Yet More on the Bonnets

A few days ago I wrote about Promises to Keep and was reminded that several of my posts ended in To Be Continued..and in fact they never had been continued.  So I am making a concerted effort to make good and keep those promises made.

Today I shall start with the continuing saga of The Bonnets.  In case you don’t know this saga started in June when Sallyann of Photographic Memories wrote a post about some bonnets left in a taxi cab and suggested that I might come up with the answer to why they were there.

Photo thanks to Sallyann at Photographic Memories.
Click on the picture to go to Sallyann’s post.

If you are interested in reading this saga, the links will appear at the foot of this post.

Caroline Fortescue (more usually known as Daisie) borrowed a couple of her grandmother’s hats to go to a 1950s party with her friend Charlotte.  Of course, her grandmother Maisie was delighted to lend the girls a couple of hats and she and her two best friends Juliet and Imogen entered into the spirit and produced some hats of their own for the girls to choose which they preferred.

The party was a success (?) but when the girls awoke the next day the bonnets were missing and they had to confess to Maisie et al.  Another string of adventures followed while the bonnets were located but as is usually the case with Maisie and friends involved, all didn’t go smoothly.  In recovering the bonnets the two ladies stopped off for a light lunch before which they indulged in some shopping during which they each bought a new hat.  And you’ve guessed it, the new hats to which the two ladies had treated themselves were lost during the course of the day.

So now the story continues…Thomas   Stazyk commented after the last post “Yes . . . and what about that swarthy gentleman in the Panama hat seen lurking in the department store and later driving past Maisie’s in a late model sports car?” So that takes the story off in yet another direction.

After her two friends left, Maisie sat pondering the question of where were the new hats?  She remembered she and Juliet had them at lunch and was sure that they had taken them to the lost property office.  She recalled placing the bag containing the hats at her feet while she filled out the required form to take away the bonnets but had no recollection of what happened after that.  So the very next morning she called the lost property office and having spoken to the same very helpful young woman, found that the hats were indeed just where they had left them the day before.  Maisie thought to herself that any cleaner working for her would be instantly dismissed if she/he didn’t see such a large parcel on the floor when completing the evening cleaning tasks.

Anyway, so the bonnets were found and could be returned to their rightful owners.  Juliet was called as was Imogen.  Neither lady wished to upset their friend again in leaving her out of the adventure.  Then having agreed where to meet,  all three sallied forth yet again to recover their new hats and have a light luncheon before returning home.  And the swarthy gentleman?  Well that really does have to be the subject of yet another post.

Related Posts

• Found at Last;  In Search of the Bonnets;
• The Bonnets – Lost;  The Bonnets – part 3
• The Bonnets – part 2;  The Bonnets

Related articles

• The Bee Maiden and her Bursting Bonnet (theslumberingherd.com)
• Lost & Found Property (blogs.lawyers.com)

Found at last

Photo thanks to Sallyann at Photographic Memories.
Click on the picture to go to Sallyann’s post.

You may recall that a couple of months ago, Sallyann at Photographic Memories posted a picture of a couple of hats reclining in an (abandoned?) taxi cab.  She also gave me a challenge to come up with a story as to why they were there.

Needless to say, my mind started to hum and I did come up with a story, but it was left unfinished at the end of June.  Since then the characters in the story have been hammering at me to finish it.  So…

We left Maisie Benton-Smythe, more properly called the Countess of Waverley and her good friend Juliet Drummond finishing off their day of frustration with a couple of large G & T and the promise of a good meal with Juliet’s husband, Major Sir Claude Drummond.

They agreed that they would start early the next day and call as many of the taxi companies as possible.  Meantime, they would enjoy their evening.

The next day dawned and as promised Juliet arrived early.  The two women had hardly had their first cup of coffee when Jackson, the parlour-maid came in with the telephone.  The caller was the helpful young woman from central booking who had provided Juliet with a long list of taxi owners, but more importantly a number for property left in taxis.  This helpful young woman had taken it on herself to call the property office to enquire whether the bonnets had turned up and to her delight, she was told they had.  So she wasted no time in calling Maisie’s house to give her the good news.

As the lost property office was in the centre of town, the two women decided to make an outing, have lunch, do a little shopping (for hats maybe) and then go and claim the bonnets before returning home in the afternoon.  Well as you can imagine, things did not necessarily go as planned where these women were concerned,

Oh, they finished their coffee and had a cab called to take them to their favourite department store where they spent a happy hour looking at hats and finally each buying one.  Then pleased with their purchases they went off for lunch.  A grand time was had as they met up with their other great friend, Imogen Carruthers who was now completely recovered from the damage to her shoulder.  She was a little put out that they hadn’t included her in this adventure and declared that she would accompany them when they picked up the bonnets.

So after lunch, another cab was called and off they went.  Once at the office it was relatively easy to claim the bonnets having proved that they were the owners and so they left in high spirits after deciding to all go to Maisie’s for tea.  Yet another cab was called and they chatted happily all the way to Maisie’s.

