{Constable country}

Last weekend we celebrated my cousin's birthday & went for a walk in the Stour Valley. The area around Dedham is where Constable lived and painted. Indeed, he is known for saying that the natural environment of his rural life in Dedham made him a painter before he even knew it.

{water levels were pretty high with all this flooding}

I walked along this river about 7 years ago with my cousins and great Aunt Rita. When I used to teach Constable to my students in America, they would always be astounded at the beauty of the area and the fact that it hasn't changed much (even though I was teaching them how lots was changing due to the Industrial Revolution). I'd show them this pic of me and my great Auntie Rita and compare it with The Haywain or the White Horse:

{Dedham, 2007}

{Constable, The White Horse, 1819, Frick Collection, NY (photo from Tate's website)}

To get a feel for Constable's paintings and sketches, check out this exhibition of his great landscapes at Tate.
The lovely walk was then followed by an amazing afternoon tea at The Swan in Lavenham, a fifteenth-century building that is now a hotel. Simply lovely!

The Swan has a number of areas for dining--large sofas in numerous rooms around big inglenook fireplaces to have a drink or tea, a cool old bar, a formal dining room, and a more casual restaurant....

We sat near a big fireplace and near a window, enjoying the treats displayed: 

{birthday girl!}

{reflection of the fifteenth-century rafters in the shiny tea pot}

{ & finally, at C&L's, a lovely dinner where we read a poem written by my Dad (see below) in honour of the birthday girls (it was Mrs W's bday too!)}

The Birthday Party

Great Charlie shone the silverware,

He bought a new cigar.

“We’re going to celebrate”, he cried,

“With Pimms and caviar!”

Then Lizzie laid the table

With a cloth both rich and rare.

“Only the best will do”, she smiled

As she set the tableware.

And Leaps, the Italian scholar,

One of England’s treasured daughters,

Wore her boots of finest leather,

She had bought across the waters.

Mr. Weatherup doffed his new top hat

He smiled a secret smile.

“I’d like to propose a toast or two

“In just a little while.”

When all the glasses were raised on high,

“Maid Marian, here’s to you!”

And then he toasted his charming wife,

“My dear … your birthday too!”

Great Charlie pulled out all the stops,

Became quite the charming fella.

He recited all the poetry he knew

And the story of Plonka’s umbrella.

Our scholar sang of Danny Boy

In voice both sweet and able.

The birthday girls could resist no more

And danced upon the table.

The party ended late that night

With arrival of the fire brigade.

Charlie sent a cracker off

“In honour of the Maid”.

It sputtered and fizzled then bolted

Through the door and lit up the town.

“Now, that’s enough” said the firemen

And quietly shut them down.

                    -MJC

lovely times!

xo

L

{Introducing Simla!}

hello blog-readers!

Sorry I forgot my quotable thursdays yesterday...slipped my mind...things just seem to be super busy at the moment.
& if I get a spare moment, I've been spending it with my dear, dear kitty!
So, with that, let me introduce you to Simla! She is a blue point Siamese and I collected her on Sunday. Since then, my life has been filled with such joy!

{hello!}

Simla is named after the birthplace of my Granny. My Dad's mum was born and raised in Simla during the British Raj (her parents, my great grandparents (below) were English).

{my granny as a baby in Simla}

 She was married to my grandpa in Simla too:

{my grandparents at Wild Flower Hall on their wedding day in Simla (my grandfather was born in Bristol)}

My father was also born in India but they all immigrated to Canada after Partition. My move back to the UK (settling here and making a home with a cat) completes a full circle of the family history. We have visited India many times and when I was 10, we visited Wild Flower Hall and all the old haunts of my ancestors in Simla.
It seemed an appropriate name for this little cat. Simla's bright blue eyes mimic the incredibly blue skies you find in the Himalayas...

{bright blue eyes}

{blue skies of the Himalayas}

...and her blue points remind me of the blue-ish tinge of the Himalayan mountains as well as the silvery grey leaves of the Eucalyptus trees that fill the air with such fragrance in that region.

