1 One of my favourite shops in Truro, the fabric shop, also delighted J who loved all the coloured ribbons.
Choosing ribbons
2 The Wildworks’ Cabinet of Cornish Curiosities is still in the Museum in Truro and T loved opening the drawers to find what was inside. Her favourite was the drawer with all the coloured plastic pieces found on Cornish beaches.
Loving opening the drawers
3 The delicacy of the Clematis shows well in the light of dusk.
Clematis
1 Yesterday at the Museum, I was interviewed by BBC Radio Cornwall about what object I was putting into the Wildworks’ Cabinet of Cornish Curiosities and my piece was used in the Breakfast programme! You can read about my object here.
2 I ordered some seeds a couple of days ago and they arrived today! I am so impressed with the company! They are called Seedaholic and provide a fantastic service. The seeds came beautifully packed and with all manner of useful and interesting information. The ground is now ready and I plan to sow them tomorrow.
Red Oak Leaf Lettuce seeds
Nicotiana seeds, Jasmine Tobacco
3 We’ve bought the most delightful new birdhouse with two storeys, the top one a nesting box and the lower level for seeds. The lovely Mr S put it up last night and whenever I see it, it makes me smile!
Our new lighthouse for birds
1 I took the bus into Truro this morning and was delighted to find it was a double decker so I was able to get some pleasing shots of the countryside we went through.
The sea from the bus
I love the green of Spring leaves, from the bus
Truro Cathedral from the bus
2 I spent most of the day volunteering at the Royal Cornwall Museum helping with the Wildworks project, The Museum of Us. The fabulous Cabinet of Curiosities is filled with treasures from Cornwall, most collected by Jane Darke, from Porthcothan and other beaches in North Cornwall. If you are reading this and live anywhere near Truro, do come and marvel at the stuff inside the cupboards and drawers and bring in an object that means Cornwall to you. The project aims to collect objects that will be displayed in the cabinet and become The Museum of Us. Do click on the photos to see the detail and to read the labels.
The Cabinet
Drawer in the Cabinet, all items found on Cornish beaches
Driftwood from all over the world washed up onto North Cornish beaches
Mum and the two girls at the Cabinet with Jane Darke
3 Two lovely little girls, aged about 6 and 4, came in with their Mum and their shoebox of treasures collected on Treyarno Beach and showed them to me explaining why they loved them. I loved the piece of Cornish stone that Poppy had embellished so prettily and she was happy for me to take photos of her special beach-found treasures.
Poppy’s treasure box
Poppy’s beautifully decorated stone
Corn husk, found by Poppy, possibly come over on the seas from America
Storm Trooper’s hat, found by Poppy on Treyarno Beach
Favourite little treasures
1 Grand-baby B loves her black and white images and her Mum and I were delighted to see the reflection of the images in her eye.
Black and white images reflected in B’s eyes
Grand-baby B looking at her black and white pictures
Several of my readers asked about the earlier photos I posted of Baby B ‘reading’ her Art for Baby book. Neurologists say that newborns are only capable of focusing 8 to 10 inches from their face. They also prefer black and white, high contrast images to colour graphics. There is a very interesting article here if you’d like to find out more. The following is included in the article.
Hannah Lazenby, 29, a maternity nurse from Harrogate, has looked after dozens of babies over the past 10 years, usually from the day of their birth. She believes a simple black and white image can soothe any crying baby: “It gives them something to concentrate on when they’re bombarded by so many different images after the calm of the womb. This is something very simple that they’re transfixed by – they can’t take their eyes off it. I have had children who have been fractious or had colic and found myself thinking, ‘You poor thing, I don’t know what else to do, I’ll give you this to look at.’ And it does seem to work.”
2 I spent a fascinating morning at the Royal Cornwall Museum, learning about Wildworks’ new project, The Museum of Us. The cabinet in the poster will be filled with objects that local people are asked to bring to the museum.
The Museum of Us
We, the volunteers,will be finding out the stories behind the objects and why they mean ‘Cornwall’ to the owners. We each had to take an object and mine was a rock!
Family rock
3 1989 was my parents’ Golden Wedding Anniversary and the family collected together from Yorkshire, Germany, Atlanta and Arizona for two weeks in Cornwall where Mum and Dad still lived. We spent one happy afternoon picnicking and playing on one of our favourite beaches, Kynance Cove. Our eldest daughter found a beautiful piece of Serpentine, pale green on its fractured side and with red veining underneath. About half an hour later one of my nephews found a beautiful piece of Serpentine and we were all amazed to realise that the two pieces fitted together! They were one rock which had split. Now I know one shouldn’t take rocks from the beach but these were too special to leave behind. Our piece came home with us and Lael’s piece went home to Prescott, Arizona with that side of the family. The rocks are part of a whole. The rocks mean Cornwall and family and togetherness to us all.
