What I learnt in July

An odd collection of some of the weird things I learnt over the last month.

1. The Queen of England has an astonishing brooch collection, and nearly always wears one when she is out on official business. This is according to @samuraiKnitter on Twitter. I have not done any more research, but the idea that The Queen is carrying a silent message through her brooch choice has had me telling everyone I know about this, and if I can ever figure out how will feature in a story someday.
2. There is an amazing town in Japan where a woman is making life-sized figures of people who have left town or died, so the town doesn’t feel so empty. The work she puts into each one is astonishing. I am not sure if it is scary, but it is definitely one way to embrace change with creativity.
3. A bunch of my favourite authors (J.M. Barrie, A.A. Milne, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, H.G.Wells, P.G. Wodehouse and G.K. Chesterton) were part of an amateur cricket team that played from 1887 till 1913. Supposedly talent was a bit mixed, but how amazing would it have been to watch them play.
4. I was reminded this month, how much I love watching the sunrise.
   

   

   

It doesn’t quite look right

My son is just home from a school trip. Lots of photos. Lots of “Sorry, it’s a bit blurry”, “That was spectacular, but you can’t really see it in the photos”, and so on. I can relate. The art of getting what we see before us to translate into photos or art is an art itself. I see amazing creations on the web or tv, but turning that into reality, well it is never quite the same. There are websites and tv shows devoted to getting it wrong too. Shaun Smuker has written this lovely piece on when art disappoints. The struggle rings true, the desire to hide our art because it is not quite good enough.

Putting our creation out into the world, that takes courage and laughter.  Waiting for everything to be right, might just mean we don’t do it at all. I love this quote I came across in Emily Freeman’s “A Million Little Ways” by Henri Matisse (p. 132).

“Much of the beauty that arises in art comes from the struggle an artist wages with his limited medium”

We all have struggles and limits, but creating something, or capturing a vision we can’t quite see – even when it is not quite right – that is art.

My attempt at an ‘arty’ photo. Hope it makes you smile!!

Armchair Travel

I am reading Seabold’s  “The Rings of Saturn“, supposedly a walking story of the East Coast of the UK. It is unlike any other travel book I have ever read. Each chapter starts with an ” I went from here to here”, and then spirals off into a fantasy realm of story, of people and history with tenuous connections and fantastical detail. In just a handful of chapters, he has talked about the history of herring, eccentric landowners, the Irish troubles, Ancient China and the history of silk. It is a mad journey that feels ethereal and fantasy, but each time I have checked is somehow true. Unlike the travel books I have read, I have no clear concept of place, but an amazing connection with these astonishing people, many of whom now feel like if not dear friends, at least the crazy aunt who comes to every family event and tells the stories of her youth, littered with people I have never met, but know well through the stories. It is a crazy astonishing read.

What are you reading?

Weird and wonderful books

There are lots of weird and wonderful books out there. One I really love the idea of is “The Edible Game Cookbook“, a Kickstarter for games and food. I love the idea of food you can play with (unless you have toddlers, then it is just messy). When my little people were little we built 3D shapes out of matchsticks and marshmallows, we cut up brownies to learn about fractions, and for a long time, my daughter did subtraction with jelly beans or M&M’s. But this idea takes this to a whole new level. Tetris, where you nibble the cookies to make them fit! I can’t wait.

Have a great weekend.

Embracing moments

We had a few days break last week. It was a wonderful time, near the beach, where I could watch the sunrise each day.

Part of my favourite thing about being on holiday is that you get to just live in the moment. So much harder at home, where there is always a to-do list. On holidays I could watch the sunrise, and not be worried about what else I had to do. Time became less important.

That is hard to hang on to at home, at least for me. In the midst of thinking a lot about time, I came across this post on Mindfulness. A wonderful help, reminding me that taking each moment, be it hanging the washing or playing taxi can be just enjoyed for what it is. A moment to be aware.

Happy Wednesday Friends.

What I’m reading – July

I am still in the midst of Quicksilver – a doorstop of a book, that is turning out to be nothing like I thought it would be – historical fiction with Newton, The Royal Society, London, the colonies, and maths and science. It is an astonishing tale, 300 pages in, and I cannot say with any certainty that I know where it is going to go.

I read and loved “The Girl in the Tower” by Katherine Arden. I got some way into the book before realizing that it was book 2 in a series. While I am sure there is characterization that I missed, in terms of plot, I was able to follow along just fine, and there are explanations for what I assumed I missed in book 1. I really enjoyed it, a great winter read, set in the cold of Moscow in a fairytale time.

Finally this month I have been reading along with the Twitter reading group #TheReadingsofSaturn, reading Seabold’s “The Rings of Saturn“. This is unlike any other book I have read, part travelogue, part following Seabold as his thoughts take you down rabbit holes. These have included a Major George Le Strange, who left his entire fortune to his housekeeper who took meals with Le Strange but wasn’t allowed to talk, and the history of the herring. The text is interspersed with photos with no captions or comment. It is an interesting read, and I am glad that people smarter than me are able to help me make sense of this book.

Happy reading friends