My new garden is getting closer

Paul came yesterday to look at the garden.  I'm glad he couldn't do it in May as it turns out cos it is too pretty to be turned into a building site.  Every morning when I draw the curtain back there is another huge poppy. This is yesterday evening - Charlie is making hard work of walking down the fence just to tease Angel.

 This is what it looked like through the kitchen window this morning:

and from the back step I'm not sure I want it reorganising:

Angel getting to know the girls:

a close up of an atlantic poppy - that orange couldn't be bettered

Angel has homework too.

She is learning to sit. In the kitchen:

At the crossing:

not running to meet someone.

On the traffic island in the middle of the road:

though it takes ages.

Surrounded by petals:

even if it is more fun to chase them:

She's learning table manners too - Charlie is in charge of those lessons:

 I'm half way through the five weeks of the life drawing class.  Here's a pic from each week:

I think I can see an improvement, but I'm not sure.  The house is littered with paper - on the wall and every surface.  I have difficulty seeing.  I think that is a skill as much as drawing - I bust out laughing this week, cos more than half way through a pose and having stepped back a couple of times at least, I blinked and saw how wide I'd made Tess's back.  Wide as a navvie's.  But at least I saw it.  This week was the first of surface rather than edge - more fun than measuring but a different kind of looking to learn. For homework I've started on a blanket:

clutter = colour minimalism = monotony

This is prompted by

the public local libraries getting rid of notice boards for design reasons,

walking round taking photos of gardens and realising, not for the first time, that I like the ones with lots of different things in, 

 

finishing a cushion cover mum got for me - this one was ready designed and printed with the pattern, so it was a bit like painting with numbers but it made it more relaxing.

I'm not sure whether the new one goes with the old ones, but I am sure I don't need another cushion, so it is staying on the cupboard door for now.

.

Flying cranes made from a pattern off the internet.

Fledglings thinking of taking the plunge

Panic over

I thought I'd lost Angel.

Today being a fortnight after she was spayed and a bank holiday, we set off early for a leadless walk in Miggy woods, with snackerels and new camera and a raincoat.  The footpath runs between factories, quiet for the holiday, for the first 100 yards or so after I take the lead off and there were these yellow flowers, primrose or cowslip, I thought I would photograph and so I did and when I carried on walking she wasn't there.

At first I thought she'll come when I 'coo-up' and then I thought, she'll have gone on, and then I thought, she'll have gone back and so I was up and down the surrounding 200 or so yards thinking 'what do I do?' in a Pigletish way.

So in the end - ten minutes or so, I phoned Josie and asked her to check the doorstep, and decided to walk the route in reverse, in case she'd chased off looking for me.

People with dogs are a special breed, there were at least half a dozen who assured me they'd keep an eye out and phone me if they found her - thank heavens I put my mobile number on her collar.

I was most of the way back and my 'coo-up' was starting to sound strained when the phone rang.  She'd got home OK and one of Melvin's carers was looking after her. 

When I got back there she was in the back garden.  I'm not sure how a dog shows remorse but I'm pretty sure that she wasn't!  I didn't know what to do.  I didn't want to make a fuss, 'cos that might encourage a repeat performance and I certainly wasn't going to punish her 'cos I can still remember Dad thrashing Rusty for running off and going home on his own.  So I went for calm.  She didn't seem to notice.

Lesson:  when photographing, keep dog on lead!

This is my new camera - a Canon powershot SX200 IS.  I got it from Jessops and the assistant assured me the ixus 850 had been discontinued for ages.

After all the fuss and worry, I don't think the flower shots this morning were worth it and though I have a vague recollection of blue bells and robins, I was too distracted and hurried to take any more.