Is there an overall theme to this week's blog?  If so, I imagine it must be 'ever onwards and upwards'.
What a difference a week makes!  Not only have I been moving onwards (not that there's much choice in that, really) but there has been a noticeable upwards trend.
To start with, the first few days following Sam's accident felt more like an uphill struggle rather than an upwards trend.  But as the week progressed, the rain clouds began to part and the sun started to emerge and shine through.
During that first week, following repeated orders from my eldest son (he's good at that) I went online and booked a date to give blood.  I had tried to, in the early 90s, but had been unsuccessful, with my blood not flowing rapidly enough to fill the pint bag in the time required.  So having been rejected as a donor, I decided that after 25 years I would give my blood flow another go, and so, stirred on by John's admonishments and also the fact that Sam had received a transfusion a few days before, the booking was made for the following Friday at 13.10.
In the meantime, Sam was very much looking forward to Molly's return from Somerset.  In fact, the sun was now not only peeping out, but casting a little warmth too.
Sam picked up the cake he had commissioned for her birthday party, and what a cake!

But the clouds that had parted to reveal the sun now produced a lot of snow.
 Molly became snowed-in, in Somerset. The party was cancelled and there was a very large cake that needed eating (well, every cloud does have a silver lining, even those snowy ones.)
Luckily Molly made it through the snow in time to accompany Sam to Southampton General for his check-up, and the removal of many stitches.  The team did a first class job on repairing Sam's face.  Now in a horror film he would no longer be the one rising slowly from the coffin, but probably be the action-hero of the piece, with a distinguished large scar or two.  The check-up also revealed that a) Sam was not able to fly yet and b) he needs an operation on his right eye, as soon as the swelling has subsided.  The appointment was booked with the consultant for the 9th of April.
As they were unable to continue with their planned week in Venice, Molly and Sam decided to enjoy days out in their own locality.  I had a text from Sam, saying they were enjoying a visit to Hillier's Arboretum near Romsey.  We used to go there a lot, when John and Sam were small.  'Do you remember when we decorated a monkey puzzle tree with camellia blossoms?' I texted back.  Not only had Sam remembered, but him and Molly had already transformed a Taxus Buccata (box, to most of us) into a thing of beauty and wonderment, and were sitting on a bench near it, listening to the comments it was provoking.
If you ever fancy a laugh in Springtime, all you need is an evergreen, and an abundance of fallen camellia blossoms, plus a nearby bench.

As life settled down once again, I had a couple of afternoons free to make onwards and upwards strides with my current illustration.
Here is the picnic cloth, all ready to receive the food.

Here is the plan of what is to happen, minus the lowest plate which got cut up for a template, and then consigned to the bin.

I must admit, I surprised myself by managing to complete almost all of it. I thought that I would be able to paint the cake plates, and then time would run out.  But no, blackbirds and a green donkey made their appearance, complete with their very own miniature pic-nic food.
 Do you see the teacup on the right hand side, still on the table? It's a little bit more obvious than the green donkey, which is successfully merging into the verdant lawn.

Well I now have to decide whether to add it to the design, as below.  It does look as if it belongs there.  Next decision, do I paint it, or take a photograph and add that?  Well, here I have a temporary pause from the onwards and upwards direction, and stop have a static ponder instead.  The answer really is to do both, and to see what suits.
 It will mean a little extra effort, which I might be trying to avoid, just by way of change!  Sometimes the 'upwards' bit just means more work!
 I am thinking that I might keep these chapter-heading illustrations as they are, which is mainly painted with some collage.  I want to employ photography in the individual ones, plus a little knitting too, of course. And perhaps some lino-cuts.

Looking at the photos above I notice that the colours and exposures are inconsistent. After an intensive photography experience on Wednesday, I am starting to know how to solve that, but before talking about visual art, let's just explore a little literary culture. 
I chose this book from the library as I have enjoyed works by Peter May in the past.

