WTF-Beta

My parents joined a book club, and the folio society book club, and an art prints club. But each for only a couple of years. I think it was part of their being/becoming middle class, continuing education in the 1960-80's. Had a full set of Winston's autobiography, set of Encyclopaedia Brittanica for us to refer to.

We've never bothered, I guess as we were given the education. And we'd rather get exactly what we want, despite the large range offered last time I saw a book club advertised.
I used to 'borrow' audio books free from the local library.

Lovely shade of green. If cut how long will they last in a vase?

Beautiful day here

Looking N/N.W over golden fields of oil-seed-rape, from Kirk Merrington

And N/NE with Durham Cathedral Towers just visible above the centre of the white building

Instead do some window shopping at a place I purposely divert to when walking in London:

https://www.bentley-skinner.co.uk/?s=Pendant

https://www.bentley-skinner.co.uk/faberge/

Couple of weeks ago, a beautiful sapphire and diamond bracelet in their window caught my eye, made probably early 1900s. No price on things in window.
Their website is brilliant: searched bracelets, sapphire, high to low. It came sixth at £24.5k

https://www.bentley-skinner.co.uk/bracelets/
Hope I've distracted you enough

You do right; firstly as you ought to get yourself settled in your new home for a while to see how your finances pan out, secondly because you'll never sell jewellery unless things are dire and so it's never an investment to anyone but your children/inheritor, and thirdly for me the piece is being valued on the magical faberge name when in truth it's a bit plain & an unusual style for a pendant.

Very nice, location too, near Rutland Water, Stamford and the A1. I'd buy it.
Seen the price?
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/174128729#/?channel=RES_BUY

Series on BBC2, on iplayer:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m002stww/greatest-gardens-with-diarmuid-gavin-and-carol-klein-series-1-episode-4

Caught a bit of this new series last night

Last of the three featured has a raised plateau alpine rockery and an amazing iris circular garden.

Visiting us for 6-9 months, he's a bit edgy despite being called Poppy. Not let me touch so far

@Daniel said:

@AndyD said:

So I was browsing the charity shops of Durham City, and found that one is moving. Selling off stock, 10 books/cds for a pound, to eliminate moving costs. 10p a book!
This is the most lovely gardening book, though for the larger English garden, I guess it can be applied anywhere.
MrsA is our gardener, I prune the trees, hedge, lawn. This is an inspirational book however, beautifully painted plans to go with photos...

I wonder why England has the best gardens with maybe Italy a close second followed by France. Or maybe it's a matter of personal taste and I'm biased in favor of England because I'm a native English speaker. Who knows. Beautiful book. Congrats.

Could be partly taste; Japan has lovely gardens, with small stone bridges over water, and I love their stone lanterns.

@Daniel said:

Sounds beautiful!

I stopped and took a photo of some daffs.
The circular bed on the left is mainly tulips with hyacinths. Left of that just out of shot is an old bed with hyacinths still flowering through the grass.

Trumpy certainly makes daily life interesting for the first world. But reaching our age we know the fleeting nature of politics and the far more important things to us in our own lives.

Expressed for example by Keats in a personal thought:

How can I, that girl standing there,
My attention fix
On Roman or on Russian
Or on Spanish politics?
Yet here’s a travelled man that knows
What he talks about,
And there’s a politician
That has both read and thought,
And maybe what they say is true
Of war and war’s alarms,
But O that I were young again
And held her in my arms!

Trying to negotiate with a fanatical terrorist regime who murders tens of thousands of its people for the slightest protest and with any excuse, has, quelle surprise, proved fruitless. What to do?

Trumps actions are usually unexpected so who can predict what will actually happen on Tuesday?

In London last weekend I got these in an Oxfam bookshop

Today I trawled four charity shops in a nearby town and spent a colossal £5.50 for these (six are really nice, including one on watercolour for MrsA, an interesting flower ID-by-month when they flower; the one with Harold King is a Folio Society from 1973 on the Bayeux Tapestry with complete photography, though Shining Sands will be my first read)

We need to reign in our desire and look at terraced houses, they are a lot more affordable.
Usually

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/172925441#/?channel=RES_BUY

Diesel ️ seen at £1.99.9/litre
Thats nine quid a gallon.
Though much of London has it around 1.85.

Of more concern...I drove into a petrol station in Barking and only one pump out of the six had diesel remaining! People are filling their tanks.

Couple of other things came to mind depending on what you need:
•Wet room, so practical, where the whole bathroom floor is waterproofed for a shower.
•A larger shower tray, we have 900x1200 in the downstairs bathroom, bought to accommodate dogs washing but the space is really nice to use. Of course the tray is raised an inch up from the floor but you can easily access & sit.
•They advertise baths (usually being used by some glamorous woman with a bad back?) with door and in-built seat. I've never seen but would worry about leakage. And baths are awkward to get in and out for everyone at the best of times, never mind helping someone else who can't manage.

The company my family used is Stannah
https://www.stannah.com/our-homelifts

Their stairlifts are electric powered, have controls built into the seat, and come with two remotes to call & work the chair movement.

Never seen any Homelift. Guessing they are way more convenient to use for wheelchair bound people who simply roll in and out, but way more expensive and messy to install.
On the other hand the homelift appears discreet if you have the space. I feel the stairlifts mess up your stairs making them slightly awkward for able bodied. And there's the less than attractive chair.
Suppose it depends on the disability, your house, taste.

Nice houses. And bargains, I'll take three please.

Yes, it's been a while since some truly attention worthy news, this is a day that will long be remembered.
For me it shows what we are capable of, what we could achieve in an ideal world.

I'm going to find the live feed mentioned