Poetry Monday :: Muse

Every Monday is Poetry Monday. Mimi of Messymimi's Meanderings and I have taken over the hosting duties, mostly the supplying of the prompts - only temporarily we hope - while Diane at On the Border is taking a break for health reasons.

This Monday's prompt is Muse.

My muse has gone missing
Oh where is she now
I miss her and wish her
right back at my side

My muse has gone missing,
she wanders and roams
I  miss her and wish that
she stayed here at home

But muses are fickle
and will not be bound
I miss her and wish her
good luck on her jaunt.

 - - - - -

Next Monday: Canada Day or if this does not fit, you have Free Choice

Sunday Selestions :: Søndagsbilleder

Maltreatment of Plants ~ Plantemishandling

I do not know what these nice sansevieria have done to be treated this way - or why. I only know that this is a clear-cut case of plant maltreatment.
And according to the label (STOLT = PROUD) the perpetrators are even proud of their misdeed.

     Jeg ved ikke, hvad de her Svigermors skarpe tunger havde gjort for at skulle dyppes i maling, men det er helt klart plantemishandling.
    Og så lader det til at gerningsmændene oven i købet er stolte af deres værk.

Og nu til noget helt andet ~ And now for something completely different

Blomstrende lindetræ. Hvis man står  under sådan ét kan man høre hundredvis af insekter der suger til sig af den rigelige nektar.

Linden tree in full bloom. If you stand near such a tree, you can hear hundreds of insects drinking up the nectar.

Og i begge de her billeder finder vi månedens farve:

And in both photos, we find the colour of the month.

Words for Wednesday :: June 19 :: Gylfi & Thora 9

The Word for Wednesday challenge started a long time ago. Now it has turned into a movable feast with Elephant's Child as our coordinator; and the Words are provided by a number of people. This merry month of May they are by David M. Gascoigne.

The general idea of this challenge is to make us write. Poems, stories, subtitles, tales, jokes, haiku, crosswords, puns, ... you're the boss.
Use all Words, some Words, one Word, or even none of them if that makes your creative juices flow. Anything goes, only please nothing rude or vulgar.

 It is also a challenge, where the old saying "The more the merrier" holds true.

So Please, remember to follow the links, go back and read other peoples' stories. And please leave a comment after reading. Challenges like this one thrives on interaction, feedback and encouragement. And we ALL need encouragement.

 - - - - -

Words for Wednesday June 19:
Discourteous
Flicker
Martini
Whips
Belly
     And/or
Waving
Frogs
Moderation
Smile
Louring

But I still had the last batch of words left over from last Wednesday, and they fit my story. As usual I used them in the order they were given, and continued my tale from where I left off.

The words were:
Flour
Buttercups
Light
Train
Mullion

Back in Hella Thora decided to check out the families living around there for wizards and witches. Gylfi backed her up and suggested she used the ruse with borrowing a cup of flour from the houses.

In a house surrounded by buttercups Thora talked for a long time with Hildur, the housewife and mother of eight children in all ages from toddler to young adults. Thora was almost blown away by the magic in the air, even the baby in its pen seemed to exude magic like a strong light. During her visit she took great care not to talk of anything to do with magic. But she noticed the harness used to train the small ones broomstick flying  and the wands hidden in a vase of paper flowers. With her new knowledge of wands, she could feel that the wands were quite old, and not very efficient any more. She was more determined than ever for them to open that school of magic. The husband, Starri, returned home just as Thora was taking her leave, and she caught a whiff of magic from him as well.

Gylfi and Thora discussed late into the night how and where to find a place for a school. Thora did not think Iceland would be a great place for it.
"We would be overrun," she said, "people here are still keeping to the old ways, albeit erratically and faultily. My visits to neighbours - and yours as well show us that that magic in Iceland had not died out. We need to build a school in a place where only the students can go, where we teachers can live, and where we can have a shelter for magic animals, some place near the sea would be nice - and not too cold either. I'm sure something will show up."
Gylfi went to the window and grasped the mullion firmly, shaking it gently he spoke: "I had imagined that this place would be our school of magic, but I see the wisdom in your words. When the Finnish twins return, we should travel through Sweden, Norway and Denmark to see if we can find a fitting place. You're right about the climate as well, It's too cold here, same as Greenland and the Faroes."
On this downcast note they called it a day and Thora left for her small cabin. Brúnleita awaited her hooted sharply and offered her a juicy rat. "No thanks, my dear," Thora said gently, ruffling the feathers between her small horns.  "I have already eaten tonight." Brúnleta hooted once, softly, swallowed the rat in one gulp and flew of to the tall tree where she normally slept.

Sunday Selections ~ How I spent my Birthday ~ Thankful edition

Søndagsbilleder ~ Haveglæder på min fødselsdag

My birthday this year was sunny and nice. I longed for work in the garden, some fresh strawberries maybe or other garden delicacies after weeding a bit.

  -- 🪲 --  

But ... first I realized that my old nemesis - the wax scales - had once again returned with a vengeance on my bay laurel bush.

I am thankful that I quickly found out that when you have a major infestation like this one, the wax scales also live on the topside of the leaves ...

... and on the stems. My pink toothbrush from earlier seasons had disappeared, but I found a new, old toothbrush, this time a blue one.

  -- 🪲 --  

Inside the dome more pests had been living the sweet life. Some of the poppies were totally wrapped in webs from some smallish mites - they were thrown to the hens to eat or not - they did.

They look strange, don't they? Almost like wrapped in cling wrap.

