Month: Jul 2025

#1347 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn domesticaLeave a comment
Monday washing pile.

When did Monday cease to be a traditional day to do the washing? I only remark upon this because I almost never do washing on a Monday.

The only person to have a Monday wash day was my paternal grandmother who was both religious and someone who had worked for others as a domestic servant before she married in her early 30’s. Her day for minor childcare of me was Wednesday when the washing pile had metamorphised from dirty linens to an ironing pile. After school I was permitted to iron cotton handkerchiefs and tea towels. I can’t say I hated it because it is really hard to hate something quite so dull.  On reflection I think my grandmother gave me the really dull tasks in the hope that I would ask for more stimulating domestic trivia. Instead I learnt that in life there are a lot of dull tasks and they are to be endured but are not to be trusted to lead necessarily to anything more interesting. My grandmother seemed to take a quiet satisfaction in her tasks being achieved. What do I know? She could have hated every moment of the domestic drudge. Why didn’t she just cut loose on a Wednesday and enjoy time with her grandchild?

My maternal grandmother was both busy and flighty in equal measure. My paternal grandmother did not approve. I don’t remember her ever being tied to a domestic routine. She ran a pub and a taxi business. She almost certainly had ‘staff’. Women who came in from the village and kept the pub and the living quarters looking as fresh as a field of daisies.

Domestica passes down through the female line. So my mum, reluctantly and erratically but effectively did the housework when I was child.  No Washday Mondays for her.

Which leads directly to my own lack of domestic rigour and a Washday Monday being so unusual it is worthy of a blog.

This is the beige load.

Now I am a similar age to both of my grandmothers when they were doing minimal care of me. I realise that my domestic attitude is a curious blend of both. There is no routine, I have no problem with enduring the dull tasks but there is an unstated satisfaction when domestica has been conquered.

I wonder what domestic style I will pass on to my granddaughters.

Beige with a hint of colour.

I always take time out for them, perhaps they will believe a fairy does it.

#1346 theoldmortuary ponders

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Serendipity, Summer, Sunday Vibes1 Comment

I make no apology for nattering on about the spectacular sunset we were able to watch, from our van on Friday night. The serendipitous luck of making a late decision to overnight camp in a carpark, overlooking a beach that we usually only ever visit in the Winter and Spring. Just to be close to Truro for Saturday morning. I am not sure what the correct words are, but being able to sit and read our books and glance up every now and then to watch the day melt into dusk and then finally put on a spectacular finale as the sun dived below the horizon was such a glorious experience. Other people ebbed and flowed around us as the day shapeshifted. We arrived to a full carpark at the moment when young families need to leave the beach and start the nighttime routine and beach bar dwellers are not quite ready to start the night. Half an hour sitting in the van with an ugly view of the toilet block was rewarded with the perfect spot becoming available,overlooking the whole beach with a direct view of a small stream running to the sea.

After an hour or so I began to wonder if we might be in the prime spot for the sun setting. Our evening was filled with dog walks and a bar visit. The car park filled up again with older families. Truculent early teenagers and their weary parents attempting a family holiday and much older teenagers driving their first cars. All ages of people anxious to see the sunset from the beach. Zimmer frames and walking sticks replacing pushchairs and gentle hand holding on the sand. ‘Children’ in their sixties clutching the arms of frail elderly people needing to do a sunset with much loved people who are closer to their own sunset than anyone wants to think about.

The sun did not let anyone down.

Least of all us,who had hoped for a stream of fire, and got it.

But how to depict the whole cycle of the past 4 hours.

Three photos stuck together and a pencil sketch.

Happy Sunday.

#1345 theoldmortuary ponders

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Hugo and Lola1 Comment
Trevone

Friday evening ended unexpectedly. We had an early morning visit to Truro Cathedral planned, on Saturday to see a friend become part of the Laity of  the Church of England. The plan was to leave the dogs at home for a few hours.

An early start was needed to avoid the holiday traffic, but then we discovered that dogs are welcome in the Cathedral. That changed everything and we packed up the van and headed to a wild camping spot by a beach not too far from Truro for Friday night.

Trevone

We were set for a fine sunset, a cool beer and chips from a beach bar.

The sunset did not disappoint.

Trevone

Breakfast did not disappoint.

Trevone

And the dogs were good in the Cathedral.

Truro Cathedral

So much better than leaving them at home for a few hours while we did a quick dash to the Cathedral without them. And now we know a beautiful spot for some overnight camping. A marvellous change of plan on a Friday evening.

#1344 theoldmortuary ponders

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Colour, Serendipity1 Comment

Soft Summer

30 years ago I had a colour analysis and was prescribed a Soft Summer colour palate to wear. I don’t remember what motivated me to do this at the time, but the experience was fascinating.

I think one reason stems from childhood summers. Spent visiting little known relations in Wales and Glasgow. Relations who barely know children struggle to find appropriate topics of conversation. My appearance, curly haired, glasses and bookish was remarked upon. Possibly not completely kindly. My grandmother’s generation in Wales would suggest that more pink in my wardrobe would be advantageous. Then the familial road show would rumble on to Glasgow where the pink fashion advice would be repeated but in the far harsher tones of the city dwelling, Glaswegian Older Generation. Delivered one word at a time.

” That.Child.Needs.More.Pink”

“She.Is.Such.A.Pink.Person”

To discover I was Soft Summer, 30 years later was somewhat of a bittersweet moment. Some pink was involved. Because of or despite the older womens colour advice I have always felt timorous around pink only really embracing it recently since going full on grey.

