La Belle et la Bete

I'm going to try a segue here, that will ultimately make sense (we can hope anyway), by going from the film Beauty and the Beast to roses. Stick with me, and we'll see if it works.

One of my all-time favorite old black & white films---no, wait, my most favorite---is the French film La Belle et la Bete, by Jean Cocteau, made in 1946. I have loved this movie for years, and just recently watched it again on one of the movie channels, falling captivated and mesmerized all over again. The imagery of special effects, the wonderful story, perfect acting, and the cinematic genius of Cocteau, makes this an absolutely stunning film. If you aren't lucky enough to find a TV channel showing foreign films, you can actually order a very brilliant DVD of the original at Amazon.

Here comes the segue---

So, from La Belle...
In the rose garden, which is a large section in the front of the house, Alan and I have about 56 rose bushes. I love the gorgeous blooms, and the scent on a warm Summer's day is nearly overwhelming. The colors, fragrance, and range of variety is pretty spectacular. During the blooming period (for us it's June clear through to November), we are constantly getting compliments, from neighbors as well as total strangers, on the beauty of the rose garden.

Here is a small sample of the roses. A very small sample considering this is just a few of our dozens of plants.






I took the photo on the right just this morning. I love how the dew drops sparkled, adding to the beauty






to et la Bete...
The endless fiddling, pruning and deadheading of these horrible roses, to say nothing of the constant threat of bugs (greenfly, blackfly, whitefly, and any other frigging thing that flies), and diseases (black spot, rust, wilt, mold and mildew), makes these prima donnas the most aggravating of plants in the entire plant kingdom...!! I have been slashed, cut, and left bleeding copiously by the wretched thorns, to say nothing of the sepsis involved when a barb breaks off somewhere in your hand, finger or leg. Why anyone would have these horrid plants is just beyond me. Which begs the question: why do we have so many..??

Because they are beautiful...even when they're beastly...

How I Spent My Summer Vacation...

Remember when you were a kid, and after Summer vacation you'd have your first class in school, and everyone had to stand up and talk about how they spent the Summer..?? Well, since I totally forgot I had a blog for about 3 months, now I will have to do an instant recap sort of post today, very much like those old school assignments. I'm pretty stunned though that I haven't written since April...where, oh where has the time gone...?????

I have read many books since my last posting, but won't bore anyone with those details. I'm actually going to remove that part of my blog anyway, so never mind what I'm reading (or what I've read since April).

Alan spent 5 weeks in America (June/July), helping my mother to move, and dealing with some INS stuff. He had way more fun then I did as I was stuck in Edinburgh due to Ozzy's usual doggy sitter, Helga, being off on her own holiday. Still, there's something to be said about your partner being away: eat what you want, when you want; read all night if the book is good enough; clean the house when you can write your name in the dust, and other singleton experiences.

One great thing about Alan being in America: I had my own personal shopper. It was wonderful to have him bring back graham crackers, cornbread mix, Nestle's chocolate chips, my favorite black jeans that I can only get in the States, and several other cool items. It was like Christmas in July...!!

It wouldn't have been half bad, having him away, if I hadn't missed him, and then there was the garden which decided to turn into some sort of tropical rain forest over that 5 weeks he was gone. It got well beyond my efforts to control by myself, so now he's back all he's done for the past two weeks is wrestle things back into order.

Here's a glimpse of the chaos:




The front walk. Lots of roses, though the nasturtiums seem to be taking over. No doubt the tropical rain forest effect.












The cauldrons look wonderful, spilling out with lobelia, as does the sweet pea planter against the back wall to the front door.










The fragrance is just heavenly from these blooms. No wonder they are called "sweet" peas. I have a vase full in the house and you can smell them everywhere.








I'd like to say we've actually had Summer this year, but alas, this is Scotland. It would annoy me no end when I would chat with Alan on the phone from America and he's going on and on about the 80 degree days whilst I'm walking Ozzy in fog, rain, wind and a week of the muggiest weather I've experienced since Florida. Truly, we had about a week of dense cloud cover, but up there somewhere it was really hot, so it made things really muggy and humid, and miserable. Very weird. But, still, no Summer to speak of. There's been maybe a week of good weather (sunny, warm, and Summer-like) since May..sigh.

That's about all I can remember of the past few months, other than how fast time flies, so I guess this is where my "assignment" ends, with me all caught up, and now I get to sit down to let the next kid stand up in front of the class to tell how they spent their Summer vacation...

Bits and Pieces

April 26, 2009
(I started to write this blog on April 9th, lost track, and am just now publishing).

