5th October - a month of autumn to Halloween

[byslantedlight]

Today's autumn post comes courtesy of the Welsh Rally - of Wales, and cars, and mud...

Poetry for October
Mud
by Robert Service

Mud is Beauty in the making,
Mud is melody awaking;
Laughter, leafy whisperings,
Butterflies with rainbow wings;
Baby babble, lover's sighs,
Bobolink in lucent skies;
Ardours of heroic blood
All stem back to Matrix Mud.

Mud is mankind in the moulding,
Heaven's mystery unfolding;
Miracles of mighty men,
Raphael's brush and Shakespear's pen;
Sculpture, music, all we owe
Mozart, Michael Angelo;
Wonder, worship, dreaming spire,
Issue out of primal mire.

In the raw, red womb of Time
Man evolved from cosmic slime;
And our thaumaturgic day
Had its source in ooze and clay...
But I have not power to see
Such stupendous alchemy:
And in star-bright lily bud
Lo! I worship Mother Mud.

Pictures for October
We headed off today at 7am for the Sweet Lamb stage of the Wales Rally GB, and drove through countryside that looked like this - so green!



The church was a kind of map-finding stop, so of course I took the chance to stretch my legs - and found out that the first recorded quadruplets had been born in February 1856, but that they'd also died of typhus, along with their father, a brother and sister, within a month... too sad...

When we got there, the rally stage looked like this - including some autumn-brown and mist!



The mud came in not just on the track, and around the area in general, but when I managed to slip down a bank instead of walking down it, and came up covered in the stuff... *sigh* Worse than that I've stuffed up my knee, and it's aching and aching right now. It'd better sort itself out, because I have to drive for six hours to get home on Monday (and I was planning on leaving earlier and including some interesting stops this time)! It's my clutch/accelerator leg, of course... *sighs more*

Prosfic for October
I'm reading These Things Do Not Remember You by Gwyneth Rhys, to match Endgame...

...and the lads. *g*
Lads with cars today, of course...



...and lads at muddy motor sports... *g*

Comments

[jat-sapphire.livejournal.com]

Beautiful pictures! Forgive me if I prefer imagining your road trip to the muddy reality (though I love the poem)! Thank you.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

It was a beautiful spot - only slightly spoiled by all the muddy mosquito-noisy cars... *g*

One of the fun things about this project is finding the poems actually - I love Robert Service, but I didn't know this one...

[milomaus.livejournal.com]

Lovely countryside!
All the best to your knee, and a wonderful trip home!

The Lads can wear everything, even mud.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Hee - the lads do look good in mud, don't they!

And thank you! *g* One more day today, and then off home tomorrow!

[snailbones.livejournal.com]

Wonderful pictures, thank you! Heavens, I hope your knee forgives you quickly. Can you believe I once had a boyfriend who did that mad driving stuff and tried to teach me... I was a camp follower in all the mud and changing tyres in pitch black fields... ah, foolish youth!

And mostly thank you so much for being my regular Prosy fix - I so rarely comment these days owing to being so far behind all the time, but I always read and appreciate how much you do. *snogs you happily*

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Thank you! It's very pretty countryside around here... and ha, I can indeed imagine you doing rallying, among all the other things you've done... *g*

It's nice to know you're still out there, even if you're not always commenting. Although it's very nice to read your comments, because that's one of the things that make it worth posting, so yeay for that too, and thank you! *g*

[heliophile-oxon.livejournal.com]

I'm really sorry about the knee, one needs one's knees - and I do hope it eases up in time for driving. Wishing you icepacks and ibuprofen and whatever helps :-ssss Thank you for those lovely muddy lads, though!

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

I can stand on my knee today, and mostly walk on it, so that's a good sign! *g*

And yeay muddy lads! It's rather good thinking of them getting cleaned up, too... *g*

[gilda-elise.livejournal.com]

Gorgeous countryside, but what a sad story at the church, though I suppose such a story was more common than we like to think.

Hope the knee is better today. Keep it iced and stay off of it as much as possible before your drive, because, wow, a six hour drive. That's long, even under the best conditions!

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

It was a sad story at the church - and a reminder that even when you think you're in the middle of nowhere, things are never as nowhere as they seem...

And thank you! No ice I'm afraid, and no staying off it, because I wanted to give it some exercise too - but it's feeling better, and I think I'll be able to drive tomorrow, and enjoy the day... *g*

[shooting2kill.livejournal.com]

Great pictures, especially the one of a lovely, relaxed Doyle sitting on a car and wrinkling his nose! Hope your knee improves asap.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I love those pictures of them sitting on the back of the car - there's a few in a row, and I always wonder what's happened... *g*

[freetraveller15.livejournal.com]

Oh yes... that's some green countryside!
I'm sorry about your knee, I hope the pain will subside soon, but I think you'll need to use some antinflammatory gel, if not Ibuprofen at least some arnica-based ointment for several days.
By the way, do you use the same foot for clutch and accelerator?
Take care x

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

It's amazingly green around here!


Sadly I can't use anti-inflammatory meds (and they're what usually works best for me too) - they're really bad for my stomach these days (the cure is worse than the affliction...) But my knee is a bit better today, and will hopefully be better still tomorrow! If it aches when I get home I'll apply arnica (I think I still have some...) *g*

And ha - of course we don't use the same foot for clutch and accelerator, you're right - it's accelerator and brake, isn't it! Late-night head that was, I'm afraid! *g*

[freetraveller15.livejournal.com]

Oh don't worry... my own late-night head often plays tricks on me as well *vbg*
I hope the arnica will help your knee recovery. It is usually quite effective ;)

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

My knee was actually much better by the time I had to drive home - which was just as well, as arnica was one of the things I was out of, I discovered when I got home. A good reminder to stock up, though! *g*

[siskiou.livejournal.com]

I hope you've made it home safely by now, and that your knee is feeling better!
Sounds like a busy outing!
Sorry for being so absent! Having a really hard timing digging out from under RL this year.
It's a very troublesome year. Each time I'm thinking it's finally settling down, something else
rears its ugly head.
Liking your autumn posts!

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Hello - it's nice to see you around! I've missed you this year! So sorry that this year is being even more awkward - you know I'm crossing all my fingers and holding my thumbs that it really will settle down soon...

My knee was much better, and fine to drive on Monday, so that was good. It was definitely a busy outing - my holidays seem to have been like that this year, lovely but busy! *g*

I hope the autumn posts at least give you a moment of calm amidst everything - hang in there...