Eccentric Amblings and Ramblings From Gnat Bottomed Towers

The Egg Marketing Board was set up by the government in 1956 to stabilise and prop up the market. Every egg was graded to a national standard and stamped with the lion mark. However, not everybody took kindly to being told what to do...... This is an egg vending machine which allowed farmers to sell their produce directly from their farms. Wholly mechanical it could hold up to 100 boxes of eggs and not needing electricity, allowed it to be utilised in the remotest of areas. The eggs were neither sized nor stamped. Eventually the machines were used for selling other farm produce and as for the Egg Marketing Board? It ceased to exist in 1971. Arilx

See the word "homemade" and maybe you think of something food or craft related. In this day and age most people buy what they need and if it breaks probably buy a replacement. This version of homemade and what people are capable of takes it to a whole new level. Personally I know my own limitations and building a tractor is definitely way beyond them. I instead will continue to make my bags from old net curtains which are for me to use at the supermarket so that I can continue to reduce my use of plastic. Arilx

I found this very moving. Hope you enjoy it. Arilx

I voted but I did not/have not discussed my decision with others. Whichever way you chose you were entitled to do so.... we all like to think we're right but nobody broke the law if they voted differently to you. The result is in and I think personally it would be far better if we concentrated on building bridges rather than barriers so that we can move forwards supporting one another and standing against the racist haters as we move forwards into new and unchartered waters. For now though I think I might drop below the parapet once again until the dust has settled. Arilx

Several months ago I received a text from chum E asking me to get her a cantilevered sewing box from a charity shop should I ever spot one on my rummages. Now I had no idea even what one of them was but dear old Google soon put me right. Time passed but eventually I spotted a likely contender when I was dashing in and out. Noting the price I simply sent her a message to say I'd found one and where it was if she still wanted it. Within half an hour I'd had a reply to say she'd got it. No mean feat considering she lives outside the town on the far side...her daughters were a little bemused as she simply stopped what she was doing, leapt in the car and zoomed off without a word of explanation. Good deed done. The photo however, is not of hers it's of mine...won this week on freecycle. I had bid on a couple of sewing boxes over the years but never been lucky. Strangely though I remained quite convinced that eventually this would change....I am delighted to say

Titter! Arilx

So there I was pottering around the high altar in our local church last week gawping at the artistry of the florists [see yesterday's post if you're wondering what on earth I'm wittering on about!] when I happened to glance up.....only to get the shock of my life.... this pair of eyes staring down at me. Now I should explain that I would have been far less surprised if I was in a church that was unfamiliar to me. As a church crawler you never know what to expect, but when it's on your home turf in a building you "think" you know [I got married there in 1993]. Well knock me down with a feather....I honestly thought I'd explored this place from top to bottome. I'd already discovered whimsical faces and grotesques on the outside and later on a crocodile and bear on the steeple which a friend pointed out to me. I really believed that the ceiling inside was just a mass of foliage, angels and flowers. All very pretty but not in the quirky category I f

What's a girl to do when her client has visitors so has cancelled her usual housesparkling slot....why this one grabbed her camera and headed off on Shank's Pony down the town to run a few errands and see what's what. You saw the photos of the current museum exhibition earlier this week and only a hop and a skip down to the local church brought me to this...the annual flower show. The theme this year was "The World" and each arrangement made a nod to the country it was representing both in colour choice and decorative detail. As ever the standard was very high and the icing on the cake was an exciting discovery which I shall put up in another post. Antarctica and Iceland India and Russia Some of our European cousins- Poland [I spotted the tiny mouse at the bottom amongst the gerberas!] and the clever depiction of the Italian flag. With no prizes for guessing which country this one is for! I took many more but a taster will suffic

Solstice blessings to all those who celebrate the old ways. Arilx This painting is "The Fairy Wood" painted by Henry Meynell Rheam and was painted in 1903. An image apt for the Midsummer [It is in the public domain and can therefore be reproduced without infringing copyright]

"Transforming Light and Shadow" is the title of the latest exhibition at our local museum and it's showcasing the work of various ceramicists. Lack lustre it's not. Stunning work and very much to my taste. The lamp base below was my personal favourite. Sadly out of my price league but hey ho! Arilx

