Wednesday, November 09, 2011
Wardour and the Arundells of Wiltshire.
I haven't been out far today - but my work has taken me to Wiltshire.
I have described 6 more books for EBay.....not so much work as a time consuming pleasure. I tend to spend time reading the books - after all I must give a true and honest description of what the books contain. And I often get interested.
One of the books has been out on a shelf in the garage since May 2010.
Today it takes centre stage and hopefully will grab somebody's attention.
It is about a family that I was reading about only a few days ago - a family from Wiltshire.
The Arundells had lived in an old castle since 1544, although it is quite a bit older than that.
One hundred years later the Arundells got on the wrong side in the English Civil War and their castle, Wardour Castle was destroyed.
So they built a new castle, where the family lived until 1944 - when the last Arundell died.
My book, Wardour and The Arundells - Not So Long Ago is about family life during the first half of the 20th century. It includes the lives of those both above and below stairs.
Very recently my brother visited the ruins of the old castle.
I have "stolen" one of his pictures.
The new castle, not really a castle at all, is not far away. It is now a school.
This picture is stolen from Wikipedia.
And here is my book, featuring the Arundell family in about 1928.
The tall man was the last Lord Arundell. He was captured during WW2 and spent time in Colditz. His health deteriorated so much that he was moved to a German sanitorium. From there he was sent home to die. He died from TB in Sptember 1944.
So you see, EBay is much more than a means to make some money. It provides many opportunities to explore and learn new things.
I have described 6 more books for EBay.....not so much work as a time consuming pleasure. I tend to spend time reading the books - after all I must give a true and honest description of what the books contain. And I often get interested.
One of the books has been out on a shelf in the garage since May 2010.
Today it takes centre stage and hopefully will grab somebody's attention.
It is about a family that I was reading about only a few days ago - a family from Wiltshire.
The Arundells had lived in an old castle since 1544, although it is quite a bit older than that.
One hundred years later the Arundells got on the wrong side in the English Civil War and their castle, Wardour Castle was destroyed.
So they built a new castle, where the family lived until 1944 - when the last Arundell died.
My book, Wardour and The Arundells - Not So Long Ago is about family life during the first half of the 20th century. It includes the lives of those both above and below stairs.
Very recently my brother visited the ruins of the old castle.
I have "stolen" one of his pictures.
And here is my book, featuring the Arundell family in about 1928.
The tall man was the last Lord Arundell. He was captured during WW2 and spent time in Colditz. His health deteriorated so much that he was moved to a German sanitorium. From there he was sent home to die. He died from TB in Sptember 1944.
So you see, EBay is much more than a means to make some money. It provides many opportunities to explore and learn new things.
Labels: Places in England
Sunday, November 06, 2011
Woking and Wells
Woking!
A chance to buy and a chance to learn.
The other day Roger wrote about a book (John Halifax Gentleman by Mrs Craik) that had been a favourite of my my father's.
I remember it on the shelves; and I also remember books by today's favourite - H G Wells.
Having read up a bit about the life of HG, I wondered if it were possible that my father (another HG) might have been somewhat in awe of the man. Mr Wells had so much in common (philosophy and politics) with my Dad - though not the writing of fiction.
As a young man it is possible that my Dad might have modelled himself a little on Wells. Who knows?
And why do I think of H G Wells today?
Well he lived in Woking.
Not only that, but HGW had Martians landing on Horsell Common just outside the town and taking over Woking itself in The War of the Worlds.
Today I had breakfast in the company of an H G Wells character.
This sculpture of The Invisible Man sits in the window of a Wetherspoon's pub in Woking.
The Invisible Man is reading the book about himself!
Just how does a sculptor set about creating an image of something invisible?
It is very striking.
There are also ceiling lights in the pub, illustrating pages from War of the Worlds.
I believe this to be a print of an H G Wells self portrait.
I do appreciate the way the Wetherspoon's company attempt to capture something of the environment in which each is situated.
There are large photos of old Woking around the walls and details of other famous people who have connections with the town.
They seemed to have missed out Derek Griffiths - one of the stalwarts of Play School onTV in the 1970s!
Of course I also appreciate the value and quality of food and drink on offer.
This particular pub has won awards from the Real Ale association for the wide range of local real ales for sale.
I could have had beer this morning with my breakfast.....indeed Bill was asked if I wanted a cup of tea or a pint!
The Hog's Back Brewery make a beer called TEA!
One day
I'll be back
for the pint!
Then it was time for a walk - and to be accosted by a "monstrous tripod, higher than the tallest steeple".
But not taller than the modern buildings now found in Woking.
It is a modern sculpture (1998), depicting just how H G Wells described the creatures from space who took over the world - and so terrified the Americans when they heard the play on the radio!
We were home by about 2 o'clock.
We settled down to sort our purchases.
We bought a couple of retro items with thoughts of Christmas in mind - things other people can buy for their loved one.
The jug is white enamel, decorated with decoupage.
The waste paper bin is old wood, similarly done up.
Certainly appealing to both of us!
The other side of the WPB.
Maybe Bill should keep it - by chance the car at the bottom has a very similar number plate to his first mini. That was 853 JBP.
