On my way home from an errand, I suddenly knew - remembered - how this all ended. Here you are: Part two of the story of the fires at Unicorn Farm.
Gilvi left again and the others sat for long in the barn. The Nisser brought them cakes and hot tea and cocoa, only succeeding in making them all very sleepy. Kalle fell asleep, wrapped in a blanket, and the others dozed fitfully on the benches. They all dreamt vividly. Susan and Heidi woke up and looked at one another.
"The sprites?" Heidi asked.
"Yes," Susan replied, and with this they were off to the adjoining stables.
Kai woke with a start: "Hey Heidi .. and Susan! Stay here, Gilvi said ..." But before he could draw his wand or do anything else to prevent it the two girls had slipped into the stable.
Heidi almost fell up the three steps to the stables, where strange animals and food for all and sundry were being kept. They raced to where they had placed the big glass cage a few days earlier.
The roomy and beautiful glass cage was where they'd left it, but empty, except for a small fire flickering in a dull grey ring in the middle of the cage. The asbestos lattice covering it sat askew.
"They escaped!" Susan exclaimed.
"They sure did," Heidi replied. "Let's go find the twins, quick!"
With this Susan and Heidi ran each in a separate direction, Heidi ran into the Barn, waking up the others, and quickly explained what they had found out before speeding on. Susan took the small staircase leading from the stables to the library. There she met and almost ran into Martine: "It's the flame sprites doing it," she gasped, winded from running up the stairs. "Where's the Kuusisaari's?" "Tähti is in the library," Martine replied, "I think Taavi is downstairs. I'll get him!"
"Please do!" Susan said and ran towards the doors to the library. Smoke was still coming form in there.
"Hello," Tähti gasped through the smoke, "you're not supposed to be here, but please lend me a hand now that you are ... Slökkvid!" she cried as another small fire lit on the carpet.
"It's the fire sprites!" Susan said, "They have escaped." And interrupted by a few extinguishing spells, she quickly told Tähti what they has discovered. "Martine and Heidi are out there looking for Taavi as well."
"I'll find him." Tähti said, "you just stay here and extinguish any and all fires. You're free to use the mundane fire extinguisher on flames not in books - use your head!" And with this she flickered her wand and disappeared.
Sure that now Tähti, Taavi and the other teachers now would take care of the sprites, Susan sat to the task of keeping the books from burning. She soon realized that her magical powers would give out, and grasped the fire extinguisher from the hall. armed with this in her left hand and her wand in her right she kept the flames at bay. She felt more than saw Tue and Heidi coming in to help. Gratefully she concentrated on carpets, curtains and furniture with the extinguisher, leaving the magic to the older two.
Suddenly a keening sound penetrated the building, shaking it and them to their roots. "The Kuusisaari's are calling the Sprites home," Heidi said. "Thank God, I'm exhausted!"
They put out the last of the flames and almost fell into the old sofa. Soon Gilvi's face showed in the doorway: "Good job, all!" he said. "Down to the Barn now, time for a meal and an explanation or two."
... to be continued
Blogger putter stadig tilfældige kommentarer i spamfængsel. Jeg lover at slippe dem ud hurtigst muligt.
Blogger is still randomly putting comments in spam-jail. I promise to free them as fast as possible.
lørdag den 23. november 2024
fredag den 22. november 2024
Words for Wednesday :: November 20 ~ on a Friday
Yes it's still Friday here. I have finally written something. I'm not happy with it, as it went somewhere unexpected and dark, I do not think this will enter
my book. And it is yet another beginning. Will we ever see an ending to this and all the other strange
beginnings from the last couple of months? Only time will tell.
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 November are provided by Alex J. Cavanaugh and can be found @ Elephant's Child.
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.
The Words for Wednesday were:
Pyromaniac
Midnight
Parrot
Frozen
Razor's edge
and/or
Anguish
Alligator
Taco
Predictable
Staple
Prehistory: Someone had been starting fires at Unicorn Farm, a Pyromaniac is suspected of the deed. One night as Heidi, Lis and Tage and their parents, Sandra and Kai, are following Susan to her aunt's summerhouse, Thora appeared and asked them to please come and stand guard at the Farm.
Susan had never been out past midnight at the Farm before, but a pyromaniac witch, or maybe wizard, warranted this. All grown ups and teachers were guarding all entryways to the Farm. Tue and Lis were in the adjoining classrooms, sitting in cupboards with small peepholes cut into them. She and Heidi were in the library and had hid themselves behind the parrot's cage, hoping that the blanket thrown over to shut him up would also hide them well enough. She held her wand ready in a nearly frozen hand, and se could feel Heidi shivering from the cold next to her. Then suddenly an orange glow, thin as a razor's edge shone from where Susan was certain the door to the corridor was placed. She carefully poked Heidi, who poked her back. Then everything happened very fast. A scream of anguish pierced the night, the door swung open, letting smoke and flames start to spill into the library nearing the book case next to the door. Susan and Heidi jumped up, pointed at flame after flame with their wands, screaming "Slökkvið" at them, and slowly the inferno died down. They could see Tue, Lis and Knud over the flames, and behind them Thora, Kai, Gilvi, Sandra, Martine and most every teacher from the Farm. A human form lay at the floor, PJs scorched and soaked. Thora helped a wet and bedraggled Kalle from the floor: "What happened?" she asked. "You were supposed to be in your bed in Stockholm."
"I was." Kalle said simply, looking utterly confused.
Thora asked him: "And what then?"
Kalle looked up: "I slept, I dreamt of a big, pearl opal green alligator eating someone, just as we would a taco, then I felt an almighty pull, everything went dark, and I was suddenly here, my PJs on fire."
"This sounds nothing like what we imagined," Martine said. "It is not a predictable way ..."
Sandra looked at them: "Move!" she screamed, Everybody sprang into the library, into abandoned cupboards and door openings. Gilvi grabbed Kalle and half pulled half carried him to the sick room.
A fireball exploded exactly where Kalle had lain.
"This is a staple of the ... " Taavi began.
"Not now!" Tähti interrupted him. "Let's get the fires put out, and bring some order to this chaos. Kai please bring the children down into the Barn."
No listening to their protests, Kai ordered Lis, Tage, Heidi and Susan to proceed him to the barn, and Gilvi brought up the rear, carrying Kalle.
- - A - - B - - C - -
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 November are provided by Alex J. Cavanaugh and can be found @ Elephant's Child.
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.
- - A - - B - - C - -
The Words for Wednesday were:
Pyromaniac
Midnight
Parrot
Frozen
Razor's edge
and/or
Anguish
Alligator
Taco
Predictable
Staple
Prehistory: Someone had been starting fires at Unicorn Farm, a Pyromaniac is suspected of the deed. One night as Heidi, Lis and Tage and their parents, Sandra and Kai, are following Susan to her aunt's summerhouse, Thora appeared and asked them to please come and stand guard at the Farm.
Susan had never been out past midnight at the Farm before, but a pyromaniac witch, or maybe wizard, warranted this. All grown ups and teachers were guarding all entryways to the Farm. Tue and Lis were in the adjoining classrooms, sitting in cupboards with small peepholes cut into them. She and Heidi were in the library and had hid themselves behind the parrot's cage, hoping that the blanket thrown over to shut him up would also hide them well enough. She held her wand ready in a nearly frozen hand, and se could feel Heidi shivering from the cold next to her. Then suddenly an orange glow, thin as a razor's edge shone from where Susan was certain the door to the corridor was placed. She carefully poked Heidi, who poked her back. Then everything happened very fast. A scream of anguish pierced the night, the door swung open, letting smoke and flames start to spill into the library nearing the book case next to the door. Susan and Heidi jumped up, pointed at flame after flame with their wands, screaming "Slökkvið" at them, and slowly the inferno died down. They could see Tue, Lis and Knud over the flames, and behind them Thora, Kai, Gilvi, Sandra, Martine and most every teacher from the Farm. A human form lay at the floor, PJs scorched and soaked. Thora helped a wet and bedraggled Kalle from the floor: "What happened?" she asked. "You were supposed to be in your bed in Stockholm."
"I was." Kalle said simply, looking utterly confused.
Thora asked him: "And what then?"
Kalle looked up: "I slept, I dreamt of a big, pearl opal green alligator eating someone, just as we would a taco, then I felt an almighty pull, everything went dark, and I was suddenly here, my PJs on fire."
