I took my grandson aged eight and my granddaughter aged four to an event at the library. It was organised by the local Recycling Arts Project aka Your Ideas Ware house. The items used to create fruit and vegetables were made from stuff thrown out by local industry. The local branch of the national scrapstore network is available for creative reuse in artistic and practical projects.
The children made a leek and a large purple plum, which they chose to take home to show their mother instead of adding them to a painted rural landscape, with a large tree with branches on which fruit could be hung.
The stock at the centre changes regularly. Items available include:foam,strapping, fabric, tiles, cardboard tubes, wadding, acrylic off-cuts etc., as well as cards, papers, foils and the unexpected.
I think its well worth £15 a year for unlimited help yourself supplies for my grandchildren to use creatively.
The centre also runs themed making sessions using materials from the warehouse.
Tuesday, 18 February 2014
Monday, 17 February 2014
Out of Sorts
I'm out of sorts today. I intended to post another snippet from my new release, The Captain and The Countess, but work started on my new kitchen. From early this morning workmen have been coming and going so I haven't been able to concentrate. All the appliances have been moved, and nearly everything else that is non-essential has been packed in cardboard cartons and moved into the sitting room in which the furniture is covered with dust sheets.
Tomorrow the electrician is coming. There will be no electricity from 8.a.m. until the electrician leaves. Fortunately, I can go to my daughter's house to make cups of tea etc.
I'm told the work won't be completed until the 3rd of March. I'm sure I'll be delighted with the completed kitchen but I wish it could be finished earlier. Mind you, I feel ungrateful as I should be pleased to be getting a new kitchen instead of being out of sorts.
Tomorrow the electrician is coming. There will be no electricity from 8.a.m. until the electrician leaves. Fortunately, I can go to my daughter's house to make cups of tea etc.
I'm told the work won't be completed until the 3rd of March. I'm sure I'll be delighted with the completed kitchen but I wish it could be finished earlier. Mind you, I feel ungrateful as I should be pleased to be getting a new kitchen instead of being out of sorts.
Sunday, 16 February 2014
Snippet from The
Captain and The Countess, set in England in Queen Anne Stuart’s reign 1702 –
1714. Release date from MuseItUp Publishing 21/02/2014
Captain
Howard and The Countess of Sinclair sat side-by-side opposite Mrs Radcliffe,
on the sopha upholstered in crimson damask.
Although
Kate smiled at him, the expression in her large blue eyes remained as cool as
it had been when she first entered the salon. “Tomorrow, please join those who
visit me daily at my morning levee.”
“I fear
my voice would be lost among many, thus casting me into obscurity,”
Edward replied much amused.
“I don’t
take you for one to be ignored, sir. However, I respect your wishes. Besides those who seek my patronage, there
are many gentlemen eager to wait on me. ’Tis more than my porter’s life is
worth to deny them entry.” She turned her attention to his godmother and raised
a pencilled eyebrow. “Mrs Radcliffe, do you not agree it is pleasant to lie
abed in the morning while indulging in conversation with one’s admirers?”
“Come,
come, madam, confess you value their advice,” Kate teased.
“Sometimes.”
Frances
Kate
turned her attention to Edward. “I have no doubt you would become a cherished
member of the group of those who seek my favour.”
“Countess, life at sea teaches a man to be
wary of enemies, not to compete with them. I am not a flirt who is given to
haunting ladies’ bedchambers.”
“If I seclude
myself with you tomorrow morning, may I have the pleasure of your
company?”
“Alone
with you in your bedchamber? How improper. Are you always so
careless of your reputation?” he asked, with a hint of
laughter in his voice.
Her eyes
widened. “I have no reputation to guard, Captain.” She had spoken in a forward
manner he was unaccustomed to in polite society.
“Have you not?” Edward needed a plunge in icy
water.
A frozen
glimpse of despair deep in her eyes unsettled Edward. Did he imagine it? He
could not speak. Why should a lady like the countess despair?
He
recovered his voice. “If it is your custom to take the air in The Mall, I shall
be pleased to be your sole escort.”
Kate
fidgeted with one of the diamond buckles that fastened her satin covered stays.
“Are the battle lines drawn?”
“Don’t
confuse battle lines with a mere skirmish at sea.” His voice hinted at the
chuckle he restrained.