I have long since lost the precious colour chart but all the other advice sticks with me.  I just did an online analysis and discovered I have slipped into Autumn. Oh goodness not much pink in autumn, I may have almost  missed the pink boat that I was destined to board at the age of 5. Autumn shades? How very age appropriate.

Autumn

Thank the goddess of Colour Analysis that I did not plunge myself into the colours of Deep Winter today. If my lifespan is measured by my colour analysis, I have two whole seasons to go . That is rather fabulous. I shall wear pink though as an act of rebellion and then,of course, it will be purple. I am certain purple will feature in a deep winter colour chart.

Warning

When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals, and say we’ve no money for butter.
I shall sit down on the pavement when I’m tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along the public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.
I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick the flowers in other people’s gardens
And learn to spit.

You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat
And eat three pounds of sausages at a go
Or only bread and pickle for a week
And hoard pens and pencils and beermats and things in boxes.

But now we must have clothes that keep us dry
And pay our rent and not swear in the street
And set a good example for the children.
We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.

But maybe I ought to practise a little now?
So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised
When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.

Jenny Joseph

from Warning:When I am an Old Woman I shall wear purple (Profile 2021)
© Jenny Joseph, reproduced with permission of Johnson & Alcock Ltd

For now though the yard will have to wear both red and the purple.

Deep winter colours in our yard.

#1343 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Serendipity, Words1 Comment
Morning mist and sticky heat. The Tidal Pool at Devils Point.

The sea mist was genuinely as dense as this first thing this morning, the borrowed light simply a reflection of the early morning sun, obscured, by mist, behind me. But the heat of the morning was uncomfortably sticky under the naturally occurring parasol. I have pondered a bit about the mystical, mythological stories linked to this area. Mostly because of my what3words discovery of yesterday.

My most regular spot for getting into the sea has this as it’s what3words location.

Allows.Wizard.Rival

I am quite charmed to think that there is a benign Sea Wizard allowing me to dump my troubles(rivals) into the sea each time I dip.

For no particular reason I checked the what3words location where I was standing to take this mornings pool picture.

Lush. Wonderfully. String. Not particularly relevant at first glance, but the drone shot clearly shows the wonderfully lush lawns of a local tennis club, and then for me there is a string. I am lucky enough to often work inside that club and also be there for entirely enjoyable reasons.

I love the simple pleasure of finding a what3words location that resonates personally

#1342 theoldmortuary ponders

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Devils Point, SerendipityLeave a comment

The Hamoaze from The Royal William Yard.

Looking out to Cornwall from the Royal William Yard last night we could see the tides and currents that give Devils Point its name. 7 currents converge here.They are really easy to see with the naked eye. All but invisible with a simple phone camera, but by just adding a bit of extra colour I can show the complexity of these waters.

Sir Francis Drake made Devils Point famous by making a pact with the witches and demons of the area to create a storm that would incapacitate the Spanish Armada. Other versions are available.

There must be something about the waters around here. I tend to take my demons with me when I swim nearby and then cast them off as I enter the chilly waters. It works every time.

Demon Casting at the tidal pool.

What3words even allows me a small mantra to call up my own wizard for dealing with rivals/demons at my most regular swimming spot.

Something rather devilish about these parts

#1341 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn art, SerendipityLeave a comment

What bothers you and why?

It has been a blisteringly hot week. I have always been a lover of hot weather but as I have aged my tolerance is reducing. I have a new understanding of seeking out shade, a light breeze, avoiding the hottest parts of the day and sun hats. Sleeping at home daily has become like the giddy first nights of a holiday trying to adjust to flimsy bed coverings.

Abroad I love the abstract shapes that sheets form after a night of fitful sleep in a foreign climate.

This week I have had abstraction at home.

Which I agree does not look all that exciting, but by reducing the detail and adding some colour my bed looks like a sculpture.

Something I might never had discovered if my tolerance for heat had not diminished. So maybe I am not so bothered after all.

Is that why the Italians in particular are so brilliant at creating folds of fabric from marble. Bright Sunlight and folds of bed linen every morning  before they even get up.

#1340 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Firestone Bay, SerendipityLeave a comment
Sunset swim with techno

Sunday and the heatwave continued. After a sweaty day in the countryside we returned home for a late evening swim  in a bay filled with the beats of the last DJ set at the Drakes Island festival. This morning the sunrise and dawn chorus are in the exact same spot with a cool breeze and cooler water.

All the same colours, just spread out differently

#1359 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Serendipity, Stonehouse1 Comment
Hot paving slabs.

It has been a giddy weekend of live music.

Off to our local theatre to see The Tina Turner Musical. We also have tickets for Hamilton.

Then a very hot day in our yard listening to, and feeling through our bones a Drum and Bass festival which was being held on Drakes Island.

Drakes Island from Stonehouse Lawn Tennis Club. ©theoldmortuary

Then to finish off, live music from the Barracks. Who wouldn’t want to listen to a tribute band playing The Killers and Kings of Leon and any other band of that genre and era until 1:30 am. It was too hot to sleep, so roll with it in a comfy chair with a cup of tea. I have had worse experiences at actual festivals.

All punctuated with swimming in the sea. Very cool.

#1358 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Serendipity1 Comment

When your back yard feels like this at 9 am and the sea is just 5 minutes away it would be silly not to swap.

Of course even at 9 am the swim zone is busy, but the steps to this aquatic spot are a little bit concealed.

I can’t say we had this to ourselves, maybe 20 or so people found their way here in the hour or so it took for two separate swims and dog care in the shade.  Seeking shade at 10am is the behaviour of holidays, not quite normal for our tiny part of Devon. Long may it last.