I am still stuck in bed, recovering slowly. Most of the horrible pain and itching from the shingles has now faded, so I am nearly back to my “normal” state of illness. I have sorted out a lovely set of clothes and accessories that I want to wear when I can next go downstairs. Everything is arranged on a hanger which I can see from my bed as a kind of motivation! I just hope that I feel strong enough very soon.
My life seems to have shrunk down so much. Thank goodness that I have the means to reach out beyond my bedroom and keep in touch with what is happening in the world. It would be so limiting without my iPad and mobile phone! I can catch up with news, read and write emails, look at various websites and Twitter, write this blog, browse Facebook, whizz through Instagram, watch TV, download and read ebooks, keep up with my friends’ activities and phone Younger Son for a chat. I am entertained, amused and kept busy all day!
Apologies, but I don’t have much else to say today, so I will leave you with this…
Screenshot from @womensart1 on Twitter – accessed 01/03/23
Daffodils always make me smile – I think that they must be my favourite flower because they are just so cheerful after a bleak and cold winter season!
I will be back on Wednesday with the usual Reading Roundup post and on Friday I am planning to show you one or more outfits from this week. That’s my aim anyway.
Way back in September last year, I received an email from Marco Massaccesi (handbag designer and craftsman extraordinaire) with the following image:
Croco leather offer – Massaccesi
Those leathers! Those colours!
Here were more of the colours:
Croco leather colours – Massaccesi
Gorgeous! I fell for the Pavone colour as it looked like a perfect turquoise that would compliment so many of my outfits. As I already have a handbag in the Croco leather (not real crocodile but stamped calf leather), I knew that it would be lovely.
Anyway, I had to wait a very long time for my bespoke handbag, although this didn’t really bother me because I knew that the result would be stunning. It arrived a couple of weeks ago, right in the middle of the worst of this shingles attack!
Here it is: Selene midi zip in Pavone Croco, with silver hardware and a marine lining:
Selene zip midi in Pavone Croco by Massaccesi
Well, I suppose your first thought is “turquoise”??? That was mine! Yes, the bag is a pale blue with a hint of grey. Not turquoise at all!
However, as I continued to gaze at the bag, I fell in love with it. The colour compliments so much of my wardrobe and looks gorgeous with my two base colours of navy and grey. Then I also realised that this twilly – Hermès’ Dans un Jardin Anglais – matches it perfectly. They could have been made for each other!
Dans un Jardin Anglais twilly – Hermès
I have enjoyed gazing at this superbly made bag, as it hangs on my wardrobe door, throughout my enforced bed rest. Now I need to get better so that I can venture out of the house and actually carry it!
Welcome to the first Reading Roundup post for March! It seems such a long time since I last wrote one of these. Unfortunately, I have been very ill, but I do have some books to tell you about. I will spread them out a bit over the next few weeks as I am unable to write very long posts as yet.
Here is the first book:
The Android’s Dream by John Scalzi
Our Library’s ebook service has loads of John Scalzi’s books at the moment and I was very pleased to find one that I hadn’t already read: The Android’s Dream. This is the blurb:
“When a human kills an alien during diplomatic negotiations, the fall-out is astronomical. To prevent interstellar war, humanity must deliver an extremely rare sheep for the aliens’ coronation ceremony – or face enslavement. So Earth’s government turns to Harry Creek: ex-cop, war hero and hacker extraordinaire.
It should be a straightforward mission, but there are others who covet the priceless animal. Ruthless mercenaries, a religious cult, and alien races eager to spark revolution. Harry’s mission will take him across the galaxy, as he tries to pull off the grand diplomatic coup of the century. There’ll only be one chance to save the life of the sheep – and ensure the future of humanity.”
Readers of Philip K Dick should get the joke! Anyway, this was my response on Goodreads:
An enjoyable, humorous read, but not quite as good as many of his other works. Amongst the clever and funny set pieces (the shopping centre section), there were long passages where I began to lose interest. Still, it was all wound up nicely with a very satisfying ending.
