Weekend Wonders - Unexplained Absence

You may have noticed, you may not, that I have been somewhat absent around the blogsphere of late. I am truly sorry that I haven't had the time to read and comment as I usually do, I promise that I will catch up eventually!

I volunteer with a group that helps to look after our local park and make sure it is a fabulous place for people to use. Wednesday 20th June was not only my eldest daughters 8th birthday, it was also the 100 year anniversary of Marsden Park being opened to the public. As part of the Friends group I helped to organise a mass celebration for the centenary, which was yesterday. We had a brass band, traditional Lancashire clog dancers, sporting activities, magic shows, Punch and Judy shows, a travelling zoo, various stalls, along with the local nursery joining us with their annual garden party and a wonderful historic exhibition charting the history of the park right back to the 1600's when it was a private family estate.

On Friday we had rain of Biblical proportions with localised flooding. It had me awake all night wondering if we were even going to be able to continue with the event that we had all spent so much time on. Come Saturday morning the rain had stopped and following some adjustments with the site plan the event got under way, all be it a little delayed and a couple of activities down due to flooding problems. The rain that was fore casted for Saturday stayed away until just before the end of the event and more people came to support us than I could have hoped for. All in all a great day was had by all who attended, which made up for the stress of organising it!!

Follow this link to some great photos of the event, I was so busy I didn't have chance to take any myself!!

In short I should have some time spare now I am not sat up till the wee hours of the morning finalising the logistics for the event and will be able to get back to reading your lovely insights and commenting as usual, not to mention I have some serious writing to do!!!! First though, some sleep!!

For now I will leave you with some of my favourite parts of the park visit the Friends of Marsden Park Site if you are interested in the history.

The Sundial (taken by Harriett)

The Troll Bridge

The Wishing Gate (taken by Eleanor)

My Girls Favourite Place!!

No So Random Thursday

Sorry folks, busy, busy, busy. I promise I will be back with my usual insights to my mind soon and I will catch up on all your blogs after this weekend.

Hope you all have a good weekend!

200 Tuesdays - My Dad

When fathers day comes around it naturally brings up memories of my Dad, already written about here.

As I am currently short on time, as is usual at the moment, here is a poem inspired by my Dad.

We're Ok

What would I be if you were still here

If I never had to shed a tear

Many more nights of playing with my hair

Or whispering goodnight as we climb the stair

How many more lives would you have saved

Instead you had to endure and be brave

We lost you little by little for a while

We grew to be strong and survive in style

Your passing led me to the right place

to see my husbands beautiful face

Two gorgeous girls now of my own

I hope to never leave them alone

Our memories I still hold dear

Though you are no longer near

We are happy now in all we do

Though every day we still miss you

Tagled Lou has also recently been writing about her Father here in a beautifully written piece about his passing, I urge you to take a look.

Random Thursday

Soul mates - discuss!

Do they exist? Do we have more than one? Are we destined to find them?

How is that for random??

view original here

200 Tuesday - 1000 page views

You can't imagine the size of the smile on my face right now, all because I when I switched on my computer up popped my blogger page and I was at 1000 page views exactly.

When I first started blogging I didn't think anyone would be in the slightest bit interested in my ramblings but here I am, still blogging and up to 1000 views. Ok so I know this isn't really that big a deal but it has made my day today. I almost feel that I should have written something special for this post but I am just too tired to come up with anything new tonight, a notebook special it will have to be!! (who knew working with books could be soooo tiring, I hope I get used to this soon, what is the use of having books at you fingertips if you can't stay awake to read them???)

This poem was inspired by a photo taken by...yeah you guessed it; Lee Johnson. Check it out here. It's strange how some images just lead to words forming in your head, that is what happened here, a poem with no links to real life from a photo where only a third is real.

The Cafe

Alone I sit two biscuits on the plate

Wondering what we'll discuss on our date

For such a long time I have been blue

Waiting to meet at our secret rendezvous

I hear the bell over the door, but dare not look up

A hand over mine wrapped around my cup

I look up to see the warmth of your smile

And wonder why I worried all the while

The smile in your eyes projects to my face

As you pull me into your warm embrace

We talk a while about music and art

Until the streets begin to get dark

Alas we must say goodbye to our cafe

I treasure these times, always happy

From within your arms I whisper 'miss you'

Counting the moments to our secret rendezvous.

PS Thanks to everyone who has stopped my to read what I write, you make me smile!!



Weekend wonders - Getting somewhere eventually!

It has been a good weekend! Ish!! Maybe I should re-phrase that, it has been a good day, Saturday wasn't so great (catalogue of errors, don't ask!!).

I have managed to get loads done today. I finished another book, one that I have been reading for a few weeks but couldn't get into (The Boy in the Stripped Pyjamas). We finally got our potatoes planted and the seeds sown in our veg patch (I know we are very behind, I am usually harvesting the first lot by now but better late than never). We did the food shopping and the girls didn't kill each other on the way round. Harri and I had a walk in the park, we sorted some old clothes for the charity shop and we even went out for tea.

Few, I am tired just writing it all down!! But I feel slightly energised that I/we have managed to get through some little jobs that have been lingering for some time and also squeezed in some little treats too.

If only Saturday had been as productive it could have been the perfect weekend.

How was your weekend? Was it productive? Relaxing? Or has it passed by in the blink of and eye?

Random Thursdays - Absorbed

Apologies now for a very pathetic post!!

I have been doing my best to catch up on blogs this week, only to end up confusing the hell out of myself. I can't remember who has said what or when. Or even which blogs I have read or not.

The cause of all this, besides the exciting new job (which is going great by the way)? I am reading a book, recommended to me by a very good friend, which I am completely absorbed in. Even when I am not reading it I am thinking about it. In one respect it is making it a great book to read, on the other hand I am good for nothing at the moment, until I have read it and dealt with the issues it has raised.

I am sure most of you have already heard of Paulo Coelho and I am just chasing the ship in a little tiny row boat. However on the off chance you haven't read any of his books, do!! In the meantime I am going to continue rowing towards the boat holding everyone that is better read than me and get back to Brida, one seriously compelling read!!

See you over the weekend and I hope all is well in your corner of the world. What are you reading at the moment? Is it a sprint to the finish or a steady away journey?

Oops nearly forgot!!

I have many excuses for nearly forgetting to post today; We have had not one but two bank holidays this weekend and tomorrow is therefore my Monday! I have been off the grid ish for the last couple of days and just spent the last hour or so trying to catch up on all the lovely blogs I follow (failing miserably might I add).

Any way technically I am still in Tuesday, just and seeing as it is my first day in my new job tomorrow I am going to cheat just a little because I really ought to be in bed already, making sure I am well rested (although I could just get them used to how things are going to be?!?!?).

Here is a poem I posted way back when I started blogging.

Hesitate

You ask what lies within these pages

“Memories from across the ages?”

You don’t know why I hesitate

For once you see it will be too late

Here I lay my soul to bear

Not sure that you’ll even care

Please don’t laugh at my expense

Some are not past or present tense

Try to see them for what they are

Messages from my wonderland so far...

 

How do you feel about posting your writing? Do you worry that the people who read it will get the wrong idea about you? Or worse, see straight through it to what you were thinking when you wrote it?