Good grief. I am just hopeless at finding the time to keep up with my blog..!! This is totally why I am crap at keeping a journal. I actually have a whole shelf filled with journals, all of which start out so full of promise and good intentions (and we know where that paved road goes, don't we..??), then peter out sometime around Spring. I haven't managed to complete a whole journal year since I was a kid with my diary. Sigh. Oh well, I'm doing pretty good with this blog if you consider I'm writing a couple times per month.

I took some really cool photos this month. We had the worst start of April here in Cramond. There's this bizarre Scottish weather thing called haar (not as in hardy har har, for sure..!!). It is the most ferocious, icy fog you can possibly imagine. It's not normal fog, it's something off the Arctic, combined with a wind chill that is unbelievably cold and bitter...a misery. Just before the haar settled in (for over a week), we had a wonderful, warm sunny better-than-Summer day and I couldn't resist taking a few photos of this phenomenon. The very next day the contrast couldn't have been more stark, so I took my camera when we went walking with Ozzy on the first of the haar days...and here are the photos.

This is one of my favorite trees along the route where we walk Ozzy. It's at the top of a hill, with a wonderful view of the Forth. On a good day you can see from Bass Rock down the coast, to the Forth Bridge up the river. I love this tree. It reminds me of a childhood tree that I used to climb to read my books, above and away from everything.


And this was the next day. Same location, same time of day, and check out that haar. Honestly, if I could send the cold through this blog, you would freeze to your chair. It was a completely bone-chilling week.





Here the Almond River flows into the Forth, and the Cramond Boat Club has just put out their boats for the season (first weekend in April). We've just walked along the river, and are starting the long trek along the promenade to the large hill where the above tree lives.




And, the haar sinks down to envelop everything in it's path. Alan and I decided it was actually colder that week than at the height of the frigid Winter. There's something about the haar that just permeates into your body like nothing else. Brrrrrrr...





Now, we're almost into May, the haar is gone and we've actually had some good days. Alan has spent a great deal of time working in the garden, and has done a brilliant job of getting everything looking just beautiful. I've taken a real leap of faith and planted all the pots around the house. I know for Scotland it's pretty early, but I just can't wait sometimes.

I got a new greenhouse this year, which is twice as big as my old ratty one, so have potted 3 tomato plants and have them happily growing in their new house. I'm trying a mini-plot of corn this year in my raised bed, and though the packet of seeds said it was a variety suitable for rainy Summers, I haven't seen them sprout yet and it's been 2 weeks already. If the rule of thumb is "knee high by the 4th of July" I could be in trouble..!!

Here's another cool thing: I have a bonsai tree...!! We went to Dobbie's last week (my favorite garden center on the planet), where they were having a really good sale on plants, and as I was meandering in their specialty area I found this wonderful selection of bonsai. I have always wanted to have one of these little trees, so we picked out the one we liked the best, and lo and behold, here it is:



Is that cool, or what..?? Isn't that twisty trunk just amazing..?? It's, of course, much more beautiful in person as you can't quite see all the tiny little leaves in this photo. I just love it and am learning all kinds of things about trimming and watering and root cutting, etc.

It turns out Derek (across the street neighbor) has several bonsai trees so I went over to see them, and ask some questions from an expert. He has one in particular that looks exactly like a Hobbit tree, with a thick gnarly trunk and everything. Scott (brother-in-law) has one that my sister bought him years ago, and I've always loved it. So, now I have joined the ranks of the bonsai fanatics, and I'm thrilled...!! This tree is a Chinese Lacebark Elm and apparently (as I'm just learning), the weirder and more "barky" the trunk, the cooler the tree.

That's about all for the moment. It's time for Ozzy's afternoon walk, then BBQ ribs for dinner. I'm really going to try to be more on top of this blog, though famous last words, I know. Ah well, twice a month is better than none...right...??

March Book Review

I seem to be in a genre reading zone right now. I do this: get interested in a certain type of story, and have to read any books I can find on the same theme. I will discover an author who writes thrillers, or crime stories, or historical tomes, and the next thing, I have to read anything I can get my hands on relating to that subject.

So, in light of that, I'm still stuck on the immortal thing. I'm starting to think my fascination is because I'm getting older and NOT immortal. Still, I have been totally absorbed into a whole branch of literature--previously unread by me--that has to do with immortality. I think this all started when I read Twilight last Fall, and so far, the addiction hasn't abated. Ah well, I'm having a good time reading stuff I'm not familiar with (though after many weeks of immortals, I'm becoming very familiar with this genre..!!).

Alexander McCall Smith

Tea Time for the Traditionally Built
Now, having said the above, I will drop anything and everything to read the latest book in The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series. Mma Ramotswe is again solving cases, as only she can: with wisdom, love and a belief in the goodness of the human spirit. I so love these books.

