Bits and Bobs

Went over the RSPB nature reserve the other day and realised once again that I am a country girl at heart.  I love the smell of the country and the sounds.  I don't mean the smell you get when you drive past smelly farm, but that smell of grass, meadow, earth that you only get in the country away from too much civilisation.  Also a major river runs alongside, it's a tidal river so there is that unique smell associated with a salty river.

There I could stay, just me and the one who made it all.  Sharing a word here and there.  Turning to smile at each other as we both spot a butterfly passing by.  Enjoying that feeling of oneness when it is enough to sit together and there is no need of words.  I am my beloved's and he is mine.

Deep sigh!

Saw my green woodpecker in the garden today.  I just got my binoculars out as he was coming nearer the house and out came the neighbour to hang out her washing.

Another deep sigh!

He has taken me to the banqueting table, and his banner over me is love.  Song of Songs

Jenny <><

No. 6 blessing

Quite a few years ago I heard someone mention the No. 6 blessing.  I was confused.  I hadn't realised that there was a list of blessings.  Who wrote them?  Where would i find them?  Why had I never heard of them before and what was the No. 6 one?  Was it more special than the others?

 

This was a puzzle to me for a number of years and I felt too silly to ask anyone what the No. 6 blessing was, especially as everyone else seemed to know.

Then one day the secret was revealed.  Did I feel stupid or what.  A great lesson learned.  Clean your ears out and listen properly.  There was no numbered list of blessings.

Please turn to Numbers 6 verse 24.

"The Lord bless you and keep you;  the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you;  the Lord turn his face towards you and give you peace."

Jenny <><

I’m sitting in my dining room looking out at my garden.  At the bottom of the garden is an enormous Oak tree.  I love this tree and have watched it grow for over 35 years, and boy has it grown in the last few years.

This tree is full of life from top to bottom although strangely not very often full of acorns.  In fact the tree could be called Oak city due to the way it is used by the wild life.

Let me explain.  In the top quarter the crows perch and once but only once nested.  Half way down the tree to the bottom of the tree the wood pigeons like to sit.  They don’t seem to like the very top, probably sways too much for them to hold on.  Again half way down to the  bottom the magpies come, usually with a view to annoy and bully any other bird that seems like good sport.

Blue and great tits flit in and out the bottom half.  Surprisingly it’s sparrows and starlings that never seem to use it.  Black birds and robins perch in the bottom branches also and green woodpeckers run up and down the trunk.

Now I must mention the green woodpeckers because my husband is always moaning about the holes they leave in the lawn.  That’s a whole different discussion, but when he described the size of said woodpecker he reckoned it to be about the size of a small penguin by where his hand was off the ground.  Having explained to him they are about the size of the magpies without the long tail he just grunted.  So of course now whenever we see one we just shout, ‘your penguin is in the garden’.

If you look closely at the trunk of the tree there are ants running up and down.  Now how far they go I have no idea as I have never climbed the tree and don’t intend to, but it would be interesting to know though.

When we have a good crop of acorns there are plenty of squirrels about and then the magpies really have fun.  They seem to like nothing better than annoy the squirrels.  It gives me hours of pleasure watching them think up new ways to rattle the squirrels who in the end get so angry they end up chasing them.

So there you have it my Oak tree like a city to lots of diverse birds and creatures all living in their particular part of it, and I cannot sit and look at it without seeing something of the glory of God’s creation before me.

 Jenny <><

Friday

I am sitting here with my ear phones in my ears plugged into this computer.  First night of the Proms is on the TV, it's something heavy by Mahler.  I have the sound on the TV turned off.  Every time i go on to another web page i get my ears blasted.  The last blast was 'you have mail', nearly took my ears off.  Why you might ask, and i can only say, 'i don't know'.  I was watching something on BBC IPlayer and haven't bothered to either turn TV back up or unplug my ears.  I do so like being different lol!

G'daughter has fried the innards of her laptop by using it on the bed where all the air vents have been covered causing it to overheat and burn something out.  Shop is looking at it and hopefully it can be mended.  It will still cost though but is cheaper than buying a new one.

Complete change of subject.  I was hoping to get my bus freedom pass when i was 60, then they changed the rules and i will have to be 61 and four months and four days before i can get it and a pension.  Now they are talking of speeding up bringing women up to 65 before getting their pass.  So now i don't know when or if i will get one.  Silly thing is hubby got his at 60 and he will be working to 65.  Poor me :(

Now, i am hungry but don't know what to eat, i'm thirsty but cannot make my mind up what to drink.  The man singing on the TV (without sound) looks a bit constipated the faces he is pulling so i will give Mahler a miss.  Think i will find something good on pooter to listen to being as my ears are still plugged in to it.

What do you think....

Jenny <><

Help needed

Ok folks, help is needed.  I wrote a long blog piece for my other blog 'Yearning and Learning'.  I wrote it in word and then copied and pasted it in.  But it wouldn't accept it.  

What did i do wrong and how can i write a post somewhere else before transferring it to here.  

Any ideas?

Jenny <><

Comments

Have been told by Guido that he couldn't put a comment on my last post.  The only thing that changed was i added the verification word onto it to stop spam comments.  I have changed it back so hope it works now.  I will get someone to check it for me as i cannot myself.

Jenny <><

Hello again

Well it has been 5 months this time, so much for good intentions. Have struggled to get a bit of order to my life since being at home but i am getting better. I have got out of the house a bit more and once a week me and a friend go for a walk around our local park.

I used to get frustrated with my mum for being so slow but now i seem to be the same, everything takes forever. Mostly because hips, knees and ankles do not work as good as they used to. I don't get as much done in a day as i once did or the days are getting shorter.

The biggest thing that has happened has been my daughter moving house. On her birthday she was offered a new build 3 bedroom town house meaning she could get out of her 2 bed 2nd floor flat. Only problem it hadn't been built yet. Usually with the council you get offered a place and have to move in about 2 weeks later. Well with this house we couldn't even get near it, but just take a peep from a distance onto the building site watching it go up. The house is only 3 roads away from me, a lot nearer than the flat but still a good walk. I get there by taking a bus to the park entrance and then walk through the park, out the other side and just down the road. Takes me about 20 mins but my hubby can walk the whole distance in about 10 mins, but then he is a lot fitter.

The frustrating problem with the house was that she kept getting told it will be ready by... and it wasn't. Then you will have the keys by... and she didn't. We started packing and stopped packing. She packed the summer clothes and then had to unpack them as the weather got hotter.

Eventually on the 1st June she got the keys and moved in on the 14th and it all happened in a great rush, BUT WE DID IT!!!!

By then though we were both in agony with our backs and everything downwards and living on pain killers. Bending over packing boxes and running up and down 2 flights of stairs as her new house is a town house took there toll. But it was all worth it and now she can unpack at her leisure.

G'son has already unpacked and i think g'daughter has nearly finished. As they are both on the top floor i don't go up there too often. There are plenty of boxes in the garage though but the problem is where to put all the stuff. For the first time in 14 years they have a garden, a very small garden but nevertheless it is their space with grass and somewhere to hang out the washing.

The cat was traumatised for a while and wouldn't come out of the lounge but now she loves the garden and can hiss at the cat next door through the fence and try to pounce at the squirrel.

So the on off move has rather taken up my time this year but now it has happened so the next step is to get me a bit fitter and out and about more.

Jenny <><