Angel Jem's City Cottage

My study is painted!! Yes, finished (apart from the gloss) and lots of stuff in it already! But DH is home and the children are around and the one thing I don't have time to do is upload photos.... so the finished (to a degree) product will have to wait. Tomorrow or tomorrow or tomorrow (to misquote Shakespeare) I will grab the precious time needed to get pictures on. I'm pleased with it. And my long-time penpal from Germany is visiting in early July so I have a deadline to clear and clean the Family Room. Long enough to intensively work on it, get rid of all the baby stuff (my youngest is 9) and make it a truly multi-purpose room. Probably a good chance of painting it, too. That would be fun! Have a good week, I may post again if I get the chance. I want to show you my knitting, and my crochet and my cross stitch and my sewing treasures that I now have on an ever-growing craft list.

I had plans for today. I have red geraniums, blue Lobelia and sweet Alyssum to plant in my front hanging baskets. My lawn also needs cutting. But that can wait. It's not high on my list of priorities. But as the french say, " Il pleut" Il pleut chien et chats, I say. So no planting today. So I take my little cup of tea, my paintbrush and a pot of paint and.... First stage in my coup complete. I have begun to paint and clear the 'stuff' that I don't want.  Is it blue or is it green? I have this argument with my kids.

We have several rooms in this house the distinct usage of which is undecided. This is our study. The computer's there, the books are there and because of its proximity to the front door any charity bags and boxes tend to congregate there. And get stuck there for ages. In any one week the room can have at least 2 children cluttering it up. Jimbo seems unable to go on the computer ( especially on the Lego site) without a pile of bricks brought from the bedroom. And they never make it all back. Have you noticed that?  The Princess brings all her Littlest Pet Shop to watch Youtube, DP needs a pile of paper to record al the facts from obscure books and programmes that he is into. It's a mess. But I have a dream. I have a really lovely dream. I dream that one day the room will be computer free. That the table will be clear and ready for a sewing machine . That the shelves will be cleared of books we never read (or even use) and covered with baskets of yarn , material...

As I sit watching the State banquet live on TV (I'm a sucker for a state occasion) I couldn't help but notice that the pink flowers in front of the Queen are slightly higher than those in front of the rest of the table. This could just be a case of the triangularity of flowers or because Her Majesty is always sat in the centre of the table but having read this book , I know the reason is really because Her Maj has her paperback stood up in front of her place.  For such a short book, the Uncommon Reader is so funny. It has made me look at her in a new light and always makes us (DH and me) wonder whether she really does ask people what they're reading. It's a short book, but very quietly subversive in the way that only Alan Bennett can be. Oh, and he must read the  audiobook . You can hear his voice as you read. Brilliant.

Or to live simply. But I'm afraid I don't know how. From my childhood and the infamous three footsteps rule (as long as there is space on the floor for three footsteps to get into bed, the bedroom doesn't need tidying) to my life now and the small room of which the door cannot open, nor the room be entered into, I am not a minimalist. And yet, I see the attraction. I love the books (Kindle books now, no space occupied and nobody needs to know I am reading yet another book on clearing clutter ) but I fail miserably on the application. And yet..... I keep trying. I have been trying to get more organised this week. I reorganised the photos on my computer into files and am at this very second backing them up onto an sd card. I used the googledocs application on my phone to eliminate the need for a large notebook and diary in my handbag, slashing the size and the weight of said bag in one go. I organised my wardrobe, chucking the worn/unworn/unloved and keeping only th...

Have you seen it? Have you read it? Did you like the little gift? What was your favourite page? Second issue out 9th June.