Two sidebars here:

I was working at the Cramond Kirk Jumble Sale last month having a great time, as always. There was a woman working with me who had to leave a bit early because she was on her way to the National Library in Edinburgh to meet with "Sandy" McCall for a luncheon and book reading on his new book (Tea Time...). I'm pretty sure I turned deep green with envy. Not only because she called him Sandy (Scottish derivative for Alexander, implying a very first name basis acquaintance), but because she was going to this event in the first place...!! I flat out told her I was soooo jealous and half hoped (as one of his best and devoted fans) that she would invite me along with her. Sadly, no such luck. Still, I talked to someone who knows him and that's probably as close as I'll ever get to this most brilliant author.

The other sidebar is the new BBC television show, based on the books, which is now showing on Sunday nights. It is, without doubt, one of the best adaptations of print to film. It's filmed in Botswana (where all the books are based), with local actors, scenery and atmosphere. It's one of those serendipitous moments for a reader when a book truly comes to life. The producers/director have dramatized the stories exactly, making this an absolutely wonderful TV series. Alan and I drop everything at 9:00pm every Sunday to watch. I told Alan after last Sunday's show, that he could realistically say he's read the books, the series is so accurately portrayed.

J.R. Ward

Black Dagger Brotherhood series
These six books involve the members of a secret group, the Black Dagger Brotherhood, who (what else) are immortals fighting against all the nefarious bad guys, protecting us lowly and clueless humans. Each book covers the history and current life of a brother. There's lots of adventure, angst, the bonding of warrior brothers and some good scary stuff in these stories. I love the writing style and incredible imagination of this author.

Gena Showalter

Lords of the Underworld series
So far there are three books in this series, with more to come. The theme in Showalter's take on immortals comes from Greek mythology, with a large dollop of imagination thrown in for good measure. The basic premise here is that a band of men, working in Olympus for the gods, opens Pandora's box, releasing all the badness into the world. For punishment, these guys are banished to Earth and forced to endure their crimes for eternity, while helping out humanity whenever they can. One suffers constant pain, one gets murdered every night to be resurrected each morning, one is Death and has to ferry people to either Heaven or Hell, one can't touch anyone or anything because he is Disease, etc. It's a good series as you come to understand the torment each guy suffers, and their regret over their actions through the millenia. I particularly enjoy these stories because of the mythological background.

So. There are my books for March. It was a very interesting bunch of stories, and once again, I don't know what I would do if I didn't read. The only thing worth watching on the telly is The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency, so I thank my lucky stars I have books.

March Thoughts

For my thoughts this month I'm going to meander along in no particular direction---free-form thinking, the method my brain is most comfortable with. I've taken some photos which are nothing spectacular, just interesting sidebars to the ramblings.

It's been a very blustery month, with lots of wind, though not much rain, for a change. Spring flowers are just beginning to bloom, buds on the trees, sprigs on some Spring shrubs, etc. It makes you feel that eventually things will all be green and lush again. I live in anticipation that this year we might actually have a Summer...after two years of not. Spring, by it's nature, is so filled with possibilities and hope, isn't it..??

[Before anyone tries to correct my capitalization of Spring and Summer (Alan), I totally think the seasons should be in caps and have always done so, regardless of spelling rules].

So, now on we go...into the rambling:

My dear neighbor, Morag, gave me the most stunning Amaryllis bulb for my Christmas gift this year (well, last year to be accurate). I planted it the very same day, and have watched it grow since late December. This week I took these photos...and talk about a gift that keeps on giving...!! It's truly an amazing sight, with 7 flowers on 2 stalks...the best Amaryllis I've ever had.


These are the most beautiful blooms imaginable, and as usual, the photos do NOT do them justice..!!






In my "Catch Up" blog last month, I mentioned that Lorna and Derek (across the street neighbors) had gotten a new puppy, Harvey the Boxer. I saw Derek out with him the other day and dashed over to snap this photo. I will take some better ones, maybe in their backyard, as the sidewalk looks pretty crappy, but still...is he sweet, or what..?? That sorrowful look on his face is so adorable, especially as he is so happy and playful, which is at such odds with this look. He's getting a bit gangly now, though has a long way to go before growing into his feet..!!