  -- 🪲 --  

I was given a common spindle in exchange for some walnut husks last autumn. It survived first the transplanting, then the winter, then the wet spring. But ... someone has been eating it, and wrapping it in webs too. I read up on it, found that it was Spindle ermine, a common moth, and that it would not kill the plant, only cause a setback.

Here are the sad remains.

A closer look revealed that the stem - or is it a trunk? - was almost broken. An Owlet admitted to the deed, an accident, and "isn't this just a weed, MotherOwl?".
"No it is SO not a weed, dear Owlet," MotherOwl answered and grabbed the Gaffer tape, remembering the old adage 'If you can't fix it with gaffer tape, you did not use enough!"

Fixed spindle tree.

And on a closer inspection, it did indeed survive the attack of the Spindle ermines.

  -- 🪲 --  

Farm engineering works in the Owlery too I hope.

Then I continued the the strawberries, I found ONE ripe strawberry, the blackbirds had eaten the rest, just as they - and the doves - are eating all my redcurrants - Stupid birds!

But the elder was full of flowers, so I made us half a bucketful of elder cordial

Like this!

And I picked rhubarbs, around a kilo and froze in two bags for rhubarb pies in the months to come, where we celebrate a lot of birthdays.

Huge thankful for the gifts of the garden - and for one of my birthday presents; a "bouquet" of steel posts to hold up the nets that keeps the blackbirds away.

Poetry Monday :: Bread

Mandagsdigt :: Brød

Every Monday is Poetry Monday. Mimi of Messymimi's Meanderings and I have taken over the hosting duties, mostly the supplying of the prompts - only temporarily we hope - while Diane at On the Border is taking a break for health reasons.

This Monday's prompt is Bread. This word fits me. I like bread, I like to bake a bread, So an ode to bread it is.

Flour, salt and water
A little yeast
And then I potter
along as I knead

Patience and raising
A little time
Soon I'll be praising
The Lord for the bread.

Hmm ... this turned in an unexpected direction. Later today I will post my Sunday Selections. I was too busy yesterday.

- - - - -

Next Monday: Muse

Words for Wednesday, June 12 ~ Gylfi and Thora 8

The Word for Wednesday challenge started a long time ago. Now it has turned into a movable feast with Elephant's Child as our coordinator; and the Words are provided by a number of people.
The prompts for June are provided by Hilary Melton-Butcher and they will be at Elephant's Child's blog.

The general idea of this challenge is to make us write. Poems, stories, subtitles, tales, jokes, haiku, crosswords, puns, ... you're the boss.
Use all Words, some Words, one Word, or even none of them if that makes your creative juices flow. Anything goes, only please nothing rude or vulgar.

 It is also a challenge, where the old saying "The more the merrier" holds true.

So Please, remember to follow the links, go back and read other peoples' stories. And please leave a comment after reading. Challenges like this one thrives on interaction, feedback and encouragement. And we ALL need encouragement.

 - - - - -

Words for Wednesday June June 12 (today):
Lurk
Amber
Birch
Drainpipe
Spelling

Flour
Buttercups
Light
Train
Mullion

This seems to be turning into one of my longish tales.
I used the first half in the order they were given. But first some corrections. There are no lizards in Iceland, so Gylfi could not have followed one into the cave, and the Cathedral of Our Lady in Turku does not have a crypt as far as I have ben able to find out, so a deserted, cluttered chapel is where the portal leads.
   If anybody from Turku is reading this ... I am thinking mostly of you Karen at Myyratohtori ... then please, could you tell me if there is a crypt or not?


They ate a few more cookies and then braved the last of the portals  leading to the church proper.
They met a man lurking in the dark of the chapel behind the small, hidden door, but luckily he was drunk, and accepted with no further questioning that they were just tourists visiting the cathedral and looking for the special amber-hued burial window in the chapels.
Outside the cathedral they sat themselves down at benches under some birch trees a luscious green in the warmer sunshine of Turku.
"Now, how do we get to Helsinki?" Taavi asked, " and are you two going with us, or what?"
"I can answer the first one," Tähti said. "By bus, I think there's a bus an hour going from Turku to Helsinki, passing by the cathedral square every hour at the hour."
"And no, I do not think we're going to stay here," Gylfi said. "The horses should not be left for days in that cave, and I noticed that our drainpipe was leaking when we left. I suggest that you go home, arrange your stuff for a prolonged absence, and then return when you're ready. It should be quite easy. Come back here, go into the chapel and pass through the portal to the portal room under the mountain. Watch out for that drunkard, though. He might not pass it off if he see people disappearing there regularly." Gylfi smiled.
"The list," Thora said. "they'll have to know which portal to come through once they're back under the mountain."
Gylfi pulled a small notebook from his pocket. Looking at his watch he hurriedly copied the signs for Eyafjallajökull and his phone number on an empty page, which he then pulled out and gave to Tähti. "Just remember what I taught you about the spelling and pronunciation of Icelandic words, then you'll have no trouble phoning me if you do not want to walk all the way back to Hella - or if you're afraid to brave the portals alone, I'll come and fetch you ... and bring a batch of Thora's cookies."
"That last option sounds tempting," Taavi said. "I think we go for that."
Tähti looked at the paper and read Gylfi's address and phone number aloud, the spell at once transforming her words into Finnish for her and Taavi. "No good, she said. When I try to call you, I'll have to cancel that spell, and hope that my atrocious Icelandic will suffice."
"It will," Gylfi assured her, "the lady putting you through is a nice one. Do you have any idea how long before you return?"
Täthi and Taavi looked at  one another. "Quite soon, Taavi answered, "there's no reason to dally, and every reason to come back to Iceland. Two weeks at the most. By the way, if you need a cup of coffee before going home this bill should do it." He gave Gylfi a Finnish bank note.
"Thanks, I did not think of that," he admitted, and added: "We look forward to seeing you again." Thora nodded. "Maybe we can even prepare one of the small huts in the area for you 'till then," Gylfi mused. Then the four magicians shook hands, and Tähti and Taavi hurried to the bus stop while Thora and Gylfi slowly drifted back to the church. They entered the cathedral again.
"Let's play tourists for a short while!"
They paid for entrance to the small museum, and were even allowed up in the tower. After a cup of surprisingly good coffee they went back into the chapel and assured that no-one were around before they opened the secret door. Soon they were back in Iceland.