"This sounds nothing like what we imagined," Martine said. "It is not a predictable way ..."
Sandra looked at them: "Move!" she screamed, Everybody sprang into the library, into abandoned cupboards and door openings. Gilvi grabbed Kalle and half pulled half carried him to the sick room.
A fireball exploded exactly where Kalle had lain.
"This is a staple of the ... " Taavi began.
"Not now!" Tähti interrupted him. "Let's get the fires put out, and bring some order to this chaos. Kai please bring the children down into the Barn."
No listening to their protests, Kai ordered Lis, Tage, Heidi and Susan to proceed him to the barn, and Gilvi brought up the rear, carrying Kalle.
mandag den 18. november 2024
Poetry Monday :: Jumping the Gun
And oops sorry everybody. I goofed up and spent a long time writing a poem or two with next week's prompt: Cry wolf. Luckily I realised this the second before hitting "Publish", but for this reason only a not so elaborate poem this time around.
Jumping the gun,
It sure can be fun
But if you're found out
You're in for some pout,
From people who find you're a lout.
Jumping the gun
should not be done
Play fair and be nice
Don't load your dice
Don't hide the game piece.
Juming the gun
Is not worth the tonne
Of ill will and nay
that's coming your way
if you do foul play.
Hmm, this turned out rather moralistic. I cannot do any better today, but I hope to get more done in the week ahead.
- - - - - -
Next week, as already announced: Cry Wolf.
Promts for December coming up soon.
Jumping the gun,
It sure can be fun
But if you're found out
You're in for some pout,
From people who find you're a lout.
Jumping the gun
should not be done
Play fair and be nice
Don't load your dice
Don't hide the game piece.
Juming the gun
Is not worth the tonne
Of ill will and nay
that's coming your way
if you do foul play.
Hmm, this turned out rather moralistic. I cannot do any better today, but I hope to get more done in the week ahead.
- - - - - -
Next week, as already announced: Cry Wolf.
Promts for December coming up soon.
torsdag den 14. november 2024
Words for Wednesday November 13
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 November are provided by Alex J. Cavanaugh and can be found @ Elephant's Child.
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.
The Words for yesterday were:
Snow
Cow
Jade
Candy
Sunglasses
and/or
Oak
Refreshed
Ornery
Music
Shells
I needed writing, so THANKS! to Alex J. Cavanaugh for the words and to Elephant's Child for posting them.
A small story from Susan's mundane life early winter of the first year on the Farm. These 'telling the time-notes' are as much for my own sake as for you ... I expect maybe even more for my sake. It explains why Susan is not thinking of Snow Magic, and a heap of other things to me.
Remember that Susan's mundane life is roughly autobiographical, so what I here described existed - maybe still do - and I'll have to dig up that story of why. Maybe for next Wednesday?
PS. according to my spell checker Ornery is not a word ;)
Snow was falling, and Susan happily looked into the leaden skies. As soon as the bus arrived, she jumped aboard, happy to get away from the sports hall. She hated sports, running gave her a headache, and all those balls ... Shortly they passed a field with cows, funny that they were still out, maybe the snow had caught the farmer as unaware as herself. All the cows stood close together, with their tails into the wind near the gate. Where did they live, Susan wondered, as every time she went past that field, and why really were there cows here in the suburbs of the town? Houses on either side of the road, going in to town, then to the right suddenly a small clump of trees and a pasture with cows, then a road, and houses again. Mom, or was it Grandma, had told a story some time ago, but Susan did not remember.
She searched inside her school-bag, now where was that bag? That was the only good thing about the sports hall. It had a well assorted kiosk. Today Susan had bought a jade coloured bag of candy. She put a couple in her mouth and savoured the sweet taste. Too soon the ride through winter-wondeland in the heated bus came to an end, and Susan got off. Snow was nice, but cold was not when you were not dressed for it; this very morning her mother had looked for her sunglasses before going off to work, and Susan had decided against the warm coat. She regretted this decision now. She fastened her pace to keep warm, turned left at the big oak tree at the corner and half ran the last long stretch home. She pulled off the thin coat, shook it out and hung it in the back of the wardrobe. Bye, she thought, I won't be needing you before spring. Then she threw shoes, socks, school-bag and hat in a heap, only keeping the candy bag. In the fridge she grabbed a carton of milk, and then a glass and a book. She disappeared into her room, and returned after the milk and candy had all gone and the book had been finished. Thus refreshed she was ready to meet her ornery sister, who as usual played loud music inside her room. Walking on egg shells was sometimes needed when she had one of her moods.
The prompts for November are provided by Alex J. Cavanaugh and can be found @ Elephant's Child.
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.
- - A - - B - - C - -
The Words for yesterday were:
Snow
Cow
Jade
Candy
Sunglasses
and/or
Oak
Refreshed
Ornery
Music
Shells
I needed writing, so THANKS! to Alex J. Cavanaugh for the words and to Elephant's Child for posting them.
A small story from Susan's mundane life early winter of the first year on the Farm. These 'telling the time-notes' are as much for my own sake as for you ... I expect maybe even more for my sake. It explains why Susan is not thinking of Snow Magic, and a heap of other things to me.
Remember that Susan's mundane life is roughly autobiographical, so what I here described existed - maybe still do - and I'll have to dig up that story of why. Maybe for next Wednesday?
PS. according to my spell checker Ornery is not a word ;)
Snow was falling, and Susan happily looked into the leaden skies. As soon as the bus arrived, she jumped aboard, happy to get away from the sports hall. She hated sports, running gave her a headache, and all those balls ... Shortly they passed a field with cows, funny that they were still out, maybe the snow had caught the farmer as unaware as herself. All the cows stood close together, with their tails into the wind near the gate. Where did they live, Susan wondered, as every time she went past that field, and why really were there cows here in the suburbs of the town? Houses on either side of the road, going in to town, then to the right suddenly a small clump of trees and a pasture with cows, then a road, and houses again. Mom, or was it Grandma, had told a story some time ago, but Susan did not remember.
She searched inside her school-bag, now where was that bag? That was the only good thing about the sports hall. It had a well assorted kiosk. Today Susan had bought a jade coloured bag of candy. She put a couple in her mouth and savoured the sweet taste. Too soon the ride through winter-wondeland in the heated bus came to an end, and Susan got off. Snow was nice, but cold was not when you were not dressed for it; this very morning her mother had looked for her sunglasses before going off to work, and Susan had decided against the warm coat. She regretted this decision now. She fastened her pace to keep warm, turned left at the big oak tree at the corner and half ran the last long stretch home. She pulled off the thin coat, shook it out and hung it in the back of the wardrobe. Bye, she thought, I won't be needing you before spring. Then she threw shoes, socks, school-bag and hat in a heap, only keeping the candy bag. In the fridge she grabbed a carton of milk, and then a glass and a book. She disappeared into her room, and returned after the milk and candy had all gone and the book had been finished. Thus refreshed she was ready to meet her ornery sister, who as usual played loud music inside her room. Walking on egg shells was sometimes needed when she had one of her moods.
tirsdag den 12. november 2024
Look, Oh Look! ~ Åh se!
Sunshine! ~ Solskin!
Yup, this morning we had awesome 46 minutes of sunshine - the first this month.
I morges havde vi 46 vidunderlige minutters solskin - månedens første.
mandag den 11. november 2024
Poetry Monday :: Wild Goose Chase
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.
I have something to ask of you: If you read this and the poetry of others via the links, would you please leave a comment.
Half - if not more - the fun of these challenges is receiving the responses of others.
Today's prompt is Wild Goose Chase.
Last Monday I had some fun trying to misinterpret the saying - or rather by understanding its literal meaning. I did the same today for
Wild Goose Chase.
Now is the season for chasing wild geese
Their wedges are honking away on the breeze.
Oh, that's not what is meant?
But still it's the season for chasing wild geese
The sunshine has left us, the season is bleak
Oh, I'd like to fly too!
Now is the season for chasing wild geese
For dreaming while waiting for Spring and release
The winter endure!
I have something to ask of you: If you read this and the poetry of others via the links, would you please leave a comment.
Half - if not more - the fun of these challenges is receiving the responses of others.
Today's prompt is Wild Goose Chase.
