By Slanted Light

...well, here it finally is, after seven years of being temporarily in Cambridgeshire, I'm heading back west! Not quite as far west as Alaska, but west in any case.

Way back in 2008 I moved into this house, and I took a picture from my new window. Here's that picture, beside one I took just now... Everything has grown! I can't see over the hedge to the fields any more, Little Tree is big enough that I can barely see the telegraph pole, and look at the tops of the trees at the back of the field across the road! Even the two big trees across the road have grown a bit.

Cambs. has been a strange time - I never did warm to it, and because I was only here temporarily I ended up living in three different houses in the first year I was here, finally settling in this one and deciding to stay still for a while until things sorted themselves out. Eventually it was really clear that what with all the changes in the department at university in Alaska, and with my supervisor moving to another department herself, I couldn't finish my PhD - no funding. We tried to get funding elsewhere, so that it wasn't department-dependent, but no go. So I lingered in Cambs... I never did quite work out what I was doing next, but maybe Somerset will help with that!

One thing I have thought - that now would be a really good time to actually put into practice something I've been waffling about for ages. When I get to Somerset - I'm going to write every day, until I'm convinced that it's not worth doing at all. If I'm convinced of that, then I will stop properly - but until then I will write properly. So there. *g*

In the few hours before I do hit Somerset though - I'd better get on with packing and getting myself there! *g* It's been a week of lasts. Last tutoring with my wee lad, last trip to return books to the library (including one that I'd reserved and not actually collected yet - rats!), last day at NT place... We'd better have some pics... *g*

Statue cleaning at NT place... here's one I did earlier! *g*

( It was a gorgeous day... )

I'm not entirely sure why I'm suddenly so sleepy before midnight, when it's been 1.30-2.00am that I've turned my light out for the last weeks, but oh, I am... Maybe to do with finishing the Eternal Assignment from work at last... But I said I'd post photos, so I'm gonna. Not that they're exciting today, cos it was work-work-work and no-car cos she was off having four shiny new tyres, a wee service, and her flashing airbag light seen to (that was just for attention apparently, as soon as My Lovely Mechanic plugged her into the machine, she backed off, all I have no error code, and the light stopped flashing. She's been flashing it at me since I was in Dorset weeks ago (well actually I covered it over with a post-it tag... *g*) but apparently - nothing wrong at all!)

The View of Hope behind my laptop......and yeay, when work was over there was wine and watching a couple of S7 DW eps, ready for tomorrow. New Doctor Who!!! *g*

And sunset minus eight sleeps......wonder which way my window faces in Somerset... oh no - east, cos S. said my room got the morning light. So sunset will be from the terrace... hmmn, if I wander up the hill over the road, perhaps I'll see it over Glastonbury Tor! Next Saturday. *g*

Landlady has replaced me - girl came around to look last night, and took my room. My Lovely Mechanic is not replacing me - he said I could call if I ever needed to ask anything, even from the other side of the country. He's such a nice guy - a decent, honest, nice guy. I'd like one of those please... *g* (He's married, natch).

I rather think this weekend might really, really be for packing up... oh! And for reading more Lord John Gray, cos I borrowed one of the Diana Gabaldon books from the library the other day, and it's fab! I have vague memories of him in the Outlander books, I must dig them out when I get to my new storage too... so much to re-read!

Oh - one more pic! It's auuuuuuutumn!I noticed just a couple of yellow leaves thinking about showing the other day, but practically overnight last night - Little Tree is putting on her autumn! Lovely, lovely autumn... Plus it's been nice and a-bit-chilly (well, the weather report still says it's in the teens C... but it feels like a chill in the air! I'm wearing a jumper!) lately, and... autumns coming! *vbg*

Two things have made me happy today. First of all, just now, finally finishing a whole day's (well, more than a day's actually) work and getting it sent off - yeay! No photo, but yeay!

And then this morning, for which I have this picture:I was off at Wimpole again, this time doing a house induction, which meant I got taken around all rooms on the "tourist route" and told about them, which was very cool. It was before the hall was opened up too of course, so the dim quiet of the day, with shutters closed and everything sleeping still... *g* It's all very cool, with missing windows and secret doors (not that they go to secret rooms), and the servants doors covered in red baize on their side so that they knew they were about to go into a part of the house frequented by the family, and there are special tours that volunteers can go on to see all the other rooms that aren't open to the public - I'm so going on one of those! It's so nice to do "doing history" again, I didn't realise how much I missed it - even if I won't get paid for it. And then when I'd finished, I went out, and the rain had briefly stopped, and the world smelled all green and of flowers and fresh air and summer - and there was this rose, sitting cheerfully by the door to the gardens!

Oh no! Three! Three things! I finished Fairs' Point too (which is also a sad thing, so I immediately started re-reading it... just occasionally that happens... *g*). It's fab - I do rather like it... *g*

Hope your Wednesday's been good, even if it may well have been wet...

Well, having been rushing all day through dire sleepiness (I've got to get myself to bed at a decent hour instead of the small wee ones) to get my room moderately presentable for someone coming to look at it, she's just texted to cancel cos she was going to cycle here and there's something of a stiff breeze out there, so... phew, at ease... Which apparently means post to lj... *g*

It is a tad breezy - we've already had a power cut, and I've seen a tree down as I was out and about, and it's not supposed to be near the worst, yet. Actually I woke up around 6.30am to a fairly mad rushing and flailing outside, and then around 7am there was a slapping and a slamming on my window - some quite serious rain.

