Hello my friends, I hope you are all well and doing ok out there, finding your way gently through these strange, strange days. Finally I feel I have just about the right kind of head space to be here opening up my Attic window for a chat, after what has felt like a very flat, deflated week or two. I have felt ok really, just a bit drained and lacking in any kind of motivation to get things done.
The days flutter past and I allow myself to drift rather listlessly through the hours, keeping a hold (just about) of the small, mundane routines that I've managed to form for myself during these stay-home days. I honour my natural body clock which always sees my eyes opening just after 6 am and wanting to close just after 10 pm. I make time for a morning workout, prepare and eat healthy food, drink more water and less coffee. Enjoy my daily walk around and about the neighbourhood.
And yet I seem to spend lots of time in the day feeling like I am simply trying to fill the hours until the next meal time or snack time or bed time. I can't seem to settle on anything much and find myself doing the most random things at random times, as and when the mood suddenly strikes. Getting down on my knees and scrubbing those awkward tiles right behind the toilet. Defrosting the iceberg out of the freezer. Potting up some baby petunias that a friend gave me last week. Some stop-start crochet here and there, a flick through a few magazine pages.
It all feels quite disjointed as if I've somehow slipped out of the groove I'm supposed to be on and don't quite know how to get myself back into it. I guess it's just a symptom of these strange times and actually I haven't been too worried about my lethargy. It seems to be a natural result of spending so much extended time in the house, and I am quite sure I'll find my way back into a more productive state of mind soon enough.
It's funny because at the start of Lockdown (a whole eight weeks ago now) I felt convinced that I would be blogging way more than usual, using my days to write, to connect, to chat, to share, to remember. There would be loooooads of time to catch up with blog posts that I've fallen behind with (hello Dahlia Ta-dah post, I'm looking at you, half written in draft and waiting oh so patiently for me to return). But it hasn't been like that at all, has it?! Hahaha! I will try to be here more from now on as I really want to start feeling more productive and balanced again, and to ease myself away from this permanent sluggish weekend-vibe. Have to admit that I am deep down AdOrInG the perpetual weekend vibe mind you, but maybe after eight weeks it's time to make my days count for something more.
As you can see from these photos, I continue to find a huge amount of pleasure in the season we're in and my daily walks make me soooo happy even though they are extremely repetitive. The shadow above shows me and Little Lady, taking our walk one evening and loving the light and warmth that was still so glorious at 8pm.
The woodland is utterly captivating in May, and I absolutely love being out amongst it all.
The wild garlic began to flower profusely during week 7.....
.....and the sight and scent of it all was almost overwhelming. So much natural beauty right there, and I'm extremely grateful that walking through the woods has become a part of our daily lives. It never fails to lift my spirits even on particularly flat days.
I'm still on with the Aria blanket, although it spent almost a week in the naughty corner. Poor thing, it wasn't at all the fault of the blanket. I started work on the border but didn't pay enough attention to what I was doing and managed to miss out a few colours which meant pulling out two big huge rounds to put it right. It took me almost a week to work myself up to the business of yanking out all those neat stitches, but once I got over myself and stopped sulking it was all OK again and I fell straight back in love.
As you can see, the Aria blanket is already being used around here, and truly the Little People seem to really love it especially as they've been quite involved in watching me making it during the past month. I am so close to finishing it - I'm currently poised ready to tackle the edge of The Edge, all very exciting.
The kitty is her usual aloof crazy self, seeming to love having us all around but managing to look utterly bored by us all at the same time. I snapped the above photo of her early one morning when the Little People had yet to surface and all was still quiet and peaceful downstairs. She definitely finds Little B a challenge, he makes her ears constantly twitch as he is sooooooo noisy and boisterous all the time. I do feel for her, my own ears are pretty twitchy these days as it's very, very hard to find any quiet space in this house.
Another week and another tray of lockdown flapjack, dried apricot this time. I don't get bored of making it (recipe HERE if you are interested in how easy it is) and the Little Peeps certainly don't seem to be bored of eating it.
I spent some time jaunting in Magazine Wonderland in week 7, allowing myself to finally open and devour the May issue magazines which arrived at the end of March. My, my, such beauty in those pages, even if the dreamy aspirational quality of the photos makes them ever so slightly deflating at times. I look at the huuuuuuuuuuuuuge grassy gardens and wish for some green space of my own.