When I started to read it, I was initially disappointed, as it felt decidedly 'clunky' both in the plot and the style of writing.  There was a 'shall I, shan't I' moment or two, but I decided to proceed onwards, to see whether it would start to go upwards in my estimation. Also, I was running short of reading material!  As the story unfolded, the subject matter became of great importance, as it was about an undercover study of bees, designed to provide proof that there is a positive link between the use of neonicotinoids and the decline in the bee population.  On the surface, you could study the bees and say that their overall 'health' is not affected by this chemical being used on many crops, but when you study them in depth, it is proven that the use of neonicotinoids affect their brain and memory, so they are unable to gather food then 'remember' the way home. This is put very simply here, but the result of this is devastating.  These are also facts and not fiction, but facts that lots of big industries are choosing to ignore, for their own immediate gain, and to the detriment of us all in the future.
I then realised that my own decision to do something about this, starting with including bees and this concern as part of my cookery books (notice the use of the plural there, I must be zooming both onwards and upwards in my long term plan) had been put on pause somewhat.
This book has jolted me out of 'pause'.  It pressed 'play' and made me think of how to include bees and their very uncertain future in my work.  Ideas have formed and are moving onwards.

So thank you Peter May.  I may not have enjoyed your book as much as I thought I would, but it gave me a much stronger and more timely message than I would ever have anticipated.

Friday came around, and I kept my appointment and duly gave a pint of blood.  All was very straightforward, the actual painless donation taking five and a half minutes.  Apparently my blood is now flowing strongly and swiftly, so I must be doing something right. I felt I deserved my drink of water (new donors don't get hot drinks) and bag of crisps. I have already booked my next session, and have found that my blood group is O positive.  The thought of giving blood is perhaps the worst thing about the entire process.  Giving blood does not hurt, and it does save lives.  You don't have to see what happens at all, and you do get a nice lie down during daylight hours.  Somebody provided the blood that Sam needed, the need for blood is constant, and they always need new donors.
  I can donate every 16 weeks, which is of very little inconvenience in the overall scheme of things.
 
A policeman rang me last week, to say that they had recently apprehended a burgler, who had also admitted to breaking into and stealing from 'The Gables.'  Our stolen possessions have gone forever, but he thought that with some victims, this further knowledge also helps to bring a sense of closure.
 Mr Cooper, after an initial burst of rage and bad language, thought that he did feel better to know that the thief was now behind bars awaiting his trial, after which he was likely to be there for a long time.
I felt, as I looked into my depleted jewellery drawer which mostly contains funky plastic items, really pleased that my silver deer brooch had been overlooked, unlike most of my silver items.
This brooch is very dear to me, and I love it dearly, as well as deerly.  I will aim to take a good picture of it very soon, to show you of my upwards progression with a camera!

Bear with me now, as this story does make sense soon.  Well, it does to me.
Saturday dawned and me and Mr Cooper headed off to Uppark, to enjoy a National Trust day with the Lemons.  We had such a lovely time, and it was just like pretending to be grown-ups, but grown-ups who laugh a lot, and talk to all the volunteers until they have had enough of us.  Dawn and I reckoned they have to follow a code of conduct, where they are allowed to engage with individual members of the public for five minutes, then they move you on.  Either that, or they found Dawn and my conversations really boring! As usual on an excursion I took my camera, but took only one photo, of a deer's head situated in the servants quarter, which reminded me of my brooch.

The following day me and Mr Cooper set off with Sarah and Gareth to Compton, to enjoy a beautiful walk with stunning views of Uppark in the distance.  I will put it down to being misty as to why I didn't take any photos at all that day!  But all that is going to change.
When I chose my camera to replace the one that had been stolen, I also picked up this postcard from the London Camera Exchange.

And what is more, I then picked up the phone and booked a one to one session with Barry, which I had on Wednesday morning.  I learnt so much in those three hours, but I have also learnt that I need to learn so much more.  So intensive was the morning that when Barry asked me a final question, about what two things I could pre-set at home, before going out to take photos of landscapes, my mind just froze over with having had so much information.  I got one of them, before realising that even more thought was just beyond me, and all I could say was 'I'm sorry, I really don't know'. 

 This was not a negative comment on Barry's teaching, but rather a reflection on the intensity of the previous three hours, but my goodness has it opened some doors with glimpses of a new future. 

 Not so much onwards and upwards this time, but more like a vertical take-off but with only a sketchy idea of how to pilot the jump-jet.  Exciting, yes.  Scary too, as it will involve lots of work.  I could return to life as before, and choose the Automatic setting (safe and easy), or I could learn how make my own visual choices.

