Today on the M4 there were special signs just for me! They were beautifully lit, 50 they said, mph... quite a lot of them too, I knew they were meant just for me though... how you ask? Could I possibly think that?? Well, simple, it was only I who slowed down and obeyed them of course!!

Porthcawl yesterday, a beautiful sunny day, there was a fun run... not sure who was having fun! The runners were hot and sweaty looking! Although the sun was out it was cold in the shade! Strange photo above, I think there must have been some lovely gardens here at some point, now only the benches remain!

The strange statue above as I see here has a strange snow effect! Shame but probably won't come out on the Blog, I'm writing on my phone... got headache, third in two weeks!!  Wanted to write, and haven't used my lap top over Christmas at all!

Had a good Christmas, worked Christmas Eve, Christmas day, night and some boxing day too...

Worked today, was out and about, luckily the winds have calmed down now, and after one downpour was wall to wall sunshine...

Beautiful isn't it at Porthcawl... a town I could live in, a real sea side town, but not overly commercialised... lots of character...

This wonderful hotel below is very Poirot don't you think!

Well amigos hope this comes out okay after writing it here... on my wonderful phone!

TTFN
Marian

On a break for lunch just now, I am on a course for work, it's very interesting and physical, did the theory last month...

When I left home it was dark, the car windows wet with dew, and as I drove down and onto the M4 the sun was coming up, the mountains beautifully lit on the horizon, then the sky turned an amazing shade of blue, and then in the skies five planes high in the sky, leaving short vapour trails, they looked like five comets from a scene in a science fiction movie! Beautiful...

TTFN
Marian

I can't believe the hyacinth plant from last winter has come into bloom!  After the plant had fulfilled its beauty and perfume, it appeared to die off, so I put it outside the back door and forgot it, mostly, occasionally I thought to plant it!  Then last week I noticed it once more, green shoots and healthy, new life... I brought her in, let her fix out a bit! And now color, perfume... lovely

The garden is also in confusion, Peri Winkle in bloom, small blue flowers still growing... and as you can see above, the black berry bush is preparing to make fruit?? Will keep you posted on that though!

Hope any errors are not to much to bear, using my phone and not able to actually read what I have written in one go!

 TTFN
Marian

I have been pretty pour with my musings this year folks haven't I... I am sorry, since I started work in early June my mind has been pretty well taken up with... well with work!  And then book work too, still publishing and editing etc for authors...

So some photos from a trip to the Brecons back in October, surrounded by such beautiful scenery everywhere here....

This small little church here was where we went for lunch!  Very strange... restaurant down one side of the church and the other two thirds were the pews and everything else church like!  The ordering area, like a bar with the menu etc and wine for sale.... in a church??? Seemed very bizarre!! But was scrummy, although scant on panini content!

This beautiful old building surrounded by the most beautiful red autumnal flowers.... glorious indeed!

We have flights booked! A trip to Spain in the new year, and at last, a trip to scatter my moms ashes... hopefully lots of the family will make it to NY, I couldn't wait any longer, I can feel moms impatience, and a promise is a promise... I can't wait to get there now, can't wait to see my family stateside and can't wait to fulfill my moms wishes....

Christmas is upon us mis amigos!  Our tree is up, what decorations we use are also out and about the house! Not much but enough, for us is enough!  The pop up tree, popped down last January with lights and baubles in place, popped back up in minutes, plugged it in and away it went! Maybe in a few years time I will feel more 'big tree' like, but for now, thats just plenty!!

All the shopping is done, the presents present, just awaiting wrapping and naming!  Random items winging their way here... before I fly them back off to all around the country... well Bedfordshire and Nottinghamshire!!! You know who you are!!!

I am my usual strange self at this time of the year, although not really got much Christmas spirit yet, thought it was on its way the other day a fluttering in my tummy and a kind of hopeful feeling in my heart, but it must have been indigestion...because it went just as suddenly as it arrived!

TTFN amigos
Marian

I don't think this is too clear it reads....

David Smith
279 Pentregethin Road
Manselton
March 13th 1924

...beneath the name and address it say...

David Smith is my name Wales is my nation.  Glamorgan is my swelling place.  Christ is my salvation.  When I am dead and in my grave.  when all my bones are rotten look in this book you shall see my name when I am quite forgotten.

How very strange, and eerie, and sad too... the book was published between 1909 and 1914, its a first edition, but not sure which date this was published in!  I did check online, and the only David Smiths from that area in Swansea all died in the 1930's or 40's, so would be interesting to know the journey of this book... how many people have read these words he wrote I wonder!

