Advent Calendar XIV

All the recent furores over the lamentable spoutings of Tyson Fury, made me reflect that just because somebody is good at hitting other people it does not make them an intelligent nice person.   Indeed my first thought on hearing of his, misogynist, homophobic comments was pretty much "Well what would you expect from a boxer"

But there was a time when boxers were fine sportsmen, and indeed fine men. Men of faith and principle, and damn fine boxers as well. I'm thinking of George Foreman and Muhammad Ally,   Intelligent articulate men, who were more than mere punching machines.  I saw this on my friend Joey's Blog today, and couldn't help but think of the contrast between two world champions.

I know that Betty is easier on the eye than either of these two, but this is meant to be the season of good will towards all men, maybe a good way to start showing that good will would be to seek to understand them, their faith, and their motivations rather than be fearful of their differences.

Advent Calendar IX

Not a magnifying glass!

Yesterday all got a little bit hectic, so I'm afraid I got a little behind.   Which leads me to one of the regular complaints of most trans women, one thing you will rarely hear any of us say is "Does my bum look big in this?" of course padding can cover a multitude of sins, but is not comfortable, personally I made teh same decision about my bottom as I did about my hair, I will go with what God gave me, and if that's not enough I'll just have to make do.

And while I'm on the subject of the neither regions, it was only a matter of time, somebody had to do it! Here's a little musical bonus.

Zips

Photo from nearly two years ago!

Zips are a blessing and a curse, can be hidden or exposed as a styling feature, but without them many of the garments we love to wear simply wouldn't work.

My favorite mauve dress has a small zip at the back as a feature, however I do find that some zips are a challenge to do up, Stana has a solution, but of course the ultimate solution is to get a man to do it for you ~ after all they have to be useful for something!

Yeast

I often think about yeast, although probably less often than I think about products that are a result of the action of yeast!   The main use of yeast is for us to utilise two of the side products of fermentation. Carbon Dioxide and alcohol.   Of course some of my favorites use both ( basically Champagne, not alcoholic bread!)

I have even been known to use yeast as an illustration of the perfection of Creation, God has used evolution to develop an organism of such utility it is hard not believe that it is part of a plan.   In bread yeast gives us the texture that makes bread good to eat, and in the cooking the alcohol is destroyed.   On the other hand fermentation makes dirty water safe to drink (the origin of beer was to find a safe way of drinking impure water), yet when the alcoholic strength of beer or wine rises to a suitable level the alcohol itself kills the yeast which will then settle out to the bottom of the liquid.   I know this is a little like the Babel Fish argument but basically I don't care!

One of the things about yeasts is that it penetrates into every part of grape juice, or dough, that way it can change every bit of it, Jesus recognises this when he warns his disciples against the "Yeast of the Pharisees" and Paul uses the same illustration in 1 Corinthians when he encourages us "Don't you know that a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough? Get rid of the old yeast that you may be a new batch".   There are aspects of our lives that are like yeast and do work through everything that we do and are.   For me I want my faith to be like yeast, Christianity is not something I do on a Sunday morning, to be of any real truth it has to be something that penetrates every aspect of my life, there can be no areas where I am not Christian, nowhere where I should not talk about my faith, no time when I am not a witness to Christ's love.

In the much same way, since starting my transition I cannot (or at the very least will not) deny being trans, while I accept that everything is not about gender, it does influence and inform everything that I do.   I may not wear a Tee Shirt proclaiming myself as a Trans Woman but the realisation that that is what I am touches everything about my life, just like yeast permeating all of the dough.

Xenophobia

My first thought on realising that today we are confronted with X was hat I should have saved yesterday's post till today and made a lot more of the Marimbas association with the Xylophone, with Xylo meaning wood.  

The more obvious alternative given my particular interest, would be to consider XX and XY Chromosomes, and how simply possessing one particular sex chromosome is not the sole determining factor in gender. How there is research going on which is showing that there are physiological factors in our gender that are not related to those chromosomes, and indeed simply being female does not of itself ensure that one becomes a woman.

However an election leaflet that fell (or maybe slithered) through my letter box changed that.

