Eye eye, who's a div then?

Just before lunchtime the weather was looking increasingly dodgy and so I remarked to my hub that I would go into town on a cosmetics buying spree and asked if he wanted to come.  He said he'd rather poke his eye with a sharp stick and went back out to mulch the beech hedge.  10 minutes later he called me out.

Yes.  He'd poked his eye with a sharp stick.  Into town we went, me to the cosmetics counters, himself to the opticians.  10 minutes later we were off to the hospital as an Acute Referral.  He sat there and unblushingly told the consultant that yes, he'd poked his eye with a sharp stick. He's 'dented' his retina apparently.

He's made more fuss about having one eye drop every 4 hours than he made when he did the injury.  <sigh>

Once we got home he said that he'd not been able to buy my Easter Egg as we'd had to rush to the hospital.  I said in that case he'd have to go into town again tomorrow.

Guess what he replied?

Yup.  I'm married to a div  :O)

Bishops and pawns

 

In medieval times it became Church law that anyone who owned land which had in former times belonged to the parish Church (called 'Rectorial' land) should henceforth be responsible for repair of the church chancel.  In return they were entitled to collect a 10% tithe tax from all parishioners.  Most rectorial land was of course still owned by the church itself anyway and in that case the church took the tithes.  As the centuries passed much rectorial land was broken up into smaller and smaller plots as hamlets and villages and towns expanded and the tax collecting aspect of the deal was abolished by parliament.

 

The chancel repair quid pro quo obligation was never repealed however and now the Church of England has resuscitated its claims and has had a test case upheld in the High court with the result that a farm in Warwickshire has been made virtually worthless and unsellable and the owners financially ruined. 

Any property owner whose house, patio, garden or garage is built on land which centuries ago belonged to a parish church is likely to find themselves liable for the unrestricted costs of church repairs no matter how miniscule a piece of land it might be.

 

This sort of behaviour which is so obviously massively unfair turns people away from the Church and imo it's high time that all Church law was declared invalid in British courts.

No Piscean!

The female side of my family have an intuitive artistic flair.  We take to the arts like ducks to water - expressing our creativity in beautiful ways comes naturally to us.

We are also sensitive and caring of each other's feelings and would never say or do anything hurtful to each other.  It's in the genes.

 

This published piece of work was painted by a changeling.

 

 

Mind, she got her Mum's hair right   

Joie de la vie

 

They do say that an hour's exercise and/or and hour outside in daylight is better than any medication for relieving the doldrums.  On a day like today, with the sun shining and the wind calm, it's easy to believe it.

I've just had a trundle around the lanes and through my little hamlet with my pooch; cocks crowing, buzzards wheeling, a thrush singing his heart out at the top of a beech tree, celandines, violets, tall spears of bluebells showing and alongside me the pounding of hooves as stud stallions tear up the hillside gallop.  Fantastic. 

Go on, get out into the lanes and see if the world doesn't look a much better place and you'll realise that no matter what's going on in the world chaffinches will still sing pink pink and celandines will still turn their little faces to the sun. 

 

PS Having weighed myself for the first time this morning since the start of Lent and finding that I've lost 8lbs has really put a spring in my step to match the weather

Blooming great

I've just spent a few exciting days considering making some purchases.  I've had a long look at last year's photos, carefully studied my new crop of catalogues, considered whether some things would look better next to others, sizes, colour ranges, effort of upkeep, thought about the overall effect and worried that I was being too self-indulgent. 

I've just sent off my seed and plant order for this year - cost £75.  I've already had more pleasure from that £75 than I'd get buying anything else and from here on in it's all reward.. 

Sometimes money can buy happiness!