Words for Wednesday ~ Gylfi & Thora 7

Keeping up this "speed" I'll never ever use all the Words before a new batch is given to us in 1½ days.
I used one word, Lizard, for this part of the story.

Of course they were wary following Gylfi after this. The door looked like a dark hole to an even darker room, As they crossed the threshold one by one the world spun around them in a dizzying, sickening way leaving them retching and gasping for breath.
"Wow," Tähti said, "your portals are tough. She sat down hard on one of the chairs and held her head until it stopped buzzing. Then she looked around. Sleek, grey stone walls made out walls, floor and ceiling in the long broad corridor stretching ahead of them. Slowly she turned her head and looked behind her, a grey stone wall was covered in a shimmering, vaguely blue substance, like sparkling smoke.
"Is that the portal?" she asked, pointing to the oblong cloudy thing.
"Yes. This is what we came through, Gylfi said, carefully nodding. "The dizziness will get better with each use, I hardly feel anything any longer. Are you ready to go on?"
The three wizards stood up, shook their heads carefully, felt their heads and legs, and realised that they felt much better already.
"Yes, we're ready," Thora said. "Lead on."
Gylfi led them through smoothly hewn corridors of that same grey stone. Everywhere were doors and a irregular intervals corridors branched off. Some of the doors had strange blue symbols over them, some still lit, others faded almost away.
"What is this place once again, and who made this?" Thora asked.
"As far as I have been able to find out from reading old, and I mean really old, moulding texts, this is the main portal room of all the magic world from back when wizard or witch was an honourable occupation. I don't know who made this. They fell into oblivion in the early middle ages. I surmise, that the black death, that almost halved the populations also decimated the knowledge. I further guess that the portals actually helped spread the pest, and that wizards and witches in many cases carried the disease with them through the portals - only to die from it themselves as well. What ever the reasons, after 1500 those portals were only known to a few wizards here and there throughout Europe until the persecutions in the 16th century killed them off as well. My rediscovery was pure luck. I was riding here one summer on a trip to circle the ice caps, I followed a very beautiful lizard into the natural cave. I then fell in the darkness, waking up again near midnight, and stumbling around, looking for the horse - who had of course left me and returned home - and the stuff that had spilled from my backpack, I literally stumbled through the portal. I returned, and studied over the years, and now I suggest that we go to Helsinki. Follow me."
The other three looked at one another at a loss for words, and just followed Gylfi to a door with a glowing blue symbol over it.
"This here symbol means Finland." Gylfi said, certainty in his voice.
"How so?" Taavi asked.
"It's an ancient language, or maybe just symbols. I have made my own small booklet with a list of the doors' symbols. I suggest that you copy it for yourself later on." He opened his backpack. "And now, before we jump through this portal, a snack is a good thing. At least I have found that eating helps with the sickening feeling and with not getting exhausted. Thora's cookies are very good for this."
"That's where all my cookies went!" Thora exclaimed,  "I never understood what happened to them!"
They all ate a couple or three of Thora's cookies and then Gylfi opened the door to the room, where yet another blue, shimmering oblong portal waited fro them. He then bade Tähti go through the portal as the first one.
"I go first?" Tähti said, at the same time eager and afraid to go on.
"Yes. Ladies first," Gylfi said, bowing in a very old fashioned way before her.
"If you do not like what you find, you can just return," he said in a teasing tone.
"I'll do it," Tähti said, and walked through the portal head held high and walking with dainty steps.
"Now, who's next?" Taavi asked.
"Thora, you go now," Gylfi said, then Taavi, and lastly me bringing up the rear."
They did as suggested and soon all four wizard stood shaking and breathing heavily in another stony room.
"Where do you think we are?" Gylfi asked Taavi and Tähti.
"Not in Helsinki!" Tähti said with determination in her voice. "It feels wrong."
"You're right, we're not in Helsinki. But we're close."
"Hey," Tähti said, "now you're telling the truth. What you said before were half truths, not far enough off for me to notice, but now, now you're telling us an unlikely truth. I see our glow!" Gylfi looked at her, astonishment etched on his face. But Tähti shook her head: "Later. If we are in Finland, and I see your truth there, but still not in Helsinki, I am certain that we are in Turku. We could be in the crypt below the cathedral of our Lady."
"You hit the bullseye!" Gylfi said smiling.

 ..... to be continued

Poetry Monday :: Wild

Mandagsdigt :: Vild

Every Monday is Poetry Monday. Mimi of Messymimi's Meanderings and I have taken over the hosting duties, mostly the supplying of the prompts - only temporarily we hope - while Diane at On the Border is taking a break for health reasons.

This Monday's prompt is WILD. This word fits my garden, yesterday was Day of Wild Gardens in Denmark. So ... a photo and a poem is in place here.


