Jolly Hockey Sticks!

When I was in my early teens I was completely obsessed with old fashioned school stories.  I liberated all my Mum's old books from the loft - Billy Bunter, Angela Brazil stories (from the 1920s) and The Abbey Girls series.  Half the time I didn't have a clue what was going on.  The slang was antiquated (even in the 1970s!) and I hadn't a clue how Lower 4b related to my school year!  To a certain extent I think it was the 'other worldliness' of the books that gave them their appeal.

However my all time favourite series had to be 'The Chalet School' series by Elinor M Brent Dyer.  This series is epic - the first book was written in the mid-1920s, the last one in the 1950s.  Some of the books were split where they were published as paperbacks, so there were about 60 books in total in the series. Armarda never had more than six or seven of them in print at any one time.  It became a bit of an obsession and I religiously collected as many as I could - even when I'd really out-grown them.  By my early 20s I probably had about half the series.

Then, one day, I hit lucky in a second hand bookshop near Manchester.  Mark noticed a box with some familiar titles under a table. We pulled it out and discovered almost all the books that I was missing in the series.  It was a 'now or never' moment... we bought all the books I needed to complete my series in one go.  I think the owner of the shop thought we were crazy - seeing two adults pouring over a box of rather tatty vintage school stories!

My Chalet School series sits on a couple of shelves in a corner of my study - chronologically ordered ofcourse!  In reality, I still have one book missing but I don't think it was ever published in the paperback series.  I still read them from time to time and I'm immensely proud of a collection that took almost 20 years to complete.

Do you have any on-going collections that have kept you occupied for years?

Knitting in Progress

Having faced up to fact that I can't crochet to save my life, I've been cracking on with my latest knitting project.  I'm making a cushion cover in a gorgeously soft DK.  I think it's really intended as a wool for knitting baby clothes but the colours aren't especially babyish and they are perfect for my lounge.  There's masses of yarn in each ball - about 95m - so I should be able to get an 18inch square cushion cover out of four balls.

I'm knitting the whole thing in one 18'' by 36'' piece then I'll only have to stitch up the sides.  I started with a broad rib and then garter stitch on the back.

The front is wave stitch - the closest I'll ever get to a lacey crochet effect!

At the moment I think I'm about halfway through the project.  Not bad progress, considering the chaos at the beginning of last week!  I'd like to make a few cushion covers this year because our sofa desperately brightening up.  I thought that it might look nice if I made several in different styles - a cream 'Arran' one maybe?  Or maybe something out of a complimentary chunky wool? 

It has to be said that I'm still suffering from terrible 'crochet envy' when I read everyone else's blogs!

The Versatile Blogger Award

Thanks again to Emma, Sally and Patricia, who nominated me for the Versatile Blogger Award.  I'm still really pressed for time so I think the links to 15 further blogs may have to wait..  Nevertheless I CAN post seven facts about myself that may amuse (or horrify!) you...
#1 - I have a ridiculous passion for red checked pyjamas.  I have multiple pairs and have to be physically restrained from buying more.  They are so cheerful and snuggly!

#2 - I am the eldest of two sisters.  We are both Music teachers and we live two miles appart.  Mum cannot tell us appart when we are talking on the phone.

#3 - I play the harp (and piano and violin).  Basically I had a very serious classical music education.

#4 - I colour-code my clothes in my wardrobe (how OCD is THAT??!)

#5 - My 'car of my dreams' when I was little was a white TR7.  In my 30s I owned a red one.

#6 - My dream house is a 19th century house with an 'in and out' drive (see above).  Sadly, I doubt that I'll ever have enough money to maintain it - even if I could afford the mortgage!

#7 - If I could live anywhere in the country, I'd probably stay right where I am!

Lucky Book Finds...

It was pretty chaotic in Droitwich as we were doing our weekly shop this morning.  I guess everyone was trying to get things sorted before the snow arrives.  I made a quick detour into the Blue Cross Charity Shop and struck lucky in the book section.  These are the my latest purchases - and they are all in mint condition.

