OK last one...

when we were old enough to stay up late

and actually bring in the new year with the

grown ups

my father would be given a little  packet of something and thrown out the back door

only to re-appear at the front door

as the clock was stricking

mid night

it wasn't for ages that I found out what the hell they were doing

well you know

champers and booze and  a little party partay

made the

old folk act weird sometimes

well

flash forward a few years and it was

husband who was given a little packet and thrown out the back door

only to re-appear at the front

my mother always took care of this

and when my sons were old enough

we threw son #1 out

he has dark eyes which apparently makes it

stronger

for those of you who are lost and thinking of leaving

it's the

first footing tradition

 of which I speak

the first person through the door sets the mood for the year

they are supposed to bring gifts with them

salt

tea

bread

and

money

is what we always did

I always wondered

as I sat in the semi-darkness and watched

 as things were taken out of the cupboards

and pockets and salt cellars and tea caddies

if it made a difference that the first things in

were already here

but

not to be the one to

cross the forces that be

may your first footer bring you

health wealth

and

above all

happiness

I will be trying to figure out the

new gadget

and wondering

how may images I could get if I just kept going....

this is the new toy

I don't know what to do with it

is there an app

for that

if I give it the tea and salt and money and bread

will it tell me

how the hell to

work it

have a good one folks

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

:) :) :) :) :) :) :)

thank yous,

a page full of them


:)



Oprah used to say

or maybe it was one of her

new age

gurus or knowitalls

that you get back what you

put out into the

universe

well

jimminy crickets crikey

holy cow

batman

I must have been puttin' some damn fine

somethin'

out there

this year

'coz

what I've been getting back

is

just

fantastic

I am always bowled over by what you write and tell me

you have no idea how happy it makes me

and how,

unbeknownst  to you,

it usually comes at a time

I sure could use

some positivity

(yes that is a word

the spell check just checked it!!!!)

anyway
 not to go off on a tangent

as I am wont to do

I just want to say

what a great bunch of people you all are

and how much I enjoy knowing you

some better than others

sure

but in general

I haven't bumped into anyone

I wouldn't sit down with and have a cup of

???

with

and yesterday I got a big big surprise

a big one

I received not one but two

packages in the mail

two

on the same day

from different

people

 in different countries!!!

want to see...

sure...

won't be jealous

will ya...

won't want to come over and pilfer a little

coz

I'm not sharing

with anyone

well

I have to  will happily with the husband

but only if he gets there first!!!!!

or finds out where I hid it all

:) :) :)

this is from Norway

where the snow isn't falling no matter how hard

Svana wishes for it to

her children made ornaments and they sent one of them to me

how wonderful

and I also got a star

that I can not make without getting all bothered and huffy about

and two adorable stones with messages of

hope and happy on them

and

some squishy squashy yarn

 that is already on the needles

so I can make the grandson

a hat

he likes

hats and maybe a bunnie or two with the brown

and a couple of white Norwegian mices with the white

oooooh what fun

and I'll tell him the story of where the wool came from

and who gave it to me

and why

and where and when

and we'll look it all up on the computer

and he'll learn about the other countries where all the other sweet generous people live

takk

to all in Norway

I have put them with my treasures on the mantle

so I can see them all the time

xxxxxx'x

and another place where there are wonderfully sweet people

would be on the west coast of France

where

Valerie lives

near the ocean and under the big blue sky





a box full of goodies and wonderful things

sweets and tea and a magazine to test my

school girl French...

maybe with the help of

Google Translate

I can whip something up for

New Year!!!

and under the goodies was a

shawl

that Valerie made

it is beautiful

it's soft and light as a feather

and I love it

I love it all

everything

every single thing

all

I'm such a spoilt brat

and I love it!!!!

and you

knowing me I will be sawing logs (asleep) well before the clock strikes 12

but it doesn't mean I don't wish you all

A

Happy New Year

hope the new one is better than this one

coz this one didn't have so much going for it

but hey

we made it through another one

mostly together and in one piece

won't go into the annus horribilis

thing

............................................................

so

here's to a better one

and

hugs to all

big ones

:)

xxxxxxxx

another "country" heard from!!!

fa la la la la

la la la

llllllllllllllaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

!

A very

Merry

and bright

to one and all

bless you all

with nothing but the best

thanks for another

fun year

 here

in

the

roomontheleft

:)

cue the theme from star trek...