And, speaking of dogs. We decided to take a drive yesterday out to Crieff, which is normally about an hour's drive from Edinburgh. I wanted to take some more photos of this place outside Crieff where we'd taken my sister when she visited. It's just a lovely, peaceful valley, with the mountains in the distance, sheep grazing, and lots of green fields and old farms. When we left Edinburgh it was a sunny Saturday afternoon. After getting stuck in the endless flaming roadworks that abound in Scotland these days, we finally got to Crieff about two hours later, and just as the storm clouds came roaring in...sigh. I took photos, though they didn't come out very well, nor look as dramatic as reality. Then we couldn't find a place to have lunch (don't ask), so it's an hour and a half drive back to town. Naturally, Ozzy being the traveller he is (NOT), by the time we pulled into the driveway, Alan and I aren't speaking, and Ozzy has thrown up all over the back of the car. Here's a picture of him before we left...and what a happy creature, huh..?? I don't have a photo of him after we returned from the ruinous drive because a) I was too busy cleaning up the car, and b) he went under the bed and didn't come out until later in the evening..!! Cripes, sometime I can't help but wonder: Why do I bother..??


This is a cool Spring thing, and something that seems very British to me: daffodils planted in the lawn..!! They just appear out of nowhere, and look so wonderful. I took these photos at the Manse, which is where the minister of the Cramond Kirk lives. When the flowers are long gone, with just the green stalks left, it's about time for the first lawn mowing, then they get cut right along with the grass. I love how they look, springing up in big clumps like this.



I took this shot last month, in the drearyness of February. This is one side garden of the Manse, and looks like every other piece of barren ground in the area at this time of year.








This is a photo, taken last week, of the same plot of ground. It that great, or what..?? Just huge bands of yellow where last month there was nothing. In the far distance, just to the left, you can see another large swath.








This is the opposite side garden of the Manse, with the Kirk in the background, and more clumps of daffodils just sprouting away in the grass. With the rest of the garden still bleak and bare, it's wonderful to see these glorious, bright yellow flowers everywhere.








My last thought for the day is about the very sad demise of Natasha Richardson. At first it seemed like such an odd, and rare, accident...I mean really, falling into the snow and within hours being brain dead..?? Then I read that in just America alone, 50,000 people (yes, 50,000) die of this same thing every year. So much for our skulls being natural helmets for our brains..!! It makes life seem so fragile, doesn't it..?? We go along, falling, tripping, stumbling, and never really think that at any given moment we could accidentally do ourselves in. Mortality, what a drag.

February Book Review

I seem to be in a "series" mode these days, and it's been brilliant..!! I've discovered several new authors (new to me), and they've all had loads of previous books so I've been able to start at the beginning and read book after book, without interruption. There's nothing worse than coming to the end of a book and having to wait a year or more to find out what happens next..!!

It would be way too convoluted, and lengthy, for me to go into much detail with all these stories, and I know most of you nod off quite early into my reviews, so I won't labor here with particulars.


Christine Feehan

The Dark Carpathians series
There are several books in this saga, most of them totally entertaining, though somewhere in the middle I started to lose the plot (or Christine did), but then she came back with a vengeance and I fell back in love with all the Carpathians.

Basically, they are a separate immortal race from us, though they live among us as human. The series starts with the Prince of the Carpathians, and each book thereafter tells a different tale of another member of their society. Lots of action with the bad guys who want to kill them off, love interest stuff, and great plotting. I lived and breathed the Carparthians for about 3 weeks and could hardly move on when I'd finished the last in the series, though thank goodness there are more books in the works.


Catriona McPherson

Dandy Gilver Murder Mysteries
So far there are 4 books in this series. These are very quaint stories, filled with Scottishness and in locales I am familiar with around Edinburgh, which is always cool. Dandy is English, though has married a Scottish guy, and lives outside Perth in the 1920s. She's sort of a grown up Nancy Drew, with lots of humor, weird friends, and her most lovable Dalmatian Bunty. She stumbles into crimes and mysteries, often without a clue...literally. The best part of these books, to me, is life in Scotland in the 1920s. Catriona McPherson has done an amazing amount of research into the era and it's delightful to read about.


Karen Chance

Cassandra Palmer series
There are 4 books in this series, with a fifth book that ties in, but stands alone as it's own story. Cassie is a clairvoyant who can also communicate with spirits. The ghosts aren't usually dangerous, but they sure like to talk..!! Lots of mythological and legendary characters abound in this series, with loads of humor and a tough, smart heroine. Fairies, vamps, dwarves, trolls, etc. It's sort of the adult version of Grimm's Fairy Tales with some laugh-out-loud scenes.


Kresley Cole

Immortals After Dark series
I totally love this series..!! There are 6 books so far, and I can't stand that I have to wait until November 2009 for the next one...aarrgghh. Each book ends in a cliffhanger about the next character's story, so it's been most enjoyable (and deadly for getting anything else done in my day) to finish one, and immediately pick up the next.

