Nottingham, Snotingham

     Cold, fog, and travel: a recipe for a good time. This morning actually started early for me. At 7am Dave's IPhone alarm went off, and Lynne had to get up from bed and walk downstairs to turn it off. By this time I was awake enough to look at my phone, and noticed that it was dead. Then, I started to be paranoid that I was going to sleep in late; in the end I was up at 7:20am. No one else was up for another hour. Of course, the cats became my first priority as Harry was laying on the guilt while he started forlornly at his empty bowl. While I was placing Harry's food down, Dippy Dave came through the cat door, and immediately started crying. As he likes dry food, I filled up his little bowl as well. I sat in the living room for the next hour, cross stitching and waiting for everyone else to wake-up.

     By about 10:30am we were on our way to Nottingham. While I found the town very interesting, there was such a mix of modern within the city center which, in its own way, seemed to ruin the feel of the town. Still I didn't feel like it was a bust. Quite the opposite. The castle of Nottingham was very elegant, even in the cold and cloudy weather. Like so many pieces of architecture however, it has been destroyed, rebuild, abandoned, and then changed at the end of the 1700s. What is there now is actually not a castle, more like a large chateau. Still, its grandeur is overwhelming. Inside the castle is a small museum of some artifacts from the time of Robin Hood, as well as historical military pieces and preserved textiles and lace, which were the main trades of Nottingham for many years. One quick fact: Nottingham was actually called 'Snotingham', when it was first founded.

     After our tour of the castle, we headed down the street to 'Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem' the oldest known pub in England; and the most unique. The pub itself is carved into the rock underneath the castle, so each little room is like a small cave complete with fireplace and a variety of very small tables and stools shoved almost uncomfortably close together. We chose a spot to sit and warm our hands (actually I had been hot all day. I guess a 100%merino sweater is warmer than I gave it credit for) and decided what we would have for lunch. Then Lynne suddenly got up and walked over to the bar. Who knew you had to go up to the counter to order your food? As she came back, she brought our drinking back on a serving tray. The space was literally so limited, that I had to get up off of my stool an move so that Lynne could pass by me and put our drinks down. The food was amazingly good and filling. However, do not go to a pub thinking you will have a salad, as you will be sorely disappointed. When I asked Lynne about the mysterious missing salad section on the menu, she let out a full laugh explaining that "healthy" food was usually not readily available as pub fare.

      Amazingly, it gets dark here by 4:30pm, so by the time we started to make our way to the car it was almost completely dark. The drive back home was hard, and seemed to take so much longer than the drive out to Nottingham. I think we were all exhausted from being on our feet all day, and rather relieved that we will be spending tomorrow indoors. Hopefully I will get to sleep in a little later tomorrow, and rest up for our outing to a local antiques market on Sunday (unfortunately Jess will be at work for the day), but I think it will be fun for Lynne and I to have some solo time together. As always, pictures follow this blog entry, I hope they tickle your fancy!

      Happy New Years to all!!

The entrance to Nottingham Castle

Detailing at the top of Nottingham Castle gate.

Part of an art exhibit in Nottingham Castle. Completely hand blown glass. This one's for mom.

Nottingham Castle.

Lynne and Jess in the old tree grove.

Nottingham Castle.

A gargoyle on the Nottingham Castle gate.

Jess, Myself…and Robin Hood.

'Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem".

'Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem'.

Can you see the ceiling from the floor above?

The pathways in this pub were extraordinarily narrow.

Check them out at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Ye-Olde-Trip-To-Jerusalem/142627229086528

Nottingham Street.

How interesting is this… Here, as churches close all over the country, people and groups are buying them and using them for other things. Case in point "Prather and Piano"a wonderfully exquisit pub.

The pub interior. How amazing is this?

As we were leaving, we came into the town square, where a little Christmas Market was still in full swing. I loved this carrousel. The pictures below are other shots of this small festival.

Ms. Homebody, A Day In The Life Of

     After a full 24 hours traveling, I was easily able to fall asleep yesterday night. After sleeping a full 12 hours, I feel refreshed and comfortable with English time. Jess, fortunately, shuffled her way out of bed only ten minutes before I did, making my 11am wake-up seem less outrageous. Of course, Lynne, ever full of energy, had already been to work out, get her car washed, and stopped by the local grocery for milk and eggs.

     Needless to say, our morning slipped away quickly, but by 2pm we were out the door and on our way to Market Drayton, a lovely little English town. While bigger than Loggerheads, it is still quite small, but boasts several "charity shops"- which are shops owned by charities, that take unwanted donated items, and then sell them for a low cost; the proceeds go directly to the charity itself - two different grocery stores, and a quaint English church. It is a great little place, and fun for a quick afternoon stroll.