“There
are those who would welcome an invitation to a tête-à-tête with me.”
He preferred to take the lead in affairs of
the heart. “Perhaps I am not one of them,” he teased. “Maybe I would like to be
your friend.”
“My
friend? Is that all you want of me?”
His eyes
widened.
Kate
laughed. “No, I thought not.”
* * * *
www.facebook.com/writerinagarret
Snippet 4 The Captain and The Countess
Snippet from The
Captain and The Countess, set in England in Queen Anne Stuart’s reign 1702 –
1714. Release date from MuseItUp Publishing 21/02/2014
Captain
Howard and The Countess of Sinclair sat side-by-side opposite Mrs Radcliffe,
on the sopha upholstered in crimson damask.
Although
Kate smiled at him, the expression in her large blue eyes remained as cool as
it had been when she first entered the salon. “Tomorrow, please join those who
visit me daily at my morning levee.”
“I fear
my voice would be lost among many, thus casting me into obscurity,”
Edward replied much amused.
“I don’t
take you for one to be ignored, sir. However, I respect your wishes. Besides those who seek my patronage, there
are many gentlemen eager to wait on me. ’Tis more than my porter’s life is
worth to deny them entry.” She turned her attention to his godmother and raised
a pencilled eyebrow. “Mrs Radcliffe, do you not agree it is pleasant to lie
abed in the morning while indulging in conversation with one’s admirers?”
“Come,
come, madam, confess you value their advice,” Kate teased.
“Sometimes.”
Frances
Kate
turned her attention to Edward. “I have no doubt you would become a cherished
member of the group of those who seek my favour.”
“Countess, life at sea teaches a man to be
wary of enemies, not to compete with them. I am not a flirt who is given to
haunting ladies’ bedchambers.”
“If I seclude
myself with you tomorrow morning, may I have the pleasure of your
company?”
“Alone
with you in your bedchamber? How improper. Are you always so
careless of your reputation?” he asked, with a hint of
laughter in his voice.
Her eyes
widened. “I have no reputation to guard, Captain.” She had spoken in a forward
manner he was unaccustomed to in polite society.
“Have you not?” Edward needed a plunge in icy
water.
A frozen
glimpse of despair deep in her eyes unsettled Edward. Did he imagine it? He
could not speak. Why should a lady like the countess despair?
He
recovered his voice. “If it is your custom to take the air in The Mall, I shall
be pleased to be your sole escort.”
Kate
fidgeted with one of the diamond buckles that fastened her satin covered stays.
“Are the battle lines drawn?”
“Don’t
confuse battle lines with a mere skirmish at sea.” His voice hinted at the
chuckle he restrained.
“There
are those who would welcome an invitation to a tête-à-tête with me.”
He preferred to take the lead in affairs of
the heart. “Perhaps I am not one of them,” he teased. “Maybe I would like to be
your friend.”
“My
friend? Is that all you want of me?”
His eyes
widened.
Kate
laughed. “No, I thought not.”
* * * *
www.facebook.com/writerinagarret
Saturday, 15 February 2014
Snippet No.3 The Captain and The Countess
The Captain and The Countess set in England in Queen Anne Stuart's reign - 1702-1714. Publisher MuseItUp Publishing. Publication date 21/02/2014
Kate
smoothed the gleaming folds of her turquoise blue silk gown. The lady knew how
to dress to make the utmost of her natural beauty. Her gown and petticoat, not
to mention sleeves and under-sleeves, as well as her bodice and stays, relied
for effect on simple design and fine fabrics. He approved of her ensemble, the
elegance of which did not depend on either a riot of colours or a multitude of
bows and other trimmings. Later, he would sketch her from memory.
Kate inclined
her head to his godmother. “Will you not warn your godson I am unsound, wild,
and a bad influence on the young?”
Edward
gazed into Kate’s eyes. Before his demise,
had her husband banished her to a manor deep in the country? If it was true,
why did he do so?
Kate’s
eyebrows slanted down at the inner corners. She stared back at him. He laughed, raised her hands to his lips and
kissed each in turn. “I look forward to furthering my acquaintance with you.”
“High-handed.”
Kate gurgled with laughter. “Captain, please release me.”