Here in the UK we are in the throws of a General Election, we will be electing the MPS who will choose our net government, and it still looks as though no single party may win.   This does mean that for once more attention is being shown to the smaller parties, the nationalists parties, the Green Party and the thoroughly loathsome UKIP.   It seems to me that an election can bring out the worst in some people, and I had thought that UKIP were the worst.   Their policies and motivations all seem to be based on fear, or at very least hate of the "Other"

At least UKIP try to hide and apologize for the more hateful attitudes of some of their candidate, it seems as though the (previously unknown to me) "Liberty GB" party choose to celebrate and publicise their own hatefilled stupidity.

We keep hearing about how this election is all about the economy, which party will manage it best, who will reduce our deficit in the most secure way.

Let's remember it is also about what sort of a country we want to live in and how we relate to our neighbours.

I should apologize to my readers for inflicting disgusting this piece of ordure on you, I stress that I am just using it as an example of how dangerous and how hateful some candidates can be, not in anyway to give them a platform.   I expect Jim Dowd the labour candidate to win in my constituency I hope for a decent turn out for Tom Chance of the Green Party, that Martin Powell-Davies of the Trade Unionist & Socialist Coalition saves his deposit and shows that there are still some socialists about, but most of all I hope that everyone realises just how loathsome and hateful Liberty GB are and that not even George Whale's family vote for him.

Got Wood

Last Friday I thought a really good subject for today's post would be wardrobes, I could wax lyrical around the what clothes mean to a trans woman, How although the clothes may not be the point they are an important aspect of, not so much our self identity, but of how we demonstrate our identity to the world at large.   I could also play around with a few light hearted comments about the differences between men's wardrobes and women's wardrobes ~ but then the weekend happened.

Cellia, our cover girl for Sunday's Concert

It was a pretty good, and pretty busy weekend, a Ladies' breakfast at the Church on Saturday morning, a concert with the lovely Lambeth Wind Orchestra in the evening.   Then on Sunday after Church in the morning it was a straight dash up to town for the LGSO Concert.

A very interesting concert it was as well.

As a heavy brass player I do quite often only play a small (but perfectly formed) part in concerts, it is the nature of the instruments I play that they tend not to be in constant use, a fairly usual concert would be to play in the Overture and then the first and last movements of the symphony.   On a good day I might get to play in the last movement of a concerto as well.   Last night's concert was a bit different, not least because we didn't play a symphony! (I know it is a symphony orchestra but that doesn't mean we have to play one every time!)

We played The Marquez Danson no. 2, the Concerto for Marimba and String Orchestra by Sejourne and The Ox on the Roof by Milhaud in the first half, and then Ibert's Divertissement and Firebird Suite by Stravinsky.   Personally I played in the Danzon, and the last two movements of the Stravinsky.   I may not have played many notes, but they were all important and added to the performance.   It also gave me the opportunity to listen, really listen to the orchestra, to one of my all time favorite pieces, and to an instrument I don't often get to hear live, but love.

The Marimba is a sort of Xylophone on steroids.  It has a wonderful warm rich sound and in the hands of a Virtuoso like Larisa Sceadei really comes back to life.   At one point it felt as though the whole Church was resonating with the sounds from the lower notes, all the wood in the building sharing it's song.

The Ibert Divertissement is not often played, but one of my favorite pieces for a long time, indeed the very first record (one of those old fashioned vinyl 12inch things)  was of the Saint-Saens Carnival of the Animals, the Ibert is on the "B" side, I still have that record and play it occasionally, yet I think this Sunday was the very first time I have heard it performed live.   Given that, and the unbridled license to let rip in "Firebird" it will still be the Marimba that I remember most.

The Valley

This morning has been a good one, for me that is not always the case with Saturdays.   Saturdays are strange days for me, some are work days, some are days of driving to Cardiff, some are recovery days, and many are concert days. Today is a concert day but this morning was special.

Having only just joined a new Church I was overjoyed last week to be invited to a ladies breakfast today.  It was lovely to be totally accepted and to spend the morning with these lovely christian ladies, and the Eggs Benedict were pretty impressive too!   I had a lovely time, meeting new people chatting with them, and finding that another one of my customers is also a member of that Church.   The Church Hall looked marvelous with the tables all laid very nicely with matching napkins and tablecloths, the food was well presented and cooked by the vicar himself. We also had a good talk from a trainee minister who is about to be ordained.