Last Monday I had some fun trying to misinterpret the saying - or rather by understanding its literal meaning. I did the same today for
Wild Goose Chase.
Now is the season for chasing wild geese
Their wedges are honking away on the breeze.
Oh, that's not what is meant?
But still it's the season for chasing wild geese
The sunshine has left us, the season is bleak
Oh, I'd like to fly too!
Now is the season for chasing wild geese
For dreaming while waiting for Spring and release
The winter endure!
-- 🧊 --
And now for some fun. One of my sons shared this animated song with me, I share it with you.
onsdag den 6. november 2024
The Words for Wednesday (no story) & IWSG November 6
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 November are provided by Alex J. Cavanaugh and can be found @ Elephant's Child.
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.
The Words for today are:
Parachute
Reindeer
Shark
Clay
Ruins
and/Or
Telescope
Totem Pole
Black
Severed
Surf
And I still have the following unused Words from last Wednesday
Cave
Mary
Near
Rapid
White
I have had neither time nor energy for writing more story, and I even have lots of dangling ends and loose tails and tales to choose from. I pray and hope that after this coming weekend the chaos surrounding us will slow down and slowly fall into something resembling order and plans. I hope!
Today is also the first Wednesday of the month. Time for the monthly Question from the Insecure Writers' Support Group
November 6 question - What creative activity do you engage in when you're not writing?
My answer: "What creative activity do I not engage in while not writing" would be an easier question for me to answer.
I have never done, and do not plan to ever do bobbin lace or tatting.
Apart from these two ... I think I have tried my hand at most any creative endeavour under the sun. I find creating fun, I get ideas all the time. I just lack time and energy to do what I would like. This might - as said in the WfW part - be improving in the weeks to come.
The prompts for November are provided by Alex J. Cavanaugh and can be found @ Elephant's Child.
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.
- - A - - B - - C - -
The Words for today are:
Parachute
Reindeer
Shark
Clay
Ruins
and/Or
Telescope
Totem Pole
Black
Severed
Surf
And I still have the following unused Words from last Wednesday
Cave
Mary
Near
Rapid
White
I have had neither time nor energy for writing more story, and I even have lots of dangling ends and loose tails and tales to choose from. I pray and hope that after this coming weekend the chaos surrounding us will slow down and slowly fall into something resembling order and plans. I hope!
- - A - - B - - C - -
Today is also the first Wednesday of the month. Time for the monthly Question from the Insecure Writers' Support Group
November 6 question - What creative activity do you engage in when you're not writing?
My answer: "What creative activity do I not engage in while not writing" would be an easier question for me to answer.
I have never done, and do not plan to ever do bobbin lace or tatting.
Apart from these two ... I think I have tried my hand at most any creative endeavour under the sun. I find creating fun, I get ideas all the time. I just lack time and energy to do what I would like. This might - as said in the WfW part - be improving in the weeks to come.
Ensretning af holdninger ~ Unification of Thoughts
Uglemor plejer ikke at være politisk her på bloggen, eller noget med den slags holdninger i det hele taget, men en i øvrigt informativ artikel på TV2 gjorde mig opmærksom på i hvor høj grad mainstream og den offentlige mening har monopol på taleretten i Danmark.
Hvis du ikke har lyst til at læse sur Uglegylp, så spring det over.
Hvis du ikke har lyst til at læse sur Uglegylp, så spring det over.
-- 👶 --
MotherOwl is usually not into politics, or anything of that kind on this blog, but an otherwise informative article on TV2.dk made me realise to what extent the mainstream in public opinion still (or again) sets the agenda in Denmark.
If you do not want to read sour OwlPellets, read no further.
For English scroll down.
Se lige her:
Det fortsætter:
I Danmark er det jo nærmest ikke en debat.
Nej præcis - og derfor fatter danskere ikke, at der er nogen - mange måske endda - helt normale amerikanere, der stemmer på Trump ene og alene fordi han er imod abort.
Faktisk chokerer hans udsagn mig mere, end jeg lige vil være ved.
Vi er en hel del danskere, der deler den opfattelse, at abort er mord (vi synes ikke nødvendigvis, at Trump er vidunderlig, eller er enige om en masse andre ting), men ud fra dette har jeg indset, hvor ensrettet den danske politiske og moralske scene er.
Der er én rigtig mening, der er nok grader, nuancer, undtagelser ... men sagen har én løsning - og hvis du ikke er enig, er du en ikke-person.
Det kan godt være, der er 11 partier i folketinget, men virkelige uenigheder er der ikke mange af. Det er mere hvordan, vi når målet, de diskuterer, ikke målet i sig selv.
I virkeligheden er Danmark lige så absolutistisk som mange af de lande, der lå bag jerntæppet i gamle dage.
-- ⧞ ---
In English
The first photo.
Caption: A sensational opinion!
Text summed up: Simon Flening, the journalist in the photo, has been travelling UAS on a bike to try and understand the American population prior to the election.
He met a priest who said something Flening never heard before from a live person: When a baby is conceived, it is a human being.
And Flening then adds: He actually saw abortion as murder!
Second block of text: I realise that we're very different in Denmark, We do not think of this as a matter up for discussion.
--- --- ---
This is one of the reasons Danes are shocked that normal, sane people (like a lot of the persons behind blogs I'm reading) can ever imagine voting for Trump just because he's against abortion.
And this reality of his shocks me. We are actually quite a number of Danes sharing the opinion that abortion is murder (We do not necessarily think that Trump is the man, nor agree on a lot of other things).
But this made me realise just how very homogenous the Danish political and moral scene is. There's one right opinion, there's degrees, shades, exceptions - but the matter at hand has one solution - and if you do not agree, you're a non-person, not asked in polls, not interviewed in the papers, not represented and not seen.
Our big fights only happen when the public opinion cannot agree as to what is the political or moral high ground.
We have a lot of parties for every election here - there's 11 parties in the Danish parliament - but the opinions are not as divided. Almost all agree on most questions, the discrepancies are more in the means to the goals, in just where is the limit and such.
In reality Denmark is as absolutistic as many of the countries behind the Iron Curtain of old.
tirsdag den 5. november 2024
Eco-Printing ~ PlantePrint
Her er så de færdige ark fra PlantePrint~2
PlantePrint med alun 5. ark endte med at se sådan her ud:
Planteprint med AA 5 & 6 - altså det første forsøg med AA ser sådan her ud:
Og der måtte et nyt forsøg til, med de blade, der faktisk giver gode tryk. Jeg har glemt tørstetræ
PlantePrint med alun 5. ark endte med at se sådan her ud:
Planteprint med AA 5 & 6 - altså det første forsøg med AA ser sådan her ud:
Og der måtte et nyt forsøg til, med de blade, der faktisk giver gode tryk. Jeg har glemt tørstetræ
-- 🍂 --
I had to test all the good leaves in one go, but forgot frangula leaves.
AA 3&4
With leaves still in place
Med bladene.
With leaves still in place
Med bladene.
Og færdig, men stadig vådt
Done, but still wet.
Done, but still wet.
.
mandag den 4. november 2024
Poetry Monday :: Beating Around the Bush
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.
I have something to ask of you: If you read this and the poetry of others via the links, would you please leave a comment.
Half - if not more - the fun of these challenges is receiving the responses of others.
Today's prompt is Beating around the Bush
As I wrote, I have been procrastinating, and ended up doing what I should not do - read other blogs before finishing my poem. This time was an exception inasmuch as it actually helped me finish my poem.
This is a limping verse.
Beating around the bush.
What a strange saying, that.
Who's beating what
and why around a bush?
And why beating? Why not push.
Who is beating, who gets hit?
I do not get it, not a bit.
And please no beating, no, not a bush
Now I have been to Mimi's blog
and meaning I have gotten,
to whom ad why and where to beat.
Yes Mimi spoil us rotten.
If you also do not now the reason behind Beating around the Bush, then go and read Mimi's excellent explanation here.
- - - - - - - - - -
Prompts for November:
Beating Around the Bush, November 4 (Today)
Wild Goose Chase, November 11
Jumping the Gun, November 18
Cry Wolf, November 25
The promised photos of Eco-printed papers have been snapped, and will go live tomorrow.
I have something to ask of you: If you read this and the poetry of others via the links, would you please leave a comment.
Half - if not more - the fun of these challenges is receiving the responses of others.