Our garden is wild
to put it mild

We have weeds and bugs
and snails and slugs

There's too many weeds
there's too much that feeds

On bushes and trees
and on my seeds

There's nettles that sting,
tiny vicious thing

There's thistles too
white, purple and blue

Mosquitoes galore
and wasps that soar

There's foxes that fright
my chicks in the night

But boy, oh boy
we have much to enjoy

There's tits and hens
and wagtails and wrens.

There's chirps and tweets
and peas and beets.

There's also a dome
the tomatoes' home

And beds for all
plants big or small

They smell and sting,
they do their thing

There's morning red skies
and dragonflies

There's bushes, trees
and bumblebees

There's toads and frogs,
that jumps and hops

There's beetles of red
and spiders in web

The happy and glad
overshade all the bad.

Had I not been away
most of all yesterday

This sign on you'd have seen
inviting you in:

Come on in! - the garden is open - Wild Gardens' Day

And I'm sure you'd have seen
lots of

Words for Wednesday ~ Gylfi & Thora 6

June 5 saw me writing this. Words for Wednesday June 5:
Girth
Pummelling
Lizard
Blooms
Corridor
     And/or
 Pucker
Beady
Salubrious
Cabin
Barley

I know what to write, but my teeth still hurt and these Words do not fit, anyway writing will happen ... soon.
These words are still some bastards, but writing did indeed happen. I used: Girth & Pummelling for this. It continues where I left off last time:


"If we want to found a school of magic," Thora said, "We'll have to find more good wizards to teach there. Do you have any idea of where to begin?"
"You said in the car, that you could feel my magic," Tähti said, looking at Gylfi. "How did you do this, I mean can we learn to do this?"
" I don't know, I thought we all could do this. Close your eyes." Gylfi placed two books on the table in front of Tähti, of roughly equal girth and weight. He placed one of her hands on each book: "Now feel those books, can you feel which one is magic?"
 "The left one is magic," Tähti said after only a slight hesitation. "That's easy."
"Exactly. That's how it is!" Gylfi said, "but we have to learn."
"Can I try as well?" Taavi asked. And he was able to feel the same difference as his sister. They then practised with their new wands, the old wands, branches, rods and timber. Very soon they were right every time.
They ate lunch, and how they ate. "We'll have to go shopping soon," Gylfi said, "We eat much more than I reckoned we would."
"We do?" Taavi asked. "I remember our grandparents complained that we ate so much at their place. Our parents always said that it was the rural air that did it. Maybe it was the magic?"
"I still remember grandma's cooking as very good," Tähti said smiling. "But then we'll need some good cooks at our school ... that'll have to wait until later. What about our books? Could we get them somehow?"
"Whoa," Gylfi said. "hold on a minute. I have a shadow of an idea. This also have to wait at least some days. We'll have to practise and grow in magic first. I'd suggest we try wandsinging next."
They went out into the park. Thora placed her hand on a tree and sang the wandsinging song. Nothing happened. Then Gylfi tried and then Taavi with the same negative results.
"You try again, Tähti," he said.
Tähti sung and still nothing happened. "It seems that we will have to work on this," she said.

 The next weeks were quiet, but busy, the four read books or went for walks in the great park and surrounding countryside in the semi-dark days and dined well and planned long into the dark hours. The quiet was now and again interrupted when someone found an exiting spell, a difficult potion or a new or easier way of doing something. The poor table in Gylfi's living room took many a pummelling from strange substances and once even from a rain of small stones.

"We really have to go home to Finland," Taavi said one morning. "There's some things I want to check in my books, Id like to bring them here - and on he more prosaic side we need more clothes, and to take care of our homes. We can't just stay here forever."
"No really, you can," Gylfi said. "But I acknowledge that you have to check up on your flats in Finland." He slanted his head and smiled at Thora who smiled back. "But for today I have planned an outing to the caves of Hella. Because today it is the spring equinox."

The caves of Hella were impressing, but for our four wizards they were also a disappointment. By now they were experts in the discernment of magic, and they found only weak traces of magic here and there, the wisps and echoes of old spells and a bit more in one of the chambers, Maybe once, long ago some wizards had cast some spells at one of the walls there, maybe an old wand was buried there. All the writings were not in the least magic. And they were not able to read anything at  all from the inscriptions on the walls and columns.

The next day Gylfi told the three other wizards that he had a big discovery to show them. He would not tell anything but that they were going to Eyafjallajökull and probably stay there for a couple of days. He bade them dress in comfy, warm clothes and sensible shoes - "And please remember your wands. Thora, can I ask you for once to pack a generous lunch. I have some last minute preparations to see to?"

Half an hour later they all piled into the old car and Thora drove them to the nearest bigger town, where they stopped for some shopping, and coffee and  cake. Gylfi took over and steered the car down a narrow, bumbling road. At the end of this, mercifully short ride they stopped at a small farm. A woman dressed in skirts and with long braids came out to greet them. "He came over after you phoned him," she said. "I have the horses ready for you!"  
"Horses?" Taavi said, "What now, Gylfi?"
"Well it's impossible to go there by car, and and I can't see us walking over there, so ... riding is the best alternative. Trust me."
They distributed the bags and bedrolls and Gylfi took the lead. They soon came to a glistening ice cap, and Gylfi followed the rim until he found an almost invisible track. "I was here years ago," he said, "but I am sure this is the right place. Come on!"  The track twisted and turned and suddenly a black hole into the ice opened in front of them. Led by Gylfi they entered and stood in a natural cave. They pulled the horses into the cave and tied them to rings set in the stone. Gylfi spoke again: "This is one of the old Portal places of Iceland. From here we can go to a big place under the mountain, or to a similar place under Drangajökull. We will have to go to the big place."
"Portals!" Taavi asked in an awed voice.
"Yes," Gylfi answered, "Portals. They worked in the middle ages, up until the great witch hunts, and then they were forgotten and fell into disrepair. I discovered this place by pure accident, and I have carefully tried and tested all the portals - one nearly killed me, it is sealed by now."
He opened a door in a far corner. "Only wizards can pass through this door. It is a mini-portal in its own right, and not a nice experience, but fear not, follow me."

