contrarytowers.blogspot.com
Contrary Towers: July 2013
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Monday, 29 July 2013. The garden has taken a back seat recently due to sunny foreign festivities, therefore this is just a quick update on the progress of the contrary greenery in the sky. There was a small issue with a weekend without watering but I've been doubly nice to the plants since I got back, going up there with food and water. There are potential issues with the sprouts which had a load of white bugs on them. Perhaps they were holding a welcome party for my return? All tidy and vacuumed. The ot...
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Contrary Towers: October 2013
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Sunday, 6 October 2013. What wonderful weather we had this weekend! When it's over 20 degrees, you're in shorts and tee-shirt, it seems odd to be buying autumnal squash but they were so pretty. Also I noticed that the House of Lidl had a selection of heathers and bulbs in stock. Bulbs? I hadn't realised that they had to be planted in late summer. Oh. Rookie gardener. I hope the neighbours at the illegal shisha bar opposite won't be complaining about the strains of classical music piping across the Cut.
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Contrary Towers: Doing nothing special...
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Saturday, 30 May 2015. Yesterday afternoon I received a whatsapp message from our foreign correspondent asking:. Done anything fun this week? Initially I replied in the negative, probably because at the time I was metaphorically knee deep in trying to understand what was available in a new system. But then I realised I was talking out of my proverbial derrière. So since I last wrote. Well firstly there was a WI. And the best thing? Didn't even flinch the teeniest bit. And it was free. Which is always...
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Contrary Towers: December 2013
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Sunday, 8 December 2013. A very quick break from Carracci to jot down the recipe. Boil the kettle and make yourself a cuppa tea. In addition to this, make a cup of fresh jasmine tea, courtesy of your flatmate. Whilst it is brewing, take a punnet of Lidl's finest purple plums, wash, half them and de-stone. Pop the plums in a small pan with cinnamon stick, star anise, whole cloves, zest and juice of a Satsuma; add a splash (a cup? Saturday, 7 December 2013. My favourite earrings broke. I decided that I wou...
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Contrary Towers: November 2013
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Saturday, 30 November 2013. The gift shop is at the end. The plan: visit the Vatican with a view to seeing the Basilica and the Museum. Simple, elegant, what could possibly go wrong? Well, first off was the "helpful" beggars at Termini, I really don't need help. Or appreciate it being forced upon me. And then having a begging cup thrust in my general direction for a few coins. Not Going. To. Happen. Tout: Are you going to the Basilica? Me: Really *arched eybrow*. Tout: Oh it'll be much better. This one w...
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Contrary Towers: July 2015
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Sunday, 19 July 2015. As I get older it occurs to me that there is so much else I've forgotten. Not just some of the unreally traumatic bits, but the valuable too. Whether it is a family holiday, an old family friend or even just a pet I used to have, I'm not sure why, whether it's a normal part of age or life. Or whether it's something more perniciously psychological. Do people who live in the same village they grew up in, surrounded by physical manifestations of memory retain more? I am becoming cautio...
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Contrary Towers: On forgotten remembrances
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Sunday, 19 July 2015. As I get older it occurs to me that there is so much else I've forgotten. Not just some of the unreally traumatic bits, but the valuable too. Whether it is a family holiday, an old family friend or even just a pet I used to have, I'm not sure why, whether it's a normal part of age or life. Or whether it's something more perniciously psychological. Do people who live in the same village they grew up in, surrounded by physical manifestations of memory retain more? I am becoming cautio...
contrarytowers.blogspot.com
Contrary Towers: Let them eat cake...
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Tuesday, 2 June 2015. Let them eat cake. Today was something of a first and a last for me. The first time I've been to a garden party and wandered aimlessly around Buckingham Palace gardens. And probably the last time I'll be allowed back. Not that I did anything naughty just that that's what most of my readers would presume. Hats There were a lot of them. I was definitely in the minority as I didn't have one as a) my head is slightly larger than Phobo. Fortunately the extremely well behaved queue moved ...
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Contrary Towers: September 2013
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Wednesday, 18 September 2013. Magic in four colours. Good for people watching though. Anyway, as I say, I lost faith and stopped attending openings as, frankly, they were usually full of people who think Damien Hirst is actually. A good thing. Idiots. Fast forward some time. Lots of time. Well, maybe not that much but I am. Dealing with the single biggest upheaval of my life at the same time. Some months back I gained a new follower on twitter by the name of Matt Forster. My plus one would be my bezzie.
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Contrary Towers: On being a nidiot
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Friday, 29 May 2015. On being a nidiot. Amongst other things - relaxation, culture, food - holidays teach you much about random stuff. So for the benefit of all here are my most recent pearls of wisdom:. Always check the timetables before catching a ferry for a ferry which isn't running. Fuxakes. When getting in the sea with flip flops and you take them off once you are in, ensure you throw them back up the beach enough. Bell towers still give me vertigo and wobbly legs. Oh Lastly, put your bus tickets i...