A chance to buy and a chance to learn.
The other day Roger wrote about a book (John Halifax Gentleman by Mrs Craik) that had been a favourite of my my father's.
I remember it on the shelves; and I also remember books by today's favourite - H G Wells.
Having read up a bit about the life of HG, I wondered if it were possible that my father (another HG) might have been somewhat in awe of the man. Mr Wells had so much in common (philosophy and politics) with my Dad - though not the writing of fiction.
As a young man it is possible that my Dad might have modelled himself a little on Wells. Who knows?
And why do I think of H G Wells today?
Well he lived in Woking.
Not only that, but HGW had Martians landing on Horsell Common just outside the town and taking over Woking itself in The War of the Worlds.
Today I had breakfast in the company of an H G Wells character.
This sculpture of The Invisible Man sits in the window of a Wetherspoon's pub in Woking.
The Invisible Man is reading the book about himself!
Just how does a sculptor set about creating an image of something invisible?
It is very striking.
There are also ceiling lights in the pub, illustrating pages from War of the Worlds.
I believe this to be a print of an H G Wells self portrait.
I do appreciate the way the Wetherspoon's company attempt to capture something of the environment in which each is situated.
There are large photos of old Woking around the walls and details of other famous people who have connections with the town.
They seemed to have missed out Derek Griffiths - one of the stalwarts of Play School onTV in the 1970s!
Of course I also appreciate the value and quality of food and drink on offer.
This particular pub has won awards from the Real Ale association for the wide range of local real ales for sale.
I could have had beer this morning with my breakfast.....indeed Bill was asked if I wanted a cup of tea or a pint!
The Hog's Back Brewery make a beer called TEA!
One day
I'll be back
for the pint!
Then it was time for a walk - and to be accosted by a "monstrous tripod, higher than the tallest steeple".
But not taller than the modern buildings now found in Woking.
We were home by about 2 o'clock.
We settled down to sort our purchases.
The jug is white enamel, decorated with decoupage.
The waste paper bin is old wood, similarly done up.
Certainly appealing to both of us!
The other side of the WPB.
Maybe Bill should keep it - by chance the car at the bottom has a very similar number plate to his first mini. That was 853 JBP.
Labels: Places in England
Monday, August 29, 2011
Bushy Park and Hampton Court
No, we are not wandering in the country.
We are walking in a huge park, close to the River Thames just to the west of London. This is Bushy Park, established as a hunting park for HenryVIII. The king had built Hampton Court Palace adjacent to the park.
Ha! A reindeer with 2 bodies!
A push me pull you!
We took dozens of pictures of the deer.
I took a picture of Bill taking a picture of me taking a picture of the deer and Bill taking a picture!
Many of the pictures here today are from Bill's camera. I think the settings on mine were not quite right. I do have this habit of knocking settings!
But here is a deer picture of mine.
The park was beautifully landscaped and 300 years ago a large pond with a fountain in the middle was included in the plans.
It has recently been renovated.
It is known as the Diana Fountain - not that Diana!
It might be the goddess of old, Diana - she was, of course, the goddess of hunting.
A friend in Canada commented that they seem very placid geese to stand still and pose for the camera.
I guess the geese, like the deer, are accustomed to people.
We crossed what is now a busy road to Hampton Court Gardens......through the Lion gate.
The main entrance to the palace was covered in scaffolding and draped material to keep the weather off - not very impressive for the tourists who arrive in droves in the summer high season.
So here is a web picture of Hampton Court as we would want to see it.
The chimneys were amazing.
I wonder if all 800 rooms had fireplaces!
Hampton Court is right by the River Thames.
We walked out onto the bridge. There would have been things to do on the south side of the river - an art exhibition at the locks, for example.
We will return another time to explore more.
I had intended not to put photographs of strangers onto the blog this time - but I couldn't resist this one from Bill.
We walked back to Bushy Park - stopping agin to shelter from a heavy shower.
The stream had been created as part of the landscaping.
Labels: Places in England
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Wiltshire Day - back in July.
It is over 2 weeks now since we drove the 100 miles to visit Roger and Sue in Market Lavington for a fun day.
Sadly, it didn't turn out to be such a fun day.
One by one we went down like nine pins with a bug. Bill had started it and was vaguely recovering.
I felt quite bad all day.
Ekatarina joined in during the afternoon and Ashley began to feel very rough on the journey home.
Nevertheless photos were taken.
First - some of Ecky's.
Sue works hard in the garden and there are always fresh home grown vegetables.
Now a sad photograph.....
This picture could tell so many stories.
What it actually tells is..."I feel wretched and I am about to puke"
Bill took pictures of flowers in Roger and Sue's garden.
He has called it Blue Lily - but I am sure it is not a lily.
Willow the cat has caught a frog.
Sadly, it didn't turn out to be such a fun day.
One by one we went down like nine pins with a bug. Bill had started it and was vaguely recovering.
I felt quite bad all day.
Ekatarina joined in during the afternoon and Ashley began to feel very rough on the journey home.
Nevertheless photos were taken.
First - some of Ecky's.
Roger and Sue have a big garden - with fields. They used to keep their own sheep; now a friend uses the field.