If there was a theme to this talk it was about not ending up where we expect, this certainly resonated with me.   I had never expected, or planed to be where I am now, my journey has not followed any of the routes I planned at various stages of my life.

I think the major difference now is that I have handed over any long term plans to God, I am not making any decisions except the next one, and I am enjoying the journey in the Knowledge that God is alongside me.   This does not mean that my journey has not, and will not be taking me to some pretty shitty nasty places, but with God's blessing and the presence of the Holy Spirit within me those places can bloom.

"Blessed are those whose strength is in you
who have set their hearts on pilgrimage
As they pass through the valley of Baca,
they will make it a place of springs;"

Psalm 84:5-6

At the end of the morning I was given one of the table decorations, I feel so loved, and blessed to found this Church, I truly believe that it is God who brought me here and I thank him for this.

Uniform ~ Concert Dress IX

I have been quite unsure what I will be writing about today, I am, of course, quite aware that I have been behind with a couple of posts this challenge, but I am unequivocal in my determination to uphold the challenge and complete every letter in a "timely" manner.

I think I just might have mentioned that I am busy at the moment, I have two concerts this weekend and for both of them the uniform is all black, and after such a busy time I had to pop home at lunch time today to hang out my  washing so that I can uphold the unity of our appearance. 

I am playing trombone for both so will probably opt for one of my LBDS on each occasion.

As ever I wonder just how much to dress up, or down.   I want to reflect my character, but at the same  time I do not want to detract from the performance by wearing a dress that screams "LOOK AT ME"   To be honest about it I am beginning to get a bit bored with the all black uniform.   So many bands and orchestras seem to be going this way that it is getting to be pretty ubiquitous; I am sure that with very little effort something a lot more interesting can be managed, and make the concert more of an event for the audience.

For me the all black is a bit dull and fails to be either informal or formal. I little splash of colour or at least a little variation would make us all look that much more interesting.   I know the audience are coming to listen rather than watch, but how we look is part of the performance.   We have moved away from white tie as it was irrelevant to most audiences, black tie has gone the same way for the same reasons (although I do like to see a man in a dinner jacket) I just feel we can do better than the all black ( without jackets or ties)

Of course the ladies can always add a little sparkle or "glamour" with the right choice of hosiery and accessories, but for the blokes, black trousers, black shoes, black shirt, ~ BORING!

T

I'm tired, as I said before I have had a cold which has turned into a cough and as a consequence I haven't been sleeping very well, so yes, I am tired.   But more than this I am tired of ends not meeting, I'm tired of constantly having to check my balances before I can spend any money; I'm tired of having to put off one debtor in order to satisfy another.   In short I'm tired of being poor.

Here we are in the midst of an election and I keep hearing candidates telling me how much better they are going to make my life, they talk of improving this and that, but I hear none of them telling just how tiring it is when things are not going well.   Just how much of a drag it is constantly fighting to make ends meet.   When there is not enough money there is a constant strain, a constant preoccupation with simply trying to survive.   I have heard our leading politicians described as a "Bunch of Posh boys who don't know the price of a pint of milk" I like this image, but underlying it is the reality of the new political class.   No longer are our politicians working people who are trying to make things better; ex soldiers trying to make a better country for those who fought for their country; or even individuals dedicated to an idea, an ideal of how to improve the lot of the working man.   They are alien to the majority of the voters they have no idea what it is like for the majority simply trying to live, and that may be why the majority refuse to vote for any of them.

On the upside I see that they are now seeking to support "Working People", last election it was all about "Hard Working families" in another five year they might have got round to people like me, the bone idle!

There and I bet you all thought that T would be for "Trans" "Transition" or maybe even "Transgender"; but lets be honest that is only one aspect of my life.   Although it does take up quite a lot of my emotional energy just at the moment finances take up even more.   I am being messed about by an insurance Company who are meant to be paying me my pension fund, originally promised by the 20th April I am still waiting my funds and am now being told that I will have to wait another few weeks.   I am losing confidence that this latest promise will be kept and in consequence a feeling let down, betrayed and generally pissed off fed up.

By now I had expected to be able to re-enter solvency, instead I am still fighting off Peter in the vagues hope of keeping Paul happy.

Thank God for music!

