Crochet

I rather spectacularly fell off the Granny A Day wagon quite a long time go; I blame the ex, heartbreak, uni, stress, potentially life changing decisions & my depression. I'm back on it now though!

I went home to my parents house, quite late on Friday evening (10pm ish) - I was craving doing some crochet, and all of my yarn and hooks had already been taken back as part of my move back home.

I made two granny squares whilst I was there:

I forgot to get a pic of the second – it is orange (neon!) with a red layer around it.

Today I have made a large yellow and blue granny:

And have already used it as a duster. My Granny A Day total is now up to about 27, but I didn’t bring all my yarn with me (I’m meant to be moving out, not back in!) so I only have red, yellow & blue. Also didn’t look at the hooks I picked up – I’ve managed to come home with two 4.5mm hooks! Oh well.

Today I’ve been sat in, waiting for someone to come and have a look at the room, so I decided to master a crochet flower. I was planning to make the flower in the latest edition of Mollie Makes. That didn’t work. I couldn’t/still can’t figure out what a slip ring is?! Is it just a magic ring? Why don’t they just say that?! (Why doesn’t someone come up with an international standard crochet terminology?!! It’d make things a lot easier). So anyway, I promptly gave up with MM, (there’s a surprise), and turned to ye olde faithful, Google.

I found a few UK patterns that had fairly impressive looking flowers, I’d like to make them all! But I decided to try a simple one first, and I made these:

YAY! First ever crochet flowers (I text my mom “my first ever crowshit flours”, hehehe)
So I am quite pleased with myself today. Think I may make loads more! Why not. It’s raining out (pouring down) and I’m not quite in the mood to start reading my next book (Sense and Sensibility).

I have also started to crochet together some knitted squares:

...These will be the subject of another blog post!

L x

Happy Mothers Day!

This is what my mother had from me:



A Japanese Peace Lily, for the suburban, subtropical jungle that is her living room.

It also came with a small box of free chocolates, and I had 12.5% off AND the best part is mom had to pick it from the post office herself on Saturday. She also spent some gift money on a strawberry planter, for my allotment...

I'm such a good daughter.*





*or, cheapskate, lazy, unappreciative bum. Wuv woo mommy!

L x

More Piccies From The Allotment

*Warning!* This is a very pic-heavy post! :-)

I visited my allotment(s) today; they look super scruffy. I elongated a small, square bed into a long, rectangular bed - think I may have this as a potato bed this year. I've managed to bruise my spade leg, so I couldn't really do much more digging :( I will probably make it a few spade lengths longer, before weeding it, manuring & covering, ready for spuds.



I also used Pete the Wheelbarrow for the first time - things are SO much easier now! No more lugging huge yellow tubs about the place, wahey! Here is Pete, laden with turf I'd removed from the bed above:



I also pruned the blackcurrant, refilled the bird feeder, dumped all the turf at the top of my plot (my allotment ex-neighbour decided to take a short cut up my plot, and through the hedgerow at the back, leaving a massive hole. I've since put a pallet in to fill the gap, so today I dumped the turf there, grass side down, and sprinkled some Calendula seeds around! Hopefully they'll take, and start to grow, it'd be nice to add some colour to this part of the plot).



I also took some pics of other things; daffodils, my newest flower bed (daffs & tulips at the moment), the trench that is so overgrown it's no longer a trench..






Over at Plot 42, which I took on last September/October, the broad beans continue to get bigger:



And the shed is still white, It needs painting! Think I might commandere my arty friends to paint a mural or something on it,.



Plot 42 also came with a greenhouse. This is what it looks like on the inside - I'm not sure I want to attempt clearing it!




Back on Plot 31, the 'decking' area needs a good tidy up. The strawberries could do with being planted in a proper planter; the roses need weeding; the coldframe needs weeding and re-mudding...




But all in all, considering I'm not up there on a regular basis, it's doing alright! The grass needs mowing, there's a lot to be dug up, a lot to weed, and possibly extending more beds to be done. Plot 42 needs a good weeding, and for some more beds to be planned, weeded & dug. I'm also going to get some half-pipe guttering and put it up along the back of White Shed, and grow things in it - tumbling tomatoes, or strawbs, or herbs, or peas. Not sure yet! Maybe something of everything.

Since I got back from the plot(s), I have sown some yellow courgette seeds & rainbow chard seeds. There isn't enough room in my mothers greenhouse for anything else just yet! And as I'm not fully moved back in, I can't do it up the allotment because no one can get there everyday to tend to things. I think we may have yet another year of sowing & growing things all at the wrong time! We never learn, but it always works out. If Mother Nature wants it to grow, it will grow. I'm really glad I got that bed extended - it's been bugging me ever since I couldn't be bothered to finish digging it last year. Just wish my spade leg didn't hurt so much!

L x

Things I Love Thursday: Part the First.

I intend for this to become a regular thing on my blog, at least weekly, but possibly fortnightly. I got the idea from someone else’s TILT post I saw a little while ago. I think it could be a good idea to help me realise just how much good stuff I have in my life; how much stuff I have to be grateful for. How much stuff we should all be grateful for.

