Hello, and thank you for visiting my site. I hope that you'll return often and always find something of interest about my world and what inspires me to pick up a pen. (This is a figure of speech, unfortunately. My handwriting is terrible!) Here's what I've been up to recently...
Well worth the aching feet!
What a week this has been! It began last Friday evening with the traditional Strictly Salsa party to celebrate Halloween. The costumes get better every year and 2015 saw as gruesome a bunch of individuals as you’d ever hope to meet – or not! See if you can spot me.
The weekend was family time with a visiting cousin and her husband from the other side of the Pennines. Fountains Abbey beckoned and we hoofed it all the way from the Visitors’ Centre car park to the far end of the Seven Bridges Walk – and back. The following day was devoted to a whistle stop tour of Ripon and they’re looking forward to getting to know our little city better on their next visit.
Tuesday saw me with a friend at the Bowes Museum in Barnard Castle to attend the Yves Saint Laurent exhibition. It was fabulous, but I was even more captivated by the 18th century musical automaton of the Silver Swan. The crowd that gathered round to see it in action – only once a day now at 2 p.m. – was proof that I’m not alone in that. The whole performance only lasts about 30 seconds or so but is very well worth the wait.
To quote from the Museum’s website:
How The Silver Swan Works
The swan is life-size and is controlled by three separate clockwork mechanisms. The Silver Swan rests on a stream made of twisted glass rods interspersed with silver fish. When the mechanism is wound up, the glass rods rotate, the music begins, and the Swan twists its head to the left and right and appears to preen its back. It then appears to sight a fish in the water below and bends down to catch it, which it then swallows as the music stops and it resumes its upright position.
6 November, 2015 - Make the first comment on this story
Comment on this story
Check Out My eBooks
