Steps through Kennall Vale

IMGP7276, originally uploaded by Ajay Jayne.

A very inviting walk up the steps through the woods, the bluebells were not quite out but plenty of new green leaves coming out.

Kennall Vale

IMGP7265 copy, originally uploaded by Ajay Jayne.

Been back from Cornwall for over a week now and I have finally managed to organise the photos. This is the stream that runs down the Kennall Vale in Ponsonooth that was used to run the watermills for the explosives factories. Amazing how tranquil it is now and imagine that some of the trees were just saplings when the factories were operating.

Yes, Watford had snow but La Thuile had ski slopes.

Finally sorted through the photographs from our trip to Italy with Ali, Chris, Robert and Tim. We were really glad that we managed at least a few lessons at Hemel Hempstead although the real snow was even better and the mountains in the sunshine quite breathtaking.

Robs finger is getting better now and although I had some nightmares before the trip and was terrified of breaking something, slow and steady meant that I got six days to ski and am now ready to try and overcome my total fear of going down anything steeper than 25 degrees.

For one day, the sky under the cloud was dark and looked like a wet day in Watford but surprisingly, as the lift took me up for my lesson (yes, bad day for Rob) I found myself on the other side of the cloud, similar to flying.

On the Friday, Rob got a good lesson and despite how the fog appears in this video, higher up where he had just come from, the sky was completely clear.

Christmas glass

These are some pieces that I made for my brothers and their partners and Rob's brother and sisters for Christmas. I really enjoyed making them and want to build on the ideas now.

Grandad George Brown

My Grandad George died in the early hours of this morning, he was 95 and had been ill for some time, but especially this last couple of weeks. He had been so independent for so long that it seemed almost impossible that he should not be able to get up out of bed and needed so much help. My Mum has been amazing and I'm looking forward to seeing her tomorrow. I have so many army pictures of him but wanted to include this one since it is fun and how I remember him when I was a child. The poem is by Brian Patten and although a lot of his friends and my Grandma went before he did, people loved and connected with him for all of his life and will carry that with them. An extraordinary life.

So many different lengths of time by Brian Patten
How long does a man live after all?
A thousand days or only one?
One week or a few centuries?
How long does a man spend living or dying
and what do we mean when we say gone forever?

Adrift in such preoccupations, we seek clarification.
We can go to the philosophers
but they will weary of our questions.
We can go to the priests and rabbis
but they might be busy with administrations.

So, how long does a man live after all?
And how much does he live while he lives?
We fret and ask so many questions -
then when it comes to us
the answer is so simple after all.

A man lives for as long as we carry him inside us,
for as long as we carry the harvest of his dreams,
for as long as we ourselves live,
holding memories in common, a man lives.

His lover will carry his man's scent, his touch:
his children will carry the weight of his love.
One friend will carry his arguments,
another will hum his favourite tunes,
another will still share his terrors.

And the days will pass with baffled faces,
then the weeks, then the months,
then there will be a day when no question is asked,
and the knots of grief will loosen in the stomach
and the puffed faces will calm.
And on that day he will not have ceased
but will have ceased to be separated by death.

How long does a man live after all?
A man lives so many different lengths of time.

What's happening - Rob on tour with Steve Hackett

I have been playing around with Google Maps tonight just to see where the next few dates of the tour will be taking Rob. They are very spread out but I'm looking forward to seeing him at the London gig next Tuesday.

View Rob on tour with Steve Hackett map in a larger map

Beasties and leaf stained glass

Beasties and leaf stained glass, originally uploaded by Ajay Jayne.

I made this item for Mum for her birthday, the purple colour of the border doesn't show up too well on this photo, it is very dark, but the green is as bright as it appears here. The little stones around the edge are amethysts that are wired and soldered around the border.