I gaze at the huuuuuuuuuuuuuge roomy rooms and sigh with longing.
And then I remind myself to continue appreciating my modest house and tiny back yard as I always have done and not get swept up in a tide of envy as no good can come of it. But isn't the above kitchen just so dreamy? I would really dearly love that kind of space.
Another weekend arrives and so we take our longer walk (around 6 miles), leaving the woods behind and striding out over open fields instead.
Cows have suddenly arrived in the fields to join the sheep and they are always curious about us humans as we pass by their open air homes.
We walk past a farm right next to the canal and have been watching these goslings grow over the past few weeks. Sometimes they are wandering about in the field and sometimes they come down to the water, they really are so fluffy and beautiful. I can't resist stopping to chat to them, even if J and the Little People roll their eyes and look at me like I'm crazy.
It's extremely relaxing walking along this stretch of the canal as it's a few miles out of town and very quiet. Usually in May it's busy on the waterways with boats sailing back and forth, but of course there are no boats moving about on the water at the moment and that definitely adds to the tranquillity.
I love that lonesome blue boat, moored up quietly right on the bend there. I have no idea whether it's someones permanent home or a holiday boat but every time I walk past it I find myself wondering what it would be like to call a boat home?
The cow parsley is just starting to burst into flower in hedgerows and along footpaths and it is so beautiful. It's treated as a bit of a weed I suppose (it is very prolific and grows everywhere) but I absolutely love it, those delicate little froths of flowers are enchanting.
Another weed growing absolutely everywhere is the dandelion, and due to this long spell of dry warm weather they are already in seed. I don't love them quite as much as cow parsley, but those seed heads do hold a lot of childhood nostalgia. Even as we walked past this clump, Little Lady (age 16) plucked up a stem and blew away the seeds "to see what time it is". I wonder, is this a worldwide thing? Do dandelions grow everywhere on this planet, and do all children use them as clocks?
Sometimes towards the end of a long day I'll find myself in desperate need of some alone time. I make myself a drink (often a peppermint or fruity tea infusion which I've recently rediscovered after not having them for ages) then head upstairs and gently close the door to my bedroom. I pull on some woolly knitted socks for comfort and settle on my bed to sip my drink and just relax my mind a little. I don't do anything specific, sometimes just sitting and allowing my mind to wander and ponder is enough, and sometimes I pull out my tablet and browse through favourite blogs, Pinterest, or YouTube.
I'm pretty new to YouTube as generally I much prefer digesting photos and written words rather than videos and audio. I don't really have much idea of what to look for on YouTube yet, or what sort of content might inspire me, but I'm quite enjoying discovering a new-to-me medium. I've been enjoying some food channels mixed with photogenic slow living, lifestyle/interiors and a little bit of motivational stuff thrown in. Pick Up Limes is a current fave and although I'm not contemplating going vegan, I have always been very inspired by wholesome, healthy cooking and eating. Also, I really love the passionate and beautiful way in which Sadia prepares, presents and adores her food, it's just so beautiful! If you have any recommendations for YouTube I would dearly love to hear them.
Another thing I do when I retreat to my bedroom in the evenings is light this jar candle beside my bed. It's an old one from last summer and I adore the clean, soft scent of it. It's these little rituals and pleasures which are really keeping me grounded at the moment, I'm holding onto the little things that bring quiet pleasure to my days.
Well another day has passed and this blog post is coming together veeeeery slowly in stops and starts, I'm so sorry if it all seems a bit disjointed here in the Attic. As you know I don't tend to edit my writing (other than a basic check through for typos) so I've no idea if my words are even making sense to be honest, but I hope that even if I'm writing absolute tripe you can still enjoy the pictures :)
Week 8 has very little to show for it as I didn't seemingly feel very inspired to point my camera at anything much.
There is wild garlic of course, as I can't seem to stop myself trying to capture this season that I love so very much.
Almost every single day we walk this same route into the woods to feast on the green and white display.....
....it's just so abundant and fresh, both the visuals and the scent, and I wish I was better able to describe it to you.
