What a difference a day makes

What a difference a day makes. Friday I was 44, suddenly I'm 45 and definitely middle-aged. These pictures were taken when I was at primary school which means that they are at least 30 years old. Sometimes it feels like yesterday, other times it feels like a lifetime ago.

I'm lucky - I wouldn't change anything over the passed 45 years. Bring on the next 45!

And the best time of my life? Tomorrow of course.

Kx

I loved this picture until I realised that this 'historic view in black & white minus traffic' was taken in 1976. The Granda was a Cinema (not a Bingo Hall) and there isn't a MacDonalds in site.

Unfortunately, that could quite easily be me in the distance, albeit in my school uniform.

Freedom for Tooting! And anybody else who knows what that means must be as old as me..........

Kx

Rusty Camper Vans vs Oil on Canvas

I love art. Just lately I have been visiting London and enjoying some of the museums and gallaries that, like so many things, we just take for granted in this country. I wonder how many cities there are where you can walk in to a gallery, completely free of charge, and see works of art by Rothko, Dali and Cezanne.

I love impressionism. I could sit for hours looking at those beautiful lily ponds created by Claude Monet, imagining myself dipping a toe in to those deep blue waters and watching the ripple move slowly across the surface of the water.

And how can you not be inspired by the strength of colour and feeling that Van Gogh put in to his paintings. I sometimes wonder if he put so much life in to his canvases that he didnt have enough left for himself.

Unfortunately, however hard I try, I cannot draw the same inspiration from a work that I saw last weekend at the Tate Modern - Joseph Beuys 'The Pack'. The text that accompanys the work states.......

This strongly autobiographical work [!] refers directly to Beuys's plane crash over the Crimea during the Second World War. He often described being rescued by a band of Tartars who coated his body with fat and wrapped him in felt. Whether real or mythical, the story shows the symbolic importance of these materials in Beuys's mind. It also suggests a fable of death and rebirth in which Beuys is purged, perhaps of his wartime guilt, and brought back to life by a nomadic people.

However hard I try to embrace the symbolism of this piece of art, it still looks like a rusty old VW Camper Van, 24 sledges, some felt blankets and a few chunks of animal fat (eeuuww!!). Give me a beautiful painting and let me float away, just for a while, I will have enough camper vans to deal with on the way home.

Kx

Tooting

I had to confess during the week, to a group of colleagues over dinner, that I was born in Balham and grew up in Streatham. It didn't sound very glamourous. But actually I'm very proud of the fact that I'm a Londoner; I may not want to live their now, but that's not the point! It must be like defending a brother or sister that you spend most of your childhood fighting with; I can criticise London but nobody born outside the M25 is allowed to!

So when a group popped up on Facebook called Tooting SW17, and prompted by my best friend K, I just had to join.

These two photographs were lurking in an album with 85 others. Pure gems. Not only excellent photographs but also images that stir up a thousand memories of growing up in London.

Kx

You know when you are middle-aged when..........

Ok, I’m not kidding myself, I know I’m 44 and I’m middle-aged. But nothing quite prepares you for being told that you are old enough to need reading glasses. And it wouldn’t have been quite so bad if the child (she was a very very young looking optician) hadn’t tried to sugar the pill with the line ‘I’m very sorry Mrs Massarella, but this is what happens when you get to your age, it’s perfectly normal.’ I really wanted to say that ‘normal’ was being able to see perfectly clearly, as I had been doing it without too much effort for 44 years (it’s only been the last 6 months when its been a bit of a struggle) but I smiled, said thanks, and then got very excited when she gave me a some lenses and I could see that very small print again. No more guessing how long something should go in the microwave. And hopefully the last time I take aspirin by mistake……print was way too small!

But it could be worse……….I don’t think I look too bad in my new glasses. Don’t all shout at once!!!

Kx

What happened to the Weather?

Whatever happened to the weather? Just when it looked like it was going to be a mild winter this happened! These were the views out of the window last Monday. And the snow is still on the grass today - although it isn't as impressive as this.

However, while it looked beautiful, it was a nightmare to get anywhere. It froze solid and driving was out of the question unless you had a four wheel drive (and we don't).

It makes a lovely picture postcard, but I'm bored with it now and I would like it to melt please.

Kx

Oh dear......................

I've put on weight. It's very depressing. And what makes it worse is that there is still loads of things left in the house that need eating. As one of my friends on Facebook so aptly summed it up this morning...........L has a whole load of sweets and lard to get thru before his diet starts tomorrow.

I've already brewed up one batch of Carrot Soup (note to myself don't add a whole chopped chilli again) and I'm off now to buy some more carrots. Lets hope they continue to work their weight-loosing magic in 2009.

Kx