Tiles with a twist

If you are reading this and have any suggestions for messages, please comment.

Like the idea of a white chalk on black board menu:

Deep fried Cameron Balls served on a bed of trident rocket with goat's cheese.



New type of tile in the works. Four in the kiln. Messages:

Can I borrow your nanny if you cut my child's playscheme? I only need her from 3:30 to 6:00. Can pay 1.50 per hour.

What a dismal block of flats. Do you think they're even human? Don't know. I went to Eton. Let's chop their playground up.

Can we play in your garden when you close down our playground?

Funny way of doing things but I asked permission from the head of the play scheme if I could write something on the wall at Coram Fields regarding the looming closure of services. He brightened up and was happy to know that I'd shown my support at the march. He said that the wall did not belong to them. Of course, it's not something that you ask. But I'm an amateur at this graffiti business. Have noticed that using a brush is a little bit messy and time consuming. Two police cars drove right by last night as I finished the wall. The cuts effect everyone:people with children, people who need affordable child care so they can go to work, council workers, teachers, students, the elderly, school course offerings, the police, the fire brigade.....etc. These Clegg-Cameron chaps are making enemies of just about everyone. And it's very personal. Still, the mood across the globe seems to be a right wing swing.

March Against the Cuts

Throughly enjoyed the March Against the Cuts. It's a shame that all the papers only point out the violence and property damage which was a small part of it. 200 arrests out of half a million people. A very small percentage to highlight. But then isn't it something like 7% of the population go to Eton and two-thirds of them end up in government making the laws? 

Time is a present

Art going in several different directions. A large collage canvas is coming together. Lots of depth. First mosaic made of found pieces of china from the Thames finished. Hope to make more and keep them reasonably light 50 by 50cm. Oskar is in Azerbaijan. Hi Fuad if you ever read this. Say hello to your son one day. He's a happy chap and would like to meet you. He will probably try to find you one day. We have done well enough without you. No hard feelings.

mosiac notes

shells, marbles, beads, buttons, metal, nuts, rivets, type block, keys, thimbles, coins, bottle tops, washers, pebbles, stone, broken china, tin, tiles, tile snippers, grouting tools, sand and cement screens, adhesives and grouts: cement based grout, weak sandy, epoxy grout-two part product, weaterproof joint...hygienic impermeable
 PVA wood glue permanent but not as an exterior adhesive. Aliphatic glue for exterior on wood. Silicone. dries quickly...indoor outdoor.

growing collection of Thames finds....broken old china ware. some nice historic pieces. lots of old pipes. some bones. some glass.

the down side of having a party--housecleaning.

Butt Dust and Brighton

Thank god we got out. What a miracle. We found out a few things this weekend. Sometimes, especially in winter weather, it's hard to get out. Ben has coughed his way through most of it. Put your socks on. Put your socks on. Trance state child in spiritual communion with tv glued to Sarah Jane or Ben Ten. Put your socks on. Parent gives up. OR parent turns off the tv. It isn't that bad, but sometimes, tv is the easier option. Though a rather slobby feeling accompanies it. I haven't seen an adult program for months. But we got out. I get a medal.

It was an adventure. We went to Kings Cross on Saturday and enquired about a family rail card. The desk man was nice and talked me out of it. If you're just going to Brighton, take London Bridge for a tenner. It's not advertised on the net. So we have a whole new window--how to get out of here away from the brick and the sirens. Thank God. Reasonable too. One pound for Ben. Isn't that funny. Less than the price of a coffee. You can whittle away ten pounds just walking down the street.

We meant to go on Saturday and Sunday as the weather was nice on Saturday. We met a lovely girl in the Mcdonalds and chatted about Wales, so have an option there with a possible house swap. The sheep are being shaven right now I think she said. Or they were having babies. Something about the sheep. She'd been to Greece too. She said Don't go to Greece in the summertime. Greece might be a nice break in October or next February.

We could have gone on Saturday, but then we got sucked into the park by an invisible giant vortex and stayed there for the remainder of the day until it was unlikely that we'd be departing. Child like familiar places. It is his favorite place to be. Georgina has had a third baby. I told them about my party this coming weekend. Zoe was up for going with us to Brighton and said her daughter Rose would like to see the bmx jam. It would have been nice to have some company. But then, the next morning, she phoned just a half hour before to say her child was sick. Sick child. A downer. But we are used to doing things ourselves. And we were on bikes and they didn't have bikes, so it would have been complicated. I wanted to get a little ride in.

We rode down to London Bridge. Had  a  big bag of sammys packed for the day. Caught the train. Rode to the seaside. Ben was loving the waves. The pebbles. Nothing but pebbles. Actually, the Thames beach is much more interesting. I've gathered a whole collection of nice broken worn china pieces that I hope to make a big collage mosaic with. Lovely bits.

Then we rode to Moulsecoombe. Found our way to the gym. I was getting a bit testy as the day was going by and of course, we were late, but at least arrived to see some of it. Maybe an hour and a half. It was good to see it in person rather than see videos. I spotted a few familiar faces. The net and videos distort things. That whole situation is terribly distorted and can't rewind. I think he was a bit shocked to see me there. I hope it didn't annoy him. I simply wanted to see a bike jam and watch him ride. You'd think that wouldn't upset someone. Our history is not great.