..... to be continued

Words for Wednesday ~ Only the Words ... & IWSG June 5

The Word for Wednesday challenge started a long time ago. Now it has turned into a movable feast with Elephant's Child as our coordinator; and the Words are provided by a number of people.
The prompts for June are provided by Hilary Melton-Butcher and they will be at Elephant's Child's blog.

The general idea of this challenge is to make us write. Poems, stories, subtitles, tales, jokes, haiku, crosswords, puns, ... you're the boss.
Use all Words, some Words, one Word, or even none of them if that makes your creative juices flow. Anything goes, only please nothing rude or vulgar.

 It is also a challenge, where the old saying "The more the merrier" holds true.

So Please, remember to follow the links, go back and read other peoples' stories. And please leave a comment after reading. Challenges like this one thrives on interaction, feedback and encouragement. And we ALL need encouragement.

 - - - - -

Words for Wednesday June 5:
Girth
Pummelling
Lizard
Blooms
Corridor
     And/or
 Pucker
Beady
Salubrious
Cabin
Barley

I know what to write, but my teeth still hurt and these Words do not fit, anyway writing will happen ... soon.


 - - - - - -

Today is also the first Wednesday of the month. Time for the monthly Question from the Insecure Writers' Support Group

June 5 question - In this constantly evolving industry, what kind of offering/service do you think the IWSG should consider offering to members?

My answer - I think the porpose of this group perfectly describes what I would like:
Purpose: To share and encourage.
Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!
Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time - and return comments. This group is all about connecting!

Poetry Monday :: Eggs :: No Poetry

Poetry Monday is a challenge, normally hosted by Diane @ On the Border. But starting this January she's taking a break due to health issues, and Mimi @ Messymimi's Meanderings and I have conspired to keep the chair warm for her. We will each set the topics for one month, I began with January, Mimi supplied for February, and so on until Diane returns.

For Monday June 3rd the prompt was Eggs.

But yesterday no poeming happened. I thought quite a lot about Eggs as I biked to the dentist, but after having one tooth extracted and another given a root canal treatment, poetry was not high on my priority list.

Here's a picture of today's Eggs while waiting

 - - - - -
Next Monday's prompt is Wild

Sunday Selection :: Søndagsbilleder

Once again from bus travels and my garden

Nok engang fra busrejser og fra min have

And featuring Colour of the Month ~ June :: Og med Månedens farve ~  juni

First the ivy that has figured here before:

Den her efeu har vi set før

But over it ... dun-dun-dun  ... ready to fall:

Men ovenover .... lige ved at falde ned.

Meanwhile in The Owlery ~ Hjemme i Ugleboet

Storkenæb ~ Cranesbill

Flotte pletter ~ Pretty spots

Verdens bedste pebermynte  ~ The very best mint

Murasaki

Japansk Indigo ~ Dyer's knotweed

Hvidløg fra topløg ~ Garlic from bulbils

Yuzu, der bare elsker at stå inde i domen ~ Yuzu loving it inside my dome

Nyplantet egetræ ~ Sapling oak, just transplanted


And the ladies enjoying all our weeds. Nothing green here - except for the weeds and some of the eggs. We do have 6 hens, but one is broody and is always staying inside the nesting box -- As we have no rooster, she will never have any luck, and I steal the eggs.

Od de damer der spiser al vores ukrudt. Der er ikke meget grønt her -- ud over ukrudtet og nogle af æggene. Vi har altså 6 høner, men den ene er skruk og ligger hele tiden inde i redekassen - vi har ikke nogen hane, så der kommer ikke noget ud af det, og så stjæler jeg altså æggene fra hende.

Words for Wednesday, May 29 ~ Part 2 ~ Gylfi & Thora 5

Well even though the weeds are growing and the sun is shining, I could not pull myself off the keyboard before this was done. I hope you like it. Now I'm off to weed and enjoy the nice weather. 
The second batch of Words were:

Earned
Sense
School
Pester
Owner

And as usual I used them in the order, they were given.

That earned him much praise from Tähti, and as Thora and Gylfi heard just what this spell was, from them as well.
In a sense it was a key to magic. It was a spell to know which brand of magic a person was endowed with, or more to the point to make a utensil that could tell this.
"I thought it over this morning," Tähti said, "I think we have to open a school for magic ... shush, hear me out, she said as the other three began to talk. "After I'm done, you're welcome to pester me with questions, objections and so on. Agree?"
They nodded, and Tähti continued: "Magic was in the olden days an integral part of daily life in Finland, and I reckon in Iceland as well. But it was a rogue magic, people learned from grandparents, masters, whomever knew a bit, and often they were badly taught, and even worse in the application of magic. To the detriment of the magic society as a whole. Think of witch hunts, burning at the stakes, trials by water and so on and so forth. If we need to revive the magic - and I think we have a moral obligation to do so - we should do so in a ... let's call it scientific way. Shoot!" She stopped and sat back in her chair.

