Palo Stickland

The clouds did gather later bringing rain and sleet. Yesterday was a good day because my ebuddies writing group, Women Who Write with Elves, managed to pass an anthology of short stories and recipes to the next stage of publishing. There were days during the last two months when we’d thought it wouldn’t happen. I exercised at Curves for thirty minutes, then picked Karen up to go to Bishopbriggs Library for the Monday group. After dropping Karen off I worked on my application to go on a month’s writing break. I won’t win because there are so many good writers out there, but applying certainly makes you think about where you are, and what you want to do.

Yesterday, Terry Wogan died of cancer. He presented Children in Need which raised millions of pounds to help vulnerable children.
   I am not good at fund-raising but my best attempt was with a Pudsey Bear. In 1993, I bought and sent one around the school. The children were asked to choose a date that might be his birthday. The winning date was in a sealed note around his neck. It was five pence a try, and on the Friday evening, while the show was on, I contacted the BBC to let them know how much Woodhill School was donating.
   Two years later, one of the classes was asked to draw a picture of their bedroom. I noticed Pudsey Bear in one of the pictures. I said to the child who’d drawn it, ‘I know that bear.’ He replied, ‘My brother won him in the school raffle.’ We smiled, enjoying our shared memory.
   Yesterday, Bob sent a text from Panama – ‘arrived without any problems’. I was concerned that because he never locks his case, it might be opened. I always lock my case on long-haul flights.
   I took my mother to the Guru Nanak Gurdwara. Since my last visit, two years ago, there have been improvements. The lift is good. The food was delicious, but I wasn’t pleased to see so much sweet stuff and fizzy drinks. It was sad that one of the regular volunteers seemed to have had a stroke. We are what we eat, says she who ate all the chocolates gifted to us this Christmas. I was suffering from a very bad cold, that’s my excuse!
   I watched the TV dramas, Call the Midwife’ and ‘War and Peace’.

In case family and friends wonder how I fill my days, here is a record which links to my blog and my twitter feed. Let’s see how long I can keep this going. After a week you, and I, will see a pattern and I’ll stop. I was never any good at keeping a diary.
   After leaving Bob at the airport, I drove through wind and snow, and went back to sleep after reading some poems. In the morning, as the snow had melted, I took my granddaughter to McDonald’s.  We both ate chicken. Then, because she is learning to read, we bought a book called ‘Dear Zoo’ by Rod Campbell. We read it in the shop, in the car and in her house. We both know it by heart now!
   Then I came home and cleaned my house, started up the washing machine and watched ‘The Voice’, a talent spotting show, followed by ‘The Real Marigold Hotel’ in which celebrities experience retirement in Jaipur, India.

Bob setting off on a sailing adventure with the World Arc, yesterday. I drove home through wet snow.

Each winter, on the morning of the first snow, I used to write this on the blackboard for my class of seven-year-olds.
‘Winter is the king of showmen
Turning tree stumps into snowmen
And houses into birthday cakes
And spreading sugar over lakes
Smooth and clean and frosty white
The world looks good enough to bite
That’s the season to be young
Catching snowflakes on your tongue
Snow is snowy when it’s snowing
I’m sorry it’s slushy when it’s going.