On Faffing And Other Such Nonsense

Hello there gorgeous ones.

The upshot is that I couldn't decide on which picture to upload. So I uploaded all of them. A slice of life if you will. Lots of colour on this rather drab Wednesday here in St Ives. I have the heating on during the day. I don't allow it usually. Samuel calls me the heating Nazi, which is a bit harsh but he is prone to the theatrical.

I've been sending him texts from the cat. Stuff like 'I just want you to know that I think you're a loser. Love Skarloey' If you met the cat you know that it's just the kind of thing he'd say. I spend an inordinate amount of time amusing myself in this manner. Is it wrong to laugh at your own jokes?

Glenda asked me some questions related to my Five On Friday post last week. You know how much I like to share....

~ What is Faffing and why do you recommend it?

The dictionary defines faffing as 'fuss or dither.' I often tell the boys to stop faffing about when they are sat on the bottom stair beggering about with their shoes, and I want to get out of the house pronto. It doesn't speed them up, or stop their dithering. If anything it makes them go even slower. But it gives me the illusion that I'm in charge, even though we all know that I'm not.

My kind of faff is the fussing kind. And by fussing I don't mean trying to wipe your face with a wet corner of hanky after you've eaten a chocolate pudding. Or plumping the cushions as you sit down. No my friends, I would never do that. My kind of fussing is re-arranging the furniture, or pushing the sofa to it's designated right angle, or folding the hand towel in the bathroom in the manner to which it is accustomed. Or moving my bits and bobs around. All the stuff that lives with us for no other reason than one day I brought it home and placed it on the bookcase or a shelf. I find it a pleasurable activity. I enjoy the act of re-arranging. So do many of you judging from your posts on mantel displays (oh to have a mantel...)

~ Has orange always been your happy colour?

I must admit I do like a pop of bright colour. Orange reminds me of growing up. There seemed to be an awful lot of orange around during the seventies. Mostly that burnt orange. I'm thinking that maybe Laura Ashley might have been responsible? It was often teemed up with brown and moss green. Bathroom suites, telephones and curtains were always these colours in the seventies.

You may have noticed some orange crept into the above photos. Antonia and I enjoyed a drink and a chat on those very orange seats. She didn't have much of a say in it. I made a bee line for them. And I say chat, but I rather think that I did most of the talking. I was rather over-excited to be in Falmouth at the time. The other picture is of a bag I covet. It sits in the window of my friend Sarah's lovely little shop in For Street. And I love her orange bird logo too.

~ What will you grow on your allotment?

Ah yes, plot number 10. That elusive piece of land hired from St Ives Town Council. I have wonderful plans for it. My five year planner and copious notes attest to that. Half of it has been covered over, to try and kill off the brambles, couch grass and stuff that seems to reign supreme on a virgin plot such as ours. But the plan is to have several veggies sown and grown this year. Beans mainly and some root crops. Olly keeps talking about planting carrots. He's fond of orange too. I hope to plant some fruit bushes, and flowers. The ubiquitous cutting garden is never far from my thoughts. I keep meaning to take some photos, but am not sure they'll be of any value just now. Wait until summer.

~ How did you her about Iris Murdoch?

I studied 'The Sandcastle' for A Level, and fell in love with her writing style. It seemed very British to me. All stiff upper lip and repressed emotions. I loved the imagery, and the strong female characters. I greedily read every novel she had ever written. She had an amazing mind. She was the kind of woman that broke the rules. I liked that.

~ Is your vase from IKEA?

Yes it is! I bought it about twenty years ago, and it once had an goldfish swimming around in it.

So there you go. There's nothing much else to report except that I'm off out in a bit to buy sandpaper and undercoat. More faffing. This time with paint.

See you later alligator,

Leanne xx