Sax and Violence

If you have been really on the ball you may have noticed that both my last post and this one have been a little late, I have an excuse, and I'm prepared to use it!

Last weekend, as I recounted here I played with the fabulous Croydon Symphonic Band at the finals of the National Concert Band Festival in Manchester.   As I said at the time we all had a great time, well maybe I should be more exact, most of us had a great time.   There was one in our number who had a pretty torrid time, interspersed with awful and brilliant.   One of our star players and most stalwart members is our solo Alto and Soprano Sax player.   While I am a particular friend it is with no bias that I praise his musicianship, and his technical ability on his chosen instruments.   We have come to rely on him, and when his section is featured it is very much his playing that helps to carry us through.

So when he found that he had a stinking cold that weekend crying off was not an option.   A short philosophical consideration showed that it was better to give half the band a cold than to leave it to others to have to play the sax solos. Given that those who would have to play the solos in his absence are members of the medical professions most qualified to keep him going this all seemed sensible.

Having travelled in close proximity to him on the coach all the way to and from Manchester and shared a couple of meals, for the last ten days or so I have also been suffering with a streaming cold, which has now settled into a sore throat and chesty cough.   I have been finding it hard to get to sleep, and when I do I cough myself awake. I am tired, miserable sore and sorry for myself; I am very nearly ready to offer violence in revenge for this cold, but I'm too knackered!   This evenings rehearsal showed that I'm not the only one, several others have been suffering, and wwe all trace out colds back to that weekend.

However I still think my friend made the right decision, even if I have been one of the ones to pay for it, maybe the title shouldn't have been Sax and Violence, but Gold and Cold.

Qoute of the day

About three years ago I gave up driving a car, I have a van for business so the car was a little bit of a luxury at a time of great financial strain.   At the time I had a Volvo and a nine year no claims bonus.   I have, of course continued to drive my van and have a little no claims bonus on that insurance, but that bonus can only be used on one policy at a time.

It looks as though I may soon be hitting solvency again and am hoping to once again buy and run a car.   I have always fancied a Saab, a 3 door coupe, I love the line I like the engineering and it is a hatchback that should give me all the space I want.   I have seen one I quite fancy at a price I can afford, but before doing anything rash I thought I would check the insurance.   I did the usual trick of checking on line, but to see if I could get a better deal I called the AA, the insurance brokers I had used before.

The nice young man I spoke with confirmed that yes, I did indeed have nine years no claims bonus, but was worried that since it was more than two years since I held any car insurance the various insurance companies they deal with may not accept it.   He checked and no they wouldn't, the best quote he could come up with was over £4,000! for a £400 car with a driver well over 50 years old who has been driving for nearly 40 years.   Sure I had a little accident three years ago, but they might as well have just told me to F*%k off!

By the way, on line quotes ranged from £650 to £800 ~ I don't think I will be going back to the AA

Pelly Concert Orchestra

Today I am playing with the Pelly Concert Orchestra, a lovely concert Orchestra based in deepest Surrey.   They are a very nice bunch, very friendly and very welcoming, they also seem to have found a bit of a niche in the market as they play almost exclusively popular light music.   Whether it's Eric Coates, Russ Conway or John Williams this Orchestra is in concept the closest thing I have found to an ameutar Boston Pops.

Today's program includes two concerts, one for Families including such classics as Bob The Builder and Pirates of the Caribbean. Later we will play a more "normal" concert adding in some Khachaturian  and some Gershwin.   All in all I am assured of a wonderful, full day playing lots of fun music with some top rate tuba parts to keep me on my toes.

What will I be wearing? to order for the day is black bottoms and a plain coloured top, so I think it will be black dress trousers and either a pink or mauve blouse, depending how I feel at the time.

Now

I don't know why I do it, I should know better by now, I am grown up, I can make decisions for myself, and lets face it I went through all this a year ago, so I did know what I was letting myself in for.   But here I am at silly O'clock on the night of the 16th of April writing a blog entry t match the letter N.

It's not as if I don't have enough on my plate right now.   Work wise this is quite possibly the busiest time of year for me, and of course here in the South East of England we are enjoying something f a heat wave, making work even busier.   Today I have cut grass; weeded out a bog garden; cleared an area to be re-planted, and consulted on building a screen and planting climbers.   I have also been to a band rehearsal, and tried to sort out some paperwork.

