Digging and Thinking

Yesterday it was actually sunny out.  A much needed sunny day to get me out of that dark hole that is my mind.  Sunday I ended up being one of those tedious moods where it just rained, the whole house felt damp and with that, my mood was definitely damp, cranky and impatient with myself, my life and especially, the weather.  I don't mind one day of rain that I'm happy to stay in and do my knitting or sewing but when it goes on and on...well, I feel like I'm climbing the walls quite literally.

So the young man and I went out for a blissful walk to clear our heads.  We found a £5 note on our travels so our drinks and chocolate brownies cost £1.20.  Always a bonus when you live on a tight budget.  When we got home, he settled down in a better mindset for revision, while I finally got stuck in with the garden.  I cut the grass, pruned some bushes back, weeded the garden and tidied up the edging.  Here are the results:

I spent hours doing this but you wouldn't think to look at it now

It looks much tidier but in need of more colour.

I want to get some snapdragons or something...something to brighten it up a bit.  Anything would be an improvement.  This year I said no to sweet peas.  Every year my parents get me some and its this search of find some suitable sticks to tie them to and then I lost interest in looking after them.  I prefer my old house and its brighter garden.  This one has too many trees over looking it and its ALWAYS dark.

Today, the young man and I went out for lunch with my parents.  It was enjoyable and afterwards, they went home and we went out browsing.  I got fabric to make something else.  Just as well because yet more rain is forecast for tomorrow.  Because clearly we haven't had enough of it this year.

Landscapes and Quilts

Landscape paintings never spoke to me as a child. The colours always seemed to be a sea of murky, dull, green rolling hills and troubled skies. They never seemed bright and vivid as the real world around me. The paintings seemed to be of far off places, places that in my mind, never really existed in the world I lived in.

I live in Yorkshire now and the sky is often white with clouds, lacking in any colour. I often find it too bright, sometimes it even hurts my eyes. I'm grateful for sunny days when colour returns to the sky. It is then I appreciate what is around me.

I have to admit, I spend a lot of time on the Internet, watching documentaries. I'm fascinated by the idea of crafts being passed down from one generation to the next. On one of my searches, that is where I found the documentary, “Quiltmakers of Gee's Bend”. To me, these quilts are landscapes, rich with an assortment of colours and patterns.

The quilts are not perfect, far from it. They were made by woman who utilised what they had around them. That is what makes them beautiful and unique. But what is more interesting is what the stories behind the quilts. You can watch the video here and tell me what you think.