Now I am quite familiar with the concept of town twinning and have been lucky enough in the past to visit both towns with which Horsham is twinned. However, toilet twinning is a new one on me! This hangs on the wall in the parish church loo. Intrigued, I've now learnt that this is part of a scheme to give people in poorer parts of the world access to clean water and latrines. A thing we take for granted here in the Western world. An excellent initiative I'd say http://www.toilettwinning.org/ Arilx

Actually I don't mind the rain too much but let's inject a little colour into all that drabness. You can see from the pictures that it wasn't actually dry when we popped over to Hever yet still all the colours managed to scream out. As soon as the sun peeped out from behind the clouds all of us grabbed the opportunity to have an icecream...it is "summer" after all even if we are currently enjoying fairly typical Wimbledon weather! More roses I fear....the many colour combinations and shapes excite me and I understand that it's been an exceptional year for them. Well that's my excuse for endless photos and I'm sticking to it! There is something very pleasing about how raindrops settle on the leaves of the Lady's Mantle I find. Water features abound in the garden along with a topiary chess set made from Golden Yew which is a nod to the type that would have been used by Henry VIII and a pig no less [a topiary one that is not a descrip

The EU post was written and scheduled before the events of yesterday unfurled with the senseless killing of Jo Cox by a madman. My thoughts are with her family. Arilx

There are one or two items in the British media about a National Referendum coming up later this month. You might have just have heard a mention or three in passing. By nature I'm not a political animal but I am trying to fathom it all out before I vote but for those trying to decide this will be no help whatsoever. However, hopefully it will inject a little humour into the whole process and make you smile! Being a kindly soul I've provided the original to get you in the groove! Arilx

Tradition has it that you should leave a part of your garden or farm untended to protect against the evil eye and stop malign forces. This patch of ground is known as the Devil's offering or Jack's Land. This is the latest photo of our garden redesign which Mr GBT has undertaken. He's now filled a skip with earth and the raised beds with soil. The gravel arrives next week and then the fun part...buying new plants. Which bit should we leave to free style naturally though...that has yet to be decided. Arilx

At some points over the last few weeks I've found myself singing these lyrics as the teenogre navigates the sometimes choppy seas of exam taking. I had never appreciated how nerve wracking this is when you are the parent and you are standing on the sidelines cheering them on, consoling, reassuring, scolding them [no you can't go to the pub every night and drink copious quantities of lager just because you've just turned 18 when you've got revision to do tomorrow] and most important of all never letting on that you are nervous too. It's one of the best kept parenting secrets. Tomorrow morning I shall mentally be in the exam hall next to him willing him on and counting down until he's finished. After that it's only two more papers to go and we can all breathe. To date he's had a few minor wobbles, but by and large he's coped well and has recognised when he needs to let off steam going out for a run or kicking a ball round with his mates....and yes th

In the light of the Stanford assault case last week this British way of explaining the issue around consent using the making of a cup of tea as an analogy is very clever and gets the point across. Arilx

This is the first time I have ever seen a genuinely purple rose and I absolutely promise that I have not tweaked the colour in the slightest....I can produce independent eye witness accounts to corroborate my sighting honest guv! They are called Rhapsody in Blue and smell gorgeous. I have been out to Hever Castle with a couple of old school chums...Guiding J and Quilty C. We're all busy so are never able to get together as often as we would like. Consequently there's been masses of chattering and eating of cake today. Although it was a bit rainy at times, that worked for us as it kept the crowds away. More photos of the gardens to follow later in the week but none from inside....photography is strictly verboten! Please allow me to leave you with another photo of these beauties....can you tell I'm tickled pink! Arilx

I have an exacting criterion for choosing what I will photograph...it goes something like this......something catches my eye and then I press and point without the slightest bit of forethought or planning. Unsophisticated and spontaneous that's me and a constant source of amusement for Arty L. In effect it means you get pictures that are not high end [Mr GBT provides the quality shots] but are simply a reflection of what I like! The area around Hampton Court is unhurried and you feel you can breathe. No chain stores...just a glorious range of individual shops run by down to earth people. We had time to browse and time to swap stories with those we met. Time spent chatting to the owners of Beano's pet shop revealed that the two beagles we saw were Irish rescue dogs from the dreadful puppy farms. One bounded over for cuddles whilst the other older one slept in peace on her bed in the sunshine. She still doesn't fully trust people...hardly surprising when you'd never bee