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Diary – 2014 November
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All my diary pages going back to 2009
DRAWING & PAINTING:
1 November
There were lots of fireworks tonight, as the weekend has been dry. The
real Fireworks Night is on the 5th in the middle of next week, and it
might be raining by then! You can almost hear the green one, as the
stars popped up one by one with a whining sound. Each one was lighting
up the smoke trail of the one that went before it.
3 November
This is very nice for looking at but I don't think I would want to wear
it. Everyone around me would get hungry, especially Dino who is always
looking for sweets.
5 November
Some people had saved their fireworks for the proper night. The weather
was damp and rainy but not enough to stop the fireworks.
6 November
In Bromley the trees were full of large plastic Remembrance Poppies,
they were very bright in the sunlight.
More poppies round the corner and into the park behind the High Street.
7 November
Here is a duck and seagull scrummage in the park. We took a whole loaf
of waste bread which I had already cut into small squares. You can
imagine the shrieks and noise, especially from the seagulls.
We were there about 10 minutes, and this Cheeky Pigeon was walking up
and down. We gave him his own bit of bread in the end.
9 November
These are the last of my own garden apples. They were all small but good
and sweet. I found this spent rocket in the garden, I wonder if it was
one of the ones that I got a picture of?
Everything is very wet and soaked now. The covers on the seats keep
filling up with water and I think I shall have to put something
underneath to hold it up, so that the rain falls off. The nasturtiums
are doing really well and when the sun shines through them they glow
like little lights. They will grow anywhere without any trouble at all,
in fact the worse the ground is, the more flowers you get!
10 November
I was amazed to see this Red Admiral butterfly warming itself in the
sun. It is a bit late in the year for him to be out and about. Maybe
when it gets colder he will find a cosy corner to sleep through the
winter.
We went to see the ice rink at Ruxley Garden Centre. This year they have
a big roof over it. We will definitely be going back when there are lots
more people on it. Here is the lights department, which we look forward
to every year.
These wall pictures have lots of twinkling lights on them. These are a
bit o a change from the normal snowy mountain scenes. I like the glowing
lamps in the Nativity one.
My favourite is the model village display, and everything is numbered so
you can find the box if you want to buy one. The best bit here is the
bonfire on the right with the man carefully warming his hands in front
of it. He has obviously had a good time skating and it is now time to
warm up again.
The bit I like here is the transparent moon on a stick, it would look
even better in a night scene with some light behind it. This is a
lamplighter up his ladder, who in the 19th century went around lighting
the gas street lamps.
The snow has not quite reached this farm and the goose and goslings can
still swim around. I am glad to see that they have a nice cosy shelter
with straw for later on. This skiier is going a bit too fast!
The best tree of them all. This greenhouse is a bit like mine, and
although it is full of red Christmas wreaths, it reminds me of the
Remembrance Poppy wreaths that are everywhere at this time.
Ruxley always has really lovely room displays. This one is a cosy oak
panelled room in a country house or castle. The next one is a more
humble cottage with a little fire in a dish shaped grate on legs. The
fire is a lamp with some orange nylon flames blowing about.
This display shows the Swinging Sixties, when everyone wore bright
colours, the dresses were very short, and geometric shapes on the
materials. The next one is based on Cinderella, and shows a ball gown
being made. As Cinderella didn't have any nice dresses, this is either
the Ugly Sisters' dresses, or the Fairy Godmother getting the dress
ready to give to Cinderella.
The reindeer are back in residence, in their luxury quarters. This stone
is a water feature in the summer, but it switched off now. I love the
marble patterns better than the green slime when it is flowing.
This treasure chest full of chocolate coins would go down very well with
Dino and Blue Parrot, and when they see the photo they will want to come
and investigate for themselves.
11 November
With all the Remembrance events, this charity shop window is full of
items from the 1930's and 1940's. I like the old typewriter, it looks
like good fun.
12 November
I like to walk through the park sometimes rather than getting the bus
all the way to the shops. It is quite soggy now and I can hardly
remember the drought and empty pond of a few years ago!
This is one of my favourite parts, with giant trees, and lots of
interesting corners, archways and mossy corners. It is best to get to
the top or bottom of the steps safely before looking around at
everything. There are lots of berries and rosehips for the birds all
around the park.
15 November
Someone gave us a lovely bunch of miniature daffodils, but it seemed
rather strange to see them in November. This collared dove lives round
our gardens, and comes down for breakfast crumbs most days. I try to
give him some small bits so that he can eat it before any other big
pigeons get the idea and come down to gobble it up. I pull the kitchen
curtains so that I can watch him without scaring him off.
18 November
Whenever I see this (1), I know I am going to find this (2), and
sometimes I get a picture of this (3)! I don't like to be in bed once
the sun is shining, I want to be up and doing something.