I already have a few ideas for post themes. Family, dreadlocks, geology, books. However, this first one is on the theme of Health. More specifically, giving health or even life to others.


Today is Thursday 15th March, 2012, and today I gave blood.

I’ve given before (9 times now), it’s no big deal, but when you actually sit and think about it, it may well become a very big deal to someone, and that someone’s family. Normally I wouldn’t write a blog such as this, but I’m beginning to realise a few things in my life, and if I or any member of my family ever needed blood, I’d hope there was some going spare.

I have no idea if the pint (it’s not even a full pint – less than 500ml is taken) of red stuff I’ve just donated will be used for research, or as part of a routine transfusion, or as part of an emergency life-saving operation. I’ll never meet the people who have benefited, either directly or indirectly, from receiving my blood.

I know that as a B+, I’m quite rare – I make up 8% of the UK population. EIGHT. That’s not a lot. Only 10% of the population are blood group B.

Facts & figures are taken from, and more can be viewed, here: http://www.blood.co.uk/about-blood/blood-group-basics. (It’s also quite ironic that I’m a ‘B Positive’, since I have depression!)

I’ll be honest; I’m not the world’s biggest fan of needles. I have to look away and think pleasant thoughts. When I went to have my tonsils out a few years ago, the nurse held my hand and talked to me while they injected the stuff into my hand. When I have blood taken, I have to look away (sometimes I faint). There was an occasion where I came very close to fainting just as I reach the tea and biscuits – kudos to the nurses who appeared out of nowhere, carried me to the bed, and within seconds I was flat on my back, feet in the air, fan on, cold press on, and someone watching over me. (I never did get my brew.)

I managed to almost faint today; nowhere near as spectacular as last time though!

Giving blood is sosoSO simple, so easy, so quick. I’m a fast bleeder, though sometimes I get told off for bleeding too quickly, and tonight the machine bleeped at me three times for not bleeding quick enough! The total time I’m there (including tea, biccies & gossip time) is probably less than an hour. I’ve started to call it mine & my moms “date night”, and I’m fairly sure we have a rep for being peculiar.

I didn’t start giving blood until I was 20ish. I used to go with my mom and sister and watch them, and laugh at them, and then drink tea & eat biccies. I used to sit and read the leaflet. I used to sing along to the radio. I used to stare when there was a bleeder at the tea table. Now, I give blood whenever I’m due – it’s about every 16 weeks.

It’s such a simple thing to do, such a simple way to help someone, to show you care. Yeah, so you may never meet them, but you do come away with a good feeling. You’re part of the club, you build up relationships with the nurses (meaning: you know which ones are gentle!), you become a regular at this little social event. I really really really believe more people should donate – I’d never force anyone, but if you want to change your life this year, Give Blood.


FYI, I go to the Northfield session, at Oddingley Hall. If you go to blood.co.uk you can enter your postcode and find deets of the next and nearest session. Recruit a girlfriend/boyfriend/cousin/parent/sibling, and go. Turn it into an event; go to the pub after (not before!) or go and see a film, or whatever you want.

Also, here are some picture froms today:








L x

Walking

I've decided to get fit this year, properly fit. This will include getting fit for field trips next year, generally improving my cardiovascular fitness, doing my physio whilst walking (walking with my feet straight, holding abs in, shoulders down & back) in order to try and improve posture, and correct my turned-in-feet-ness.

I enjoy walking, so as such I've decided to finally get some of those tone-up trainer efforts (I've found some for less than £50; price was the reason I haven't bought any sooner), so I'll get some of them and go walkies.

As I'm moving back to B31 fairly soon, I've spent some of today messing around on Google Earth, learning how to annotate it and draw things and plan routes. This is the result:



Nine potential routes to walk, around my local area. Some are deliberately short - my mom sometimes comes on walks with me, but she can't walk far. In theory we can start with the shorter routes and build up to the longer ones. Personally, anything less than 2 miles isn't good enough for me! There are areas I'm avoiding - super chavvy areas where I'm likely to get stabbed/shot/raped/assaulted etc. - which is quite a challenge in B31!

I'm going to aim to go for a walk a day, along any of these routes. Generally, I walk a route one day, and then walk it again a few days later but in reverse. I find I notice different things!

I can't wait!

L x

LapSoc Ball 2012

So last night was the annual LapSoc Geology Ball – LapSoc being the Geological Student Society at uni, of which I was part of the committee until a short time ago.

The LapSoc Ball is the biggest event of the Geologists calendar, a night for everyone from all years to get together and mingle, whether you’re single hons, joint hons, palaeo, natural scientists, or housemates of any of these. Post grads, post docs and teaching staff tend to come along too, making for a great atmosphere with plenty of banter. This year, the ex Head of School, Paul Smith, came along, as his final social with us.

Last nights Ball was held at the Tally Ho, near Edgbaston Cricket Ground. It is actually the function suite of the West Midlands Police training academy! We managed to secure this only a few weeks ago, so the rest of the committee had pulled out all the stops to host this ball – I can’t take credit for anything other than finding & securing the venue, as I had left the committee soon after this.