Sometimes going forwards requires very little effort, as we may already be on level ground.  Sometimes we come across a hill, or some rough ground. We may choose to stick to the path that we know, the one that we are comfortable with, but then we will never find out where that extra effort and hard work will take us.  So in the coming week or two, roll up your sleeves when faced with a new situation, and give it a go.  

It could be trying a new activity, learning a new skill, or working to complete a project that you have shelved for too long, whilst you trundle along your safe, smooth path.

And with all this talk of rough and smooth paths, spare a thought for those who take a tumble when the road is rocky.  You already have your sleeves rolled up, so go online and book your first donor appointment.  The range of snacks afterwards makes it very worthwhile, as me and son John have discovered and discussed.  https://www.blood.co.uk/

It might be harder at times to attain higher ground, but you don't half get a better view!
 And the plus side to all this onwards and upwards is that you can always pause for a drink of water, a flask of tea perhaps and definitely some chocolate!

See you all very soon, after the weekend of chocolate eggs.

Happy Easter to you all, however you are choosing to spend it.

This last week or so has contained many journeys, sometimes cruising through a happy valley, and at times, hurtling along on a roller coaster that you hadn't intended ever to board!

Let's start with a 'Happy Valley' excursion.

The Friday before last saw me and Mr Cooper heading for Eye, taking with us both sausages and good will.  We were nearly taking son John too, but on the morning we left he was feeling not quite the ticket, so it was only the two of us who made the usual stop in Turweston, at The Stratton Arms.

https://www.facebook.com/strattonarms 

Mr Cooper has moved on from dining on the filled rolls (delicious and extremely good value) to feasting on the hot steak pies, which are delicious in the extreme.  Not only is the filling all you could desire, but the pastry is amazing too.  I did have to convince him that the pub is too far away for it to be a regular lunch venue for him and his mates, Jim and Dave.

Later that evening, after a sausage supper with Mum,  my dearest friend Deborah came over and together we braved the elements and walked to the Blue Boar, a very different pub to my lunchtime venue!  Having braved the elements without, we then braved the elements within, and were soon catching up on our lives, sharing both experiences and much laughter as only true friends can.  There are two good safety valves to coping with life's difficulties, one of which is talking to your nearest and dearest female friends and laughing at life's tribulations where you can, and the other is, at times, have a jolly good cry.  But more of that later on.
How can there possibly be tears on the horizon when you have a box of blancmange in your hands?

As my little brother Mark was joining us on Saturday with his three children, I thought it was time that we re-discovered the treats that Granny and then Mum used to make for their grand-children.  Lucas and Jem have yet to experience the chocolate bunny on jelly grass.  This was such a loved pudding that I have made several lino-prints of it.

If you are looking at the above and thinking 'That looks amazing, Sue' just send me a cheque for £45 and your address, and you can have your very own, and be amazed on a daily basis.  Simple.

Anyway, on Saturday I made the jelly and popped it into the fridge, and then I made the blancmange and didn't pop it into the fridge.  Why not?  Well, I only read some of the instructions.
What you can do at this point is learn from the mistakes that I made.

Jem was my sous-chef in the creation of this dessert.  As you can see from the actual rabbit mould, if the blancmange is not chilled, it does not gain all the details!  As Jem added the jelly grass around the 'rabbit' then arranged the flowers, he said that it rather resembles a tasty chicken leg than a rabbit.
So there you have it, a chocolate bunny heavily disguised as a chicken leg, but tasty, nevertheless.
We will get it just right for Easter, just you wait and see.
Jem did a first class job with grass and flowers.

We continued our culinary trip down memory lane, with Mark bringing to light the sundae glasses.  They were aptly named, as they were only used ever on Sundays.  Sometimes they had Angel Delight in them, and in the 70s we experienced our own food revolution by having 'starters'!  Whilst watching the Galloping Gourmet, a much-loved weekly programme, we took down the recipe for prawn cocktail, which became not only our very favourite starter, but also influenced my art in later year.
I made sure to include mum's carpet in this shot, as it also hails from the 70s.
Be warned, Simon, the glasses have gone back with Mark to Portishead, so get in quick with any special requests!

Here is my knitted prawn cocktail brooch against the background of my prawn cocktail apron.
 You can commission me to knit you a brooch for not too much money, but an actual apron will cost you dear.  But if you are fortunate enough to be one of my beautiful nieces, you will already own one of these potential heirlooms!
 I might just give mine an outing tonight, teamed with my most favourite dinosaur necklace.

