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snowscapes
You may or may not have noticed that I've been a bit quiet of late - a sudden fit of unchattiness that hit me for no reason whatsoever. I found myself abandoning all my writing projects (which remain untouched) and have also drifted a bit out of touch with my flist. Work has been on the crazy busy side, and in the evenings I haven't really wanted to go near the computer, preferring to curl up with a blanket, the cats and a good book instead!
Rather than bore everyone catching up on stuff that's been going on, I shall bore you instead with another snowscape picspam - with apologies to the![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
scene_again folk, who are getting this twice.
What a mixed week this has been! It started with continued ice (still going strong since before Christmas) and dire forecasts, then began to thaw, then mini-blizzards and now at last we look to be verging on a proper thaw at last! Fingers crossed it lasts.
As always, click the thumbnails to view the pictures properly.
After my last picspam post, a few people commented on the blueness of the images - which was purely the result of the light quality at the time! To demonstrate, I took a few pictures at the same location at the same time of day, just 24 hours later - and they just go to show what a difference the weather makes! Still a little blue-tinged, it is true, but nothing like the previous day, when it had still been snowing.
On Saturday I took the Small Sis up to Roath Park, near where I used to live, to see how the lake had frozen over. I've posted pictures of this park and lake so many times, but have never seen it looking like this before!
These pigeons looked awfully cold, all huddled up together like that!
Chelsea and I were a little concerned about this swan for a while, as he was just sitting on the ice unmoving for absolutely ages - it seemed such a cold spot to have a snooze!
But as we stepped up to the edge of the lake to take a closer look, he woke up and lumbered to his feet in hopes that we might have food for him.
Some more shots of the frozen lake.
Understandably, the various birds that make their home on the lake didn't seem terribly happy about its condition!
Walking on water
And finally, back to Bute Park yesterday morning, after yet another snowfall.
And the view from my office window.
Rather than bore everyone catching up on stuff that's been going on, I shall bore you instead with another snowscape picspam - with apologies to the
scene_again folk, who are getting this twice.What a mixed week this has been! It started with continued ice (still going strong since before Christmas) and dire forecasts, then began to thaw, then mini-blizzards and now at last we look to be verging on a proper thaw at last! Fingers crossed it lasts.
As always, click the thumbnails to view the pictures properly.
After my last picspam post, a few people commented on the blueness of the images - which was purely the result of the light quality at the time! To demonstrate, I took a few pictures at the same location at the same time of day, just 24 hours later - and they just go to show what a difference the weather makes! Still a little blue-tinged, it is true, but nothing like the previous day, when it had still been snowing.
On Saturday I took the Small Sis up to Roath Park, near where I used to live, to see how the lake had frozen over. I've posted pictures of this park and lake so many times, but have never seen it looking like this before!
These pigeons looked awfully cold, all huddled up together like that!
Chelsea and I were a little concerned about this swan for a while, as he was just sitting on the ice unmoving for absolutely ages - it seemed such a cold spot to have a snooze!
But as we stepped up to the edge of the lake to take a closer look, he woke up and lumbered to his feet in hopes that we might have food for him.
Some more shots of the frozen lake.
Understandably, the various birds that make their home on the lake didn't seem terribly happy about its condition!
Walking on water
And finally, back to Bute Park yesterday morning, after yet another snowfall.
And the view from my office window.
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Beautiful picspam. Looks quite similar here, as we are completely snowed in. *g* It's inconvenient, but I love it nonetheless! :)
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Where is the Chris-picspam? Huh, huh? I've wanted to see pretty Germany pics for such a long time now! :P
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I certainly understand the show-debate break, I try to force myself into writing my 5.10 meta to no avail for weeks now and with the hiatus nearly over, I start to feel pressured again. /sigh But yay for rediscovering an old book passion! I have tons of books in my 'library' that I would love to reread and just never find the time to. It's especially great if the books withstood time and you still find them as enjoyable as the first time around. *g* What book series did you rediscover?
*coughs* One day when you least expect it I'll post a picspam. *g*
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I've been re-reading the Chalet School series - a cousin of my dad's gave me an almost complete set back in my teens and I was an avid reader throughout my school days. There are about 60 books altogether! The series started in the mid 1920s and was about a young Englishwoman starting a small school in Austria, and it continued through to the early '60s (when the author died) following the fortunes of this school and the families connected with it - having to leave Austria during the war and moving the school a few times after that before settling in Switzerland. It's all terribly old fashioned and quaint, and the writing is very dated, but something about it captured my imagination back then and has again now - such fun discovering how much I both do and don't remember about the books! They are really quick to read, so I'm rattling through the series already, but I still have a way to go... Mostly, I'm finding it a breath of fresh air after the intensity of having my head stuck in show fandom for so long!
I shall sit and await this eventual picspam. *G*
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I've never heard of that book series, but it sounds lovely! And certainly something to keep you busy for a while. 60 books! Wow. *g*
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The books certainly are keeping me busy! And rather offline...
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Wonderful wonderful pictures, especially that last sequence. The trees look absolutely beautiful, thank you so much for sharing with us that lovely city where you live.