............................................

happy winter solstice

to you all

welcome the light back

even though it takes months for it to come back

we turned another corner and back into the light we go

yeah!!!

the husband celebrates that now

more than christmas

so.............

 this morning

I got

a

present

....................................................

it takes pictures

and you can talk on it

and play games

and look at the stars in the day time

and find out exactly where you are

coz

it has

AAAAPPPPPSSSSSSS

I got appsss

!!!!!!

:) :) :) :)

!!! well the free ones !!!

:)

   

this isn't an app

it's a picture taken on the

present I got this morning

it isn't very good because I have no clue as to how to adjust

a not very adjustable

gadget

and no you aren't seeing things

chicky boy there has only one eye!!!

so I went with my gut

and

left everything

as it was

and

it's got too much

light coming into it

but

hey

I'll have to play with it

to see if it can do better

than blue

hm mmm

that's me and my mum on a boat a thousand years ago

but I was looking at the star!!!

if we had been told a few years ago

well QUITE a few years ago now

that we would be taking

pictures with our

phones

we would have told them

they were nuts

cooook cooo

that that was for the birds

well it isn't and you can

and I did

so there

my old phone died a few weeks ago

and I thought I had decided to go without

or just get a plain and simple thing

I did not expect such a fancy shmancy device

I should have

knowing the man in the other room and his love for all things

gadgety

and the son got involved too apparently

and they got

mama

all hooked up

she can swish and minimize the screen all she wants now

she can

say

OH!

I got a' app for that!!!

wonder how many hook and needle apps there are!!!!!

who knows

 you may find yourselves on the thing one of these days

if blogs go on there too

it's hilarious

it's not really needed

but

well

hey

they bought it

so

I'm

happy

is there a happy app!!?

coz if there is

i'm loadin' it!!!!

have to go and wrap stuff now

see ya

and

happy happy

back to the light

 y'all

............................

♥



happy and sad

hello there....

see you can have the holly and the ivy

right there on the hutch

along with lots of candy!!!!

found this plate and had to have it

we sort of went shopping yesterday

but luckily the shelves were bare

seems the local economy is having  a good season

we don't really

"do"

Christmas anymore

no stress of buying everything you see

stuff just for stuffs sake

used to do it but then one year I found out that no one noticed all the things I didn't get done

and when I asked about it

they said they hadn't noticed

so I didn't anymore

for the first time in a long time

I have an amaryllis

blooming

I cheated and bought it in bud already!!!

hey

when you can....

do...

I say!!!!

unfortunately it isn't the

candy cane one from last year

that was really

sweet

but I didn't see any this year

well that's what you get for cheating I s'pose!!

I like it when Christmas things start mingling with everyday things

 

on his trip through the house the other day

the grandson found these in the drawers

and took them out and they got left where he put them

and I put two things from different people together

the card from one

the little jingle wreath from another

need to re-arrange and tidy up a bit

Mr hippo thinks so too

he's done scaring the little girl

'tis the season of goodwill after all!!!

now on to something that made me as happy as a

pig in

mud!!!

Last week

my favourite artist from the big woods

Lisa of lilfish studios

put up in her shop

some of the sweetest little things

I have ever seen

the very second they hit the shelves

they were swooped up by her many other fans and followers

and I missed my chance

but luckily she made a few more

so I pounced

and got...

..........................................

myself

 an

acorn

yes an acorn

 

but

 M.....

I hear you say
M...

you have your own acorns

out there in the yard

outside your window

beyond the roomontheleft

your own

'corns
out there among the leaves and other woodland debris

many of them

lots

tons maybe

in a good year

why would you be buying

acorns

 from the big woods

 up north

pray tell

I will tell

with a big goofy grin on my face

look what the

acorns

from

the

big

woods

up

north

come

with

................................

have you ever in your life seen anything soo adorable

sooo sweet

sooo imaginative

sooo pleasing to the eye

just soooooo

stinkin' cute

????????????????????????????????????

no, no you haven't

unless you visit with Lisa often and always

and see her works of wonder

this is my Christmas present this year

I wanted nothing else

seriously

and

 now 

 I have it

I'm happy

thank you Lisa

(the other things I want for Christmas and the rest of time

you can't make or buy

or even find in the woods

big or otherwise

so I chose this to make me happy for now)

:)

and now to the sad

my flickr friend Mary got  such sad news today

Mary lives in Italy

she makes these adorable little figures for people

along with other things

I showed you a while ago

I entered a giveaway on her blog

but this time I was not so lucky!