Taavi began: "I think you're right. We have to revive the magic. More and more the wizarding people are coming to realize what they are, we saw this in our travels. And the scientific approach sounds just right for our days."
"Yes," Thora said slowly, "this tally with what we have seen. But why limit our school to Iceland and Finland?`I'm sure the situation is roughly the same in Sweden, Denmark, and Norway as well as on the Faroe isles."
"But first we have to teach ourselves," Gilvi said. "only yesterday I did not know of wandsinging, and we still do not know if it can even be taught, or if it is something only you can do. So much to do, so little time!"
"Yes indeed," Tähti said, "We have books, yours here and ours in Finland, we have our wands, we have to study diligently, but time ... we need more time."
"How old are you?" Gylfi asked bluntly.
Thora said "You know how old I am, 51 at my next birthday, soon."
"We're both 62, having had our birthday this year," Taavi said.
"And how old am I?" Gylfi asked.
"You're 70-something," Thora replied. You retired only a few years ago."
 "That sounds about right," Taavi and Tähti said in unison, a twin habit they had done their best to unlearn, but it surfaced now and then when they became passionate about something.
"I am 104 years old," Gylfi said, his face immobile as a mask. "I was old already at the time of the Great War, WWI as it was later to be called. I wanted to join, but my then wife, a non-wizard, did not want me to. And as I was busy at the newly founded University in Reykjavík, I was fine with this." He looked at Thora, "Yes, I was one of the original teachers at the university, I worked there from 1911 until I retired now 14 years ago."
"How did you manage this?" Thora asked.
"Faking my dates? It was easier in the days of old, than it is now. And then ... back then, in 1911, when the university was founded, the owner of an old mansion donated his library to the university. I was, am still for that matter, able to read all the old handwriting and old Icelandic and a smattering of odd, old languages, having studied these subjects at other universities in my youth. Hence I was given the job of sorting the books and adding them to the catalogue. But I did not hand in all the books, some of the books on magic in my house ... I found them in a chest in that old library. And one of the books contained potions, recipes for potions. I only ever tried one of them. A potion of youth. The ingredients are simple, but the brewing is really complicated. It does not restore your youth, or make you even one day younger, but it makes you age slower. I have drunk sparingly of this potion ever since, and I expect to celebrate my 300th birthday if nothing kills me before then. This potion will give us all the time needed to learn, study and find a place for the school."
"Go get it," Thora said. "We have a busy time ahead!"

... to be continued.

Words for Wednesday May 29 ~ Gylfi & Thora 4

The Word for Wednesday challenge started a long time ago. Now it has turned into a movable feast with Elephant's Child as our coordinator; and the Words are provided by a number of people. This merry month of May they are by David M. Gascoigne.

The general idea of this challenge is to make us write. Poems, stories, subtitles, tales, jokes, haiku, crosswords, puns, ... you're the boss.
Use all Words, some Words, one Word, or even none of them if that makes your creative juices flow. Anything goes, only please nothing rude or vulgar.

 It is also a challenge, where the old saying "The more the merrier" holds true.

So Please, remember to follow the links, go back and read other peoples' stories. And please leave a comment after reading. Challenges like this one thrives on interaction, feedback and encouragement. And we ALL need encouragement.

 - - - - -

Words for Wednesday May 29:
Coveted
Single
Lunch
Chance
Wallet  
     and/or
Earned
Sense
School
Pester
Owner

I only used the first batch of words -- in the order they were given of course -- for this continuing story of Thora, Gylfi, Tähti and Taavi discovering the rules of magic long ago.

Soon all were armed with the coveted wands and they had all four learned the words to the wand song. Tähti was exhausted and they went to bed.
Thora woke early next morning, in the dark, there was just one single thing she wanted to try out. Could she cast spells in Icelandic with the new wand, or would it respond only to Tähti's Finnish?
She sneaked out of the house, into the garden and under the old hawthorn which had given her the wand. She mulled over the Finnish words of the language spell and composed the Icelandic formula: "Mál sameinast!" she said, swishing the wand just so. And then she laughed. She would be able to understand what she said to herself, no matter what language, she spoke, she needed a testing object. The old magazine in Polish! Now it would help. She went back to her own house, careful, so as not to wake up Tähti, still soundly sleepnig after her expenditure of magic the evening before. She crept up the stairs, and took the magazine into the room farthest from Tähti's chamber. Then she read, and as if by magic, the strange, Polish syllable with their hard to pronounce consonant clusters turned into musical Icelandic inside her head as she read them aloud. Yes it worked! Satisfied, she walked to Gylfi's house where the two men were already up and about. "It works!" she told them triumphantly.
"What does?" Gilvi said, and Taavi's "Mikä toimii?" at once turned into 'What works?'.
"The language spell works in Icelandic as well!"
"Of course it does," Taavi said. "How do you say it in Icelandic?"
"Mál sameinast," Thora answered, and Taavi slowly repeated. When he said it right, he swished his wand while saying the words. And to Gylfi his next sentence sounded as Icelandic.
"It sure works," Gylfi said. "This is nice to know. We can use our old spells, even with a Finnish wand."
The three of them had breakfast in Gylfi's cottage, and then they began working. They perused all the books on magic from the attic room. Taavi was able to read them as well after a crash course in Icelandic pronunciation rules.
Tähti woke up for lunch. And after eating they told her about their readings in the old books on magic.
"The contents are at the same time very different from and almost the same as our Finnish tradition. It seems that in Iceland magic was more or less split into branches, while we speak of people's penchant in Finland. I think the similarities are vastly more than the differences."
"Dearest brother," Täthi interrupted him, "you do not by any chance have a copy of that old spell, we did not understand?"
"But yes," Taavi answered slightly confused, "I have one  right here, in my wallet."