Today began with ice on the windscreen, then blue skies to the post office and inside it too I am guessing, but when I came out it was Sleet, with a capital 'S'!!  I still continued onto Swansea a little bit of frozen water never stopped me in my tracks!  And once I was on the road it stopped and the sun was back out, the sky the most amazing blue, ice blue!  Parked in the city centre and walked through the shops, was such a beautiful day, I had my Costa Coffee, of course! And back out into the town centre, it was either bright blue skies or sleet!  I was almost back to the car when I caught a message on my Facebook and following instructions, returned into the town and to the Free Book Shop, Healthy Planet... It was closed, it was sleeting and I asked for shelter under an umbrella, me and another lady both!  The store opened and I waited for the exhibition to open upstairs, I wandered around the book shop and picked up three, for free, books, old ones, the one aforementioned and two others, and upstairs after quarter hour, it was a great exhibition, the rooms were being used to demonstrate thoughts on books.... the blood and taped area around a body, the pizza box left unattended to demonstrate a who-dunnit;... a wonderful piece of shadow expressionism showed the way small pieces can become brought to life by light; then my friends husbands piece was a mannequin seated holding a book, a pile of books at his feet, behind him a movie showing short film clips displayed upon the pages of a book, to show how when reading our minds eye sees the images the author is telling us in their writing... a ticking clock with random chimes accompanied the scene to further expand the sense of time moving quickly when we are lost in a good book....

When I left I felt very uplifted, what a great, and unexpected morning!  I carried my three books back to my car and drove back, through.... sleet and sunshine!

I had lots to do this afternoon on a book I am reformatting for Smashwords, but got lost in cooking dinner and cooking dinner for another day, and trying to find out who the heck was David Smith of 279 Pentregethin Road Manselton...

TTFN
Marian

Aberavon beach today after work... What a picture [lol, even saying so mayself!!!] That beautiful sun rays coming down through the cloud, the beach, the ship pulling out of the harbour, with a little tug boat pulling hard...

Above inside the beautiful little church St Marys, in Rhossili... beautiful place, so peaceful, the smell of the polish on the pews reminds me of when I was little and used to go to St Marys in Northchurch with my gran while she polished the pews and helped with the flowers...

Strange picture taken inside the Plantasia in Swansea last week, looking down from above into the little jungle hut!

Today I have been downloading everything from my computer into a safe place, because yesterday nothing was here, or so it seemed, the thought of losing all the books and nearly 9000 photos pushed me into action, and it was certainly about time I saved everything on here, so stupid not to have done so before, DropBox https://db.tt/B2ea9BAs Best place to keep everything! And you can open it anywhere!  Anyway... not working for them lol, so time to relax now...

TTFM
Marian

Showcaves Dan Yr Ogof

Made six pots of chilly jam today, my hands hurts like its been stung by nettles??? And my face was sore earlier... note to self - must use gloves to cut chillies!

Went on a trip this week, half hour trip! To some caves, they were great, have become a little critical since visiting Nerja Gib and some amazing caves near my friends home Alicante province...Cuevas del Canelobre, Busot especially were amazing! Dan Yr Ogof caves were very well worth the visit, and a return visit will definitely happen, probably many a time!  There are three caves, varying in length and depths, and a huge outside area full of dinosaurs!  A good restaurant selling a full range of foods and drinks!  Anyway... some photos should be next do you think?

I spent most of the trip turning the flash on or off, at sometimes the wrong moment! Took lots of photos so will split them up between today and tomorrow!

Its a shame but they have had to separate some of the areas off from the public, where the stalactites come down especially, people where braking off pieces, these amazing structures take thousands and thousands, and thousands... of years to get this big, some idiot broke a big piece off and took it somewhere to sell, luckily the person he took it to had ethics and called the police... job done!

The  light was difficult to judge and I had my flash on and off at what seemed the wrong time, all the time!

Cave art below...

Can you see the small stalactites coming down from the ceiling here below? Wonderful waterfalls to walk under! The Morgan brothers who first found these caves entered through the smallest of holes, they saw water coming out of the mountain here and wondered from where it came...

Makes you wonder if they had looked just ten feet in another direction they would have found nothing, bit like in life, the turns we take, left or right, the choices we make to do something or not, they are like...

Oh what happened here!!! Started writing this two days ago and stopped mid sentence, life stopped obviously ....

Yesterday I was at the office for a five hour induction with lots of other 'new' staff, was a good meeting, lots of information, break for coffee and a half hour break for lunch, friend and I popped over the road for coffee... and chips!!! lol

And now I will post this strange delayed post, just to show that sometimes when life stops, it can continue however!