Beautiful, intoxicating, uplifting, every single little bit of it.
We've only seen a smattering of bluebells this year as they are scarce in our local woodland (the garlic more than makes up for it mind you), and I think they are almost over now for another year.
The lambs in the big field are growing large now, and they aren't at all bothered by us humans. We always linger a little at the top of the hill, partly to recover from the long climb up, and partly to take in the sweep of the view which has our home nestled into it. Sometimes on quiet, still afternoons when I'm sat in my little back yard, I can hear the lambs and sheep baaaaaaing from their hilltop field and it's such a comforting sound somehow. I do really love where I live.
Last week was quite a cold one, and woolly jumpers and socks were most definitely needed even inside the house. My hands don't do so well when I'm cold so I do my best to keep warm especially when I plan to crochet. Little B took the above photo of me warming up my fingers before getting on with the Aria border - this was after I had finished sulking and pulled out the Wrong Rows and I was happily enjoying this blanket all over again.
The kitty doesn't take more than 2.5 seconds to jump in and claim my space if I happen to get up and leave the Big Chair for any reason. Mind you, I can't blame her as this over sized old chair is such a cosy spot and one of my favourite places to sit during the day. She really does seem to appreciate my crochet (especially after it has been warmed up by my backside first).
I'll be working on the pattern and tutorial for the Aria blanket this week - it's a lot of work but I'm really looking forward to getting stuck into it. I'm sorry I don't have a release date for this yarn kit and pattern just yet but as soon as I know when it's possible for my friends at Wool Warehouse to make it happen, I'll be sure to let you know.
Well I think that's about all for now, thank you as always for taking the time to digest my witterings and keep me company with your lovely, lovely comments, I appreciate them so much. I hope you are all keeping cheery, and that your spirits are positively inflated and not deflated. I am sending you all the brightest, cosiest happy stay-home vibes.
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Isn't it a bit the same with an upcoming vacation :-)? When you tell yourself that you'll catch up with all the chores once you have time off from work. And when your vacation finally arrives, you only hang out to read, sleep, crochet, stare at the sky, call some friends, bake some cookies, do one thing of your to do-list just to feel less guilty,...;-) It's the art of doing nothing, of being lazy and benefit from being lazy! Seems perfectly normal to. I can still work from home and I love my job but boy, it's starting to be difficult to get behind that laptop every day 'cause being lazy feels so comfortable ;-).
Posted by: EV80 | May 19, 2020 at 10:18 AM
Lucy , I remember the dandelion clocks from my childhood. It’s funny, I hate it when they appear in my garden, but one of my most treasured possessions is a dandelion clock. It s a dandelion seed head preserved in resin that was my mums. She got it in 2000 as a commemorative millennium paperweight (time/millennium). I always was fascinated by it and of all her jewellery and ornaments etc she left that was the only thing I really wanted.
Posted by: Pam | May 19, 2020 at 10:02 AM
Dear Lucy, you've expressed my feelings entirely. I was going to finish all my craft projects, blog till my fingers bled, clean everything within an inch of its life. Well you can guess where that all ended up. I feel distracted all the time.
I'm flicking through magazines and craft books and not settling on anything.
My flat complex has beautiful grounds with a big pond but I can only look out on it as there are some residents here who make your life miserable if you show your face (and they are all old men who should have more sense!). I long for my own space too and am working towards it. But it is hard at times to keep the motivation going!
We will all come through this and I wish you peace and happiness in the months to come. BTW I love your little tortie!
Linda xx
Posted by: Linda Kennedy | May 19, 2020 at 09:46 AM
I think we are all feeling the same Lucy, I feel like the time is drifting past in a haze, I have started writing on my blog again after a years break and I've started a private blog which is more like a journal where I try and capture a bit of the time which rolls by with nothing to mark the passing days, I take lots of photo's through the day just to catch the passing moments maybe a snapshot of a nice lunch I've made, yesterday it was clearing out my wardrobes haha. Just so I can look back and say oh yes now I remember. I'm also enjoying mosaic crochet it takes a lot of concentration and yes I too have had to pull out rows of work and start it again. It's lovely to hear from you and see the lovely photo's of your area, I'm lucky I have lots of lovely places to walk too. Take care and stay safe. xx
Posted by: Linda | May 19, 2020 at 09:39 AM
Lucy it is so brave of you to share your feelings. I just adore the photos you post of your walks. I always feel sad that I stayed close to home and didn't leave a climate that does not suit me. Sadly in subtropical Australia we don't have as many blossoms etc. Apparently there is a rare display in westernQueensland but we can't travel there this season.