It wasn’t until Imogen was leaving to meet Sir Percy for dinner and Juliet was leaving to meet Sir Claude that they realised they didn’t have the two new hats they had bought before lunch.  What had happened to them?  Were they left in the department store, at the lost property office or had they left their hats in the taxi cab?

To be continued … perhaps

Related Posts – The Bonnets, Part 2, Part 3, Lost, In Search of the Bonnets and
Hats, Hats on Again, New Hats, The Beach

Thanks for reading.

Related articles

• Man Leaves $13K Worth of Camera Gear in a NYC Taxi, Gets It Back (petapixel.com)

Saturday Again

How quickly the weeks pass and it’s already Saturday again and time for Six Word Saturday.  If you would like to participate please either click on the picture above or click this link.

PLEASE DO NOT DISTURB – I’M READING.

Copyright MyDoorSign.com http://www.smartsign.com/Office-Courtesy/Do-Not-Disturb-Brilliant-Minds-At-Work/SKU-S-5271.aspx

I awoke to a grey Saturday morning and decided that the best thing to do was to take my tea and toast back to bed with a good book.  And this set the rest of the day in train.

I had planned to meet with my French speaking buddies for lunch but that plan was quickly discarded after I had a long telephone conversation with my friend who recently found the huge lump in her breast.  While she didn’t want me to visit, she did want to talk.  After hanging up I realised that it was too late for the proposed lunch and so I stayed home.

I had started a Zoe Sharp book this morning in bed and after making a quick sandwich for lunch settled down to read more.  Have you come across this English writer?  Her protagonist is a feisty woman  called Charlie Fox.  I read the first book in the series after reading somewhere that Lee Childs thought her one of the best thriller writers to emerge in recent times.  High praise indeed.

Are you, like me, a trifle bored with all the macho male heroes protagonists that litter the current crop of best sellers?  If so Charlie Fox is a breath of fresh air.  Feisty as I said and not always charming, she takes life full on and faithfully stands by her friends and in this case, her charge even when it looks as if she is facing death herself.

So I settled down to read this book – First Drop.  Charlie Fox is a British ex-soldier, has taught self-defence  and now is a Bodyguard.  In this novel she is tasked with minding the 15 year old Trey, son of a computer programmer.  What starts out as a disappointing assignment for her, rapidly turns into a fight for her life, the life of her charge and her lover.  Swift page turning and I couldn’t put it down.

I had almost finished the book when I realised it was getting dark (around 5pm) and Lotte hadn’t had a walk yet.  So reluctantly I left the book at page 343 of 373 pages and did what any self-respecting dog owner does, I took my dog out for her walk.  And her delight more than compensated for the fact that I hadn’t finished the book.  But of course, once I returned, I finished it. 

I understand that there are 8 9 Charlie Fox mysteries and while I can’t quite work out the order in which they were written, it is clear that each one stands alone and so one can start reading anywhere in the series.  However, I read Killer Instinct first and this is the book that gives Charlie’s background and in some way, helps to understand why she does what she does.  I certainly recommend this author to you if you are looking for something a little different.

“You know you’ve read a good book when you turn the last page and feel a little as if you have lost a friend.”
Paul Sweeney

Footnote – Can you believe that I received a comment from Zoe Sharp (see below) and she has linked back to this post from her website.

Related articles

• ‘I wanted music that was angry and soulful, both at the same time’ – The Undercover Soundtrack, Zoe Sharp (nailyournovel.wordpress.com)
• CrimeFest 2012 Part I (tontowilliams.com)
• Saturday Morning Power Smoothie (bestfruitsmoothies.com)

Unicorns do exist

The Unicorn is one of the most mysterious of all animals. It has been written about, told about and sung about for centuries and remains one of the ‘great unsolved mysteries’ of our world.

Despite the widely held belief in its existence, it has not been seen in centuries; but I have always known that unicorns do exist.

As a young child I made up stories about them and as I got older and had children and grandchildren of my own, I made up unicorn stories for them too.  One grandson was particularly enthralled by stories of Ronald who had a pet unicorn that he kept in the bedroom of his apartment.  The unicorn, for reasons known only to that grandchild, was called Bert.  Ronald and Bert had many adventures over the years.  Ronald first espied Bert from the window of the school bus and took him home with him.  Well the children were very young and believed anything their Granma told them.

So when I read this email from a friend :

British film director Sir Ridley Scott launched a global film making contest for aspiring directors. It’s titled “Tell It Your Way”. There were over 600 entries.

The film could be no longer than three minutes, contain only 6 lines of narrative & be a compelling story. The winner was “Porcelain Unicorn” from American director Keegan Wilcox.

It’s a story of the lifetimes of two people who are totally opposite, yet, very much the same – all told in less than 3 minutes.

Click here – You’ll see why it won.

And a quote on imagination by Michelangelo –

“I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.”