Now we have strayed into the realms of art, let's have a burst of culture on the literature front.
Of late, I have experienced a spell of choosing books that I have failed to complete. and the ones that I have completed have not been anywhere near good enough to recommend.  One book I very nearly added to my blog as having been 'a deep disappointment', but I decided that was not really the way I wanted to go, though I very much felt like it. But then this one came along.

Usually when I read the word 'epic' I associate it with 'very very long' but this story had many glorious strands in it that were so beautifully interwoven.  It gave a tremendous insight into the reality of not only living but surviving under Chairman Mao, and beyond.  It also mentioned often a sweet that is one of my very favourites.

The 'White Rabbit'  Chinese sweet.  Here are wrappers from two that me and Mr Cooper ate earlier!
'I must buy some' thought I, and so I did. (The Katmandu food-store, Andover, well worth a visit.)

Last Sunday I had a cheery call from Sam, to wish me 'Happy, Happy mother's Day' (I don't think son John knew the significance of that day to mothers everywhere).  Much later that day, as he was travelling to Winchester on his moped, he had a bad accident.  George had the call from the police that every parent fears, and was able to go to the scene of the accident, and then onto Southampton General to be with Sam.  Very luckily, his wounds were not life-threatening, and he was prepared for surgery the following day.
I was oblivious to these events as it was Monday morning when I was contacted by George, and the two of us travelled to the hospital to be with him after his surgery.  It was such a relief to see a sleeping, living Sam after only a few hours on the roller coaster when you are not sure at all how far you are going to be hurtled in the downwards direction.  Sam was very battered and bruised, with the addition of about fifty stitches to his face, mainly to re-attached his forehead back to the right place.  His right eye was damaged both in front of it and behind it, but hopefully not actually to it.  When I talked to Sam he was how you are shortly after a general anaesthetic, but there were two things he kept talking of.  One, that he stood by the side of the road after the accident (which he doesn't remember) barely able to see, and knowing he had been badly injured, but waving both arms to flag down passing motorists, of which there were many.  He was eventually found by the best person ever, a passing fireman called Rodney.  By that time, Sam was extremely confused, had really given up, and just sitting in a puddle. It makes me cry just to think of how much help he needed, how vulnerable he was, and how many people thought it wasn't their business.  Even if you felt you weren't equipped to be 'first on the scene' and I can really understand that, as he would not have been a pretty sight, why not just stop a little further down the road to call for the emergency services?  I know Sam is going to thank Rodney in person if possible, and if anyone knows who he is, give him a huge thank you from me, and George, and Sam and John and Molly, and the list goes on and on.
Luckily Sam was discharged after a couple of nights on Ward F5 (thanks to all the staff there too).

And on the day he arrived back home, it was to be met with a triumphant yellow garland (albeit one he could hardly see).

Juliette has been helping George transform his home back to being a place of beauty once again.  When I left The Greyhound in my break to go and see Sam on Tuesday, these were flapping in the breeze, and it felt like a good sign for new beginnings.  It will be a while before Sam establishes a new 'normal' but he is now experiencing a new beginning in his life, whether he wanted one or not!  As are all those of us who love and care for him. And when you are on that roller-coaster, hurtling down at speed, there are times when you don't think you will survive the crash that surely awaits you at the bottom.  Luckily this roller coaster drew to a stop after having frightened to death everyone of its passengers.

So, in the week ahead, and beyond, if you are unable to stop and help someone in distress, just go a little further along, then stop and make sure you contact someone who can.  It won't take many minutes out of your own life, and could actually save the life of somebody else.
And on a more cheery and uplifting note, go out and buy some yellow dusters (or wash your existing, grimy ones) and dust your beautiful belongings.  Work to make at least an area of your house a lovely place to be, then wash those dusters in readiness for when any greyness tries to creep back in.
Just one addition to all of this, if you read this and know Sam's Grannies, they haven't been told, and don't need to be, it is far better that way.  If you know them, you will understand why.
So go forth and celebrate life, vigorously waving those bright yellow dusters!
Looking forward to seeing you all very  soon.