Again, it's about immortals, which seems to be my obsession lately. The stories are filled with Valkyries, vamps, werewolves (who live in the Highlands of Scotland no less), and various other creatures who go bump in the night. There are hilarious bits with Nix, the Valkyrie who can see the future but only in riddles, plus lots of action, chaos and mayhem. The plots are fab, with great suspense and characters. Yum, what a super series this is..!!

January Book Review

Now that I'm just catching up with my blog postings, it's going to be difficult to write reviews on books I read nearly a month ago, especially as I've read a multitude of great books recently. So, this will be an "edited for television" book review (which no doubt will please some of you no end..!!).

Marianne Curley

Guardians of Time: The Named, The Dark and The Key
This trilogy is about 16 year old Ethan, who discovers he has the ability to travel back in time. The plot concerns Ethan learning to use his skills to intercept the dark forces intent on unraveling history for their own purpose...of course, an evil purpose. At the same time, Ethan is a normal high school kid, with all the problems associated with being a teenager, without adding in the "save the world" bit. It was a good series: complicated, tense, exciting, with lots of action and suspense.

Alison Croggon

Books of Pellinor: The Gift, The Riddle, The Crow and The Singing
This was an amazing quartet. It was supposed to be "young adult" reading, but heck with that. The plot was very intricate, loads of passionate, inspiring characters, really thrilling, scary moments, a vividly described world of monsters, magic and Darkness. All 4 books are nice and thick, too, so I could really get absorbed into the story. Maerad is a young slave woman who gets accidentally rescued early in the first book, by a mage, Cadvan, who discovers she is magically gifted. Through fair means and foul (good guys and bad), it's determined that Maerad is the only one who can restore the balance in the Seven Kingdoms. The quest involved is to find the Treesong, the only thing able to defeat the Dark. Everyone thinks Maerad is the one to do so, though she doesn't have a clue what the Treesong is, or where to find it. The 4 books roam all over the Seven Kingdoms, and the longer the quest goes on, the more Maerad learns, not only about the Treesong, but about herself, and her abilities. This was such a wonderful, lengthy, great read. I was really sorry when I finished the last book.

Christopher Ransom

The Birthing House
I'm not sure what I think about this book. The writing was excellent, so I kept reading, though wasn't too sure where I was going. It was a surprisingly creepy story about a couple, Conrad and Jo, who move into an historic Victorian house, looking for a new start. Conrad is given an old photo album with pictures of the early Victorian inhabitants of the house when it was used as a home for unwed mothers. Things start to take a Stephen King turn for the worse at this point when Conrad seems to recognize one of the women in a group photo: his wife..!! My only complaint was the ending. I swear, either I'm losing it, or my brain functions on a different level than other people, because damn, I didn't understand the end at all. According to the book jacket: "The Birthing House grips from the first line to the terrifying final twist." That's all well and good, and yes, the end was really scary and twisted, but the deal is: I didn't get it....!!!!!

Catch Up

Apparently I am no better at keeping up with my blog than I am with my handwritten journals...!! I don't know how the time has flown by since my last posting---it's hard to believe it's mid-February already and I'm just sitting down to write again. Life has a way of interfering with the best of intentions, doesn't it..??

I thought I would just recap some events that still stick in my mind from the past 6 weeks, then in another blog I will do my January book review. That will pretty much get me back on track, I hope.

January

Barack Obama.
Alan wanted to watch the Inauguration, but after 8 years of the Bushwacker, I just couldn't be bothered with anything to do with politics. Somehow though I ended up watching anyway, and honestly, I can't believe what I would have missed..!! His speech was the epitome of what we need in a leader: honesty, compassion, realism, and a faith that as Americans we can do anything we set our minds to, no matter the difficulty, or what has come before. I felt, for just a shining moment, that here was someone to believe in. Finally. I have always been a proud American, but that day I was a hopeful proud American.

Watching that war mongering, greedy bastard Bush flying out of the Capitol, and out of our lives forever, was the second shining moment for me. Ah, it was such a good day....

Birthdays.
January is also birthdays. We got Ozzy some toys for his 6th birthday, he had some extra treats for dinner, and I tried hard not to yell at him for his hysterical barking...which didn't work. Even birthdays can't prevent me from trying to stop his maniacal behavior: at the mailman, other dogs walking past the gate, birds, or anything that apparently offends his delicate sensibilities...!! I swear, if a pin dropped 4 blocks away, he'd have to bark about it. He's so adorable, loving and brilliantly intelligent, I drives me nuts that his one unredeeming quality is so blasted annoying. He guards the front door (because we all know mail is lethal), he guards the garden (because birds are enemies of epic proportions), he guards the gate (because all other dogs are possible interlopers), and he guards the front living room window to better keep track of his domain. Honestly, he takes his job WAY too seriously and I wish he'd just retire and go fishing..!!