I am sure that many will agree with the sigh of exasperation with which I accompany the thought of insurance.   I hope to be buying a car again soon, I haven't had a car since 2013 when the last one got a bit pricey to run on my meagre budget, but things are picking up and I think I should be able to afford this little luxury.   I have spotted an old Saab I quite fancy for about £400, so I got in touch with the brokers I last used to see what they would quote for me.   I was told that I could not carry my nine years no claims bonus forward as it was over two years since I had been insured, so how much would they quote ~ £4,000.   I have checked online and had quotes from around £650, more than I would want to pay but a lot less than £4,000!

This all reminded me that I as I have now sent off the registration of my van and my drivers licence to get my name changed, now I had better sort out my insurance as well.   I phoned up my broker and told him I was changing my name, fine, he just needed the documents and would sort it all out.   He then went on to regale me with the story of how the last person who had changed their name had transitioned into a woman (not his words, I do believe he said something about a man in a dress!), deep breath "Well actually........"

Now I have to send him a copy of my deed of change of name, and also try to remember who else I have to tell, and try and get them all in the right order.

Mahonia

 Departing from my recent apparent obsession with Sunday's Band Festival  today I am considering one aspect of another of my passions, gardens and gardening.   Even for the keenest amateurs and most proficient professionals there are always going to be difficult areas.   Those places where the sun doesn't shine as much as we would like, the ground is too dry, or too moist, difficult to get to north facing slopes, or dark corners between garage and fence.   I am a regular listener to Gardener's Question Time where questions about these difficult places are often asked, but rarely have I ever heard my stock answer come out as a suggestion from the team.

Mahonia is a very tough shrub that will grow almost anywhere, has lovely towers of bright yellow blooms (about now) gives year round interest as it is evergreen, the leaves are quite spicy so as well as looking interesting are good security additions around perimeters.   There are a number of varieties, from prostrate to tall and sculptural, I generally go for something in between, and as it is s easy to propagate I will often take cuttings, or layers from one garden to another (without being at all sure which variety it is)

Of course there are all sorts of interesting plants in the garden at the moment.   We are getting yellows from the last of the Daffs, Kerria Japonica, Forsythia, primroses, and in my garden dandelions! Pinks, whites, and mauves from Aubretia, Bergenia and Camellias, and tulios giving us the full rainbow!
 

Shrubs are all coming to life with Skimmias, Chaenomeles and Pieris all giving their best, and all the herbaceous plants and summer bulbs are showing above the soil.

Today I was out working this morning for the first time wearing shorts and enjoying the sun, I think it will only be a matter of days before I start to put out bedding.   I know the old saying about May being out, but round my way the May is now in flower so I feel safe.

All photos from my own gardens this morning

London Gay Symphony Orchestra ~ LGSO

There are many things that make the LGSO a very special Orchestra.   I suppose the first and most obvious is rather given away in the name. The Orchestra's objectives include;

• Providing a safe and supportive space for musicians of all sexualities
• Playing to a high standard, but still offering space for players of all abilities
• Being adventurous and ambitious in our programming
• Sharing our passion for orchestral music with audiences new and old
• Making a contribution to LGBT life in London and beyond.

Even though I am quite sure that I am the one who puts the T into the LGBT here, for me the Orchestra did exactly what they set out to do, they provided me with a safe and supportive space to be Paula in the real world, doing the thing I love most ~ playing orchestral music.

I had been out a few times before joining the orchestra, but before that my outings had always been opportunities to dress up, playing with LGSO meant that I was going out for a reason, and it just happened that it was Paula going.   It was through this, being Paula playing at rehearsals and concerts that I began to truly understand that this is not something I do, it is something I am.   Even though I am the only Trans member of the Orchestra they have always been totally accepting (not always the case with organisations who claim to be LGBT) supportive and friendly.   Indeed this is one of the most friendly Orchestras I have ever played with, and all that has helped to make me the person I am today.

I have made some good friends, played some great music to a high standard, and have been made to feel very old.   One of the other most notable things about this orchestra is that the average age is pretty low.   Indeed in my section the second oldest thing is often my trombone!   For an old lag like me it is quite rejuvenating to be surrounded by really good, young musicians whose passion for the music has yet to be jaded by time and promoters.