On Wednesday night I went to bed leaving the curtains wide open, hoping to see snow falling when I woke up, night or day!  At mid-day on Thursday 1st March I am still waiting.  Perhaps when this blog is published, it will contain some snowy images. 
As February became colder and colder, me and Mr Cooper decided to do something to really warm ourselves up.  'A week in the sun?' I hear you wonder.  No, a Saturday afternoon spent watching Bristol Rovers pretend to play football, in sub-zero temperatures.  We know how to live!

I should have got Mr Cooper to take a photo of me there, as positive proof, but this will have to suffice.  Mr Cooper bought a programme to add to his extensive programme collection, and I have just discovered that I have to also give him my ticket, to add to his also extensive football ticket collection.  Who says men are a different species to women?  When I asked Mr Cooper what he was collecting all these for, he said it was because he was a collector, and just liked collecting things. sometimes the words 'collect' and 'hoard' can be interchangeable!  After that conversation, I paused to view my collection of egg-cups, as I am in fact a Pocillovist.*
I find my collection to be both useful, and visually pleasing.
Here is a small section of it.  The ones I am really keen to find are the lustre animal ones.

 Returning to the football match, the first half was just a nightmare, with both teams just kicking the ball up the pitch.  The most exciting thing was that 4 balls were actually kicked out of the stadium.
Even half-time was a bit disappointing, as the pasty was both over-cooked and extremely flat.  When I suggested to Mr Cooper that he returned it to get a better one, he said that they were all like that and after looking around, I discovered that we were surrounded by fans eating flat brown pasties.
The chorizo sausage rolls looked delicious, but apparently rules is rules, and going to see The Rovers involves always standing in the Thatchers stand, and only ever eating a Cornish pasty at half-time.
Luckily the second half was very exciting.  The standard of play didn't improve, but the determination from both sides to score a goal did, resulting in a very exciting game.  Scunthorpe scored first, and we equalised (I sound like an actual fan now) just before the end.
Now we were at the part of the match which is always enjoyable, the apre-ski bit.
We hurried to the Drapers Arms, a micro pub down the Gloucester Road, which is an absolute paradise for fans of real ale.  I had three exceptional beers from a list of nine, and when I popped to the loo it was to find these three beauties.

They were nestling together on the cistern, along with some air-freshener.  That really made the pub for me as it pleased me both on the beer front, and then on the twisted, knitted, art front too.
After a Saturday night curry (another tradition, along with standing, and pasties) we returned to The Gables the following day, listening to Desert Island Discs on the way.  The castaway was Dame Minouche Shafik, who is the director of the London School of Economics.  She spoke so well about equality, working women, and also the fact that some of us have much more fortunate lives than others.  If you didn't hear it at the time, it is well worth a listen to.
 Mr Cooper is indeed a creature of habit, and on our return we made our standard Sunday fare, roast chicken.  Well, Mr Cooper always makes the gravy, and the gin and tonics.  It was a sad day on Sunday in the world of my dwindling gin collection, as the bottle of Glasgow gin was finished.
This is both delicious and unusual, as it is best served with a sprig of crushed Rosemary, and a fresh green chili which has been almost sliced in half.  I have removed the label to remind me to replace the bottle.  Well, it lasted from 25th December until the 24th February, so it did very well. (I won't tell you how large the actual collection was, on the 25th!)

Another reason for removing the label was that the bottle was to be used by Trinity.  The art groups have been asked to create 30 table decorations for a posh ball.  And as ever, on a very small budget.
So an assortment of bottles will be filled with azure and gold items plus lights.
Monday afternoon at Trinity was spent creating prototypes before break, and then some sketches after break that were inspired by words and phrases.

These are from my page of sketches.  It does seem like I spend Sunday afternoons drinking gin, and Monday afternoons taking hallucinogenic drugs.  But fear not, what I have is what my Mum calls a 'vivid imagination'.  And by my Mum's definition, it is 'never a good thing to have'.  I beg to differ!

Woohoo, at 2pm the snow finally arrived, here is the garden just beginning to become 'dusted' with snow.
 I was able to go to bed feeling a lot happier, with a snowy walk on the cards for the following day.