For Alan's birthday we went out to dinner with some friends to a new restaurant, Bar Napoli. New to us, not the city. Because it was Naples food, I thought we could pretend we were back in southern Italy for a few hours. The plan wasn't bad, and the food was great, it was just the 20* wind chill and freezing cold that ruined the illusion..!! Still, we had fun, and it was great to see Jack and Alice and share some vino and food.

Alan and Morag share the same birthday, so as usual, I baked a birthday cake, cut it in half, and Alan and Morag each get a half. I've been doing this for some years now, and it's really fun, plus Alan and I don't need to eat an entire cake ourselves---not that we're not tempted..!!

I also thought about Tyler, and wished him a Happy Birthday though he's no longer here. He would have been 36 this year, and I still miss him so much. I used to always give him a great new book for his birthday, and even now after several years, I find myself thinking "Tyler would like this one" when I'm in the bookstore. Sigh. Wish you were here kid.

February

I don't know what happened that February came so fast. The weather here in Edinburgh gets really crappy in February, and this year was no exception. We've had endless freezing temps, plus last Monday we got snow. I liked it at first, but it would sort of melt during the afternoons, then snow again, then freeze overnight, so walking Ozzy was totally treacherous and definitely not fun. There's nothing like that first day/night of snow though, is there..?? It's so beautiful, and quiet. Course, after the first day it's just rude and annoying and a pain.

I spent lots of time reading (natch), and would have watched some television if there'd been something even remotely interesting to watch. And, don't you wonder how there can be 500 TV channels, and still there's nothing to watch..?? How can that be..?? Good thing I love to read more than anything, and luckily this winter has been filled with a great array of books to escape into.

Valentine's Day yesterday was good. Alan and I decided to send each other email valentine cards, which was funny. It saved some money and we each had to troll through lots of ecards to find the right ones, so it was just as meaningful as if we'd spent the time and money at the store. I made a pear tart (his favorite), and we had a romantic dinner at home, and enjoyed ourselves immensely. And that's all anyone needs to know about that...!!

Poppy, Morag's wee dog, has been ill since Wednesday, causing all kinds of concern from those of us in the neighborhood who love her (or I should say them). The vet can't seem to figure out what's wrong, though today when I saw her, she does seem a bit better. It's really dreadful when your dog is ill and there's no discernible reason for it. Today Morag brought Poppy over so I could help give her one of her pain pills. It didn't work, though Ozzy managed to snag the damn cheese (with medicine inside). Cripes. Oh well, my abiding hope is the pain meds will kick in, knock Ozzy out, and I'll have a peaceful afternoon...!!

Lorna and Derek, across the street, called us over this morning, to meet their new puppy. They recently lost their wonderful old Westie, Callie, and wanted to get another dog as soon as one became available. I thought they might go for another Westie, but they once had a Boxer and wanted to go that route again. So, over we go, to meet Harvey..!! And good grief, if he isn't the cutest pup I've seen in ages..!! He hasn't had his tail docked, or his ears ruined, and honestly, it makes the breed so much more attractive to see one au natural, rather than cosmetically altered. He's 10 weeks old, and too cute for words, though judging by the size of his feet, they'll have to change his name to Godzilla before too long..!! I don't think I've ever seen a Boxer puppy, and they are just wonderful. He's all gangly legs and twitching tail and butt, and just as perky and happy as can be. A great wee pup, for sure.

Well, there goes Ozzy, tearing down the hall to bark out the living room window at some offender or another. Time to yell, get a cup of coffee, and grab my latest book. Feels good to have caught up with things, so a good Sunday afternoon's writing and I'm off for now.

December Book Reviews

I didn't read much this month, mainly because of Christmas, New Year's, etc. Still, I managed to wile away a bit of free time with some great books.

Alexander McCall Smith

I absolutely adore this Edinburgh writer. I have read nearly everything he's written, and enjoyed every book. My favorites are The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series; I eagerly await each new installment and usually read the books in one sitting.

La's Orchestra Saves the World
The story is about a woman leaving London on the brink of World War II, to settle into a small English village in the countryside. She forms an amateur orchestra of local musicians and men from a nearby air base to stage concerts while all around them their country is fighting for it's survival. Friendships are forged, loves lost and found, and through it all: the profound power of music. It's a wonderful tale of the indomitable spirit of people, against the backdrop of war, to find meaning in their lives.

Nora Roberts

I don't normally read "romance" novels. I do, however, like Nora Roberts. She writes well, and if you overlook the steamy stuff (which in her newer books isn't so...well...steamy), they are quite worth the read.