TTFN
Marian
 

Roberta Flack - You Make Me Feel Brand New

Life

Whilst trying on clothes in a well known clothes store, I found myself remembering going in changing rooms in years gone by wanting more mirrors, so I could get a better all around view... Then here I was wishing that the view of me via the 360 degrees  mirrors was rather less! And couldn't wait to get out of there! Too many shops, too many clothes, was too warm for trying on clothes, made worse by the need of something to wear this Saturday evening, and with no other buying chances between then and now... now and then!                                  

Doctor Who la segunda parte

More from Cardiff today.... [still actually same day as above, or is it below?] While I am flowing with words for a change!  Again apologies for bad phone camera images! Appalling would be a better word, and very unlike me! Above the Theatre...

Here the famous Senedd famously seen in our daily news shots from the BBC centre on the other side of the bay from here... That is for the next visit, the BBC studios!

This trio of statues on Mermaid Quay board-walk....  will find out who they are, and next time promise sunny photos too! Mmmmm promises promises... Still can't believe what a beautiful sunny day it was here in Briton Ferry and Neath!

Now why did I stop and take photos of someone's apartment terraces I here you ask? The Elvis statue caught my eye on passing.... and below another two on this side of their apartment!  These apartments looking at them here don't really look British do they! 

This area, Mermaid Quay [can I spell it the American way please, Key!!!] its Key!!! They look like keys, that is why they are called keys! Sorry, maybe I should have written this tomorrow, I was tired after all and getting crabby and argumentative now!

So.... Mermaid Key is a very beautiful area of Cardiff Bay, lots of wonderful shops, restaurants, bars, and an amazing Art Gallery I had to go in, would have been rude not to!

And finally a note from yesterday... Time and Relative Dimension in Space TARDIS, maybe that's why I got to see Peter Davidson again, I had gone into the TARDIS after all!

What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?
Vincent Van Gogh

TTFN
Marian

Doctor Who Experience Cardiff

Yes, Doctor Who Experience, will be going again, if for no other reason didn't take my camera!  Wasn't sure how much walking would have to do and worried it would be too heavy! Along with the rest of the stuff in my hand bag!  So next time will drive, easy parking there, and can combine with another trip to Ikea... oh dear never mind, think I can cope with that!!!

After buying tickets, we waited to go into the Experience part of the program, a walk through adventure with the Doctor, and it was great fun, I was lucky and got to help drive The Tardis, the Navigation control and got the action going!  Really great fun!  Myself and the woman next to me, might as well have been about 12 years old, we were like two giggly school girls!!  For me as soon as I asked for the tickets "One adult and one adult child please?" I had asked the man at the ticket desk!! He knew what I meant, and of course still had to pay for two actual adults!  Not going to give away too much about the walk through experience as don't want to spoil it for anyone, well worth the visit....

Apologies again for the poor quality photos... none of which taken during the first part of the tour, not allowed, photos or videos, for obvious reasons!

The Time Lords above....

We had some lunch at the above restaurant, on board a boat!  Or rather a Lightship.... as in not a lighthouse, but a lightship!

This one permanently harboured in Cardiff Bay, and run by volunteers... you can get in the light tower usually but not today!

We passed by the Senedd, The National Assembly, and the Wales Millennium Centre where we had a coffee first thing...

Never been to that part of Cardiff before, only the shopping centre, which is a shame now, to have missed so much!  And next time will get a tour bus to these places, its a long... long walk from the Train station, there is a station much nearer the Bay, a small train, the station looks like something from an old movie, run down, buddleia tree growing out of the chimney!!  No photos of that of course!

More photos tomorrow amigos..
Tired now!

Oh Oh.... what am I doing!!! I forgot the most important part of the day!!!  Just coming down from the shop at the Doctor Who experience.... yes yes, of course there is a shop, could have spent a fortune in there too! Watches! Clothes! Randomness of things, something for everyone!  I bought a poster, its a take on a favourite of mine by Vincent Van Gogh.... and so, poster in hand, down the stairs we went, and out into the main reception area where we came in and where the ticket desk is.... passing three men... I stopped in my tracks, everyone else carried on passing by, out the doors, over to the restaurant etc... Who had I seen?  I knew, and couldn't believe that no one else had noticed a Doctor in our presence!! An actual real Doctor Who!!! And one I had seen many, many years ago... Peter Davidson, I had last seen him, standing on the steps of the American Embassy in London, I was renewing my American passport, his then wife, Sandra Dickinson had been inside doing the same thing, I had said "hello" on passing him on the steps, unaware of who he was until Dave told me I had said hello to Doctor Who!!!  Well I knew I had known him hadn't I!!!

