The Duchesse has given us a wonderful topic this week for her Great Book of Lists , music. Well, more specifically music that has been a very important part of our lives. I love music and it is wonderful to be transported back in time when a certain song comes on the radio. Here are some of my favourites:
Young Love- Donny Osmond. I have loved Donny Osmond and in fact, the whole family, since I was a very little girl. My big sister was crazy for them and actually got to see them in concert, at the height of their fame in Manchester. She played their records constantly but this one is one of my favourites. Oh, and Donny has still got it even now!!
Meatloaf – Bat out of Hell. This whole album reminds of school. I was not keen on my school days I have to admit, but we did have some good laughs. I went to an all-girls grammar school that also used to have boarders back then. I was invited by one of the girls to stay the night and I remember songs from this album being played at full blast. This album was top of the charts for years, and never grows old! In fact I was playing the CD in my car singing my head off just last week.
Roxy Music – Same old Scene. Now I am not usually one for the smooth, suave type, but there was something about Bryan Ferry that was rather appleaing! I remember going to see Roxy Music in Concert with my sister and brother. they were brilliant live. Not long after this I joined the army, which brings me to…
Pat Benetar – Love is a Battlefield. This is mine and Mr Grump’s song! We kept splitting up and getting back together when we first met, even getting engaged at one point. We were too young though.
Queen – Another One Bites the Dust. There are so many songs I could have chosen by Queen but this is one of my favourites. Freddie Mercury was such a brilliant showman and I was lucky enough to actually be at this concert in 1986. we were nowhere near the front but the atmosphere was electric. Freddie had us all in the palm of his hands singing with him!
Tom Jones – It’s Not Unusual. This is a very special song to me. Both of my sisters were with me when Miss Hap was born, and we had brought some cds with us to the hospital to relax me. As soon as we Miss Hap started to apprear they put this on, and that is the first thing she heard! Did I mention she is a bit of a mover!
Eagles – Hotel California When Mr Grump and I finally got married, my brother-in law sang this for us at our wedding as it is one of our favourite songs. It was a very personal and special moment for us both.
There are loads more, and I could go on and on, but these are the ones that have really had a huge impact on my life.
Wow, it is Wednesday already! This must mean that it is time for me to dig out a wonderful, weird or just plain wacky word to have some fun with. This week’s word is actually a regular part of my vocabulary. Although it has quite a humorous sound to it, this word pretty much describes teenagers, or tweens, or kids, or husbands…pretty much everybody at times!
Stroppy. Oh, this is an obstinate and obstreperous word; moaning and moody, as well as cantankerous and crabby. The bad-tempered and sheer bloody-minded nature of this word can result in tears and tantrums, or possibly even fights and fisticuffs!
It is the sulky and sullen expression of the troubled teenager, the grumpy and grouchy face of the harassed husband, and the annoyed and angry face of the wife. Wait a minute, that sounds like a typical Martin family outing!!!
One of the best things about being a blogger, I have found is meeting people from all different walks of life. I love the diversity we have on here. I love that we have our own traditions, customs and cultures. I love that now matter what colour, creed or sexuality we are, we all have something in common. We are all one big blogily (to coin a phrase from my blogging sister Ritu
No matter what time of day or night there is someone online to talk to. It is fabulous too that there is always someone to give us a bit of help and advice, or moral support, and encouragement; maybe even more importantly, there is someone there to listen to us. Not literally of course, but they read our words, and engage with us. It really is quite unlike any other community I have known, as most of us in our offline lives, choose what we say to people or how we portray ourselves, but online we are more honest and open. It is a wonderful feeling then to have so many friends that still like us, warts and all!
I have made friends with people from all over the globe, and despite our differences, there is always so much common ground, love and laughter being two of the biggest ones I can think of.
Not only have I made friends but I have also received three packages in the last few months that have really touched me with how kind and thoughtful you are.
Wendy sent me some beautiful hand made Christmas tree decorations from Australia
My beautiful Australian seashell decoration
Mary-Anne some socks that she had knitted herself in the colours that I chose. I have them on now with my pj’s and they are so warm and snuggly!