... to be continued -- soon, I hope

Sidste dag i maj :: Last Day of May

Jeg laver jo det der Månedens farve-noget, og det har jeg ikke været så god til i maj, hvor Månedens farve har været: Klar orange.

This has been the Colour of the month for May. I have not been very good at using it.

 - - - 🎨 - - -

Så i dag gik jeg en tur i haven og tog billeder. Der var ikke så meget orange, men dog noget.

So today I went for a walk in my garden with my camera. Not so much orange, but some.

Gule iris ~ Yellow Iris

Mit krydderurtebed ~ My herbs

Hør ~ Flax

Ikke kigge på skvalderkål, men på Baldrian ~ Do not look at the ground elder but at the Valerian.

Og nej, IKKE skvalderkål, men kvan ~ And no, this is NOT Ground elder, it's Angelica.

Jeg har prøvet at dyrke dem i årevis, og dette viser nok hvorfor det ikke er lykkedes. Jeg har luget dem væk, fordi jeg troede, det var skvalderkål.

For years now I have sown Angelica, but they never grew. This photo explains why. I have pulled them up as ground elders every single one of them.

Bønner, ukrudtskartofler og ditto hindbær ~ Beans, weed potatoes and raspberries

Den her er orangere i virkeligheden ~ These flowers are oranger in real life.

Marietidsel ~ Milk thistle

Mine squash har vænnet sig til solen, og de syrengrene, der har beskyttet dem mod strålerne, er nu visnet. Jeg fjerner dem snart.

My zucchini are getting used to the sun. The lilac branches that have been protecting them so far, have withered, and will soon be removed.

Pomeranshøgeurt - tror jeg nok. I hvert fald orange  ~ Probably orange hawkweed - Orange it is in any case.

Haveuglen, blå blomster med mere ~ GardenOwl, blue flowers and more.

Spansk kørvel, lakridsfrø ~ Sweet cicely, liquorice seeds.

Bronzefennikel ~ Fennel

Honningurt ~ Lacy phacelia.


Fra i morgen skal vi lede efter denne her farve, det bliver ikke svært.

From tomorrow this is the colour to be looking for. It won't be hard.

Colour24 ~ June

The colour of June is

Poetry Monday :: Politics

Politics ... who on Earth choose such a stupid topic for a Poetry Monday?
Well, seems I did.
I do not understand why I chose that topic! I do not care much for politics, and rigth now we're in the run up for the election to the EU parliament and posters everywhere is making me sick and tired of politics.
A blah! poem is in place:

All the whys
all their lies
All the hows
all their vows
All the whats
fly like gnats
All the whos
thick as glue
Election day
is far away
as all their minds
are money lined
and filled with power
at any hour.

 - - - - -

Next Monday the topic is Egg - thank you Mimi!

Words for Wednesday ~ May 22nd ~ Gylfi & Thora 3

The Word for Wednesday challenge started a long time ago. Now it has turned into a movable feast with Elephant's Child as our coordinator; and the Words are provided by a number of people. This merry month of May they are by David M. Gascoigne.

The general idea of this challenge is to make us write. Poems, stories, subtitles, tales, jokes, haiku, crosswords, puns, ... you're the boss.
Use all Words, some Words, one Word, or even none of them if that makes your creative juices flow. Anything goes, only please nothing rude or vulgar.

 It is also a challenge, where the old saying "The more the merrier" holds true.

So Please, remember to follow the links, go back and read other peoples' stories. And please leave a comment after reading. Challenges like this one thrives on interaction, feedback and encouragement. And we ALL need encouragement.

 - - - - -

Words for Wednesday May 22:
Solar
Polls
True
People
Indication
     and/or
 Celestial
Temperature
Concern
Obvious
Surreal

I only used the striked out words for this continuing story of Thora, Gylfi, Tähti and Taavi discovering the rules of magic long ago.