What did he
care if she were some ten years his elder? He wanted to get to know her better.
Edward bowed. “Your slightest wish is my command.”
Friday, 14 February 2014
Snippet from The Captain and The Countess
Only a week until my novel The Captain and The Countess, set in England in Queen Anne Stuart's reign, is released.
Captain Howard advanced
toward the countess, conscious of the sound of his footsteps on the wooden
floor, the muted noise of coaches and drays through the closed windows and,
from the fireplace, the crackle of burning logs which relieved the chill of early
spring.
The buzz of
conversation resumed. Her ladyship scrutinised him. Did she approve of his
appearance? A smile curved her heart-shaped mouth. He repressed his amusement. Edward
suspected the widow’s rosy lips owed more to artifice than nature.
“How do you
do, sir,” she said when he stood before her. “I think we have not met
previously. Her eyes assessed him dispassionately. My name is Sinclair,
Katherine Sinclair. I dislike formality. You may call me Kate.”
“Captain Howard
at your service, Countess.” Shocked but amused by boldness more suited to a
tavern wench than a great lady, Edward paid homage with a low bow before he
spoke again. “Despite your permission, I am not presumptuous enough to call you
Kate, yet I shall say that had we already met, I would remember you.”
“You are
gallant, sir, but you are young to have achieved so high a rank in Her
Majesty’s navy.”
“An
unexpected promotion earned in battle which the navy did not subsequently
commute.”
“You are to
be congratulated on what, I can only assume, were acts of
bravery.”“Thank you,
Countess.”
The depths
of her ladyship’s sapphire cross and earrings blazed, matching his sudden
fierce desire.
Kate, some
four inches shorter than Edward, looked up at him.
He leaned forward. The customary greeting of a kiss on
her lips lingered longer than etiquette dictated. Her eyes widened....
Publisher. MuseItUp Publishing
Wednesday, 12 February 2014
Lost and Found
Before I went to bed last night, I wrote down ten 'writerly' things I want to complete today. I also made notes of websites I want to visit, and of a novel which I am critiquing for another historical novelist.
When I woke up as usual at 6.m.this morning prepared to write the next scene of my novel after checking my notes, I could not find the shorthand notepad anywhere. I wasted valuable time searching for it here there and everywhere. Where was it? Under my desktop diary on the small table by my bed. I didn't see if because it should have been on top of the diary.
Oh well, I've written the scene in Monday's Child, my new Regency novel, and am now about to apply the list of things to do.
When I woke up as usual at 6.m.this morning prepared to write the next scene of my novel after checking my notes, I could not find the shorthand notepad anywhere. I wasted valuable time searching for it here there and everywhere. Where was it? Under my desktop diary on the small table by my bed. I didn't see if because it should have been on top of the diary.
Oh well, I've written the scene in Monday's Child, my new Regency novel, and am now about to apply the list of things to do.
Snippet from The Captain and The Countess
The Captain and The Countess set in England in 1706
By Rosemary Morris
Release date 21/02/21014
The Countess
of Sinclair remained in the doorway, her cool blue eyes speculative.
Captain Howard whistled low. Could her shocking
reputation be no more than tittle-tattle? His artist’s eyes observed her. Rumour
did not lie about her Saxon beauty.
Her ladyship was not a slave to fashion. She
did not wear a wig, and her hair was not curled and stiffened
with sugar water. Instead, her flaxen plaits were wound around
the crown of her head to form a coronet. The style suited her. So did the
latest Paris
Did the
countess have the devil-may-care attitude gossips attributed to her? If she did, it explained why some respectable
members of society shunned her. Indeed, if Lady Sinclair were not the
granddaughter of his godmother’s deceased friend, she might not be
received in this house.
The lady’s
fair charms did not entirely explain what drew many gallants to her side. After
all, there were several younger beauties present that the gentlemen did not
flock around so avidly.
Tuesday, 11 February 2014
Real Life
I would be happy living in an ivory tower, reading, researching and writing, and only emerging to tend my organic garden, but real life doesn't allow it.
This morning, I wrote 2,000 words of Monday's Child, the sequel to Sunday's Child, and then went with my daughter to choose a new gas oven and fridge/freezer. I found exactly what I want on sale and well within my budget. They will be delivered and connected on the 3rd March, by which time my new kitchen will have been completed.