Today's prompt is Beating around the Bush
As I wrote, I have been procrastinating, and ended up doing what I should not do - read other blogs before finishing my poem. This time was an exception inasmuch as it actually helped me finish my poem.
This is a limping verse.
Beating around the bush.
What a strange saying, that.
Who's beating what
and why around a bush?
And why beating? Why not push.
Who is beating, who gets hit?
I do not get it, not a bit.
And please no beating, no, not a bush
Now I have been to Mimi's blog
and meaning I have gotten,
to whom ad why and where to beat.
Yes Mimi spoil us rotten.
If you also do not now the reason behind Beating around the Bush, then go and read Mimi's excellent explanation here.
- - - - - - - - - -
Prompts for November:
Beating Around the Bush, November 4 (Today)
Wild Goose Chase, November 11
Jumping the Gun, November 18
Cry Wolf, November 25
The promised photos of Eco-printed papers have been snapped, and will go live tomorrow.
Overspringshandlinger ~Words for Wednesday and More.
In Danish we have a wonderful word "Overspringshandling". The dictionary gives me 'procrastination', but I do not think it is a perfect fit for Overspringshandling. Because ... at least as I see it procrastination is synonym wiht putting off, not doing something until later, and so on - the emphasis is on the not-doing-now part of it..
Overspringshandlinger are the acts (handlinger) you're doing while procrastinating. The emphasis is on the things you do, while avoiding what you should do.
Let's take an example. Today I had three important thing on my agenda: Poetry Monday, Magazine editing and cleaning in my project room. Just after breakfast I sat myself down to write today's poem. It is Poetry Monday after all. First I checked my mail, answered the questions contained therein, and opened MSWord. But I had to go to the bathroom, and a cup of tea would be nice, too. In the bathroom the tub needs a cleaning, and we could do with some clean towels as well. I did this. The laundry basket is full, so I take it to the laundry place, but someone already started a load, which has just finished. I have to hang this first. Later I return to brew my cup of tea, but the sink needs cleaning, the dishwasher is full of clean stuff and needs emptying, and all the towels and so on also could do with a change ... I do this. Then I sit down to write. The Writer comes in and asks if I would like a cup of coffee - sure I would, as I forgot the tea. After the coffee break, another visit to the bathroom, and a photo session with yesterdays' Eco-printed papers. I finally sit down at the keyboard. But oops - the Words for Wednesday are in an open document, and I really had a nice idea last Wednesday night. Before I realise what happened, my fingers are dancing over the keyboard, typing out the tale I did not write last Wednesday.
This is Overspringshandlinger. The act of doing something good and needed in order to not do what you really should be doing ... is it the same as procrastination or not?
At least I wrote a little bit of Susan's story, using the first batch of these words in no particular order:
Church
Hazel
Hollow
Red
Whirlpool
and/or
Cave
Mary
Near
Rapid
White
This is happening in the first school-year at Unicorn Farm.
The bells could be heard all the way from the old church on the mainland, this meant it was a windy day at Unicorn Farm, very much so. Susan saw Selma from the blue team draw her wand as they neared the hollow place in the road, where the wind would come against them from over the sea. A few greenish sparks flew from the end of her wand, but the expected whirlpool of warm and calm air did not envelope Selma.
Tähti came to her and asked for her wand. Selma handed it to her with a sinking feeling in her stomach. Having your wand taken was the ultimate punishment, and Selma had felt less and less capable these last weeks.
Tähti swished Selma's wand in an intricate pattern, then examined her wand closer. Susan walked a bit faster, overtaking the Swedish apprentices and saw Tähti test Selma's wand. She swung it through the air, and a few, feeble sparks flew.
Then she handed Selma her own wand, and made Selma cast some simple spells. An abundance of greenish sparks immediately flew from Tähti's wand and Tähti nodded slowly.
"Sour notes," she said.
"Sour notes?" Selma repeated, but in her mouth the statement became a question.
"I am sure, you were one of the last of the blue ones to have your wand sung," Tähti said.
"Yes," Selma replied. "I was then next to last, Grani was the last. But what has that to do with my seeming inability to learn what you all try to teach me here at the Farm?"
"Everything." Tähti said in a comforting voice, "Ever since I first saw you, I realised that you were neither stupid, or slow or anything else. We've been busy, but Thora and I have kept an eye on you. Now I'm certain that I or Thora hit a sour note when singing your wand. Let's hurry back to the Farm and sing you a new one. It is made of hazel, right?"
"Right," Selma replied, a tentative smile adorning her face.
Overspringshandlinger are the acts (handlinger) you're doing while procrastinating. The emphasis is on the things you do, while avoiding what you should do.
Let's take an example. Today I had three important thing on my agenda: Poetry Monday, Magazine editing and cleaning in my project room. Just after breakfast I sat myself down to write today's poem. It is Poetry Monday after all. First I checked my mail, answered the questions contained therein, and opened MSWord. But I had to go to the bathroom, and a cup of tea would be nice, too. In the bathroom the tub needs a cleaning, and we could do with some clean towels as well. I did this. The laundry basket is full, so I take it to the laundry place, but someone already started a load, which has just finished. I have to hang this first. Later I return to brew my cup of tea, but the sink needs cleaning, the dishwasher is full of clean stuff and needs emptying, and all the towels and so on also could do with a change ... I do this. Then I sit down to write. The Writer comes in and asks if I would like a cup of coffee - sure I would, as I forgot the tea. After the coffee break, another visit to the bathroom, and a photo session with yesterdays' Eco-printed papers. I finally sit down at the keyboard. But oops - the Words for Wednesday are in an open document, and I really had a nice idea last Wednesday night. Before I realise what happened, my fingers are dancing over the keyboard, typing out the tale I did not write last Wednesday.
This is Overspringshandlinger. The act of doing something good and needed in order to not do what you really should be doing ... is it the same as procrastination or not?
At least I wrote a little bit of Susan's story, using the first batch of these words in no particular order:
Church
Hazel
Hollow
Red
Whirlpool
and/or
Cave
Mary
Near
Rapid
White
This is happening in the first school-year at Unicorn Farm.
The bells could be heard all the way from the old church on the mainland, this meant it was a windy day at Unicorn Farm, very much so. Susan saw Selma from the blue team draw her wand as they neared the hollow place in the road, where the wind would come against them from over the sea. A few greenish sparks flew from the end of her wand, but the expected whirlpool of warm and calm air did not envelope Selma.
Tähti came to her and asked for her wand. Selma handed it to her with a sinking feeling in her stomach. Having your wand taken was the ultimate punishment, and Selma had felt less and less capable these last weeks.
Tähti swished Selma's wand in an intricate pattern, then examined her wand closer. Susan walked a bit faster, overtaking the Swedish apprentices and saw Tähti test Selma's wand. She swung it through the air, and a few, feeble sparks flew.
Then she handed Selma her own wand, and made Selma cast some simple spells. An abundance of greenish sparks immediately flew from Tähti's wand and Tähti nodded slowly.
"Sour notes," she said.
"Sour notes?" Selma repeated, but in her mouth the statement became a question.
"I am sure, you were one of the last of the blue ones to have your wand sung," Tähti said.
"Yes," Selma replied. "I was then next to last, Grani was the last. But what has that to do with my seeming inability to learn what you all try to teach me here at the Farm?"
"Everything." Tähti said in a comforting voice, "Ever since I first saw you, I realised that you were neither stupid, or slow or anything else. We've been busy, but Thora and I have kept an eye on you. Now I'm certain that I or Thora hit a sour note when singing your wand. Let's hurry back to the Farm and sing you a new one. It is made of hazel, right?"
"Right," Selma replied, a tentative smile adorning her face.
... to be continued.
And the room still needs a cleaning, the magazine still some editing, and the poem is not yet written ...
And the room still needs a cleaning, the magazine still some editing, and the poem is not yet written ...
søndag den 3. november 2024
Sunday Selection :: Eco-printing 2
Sunday a new trial run of Eco-printing on paper happened. This time one last alum mordanted sheet and two of the new ones mordanted with Aluminium Acetate (henceforth AA). I do not think the differences are striking. Resulting prints to follow tomorrow in daylight.
-- 🍂 --
Søndag måtte jeg bare teste de nybejdsede ark med aluminiumacetat (AA) og det sidste alunbejdsede. Jeg synes ikke, forskellene er slående, men vi får se i morgen i dagslys.