Sue works hard in the garden and there are always fresh home grown vegetables.
Grandma looking and feeling rather pathetic.
We met the Cavalier King Charles spaniel - one of 3 - on our walk down to the museum.
Ekatarina, like all of us, is entranced by these much photographed gravestones.
Now for a few of my photos.
My body didn't feel much like walking - but off we all trotted down to the museum.
I had hardly got into the churchyard when the world swum about before my eyes, I puked and had to sit down. Sue got me a chair from the museum.
I took a few photos from my chair.
Here are a couple for Roger and Sue of museum workers and visitors.
Now a sad photograph.....
What it actually tells is..."I feel wretched and I am about to puke"
Bill took pictures of flowers in Roger and Sue's garden.
He has called it Blue Lily - but I am sure it is not a lily.
Labels: Places in England
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Shere in Surrey - pictures.
Today has been catch up day.
Sixteen more items have been listed on EBay.
The dining room table was cleared - until I dumped more on it!
The best bit of catching up though, has been with friends.
It was a sad day when 2 lovely people moved from Crawley to the south of France. We have been to see them there and we talk to ourselves, longingly, of doing so again.
But our lives are full and so, too are there's and gradually contact was decreasing to almost nothing.
Suddenly, out of the blue, facebook stepped in and prompted us into activity.
What a blessing facebook can be, when used wisely.
This afternoon I caught up with going through all the electric times from last night's athletics meeting.
I felt just a bit that I was not doing as well as normal.
But, happily I can see that I did well. My own times were never far from the absolute accurate - my average error was just over 3 hundredths of a second.
And I am very happy with my reading of the races - gaps between runners were as I saw things.
Bill has just gone through his times - again, just over 3 hundredths of a second and fractionally better than me.
And now I must catch up with photos of Shere.
If you ever want to visit, I would advise against a sunny summer Sunday afternoon - a very popular pretty village.
We parked in the free car park near these cottages and walked into the village to find some lunch.
The White Horse is a Chef and Brewer pub - so prices are not over the top (like they were in the Shere tea shop).
The old character of the pub is retained.
I love the words over Bill's head! And look at me.....half a pint of beer and I look quite dopey!
And then it was time for a stroll with our cameras.
The church and the pub are at the heart of an English village.
All the tapestry hassocks had countryside themes .
I would take pictures of produce if in another country - so why not in Surrey?
The peaches on the right are known as mountain peaches - I only heard of them in the last week. They taste just lovely.
Two views of the old prison house.
There is a stream flowing through the village.
A fire insurance token for 1710. This
The 1710 fire insurance token is on the old forge.
The forge is now in another old building.
The blacksmiths are young men creating many ornamental and useful things.
You could order fine iron gates or statues.
On the table were baskets of coat hooks and handles of all kinds.
There were also displays of other craft works in the forge, including some photography.
How I would have loved to own or, better still to have created myself, these 2 pictures, printed on aluminium.
Actually I have pictures very like the beach scene - taken at low tide at Littlehampton.
The photographer is Sue Roche.
I'll finish with a bit of fun - delphiniums and a scarecrow and a baby pig statue.
Next week maybe another village - who knows!
Sixteen more items have been listed on EBay.
The dining room table was cleared - until I dumped more on it!
The best bit of catching up though, has been with friends.
It was a sad day when 2 lovely people moved from Crawley to the south of France. We have been to see them there and we talk to ourselves, longingly, of doing so again.
But our lives are full and so, too are there's and gradually contact was decreasing to almost nothing.
Suddenly, out of the blue, facebook stepped in and prompted us into activity.
What a blessing facebook can be, when used wisely.
This afternoon I caught up with going through all the electric times from last night's athletics meeting.
I felt just a bit that I was not doing as well as normal.
But, happily I can see that I did well. My own times were never far from the absolute accurate - my average error was just over 3 hundredths of a second.
And I am very happy with my reading of the races - gaps between runners were as I saw things.
Bill has just gone through his times - again, just over 3 hundredths of a second and fractionally better than me.
And now I must catch up with photos of Shere.
If you ever want to visit, I would advise against a sunny summer Sunday afternoon - a very popular pretty village.
We parked in the free car park near these cottages and walked into the village to find some lunch.
The old character of the pub is retained.
And then it was time for a stroll with our cameras.
All the tapestry hassocks had countryside themes .
Love that embroidery work on the altar.
I would take pictures of produce if in another country - so why not in Surrey?
The peaches on the right are known as mountain peaches - I only heard of them in the last week. They taste just lovely.
Two views of the old prison house.
There is a stream flowing through the village.
A fire insurance token for 1710. This
The 1710 fire insurance token is on the old forge.
The forge is now in another old building.
The blacksmiths are young men creating many ornamental and useful things.
On the table were baskets of coat hooks and handles of all kinds.
There were also displays of other craft works in the forge, including some photography.
How I would have loved to own or, better still to have created myself, these 2 pictures, printed on aluminium.
The photographer is Sue Roche.
I'll finish with a bit of fun - delphiniums and a scarecrow and a baby pig statue.
Next week maybe another village - who knows!
Labels: Places in England