This time I went over to the ticket desk and said to the man there, "that was Peter Davidson wasn't it??" he told me it had been and I relayed the above story to him and said I had to wait to see if he would come back out and I was going to ask him for his autograph... he said that was fine, I did wait.... and was lucky as only for about ten or fifteen minutes and he came back past the desk, I stopped him!!! And asked for his autograph, I was like a silly young girl! All of a flutter!!! I even told him the above story, he laughed and said I should have asked for his autograph then too!  I asked him to sign my poster!  So very soon that will be framed and on the wall, my Doctor Who Van Gogh with a real Doctors signature on! Way to go!!!  I still can't believe no one else in there recognised him!  And they call themselves Doctor Who fans! So many people passed him by....

Ending with two quotes, the one I already had planned and another just the heck of it!

“Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night.”
― Edgar Allan Poe

Love many things, for therein lies the true strength
And whosoever loves much performs much
And can accomplish much
And what is done in love is done well
Vincent Van Gogh

TTFN
Marian

Randomness!

I feel I have been bad recently in posting my Blogs, and some of the very many photos I take all the time! Above is on a walkway, it covers an area of wetlands nearby, the path is a boardwalk, it is so broken, and the chicken wire is not enough to make me want to walk further along its route, Pippa was very hesitant on walking on the metal anyway, so we edged our way back to the start of the path which was non existent anyway,  and only ended up with muddy feet, I must have looked great wiping Pippas feet on the grass near the car!!

This is Swansea the other week, sure I posted this? They had added red dye into the fountain here in Swansea City centre, it looked very strange, therefore I had to look like a tourist while taking this picture, and feeling as such picked on a passing girl to engage in conversation with, "What's going on with the red dye" I questioned her!  She said they do it for special reasons, like St David's day, or other celebrations... but neither of us could work out what was so special about that particular day! [she was from my neck of the woods too!]

Above, if you look closely, a slow worm, towards the top right hand portion of this photo, it was about 18 inches long, Franco had uncovered it whilst mowing the lawn, lucky for the slow worm it survived to live another day!  Franco picked it up and we took him up to the forest further up the garden, once on the ground it found this crevice and quickly disappeared into the ground, cute little thing it was, so wiggly, just like a small snake!

This photo I took the other week when down towards Tenby, are you sure I haven't put these photos on already amigos?  Okay, will put the rest on tomorrow, but will check again first, this was taken whilst having a cup of coffee down near Saundersfoot Beach, look at those beautiful trees...

It is in the most unexpected of places

That we meet the most unexpected people!

MB

TTFN

Marian

Grape & Olive at the Maridian Tower, Swansea

This morning we had coffee in the Grape & Olive SA1, Swansea.  Got there at 11am just as it was opening...

Shame about the glare in these pics but I am sure you can make allowances for it! I am looking forward to coming here in the evening sometime soon, and seeing the darkness out there and the lights from the city...

The elevator moved slow, compared to some of the very much higher rises I have been in, but made the 28 floors, the restrooms are on the 27th floor by the way for newbies like us!  Then you can take the elevator back up or walk the short flight of stairs up to the 28th restaurant level, the coffee bar area was up a further flights of stairs, below.....

Very comfortable seating above in the café, and the restaurant below....

And below looking back up towards the Meridian Tower based at Swansea Marina...

Today I did not want to raise from my slumbers, but to stay in my dreams and live there....

TTFN

Marian

Fathers Day

Fathers day poem

You never said I'm leaving
You never said goodbye
You were gone before I knew it
And only God knew why
A million times I needed you
A million times I cried
If Love alone could have saved you
You never would have died
In life I loved you dearly
In death I love you still
In my heart you hold a place
That no one could ever fill
It broke my heart to lose you
But you didn't go alone
For part of me went with you
The day God took you home...

I say Fathers day poem, but this goes for all of those I have loved and lost along life's highway...

TTFN
Marian

Bee Whisperer

The other week at work I was telling the girls how when my boys were small they called me outside to the archway in the garden covered in beautiful honeysuckle plant, they wanted to show me how they were stroking the bumble bees, and so as not to frighten them I joined in, and stroked the bumble bees, soft as velvet they were too! Beautiful to touch...

So, at work I became the bee whisperer...