The Sign of Seven Trilogy
Three boys, on their tenth birthday, accidentally unleash an evil at the Pagan Stone, a place in the forest near their small town of Hawkins Hollow. The history of the stone goes back to the early settlement of Hawkins Hollow, with witch trials, puritanical zealots, and the beginnings of the evil. Each book relates to one of the boys (now men), first with Blood Brothers about Caleb Hawkins, followed by The Hollow about Fox O'Dell, and concluding with The Pagan Stone and Gage Turner. There are lots of scary bits, things that definitely go bump in the night, and three women (these are "romance" novels after all) who also have a part to play in dealing with the evil. The storyline reminded me of Stephen King sometimes, especially the parts when the guys were boys (Stand by Me comes to mind). Good stuff.


Phil Rickman

There are 10 books in this series about Merrily Watkins, parish priest and diocesan exorcist, which all take place in the Hertfordshire village of Ledwardine. Many of the stories involve people and events over the border in Wales, with lots of local folklore and history.

To Dream of the Dead
The books are continuous, so really, you must read from the first book. In this story, there is a killer December flood, the village is isolated from everything, and with the unearthing of a prehistoric pagan monument which flies in the face of some staunch religious villagers' beliefs, all hell is breaking loose in Ledwardine. Great atmospheric rendering of village life, the trials of being a woman priest, having a pagan teenage daughter, and balancing it all with the changes happening all over England with land development burying the past. Love this series.

Emily Barr

The Sisterhood
A creepy, dark, but gripping read. There's witty "life in London" dialogue, and a great finale that really makes you glad you know exactly who your own sister is. Elizabeth, living in London, has just broken up with her husband. She has a miserable one night stand, and natch, gets pregnant. Meanwhile, across the Channel, Helen, who lives in France, has found some hidden documents belonging to her mother and discovers she has an unknown sister. She decides to go to London to find her. And therein lies the plot. Elizabeth is enchanting as she struggles with her pregnancy and new life, while Helen is...well...something else. I won't go into any further details, as telling too much would totally spoil the suspense. Well worth the read.

Shortest Day, Longest Day

On this very dreary day, approaching the shortest one of the year, I can't help but think back to the longest day of the year---actually, just a few weeks past that June solstice day. Alan had taken me to Italy the first week in July, for my birthday. It was hot, sunny, romantic, and the best holiday either of us had ever experienced. I'm going to take a few minutes now to meander down that memory lane, with some photos of that glorious time, far away from this wintry day....

We left Edinburgh on a typically miserable Scottish summer's day. I was freezing in a sleeveless dress in anticipation of heat when we arrived in Italy. I wasn't disappointed. Our plane landed in Naples on a brilliant, scorchingly hot afternoon. We were picked up by a driver from our hotel, and an hour later arrived at the Hotel Corallo in the small village of Sant'Agnello, on the outskirts of Sorrento.

The family-run hotel was more than we'd ever expected. Not only was it beautiful, but our sea view balcony room was fabulous, with the most stunning view of the Bay of Napoli, Vesuvius, and the cliffs running into Sorrento. This is actually the back of the hotel, and faces the sea.

The view from the hotel's front entrance, with the mountains looming, and a tiny glimpse of Sant'Agnello village.

Looking towards Sorrento from the hotel. The heat haze makes it look cool and misty, but it was hot, and wonderful...!! The cliffs were truly amazing, with all the buildings just hanging on the edge. This view was to the left, off our balcony.

It was about a half hour walk into Sorrento from here, though the first time we walked the cliff route, which took us nearly an hour. We eventually found a shorter route, wandering through a little park, past an enormous orange grove right in the middle of Sorrento.




A closer shot of the cliffs (picture above). There are caves and passageways and ancient Roman steps, in fact a whole secret underground world beneath the buildings perched above.

Vesuvius, floating in the heat haze, in the Bay of Napoli. This view was to the right, from our room.

We had breakfast every morning on our balcony with these extraordinary vistas. I fell totally in love with fresh, hot, strong Italian coffee, served with a pitcher of steamy, frothy milk, and delicious little breakfast breads and biscuits.

This building, once a Capuchin Monastery, was almost directly off our balcony (balcony rail in the foreground). It was a ruin that Alan and I decided we could buy, fix up and live in---hey, we were on vacation, we can dream.

We found out later that it's owned by the Grimaldi family (yes, those Grimaldis). There's some kind of inter-family squabble going on over the property, so it's just been left, forlorn and abandoned.





