Grow your Blog 2015

Am I too late! Better late than never, and I am normally never late for anything... but haven't switched on for a few days... visited migraine city!

So here is me!

Born in Los Angeles... I'm sure it wasn't black and white in those days was it really?

At least I was in full color by the time I was one!!

Mom and I traveled to England when I was just under two, and there we stayed.... until I was... older! When I moved to Spain, and lived there quite contentedly until only three years ago, when we ran out of work... and ran out of Spain, unfortunately, but only for a while, I promise, my heart is still there, and my home, which we visit as often as possible... America is still also my home!  I am American born and proud of it, despite being so young when I left, a huge amount of my family are there and every single day I wish to be in their arms, to have a Christmas with them, a Thanksgiving... So much I have missed over the years with the huge cavern of the Atlantic in between, I have only ever seen my brother three times... three times!! Can you believe it, and probably will only ever see him another three times? Or less even, its a huge void in my life...

Above and below shots taken at the church in our village in Spain, not far from our home...

The view above is just a little higher than the one we have from our terrace...

And finally views of here in Wales, where we live... for now...

Mumbles above... on The Gower peninsular

Walk from Langland Bay towards Caswell Bay

Me and Pippa at Aberavon! I know, she looks a little crazy doesn't she!

TTFN

Marian

Purloined this photo, changed the position of the jetty, added string of light's and Pinned it! This is now the jetty at my cabin, by the lake... Hey, dreams they do come true, I know this for sure...

Wishing very much this is where I am today...

It's my mom's birthday, I think this cabin of mine first took shape when I sat daily with my mom during her last week's, days... moment's... I tried to take my mom to places she had been, talking about Paris from her 'bucket list, our trips to Italy, back home in the states, and Spain...

I talked of strange dreams she had had and told me off; one such dream of a handsome man who she met on the fire escape outside her apartment window in New York, consistently over the years, and as the years passed both her and he aged... I like to think they are both young again now...

I also spoke of this cabin, I drew a mental picture of a home, my home, for mom, describing as if real... I took us there... down a quiet road, a turn, a gate, a drive through woods, there the cabin, the lake, a single level white painted cabin, up a small wide stairway, a complete wraparound porch, I told her there were two beautiful old rocking chairs near the front door, I asked her to sit in one and wait for me...

I imagined it for no reason at all in New England, Maine... lol, I know strange!?!  But last year going through things of moms I hadn't seen, I came across letters photos, books other memorabilia... my mom had vacationed with her parents at another families home in... Bar Harbor, Maine!  Her last trip would have been when she was eight, or even seven, her father died when she was nearly nine, and by nine taken to England 'to be schooled'...  So maybe she doesn't, didn't even really remember much of where she had been, she never spoke of holidays with this family they knew...

I learnt recently that the Incas belief of past, present and future was very different from ours, that all times are now, that memories of those gone and to come are with us, at all times... Bit 'out there' I realise, but is this why we know things, feel things about places we have never been to, a connection?

TTFN
Marian

Coney Island New York...

I have just finished watching the movie Love Never Dies, had to watch in two halves, being away working as I am and time limited...

It is a wonderful ending to The Phantom of the Opera, mom and I saw whilst fulfilling her bucket list... she had wanted to see this, especially as it is based in Coney Island, New York, her and my dad's playground as a young courting couple... it was opened on stage in mom's final weeks
...

And being at Coney Island in June, leaving a scattering of my mom there... it would have been mom's birthday on Saturday, the 24th...  I shall be driving back to Wales, thankfully not the longest of journeys.

So feeling sad and little girl lost, still wishing I could get just one more day, one hour... one more moment in time, speak once more.

I have worked for people who speak of regrets, wishing they had said something different, done something differently, they remember bad things said, or actions they feel they should not have taken, some of them are funny things, some just life! And I tell them, if you had spoken something differently than what you did, or done something differently, you would still be thinking or saying the same thing, that you could have lived, spoken, or acted differently...

When people die it seems regrets will always be there, guilts, the anger at loss, the missed chances maybe we always think we have time for...

We have no time ahead, the time is now...

Toast!

Toast and clam! South Pacific of course, and real butter, nothing more, nothing less...

Toast challenge Veronica Roth...

Here is a toast to 'Toast'... To each slice of bread, whether brown or white! Wholemeal or rye, thin thick or downright doorstep! We love you 'Toast'... Slathered in butter or margarine, then left for the purists, or adorned with marmalade, honey, jam or Marmite!

 viva  'Toast'... Be strong of crust and mouthwatering of body and texture... we adore you!

TTFN
Marian

Very difficult Blogging from my phone or Kindle! Internet here keeps dropping, both choose words that are not of my choosing! My rushed writing at times when I can proves very random and oddly thought out! Or is that just normal for me!?! Yes! But you see here on the Kindle, if screen blanks out page has to reload, words are lost, my train of thought gone...

About the Hydrangea above... the plant is only small and hedge bound, in previous couple of years I must have cut back beneath the hedge, unaware this was even a plant, so last spring, working away as I am now, the plant got a chance to bloom this year! Yeah!  There were only three or four flower heads, and even now, long after blooming there is something special about its beauty...

Above is Porthcawl this Christmas past...

I laughed when looking back at my Blog, had to change so many typos, due to spell check! And mainly because of the promised 'foot' note!!!

Bet no one even noticed it was missing huh!?!

I have been forgetting to mention my broken toe, again... still! Had an x-ray, it's healing slowly, where I had placed it back into a straighter position (!!!), It's a bit on edge, so healed on the left side, lots of calcification there built up, and on the right, unheralded! Doctor in hospital said it will take about a year, no high heels! Hmmmm! Okay, easy to accomplish for me these days! And the odd on going pain and ache, the redness on my toe and side of foot just near it when my foot is wet or cold or hot!??? Some sort of arthritis caused by broken bones, which will never go!

End of footnote!

TTFN
Marian

E&OE

Couple of very strange statements here, and 'foot' note' ha ha!

Having read a piece of information about our memories today, reasons why we forget, the age our brains start to forget, 20, by the way! Chemical or drug related reasons, I cane across this...

*A super autobiographical memory*

"They can recall the details of what they were wearing on a particular day 20 years ago!"  This is me, add that to the problem I have with noises that drive me mad, especially eating noises, or other little repetitive noises, Misophonia!

Yes, even I agree I have some very strange foybles!

And there will be a strange Blog post here on Saturday, thanks to a challenge sent out by a fellow Blogger, amazing artist... friend, Veronica...

So Warning alert!

And now, as I tidy up, and await time to 'clock' off from work duties... It's eleven and feeling too pooped to pop, (my mom's quote!). Been awake and working since seven... Blah!

Had been enquiring of the universe something, and the universe answered today! So decisions to make, and thoughts of 'be careful what you wish for' flutter through my mind...

TTFN
Marian (in thoughtful confusion!)

Photos taken at Pembray country park January 2nd 2015

January 2nd 2015

Me and my grand daughter... The very most beautiful baby girl in the world, I already loved her unconditionally before she was born, and now Cassie is here, I love her even more if this is possible. Proud to be her Nana...

And exceptionally proud of my son and his girlfriend :-)

TTFN
Marian