     This evening was really the greatest treat. Since I had never been to eat Indian food, Lynne, Jess and David took me to a great local Indian restaurant. Comprised of a small bar and about six tables, exotic food was rushed in to us from every direction. Even now I cannot name the various dishes I tasted, but all of it was good; nothing like what I was expecting. All in all it was a great day, and I feel so blessed to be a part of this family. Tomorrow we will go to Nottingham, yes the birthplace of Robin Hood, and I hope to have even more interesting photos with which to awe and amuse you. Here is a little taste of my first day in England.

A little (very little) street in Market Drayton.

A classic Tudor style building. There were several of these buildings around the town that were well preserved and home to many various businesses.

The Tudor Style.

A local pub in Market Drayton

The church of Market Drayton.

What I found so interesting about this home was the multitude of ivy vine which covered it. I cannot imagine how beautiful it must be during the summer.

A historic building, unfortunately, I didn't check out the sign as we passed by it.

Jess posing for me in front of Boots.

Lynne and Jess on our stroll.

Jack, Jess's friend, who turned bright red after I took this photo of him at work in the local grocery store. I think the customers in our line were really confused why his photo was being taken by this girl with a big camera.

OOOOO…. Indian food.

Lynne and Dave at dinner.

Jess, handing me a bowl of curry with chicken and I red cherry on top.

Time to Start Over Again

     The road to hell is paved with good intentions, or so they say. I started this blog at the beginning of the year and then neglected it like an outfit that doesn't quite fit anymore. So, it is time to start over.

     To begin with, I am very much ready for this year to be over. Only 25 more days until Thanksgiving, and after that, only a month until Christmas. This has been one of those years that has seemed to pass by in a blink. Being that it wasn't one of my best years, I am glad to see time slipping by so quickly.

     In terms of the garden that I never finished blogging about, things went well during the early summer months. However, by August, I had a massive infestation of slugs. Not only was the heat hard on my plants, but the slugs really decimated what was left. Afterwards, I just let everything die. It was pulled up in September, and the slugs seemed to have moved out of town, for now at least. I really did enjoy having a little garden where I could walk outside and pick fresh produce, but I don't think I will be planting one again this coming summer. First of all, there is not enough space in our backyard. Second of all, since I have let things go wild back there (dad has too) it looks like some ramshackle yard, and I can only imagine how difficult it would be to dig all of the weeds up and till the soil. My plan is to wait until I have a house of my own. Then I will buy those raised garden beds so that the plants are more accessible and I have more control over what goes in and out of the soil. Hopefully, by that time I will have had a job for a year and be able to focus more time on the extras in life, like gardening and cross-stitch.

The Fruits of Labor

          Anyone who has a serious hobby knows how sweet success can taste. For months now I have worked to transfer my backyard into a colorful, plentiful oasis. It seems like every weekend I would make the omnious treck to Lowe's, promising myself to not spend much money, and inevitably spending a small fortune. Of course, this was not the worst part. Once I was home and planted my load, it never looked like anything. Certainly not like it was worth the little pile of gold I gave for it at the store. Well, this week I finally feel different. I finally feel like I have reached my goal. Along with various types of flowers and foliage, I have planted strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, zucchini, squash, and green onions. Everything is finally growing and producing. I even have a small rose garden started! I had planned to post photos of the garden today, but I think I am going to let it grow in a bit so you can get the full effect.

Lazy Days, Quiet Nights

Another year, and yet another blog. It seems my random thoughts pop up randomly over a period of time. I guess I just cannot help talking into the void; Even if no one is listening. The weather here has been nothing but wet. A melodic rainfall has poured over the entire city for the past two days. I can almost hear the plants sighing with relief. What a joy it is to have an excuse to do nothing for a change. I always want to do nothing, but on the rainy days my dreams are realized. Days are spent in comfy pajamas, nestled in warm covers and cradled by loving peaceful cats. My mind turns off (mostly) and I simply am. Nothing more, nothing less. I probably, like most people, enjoy my silence even more these days since I feel the constant tug of "what are you going to do about...." hanging on my back. I will not let this blog turn into a list of problems though. We all have enough worries in our lives and, well, I am not going to contribute. Suffice it to say that I am at the point in my life where I feel like I am stuck on a running wheel. I cannot get off, I cannot find the end, I cannot even control my feet beneath me. With the voice of "what are you going to do" in my head, I sometimes cannot see the forest for the trees.

So, I have been thankful for the rain and the solitude of this past weekend. I am currently in the process of growing my own little backyard garden, complete with Hydrangea (big and pink) as well as an assortment of rich fragrant herbs, a handful of summer vegetables, and a beginners rose garden. I hope to post some pictures of my little oasis in the making by next weekend. I have a feeling my plants will be twice as big after all of this healthy rain we have had.

Come back tomorrow and read about the three loves of my life: Oliver, Frankie, and Annie.

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