Here's what it looked like a bit later, all golden-leaved roads and denuded trees (though I'll admit they don't look very denuded in this pic)! (Oh, note the sexy, battery-d up car... *g*)


I do like weather - isn't it fab! Well, up until someone loses an eye, I guess - I do wish people would prepare for the weather a bit. Landlady left all sorts of things lying and leaning loose around the garden, even though we'd been talking about how windy it was supposed to be, so I went and casually did the rounds and tucked stuff up safe. But how do you not think to do that?

( Yesterday's sunrise looked like this... )

It did, it did, it did! It was snowing before midnight, though when I had to wake up at 4am it'd stopped and all was hushed and covered...


( And then when I woke up in the daylight... )

So it's time for a cheerful-look-at-how-pretty-the-world-is type post after yesterday's whinge, I think - and it was also very much time to get out of the house for a wee bit today too, cos the home-hospital-home-dentist-home-hospital-home route is really kind of dull... *g* And as I was driving, even though it was to an old favourite place about 20 minutes away, I realised that it's been ages since I've been out! Well, by my standards, and London (cool as it is) notwithstanding. So - a picspam of winter in a garden of prettiness!

The Winter Walk, and my favourite copper birch...

( Bare branches and delicate blossoms... )

And then tonight has come the promised snow...

...and tomorrow will be beyond imagining.

Well it won't, I imagine it'll be pretty. And that there'll be more photos. *g*

Today's sunrise, courtesy of that nice man at the BBC who actually said it was likely to be very pretty this morning... *g* The moments I saw were definitely pretty, though I think yesterday's sunrise had the edge as far as colour went...

I got my car back yesterday, and she now seems to be going again as if there was no tomorrow (which I hope is not what I have to worry about when the MOT comes around!). Today's adventuresome lark is another trip to the dentist, although I'm not entirely sure that what she's going to fix did have anything to do with recent face-ache, which is mostly better now, phew... But she might as well fix it anyway, right? *sighs*

On the bright side, it means I finish work early, and I'm also not tutoring tonight, so there's potential for oooh, time off! If, that is, I can manage to proofread my way out the other side of this rather dense document... It should be quite interesting, but she's killing it quite well... *sighs*

Aaaaaaand... nope, I think that's me, procrastination over - dense document, here I come... *sighs more*

Oh dear - on re-reading this, I really don't have anything to complain about, do I? *g*

...I'm feeling in need, though I shouldn't be... stoopid life...

I had to take my car to the garage today (they don't have points any more, they have pricey coils... *headdesk*) - on the bright side, it's right by a train station, so I could get within half an hour's walk of work this morning, and not be too late. On the other bright side, I drove towards the sunrise, and the fields were misty - I drove under strands of mist at one point! - and the sunrise was red, red red. It actually looks comparatively orange on this pic, taken from the station when it had died down a bit in intensity. It'll be interesting to see whether shepherds (or sailors) need to take warning though... It's looking blue-skyed and gorgeous so far, and it was frosty-cold...


I've been trawling for Wonderful Things, but it must be Monday everywhere, because I'm not coming up with much... And boss is being irritating again, and I have other-work that I should have started by now, and Things To Do, and just no motivation... What I did find was a few sites suggesting we ask the question What's good right now? I've got to admit, I'm struggling with that a little bit today too - stoopid me, cos there's lots of good things! The sky is still gorgeously blue, and there's interesting chat at ci5hq's new Beta Central feature. There!

What about you, happy flist - what's good right now? Cheer, please! *g*

...at long, at very long last... It's been a bit of a week, it really has. On the bright side, I have a new icon that I've been waiting since last weekend to use - annoyingly I think my lovely real-life bottle might end up staying sealed tonight, so I shall just have to luxuriate in the icon instead...

On the bright side, the night sky's been rather fab this last week - these photos are a bit rubbish, but they might remind you, if you saw it... *g*


Full moon!

Then one night, I stood marvelling at the incredible brightness of the Evening Star (did you see it this week?!), and then went around to the other side of the house and there was the moon rising - all golden and huge...


Really, the stars are never so bright that I can capture them looking like this on my wee camera without a zoom or anything!

I thought I'd be all relaxed-out after last weekend's laziness, but right now I don't want to move from this room... I'm sleeeeepy... and behind on all things lj and Pros-ish, including working out how make Kompozer work, because I almost had it the other day, but... not quite. And then I was grumpy-sleepy-face-achey for the rest of the week... So this weekend is going to be catching up, I reckon! *g* Catching up whilst still in pyjamas and barely moving from this room... But first perhaps, a quick collapse in front of t'box... *g*

Last weekend, in a fit of boredom, I took myself to one of our local National Trust places - Anglesey Abbey, which I adore for its winter garden, and is famous for its snowdrops. I've not often been just after snowdrop season though, and it turned out that mid-spring was full of colour and gorgeousness...

I adore these copper birch trees - I could stand staring at them forever...

( Although silver birch is also... )