Last of the Alum sheets (Alum 5), testing new and old leaves.
-- 🍃 --
Alun 5, det sidste alunbejdsede ark. En test af nye og gamle blade.
And the two first AA ones - confusingly labelled AA 5 & 6. I happened to turn the bunch of papers upside down - testing many of the same leaves as Alum 5, and some from Alum 1 - 4.
-- 🍁 --
Og de to første ark med AA - de er mærket AA 5&6 fordi jeg kom til at vende bundtet på hovedet - det er mange af de samme blade som Alun 5 og et par gengangere fra Alun 1-4.
-- 🍂 --
All these leaves surely contains at least some of the Colour of November: Pearl opal green
-- 🍂🍃🍁 --
And oops, I forgot to press "Publish" before finding my bed.
Upsi, jeg fik ikke trykket på "Udgiv", inden jeg skyndte mig i seng.
torsdag den 31. oktober 2024
Colour of the Month ~ November
Er det ikke bare et vidunderligt navn på en farve - Perle-opalgrøn. Jeg bliver da nødt til at finde noget, der har lige den farve til på søndag.
Isn't this just a wonderful name for a colour?I just hae to find something of this exact colour for this Sunday.
Isn't this just a wonderful name for a colour?I just hae to find something of this exact colour for this Sunday.
onsdag den 30. oktober 2024
Words for Wednesdat ~The Words and Wordle
Posted one minute to midnight because it contains Wordle spoilers.
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 September are provided by Sean Jeating and can be found @ Elephant's Child.
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.
The Words for today are:
Church,
Hazel,
Hollow,
Red,
Whirlpool
and/or
Cave,
Mary,
Near,
Rapid,
White
I have been away for much of today, and I really like the Words - I want to use them for a chapter in Susan's story so no story today, I hope to have better time for writing later. But I am going to use a few of the Words for some fun. I'll probably re-use them for the Susan-story.
Today I solved the Wordle. I felt not proud and very proud at the same time.
Not proud because I used five guesses, and in later guesses I used letters, I knew were not in the word, and I put some letters where I knew they were not supposed to go.
It looked like this:
But I was very proud that I knew the word that is today's solution. I learned it years and years ago, and it is in no way similar to its Danish counterpart and it is not a word I use every day either.
Looking at today's Word it hit me that those of them containing five letters (Hazel - Rapid - White) could be a credible way of solving today's Wordle. I added Words as well, but could have done without.
Again, if you intend to solve today's Wordle, and you still can do so in your timezone, scroll down no further.
This might be a mock-up, but the solution is the right one.
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 September are provided by Sean Jeating and can be found @ Elephant's Child.
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.
- - A - - B - - C - -
The Words for today are:
Church,
Hazel,
Hollow,
Red,
Whirlpool
and/or
Cave,
Mary,
Near,
Rapid,
White
I have been away for much of today, and I really like the Words - I want to use them for a chapter in Susan's story so no story today, I hope to have better time for writing later. But I am going to use a few of the Words for some fun. I'll probably re-use them for the Susan-story.
Today I solved the Wordle. I felt not proud and very proud at the same time.
Not proud because I used five guesses, and in later guesses I used letters, I knew were not in the word, and I put some letters where I knew they were not supposed to go.
It looked like this:
But I was very proud that I knew the word that is today's solution. I learned it years and years ago, and it is in no way similar to its Danish counterpart and it is not a word I use every day either.
Looking at today's Word it hit me that those of them containing five letters (Hazel - Rapid - White) could be a credible way of solving today's Wordle. I added Words as well, but could have done without.
Again, if you intend to solve today's Wordle, and you still can do so in your timezone, scroll down no further.
This might be a mock-up, but the solution is the right one.
*
**
***
**
***
tirsdag den 29. oktober 2024
Showing my Ecodye ~ PlantePrint-resultater
Now I succeeded in snapping the two pieces I ecoprinted.
First a reprise of the as yet un-steamed piece of fabric with all the plants.
(ahorn=maple, tørstetræ=frangula, jordbær=strawberry, eg=oak, vedbend=ivy)
Then the results - the red tinge comes from a dye blanket containing a weak madder-solution.
And the first one I dyed. Here the blanket was dipped in chestnut dye first.
Many of the prints are good. I'm most happy with the strawberries (1), maple (2), and frangula (3). The artichoke (4) did quite well also, but fig, oak and fern were all disappointing. I blame this on the iron contents of the mordant.
My goal is clear, crisp prints on a white background, so a blanket, dipped only in water (maybe some tiny amount of alum) but no more iron, neither as mordant nor as assist. Iron is a saddening substance, that makes the black / grey / dark brown colours stand out.
Both these fabrics were pre-mordanted in alum, iron and lime.
I am going to experiment with a form of aluminium salt suitable for cellulose-based fibres (non-protein / non-animal fibres) like cotton, linen and flax - it can be used for paper as well, and I found some old, very nice paper, so ... fun will happen I hope .. that is if the frost won't arrive first, as I need fresh leaves for EcoPrinting.
Lidt på dansk
De to planteprintede stykker er fine, men jeg er ikke tilfreds. Her er lidt overvejelser:
Normalt er det kun bagsiden af bladene, der giver de der sorte "knopper" men her har jeg også fået dem, fra bregner, eg og andre blade, selv om jeg vendte den oversiden mod stoffet.
Så jeg kiggede i bøger og på nettet, og fandt ud af, at det er jernet i bejdsen, der giver de der sorte "knopper" både fra bregner og andre blade. Jeg fandt denne engelske side, (https://lacreativemama.com/best-mordants-eco-printing-fabric/) hvor man kan se forskellige bejdser og medløbere, og syntes, at aluminiumacetat så dejligt ud.
Jeg opdagede så - ved at søge efter stoffet - at min "guru", Astrid fra Midgaards have, også bruger aluminiumacetat til at bejdse vegetabilske fibre til PlantePrint, og det ser ud som en meget enklere proces end dender er brugt her. Måske endda med et bedre resultat.
Altså, jeg vil gerne finde ud af at fremstille stoffer med lys baggrund og klare farver, altså helt uden jern eller andre metaller eller farve i suppen, så "dirty pot" er ikke lige mig.
I oprydningen har jeg også fundet en pakke meget stærkt og smidigt papir, så det vil jeg også forsøge mig med.
First a reprise of the as yet un-steamed piece of fabric with all the plants.
Then the results - the red tinge comes from a dye blanket containing a weak madder-solution.
And the first one I dyed. Here the blanket was dipped in chestnut dye first.
Many of the prints are good. I'm most happy with the strawberries (1), maple (2), and frangula (3). The artichoke (4) did quite well also, but fig, oak and fern were all disappointing. I blame this on the iron contents of the mordant.
Both these fabrics were pre-mordanted in alum, iron and lime.
I am going to experiment with a form of aluminium salt suitable for cellulose-based fibres (non-protein / non-animal fibres) like cotton, linen and flax - it can be used for paper as well, and I found some old, very nice paper, so ... fun will happen I hope .. that is if the frost won't arrive first, as I need fresh leaves for EcoPrinting.
Lidt på dansk
De to planteprintede stykker er fine, men jeg er ikke tilfreds. Her er lidt overvejelser:
Normalt er det kun bagsiden af bladene, der giver de der sorte "knopper" men her har jeg også fået dem, fra bregner, eg og andre blade, selv om jeg vendte den oversiden mod stoffet.
Så jeg kiggede i bøger og på nettet, og fandt ud af, at det er jernet i bejdsen, der giver de der sorte "knopper" både fra bregner og andre blade. Jeg fandt denne engelske side, (https://lacreativemama.com/best-mordants-eco-printing-fabric/) hvor man kan se forskellige bejdser og medløbere, og syntes, at aluminiumacetat så dejligt ud.
Jeg opdagede så - ved at søge efter stoffet - at min "guru", Astrid fra Midgaards have, også bruger aluminiumacetat til at bejdse vegetabilske fibre til PlantePrint, og det ser ud som en meget enklere proces end dender er brugt her. Måske endda med et bedre resultat.
Altså, jeg vil gerne finde ud af at fremstille stoffer med lys baggrund og klare farver, altså helt uden jern eller andre metaller eller farve i suppen, så "dirty pot" er ikke lige mig.