My daughter is a great Chalet School fan, in much the way I love Pros and is (or was, come to think of it I haven't heard her mention it for a while, but she has been quite preoccupied recently with moving house and such!) quite involved with various online CS communities and disappears to gathers now and again. I've never got into it but can see the appeal!
Don't go away completely but do enjoy cuddling up with your lovely mogs, nothing better on a cold evening!
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I hadn't read my CS books in a good 10-15 years, thanks to their having been stored away when I left home, since I'd never had room for them. It's been fun to re-discover them. That old charm is still there, however much my inner critic scoffs at the old-fashioned style of writing and inconsistent continuity!
I've always tended to cycle through fandoms, mind - once I've loved something that love never goes away, but they must all takes turns being at the forefront. I feel a bit transitional at the moment, as the most recent 'obsession' has been a bit on the wane lately with nothing to fill the gap. So, I'm indulging myself with lots of books and some very random show watching, odd episodes of a variety of shows - whatever takes my fancy. With such cold weather as we've been having, it's much more fun than sitting at the PC!
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And I was given a Kindle for Christmas by hubby and son and find that is just brilliant for sitting and reading in the evening (or anytime for that matter), I've put a lot of Prosfic onto it and can just sit and read anywhere.
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Can't quite believe that we're already half-past January. Wasn't it December just a moment ago?
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Glad you're okay. I'm with you on the hermit thing. Also the burnout. It breaks my heart not to be frothing with excitement for a new ep next week. I find myself waiting for them to disappoint me. Sigh.
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It saddens me that I'm suffering such enormous show burnout, but I suppose in a way it was inevitable even if the quality hadn't suddenly become so variable this season. I've been delving into it so intensely for so long, I was never going to be able to keep that up. I feel much better for giving myself a complete break from it...and am not sure if or when I'll pick the writing back up again. I find I don't actually miss it at all. I hadn't even worked out that it is next week that the show comes back!
Still, you never know. The new episodes might be amazing and rekindle that fire. I'm not going to get my hopes up, though. Shall just wait and see what comes.
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The 'walking on water' photos - are they at the top end of the lake, where the island is? I thought perhaps it might be a bit warmer (well,less frozen) there, because of the shelter from the trees. I imagine the locals are feeding the birds, and I don't suppose the park keepers will let them starve either.
I heartily approve your choice of teenage and adult reading :) I loved the Chalet School books, but I don't think I've ever managed to read the whole series. In fact, I don't think I ever had the later ones. *Laughs* It seemed so natural at the time, Madge going off 'just like that' to start a school in a foreign country, without any apparent experience behind her... odd, the things one takes for granted!
But then, I never had any difficulty with four children and a dog going off camping on their own in the wilds of Dartmoor or Snowdonia, either. And obviously, if you've got mysterious caves or tunnels, there's going to be smuggling and a ghost train to go with them, isn't there!
I shall be hunting out all my old books now, you'll see :)
Take care of yourself. Feel free to shout if you're down or in need of company.
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I have almost the complete set of Chalet School books - I believe there is only one that I never managed to find and so have never read. I've only got a handful of the original hardbacks, though - most of them are Armada paperbacks and, I have discovered via online explorations, are heavily abridged. Apparently, a small publishing firm has started re-printing the books in batches, complete and unabridged and using all the original artwork and everything - fabulous! So now I am trying to figure out if it is worth beginning to invest in a couple here and there to replace my abridged books (many of which are falling apart anyway) with these spiffy new unabridged ones...
I always loved these kinds of stories as a child - plausibility mattered not a jot to me! Even now, however much my inner-editor/critic scoffs at the scenarios and writing, my inner child rejoices. *G*
Feel free to shout if you're down or in need of company.
Will do, ta - as long as you feel free to pop down for a visit whenever you fancy!
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Visiting - it's a deal :)
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Actually...I'm not sure if the Collins books are the abridged or unabridged version. Suspect the former, but will have to look into it.
Edit - someone gave me a link to a spreadsheet detailing which books were most heavily abridged and which were left uncut. Want me to dig it out for you?
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http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=p55m29bG0Nz9qL7tz9XVLXw
And Girls Gone By Publishers are: http://www.ggbp.co.uk/ (Again, if I don't do it now I'll forget...)
I've put a few on my wishlist on amazon - it'll be a while before I can justify spending the money, but it's as well to keep them bookmarked for future reference, I felt!
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*puts credit card in cupboard*
*locks cupboard*
*throws away key*
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Chelsea ... no longer 'small' ... now 'small sis' :)
Has Alfie been out to play in the snow again ?
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Alfie did spend some time dashing in and out of the snow in short, sharp bursts, so as to have fun without getting too cold. I didn't take any pictures this time, though.
The snow looked wonderfully pretty, but was a terrible nuisance. Thankfully we're up a degree or two now, and it rained last night, which should have washed the worst of the ice away.
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Cricket has been good ... always good if your side is doing well and when the Captain and Vice Captain both make 100 (actually the Cpt went on to make 200) even better.
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