As you warm up we are cooling down. I am looking forward to cooler days and crisp nights where sleep is a real treat.
Posted by: Suzan | May 19, 2020 at 09:17 AM
I am losing the ability to walk at the moment so I really appreciate your photos. I have a small patch of wild garlic growing by the side of our pond....I see your vistas when I look at it.
I now have sorted my life into 'one project' days and have found that this gives me an aim for my day, maybe this idea will help.
Xx
Posted by: Christine | May 19, 2020 at 09:07 AM
I must admit I have not really experienced lockdown like most. I have continued to work in my local surgery and I am very glad I can do my bit. I would say be glad you are doing your bit and hopefully this will be a small memory in the past. I do love your photos and your words make perfect sense, hang in there. X
Posted by: Kate T | May 19, 2020 at 08:33 AM
Thank you for sharing these wonderful pictures with us - people who live in small busy cities without that amazing nature landscape....
Posted by: Maria João | May 19, 2020 at 08:30 AM
Thank you for writing exactly how I feel. I live alone in the UK, I don’t know if my voice even works anymore it has so little use, I cannot hear on telephone, so life is truly isolated. Usually a busy gardener and stitcher I have lost all enthusiasm and powers of concentration non existent, it’s a horrible feeling isn’t it? So pleased you are not alone and have a lovely loving family. Sarah Browne UK
Posted by: Sarah Browne | May 19, 2020 at 08:13 AM
Hello Lucy,
Your blog is the first thing I turned to during our shelter in place. It provides with such a wonderful escape...while cloistered in my bedroom with a cup of coffee of course! I love your amazing countryside and all the beautiful things you create. You're not alone in your feelings of inanition. Take care, and all the best to you and yours.
Posted by: Susan | May 19, 2020 at 08:11 AM
Hi Lucy, oh I do so look forward to your posts. Your gentle ramblings and beautiful photos instantly draw me to your part of Yorkshire. We did have a holiday in the Yorkshire Dales and Skipton back in 2010, but we definitely want to come back as soon as we are able to. So thank you for reminding me how beautiful it is. I also love hearing about the progress on your Aria blanket and look forward to it’s release very soon. I am just about to start the border on my dune blanket, am halfway through a sweet Pea harmony and have just done a tension sample for my woodland ripple which is next on my list. Keep smiling.
Posted by: Rosie Rogers | May 19, 2020 at 07:54 AM
Lucy, you might like Country House Gent or Cruising the Cut on YouTube. Both show a bit of what it's like to live on a Narrowboat on England's canals. We enjoyed watching the former's trip through Skipton! I'm just finishing the border of your Granny Patchwork blanket. The colors are bringing me joy during these odd times. Thank you for sharing your creativity and experiences with us!
Posted by: Wendy | May 19, 2020 at 06:49 AM
Hi Lucy,
Its funny as you describe how you are feeling and its EXACTLY the same here in midwestern US. I love your pics of the willow horse and the archer. You have no ideal how much I look forward to your posts. I taught myself to crochet on youtube so I could do your blankets. You mean a lot to me.
Posted by: Cindy Huxtable | May 19, 2020 at 06:10 AM
As to having 'larger' rooms/house...my ex-in-laws were in the US Army and lived in SanAntonio, Texas at one point. They didn't live on base but in the city. I visited one day and she took me to the base for some reason I don't remember and we went through the officer housing area. They were some really interesting houses. However her comment was about the number of 'cleaning areas'. So there is a payoff with more space. :) Love your posts.
Posted by: Helen | May 19, 2020 at 05:04 AM
Thank you for inviting us to join you through your week. I think we all feel a little all over the place at the moment. I seem to flitter here and there, with no direction, but I’ll just go with the flow. I loved the perfectly formed dandelions. Yes, we have them in Australia, although they are considered a weed, and the old traditions that go with them are here too.
