What an emotional week that was; one which included birthdays of the closest of relatives no longer here; one when it was beginning to feel like each day brought news of the ending of someone's, both celebrity and family member, life. Stark reminders indeed that no-one gets out of this place alive.
But there have been pleasurable bits, too.
The crochet squares were retrieved from their Christmas hiding place in the loft ('Get up that ladder, Boy') and stitched together. With a sewing needle rather than a crochet hook, and in my usual ham-fisted way. But it has the look and feel of a blanket in the making. Many more squares are now needed.
Another cookbook was delved into and another recipe tried. This one was Rose Elliot's lentil and sun-blush tomato shepherd's pie with cheesy mash, for the two non vegans here.
The day after the first snowfall of the year (admittedly not that much, just enough to provide a wintry covering), a stunning sunset appeared outside the living room window. I happily snapped away, with the fleeting hope that our neighbours over the road twigged what I was up to and my name doesn't end up on some register somewhere.
With more ice than snow for most of the week, walking (when it happened; some days I took the safer option of staying indoors and left the mister and Boo to it) has been perilous and more of the 'small steps, try to emulate a penguin' variety. But the local high spot in the distance has looked seasonally appropriate.
Books, the perfect sofa companions on cold afternoons (along with a mug or two of something hot and caffeine filled) have been purchased, revisited, enjoyed, though it was probably not the best idea to continue a psychological thriller/ghost story through the night until it was finished. I can recommend all of these but have a feeling the Margaret Forster novel (I have re-read this so many times) is currently out of print. However, you should manage to locate a copy, used or otherwise, quite easily.
There was a chilly weekend walk by the river in the market town up the road, with a variety of much needed hot drinks and toasted sandwiches (save for the littlest in the group) in the coffee shop afterwards.
A batch of chocolate and peanut butter cupcakes were baked for an early celebration of the visiting Girlie's birthday. They soon disappeared, which is usually a good sign, though I'm not at all confident I could reproduce them as they were most definitely a result of the 'make it up as you go along, don't bother to measure' method.
Finally,
and Boo rocks a beret.