Fall/Autumn

Trying to take a photo of a glacier from a moving truck is interesting..


The Pass was a glorious display of pink fireweed

For two weeks or so we have an amazing display of fungus

The milky lake was a beautiful reflecting pool


and the hills a riot of gold, primrose and peach

Agatha Christie on the radio

The BBC broadcast this today
"Crime writer Val McDermid listens to recordings made by Agatha Christie which have never before been broadcast.
A panel of guests, including dramatist Kevin Elyot, biographer Laura Thompson, archivist John Curran, who has recently deciphered Christie's notebooks, director Enyd Williams and writer Michael Bakewell, discuss their approach to dramatising her novels for TV and radio and the light that these recordings shed on Christie's working methods."

and they make it available to listen to here for 7 days
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00mj64x

For any Agatha fans this might be worth a listen Val

oh if you like that one ...and don't miss these (I love the Mr Quin stories and it looks like they're going to read some!)

later in the week

Thank you

Ooooh I got an Award from a very kind lady who writes a far more interesting blog than this one! see http://randomdistractions.blogspot.com/2009/09/accepting-graciously.html I'm not great on Awards and gifts etc but that was a rather neat post on accepting graciously so I shall.

And you must charge across and read her post as it involves disclosing seven interesting things about oneself and Maureen's are a nice mix of amusing & fascinating....I still think the operation observation attempt is my favourite...

now I have to puzzle away (and this makes a nice random distraction so is very appropriate Monix)

Ok here goes....

1.To get to the hospital to have my first baby I had to fly in a small float plane (it was tiny and bounced about quite a bit when it was flying over the mountain pass and I have vivid memories of the other passengers and the pilot offering to miss out a couple of pickup points if I needed to get there quicker...)


2.Before actually meeting my husband for the first time (we met virtually over the Internet) we wrote rather a lot and arranged a holiday meeting without me having the faintest idea what he looked like! Then taking courage in both hands (so to speak) I flew 4,500 miles to meet him ..with the background thought that this might be a very long trip for a quick walk round an airport...(On that flight I read Silas Marner cover to cover and it's still a favourite of mine.)

3.Finally this year (at the age of 49) I have at last learned how to knit! A combination of The ladybird Knitting book, Elizabeth Zimmermans 'Knitting Workshop' book & DVD and the help of the appropriately named Knittinghelp.com on youtube oh and mustn't forget an easy mitten pattern found on the Internet see here something finally clicked and I'm Several pairs of Mittens and two hats to the good ..sofar..yippee

4.My first full-time job was on a Dairy Farm that spanned the Shropshire/ Cheshire border and I was afraid of Cows! (at the time...when I got to know them I thought they were lovely..well most of them anyway)

5.My very first Job (Part time just Saturdays) was at a local bakers, so I spent my Saturday mornings wrapping Very fresh hot crusty bread in White tissue paper twirling the joins into twists so the paper would stay wrapped around the loaf when it was placed in you basket to go home. We sold..box,tin,cobs,milk loaves, Hovis and Wholemeal loaves. Soft rolls and baps and all sorts of yummy cakes and buns. Including Sugar buns, Butterbuns, Iced buns, Cream doughnuts, Jam Doughnuts, Cream horns, Chocolate Eclairs, Vanilla Slices, fruit pies. They also sold Boiled ham by the slice or weight and Gingerbread...

Gosh I'm hungry now and it's bought back memories of warm bread and sugary fingers pressing down onto an old fashioned till that rang with a loud ping when the drawer shot out with some force (yep it was not electric it still rang up in old money so you had to convert in your head..come to think of it you had to add everything up in your head you just entered ..pressed down hard on the keys) the total. Good for Mental arithmetic and Good manners that job!

6.I like to carry around an Old Roman coin...it fascinates me to think who handled it in the past and it makes the past more tangible somehow.

7....got stuck here then was chatting to a friend about a much loved Collie it used to be my pleasure to own..I used to have a much loved collie who as a puppy loved to herd cats into the house (not our cats I hasten to add..any and every cat that made the mistake of taking a short cut through the garden), she was a skinny pup and herded them through the cat door and then followed them and herded them upstairs...I think she really missed us not owning sheep... Meeting distinctly irate cats on the landing being eyed by a quivering collie at the bottom of the stairs was becoming a regular occurrence until she finally grew too big! and appeared one day wearing the cat door around her chest at which point I spoilt her hobby by sealing up the cat door. Don't know if that counts as being about me..but she was certainly an interesting dog

Phewww