Monday 10 February 2014

Blogallimaufrey


A respite from the rain for most of the day, there was even enough sun to bathe the castle in a warm afternoon glow. Millie and I went out twice, morning and afternoon.  We met Robin up on the castle bailey throwing a ball for Horace, the shaggy whippet who looks as if he’s wearing an Afghan coat. Millie was not amused. She likes Robin well enough and makes a fuss of him, but every time Horace raced past her she growled. Old dog ladies are like that, they feel the need to put these whippersnappers in their place. Robin and I just stood there, mesmerised by the unnatural feeling of sun on our necks. Two adults standing on top of a flat, low hill, watching a pair of mad dogs and stretching out their arm to their full extent, grinning like idiots.

Magnus Manske - Wikimedia Commons
Back home I took a closer look at the garden. There are signs of life everywhere, buds and tiny shoots are appearing and the Daphne Odora Aurea-Marginata - the gold-edged fragrant Daphne - is about to burst into life. It was getting too dusky for a photo, so I filched this one from Wikimedia Commons, but mine is exactly the same. I shall take the camera round the garden at the very next opportunity and see what there is.

With all this rain I’ve spent many hours reading. Good stuff and not so good stuff. One book I can recommend whole-heartedly is Barbara Kingsolver’s ‘Flight Behaviour’.  I could barely put it down.  The main character, Dellarobia Turnbow is beautifully observed, and her development from drudge to a woman with renewed hope is described with sympathy and understanding. Even her rather dreadful family on the rundown farm in the Appalachians is ultimately accorded compassion. But the main theme of the book is climate change. If there is anyone who still doesn’t get it - and I know, there are many - you might do worse than read this novel. But if this should prove too arduous a task, look at the myriad of blogposts from all corners of our planet telling us about the weird weather patterns we are all experiencing.

Flight Behaviour was published in 2012 and is Kingsolver’s seventh novel; it is a New York Times Bestseller, and was declared "Best book of the year" by the Washington Post and USA Today.

Finally, a bit of advice. Yesterday was Saint Apollonia’s day.This aged Christian matron having had her teeth pulled out before her martyrdom, is invoked against toothache. If she can’t help, “take a nail and make the gum bleed with it, then drive it into an oak." The very stout William Neal, who was mad with toothache and ready to shoot himself, was thereby cured.

So says John Aubrey in his Miscellanies of 1695. At least he doesn’t advise us to drive the nail into the gum.






43 comments:

  1. We're having a beautiful spring over here. Took a walk in the woods Sunday with the camera. Stumbled onto a pretty photo. Come take a look.

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  2. heerlijk om nu buiten te zijn het lijkt wel voorjaar,maar wel heel vreemd.

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  3. I hope spring comes soon in your garden Friko. Good advice and It's strange that now dentists do not practice this method :))

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  4. The gold-edged fragrant Daphne - I don't think a plant's name can't get much more beautiful than that!

    Thank you for the book recommendation. I have not heard of the author before but will have a look for her works in the online catalogue of the local library.

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  5. Having my gums nailed is definitely not on my wish list. Wasn't a bad day out today was it! It's lovely seeing the buds emerging in spite of everything that Nature seems to be throwing at us right now.

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  6. yipes....i think i will keep my fingers out my mouth for the day...no celebrating...ha...
    we are just in time for snow here...5-8 inches tomorrow...they say
    oy...ready for spring..your castle is ever amazing....

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  7. I'm glad you enjoyed the book, but... I really dislike BK . She's to preachy for me and not the expert on everything! She pretends to be. I stopped reading her books ages ago ( read the first few). As one who is living near, and has lived in Appalachia on and off for years, I am sure she makes it sound squalid. Country folk, that's what they are. Descendants of the Irish, Germans, Scots and English Europe discarded.

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  8. I read that last year I think and enjoyed it very much. I've only read a couple of her books. Spring is starting to emerge here. Found lots of signs in the yard yesterday.

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  9. I like BK's characters and her descriptions and have enjoyed all of her books. She lives on a farm in the northeast is very much into organics and eating simply. I liked how the main character changed so much by being allowed to follow her interests. I knew you would get sunshine. Nothing green here, just more gray skies and freezing air.

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  10. I would like to plant Daphne, the scent is wonderful. I will probably read the book you recommend, I like the author. There has always been climate change and the earth warms and cools in a continual cycle. Just saying.

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  11. And we complain about the cost of dentistry.

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  12. I haven't read anything good by Barbara Kingsolver since The Poisonwood Diary. I think that's a book that can't be beaten, so she always disappoints me now.

    Love,
    Janie

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  13. I LOVE Barbara Kingsolver. I have an autographed copy of Flight Behaviour and it, and Prodigal Summer, are among my favourites. Her non-fiction is always rewarding too.

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  14. We are still waiting for spring and will for a long while but seeing the flowers and hearing of buds and greens and sun warming the back of your neck make me realize there is indeed hope. And this, and this alone, will get me through the single digit temperatures and all the white stuff!

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  15. Friko I am imagining the delight with which you would have relished and embraced that sunshine!

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  16. I went right to eBay and snapped up a copy of the book! Thanks for the recommendation.
    How well I comprehend the impulse to spread your arms to the sun. As soon as I see some, I shall do the same.
    And grin like the idiot I am.

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  17. what is all this rubbish talk of spring? winter JUST got going.

    i haven;t even STARTED building my snowfort yet.

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  18. mmmm, perhaps I'm an older lady dog?



    ALOHA from Honolulu
    Comfort Spiral

    =^..^=

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  19. My grandmother had daphne in her garden....I was never successful with it, unfortunately.