Obviously I love this orchestra, and I want all of you to as well, if you can come along to our next concert on the 26th April and enjoy some stunning music played really well by some stunning people. you will not be disappointed.  You can even have a glass of wine during the interval!

Kudos!

I am very pleased that today's K can lead straight on from Saturday's J and Friday's I.   It may even be said that this K is a direct result of the J.

While Saturday was all about the journey and Sunday was very much about the performance, the weekend was all about friends.   Since this year we were playing on the Sunday we decided that we would travel up to Manchester on the Saturday, spend the evening there and then be fresh for the morning performance, before travelling back to London.   I had even hoped that there might be some time within the schedule to explore the Hotel's swimming pool.

We got to the Hotel around six thirty on Saturday so I pretty much only had time to clean up, get changed and go out to sample the local brew before having something to eat.   One of the great things about trips like this is that I get to spend a bit more time with other members of the band who maybe I don't know so well.   Even though we may have been playing in the same band for several years we may sit at the opposite ends and not actually coincide much; this is our chance to start to build relationships outside of our own immediate circles.   I retired to my bed earlier than some of the die-hard partiers ~ not least because after several pints of liquid and a substantial curry I simply needed to remove anything that involved elastic!

We had to leave the Hotel at 9:30 and both the breakfast and swimming started at 8:00 so once again swimming was not on the menu.   Arriving at the RNCM we had a warm up, run through and then onto the stage for our performance.

To be fair our performance was not flawless, and although we had a few moments of total glory there were also a couple of shaky moments as well.   On balance I suspect that this was the best we could have played these pieces while retaining any sense of perspective, or indeed a life!   As we discussed our performance after leaving the stage the consensus was very much that we should get a Gold Award. So it was with great pleasure but not a lot of surprise that we received our ~ Gold Award.

I should say that four levels of award are made, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum; at the area festival we received a Platinum award, at the finals although the criteria are the same, I suspect that the expected standard is a little higher.

Everything about the weekend went very well, so total Kudos to those who organised it all, Kudos to the band for the performance, and Kudos to our Conductor who put together the program, trained the band and lifted our performance on the day.

And if anybody wants to know the answer I came up with to Fridays question, content yourself with the knowledge that I was happy.

Journeys

we often think and talk about a process we may be going through as a journey, I might be said to be on several journeys at the moment, as I move towards being truly single again (not my choice); move on with my transition (my choice), and work at getting my drinking down to a more socially and medically acceptable level. But over the weekend I will be undertaking a couple of very real journeys.

I may have bored my regular readers with this already, but on Sunday I will be playing with the Croydon Symphonic Band at the finals of the National Concert Band Festival not only will we have the journeys to and from Manchester to contend with, but one of the pieces we will be playing is Paul Hart's Journey and Celebration (at this point I wanted to put in a link or embed a Youtube recording or something, but there just isn't one ~ yet.   If you really want to hear just what a great piece this is you can download a recording here. The other piece we will be playing in our 20 minute performance is Philip Sparke's Invictus



These are both technically challenging pieces for most of the band, indeed I count lucky myself that sitting at the very bottom of the band I have ended up with a part that is not too taxing, but still more than enough to keep me interested.

As I am sure you will understand the band has had quite a journey to get to this point, although we have picked up quite few high awards over the last fifteen or so years it doesn't seem that long ago that we felt lucky just to get a certificate for turning up!   This year we had to play at the regional Festival back in Early December last year.   Since then we have started a new term, have a few different players, some left, some joined, and have had to work up a couple of new pieces to festival standard (as well as playing a full concert!).

I am really looking forward to tomorrow, spending some time travelling with good friends, tomorrow evening when at least a few of us will probably be sampling some local brews.   Then I'm looking forward to Sunday morning when we play, I'm also looking forward to it all being over, hopefully adding some Celebrations to our journey, then the end of the journey, coming home and relaxing.

But then of course that will just be the start of another journey, and meanwhile all the others will be going on as well.

I've been getting it wrong ~ Concert Dress IIX

As I wrote here on SUnday I will be playing at the finals of the National Concert Band Festival, I have been practising (a bit) and will ensure that I am musically as prepared as possible.   We will be traveling up to Manchester together by coach tomorrow (Saturday) spend the evening together and stay overnight at an hotel.   Then the next day is dedicated to the festival and the journey home.