I oprydningen har jeg også fundet en pakke meget stærkt og smidigt papir, så det vil jeg også forsøge mig med.
mandag den 28. oktober 2024
Oops I almost forgot Poetry Monday over being busy with autumnal purging and cleaning.
Today's topic is Small, and ... well sorry, this is almost only half a poem:
A poem this small
is better than none at all.
- - - - - - - -
Up next:
Beating Around the Bush, November 4
Wild Goose Chase, November 11
Jumping the Gun, November 18
Cry Wolf, November 25
Today's topic is Small, and ... well sorry, this is almost only half a poem:
A poem this small
is better than none at all.
- - - - - - - -
Up next:
Beating Around the Bush, November 4
Wild Goose Chase, November 11
Jumping the Gun, November 18
Cry Wolf, November 25
Sunday Selection ~ Søndagsbilleder
Quirky Old Owl is still snapping Oreos ... ~ Underlige Ugle tager stadig billeder af Oreos ... 
and moons ~ og måner
This is the latest experiment - Ecodyeing again. This time in the local crafting gulid under the tutelage of a more experienced dyer. This is the outset. The pre-mordante fabric was covered with a dye blanket (madder) and firmly rolled onto a rolled-up tovel and steamed for 1½ hours. The result was good, but not fanstastic, photo will follow.
(ahorn=acer, tørstetræ=frangula, jordbær=strawberry, eg=oak, vedbend=ivy)
Og det seneste eksperiment. PlantePrint uder vingerne af en mere erfaten farver. Det bejdsede stof blev dækket af en medlæber, der var dyppet i krapfarve, og så rullet stramt op om et sammenrulled håndkælde. Derefter blev det dampet i 1½ time. Det blev fint, men ikke fantastisk - billede følger.
Der kommer helt sikkert flere PlantePrint eksperimenter i den kommende tid. Blandt andet skal jeg teste, om jeg kan få bregner til at give den smukke lysegrønne, som den gav på vores medløbere.
and moons ~ og måner
This is the latest experiment - Ecodyeing again. This time in the local crafting gulid under the tutelage of a more experienced dyer. This is the outset. The pre-mordante fabric was covered with a dye blanket (madder) and firmly rolled onto a rolled-up tovel and steamed for 1½ hours. The result was good, but not fanstastic, photo will follow.
(ahorn=acer, tørstetræ=frangula, jordbær=strawberry, eg=oak, vedbend=ivy)
Der kommer helt sikkert flere PlantePrint eksperimenter i den kommende tid. Blandt andet skal jeg teste, om jeg kan få bregner til at give den smukke lysegrønne, som den gav på vores medløbere.
lørdag den 26. oktober 2024
I nat ... Tonight
Selvom det er sværere at se på YR end det var på det meget savnede Bedre vejr, så ender sommertiden altså i nat!
Her holder jeg musen over, og der står fra 02-02 som klokkeslæt. Så i morgen og de kommende par uger er det atter lyst, når vækkeuret ringer, og Piraten kan cykle afsted igen uden voldsomme lygter, og mit indre ur vil atter være i overensstemmelse med virkeligheden - jeg glæder mig til at sove ordentligt, for sært nok vågner jeg en time tidligere, når vi har sommertid. Det vil sige, hvis vi skal op klokken 7 (der jo egentlig er klokken 6), ja så vågner jeg klokken 6 (altså egentlig klokken 5), jeg kan ikke forklare det, men i løbet af den næste uges tid stopper det fjolleri, og jeg vågner 5-10 minuter i syv, når vækkeuret er sat til syv, sådan som jeg gør hele vinterhalvåret. Jeg glæder mig! Og håber det idioti snart er fortid, TAK
Even though it is harder to see here on YR than it was on the lost and mourned BedreVejr, DST ends tonight. I here mouse over the relevant spot, and it tells me the weather tonight between 02 and 02 am. It is a bit absurd, but makes me really happy. Tomorrow and tomorrow, and for many days after the sun will be in the skies, or almost there when the alarm goes off. The Pirate can again bike to school, and my inner Owl is happy, as my time now again fits the clock, and I am no longer going to wake up an hour before the alarm goes off - no, I do not know why on Earth DST does this to me, but it does. Slowly, in the coming week, my inner alarm will recalibrate itself, and wake me u 15 to five minutes to alarm time, as it does all winter. I so look forwards to undisturbed sleep again.
Her holder jeg musen over, og der står fra 02-02 som klokkeslæt. Så i morgen og de kommende par uger er det atter lyst, når vækkeuret ringer, og Piraten kan cykle afsted igen uden voldsomme lygter, og mit indre ur vil atter være i overensstemmelse med virkeligheden - jeg glæder mig til at sove ordentligt, for sært nok vågner jeg en time tidligere, når vi har sommertid. Det vil sige, hvis vi skal op klokken 7 (der jo egentlig er klokken 6), ja så vågner jeg klokken 6 (altså egentlig klokken 5), jeg kan ikke forklare det, men i løbet af den næste uges tid stopper det fjolleri, og jeg vågner 5-10 minuter i syv, når vækkeuret er sat til syv, sådan som jeg gør hele vinterhalvåret. Jeg glæder mig! Og håber det idioti snart er fortid, TAK
An old screenie from better times ~ Et gammelt skærmdump fra dengang Bedre Vejr virkede.
torsdag den 24. oktober 2024
Til River 😉 For River
Dagens stikord til 365 Days of Drawing Prompts var Rivers, og til InkTober var det Expedition ... det læste jeg naturligvis som Rivers Expedition, og lod Habakuk være parat til at tage afsted sammen med hende med sin gamle rygsæk :)
-- 🎨 --
Today the prompt for 365 Days of Drawing Prompts was Rivers and for InkTober it was Expedition. Could I do anything else than read this as River's expedition, and let Habakuk be ready to go wherever River would lead, bringing his old backpack?
onsdag den 23. oktober 2024
Words for Wednesday October 23
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 September are provided by Sean Jeating and can be found @ Elephant's Child.
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.
Due to an error we have two week's worth of words this time. The Words from last Wednesday were:
Funeral,
Moon,
Splendiferously,
Sun,
Coffin,
and/or
Afraid,
Biased,
Crows,
Nutrition,
Worms
And then this week's words:
Art,
Awe,
Love,
Moonlit,
Sleeping
and/or
beauty,
Breathless,
Dreamscape,
Face,
Oxygen
I am trying to gather up the shattered threads of Susan's story. Long ago I wrote a chapter which ended up with one of the professors, Marie-Louise, called M-L, dying. The words lend themselves to a description of her funeral - I did not use oxygen, and also I did not use the words in any order this time, I mixed them up well and good.
As I do not pull down my old blog posts, the early drafts of this chapter are still online here and here.
If you look there, you'll notice it's Torben dying. This is a mistake, as he was always my villain, and I use him as such in the very next chapter; on the other hand I always had troubles using M-L for anything - she was my sore thumb - so in my book (only offline) I killed her off instead.
Splendiferously was not a word Susan had ever thought of in connexion with a funeral, but then again she had never been to a witch's burial ever before. They had all gathered beneath the setting moon in the early dawn and the four oldest professors from Unicorn Farm had carried the coffin together with M-L's parents, all dressed in black robes.
Susan was not afraid of graveyards, she often used the big one in her hometown as either a short cut or a place for silence and thoughts. People telling tales of ghosts and spooky happenings were in Susan's mind biased, having watched too many movies on scary, creepy crows and whatnot in the graveyards. In reality the name Tranquil Gardens suited perfectly, and she hoped, maybe morbidly, to have just as great a funeral when the time came to give her body as nutrition to the worms.
The six black-clad magicians carried the coffin from the still moonlit hearse into the church. There the coffin was opened, and M-L lay as if she was sleeping, her face serene, an awe inspiring work of art and love after her violent demise.
When everybody was seated, the lid was put back in place, the candles were lit, the organ played and the magicians sang a hymn of intricate patterns and harmonies. The beauty and solemnity left Susan breathless. After a short, formal and very fitting ceremony the coffin was carried out into the new dawn and lowered into the newly opened grave. All gathered around the grave, and after the priest had sprinkled grave and coffin with holy water, the heaped up earth flew down the grave, packing itself around and gently covering the coffin, leaving a dreamscape of flowers and patterned sands glowing in the gentle morning sun.