The skies on Friday were suitably gloomy and grey, though not actually snowing.  Mr Cooper looked at the weather reports, and assured me that it would snow at mid-day.  We decided to follow our usual snow-routine, which is to walk into Emsworth via the seafront, visit the library and go to a hostelry for lunch.
So 11.30 am found us clad in our winter walking gear, setting off into the bleak countryside.
Here is the view from the shore, with snow clouds on the horizon.

And sure enough, the snow started to fall at 12pm, right on cue.  Here is Mr Cooper looking like he is loving the snowy walk.  I was, as I love the snow, and also the promise of a pub lunch.  A real treat.

After trudging for a mile or so, battling against the biting wind, we reached the marina, the part of Emsworth that is a sailor's paradise. We picked our way through a variety of boats, and I paused to take a couple of arty boat pictures, both from the same vessel.
Here is the first, I just love how the many layers of paint become their own beautiful artwork,

With a sculptural element too.

After changing four books in the library, but stupidly changing paperbacks for hardbacks, we made our way to The Coal Exchange which has two real fires, and a very tempting menu.  Two courses for £10, what is not to like?  We both chose Stilton and broccoli soup, then Mr Cooper chose a lamb leg steak to follow whilst I opted for a steak and ale pie.  When we had finished our soup which was amazing and plentiful, we realised that we were already felt quite full.  But we nevertheless manfully and womanfully managed to polish off the main course too.  When you are sitting by a coal fire, feeling really well-fed and finishing your glass of red, a snowy walk home seems far less attractive and staying by the fire for longer seems such a good idea.  But no, we bravely left the shelter of 'The Coalie' and endured our head-wind walk home.
I was really pleased that we had our snowy walk, as the following day we would have had a slushy walk instead in the morning, and an 'almost back to normal' walk in the afternoon.

Last week I was talking about trying something new.  In my case, it was a new recipe but it was so delicious that it will soon become a familiar one.  Chimichurri sauce, it's amazing.
I initially looked at a recipe by Jamie Oliver, but think that this one by Valentine Warner just had the edge.  There is a warning with it, however.  You must really like garlic, and everyone in the house has to eat it.  After that, you will not be troubled by vampires for a fair while.

I really enjoyed watching Valentine Warner's cookery series on the television some time ago, and bought the book to go with it.  In fact, so enthused was I that when he was a visiting chef where Sam was working, I wanted to be the kitchen porter for the night, in order to meet him and see how he worked.  Sadly, it was the day of my wedding anniversary, so I had to decline, but that was perhaps a blessing in disguise!  In the book, he talks about working at the Halcyon Hotel in London as 'in those frantic kitchen days before I minded being shouted at', but Sam found that this didn't mean he wasn't averse to actually doing the shouting! Strangely enough, Sam has never liked being sworn at and shouted at, but on that day, he was the recipient of both from Mr Warner.  For further details, just ask Sam!
When I delve into his cookery book I always think of Sir Terry Wogan, and a comment he made about Valentine Warner once, on his Breakfast Show.  He remarked that you never saw Valentine Warner and Herman Munster in the same room together.  You are so greatly missed, Sir Terry.

We have had to put our house back on the market, as the people who want to buy it haven't yet managed to sell their house.  So out comes the polish again, and we continue to de-clutter.  But we have gained a most beautiful addition to the kitchen mantelpiece.  Here is a wondrous creation in blue, which I refer to as the 'beautiful being,' being welcomed by the duck jug.  Both were gifts to me, with both benefactors deciding that I would treasure the items more than they were being treasured.

This made me think that a present does not always have to be bought. and sometimes something that you already own would please another person greatly.  I don't mean that you should off-load your junk onto your unsuspecting friends, but sometimes you could make a space by giving a gift.
 And when there is a space, something will usually come along to fill it, though sometimes in a way you wouldn't perhaps have foreseen!
In the week to come, I hope to make some creative space by completing a couple of projects.  My mink stole now needs to be sewn-up, but not until the glass eyes have been added!  When the parcel arrives, which should also contains a couple of mink noses too, the stole will be able to be completed.
Perhaps have a look around this week, to see if you have something that needs to be finished, but that you may have been avoiding.  Get it completed, and then see what else comes along to fill the space.
And if when you have completed it, and you don't like it as much as you thought you would, give it to someone who really really likes it, a win-win situation.
Keep drinking lots of water too!  Have fun, and see you all again very soon.

* Collector of egg-cups.