22 November
Here are some street performers in the shopping area, apparently
floating in the air. Lots of people were taking pictures of their
friends standing with them. I have painted out the people with Yoda, as
it was difficult to get a clear photo with all the crowds.
24 November
This sunrise is worth getting out of bed for, but when I saw the frosty
swirls on the car roof, I quickly got back in bed, to warm up again!
Later on when the frost had gone, I went on a tour of the garden. We
still have this orange rose flowering, but I think it is too cold for
the flower to open. The robin has decided ours is the best garden for
breakfast, and sits on the post near the kitchen window and warbles a
bit if he sees someone moving around.
25 November
Hmm, someone thought it was far too cold to go down to the compost heap
with these dead flowers. At least it is better than having dead flowers
in the house! I just love nasturtium leaves when they have drops of
water in the middle. I read somewhere that the water is held up on very
tiny hairs, so the water just wobbles about and slides off.
There is not much in the garden, but some close up photos of the winter
jasmine and the almost last fuchsia make it look a bit better than it
really is!
We have been admiring this evening primrose all year and are hanging on
for the very last flower to come out. I am sure by now there are
thousands of seeds from it all over the garden.
26 November
The mornings are all cold, wet and misty at the moment, and the yellow
is a street lamp and not the sun coming up. This snowman is in the
curtain shop, and it makes you want to buy cosy lined curtains in a warm
colour, to keep the room warm.
28 November
We took a pile of broken biscuits to the park. The pigeons are the best
ones to eat it up, as it was mostly powdery crumbs. They don't mind and
will keep pecking until it is all gone. Here is our friend Speckles
joining in for the meal. Some seagulls tried to get some crumbs, but
they were not brave enough to push into the pigeon scrum!
29 November
Here is a dawn worth making an effort for, much better than the cold
foggy ones of a few days ago. The clouds look just like an upside down
fluffy orange quilt on a bed.
At the end of the afternoon we went up to the Petts Wood Christmas
Carnival. It was packed with people, and fairground rides and stalls.
Everything was lit up with flashing neon lights. This Cakewalk
attraction was full of people, walking around on the rocking and moving
floors and bridges, and there was lots of loud music and excited
children everywhere.
The toy stall had hundreds of prizes hanging up, and all the rides were
full of children, with no empty seats anywhere.
This was my favourite bit, the stall where you can buy an LED coloured
light wand or sword. Here is the candy floss stall looking very
inviting.
I am sure this hot chocolate stall was selling a lot of drinks. These
circular trains have Thomas the Tank faces and a bell that the children
in the front can ring.
On this stall you have to pick up one of the floating characters with a
long stick, and the number underneath tells you what prize you have won.
This is the shooting gallery, and you have to knock down so many fingers
to get a soft toy prize.
We were delighted to discover the Reptile Events stand here, even though
it was getting much darker and nearly time to go home. Our friend Bruce
the Bearded Dragon was sitting inside Jane's coat, and only coming out
for a minute or two. We have a lovely new friend here,
Cobalt the
Blue-tongued Skink, and when I have a good photo of him, I am going to
put a colouring drawing of him on our Dino's Reptiles page. He was looking very interested in
everything, but stayed still on the paper for a few seconds, so we could
get a good photo. I am sure we will see him again, in the daylight!
This reindeer in a shop window was turning his head left and right, as
if he was looking at all the people passing by outside.
Just after 6, all the Christmas lights on the shops and trees were
turned on and then the firework display started. It was all launched
from a car park away from the crowds, so everyone everywhere just looked
up to see it all, in safety.
These ones were quieter, and the second picture are the ones that whizz
away in spirals. I think they are my favourite ones!
It lasted about ten minutes, and ended with lots of starry bursts.
I like this shop window of the Chocolates and Sweets shop. The Christmas
tree is a printed picture on a large plastic sheet, and they have put
real lights in front of it. Shop windows do not always have a lot of
room, so I really like it when someone has a good idea like this.
These paper stars were very lovely and I think it must be quite
interesting to make some, if you make lots of pointy triangle shapes and
stick them all together. In the second picture, the strings of lights
were chasing downwards to look like a golden fountain. Instead of
waiting for the bus, we decided to walk home, as it would keep us warm
instead of waiting around. We really enjoyed seeing everything and
someone remembered to bring a few chocolate biscuits in their bag to eat
on the way home!
30 November
Another really chilly foggy and very drippy wet morning.
I am glad that the day cleared up a bit, but I still did not want to go
out in the garden. But with the weather forecast being much colder
weather ahead, I just had to get these last few bulbs into the big pot
while I had the chance. Someone else patted the cold wet compost down
for me! They are lovely pink stripy tulips and some snowdrops. I am
really looking forward to seeing these, especially sitting in the
greenhouse on a warm sunny spring morning. That is a long way away at
the moment and I think I might keep the packet pictures over the winter
until the real ones are coming up.
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