Sorrento is famous for the wonderful drink, Limoncello, which we sampled often..!! The lemons are enormous, and though you can't tell from this photo, the "regular" lemons on the left are bigger than the average lemons. Honestly, the limoncellos were about the size of grapefruit. Needless to say, we brought back several bottles of this yummy drink, some to share and some to keep. And don't get me started on the Limoncello cookies...my mouth is watering as I write this.

Leaving Sorrento to cross the Med to Capri for a day trip. After all the heat, it was terrific to feel the coolness of the water misting around in the wind from the hydrofoil.

The headland on the left shows the Hotel Corallo, with the monastery hanging on the edge.

Entering the harbor at Capri. About midway up the hill is the actual town of Capri, and further up (several hundred feet), along a very narrow and winding single lane road, is the village of Anacapri, which was very cool.

In Anacapri you could take a chair lift up to the top of that mountain in the clouds. The view was absolutely spectacular, a 360* view of islands, the Med, and down the mountain to Anacapri and Capri. It was one of the best experiences of the whole holiday. Plus, being up on the mountain was so refreshing, in the cool mountain air, after the heat below, I just wanted to stay there permanently..!!




After leaving Anacapri and coming down off the mountain, we wandered around Capri and ended up having a most delicious pizza at this ristorante.

I never imagined such craggy, majestic mountains as we found everywhere we went. Or the smell of olive trees, or the beauty of the bougainvillea, or the amazing color of the water.

Before we headed back to Sant'Agnello, we took a boat tour around the Isle of Capri, seeing all the mega-mansions, the tiny villages, the wild goats, the caves and other interesting things you can only see from a boat. I couldn't believe the clarity, or color, of the waters of the Mediterranean. This photo barely does it justice.

On another day, we hired a car and driver, and did the Amalfi Coast. I wouldn't have missed this for the world.

We stopped first in Positano, which is a village that sprouts on the hills along a most twisting, mountainous road--the true Amalfi Coast road. This was a walkway that led down to the harbor. The bougainvillea was so thick overhead, it made the perfect shady lane to walk along, looking at local art works, great little shops, and cafes.




Coming into Amalfi, the first headland jutting into the sea is Sophia Loren's. Her house was beautiful, as were the grounds, though you can't tell that from this photo. What a place to live...sigh.

Our driver stopped further along where we could look down the hillside to get a better view of her estate, though with the road so narrow, I could barely jump out for a peek, then had to leap back into the car before being mowed down by other drivers. No chance of a closer photo, in other words.

A street in Amalfi, filled with shops, and doorways to other levels. I found a regular Italian hardware store and bought all kinds of interesting gadgets that you can't find, except in Italy.

This turned out to be my most favorite place along the Coast: Ravello. The village, way up in the mountains, is behind me in this photo. It's a very small place, with the church in the square the main focus.

We had lunch, then gelato, and wandered around the square, and the village, while our driver went off to visit relatives.

This photo was taken from a little bar/cafe which hung right over the abyss, with this glorious view down the Coast to other villages, and onwards to the south. We sat under a big umbrella, on the edge of the deck, sipping our iced coffees, and I tried my darnedest to convince Alan we needed to move to Ravello and start new lives. I think I almost had him convinced, too...!!




On our way back towards Sorrento, and Sant'Agnello. There was a great deal of traffic late in the afternoon along the Amalfi Coast road, and no place really to pull off to take photos, so most of the stunning views were taken from the car, like this one. Still. What I saw with my eyes is firmly embedded in my memory bank







We had the most awesome holiday anyone could wish for. As I've been writing this, so many memories have come flooding back to me: drinking gallons of water each day; drinks on the hotel terrace every afternoon talking to Guiseppe, the bar manager; Giovanni, the best concierge in Italy; tiny geckos flitting about the garden; delicious and amazing food everywhere we ate, including the hotel; totally addictive Italian coffee; warm, friendly people; delicious icy-cold glasses of Limoncello; sights, sounds and smells of Italy in July...oh big, big sigh.

I took nearly 300 photos, just a smattering shown here. It's nearly killed me off to look at them today, while the rain lashes the windows, the wind is howling, and it's approaching the shortest day of the year. So, come with me for one final memory....

Our last night, we sit on our balcony (which seems like home now), sipping our Limoncellos. As the sun sets, suddenly out of the heat haze, Ischia appears on the horizon. (We haven't seen it once while there. If you look closely, you can see it towards the left). The seagulls are calling, the air is so warm, on the slight breeze are the smells of the olive trees, lemons and flowers...and we talk quietly, already nostalgic, about what a magical time we've had.

Now that I have thoroughly depressed myself, I think I'll dig out that last bottle of Limoncello from the freezer, pour a glass, and maybe with my eyes closed while I sip, I can transport myself to that warm, intoxicating land...