The prompts for September are provided by Sean Jeating and can be found @ Elephant's Child.
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.
- - A - - B - - C - -
Due to an error we have two week's worth of words this time. The Words from last Wednesday were:
Funeral,
Moon,
Splendiferously,
Sun,
Coffin,
and/or
Afraid,
Biased,
Crows,
Nutrition,
Worms
And then this week's words:
Art,
Awe,
Love,
Moonlit,
Sleeping
and/or
beauty,
Breathless,
Dreamscape,
Face,
Oxygen
I am trying to gather up the shattered threads of Susan's story. Long ago I wrote a chapter which ended up with one of the professors, Marie-Louise, called M-L, dying. The words lend themselves to a description of her funeral - I did not use oxygen, and also I did not use the words in any order this time, I mixed them up well and good.
As I do not pull down my old blog posts, the early drafts of this chapter are still online here and here.
If you look there, you'll notice it's Torben dying. This is a mistake, as he was always my villain, and I use him as such in the very next chapter; on the other hand I always had troubles using M-L for anything - she was my sore thumb - so in my book (only offline) I killed her off instead.
Splendiferously was not a word Susan had ever thought of in connexion with a funeral, but then again she had never been to a witch's burial ever before. They had all gathered beneath the setting moon in the early dawn and the four oldest professors from Unicorn Farm had carried the coffin together with M-L's parents, all dressed in black robes.
Susan was not afraid of graveyards, she often used the big one in her hometown as either a short cut or a place for silence and thoughts. People telling tales of ghosts and spooky happenings were in Susan's mind biased, having watched too many movies on scary, creepy crows and whatnot in the graveyards. In reality the name Tranquil Gardens suited perfectly, and she hoped, maybe morbidly, to have just as great a funeral when the time came to give her body as nutrition to the worms.
The six black-clad magicians carried the coffin from the still moonlit hearse into the church. There the coffin was opened, and M-L lay as if she was sleeping, her face serene, an awe inspiring work of art and love after her violent demise.
When everybody was seated, the lid was put back in place, the candles were lit, the organ played and the magicians sang a hymn of intricate patterns and harmonies. The beauty and solemnity left Susan breathless. After a short, formal and very fitting ceremony the coffin was carried out into the new dawn and lowered into the newly opened grave. All gathered around the grave, and after the priest had sprinkled grave and coffin with holy water, the heaped up earth flew down the grave, packing itself around and gently covering the coffin, leaving a dreamscape of flowers and patterned sands glowing in the gentle morning sun.
mandag den 21. oktober 2024
Poetry Monday :: Apple :: Not Poetry
Posted one minute to midnight for reasons that will become obvious further down.
Today's topic is Apple. I was not able to write any poems, but last Wednesday the prompt for 365 Days of Drawing Prompts was Apples and I drew a couple of grungy apples, grungy being the InkTober prompt of the day. I'm trying to teach myself drawing in ink + one colour and cross hatching. At least it's fun. The colour here is not very obvious, a very pale tan.
A bit more than a year ago, I tried to make the Wordle of the relevant day fit the topic of either Poetry Monday or the Words for Wednesday. Today I tried to simply use Apple as the first guess - it went surprisingly well.
I've tried to find out if this Wordle is still accessible after my midnight and failed to find anything conclusive ... but ... if you still have not solved the Wordle for October 21st and can and want to, do not scroll down.
Today's topic is Apple. I was not able to write any poems, but last Wednesday the prompt for 365 Days of Drawing Prompts was Apples and I drew a couple of grungy apples, grungy being the InkTober prompt of the day. I'm trying to teach myself drawing in ink + one colour and cross hatching. At least it's fun. The colour here is not very obvious, a very pale tan.
A bit more than a year ago, I tried to make the Wordle of the relevant day fit the topic of either Poetry Monday or the Words for Wednesday. Today I tried to simply use Apple as the first guess - it went surprisingly well.
I've tried to find out if this Wordle is still accessible after my midnight and failed to find anything conclusive ... but ... if you still have not solved the Wordle for October 21st and can and want to, do not scroll down.
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søndag den 20. oktober 2024
Sunday Selection ~ Søndagsbilleder :: Colour2024 :: 001
Forleden dag så jeg endelig nummer 003 - og den holdt stille, så jeg kunne tage et billede af dens stengrå ynder.
~ ~ ~
Finally I found 003 - and it was parked, so that I could snap its Pebble grey curves.
Shopping while visiting my mother I found Habakuk all dressed up for Halloween. I just had to bring him home.
~ ~ ~
Da vi besøgte min mor i torsdags var vi på indkøb. Der fandt jeg altså Habakuk, der var trukket i halloween-tøjet. Han måtte bare med hjem.
Min Habakuk ~ My Habakuk
tirsdag den 15. oktober 2024
Hættemåger, krige og ferskner
Black-headed gulls, War and Peaches (English further down)
For mange år siden stod der noget graffiti på et plankeværk, når man tog S-toget til København. Jeg husker det som om der stod:
Hættemågerne
Letter blot på hætterne.
Svaler flyver bort.
Black-headed gulls, War and Peaches
Many years ago I saw some graffiti written on a fence I passed when riding the S-train to Copenhagen. I remember it as if it said:
That was the backstory. The other day I rode an S-train past that fence again, and remembered the more than half-forgotten black-headed gull verse. Then I thought up an autumn haiku along the same lines.
It's neither for nor against nuclear power, Pershing two rockets, the war in Gaza or anything else. It just is.
Awaiting winter
The gulls take off their brown hoods.
Swallows fly away.
For mange år siden stod der noget graffiti på et plankeværk, når man tog S-toget til København. Jeg husker det som om der stod:
Hættemågerne letter på hætterne.
Alle siger nej til hættemågerne.
Men måske husker jeg forkert, måske har kunstneren været skuffet eller måske skrev han bare sit eget vers ligesom mig. Ved en søgning på nettet fandt jeg et vers fra en protestsang kaldet "Raketskimarch", hvor der står: Alle siger nej til hættemågerne.
Hættemågerne løfter på hætterne
Alle fugle siger nej lissom spætterne
Den er ikke go'
med Pershing to
Nej, må vi
så bli' fri! (Raketskimarsh Anker Schjerning 1981/82)
Alle fugle siger nej lissom spætterne
Den er ikke go'
med Pershing to
Nej, må vi
så bli' fri! (Raketskimarsh Anker Schjerning 1981/82)
Måske var det bare en graffitimaler der tog sin kunstneriske frihed alvorligt, for på den anden side af banen stod der (stadig - hvis jeg ikke husker forkert):
Lots of peaches for you
Lots of peaches for me
Lots of peaches for free
Og det er jeg ret sikker på skulle have været et citat fra "Peaches" af The Presidents of the United States of America, og lydt: Lots of peaches for free
Millions of peaches, peaches for me
Millions of peaches, peaches for free
Millions of peaches, peaches for me
Millions of peaches, peaches for free
Det var forhistorien. Forleden kørte jeg forbi det stakit igen, og kom i tanke om det mere end halvglemte hættemåge-vers. Så faldt der mig et efterårs-haiku ind til det tema. Det er hverken for eller mod atomkraft, Perching 2 raketter, krigen i Gaza eller noget som helst andet. Der er bare. Millions of peaches, peaches for free
Millions of peaches, peaches for me
Millions of peaches, peaches for free
Hættemågerne
Letter blot på hætterne.
Svaler flyver bort.
Det her er måske hættemåger -- This might black-headed gulls.
Black-headed gulls, War and Peaches
Many years ago I saw some graffiti written on a fence I passed when riding the S-train to Copenhagen. I remember it as if it said:
The black-headed gulls are taking off their hoods.
Everyone says no to the black-headed gulls.
But maybe I'm not remembering correctly, or maybe the artist was disappointed or wrote his own. Because I found a verse from a protest song called "Raketskimarch", which reads: Everyone says no to the black-headed gulls.
