Michael Brennand-Wood

I have been a huge fan of Michael Brennand-Wood for many years, now finally he has a wonderful website where you can see his work.

The view from here

Instead of enjoying the blossom, I am busy printing and filing and generally putting chaos into order. Yes, I am at work, and will be tomorrow as well unless I can grow two extra arms! and the cherry on top of this cupcake of a day is this

I am sure there are a myriad of reasons why, but if I could talk to Mr Livingston I would show him a map of London and explain that the South East does exist and maybe, just maybe, he should have gone out there more often (that's if he ever did)

and introduced himself to the thousands of people who lived there, then maybe they would have felt part of London instead of strangers.

OFSTED

I feel sick & pissed off, OFSTED are coming to inspect the school next week, and what a crap time to come. My markings gone to pot. I have focused all my energy on exam classes, and as for my paper work, well, that's a lot of filing to do. So the school is open all weekend and that's where I will be. Oh lucky, lucky me.

The silver lining is, that once it is over that should be it for a couple of years, so time to relax again...

The meme thing

I've been tagged by The thoughtful dresser to do this:

1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people, and acknowledge who tagged you.

So:
'I'm sure Taylor's wouldn't ask you to do that,' Nancy said kindly. 'If there's any trouble, I'll speak to the manager myself. What usually happens is that such a dress is greatly reduced.'
'Thank you' the clerk replied. 'I'll call Miss Reed, the fitter, and see what can be done.'
'First let me try on the dress,' Nancy said, smiling.
They found a vacant fitting room and Nancy took off her suit and blouse. Then she slipped the lovely pale-blue dance creation over her head and the saleswoman zipped it up.
'It's darling on you' she said enthusiastically.

From The Virago book of The Joy Of Shopping
An extract from, The Secret of the Old Clock by Carolyn Keene, (which is a Nancy Drew book)

Now I tag Materfamiliasknits Liberty london girl Gwen Fiona Long & A spoonful of sugar

I would have tagged La Ballette Rouge too, but I know she has already done this, I must say I nearly fell off my seat when I saw who tagged me, so a big thank you to Linda Grant. Copying the text was purgatory as I am so slow at typing and as for all the comma things well my fingers have hit keys on this keyboard that have yet to be touched by me and even then I am not sure I got them right!

Loeffler Randall

We are likewise impatiently awaiting the launch of Loeffler Randall's city-sleek wellie. Arriving in stores for Fall '08 in four colors of puddle-proof rubber, the $195 wellie is based on Loeffler Randall's classic flat Matilde boot—and thus proves a genuine style-saver for downpour days. "I wear my Matilde boots pretty much every day," explains designer Jessie Randall, "and it was always a bummer to have to put on giant rubber boots every time it rained." One day, as she was wrestling off her slicker, it struck Randall that there was no reason she couldn't rescue women from the rainbow-printed, prepubescent-set rain boots and duck-hunting clodhoppers that currently flood the marketplace. "Why not a slim, chic rain boot that you'd be just as excited to wear as a leather pair?"

From www.style.com

The last time I owned a pair of wellies I was in my teens, but when I saw these I actually considered buying them, once again it is raining hard enough to re float the ark, and my winter boots just look 'wrong' at this time of year. In the classroom I wear flip flops so these could be the perfect solution, except of course the price, seriously £100+ for rubber?

365 days

I have been writing this blog, the original post is here, and reads just a tad like a pompous old fart, but in many ways little has changed.
Today I must
1. Start blog
2. Send application forms for impossibly fabulous jobs
3. Paint some more stripes
4. Mark exam folders
5. Gym
6. Be a mother
Today I wish
1. Go shopping for clothes
2. Finish painting water colours
3. Paint lots of stripes
4. Put work on Flickr
5. Start pebble paintings
6. Hire a cook to feed impossibly fussy kids
Today I am looking forward to
1 .Chelsea Flower show
2. Royal Academy buyers day private view
3. Half term
4. Summer holiday
5. Spending my budget on lots of lovely oil paints, new scanner, printer, and D.S.L.R

And what's scary is nothing has changed, nothing. I am going to the gym tonight and I have so much marking to do I do not know where to start, and so the cycle of life goes on. The difference is that I think I have become less disappointed with life and happier with my lot because the more I read about the world the less I like what goes on out there.

One thing that cheered me up was I think, whilst my painting skills have languished underdeveloped, I have definitely improved as a photographer. So MEMO to self, I must organise and back up my folders onto a hard drive and then maybe over the summer I could pull my finger out and sort out my Flickr page

Grief

from here

From today's Guardian
I thought this photograph was very beautiful, a case of life imitating art and especially poignant since he lost his mother last week.