I love books that tell people's true stories in the context of a period so 'Fighter Boys' should be a good read.  I'm also very excited about the book at the back.  Peter Robinson wrote the Inspector Banks series and I have every one of those.  This is a new novel with a completely different cast of characters.  The book on the left - 'Almost French' - was a completely random buy.  It's about an Australian journalist who marries a french man and goes to live in Paris.  It's supposed to be very amusing.  I like buying books on a whim from charity shops because, if the book is terrible, it's never an expensive mistake.

Anyway, these books have joined the others on my 'waiting to be read' shelf.  There are about a dozen books in the queue at the moment.  I try to keep a balanced choice on this shelf - a little bit of chick-lit, lots of murder/mystery, and some historical stuff.  I love just love books and the house is full of them. 

A couple of years ago we had the small bedroom at the back of the house converted into a proper study/library.  I write almost all my blogs sat at my desk in the study, surrounded by books, photo albums and paperwork.  Paradoxically this small room has the largest window so I'm always sat in loads of natural light.  Before the conversion I had the small room at the front for all my stuff.  This had a better view - as it looks towards the Malvern Hills - but I ran out of space.  During the swap over we had to move every single book in the house into the garage.  Not an experience I'd like to repeat in a hurry!

A warm welcome to Betty - thank you for deciding to follow my blog.  I hope all of you are warm and snuggly on this cold, snowy February afternoon.

Love is..

I didn't go to pilates last night.  Some nights you've just got to know when to stop - and last night was one of them!  Mark and I spent a whole evening just catching up on some TV and having some quiet time.  We've been watching Michael Portillo's Train Journeys series on BBC2.  Being 30 minutes long has made it perfect teatime viewing.  I shall be sorry to get to the last episode tomorrow.  We also watched some documentaries on Discovery.  Even when I'm chilling with the TV my hands have to be doing something, so I pushed on with my cushion cover project.  The new wool is knitting up nicely.

Many thanks to Emma - who also nominated me for the Versatile Blogger Award.  I will try to respond to it properly at the weekend. 

Aw.. Thank You!

A huge 'Thank You' to Sally and Patricia who have awarded me the 'Versatile Blogger' Award.  I will try to respond to it properly in a couple of days....

Things have been seriously manic in 'Stand and Stare Land' since the beginning of the week.  As you all know, I think I have one of the best jobs on the planet.  Nevertheless, secondary Music teaching can run seriously out of control from time to time.  This week has been one of the those times..

On Monday I worked in the classroom from 7.30 - 3.00; loaded the school minibus with a drum kit, amps etc and drive down to the Solihull Library Theatre; sound checked for the school's Rock and Pop Festival from 5.15 - 7.00; then supervised the performance 7.30 - 9.30. 

On Tuesday I interviewed a potential new colleague from 8.00: taught from 8.30 - 3.00: went back down into town to try and find a hot meal to keep me going; sound checked for the second evening from 5.30; supervised the performance again THEN put everything in the minibus and drove it all the way round the motorway back to my house.

This morning I drove the minibus all the way back to school, emptied it with the help of some Year 10s mid-morning; taught all my usual lessons AND did a further community concert this afternoon!  All of this has been done without the aid of a single cup of coffee - although I have to admit that I was seriously considering an expresso at break...!

The poor school minibus is also in a state of shock.  It's almost 20 years old and used to being driven at 30 mph on very short urban trips.  All of a sudden I was forcing it up to something close to motorway speeds.  I am in position to report that it's max speed going downhill is about 68 mph.  Unfortunately there are some steep uphill sections on the M42/M5 as well where the minibus struggled to maintain 50.  I was something of a rolling 'road block' during the rush hour this morning!!!!

I'm blogging from school at the moment because I'm waiting for Mark to come and pick me up.  I should be marking a set of Year 11 essays but I am too exhausted to see straight, let alone read critically!  I'm supposed to be going to pilates tonight..... not sure that's going to happen!!!!  A night in with 'my fella' seems far more appealing.