The black-headed gulls lift their hoods
All birds say no like the woodpeckers:
There's something wrong
With Pershing two
So please let's
just drop it! (Raketskimarch Anker Schjerning 1981/82)
Maybe it was just a graffiti artist taking his artistic freedom seriously, because on the other side of the train track was another wall with some graffiti that said (my memory may still fail me):All birds say no like the woodpeckers:
There's something wrong
With Pershing two
So please let's
just drop it! (Raketskimarch Anker Schjerning 1981/82)
Lots of peaches for you
Lots of peaches for me
Lots of peaches for free
And I'm pretty sure that should have been a quote from Peaches by The Presidents of the United States of America: Lots of peaches for me
Lots of peaches for free
Millions of peaches, peaches for me
Millions of peaches, peaches for free
Millions of peaches, peaches for me
Millions of peaches, peaches for free.
Millions of peaches, peaches for free
Millions of peaches, peaches for me
Millions of peaches, peaches for free.
That was the backstory. The other day I rode an S-train past that fence again, and remembered the more than half-forgotten black-headed gull verse. Then I thought up an autumn haiku along the same lines.
It's neither for nor against nuclear power, Pershing two rockets, the war in Gaza or anything else. It just is.
Awaiting winter
The gulls take off their brown hoods.
Swallows fly away.
mandag den 14. oktober 2024
Poetry Monday :: Island
Over five years ago I wrote this poem for the topic Portal. It is also suitable for Island, which is today's topic. Also Island is the Danish spelling of Iceland, which plays a prominent part in my Unicorn Farm writings.
I do not know why, but gulls have been flying around in the poetic compartment of my brain, jogged by a photo I snapped and the sight of an old fence on my way to Copenhagen ... strange things happen.
If something come off it, I'll post here later on.
I do not know why, but gulls have been flying around in the poetic compartment of my brain, jogged by a photo I snapped and the sight of an old fence on my way to Copenhagen ... strange things happen.
If something come off it, I'll post here later on.
-- -- -- 🔏 -- -- --
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 - and for travelling.
I have something to ask of you: If you read this and the poetry of others via the links, would you please leave a comment.
Half - if not more - the fun of these challenges is receiving the responses of others.
-- -- -- --
The portal - my portal - led to Unicorn Isle
Oh I'd love to go through it and stay for a while. To meet Heidi and Knud, even Percy again
To run through those fields in the bright morning sun.
To wield my old wand, and to do magical spells.
But I'm old now and grey, and so are they all,
The teachers are greyer, if they are not dead.
I just can't return now. So I hang my head.
The wands are all broken, the magic is lost.
In Midsummer's heat I feel touched by the frost.
My portal is shattered, and where once it lay
Stands a kindergarten where small children play.
The walnut is chopped down, the meadow is gone,
The people who live there have fenced in their lawn.
Though my mind tells me no, as long as I live
In my unruly heart shards of hope will thrive.
søndag den 13. oktober 2024
Sunday Selection & Colour of the Month ~ Pebble Grey
Oktober måneds farve er "Pebble grey". Jeg oversætter det som stengrå.
1. Måger der flyver med sol på vingerne - de gennemlyste vingekanter er stengrå.
Not "Wild geese that fly / with the moon on their wings" but gulls that fly with the sun on their wings, making the edges of the wings light up in pebble grey.
En hemmelig have i en bog. Det var en del af en vinduesudstilling, da jeg var på indkøb i onsdags.
A secret garden in a book. I saw this in a window, as I went shopping last Wednesday.
1. Måger der flyver med sol på vingerne - de gennemlyste vingekanter er stengrå.
- -- 🩶 -- -
En hemmelig have i en bog. Det var en del af en vinduesudstilling, da jeg var på indkøb i onsdags.
- -- 🩶 -- -
Jeg fandt også dette pindsvin. Den slags bogfoldning kan jeg godt lide. Og der er helt sikkert noget stengråt over pindsvinet her.
- -- 🩶 -- -
Endelig havde jeg heldet med mig. Kameraet lå i lommen, og min skarv stod på frøen i gadekæret. Stenen, frøen sidder på, er naturligvis stengrå.
--- --- ---
And I realize that I never showed my lousy phone picture of the cormorant. Well here you are.
-- -- --
Og jeg viste aldrig billedet af skarven fra min mobil. Det er altså også elendigt, men værsågod.
Lousy quality, but still recognizable as a cormorant -- Elendig kvalitet men genkendelig som skarv.
En lille sjat overset gelé var mugnet og råbte ad os - naturligvis i stengrå.
We forgot this jelly for a few days. It is screaming at us in mouldy pebble grey.
Et par valnødder fra vores have. De er helt friske og lækre nu.
We have a walnut tree in our garden. The walnuts are at their best right now.
Jeg købte nogle druer, og har aldrig set så lang en klase før. Døren kan nok siges at være stengrå, selv om det korrekte navn er modehvid.
I bought a very long bunch of grapes - our door is almost pebble grey.
- -- 🩶 -- -
En lille sjat overset gelé var mugnet og råbte ad os - naturligvis i stengrå.
- -- 🩶 -- -
Et par valnødder fra vores have. De er helt friske og lækre nu.
- -- 🩶 -- -
Jeg købte nogle druer, og har aldrig set så lang en klase før. Døren kan nok siges at være stengrå, selv om det korrekte navn er modehvid.
onsdag den 9. oktober 2024
Words for Wednesday ~ the Words and a Game
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 September are provided by Sean Jeating and can be found @ Elephant's Child.
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.
This week's prompts are:
Desert,
Dream,
Machos,
Planet,
Treatment,
and/or
Bags,
Behind,
Four,
Infinity,
Walk
The prompts for September are provided by Sean Jeating and can be found @ Elephant's Child.
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.
- - A - - B - - C - -
This week's prompts are:
Desert,
Dream,
Machos,
Planet,
Treatment,
and/or
Bags,
Behind,
Four,
Infinity,
Walk
- - A - - B - - C - -
These last few days I've been noticing far more machos than is my wont. I have been looking at cars. Explanation will follow.
Long time ago, back in 2006, Myyratohtori @ Suomalainen Päivakirja (These Finnish word means Mousedoctor @ Finnish Diary) began a game. The Finnish licence plates all have 2 letters and then 1-3 numbers. The game is to look at the plates, and first find one with the number 1, then 2, then 3 and so on to 999. She is now at 513, so this is a game for the patient.
The Danish License plates are a bit different: two letters - two numbers - three numbers. So If I wanted to play, I'd have to look for a 001 to begin. Like this one:
AB 24 001
For a long time I did not want to play, but then 3 months ago I began looking ... and did I ever see a 001? No! I saw lots of 002's and 003's even a 000 - that one really has to be the starting point.
Then the last Sunday in September I told The Writer and the Owlets about this game as we walked to church, and agonized a bit. On the way back to the train station, while we were waiting for the green lights a 001 went past us. Yay.
I had seen a 002 parked at our local supermarket almost every day till then, so when I went shopping the following Monday I looked closely at all the cars in the parking lot, but of course it was there no longer. Only heaps of 003's. And Tuesday I saw no less than four 001's. Then as I sat dreaming in the bus, bags of shopping at my feet, we passed a parked 002. To be sure, I looked at the behind of the car as well, and yes, there it was.
Now I'm on the lookout for a 003, which has eluded me for almost 2 weeks. It sure is a game of patience. I can furthermore tell that the chance of seeing two cars following one another with the same last three numbers is way greater than I thought, as this has happened at least four times already.
I used the words: Machos, Dream, Bag, Walk, Behind, and four.
mandag den 7. oktober 2024
Poetry Monday Prompts for October
In October Mimi @ messymimis' meanderings is giving us the prompts And we've been given:
October 7, Shower
October 14, Island
October 21, Apple
October 28, Small
I hope to do some of them, and hope you'll have fun!
October 7, Shower
October 14, Island
October 21, Apple
October 28, Small
I hope to do some of them, and hope you'll have fun!
søndag den 6. oktober 2024
Sunday Selection & Colour of the Month
Ikke meget tekst - kun to billeder
Not much text - and just two photos
Not much text - and just two photos
Hvid raps, glimmerbøsserne kan ikke se de hvide blomster.
-
White canola, the pests can't see the white flowers.
With a small effort it can be seen as Pebble grey - the Colour of October.
-
White canola, the pests can't see the white flowers.
With a small effort it can be seen as Pebble grey - the Colour of October.
Ravgul slørhat (Cortinarius tofaceus) Amber-hued webcap
The name is my invention; as this mushroom seems to have no English name I translated the Danish one, it fits, I think.
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