1 It was very atmospheric in Tehidy Woods last night.
In Tehidy Woods last night
2 The grape hyacinths are coming out in force now and are very beautiful.
Bi-colour Muscari
3 I have finished the tiny little trousers for Grand-baby B – they are one of the most pleasing little things I have made. They are called Kanoko pants because “Kanoko” is from Japanese term “Kanoko-ami” which means “seed(moss) stitches” and I have to thank Harumidori designs for the delightful and very easy pattern.
Tiny baby trousers
After a beautiful train journey (with no photos!) we had three delightful days in London with KJ and family. Lucy was there too for some of the time which was lovely.
First, Saturday, the long tube ride to Waterloo Station, then the walk to the South Bank along which we found a wall full of poems! I so loved them, found them very moving and have chosen just a few to share with you. Then there was the Building of the Ark, the Rainbow Park, and the Festival Hall and lunch from the amazing multi-cultural food market. Sunday afternoon in the park was yet another delight.
Click on any photo for an enlargement.
1 Little sun until this afternoon so a batch baking day ready for a family visit next week. Made some delicious Lemony Pork and Chicken Meatballs (will be on my Recipe page soon) , a big panful of Ragu, and a Chicken,Lentil and Mushroom Casserole. I also made some beautiful Choc Chip Mini Muffins (on the recipe page) to try out a new recipe to bake with Jake (3 years old) when he’s here next week. Like his Mum, he loves baking too.
Baked Lemony Meatballs
2 Our lovely neighbours are home after 7 weeks away with Babel in London. It’s so good to have them home!
3 I think this mini digger is very beautiful – and when the work is finished our drive will be beautiful too!
Mini Digger
Some bonus flower pictures, micro photographs, taken this evening, with advice from another blogger, kyle78234 Thank you!
Cosmos with Fujifilm X10
Forget-me-not with FujifilmX10
Aquilega, this time with FujifilmX10
And this is my 201st post!
1 Something quite magical happened today that has not happened in the four years we’ve been here. There was a reflection from the windscreen of the car on the drive through the etched window of the inner front door and up onto the stair carpet at the top of the stairs – beautiful!
Etched window from 1904
Reflections
2 We went to Hardy Exotics this afternoon, in Whitecross, on the A30, to find a tree to survive the wind in our garden. We didn’t get a tree today but were shown this scruffy and very beautiful nest with the mother bird sitting in one of the staff-only greenhouses! What a sensible bird! It’s warm, dry, only Di goes in there to pot up new plants and she can listen to Radio 4!
Mother on nest
3 Had two meetings today with couples wanting non-religious Wedding Ceremonies, one to be on Little Fistral Beach (Carnmarth Hotel if the weather is bad), in Newquay in September and the other at Trevenna Barns, Bodmin in May next year. Both lovely couples with whom it was fun to start the planning.
4 An added extra for today – There’s a fabulous review of Babel here – this reviewer totally gets it, at last! http://teatimeinwonderland.co.uk/lang/en/2012/05/12/babel/
1 Saw this last magnolia blossom in North Finchley on our way to Woodside Park tube station.
Magnolia
2 The sun shone all the way home lighting up the amazingly yellow fields. The sheep and lambs seemed pleased to be drying out and I had four hours reading time! Almost finished ‘Restless’ by William Boyd.
Oil seed rape blossom
On a hill just before Truro
3 Babel was a surreal and amazing experience! It was promenade theatre where we walked through the tree lined paths of Caledonian Park – along which were individuals living their individual lives, playing the piano, peeling vegetables, knitting, typing – into the open space in front of the very beautiful Clock Tower built in 1855. In this space, tramping through chocolate thick mud, the people came together to build their city. There was music and fire and story telling. Very few photos worked (no flash allowed) but here’s a taster:
Knitting
Peeling vegetables
Playing the piano
Typing
Beautiful paper models, two of many
The Clock Tower, Caledonian Park
I don’t want to tell you more at this point -I want you to go and see it if you can and I don’t want to spoil it for you!
Having a day out and won’t be home in time to post so…. in anticipation of Babel …….
Bill Mitchell, artistic director of Wildworks theatre company
A spectacular outdoor show created for a major London setting, BABEL is staged through a unique partnership between WildWorks and Battersea Arts Centre and will feature a cast of up to 300.
More tomorrow.
Commentator Award