The decorations were simple but effective, the tables were dressed beautifully, enough tickets had been sold to allow for a large number of tables, thus filling out the room. Peasy Photos, who were at the ball last year, were back again, and there was another camera that put photos directly onto a big screen at the front. Entertainment was in the form of a live acoustic performer, Sam Tilley, and then later another guy came on and was singing (no one caught his name!). There as also a DJ, geologically themed cocktails at the bar, dinosaurs in the toilets, and Dimorphodon glider flying dinosaur kits on each table! Such little kids. Each person also had a sweet filled goody bag.

The three course meal was somewhat uh-maz-ing. I had stilton & broccoli soup starter; lamb shank with veg main and a white chocolate and raspberry torte pud. The torte was divine. Once again, kudos to the committee for everything!

I was really surprised at how many people turned out – at last years Ball, we thought we’d done well with 80. This year there was about 130 people! And then a few people turned up after the meal to join us for drinks & dancing. Many pictures were taken, many drinks were consumed. The awards ceremony was a first, and was highly entertaining! Definitely hope they carry on as a LapSoc Ball tradition!

It was a good chance for me to see people who I hadn’t seen in a while – I’ve not been at uni for the past couple of weeks – and I got to say goodbye to those who mattered. It was good fun, I enjoyed it, but my thoughts were somewhere else most of the night. I left quite early, I just couldn’t face being there any longer pretending I was fine. So thankyou if you gave me a squodge last night, I’ll probably come out with you all after exams, and I’ll see you all next year!!

L x

Au Revoir, University!

So I suppose it’s probably time I ‘came out’ and told you all what my vague tweets have been about lately. You should all know I’ve been thinking about this since New Year; I’ve had these thoughts since we came back to university after Christmas. A few events in most recent weeks have just confirmed a few things to me.

I’m taking some time out from university.

By ‘some’ time, I mean, I intend to, hope to, am planning to return next January, to continue where I left off. I need a break. I need to get my health sorted, especially my mental health.

I’ve been mentally exhausted lately. I can’t think straight or focus on anything. I’ve not been sleeping well, my anxiety is going through the roof, and I’ve been feeling really incapable this year. All of these combined is playing havoc with my depression. I don’t think there’s been a day in the last four weeks that I haven’t cried. There’s no way I can complete second year when I can’t even get through a day without breaking down. There’s no way I could do a six week mapping project – I wouldn’t want to put this on the shoulders of the guys I’m meant to be going with. I’d feel even worse than I do now.

I still want this degree and I want a career in this field. I’m fairly confident that I can gain a really high class degree – I just don’t think I can do it this year. There’s no good time to take a year out of a degree, but this is probably the best time to do it. I can’t keep taking random days and weeks off to relax because I just get stressed about missing random days. It’s a vicious cycle.

This year, I hope to get myself sorted – really, truly, sorted. Currently, my medication has been increased, I’m back to weekly GP appointments and I’m investigating counselling. In the meantime I want to do some volunteering – I think now’s the time to do those things I said I would when I was watching my Nan die for a period of 6 weeks. I’m going to spend some time with my family, watch the niece and nephew grow and develop. I’m going to spend time up at my allotments, getting back to nature. I’m going to lose weight. I’m going to look at doing a couple of one day courses at my local college. I just need this time for me. I’m going to try different therapies and workshops and things to help me understand my depression and to try and overcome it.

I need to remember why I love geology, why I want it. I need to realise how far I’ve come and how close I am. I feel like I’m just going through the motions. I’m just turning up and doing something, because it pleases people. I’m getting really good grades, but they mean nothing to me.

I always say I don’t do things if it jeopardises my health, and at the moment, it is. I haven’t been 100% well since I had a chest infection last month and that’s dragging me down.

I need to do this for me, my sanity. I can get a degree at any time in my life; I only get one attempt with my health.

I’ll admit that over the past week or so I’ve been having the thoughts of just staying, getting my head down and getting on with it – to be honest, these thoughts make me feel worse. At the moment, I think I’ll regret going. However, if I don’t do it, I’ll regret not doing it. Whenever I take a few days off, I feel better, and I go back to uni and I feel overwhelmed. I feel like I can’t cope anymore. Maybe I’m just not cut out for uni? Or maybe I am, just not at this moment. I think it’ll always bug me that I’ve had to do this, but I need to put myself first for a change. I need to get my health sorted, I need to learn how I work so I can deal with this in the future. There’s no miracle cure for depression, but there are tricks to alleviate it. I need to learn some of these over the next year. This hasn’t been an easy choice for me, please don’t think I’m taking it lightly. I’ve been thinking about it since Christmas. I just need to do it, for me. I’m all too aware that people won’t understand where I’m coming from (members of my family included), and I have a feeling I’m going to be fighting a battle with them over the next few months. Hopefully when I go back in January 2013 they’ll see why I had to do it. I feel like a huge weights been lifted off since I made this decision, and while I have these thoughts of making a huge mistake, I need to go with my decision, my gut feeling.

All I ask is that you support me – I can answer your questions until the cows come home but you’ll never understand.

L x