And so a couple of days ago, following Pippa up to the top part of the garden and a bumble bee was stuck on the step, looking very sorry for itself, couldn't really move and was hobbling about like a bee who had had too much honey!  Anyway, I stroked the back of it, and it managed to move on about 2 or 3 inches when I took my hand away, then stuck again.  So I stroked its soft velvety back once more, and when I took my finger away this time some sticky spiders web came away with it!  And the bee flew away, up up up it went, freedom once more!

Bee whisperer extraordinaire!!

TTFN
Marian

“Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams, because every second of the search is a second's encounter with God and with eternity.”
― Paulo Coelho, Alchemist

San Lorenzo

Why do I do this, watching one of moms movies, she had told me about it, and we filled hers... and I bought it, three months before... before, we watched it together... then she said she didn't want to watch it again. Period.

So The Bucket List is tearing me apart, was, well am doing something creative, now stopped to watch the end of the end of it... I want to get moms final destination accomplished now, as soon as I can, don't want to wait much longer, will be four years by next March, and that will be nearly four years late for taking her there... the final on her bucket list...

So, again... was the week of San Lorenzo, and the Meteor shower, Perseid, which follows from the tail of an old comet and from the direction of constellation of Perseus...!!! Was lucky and saw three amazing shooting stars... and took the photo above of the half moon, looking very mystical and surreal...

TTFN
Marian

 

Lots to catch up, Franco did his cycle run last Saturday August 3rd.... already seems like weeks ago, strangely, in fact I had to check to make sure I had the date correct, but I do!

And so, the charity run was organised a few months back originally, Franco got his bike and began training, a lot to start, then of course the race was put back awaiting permissions etc with the council... then eventually.....

Race was granted!  Firstly after getting his cockroach outfit on, I painted his face accordingly, well as much as one can considering I haven't spent that much time actually looking at a roaches face before dodging it in the street, Spain, I mean by the way, haven't seen any here in Wales, YET!!!

Then, to make sure his wings wouldn't get caught in his gears I drove Franco down near Amazon for a short test run!  Had to trim his wings, just a little, some truck drivers who were having their over night sleeps must have woken up to a strange sight indeed!  Franco cycled off to work and I left him there, couldn't see any other cyclists at that time, and turned out there were none, not the one or more, just none!!! Hopeless, poor Franco was the only one who turned up to do the charity cycle run!  He wasn't phased by it, he wouldn't let the charity down or the people who had graciously already given their sponsorship money... and so off he went, alone, no outriders, no waves goodbye... well maybe just a few, his crew were on their break!

He left Amazon and cycled to The Mumbles, had a coffee, a sit down, some photos taken and returned back to Amazon, and I picked him and his bike back up from there!
His bosses weren't too happy at nobody else turning up, too late now.... but there we are!!

Yesterday was San Lorenzo... a Saints day I always remember, well, sometimes the day after but I always do, due to the Perseid meteor shower that comes around the same time each year, I remember last year, here for the first time standing out the back, sad and unhappy and no shooting stars, like the previous years on our terrace in Alhaurín... Tomorrow night is supposed to be the best here, but I am sure I will visit the garden tonight before sleep!

Feels like I must have so much more news to tell!!  There is, but will wait until next Blog! There's a carrot for ya!!

One thing, a lady I know through networking, had done some ink printing and was offering them to anyone who would like one and to just ask, so I did just that! I asked, and yesterday an envelope arrived through the door, with two beautiful little prints, which will be framed this week, a lovely card designed by herself, and an assortment of 'things' within it!! A post card from July 1976, written to someone in England from someone abroad! Some random stamps from all over Europe and Australia, years and  years old! And two Brooke Bond Tea collectors cards!!  The whole package was very spooky! As in, post cards, I have a collection of post cards, have collected them since I was a kid, they are random, from anyone, and anywhere, people I don't know and some well over a hundred years old!  I also have a stamp collection, don't like to shout about this fact by the by!  Nothing fancy, just one little book with openings for stamps! The ones I have are from all over the world and any years!  Don't have any collectors cards now, did, but not now!  But they both have butterflies on which I am very in-to at the moment! And to top it off the card was of Central Park, which of course I have big links to!  So a very nice package of unexpected and intriguing contents!

And on this note, having worked early and am now feeling tired I will rest and leave yourselves to  yourselves, also, must have eaten something that's not agreed with me and I can feel my face flaring up, itchy and stingy eyes... what a state! lol

And below words from a friend of mine in Italy, I have purloined them, hope that was okay Pia! 
 
If you make a wish it's because you see a star fall...
If you see a star fall, it's because you're looking at the sky
If you look at the sky it's because you still believe in something...

TTFN
Marian