Fish and chips then the train. A lovely ride home. Ben in the loo on the train. "Mum....excuse me...Mum...come and wipe my bum. Come and wipe my bum Mum." If that didn't get everyone laughing.I still had a smirk on my face when I came in the loo. Oh. That upset him. Don't laugh at me. Poor boy. It was cute really. He has no idea how loud he is. Four men seated near us he played with them. They tossed him around. Scottish American guy. Full of knock knock jokes. And a lovely Mancunian couple. So funny. Then Ben got out his sonic screwdriver and banged the seat with it. So much dust came out. We were amazed. Then he started banging other seats. Sascha said....no no boy. That is the butt dust of a million commuters. Mind the butt dust. We had a good laugh with the butt dust and exchanged numbers. They were lovely.

Ben has amazing amounts of energy. He is a sturdy healthy boy despite he lack of appetite. Look mum, I'm still not tired. 930 we got home. We are going to do more exploring out of London. A couple with a pad on Brighton dock willing to swap one weekend. Good things have come out of it. Being in motion is always a good thing. There is always the unexpected and discoveries and the opening of eyes. Better than tv. 

Getting Out

Voices at Queen E Hall with Vanita. dancing in my seat second band. Twang twang. Tempted to go to a club after, but had my own beach club going on.Vanita getting chatted up by the securtiy guard. Said all herbs will become illegal, even burdock, as of April 1st in the USA, drug capital of the world. After, a trip along the Thames beach picking up shards of china met two cool dudes from Poland. Marek and his mate. We had an instant disco with his ipod and headphones. It was cosy happy fun. Things got better after my bath at five. Train station in the morning and nice chat with a Welsh woman who lives on a farm with sheep. We might trade places sometime. Great mood. Fab day. Getting out. Sammys not made, but well. 

Korea-Palsan

They wanted to know everything.

How many siblings do you have? Why aren't you married? What is it like where you lived before? How long will you be here?

Free talk time was otherwise known as question and answer for the teacher.

Finally, I decided to grow my family to have more to talk about as there was only my mother and sister. It wasn't enough. So there was John in Chicago, my best friend. He became my older brother. The psychiatrist turned electrician. He wires people's houses instead of their heads. There was Steve in the Mohave Desert who tested and made bombs. My younger brother. His work was top secret, so we talked about his weekends. And after too much grilling, I made up a husband too. He was a botanist studying plants in Sumatra. I was bored of the jungle, so I came to Korea to teach. Odd, but...yes I was allergic to the mosquitoes. 

I lived in an old fashioned hotel with paper sliding doors and ondol floors. We shared a kitchen. Korean men woke us up in the morning with their horrific throat clearing and spitting. After some time at the hotel, a student asked me if I'd move in with them. She wanted me to live with her family and teach her kids a little on the side. It was a good exchange. Her husband was a VP at Korean Air. For Christmas, they gave me a ticket to Indonesia to visit my husband. I made a stop over in Manilla as there was a lot of fighting in Jdakarta at the time. I had two months to kill. Two month's paid vacation in winter and two more in the summer. It made for a lot of beach time. 

Different Gareth

A fun chat with Gareth in the shop. He is making a chandelier for the Four Seasons. Steven, Erica, Rieko over for Pancakes. 

Domestic Order

33 days since the twenty first of august has come and gone and come and gone again. Tidied today. Vanita was by after a truffle making workshop. Mudlarking next weekend. Might join her. Blog block--Run out of things to say or at least to share. Ben is sucking on a miniature plunger- a broken off part of a dalek. Gave Vanita a painting today. Glad she likes it. Don't have much faith in the possibility of selling these large collage canvases as no one has space for it. The again, one is shipping out in the next two weeks. Past due. I used to think they were beautiful but they just look like junk now. Time to let og of all the pretty papers. I'm going to concentrate on keeping the lego separate from the action figures for a while and just worry about domestic order. It's a hum drum time this part of winter. By the time you've got your shoes on, the sun has gone back in. I planted some parsely and some basil. My palm tree is coming back to life since I moved it inside. Vanita likes the rotating disco ball that plugs into the computer. It makes a grinding sound. I was going to toss it, but at least keep it for the party. Moved the sofa under the window. A change of scene for the living room. A little more sorting and House Beautiful will be by for a photo shoot. A spate of house swap and holiday offers this weekend. Venice with Elizabeth making a painting for a hotel. Greece whenever we like as long as they can stay  a week in Mid May. Cumbria for the Royal Wedding weekend. Might stay here. Might go. Long way to go for the weekend. 

G section

Girl Interrupted back in the G section. Film Guy makes a terrific lunch- a hodge podge of deli remains with white wine. He agrees it's time for a fridge party. And being sectioned is disquieting. I could tell from the papers I corrected that none of his film students are bright sparks, but the questions were quite factual...yes or no. I always think film classes are pondering circumstances...places for reflection and discussion. I started to put together a syllabus of my own. Jonathan balks at my poncey life. Organising film cds with one hand and a glass of wine in the other...and today vase painting but without the benefit of alcohol. Little Bo Peep Land.