The dress code for our performance is the usual boring all black, regular readers will know how much I agonise about exactly how I will interpret that rather basic instruction.   I have worn LBDs, modest matronly dresses, fancy trousers, plain trousers, satin blouses, sheer blouses, even on occasion a polo neck sweater.   But a recent series of 9 Chickweed Lane makes me worried that I have been giving my considerations to the wrong garments;

This now leaves me with the question, of what sort of lingerie should I chose for Philip Spark and Paul Hart?

Horrid, hateful Builders!

Not very surprisingly I have spent the day working. I expect that is what most people spend their weekdays doing, my days tend to be a little different as I will see two or three different customers most days, this morning I spent a few hours with a lady of senior years, I pruned her rampant climbing rose and did a little tidying up before moving into the front garden to cut her grass.   It needed a bit more than cutting.

A few days earlier she had some builders round to put in a concrete plinth for a new shed, along with a step to make it easier for her to get into her main garden.   The plinth for the shed looked good enough, and for the step they had made up some shuttering and poured in concrete.   I can't say that I was particularly impressed with the finished item, it would have looked so much better if they had taken the trouble to use one of the matching paving slabs that was available there.   It would also have been a lot more useful if they had put it in a position so the shed door could be opened!

The builders had not bothered to put anything down underneath the concrete mixer, allowing cement dust all over the grass. I had to rake it all up before even more of the grass was killed, make repairs and then cut the grass.   It was only after I had finished that I realised that the had also poured their excess concrete onto the corner of a bed behind a couple of shrubs.   I was roundly cursing all builders! Their lack of consideration for anything except the job in hand and eagerness to cut corners to save a few quid!

At my very next job I bumped into the son-in-law doing some work there.   He is a good friend of mine, who happens to be a builder! He happily gave me hand, made a point of clearing up, and was noticeably meticulous about everything he did.   Talking about it we soon realised that it is not builders I hate, anymore than he hates gardeners, it is not even that our trades have different priorities, it is that we found we both hate cowboys who claim to be bonafides tradespeople, but don't do a decent job.   The trouble is that they bring the whole of the trade into disrepute.

So please, when you see the teenagers employed for minimum wage by landscape maintenance companies, just pushing around a lawnmower, or wielding a leaf blower so the grass cuttings go all over the pavement ~ they are not gardeners!

Game On!

Today we have got as far as the letter G, this has been by far the most challenging so far this year, and indeed, as difficult as any last year.   Not because G is a particularly difficult letter, nor indeed because I can't think of any Gs that are relevant to my life at the moment, just none that seemed to work with what I wanted to write about.

 I had more or less plumbed for G for Gardens as I spend so much of my life in gardens, caring for them, enjoying them and keeping them healthy.   I have over the last month or so taken on another three gardens, each of which has some interesting and unique features.   One of them has some pretty large lawns, a rose bed and some nice trees,   The only trouble is it also has some areas that have received no proper care for several years and I have had to put in a lot of extra work just trying to bring it up to a sensible starting point   I have also started work at a good friend's Garden, she has several nice specimen plants, that mostly just need a little care and freeing from the overgrown plants around them.   It is nice to work in a garden that is well laid out and has interesting plants, it is certainly a lot more interesting than spending a day cutting grass.

Today I have had a trip to the central composting site, and spent time at two gardens, at the second I raked several sacks of moss and dead dry grass out of the lawn, a horrible job but one that I know will pay dividends later in the year.

After a quick wash and change I was off to the final rehearsal of CSB prior to our  appearance at the finals of the National Concert Band Festival on Sunday. over the thirty years the festival has been going we have been invited to play at the finals nine times, and on five of those occasions we have be given the highest award.   Even though we have been there before, and have a certain level of expectation it is still a wonderful experience, and a real privilege to be part of this festival, and although the festival is not competitive, we still want to perform to the highest standard we can, and be given the highest award we can get.

This evenings rehearsal was "difficult" but that just gives us the opportunity to raise our level of performance.   I think we are all looking forward to our weekend in Manchester and our performance at the Royal Northern College of Music Certainly we are all keyed up to give the best we can, and enjoy the exterience, so that is why my G for today is GAME ON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Game