{making herself at home--she matches the decor!}

{looking at the big wide world}

{helping with the laundry!}

{taking over the bed!}

Simla is still a kitten--around 14 weeks, although she appears much bigger in the pictures than she really is. She can curl up in one arm-- she loves to play in my arms!
She is inquisitive and curious, but can be a little shy, and is very very affectionate and sweet. It took her a day to warm up, but now she follows me around the flat and likes to chat away all day (& night!).
We are already the best of friends and I love her to bits!
she was well worth the wait!
xo
L

{kitty take 2}

If you follow my blog you'll know I attempted to get a kitty at the new year, which failed... (it's a long story)...so this weekend, attempt number 2 at getting a little kitty!
the flat is alllllll ready for you, furry friend!

{gallery wall just for kitty!}

{her own reading material a friend gave to me (I Could Pee on This and Other Poems by Cats)!}

{she's even got her own miniature Persian rug!}

pics to come of the new little addition to my home!
xo,
L

{quotable thursdays}

Busy busy times around here, so I'm afraid it'll be a short post today:

{words to live by}

Even if life is busy and we have goals we want to achieve, we also need to live and enjoy the act of living. we only get once chance!

{cheers!}

xo

L

{research trip to Modena}

{flying over the Alps}

I returned on Sunday from a quick research trip to Modena--where they hold the archives from the court of Ferrara (15th c). I lived in Modena 7 years ago--in fact I moved there in early January 2007...it seems like yesterday and yet so much has happened since then. I was a novice researcher--I had never used an archive before, I was inexperienced in deciphering fifteenth-century script, and even more inexperienced in figuring out what the words were saying when I did finally decipher the text...I was at the beginning of my PhD, not entirely sure of where I was going or what I was doing or how this large project was going to end up, and yet it consumed my every thought, looming ahead of me like a beast that might never be tamed...a book that might never be written. At the same time, there were so many possibilities. I was meticulous, because I had 6 months in those archives and I didn't know what I might want recorded at a later date. So I recorded almost everything I came across that had some faint relation to my thesis. Good thing I did, because my PhD thesis in the end changed dramatically, and was largely written based on what the archive provided. It was a methodological approach that ended up informing the whole thesis...and indeed, my career.
When I began archival research I thought that it was about big discoveries--finding an undiscovered letter from Mantegna, or a famous artwork by Leonardo... while these things do happen (but only very rarely & only after going through 1000s of letters that aren't relevant) what archival work is really about is the small things--finding traces and bits of info and linking them together to create a whole. It's about hard work, long work, and then some thinking... & more thinking. I take this as a metaphor for life. Life isn't always about the big moments (of course those are important too) but it's also about the everyday--the goodmornings  & the i love yous that you say every day to the people around you. It's about the comforts of a cup of tea...it's also about hard work and perseverance. & to keep with the PhD idea, it's about reading a little every day and writing a little every day to eventually come up with one very big piece of writing!

What was also amazing for me, being back, was to walk those streets of Modena, thinking of all the things that had happened since then--a written thesis, a Dr in front of my name, years of teaching, living in 4 different countries, teaching in 3 different countries & all the people who I have encountered throughout those nomadic years...and finally a permanent position in my dream city. Life has a funny way of sometimes working out for us!
that's not to say there weren't many struggles along the way!
anyway enough contemplation, I know you want to see pics of la bella italia! I ate lots of yummy food, drank plenty of wine, did loads of archival research in just a few days, and saw some sites...
I also managed to buy 3 pairs of gorgeous boots! ha!

{the archives}

{stairs leading up to the archives room}

{beautiful Modenese palazzo}

{the main cathedral (duomo) in Modena}

{Modena cathedral's spire in the background}

{the icon outside my old flat's door}

{a day trip to Bologna}

{Bologna}

{Collezioni Communali d'Arte, Bologna}

{had a fabulous lunch here at the Osteria dell'Orsa}

{the results of a good lunch = empty bottle of vino & clean plate!}

{beautiful bologna blue sky!}

{porticoes in Modena}

{Sunday antiques market in the Piazza Grande, Modena}

baci,
L