RSS

Monthly Archives: June 2020

A Bench, A Bouquet and Peace

For years we have wondered about having somewhere to commemorate my Mum and Dad and have thought that a bench near Gwennap Church where Dad found his inspiration for his best seller, “Jeremy Visick” would be just perfect. The stream that runs by is mentioned in the story too and the place really is special to all the family. Today, with the blessing of the Vicar, we met the Church warden to discuss how this can happen and where to site the bench – just to the right of the one that is there already. So delighted that this project is finally going to happen. I’ll keep you informed as things progress.

A friend sent a message today to say that in her clearing out she has found some single earrings and can I use them in my glass projects? Yes, I can! I’ve left a little bunch of sweet peas on the doorstep in exchange.

The following words seem right in these strange and discombobulating times. I have posted them before, some four years ago.

Peace

Anniversary, Garden and Singing

19 Jun

Today marks the anniversary of the Great 1913 Women’s Pilgrimage starting in the South West where women walked from Land’s End to Hyde Park demanding their right to vote and to be acknowledged as citizens.

Dreadnought began with this inspirational story of courage and rage, and we marked the centenary of the pilgrimage by touring a new play Oxygen in 2013 to the places the women had stopped and rallied one hundred years earlier. My choir leader, Claire Ingleheart wrote the music for the play, “Oxygen” and many of the choir turned up to sing at Land’s End prior to walking the first few miles of the walk together.

My Suffragette garden has the right colours at the right moment! My regular readers will know that my Great Granny, Mary Wiseman, was a Suffragette, was force fed in Holloway Prison and received the portcullis brooch from Mrs Pankhurst for her struggles. I am very proud of her, hence my garden and my tattoo.

Here’s a recording of The Ingleheart Singers singing Oxygen in Truro Cathedral. I’m not amongst them as I was recovering from a replacement hip op but I was able to record it for you.

3 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on June 19, 2020 in community, Cornwall, Dreadnought, garden, music, nature, Photography, Postaday2020, Suffragettes, Uncategorized

Tags: 'Oxygen' by Claire Ingleheart and Natalie McGrath, Dreadnought South West, Great 1913 Women's Pilgrimage, Suffragette Garden

Cornish Mizzle and Dew-drops

18 Jun

We walked early this morning hoping to beat the forecast rain. We could see the clouds over Carn Brea, so thick we couldn’t see the castle and the mizzle soaked us through before we made it home but dew-dropped leaves and grasses, spiders’ webs and flowers made for some pleasing photo opportunities.

Fuchsia in a Cornish hedge at the start of our walk

Carn Brea in the mist

Grain in the field

Foxglove blossoms in a dew covered web

Grass and droplets of dew

Green Field, A View and Confetti

17 Jun

On our walk around the back we have been watching the progress of a field from ploughed to sown to the tiny shoots and now, the grains appearing and creating a view as if an impressionist painting.

Carn Brea Castle in the distance

Further around the walk the views go for miles across farmland to the sea.

St Euny Chuch and beyond some engine house chimneys and beyond that, the sea

The rain has taken nearly all the blooms from the Crinodendron. Now they are on the grass and the little table looking like confetti.

Rain, Rain and More Rain

16 Jun

The June Monsoon is with us, absolute deluges in stair-rods! However, when it stops as it just did, there are a multitude of raindrops to be caught on camera.

Rose

Very dark purple Sweet Peas

Raindrops on the stalk of an Alium

5 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on June 16, 2020 in garden, nature, Photography, Postaday2020, Uncategorized

Tags: mixed sweet peas, Sarah Raven

Today’s Walk to Killifreth

15 Jun

We live in Cornwall, in the middle of what was the richest area in the world for copper and tin mining in the 18th and 19th centuries and we are surrounded by the iconic engine houses, one of which we walked to yesterday. Today we visited one of the most elegant of all the relics around, Killifreth. Click on any image for a bigger picture and the explanatory caption.

Killifreth

Fascinating information about the shape of the chimney

Looking up the chimney to the pinpoint of light at the top, using flash

Looking up the chimney to the pinpoint of light at the top

brick work

Hoverfly

More engine houses in the distance

Enchanting lane

Chimney in the far distance

Elderflower which we could smell before we came upon it

Convolvulus

2 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on June 15, 2020 in architecture, Cornwall, environment, nature, Photography, Postaday2020, Tin mining history, Uncategorized

Tags: Cornish mining history

Join Us On Our Most Joyful Walk

14 Jun

We visited our favourite spot today, Chapelporth with a walk up the cliffs to Wheal Coates.The cafe is not yet open so no Croque Monsieur or Ice-cream Hedgehogs…. Click on any photo for a bigger view and the caption.

the rain has gouged out the stream bed

Tide still coming in

We nearly missed the Thrift, unable to visit for 3 months

The Heather is wonderful

Godrevy Lighthouse in the distance

Turquoise

Tide on the turn

Raindrops on grass

On the path

Wheal Coates

Stones enhanced by the rain earlier today

Reflection

Tide turned, going out

Snail

8 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on June 14, 2020 in architecture, Chapel Porth, Cornwall, environment, Happiness, nature, Photography, Postaday2020, Tin mining history

Tags: Wheal Coates

A Family, Monkeys, A Special Meal and A Recipe

13 Jun

On our walk today, we were overtaken by a young family that we know, all out on their bikes, the littles one being towed. They were off to do the whole Great Flat Lode. We walk just a small section. It isn’t flat, by the way. This section is quite a steep hill.

In between showers, we have managed to plant up the Monkey planter and it looks lovely against the newly painted wall, which is cream rather than white but looks white in the photo. A local artist, Jeremy Beswick, made this precious basket for me many years ago.

We are ‘going out’ for dinner again tonight, collecting a Confit Duck meal from The Royal Oak in Perranwell. Here is this week’s menu.

I have put the recipe for Strawberry Freezer Jam on my recipe pages today. It’s very easy and totally scrumptious.

2 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on June 13, 2020 in art, Cornwall, environment, Food, nature, Photography, Postaday2020, sculpture

Tags: Flat Lode Trail, Jeremy Beswick artist, Three Wise Monkeys

Strawberry Jam, Church Noticeboard and Lettuces

12 Jun

When our lovely friend brought some scones and Cornish cream the other day, we assumed we had some strawberry jam in the freezer but no! We had to use bought jam. 🙂 In our delivery yesterday we bought some beautiful English strawberries and today I have started making the no-cook freezer jam which tastes so fresh and delicious.

We went to visit Gwennap Churchyard in a very heavy rainstorm this afternoon as we have a plan which I shall tell you about if it comes to fruition. On the noticeboard just outside the Churchyard, there is reference to the gravestone that was the inspiration for one of my Dad’s books, The Fate of Jeremy Visick.

Just nearby was a little stall selling beautiful fresh homegrown produce.Loved the ‘living lettuce’ but left it there as we have so much growing at home.

9 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on June 12, 2020 in Photography, Postaday2020

Tags: Gwennap Churchyard, strawberry freezer jam, The Fate of Jeremy Visick by David Wiseman

Peony, Sugarsnaps and A New Book

11 Jun

One Peony flower has survived the wild weather – it’s enormous, about 9″ across. There are still some buds to come.The first sugar snap peas were ready for tonight’s supper. They have the prettiest flowers too. I’ll show you another day.

Purple Magnolia Sugarsnap peas, five each!

A new book arrived today and we are delighted with it, bright illustrations, rhyme and rhythm, dinosaurs and best of all, a white Daddy and a black Mummy, just like our Grandbaby LiveWires! We can hardly wait until our next Skype story time with them. It hasn’t been easy to find such books for little people.