Posted by: Janice | May 19, 2020 at 04:08 AM
Once again, thank you so very much for this blog. I live alone and sometimes talking on the phone just doesn't fill that need to "hug" someone or give your grown kids/grandkids some loving kisses. It's lockdown for 2 months now and today, while my grandsons were delivering my weekly groceries, I asked: "oh! how much longer do you thinK?".......I didn't like his answer. Came in the house and saw your new blog post and I feel better already.
Posted by: Rosanne (USA) | May 19, 2020 at 03:13 AM
Oh Lucy, thank you for sharing your withering with us, you open your heat to us and make us all feel that it is ok not to be happy all the time. I look at all of the lovely photos of where you live and your sweet cozy house with all of your coloured blankets and it makes me happy too. I am lucky too in that I live close to beautiful walking trails and parks, it is so nice to walk in the woods and see everything coming back to life after our long winter, gives me hope and makes me so happy, I look forward to buying your new blanket pack when available, can’t wait.
Take Care
Bonnie from the Island of Newfoundland
Posted by: Bonnie Brocklehurst | May 19, 2020 at 02:46 AM
Hi Lucy, I am so glad you posted.. your honesty and sharing makes the rest of us feel better as we experience the same feelings. I enjoyed seeing your countryside and especially the river with the canal boat there.. I also would love to even spend one month living in one of them.
I lived aboard my 26 foot sailboat in the San Juan Islands of Washington State USA for 4 months and I just loved it. Except for having to use a public shower and plug quarters in it to keep the water going. LOL! So.. hang in there my friend and we're here for you.
((hugs)), Teresa :-)
Posted by: Teresa Kasner | May 19, 2020 at 01:57 AM
Thanks for a lovely blog Lucy :-) You can check out The green bean podcasts on you tube, where Katie shows her knitting and drawing projects, it's very calming to watch, it may be ideal for your little relaxing times xx
Sole
Posted by: Sole | May 19, 2020 at 12:09 AM
I’m with you about feeling rudderless. At first, I thought I’d get so many jobs done around my home. But now that it’s gone on so long and will go on longer for me and my hubby, I’m starting to set small jobs for me to do or I’ll just goof off. That’s an old American expression meaning ‘not accomplish much while kinda playing around’. I do love your posts and pictures since they are exactly opposite of the type of area I live in. I so wish I had your area to walk through. We do need to be grateful right now and that’s what I keep my mind on daily.
Posted by: Hedy | May 18, 2020 at 11:43 PM
You're so lucky to live in a beautiful place. We're getting into lockdown part 4 here in India. Thank you for sharing your beautiful photos. Take care!
Posted by: Elvira | May 18, 2020 at 11:41 PM
I love your writing and photos and find I relate to many of you musings. In particular this struck a cord "even if the dreamy aspirational quality of the photos makes them ever so slightly deflating at times", as this always happens to me. Like you, I am thankful for daily walks through lovely woods, kitties, and crochet. Thank you, Lucy.
Posted by: Paula Miller | May 18, 2020 at 11:27 PM
Be kind to your self Lucy.Just writing your blog is so reassuring,I think we all feel unsettled and it’s lovely to hear your honesty.Keep safe and well.😎
Posted by: Susan koszak | May 18, 2020 at 11:11 PM
Thank you for your honesty. We have to be kind to ourselves in these strange times. Driving to be over productive belongs to old times. Do what you need to do to get through. Lovely pictures of Skipton, we’re just down the road in Halifax.
Posted by: Alison Hillman | May 18, 2020 at 10:57 PM
I too feel like a ship with no direction! I hear and see other people being very busy with everything, but I just keep doing odd bits! I do miss the normal things I used to do but at the same time, every week day, I have been doodling along with Barbara Grays live video! I'm nowhere near brilliant and some weeks are better than others, but considering I stopped art in 3rd year at high school, I'm quite impressed with myself! We have found some different areas on our daily walks. Nowhere near as pretty as your lovely area of the country, i enjoy reading your blogs. They are honest and straightforward and quite often I feel the same way! Your blog makes me feel that I'm not alone in the way I feel! Love the latest blanket!
Posted by: Sally Spragg | May 18, 2020 at 10:13 PM