As seen in the Academy of Fine Arts, Florence (Accademia di Belle Arti Firenze)

This Woman I am Becoming

Painting courtesy Val Erde

In a recent post, my blogging friend Val Erde graciously gave us permission to use this fabulous painting as inspiration for a work of art of our own.  This is the challenge she set us – “It can be drawing, painting, photography, sculpture, knitting, crochet, animation, digital artwork, poetry, dialogue, short story, anything creative that you like, really!”

Well I can’t paint, can’t draw or sculpt, knit, crochet, produce animation or digital artwork and my photography is the point and shoot variety,  so it has to be an attempt at poetry.

As soon as I saw this painting, I saw a woman evolving and becoming.  So much in this painting reminded me of  “I am Becoming the Woman I’ve Wanted” by Jayne Relaford Brown.

So here is my attempt at writing poetry.  It is entitled ‘This Woman I am Becoming”

This woman I am becoming

Memories flowing through me
Making me who I am
Warm thoughts to banish cold nights
And sunshine to dry the tears.

This woman I am becoming
Is learning patience
Learning grace
And learning that love is enough.

I am enjoying this woman I am becoming
She knows where she is going
And where she belongs
She has her place in the world.

This is my first real attempt at writing poetry.  In the past I have written rhyming poems to celebrate a wedding, visit to friends or other such but they really have been doggerel.   I leave it up to you to decide whether I should go back to writing doggerel.

Thank you Val for the use of this beautiful painting and thank you for setting the challenge.  I have enjoyed it.

Here Be Dragons

For some reason yesterday’s post  didn’t publish so it has now been published today.  And you are getting a second one today so that I can fulfill my commitment to myself to post a blog a day

“When you are describing,
A shape, or sound, or tint;
Don’t state the matter plainly,
But put it in a hint;
And learn to look at all things,
With a sort of mental squint.”
~Lewis Carroll

Let there be dragons or anything else your mind or imagination can conjure up. We do have total and absolute control over our imagination.  Others can make suggestions as in when reading a book and imagining the setting but only we can use our imagination as we see fit.

Those of you very clever bloggers who write fiction, use your imagination.  My blogging friend Carl uses his imagination and produces very clever cartoons with apt comments accompanying them.  Val Erde uses art, poetry and prose to show us her imaginings.  Other bloggers use photography to enhance what is in their imagination and some of us just write.

Taking the dragon as my symbol for the imagination I see that according to Wikipedia ” A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or otherwise reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures.”  That being so, we are free to imagine the dragon in any form we please.

Will it be

The Ljubljana “Dragon of Slovenia” via Wikipedia

or perhaps a fiery dragon

Google image

or even the Komodo dragon which isn’t imaginary but is  a type of monitor lizard.

via Wikipedia

Looking at that photo one can understand how people thought this was a dragon.  Look at the forked tongue.  That tongue flicking in and out could perhaps  look like a small flame.

So what’s in your imagination today?

I am imagining a sunny, summer’s day with nothing more to do than sit and read a book.  Or maybe a walk in the park or along the beach with Lotte, my ever present companion, at my side.

I am imagining getting out my only just started novel and spending some time on it.  What will it feel like to go back to that?

Then my mind wanders to dinner and I imagine what I shall make to eat for tonight.

And the title of this blog?  Well it is commonly thought that English mapmakers formerly placed the phrase “here be dragons” at the edges of their known world.  Well here is the list of all known historical maps upon which these words appear – only one.  That is the Lenox Globe.  The globe was purchased in Paris in 1855 by Richard Hunt, who gave it to James Lenox, whose collection became part of the New York Public Library.

And no doubt you all know Dr Seuss’ ‘The thinks you can think”.  My children and grandchildren all loved and I still love  Dr S.  And now I have passed on the complete set to my friend’s grandson.

So –

“Oh the THINKS  you can think up if only you try!
If you try, you can think up a GUFF going by.
And you don’t have to stop.

Children’s imagination

“In a Wonderland they lie, Dreaming as the days go by, Dreaming as the summers die:
Ever drifting down the stream- Lingering in the golden gleam- Life, what is it but a dream?”
— Lewis Carroll (Through The Looking Glass)

 

Have you noticed that children play quite differently when they are on their own compared with sharing games with others?

When they are playing on their own, children live in a different world.  Look at the concentration on a child’s face.  What are their thoughts?  What lovely stories are they making up for themselves?

What wonders is she constructing?

And children playing in the open air.  Yesterday when out walking we saw a child playing happily in a pile of leaves.  Look at this boy’s face as he discovers the sound, feel and joy of fallen leaves.

And then when they discover the joys of books.  What was James thinking at almost three years old when he ‘read’ his book.

And when there are two or more playing the games become more structured.  There isn’t the same scope for the child’s or the children’s imagination to run wild.

I recently came across the photo of James and friends  ‘playing’ the piano.  What wondrous dreams were these children concocting?

“Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.”  — Pablo Picasso