miss marie's miscellany

3 good things - day 4

1) My dad phones and says he has received a CD I bought him from Amazon which I understood he wouldn't get till the end of next week. I'm glad it got there quickly and in time for Christmas.

2) It's still soooooo cold here, but the trees are covered with glittering frost and the sun makes them sparkle  - you have to stop and stare, it really is magical (and thermal underwear makes it possible to gaze for more than a fleeting few seconds!)

3) I am asked to play for the ballet - it is a piece I don't know well and I have never played before, but I take a leap into the dark and it's ok, very exciting and brilliant music :-)

Oh well, it is Christmas Eve. The state of play in this household is good - food prep well on course, the presents are wrapped, the cards are written, the wine is chilling; I'm ready for the big day.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

 

 

Big sticks

Sometimes you come across something unusual which seems to have drawn inspiration from a variety of different sources  

 
 

Seen outside the smart new Grand Canal Theatre in Dublin...... big red knitting needles!

 

Chopsticks? Abandoned stilts?

They also remind me of Venice...... the theatre is right next to the canal after all.

And at night.....

 

they light up.......may the force be with you?!

 
What do they remind you of? 

Bits and pieces

An interesting piece at the BBC about the growing trend towards 'make do and mend' and the increase in sewing machine sales since the recession.

Continuing my William Boyd theme, I found this article written by him in the Guardian, an A-Z of A how parks have inspired novelists.

I went to see 'Julie and Julia' and thoroughly enjoyed it, especially Meryl Streep and Stanley Tucci who were superb (Oscar-winning performances maybe?). If, like me, you have a little touch of the autumn blues, this film will cheer you up, I can vouch for that!

My new shoes; I bought these in purple, my favourite colour at the moment. They look lovely, are comfortable too, they make me a good 2" taller and I feel like the bees knees when I wear them! What more can you ask for in footwear?

A trip to the theatre last night to see this powerful production of  'The House of Bernarda Alba'. I wasn't sure if moving the setting to present-day Glasgow would work, but it did, very dramatically with some great performances from the all-female cast.

Hope you are having a good weekend!