

It is still not light when Ed sets off for the bus. Luckily he has the glow-in-the-dark super-powers of the Spider Jacket to light him on his way.

Project 365: 26th to 30th Jan

26th January: January Blues

To celebrate that the sky is still blue when I take the dogs for their afternoon walk. Even though the moon is out too.


27th January: Keep Crossing Clear

On the way back from the animal feed shop a train passes at the level crossing. I always get the heebie jeebies driving over level crossings. What if the barriers come down when I am half way over? At least I have an excuse for the blurry photo today. That train is moving fast!


28th January: Sign of Spring

Grey rainy skies and chill winds again. Everyone is ill. Even the hens look bedraggled and beaten down by winter. I was astonished and cheered to find five eggs in the nesting box. They shouldn't even be laying this time of year. Well done, girls!



29th January: A Dolly Parton Moment

A can't play guitar. I'm not a Country and Western singer. So why were these two calling out "take me home with you" when I called in at the music shop for Will's saxophone supplies?



January 30th: Self Portrait

When you scrape five foot four with your shoes on, any opportunity to make those legs look longer has to be pounced on. While I was guddling around taking this shot Maia bolted off in pursuit of a magnificent story-book hare with fine black ears. I was too slow to re-focus and get a picture. Der!

Saturday 23 January 2010

Project 365 Photos, Day Seventeen to Twenty




Cambridge 800: To mark the end of the 800th anniversary year for Cambridge University, a spectacular light show is projected onto the walls of Senate House and King's College Chapel. It was a cold, clear evening with the stars out too. I loved this view of King's College with the stained glass illuminated from within and details from it projected in technicolour on the outside.

Perspective: Sending off a donation to Haiti on the way home from the school walk on a dreary day stopped me short and made me remember to be thankful for everything I have.

Flower Stall: On the way back through Cambridge market after meeting for coffee I stopped to buy some ivory ranunculus and raspberry red freesias to cheer the January gloom.

A Time To Shine: After a long morning at the dentist I took the dogs for their walk as the numbness started to wear off. Ouch! I noticed that the sunset had chosen this lowly telegraph pole to bathe in glory instead of the lovely trees either side. It made me smile (ouch, again!)

Project 365 Photos, Day Thirteen to Sixteen





H (Spicy): Beautiful Thai curry pastes brought by Mum and Dad on their way home from spending Christmas in Thailand with my brother and his family. Mem has packed them all and labelled them all as to how spicy they are and whether for me or my sister. We will be making Green Chicken Curry again very soon!
The Root of The Problem: This ironwork sculpture hangs on the wall of outside the dental practise. It was made my one of the hygienists. I just wish I didn't have to go to the dentist to see it, but I fear I'll be seeing a lot of it over the next few months


Aftermath: A wonderful evening with a house full of friends, a warm fire and a wintry feast for eight adults and ten children.








Here Comes the Sun: I love the early morning sun shining from in through the blind: especially when it is Sunday and I can stay in and admire it from my bed a little longer!

Monday 18 January 2010

Project 365 Photos, Day Nine to Twelve

Day Nine: A Long Walk
Across the hard frozen fields with the dogs running along ahead. They don't feel the cold


Day Ten: Royal Paperwork
Monday morning and a pile of paperwork looms. The queen looks on from the mug I won at the village golden jubilee party for best 1950s dress.

Day Eleven: Run, Rabbit, Run
On a walk in the woods I glimpse a big rabbit disappearing down this hole as the dogs approach



Day Twelve: Baby, It's Cold Outside
The sky is grey, sleet is falling, one boy is home sick. Let's light the fire and make chocolate chip cookies.








My Project 365 Photos: Day One to Nine






Day One: All You Need Is Love
Christmas decorations in Carnaby Street. A message for 2010

Day Two and Three are on their way


Day Four: Teasel And Sky
A grey Monday morning for a dog walk



Day Five: Princess Maia
She surveys her snowbound kingdom




Day Six: Lone Star
A single home-made decoration is left behind on the Christmas tree when it is dumped outside ready for the bonfire.



Day Seven: Tools of the Trade
In the big freeze I wield the spade to break the ice on the hens' water and the ducks' pond.




Day Eight: Fungus
In the snowy woods, the burnt orange of this fungus on blackthorn trunk is the only colour



Day Nine: Shoe Mountain
The clutter in the utility room has finally crossed the line marked unbearable and a major clear-out is underway.



Sunday 10 January 2010







This blog is about four of the things I most love to do .
Write, walk, cook, talk.
Not necessarily in that order and often at the same time.
There are other things I love to do.
But four is probably enough for one blog and none of the others rhyme with walk anyway.


Write: I started writing my first children's novel three years ago and am now re-drafting it after a year of working on a series of four books as a 'ghost writer'. Working as part of the Superstar High team has been hard work but great fun and an amazing learning experience. Now, after a long absence, I'm enjoying subjecting my own book, The Sea Cucumber's Revenge, to a major overhaul. My Number One Target for this year is to find a publisher for it - with the help of my fabulous agent, Jenny Savill. I'll be posting progress reports here.



Walk: Snow, rain, fog, sleet; whatever the weather, I pull on my walking boots (or, more often, my wellies) and march through the Cambridgeshire countryside with the dogs running along ahead of me. Most days, it's a half hour walk in the morning and another in the afternoon around the local fields. But as often as possible, I pull out my Ordnance Survey Explorer Maps and plan a longer route. I aim for once a week but it doesn't always work out that way. The dogs pile into the back of the car (they'll have been in a state of frenzied anticipation from the moment they saw me take the map out of the drawer; by now they're besides themselves with excitement!) and we head off to explore. Sometimes a friend will come along; it's great to have company and there's something comfortable about walking and talking at the same time. But I'm also happy if it's just me and the dogs striking out on our own. I just have to be careful I don't get caught talking to myself; I spend a lot of time plotting and devising dialogue for the books. Now that Father Christmas has brought me an iPhone, I can use the voice recorder for memos so I no longer have to try to hold on to that perfect turn of phrase by rehearsing it all furiously all the way home!
I'll report back on the best walks I find; they'all be between one and three hours long, suitable for dogs off leads - and preferably with a dog-friendly pub or cafe somewhere along the way!



Cook: About 80% of the time I love to cook (the other 20% I'd rather be doing something else. Anything else!) I try to make things the boys will like - but they are well-trained and know they have to eat it even if they don't! The recipes I like the best are ones that make a second meal from the left-overs; I love that thrifty, ever-so-slightly smug, make-do-and-mend feeling when the last ladleful of green chicken curry becomes tomorrow's chicken noodle soup. When I come up with something edible I'll post the recipe; the big disasters and the fishfinger-and-baked-beans days I'll keep to myself.


Talk: Over family dinner, or a cup of tea at the kitchen table, in the pub over a glass of wine, at the school gate.. there's always stuff to talk about. And it's not just using words, I love the words themselves. My PhD was in psycholinguistics; I have an etymological dictionary and I'm not afraid to use it. I'm going to share my favourite words, both new finds and old friends, along with some fascinating linguistic snippets; the kind I usually foist upon my long-suffering family. Sometimes they humour me and look interested. More often their eyes glaze over and they start sidling towards the Xbox...feel free to do the same!