My lovely socks all the way from Canada
Tonya sent me a ‘care package’ of beautiful chocolate, peanuts (not in the pic as I ate them already), her brilliant book ‘Clemmie the Communic-CAT’,’ one of her antique plant pots that we had talked about, a sheep Christmas tree decoration and a notebook and pens!
My American care package. The salted caramel chocolate was too good to share – sorry!
I consider myself very blessed to have such wonderful people in my life, and although I absolutely loved my gifts, the friendship I have with each of you means the world.
We have an interesting combination of words for Ronovan’s weekly haiku challenge prompt this week of ‘tight’ and ‘warm.’ There are many directions I could have gone in with this one, but I went with niece’s scan picture of her first child.
***** I am now proud to be able to say that last night she had a little girl and they have named her Molly! I can’t wait to see my new great-niece!*****
I missed Linda’s Stream of Consciousness yesterday, but I thought I would sneak it in today and hope I don’t get told off! Anway, today we are to start with a contraction, and get a few brownie points if we end with one as well, so here goes.
I’ve just come back from a night away with Mr Grump. It was our first night away together since we got married six years ago. My Mum stayed over at our house to look after Miss Hap and Roxy and Grump and I set off around 10 am to get to our final destination of Ham, Sandwich!
The weather was wet and grey but it didn’t dampen our spirits. We stopped off in Hythe and had a massive brunch which would set us up for a while, and poked around in some of the pretty boutique shops they have there.
Next stop was Deal but we passed Dover Castle on the way. It looks pretty imposing on top of the hill but I still didn’t manage to do it justice in my photos!
In Deal we found some more lovely shops and the first one I went in I found a lovely dress which I had to have! In the last shop we went to, it looked more like a little house. Once we finally managed to locate the doorway, we walked into an Aladdin’s cave. There were sparkly jewels in the shape of skulls and Lizards, wonderful long, satiny dresses with lacy panels, the coolest men’s shirts I have ever seen with all kinds of patterns on them, guitars, musical notes, Union Jacks, bright colours and multicoloured buttons. The owner of this shop was a little man with a beanie hat on that was sat behind a counter almost buried by yet more goodies, sequinned hats. floaty scarves, that were draped all around. We had shown an interest in the coats that were there but there was so much stuff, I didn’t know where to look., with He told us that he had a downstairs too and pointed to a small spiral banister-less stairway that led downwards. We gingerly made our way down just as another couple came into the shop.
There were racks of dresses and shirts down there too jam-packed into every crevice which left about 2 meters left to walk on. This was a bit awkward when the couple and shop owner came down as the male half of the couple was about 6ft tall and pretty wide! WE kind of danced around each other and Grump and I decided to go back upstairs which of course I managed to fall up! We checked out the coats again and the owner told us he was knocking off some money as it was his ‘winter stock.’
He picked out a brightly coloured coat for me which I already had my eye on and gestured for me to try it on. Of course, as I put my arms out to get them into the coat I whacked the mannequin he had nearby, displaying a gaudy had and some necklaces. He looked a bit askance when I apologised again for being clumsy, but the coat was a perfect fit! I loved it! To me, it was like Joseph’s technicoloured Dreamcoat with the bright colours.
This is me modelling the coat to show Mum when we got home. Sorry it’s the back, but I have got my eyes closed in the front shot!
As you can tell, I bought the coat. We went to the hotel and settled in and ate yet more food. I tried to go for the healthy option but there was none, so I didn’t! Look at the size of Mr Grump’s steak here, it was an inch and a half thick!
We had a lovely day and had a huge breakfast this morning before we left. In fact, we had so much to eat the last couple of days that my poor tummy is protesting! In fact, we cancelled the carvery we were going to have today as much as I might want it, my body certainly doesn’t!
Today TJ has given us ‘art’ as our prompt for his household haiku challenge. I have never been any good at drawing and am not much of an art connoisseur either. I have always admired those that are talented artists and am even a little envious of them!
For my haiku this week, I have featured a drawing my daughter did for her homework when she was 11 years old. I was very impressed.
As part of my birthday present, a relative has booked us a night at a lovely hotel in Sandwich which is not that far away. What made me laugh, though is that the name of the village is Ham! Hmmmm. wonder what the menu is like?
Share a link here of your favourite poem/s, which you have written or a poem written by a fellow poet. Or both!
Rhyme and No Reason! 
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