As always, I highly recommend Scalzi for his imagination and humour. Just start with Old Man’s War!
For my next book, I returned to Lois McMaster Bujold’s Vorkosigan Saga, volume 8 this time!
Brothers in Arms by Lois McMaster Bujold
I have really enjoyed this series so far and love Bujold’s clever writing and sense of humour. This is the blurb:
“After the audacious prison camp escapade described in Borders of Infinity, Miles is on the run from the Cetagandans, who aren’t about to take that kind of thing lying down. The worst of it is, Miles and his friends are starting to see double, and it takes a while to find out who is responsible.”
Oh dear, it is so short! Let’s see if I can find a better one…
“Miles is having enough trouble keeping his two identities separate — the charismatic Admiral Naismith of the Denarii Mercenary Fleet and a Vor lord of the Barrayan aristocracy — when assassination attempts begin. But are his enemies after Miles Naismith or Lord Miles Vorkosigan? The problem of split identities becomes even more confused when a clone of Miles is discovered, in this novel Booklist called “a first-rate sf tale that mixes court intrigue and galactic warfare.””
Not much better. Anyway, I wrote this on Goodreads and awarded the book four stars:
Yet another entertaining and enjoyable episode in this epic series. As usual, the author’s sense of humour was great and her story telling excellent. The character of Miles is well drawn and now there is an additional player on the scene! I will continue to read this series with the anticipation of having a great experience.
Sorry that this is such a short post today, but my concentration and energy are very limited at the moment. I should have a trilogy to write about next week, all being well, and I will try to expand a bit more on my Goodreads comments.
Hello and welcome to all of my friends and visitors! It is now four weeks since I was diagnosed with shingles and it has taken this long for me to even begin to feel better. There is still a long way to go, but I am going to try to resume my usual posting pattern.
I am stuck in bed, with both Lovely Husband and Elder Son waiting on me hand and foot as I am too weak to be able to go downstairs. Obviously, once the worst of the pain and itching have eased off a little further, I will need to make myself get up and do more, so that I can rebuild some of my strength. After all, I actually need to get dressed and wear some of my beautiful scarves!
Ebook reading has now resumed as I can concentrate much better, so I will restart the Reading Roundup posts on Wednesday with some of the books I have enjoyed. On Friday, I have a gorgeous purchase to show you, so I need to take some photos before then.
OK, that is all that I can manage to write for now, so I will leave you with this…
Screenshot from @met_greekroman – accessed 23/01/23
Hello friends and visitors! Unfortunately I am still too unwell to write a proper post. It is now three weeks since I first noticed the symptoms of Shingles. I am a little better than a week ago in that I can concentrate enough to read ebooks, but I am not yet able to write a post in my usual style.
So, I am extending this break by a further week and I hope that I improve enough to be able to compose a post about my latest arrival for next Monday. At the very least, I will try!
I leave you with this beautiful image from Twitter:
Screenshot from @ArysPan on Twitter – accessed 26/02/23
The sculpture must have been wonderful in its day! To have seen the full wings and the head would have been stunning, I am sure.
Today’s post is a quick update to keep my lovely visitors and friends informed.
I am unable to return to regular posting as I am still too ill to think clearly. Over two weeks ago, I noticed the symptoms of what has turned out to be a serious case of shingles on top of my usual long list of unpleasant medical conditions. This was confirmed by both a doctor and a paramedic who were called out on subsequent days as I became more ill.
Even now, I am in considerable pain and unable to concentrate. I really hope that all of the nasty stuff fades away as quickly as possible so that I can return to my normal pattern of posting. There is something lovely to show you!
You can tell how unwell I am because I cannot even read an ebook!
Anyway, that’s all I can manage to write for now. I hope that I am able to post properly very soon. Huge thanks are owed to Lovely Husband and Elder Son for looking after me.
Apologies, but I don’t have any idea when I will be able to post again. Unfortunately, I have yet another health issue that has hit me this week and I am very ill indeed.