The solar flares made for spectacular Northern lights while Taavi and Tähti helped Gylfi and Thora prepare dinner. They ate together in Gylfi's living room, not only was it the biggest, it also had a large window facing north and thus giving a view to the celestial spectacle while they ate in the darkness.
Over the coffee, which Taavi and Tähti insisted on preparing after their experience with Icelandic coffee, they finally felt comfortable enough with one another to touch on the subject of magic once again.
Tähti opened by trying to teach Thora and Gylfi the language spell. She slowly swished her wand and spoke the words; "Kieli on sama". The words in Finnish were not hard for the two Icelanders to learn, but the magic of it seemed to elude them.
"Our wands are very worn," Thora admitted, "We found a stash in an attic room, but it seems they are losing power each time we use them. We're already on our second pair of wands."
"This is a serious concern,"  Täthi said. "Obviously, if we only have the wands we inherited, or what we can find in old attic rooms. No offence intended", she quickly added.
Gylfi replied: "And none taken; if our predicament is any indication, each wand will only take so much use, and then deteriorate. This will fast become a problem."
"But where did those old wands come from," Taavi asked. "We have not used ours that much, and I too have noticed a ... sluggishness ... for lack of other expression, in my wand recently."
"This is surreal," Thora said. "Here we are, practitioners of magic, finally out in the open and ready to go. And then we are cut off by a lack of wands."
"I remember something," Gylfi said slowly, "the old people ... they used to Signa wands for children coming of age. But how?"
"Signa?" Thora said. "I remember some singing involved, no blessings."
"Singing ..." Tähti looked at Thora with a strange look. "My grandmother taught me a song when I was very small. She sang it to me every time we visited. And when I got old enough to sing, she asked me to sing it for her afterwards. She told me it was the most important song I would ever learn, and when I finally sung it perfectly she promised to tell me how to use in the summer. Only she died, fast and unexpected, from a seemingly harmless disease before summer came." Tähti pulled out a large, blue handkerchief, wiped her eyes and blew her nose.
"Can you sing it still?" Taavi asked. I vaguely remember your singing, but Grandpa kept me busy with his games of guess a flower or mixing up strange concoctions ... those were potions! But that'll have to wait. Sing!"
Tähti drew a deep breath and stood up, gently she sang a tune of  growing, of mending, of future and past, of flying and longing. She grasped Thora's hand and pulled her out of the door, out into the night under the still dancing aurora borealis. The skies seemed to dance to her tune, as she walked around the garden, pulling Thora along, touching this tree and that until finally she stopped by a big, old hawthorn. There she pulled Thora up to the tree, and placed their hands on the trunk. Thora felt the skies and the tree and her whole being resonate through her palms resting on the tree. When Thora sang the last line of the song, a shiver ran through the tree and a branch from high up fell from it, gently landing on Thora's arms.
"Take it!" Täthi said in a low voice, and Thora did as she was told. The branch felt alive in her hands, and a happiness stirred inside her, and she swished the wand through the air. Emerald green sparks flew from the end, and would have started a fire had the ground not been drenched still from the recently melted snow.
"Yes, wands most certainly are sung!" Taavi whispered.

... to be continued

Bedre Vejr ~ Fredagsfrustration ~ Better Weather

Ja, jeg ved altså godt, det ikke er fredag. Men dette er så klart en Fredagsfrustration!

Mens DMI tager en ny supercomputer i brug, kan vi ikke få læselige vejrmeldinger ... gad vide, hvad der sker efter sommerferien?

BedreVejr

Yup, I do know it is not Friday today. But this is a Friday Frustration - on a Wednesday even!

This is what meets us at BedreVejr.dk (BetterWeather), the legible weather forecasts.
The forecasts are suspended while DMI (Danish Meteorological Institiute) starts up a new Supercomputer. What will happen later? Your guess is as good as mine. But this is all we have all summer long.

Poetry Monday :: Pizza

Poetry Monday is a challenge, normally hosted by Diane at On the Border. But starting this January she's taking a break due to health issues, and Messymimi and I have conspired to keep the chair warm for her. We will each set the topics for one month, I began with January, Mimi supplied for February, and so on until Diane returns.

-- ◡◡ --
-- ◡ -- ◡ --
-- ◡◡ --

Today's word is Pizza  ~  The sun is shining, the trees are green, it's time to dig, and sow, and weed, and rearrange, and, and, and ... But still I like thinking up poems, this time just a short one.

A pizza is a nice, round thing
One of the pleasures hungers bring
Bottom made of crispy bread,
on it spread tomatoes red,
Mushrooms white and melting cheese,
ham and shrimps my palate please.

 -- 🍕 --

And a bonus. Pizza made me think of this totally crazy German song called "Ich bin ein Döner" (I am a döner kebab).
If any Germans around -- Hallo Iris und Karen Myyrätohtori -- Ja ich höre gern Deutsche Partyschlagersänger ;) Und korrigieren Sie bitte alle Fehler.

The refrain goes like this in German:
Baguette macht fett,
Sushi macht wuschi,
Pizza macht spitzer,
aber Döner macht schöner.

Let's try that in English:
Baguette makes fat,
Sushi makes woozy,
Pizza makes spiteful (or maybe horny - my German slang is dated! - 20 years since we stayed there)
but Döner makes prettier.

-- ◡◡ -- ◡◡ --

Next Monday: Politics

Kulørt søndag ~ Colourful Sunday

I dag skinnede solen, og selv om vejmeldingen havde lovet en regnbyge, regnede den ikke lige her.

Today we had wonderful sunshine, and even though local showers were promised, they did not fall in our garden.

-- 🎨 -- 

Verden omkring os er meget farverig for øjeblikket.

The world around us is very colourful right now.

Rapsen blomstrer ~ Canola fields are flowering

Akelejerne blomstrer ~ The columbines are flowering

Den første valmue blomstrer ~ The first poppy is flowering

Det ser ud som om solen falder ind gennem blyindfattede vinduer, men sådan nogle det har vi altså ikke
In this photo it looks like the light is falling through stained glass, but our windows are plain white.

Meget lilla prydløg ~ Very purple Allium

Månen ~ The Moon

Og en orange blomst til månedens farve ~
Den gror på Månehøjen, og er nok en sommerblomst fra sidste år
Jeg aner ikke, hvad den hedder, og orange er nok den farve, det er allersværest at finde i Uglebo.

And an orange flower for the Colour of the month.
Growing on my Moon Hill, a survivor from last summer's sowing of all my flower seeds
I have no idea what it is, and orange is probably the colour it is hardest to find in the Owlery.

Haveuglen har fået fine nye blå blomster, og en frø på besøg.
GardenOwl has new blue flowers, and a frog has come visiting.

Og et par overraskelser ~ and a couple of surprises.

Vi fældede et lille træ, og under barken var det ... pink!
We cut down a small tree, and under the bark the cambium was ... pink!

Nogen af vore æg er grønne på ydersiden, men det her var også grønt indeni. Det blev ikke spist.
Some of our eggs are green on the outside. This one was green inside too. We did not eat it.