It's a big job. The whole kitchen will be gutted, a new floor laid, etc., etc. I'm not looking forward to having workmen in the house for two weeks, but am confident I will be delighted when the new kitchen is in place.
This morning, I wrote 2,000 words of Monday's Child, the sequel to Sunday's Child, and then went with my daughter to choose a new gas oven and fridge/freezer. I found exactly what I want on sale and well within my budget. They will be delivered and connected on the 3rd March, by which time my new kitchen will have been completed.
It's a big job. The whole kitchen will be gutted, a new floor laid, etc., etc. I'm not looking forward to having workmen in the house for two weeks, but am confident I will be delighted when the new kitchen is in place.
Monday, 10 February 2014
1st Paragraphs of The Captain and The Countess
Release Date 21/02/2014
The Captain and The Countess
Chapter One
London
Edward, the
Right Honourable Captain Howard, dressed in blue and white, which some of the
officers in Queen Anne’s navy favoured, strode into Mrs Radcliffe’s
spacious house near St James Park.
Perkins,
his godmother’s butler, took his hat and cloak. “Madam wants you to join her
immediately.”
Instead of
going upstairs to the rooms his godmother had provided for him during his spell
on half pay—the result of a dispute with a senior officer—Edward entered the
salon. He sighed. When would his sixty-one year old godmother accept that at
the age of twenty-two he was not yet ready to wed?
He made his
way across the elegant, many windowed room through a crowd of expensively
garbed callers.
When Frances
Radcliffe noticed him, she turned to the pretty young lady
seated beside her. “Mistress Martyn, allow me to introduce you to my godson,
Captain Howard.”
Blushes
stained Mistress Martyn’s cheeks as she stood to make her curtsey.
Edward bowed, indifferent to
yet another of his grandmother’s protégées. Conversation ceased. All eyes focussed
on the threshold.
“Lady
Sinclair,” someone murmured.
Edward
turned. He gazed without blinking at the acclaimed beauty, whose sobriquet was 'The
Fatal Widow’.
The
countess remained in the doorway, her cool blue eyes speculative.
Edward
whistled low. Could her shocking reputation be no more than tittle-tattle? His
artist’s eyes observed her. Rumour did not lie about her Saxon beauty.
Publisher. MuseItUp Publishing
Sunday, 9 February 2014
Historical Research
It poured with rain all day today so I stayed at home and nearly finished a chapter of Monday's Child. I also dealt with writerly matters. One of them was checking the date when Arthur Wellsley, the future Duke of Wellington left India, and then researching Gwalior Fort. The fort is approximately 300 feet above the plains below and is a mile and three quarters long. The pictures of it are amazing.
All in all a pleasant day until I tried to log into my e-mail accounts. It seems someone has been trying to use them. I now have to wait for 24 hours before - hopefully - I will be back on line. It's particularly annoying because my publisher had sent me something which, for the moment, I can't access. Fingers crossed, I have answered as many questions as the isp requires.
All in all a pleasant day until I tried to log into my e-mail accounts. It seems someone has been trying to use them. I now have to wait for 24 hours before - hopefully - I will be back on line. It's particularly annoying because my publisher had sent me something which, for the moment, I can't access. Fingers crossed, I have answered as many questions as the isp requires.
Pre-order Special Offer
Captain and The Countess
(Set in England in 1706)
by
Rosemary Morris
Why does heart-rending pain lurk in the back of the wealthy Countess of Sinclair’s eyes?
Captain Howard’s life changes forever from the moment he meets Kate, the intriguing Countess and resolves to banish her pain.
Although the air sizzles when widowed Kate, victim of an abusive marriage meets Edward Howard, a captain in Queen Anne’s navy, she has no intention of ever marrying again.
However, when Kate becomes better acquainted with the Captain she realises he is the only man who understands her grief and can help her to untangle her past.
https://museituppublishing.com/bookstore/index.php/our-authors/6our-authors/authors-m/378-rosemary-morris
(Set in England in 1706)
by
Rosemary Morris
Why does heart-rending pain lurk in the back of the wealthy Countess of Sinclair’s eyes?
Captain Howard’s life changes forever from the moment he meets Kate, the intriguing Countess and resolves to banish her pain.