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  20. Serendipity!!!!! I am nearly finished Flight Behaviour and loving it, all the characters. Climate change has been disastrous in my home city of Cork. And in southern England. This was forecast many, many years ago and no plans for protection were put in place and now there are no funds. The melting of the polar ice caps is rarely mentioned as the water has to go somewhere and no one is ready.
    Spring. Ah Spring. Not here by a long shot.
    XO
    WWW

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  21. I read Flight Behavior and like you could not put it down, all the while fretting seeing only one Monarch all summer as I was reading. I found Dellarobia to be an interesting character and so many other issues, such as education in poor areas, explored.

    We had sun here today - and single digit temperatures with more snow coming. Yes. Rough weather for us all on both sides of the Atlantic.

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  22. I'll take your advice on Flight Behavior. I like Barbara Kingsolver's work in general and am glad to hear that you enjoyed this one. Isn't it delicious to just curl up and delve into a book?

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  23. With all the snow, ice and freezing air we have gotten here in the US, I am going mad enough to drive a nail into my gums.

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  24. I just read your last post on “heimweh” – as you know I do get homesick for my hometown of Paris. I think it would be easier if I lived in a cosmopolitan city instead of a sprawling suburb now. My life in Paris was nicer too – had many friends to talk with and no money problem – life was a lot easier than in the US, but I did not know it then. I also found a site a while back about immigrants to the US saying what they truly think about this country and its citizens – sometimes the comments are painful to read. Another point made is that a very large number of immigrants do go back to their countries for good – and that is not well known. As a matter of fact I knew at least 6 French woman, two French couples with good businesses, a couple of Swiss and some Belgians, a German, a couple of Vietnamese, three Italians, an Algerian and his wife, and more – all of them left the US after several years – they thought they could stay here but the life was too different, not too difficult, they just did not like it. They may have had more money here but in the end, it did not matter.

    As for the weather, yesterday was sunny and warm at 65 F (18 C) and can you believe that the Atlanta mayor and the Georgia Governor have just issued “state of emergencies” for another ice/snow storm expected tomorrow? Schools will be closed – offices too and roads are being prepared this time. Maybe I’ll be able to take more snow pictures….

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  25. This is great! Thanks for sharing.

    www.modernworld4.blogspot.com

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  26. John Aubrey advised of many things. But I still haven't seen a fairy disappearing "with a curious Perfume and most melodious Twang".

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  27. Your buds are coming out and its -20 here - we are definitely not having spring yet. I can just imagine the dogs running about n playing. I shall check out that book - nothing like a good morning, afternoon or evening of reading. Have a wonderful day.

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  28. I don't think spring is anywhere in sight here - there's been snow on the ground for an entire month. I am loving it though :)

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  29. It's looking rather springlike here in Southport -- but the temperature is a little bit too low at 6C (Around 44F) and the breeze a bit too stiff for comfort. But the days are noticeably lengthening and there are lots of buds appearing here and there. I will take your advice and get a copy of that book -- it sounds intriguing. I've been trying to get into the Cazalet Chronicles of late, and it's been rather slow going...

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  30. Lots of little joys in this post, the appearance of sunshine not the least!

    I'm glad I have no aspirations to become a martyr.

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  31. Lovely thought of gardening in my mind as well ... the first seed catalogue came in the mail the other day ... still deep winter here ... o, and I so love the pic of Benno ... he looks exactly like my Piwo ... Love, cat.

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  32. A little tour of my garden this weekend revealed swelling buds, tiny green tulip leaves emerging from the dirt, and other most welcome signs of spring. I have BK's Prodigal Summer awaiting, and Flight Behavior sounds interesting for the future.
    So glad that sunshine is appearing in your corner of the world, along with the gorgeous Daphne.

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  33. I'm watching for signs of Spring in my neck of the woods, but I fear it will come prematurely and all the apple blooms will be blown away by sudden winter winds that have failed to show up all winter. On the other hand, we should just relax and accept what happens; we definitely can't change forces of nature.

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  34. I would imagine that if the nail were to be driven into the gum he would forget about his toothache in a hurry! Maybe that IS the cure, after all...

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  35. Glad to see you're out and about again with Millie, Friko. I have that book on my list. Though I hate going to the dentist, the nail cure doesn't seem much better - you'd need a tetanus shot for sure!

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  36. Wonderful shot of the sun on the castle. (Wonderful to see sun...) I'm a Kingsolver fan but haven't gotten to FLIGHT BEHAVIOR yet,

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  37. When I'm driven mad with toothache I head to the nearest open dentist. Usually this is on a public holiday or new year's day or any other time when a dentist isn't normally open, so I end up going to an emergency clinic and paying out half my bank account to be pain free. I'm tempted to try the nail in a stout oak tree thing.
    I've only read one Barbara Kingsolver book so far, The Poisonwood Bible.
    The castle is lovely.

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  38. The castle looks beautiful ! Each time I "Escape to the Country" and they show Shropshire I see the castle too, lol ! Not only old dog ladies become strange when they are getting old, with cats it's the same !

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  39. Wow, that castle is lovely! I also love your header!

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  40. What a beautiful photo of the castle. You certainly caught the light. I read 'Flight Behaviour' last winter and was totally engrossed in it. Having a good read helps when winter weather makes it hard to go outside.

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  41. I absolutely loved The Poisonwood Bible but haven't yet read any of her others. Good recommendation.

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  42. Hi Friko - I'll have to read some of Barbara Kingsolver ... better get reading sometime soon ... isn't it wonderful the weather is improving .. though today down here we're in gloom ... but it is lighter ..

    Enjoy your walk today .. cheers Hilary

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