The last few days have been fairly peaceful, which is just as well because I have been suffering from an extra helping of pain. Usually, my multiple conditions result in debilitating exhaustion and discomfort rather than outright pain, but, at the moment, I am really struggling with both excruciating acid reflux and awful back ache.
But, I shouldn’t moan and complain!
So, I will try not to.
Instead, I will post this which I found online and found really thought-provoking:
Facebook screenshot accessed 25/12/22
Now I am going to settle down with my book so that I have something to write about for Wednesday’s Reading Roundup!
During my time away from the blog, I decided to have a change from navy and grey and, instead, selected my gorgeous bright blue cashmere v-neck from John Lewis. This is such a lovely colour and I have several scarves that look wonderful with it. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to get out of bed very often over the past week or so and I have just two photos to show you. I have worn other jumpers but looked too ill to photograph!
Here are the two images that are reasonably OK…
Outfit of the day 25/01/23 with Hermès’ BibliothèqueOutfit of the day 28/01/23 with Liberty of London’s Hera
Here are larger images of the scarves. This gallery looks rather misleading, I realise, as the Bibliothèque is a smaller 45x45cm size and the Hera is much larger at 90x90cm! I don’t have a high resolution image of the Hera.
Bibliothèque by Hermès Hera by Liberty of London
In addition, here are larger images of the lovely lapis lazuli necklace by Bill Skinner and the navy and teal double sided enamel scarf rings by MaTai:
Necklace by Bill SkinnerScarf rings by MaiTai
I will try to make an effort to wear more of my scarves over the next week and pair them with my cashmere or cotton sweaters, depending on the temperature. These beautiful accessories should be worn and not remain in their boxes!
Welcome to the first Reading Roundup post for February!
I have been struggling to read even ebooks over the last few weeks. My various health issues have been flaring up and these, together with difficult family matters, have resulted in a lack of ability to concentrate on reading books. I have been able to read online, but have found it too difficult to follow and remember complex plots and character names.
So, I only have one book to write about today. This is it…
Empire in Black and Gold by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Regular visitors to my Wednesday posts will know that I am a huge fan of Adrian Tchaikovsky’s books. So far, I have read most of his science fiction works and have praised them on here and Goodreads. A short time ago, I decided to try his earlier fantasy writing and Empire in Black and Gold, #01 Shadows of the Apt, was the book that I chose.
Here is the blurb:
“The days of peace are over . . .
The city states of the Lowlands have lived in peace and prosperity for decades: bastions of civilization and sophistication. That peace is about to end.
In far-off corners, an ancient Empire has been conquering city after city with its highly trained armies and sophisticated warmaking . . . And now it’s set its sights on a new prize.
Only the ageing Stenwold Maker, spymaster, artificer and statesman, can see the threat. It falls upon his shoulders to open the eyes of his people – as soon a tide will sweep down over the Lowlands and burn away everything in its path.
But first he must stop himself from becoming the Empire’s latest victim.”
I finished reading the book a few minutes ago and wrote the following response on Goodreads with a rating of four out of five stars:
This was an enjoyable read that improved as the story unfolded. I struggled with it a bit at the beginning. Getting used to the strange insect/human crossovers was quite odd to start with, but the characters began to interest me more and more as the plot became increasingly exciting. As is usual with this brilliant author, his amazing imagination is fully on display in this book. I felt so drawn in to his world.
I understand that there are ten books in the series, which will keep me going for a while! On the whole, I prefer Tchaikovsky’s science fiction writing, but, perhaps this series will win me over. After all, these are his earlier books.
As I read more books in the series, I will take a break now and then with other books, otherwise it might drive some of you lovely visitors away! I had better go and see what is waiting for me on the Library ebook app…
Former professional school librarian, now retired through chronic illness. Trying to keep cheerful by reading, drinking lots of tea, blogging my new life, and my love of bling!
The Librain
The Librain......retired 
Dear Lauren, you always write the loveliest comments! Thank you so much, love Anne X