Although the air sizzles when widowed Kate, victim of an abusive marriage meets Edward Howard, a captain in Queen Anne’s navy, she has no intention of ever marrying again.
However, when Kate becomes better acquainted with the Captain she realises he is the only man who understands her grief and can help her to untangle her past.
https://museituppublishing.com/bookstore/index.php/our-authors/6our-authors/authors-m/378-rosemary-morris
Thursday, 6 February 2014
Helen Fairfax's Guest Today.
I'm delighted to be a guest at Helen Fairfax's blog today. The link is: http://helenafairfax.com/2014/02/07/good-to-meet-you-author-rosemary-morris/
Somerset Levels are Flooded
The flood on the Somerset levels returned the past to me. Percy, a relative on my father's side of the family, once owned Court House in Muchenley Village. The village is now on an island surrounded by flooded fields. I am sorry for all those severely affected. After being flooded twice, and losing his dairy herd due to a foot and mouth epidemic, Percy sold Court House. I have googled the property, a Grade II listed building. The exterior pictures of it are exactly as I remember. Seeing them brought back many happy memories.
Wednesday, 5 February 2014
School Run and Writing.
My daughter is a little better today but I took her children to school and shall do so tomorrow. However, I slept badly and when I woke my throat was sore and my nose was blocked. Nevertheless, I managed to finish Chapter Fourteen of Monday's Child. Phew! I've written 50,000 words of a novel I plan to be between 95 and 100 thousand words.
Tuesday, 4 February 2014
Emergency - Everything at a Standstill
My daughter had an asthma attack on Sunday. She saw the doctor yesterday. At the moment her lung capacity is only 30%. I'm very concerned so I've been helping out and did not have time to post yesterday.
I'll pick my granddaughter up from pre-school, cook lunch for her and her family and her help out this evening. I hope the inhaler and the medication prescribed for her kick in and she will feel much better tomorrow.
I'll pick my granddaughter up from pre-school, cook lunch for her and her family and her help out this evening. I hope the inhaler and the medication prescribed for her kick in and she will feel much better tomorrow.
Sunday, 2 February 2014
Good Day Today
Now that I've dealt with the galley for The Captain and The Countess, I'm free to return to my new novel, Sunday's Child. Very pleased because I revised two chapters before going to the local allotment society.
The flower bed to the left of the steps leading up to my house was looking dreary so I bought some polyanthas. On the way home I popped in to my daughter's house to give my grandson a few items he needed to make some buns - he's studying food technology at school, which so far as I can understand, is an upmarket word for cooking.
My 4 year old granddaughter asked to come home with me. She was thrilled to dig the holes for the polyanthas and spent ages admiring them after we planted them. We then cooked together because she, her mother and brothers were coming to dinner this evening. After dinner she played snap with her mother, the boys played ludo and, after I loaded the dishwasher, we played jenko. Great fun.
Now, although it's only 7.30 p.m. I'm tucked up in my comfortable bed writing this blog while Country File is on T.V.
Just seen the Countess of Dudley's sunken marble bath - luxury hot water and a coal fire warming the bathroom.
The flower bed to the left of the steps leading up to my house was looking dreary so I bought some polyanthas. On the way home I popped in to my daughter's house to give my grandson a few items he needed to make some buns - he's studying food technology at school, which so far as I can understand, is an upmarket word for cooking.
My 4 year old granddaughter asked to come home with me. She was thrilled to dig the holes for the polyanthas and spent ages admiring them after we planted them. We then cooked together because she, her mother and brothers were coming to dinner this evening. After dinner she played snap with her mother, the boys played ludo and, after I loaded the dishwasher, we played jenko. Great fun.
Now, although it's only 7.30 p.m. I'm tucked up in my comfortable bed writing this blog while Country File is on T.V.
Just seen the Countess of Dudley's sunken marble bath - luxury hot water and a coal fire warming the bathroom.
Saturday, 1 February 2014
Galley and Gardening
Yesterday I didn't have a free moment. By the time I went to bed was too tired to blog.
This morning, I woke at six, finished the edits for The Captain and The Countess, which will be released by MuseItUp Publishing on the 21st February, and e-mailed them.