 

she sent me this lovely little photo as a consolation prize  and it came yesterday too

 when I wrote to say thank you to her today she told me

she has to leave to go to her mother's side

in Australia

Mary, know I'm thinking of you

take care and even though it's a sad time

take all that you can from it

best wishes

M

xxxx
;\

hope all is well with everyone

hope you are getting the weather you want

I know my Viking Princess is

******:) :) :) :) *******

Svana is out there in the snow with her camera

clicking each one as it falls

stay warm and dry all

see ya

.....................................

oh and while I have you

go and look at this

amazing thing the husband found today

it's days old...

but we live far out in the country you know,

 it takes the news a while to get to us!!!!!

:) :) :) :) :) :)

not much...

don't want this to sound like I'm

complaining

or grouching

or

'itching

but I am

:)

!!!

it seems that slowly slowly

my blog is disappearing

things are happening to it and I don't know why or how

and when I try to find out

I

just

get

pissed

......................................

royally

p o'd

:(

it started a little while ago

when I opened it up on the front page

(I'm not usually on the front page as I do most of what has to be done on the dashboard

or here in the

'write yourself an interesting post

and they will come'

section)

anyway I saw that the header photo was a quarter of the size it should be

all be it a bit on the large end of things

so I went to where you are supposed to be able to change things

and

changed things

and

nothing happened

OK........

as you saw it took me a few days to figure out  how to solve that problem

just re-arrange a few buttons and bits

and

Bob's your uncle

a smaller but better put together header

the column on the right hand side

is all buggered up

and the things that should show

aren't

my "followers" are gone

my "blog frog "list is

gone

and there is too much space between the top and the start of the

list of things

I wasted spent time the other day trying to get everything to move up

or down

or over

but to no avail

even called in

husband

who just

annoyed me

so he was banished

:}

so

is anyone else out there

in

BLOGGER land

finding things

not quite

up to snuff

and if you are

did you solve the problems

if so

will you  share

pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease

it's driving me

NUTS

..................................................................................................................

I made a(n)

'at

it's black

which is why

you can't really see it

Mother Goose

wants to know why

I

made

a

wig?????

.........................................................

the first photo is of the

hyacinths from last year

I ignored and abandonded them all summer long

but that didn't stop them

from coming back

smaller

shorter

fewer flowers

yes

but

less smelly or blue

NO

they stink up the whole place

and are

 so so so

sweet

I named them

short arse

and

shorty

and

 they make me smile

Ok I'll leave you alone now to get back to what you were doing

and always remember these wise words

...

if you are the only one who

does it all

and it doesn't all get done

you're the only one who knew what you wanted to do

so

they won't even know

therefore

they won't miss it

........................................................

now go and embroider that on a pillow

and

 have yourself a good one

as they say in the stores and I always want to ask them

a good what??

bye

:)

hi are you having a good day

doesn't take much....

to make me happy

I have been described as

a cheap date

only this isn't a date

it's just to show how small things

can make me turn on a dime

a penny a yen a euro

a franc a lira
and get the spirit in a minute

I saw these

 in the useless craft store a couple of visits ago

four for $1

I picked them up

I love houses in any way shape or form

they are small enough to be cute and big enough to put something in

well I have three now

grandson took one home the other day

with an owl inside it

hey the owl had to live somewhere

:)

then

while looking for decent fruit and veggies

I came across this

a

Christmas Cactus

in the basket it went

with its cute little red flowers all ready to pop open and

sing

Noel to us all

well I may as tell you now

by the time we got home

two of those cute little red flowers had survived the trip

and now

there is one!!!

and it ain't singing

Oh well

it's green and it has shiny paper wrapped around it

then I spied the m&m people

a him and a her

so they joined

the then lovely plant

I love his sarcasm in the commercials

he's my kinda Santa

then a package came

and it had sweet little bags

oooooo I thought

the spirit is showing itself and you are on the verge of

feeling merry

mery!!!!

so today

because it is the day of the great cleaning

I cleaned

I sneezed

I coughed

I smiled

it all came together when in the search for a tablecloth

that at the moment is hiding somewhere

but it will be found

I came upon two

not one

but TWO boxes of little white lights

brand new in the boxes

short too

just what I needed

to make it all complete

so after a whole lot of washing and dusting and re-arranging

we have

merriment

in the

kitchen

so back I go to hunt down the cloth

hope you got the spirit

or

it gets you

see ya

...........................................................................................................

*

...

.....

.............

....................

.....................................

|

:)

x