While checking my e-mails I noticed the sun had come out so, by 10 30 a.m. I was out in the garden, feet squelching after days of rain. I moved a couple of small shrubs, shifted a clump of Lady's Mantle, a particular favourite, which is so named because the leaves are supposed to resemble the Virgin Mary's cloak, and planted a hebe and a small conifer. I think the grass green conifer is in the wrong place and might move it. I also planted some narcissi bulbs which had sprouted in a plastic bag in the greenhouse.
Later, while cooking lunch, I was fascinated by the sight of a carrion crow. With its beak it picked up some bread I had scattered on the lawn, dunked the piece in the pond and then ate it. The bird repeated this several times before something startled it and it flew away. He/or she visits the pond regularly to drink, but this is the first time I have seen it dip bread in water. By the way, I hope it is not preying on the water snails!
While lunch was cooking, I refilled the bird feeders with seed, came back indoors and watched blue tits, robins and sparrows flock to it, while a female blackbird pecked at spilled seed on the ground. Very entertaining!
This morning, I woke at six, finished the edits for The Captain and The Countess, which will be released by MuseItUp Publishing on the 21st February, and e-mailed them.
While checking my e-mails I noticed the sun had come out so, by 10 30 a.m. I was out in the garden, feet squelching after days of rain. I moved a couple of small shrubs, shifted a clump of Lady's Mantle, a particular favourite, which is so named because the leaves are supposed to resemble the Virgin Mary's cloak, and planted a hebe and a small conifer. I think the grass green conifer is in the wrong place and might move it. I also planted some narcissi bulbs which had sprouted in a plastic bag in the greenhouse.
Later, while cooking lunch, I was fascinated by the sight of a carrion crow. With its beak it picked up some bread I had scattered on the lawn, dunked the piece in the pond and then ate it. The bird repeated this several times before something startled it and it flew away. He/or she visits the pond regularly to drink, but this is the first time I have seen it dip bread in water. By the way, I hope it is not preying on the water snails!
While lunch was cooking, I refilled the bird feeders with seed, came back indoors and watched blue tits, robins and sparrows flock to it, while a female blackbird pecked at spilled seed on the ground. Very entertaining!
Thursday, 30 January 2014
Asparagus and New Potatoes
An enjoyable day today. I went through another 50 pages of the galley of The Captain and The Countess, which will be published on the 21st February by MuseItUp Publishing. I then went out shopping for clothes with my daughter.
I didn't find any clothes I liked, but we ended up at Tesco where I bought 6 asparagus plants and some seed potatoes - first early salad potatoes called Charlotte. Last year I grew my first, second an maincrop potatoes in containers and in the ground. The former did best to I shall grow them all in containers this year. I've decided to grow some expensive vegetables this year so the asparagus will be a welcome addition to my vegetarian cuisine, and so will the globe artichokes which are in small pots in the greenhouse waiting to be planted out.
When I returned home the contractor phoned me and we agreed work on my new kitchen will begin on the 18th of February. I am really looking forward to the job being completed by the beginning of March.
I didn't find any clothes I liked, but we ended up at Tesco where I bought 6 asparagus plants and some seed potatoes - first early salad potatoes called Charlotte. Last year I grew my first, second an maincrop potatoes in containers and in the ground. The former did best to I shall grow them all in containers this year. I've decided to grow some expensive vegetables this year so the asparagus will be a welcome addition to my vegetarian cuisine, and so will the globe artichokes which are in small pots in the greenhouse waiting to be planted out.
When I returned home the contractor phoned me and we agreed work on my new kitchen will begin on the 18th of February. I am really looking forward to the job being completed by the beginning of March.
Wednesday, 29 January 2014
New Kitchen
Last year the mould and damp in my kitchen was treated. Everything has dried out and the mould has not returned, so I am about to have a new kitchen. I'm pleased with my choices. A warm but not glaring yellow for the walls an old gold shade,, white woodwork and kitchen cupboards, grey tiles, grey worktops and a grey floor. I am now waiting for the contractor to let me know when work will commence. It will take two weeks of not being able to use the washing machine, dishwasher and gas cooker but as my daughter lives around the corner from me, with her kind permission, I shall use her equipment. If I become stressed by the state of the house I shall sleep at her house and relax with my grandchildren.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)