A Fool And Her Money...

Watched 'The Pillars of the Earth last night with J, and we both agreed that while it wasn't as good as the book, it was an enjoyable piece of drama, and well worth watching.  There were moments of course, where I added an irreverant commentary, with observations like, "Oh, don't tell me!  Tom the Builder is going to single-handedly introduce Gothic architecture into England'  (he did) and 'If she's about to give birth, why hasn't she been lying in for a month?  And where's the birthing stool??' etc. 

I thought it kind of lost it in the last twenty minutes or so.  It started straying away from the book then, and as for Maud in her battle gear?  She bore a distinct resemblance to Joanne Whalley Kilmer's character in Willow... 

Check it out, all you fans of matters medieval.  If you take it with a pinch of salt, it's great fun.  Better still, read the book first!!!  PotE isn't my favourite kind of historical fiction - I much prefer it when the author unravels real history and recreates it in a fictional context, using real characters, than when they invent nobility and invent an entire diocese then see how they function in a valid historical context.  The book was, nonetheless, a good fun read, and it was nice to see it transferred fairly sympathetically into a television drama.

This morning,  J decided to take me to a nursery near Uplawmoor which he said was really good.  Verdict??  Wow!!!!  I thought I'd died and gone to Plantsman's Heaven.  We went specifically to get a Berberis, but the choice was mind-boggling.  We came back with two - Pink Queen and Harlequin - and very handsome (and prickly!) they are, too.  Just the thing to keep undesirable persons from loitering beneath our Weeping Silver Pear in the corner (aka 'Cousin It').  J also decided he was going to buy loads of viola to put under Cousin It through the winter.  I'm sure they'll hate it there, but there was no budging him.  They'll be shoehorned in under that tree whether they like it or not.  If they do well over the winter, guess I'll be eating humble pie.

And then....

I found the houseplant section!!!!  And I blew ten quid on two rather delectable and unusual specimens.  Here they are, both completely innocent of what they've let themselves in for:-

 

They are two lovely  examples of Begonia Rex (with 'Escargot' on the right...).  I saw a particularly wonderful example in a B & B in Skye a couple of years back, which sparked an interest, but discovered that they're like gold dust.  You can't get them for love nor money anywhere - except Uplawmoor, obviously.  They're not novice plants, so I hope I haven't been rather rash in acquiring them...  And now I have to find an appropriate spot for them both.  They require good light, but they can't cope with direct sunlight ('Well, that won't be a problem.  They won't get much of that in the next 6 months, will they?' quipped my dear husband...)

Yes, I guess I kind of like my Begonias....  Now it only remains to be seen how soon I kill these two unfortunates...  Just because I keep a nice garden doesn't mean I've got green fingers!!

A Fool And Her Money...

Watched 'The Pillars of the Earth last night with J, and we both agreed that while it wasn't as good as the book, it was an enjoyable piece of drama, and well worth watching.  There were moments of course, where I added an irreverant commentary, with observations like, "Oh, don't tell me!  Tom the Builder is going to single-handedly introduce Gothic architecture into England'  (he did) and 'If she's about to give birth, why hasn't she been lying in for a month?  And where's the birthing stool??' etc. 

I thought it kind of lost it in the last twenty minutes or so.  It started straying away from the book then, and as for Maud in her battle gear?  She bore a distinct resemblance to Joanne Whalley Kilmer's character in Willow... 

Check it out, all you fans of matters medieval.  If you take it with a pinch of salt, it's great fun.  Better still, read the book first!!!  PotE isn't my favourite kind of historical fiction - I much prefer it when the author unravels real history and recreates it in a fictional context, using real characters, than when they invent nobility and invent an entire diocese then see how they function in a valid historical context.  The book was, nonetheless, a good fun read, and it was nice to see it transferred fairly sympathetically into a television drama.

This morning,  J decided to take me to a nursery near Uplawmoor which he said was really good.  Verdict??  Wow!!!!  I thought I'd died and gone to Plantsman's Heaven.  We went specifically to get a Berberis, but the choice was mind-boggling.  We came back with two - Pink Queen and Harlequin - and very handsome (and prickly!) they are, too.  Just the thing to keep undesirable persons from loitering beneath our Weeping Silver Pear in the corner (aka 'Cousin It').  J also decided he was going to buy loads of viola to put under Cousin It through the winter.  I'm sure they'll hate it there, but there was no budging him.  They'll be shoehorned in under that tree whether they like it or not.  If they do well over the winter, guess I'll be eating humble pie.

And then....

I found the houseplant section!!!!  And I blew ten quid on two rather delectable and unusual specimens.  Here they are, both completely innocent of what they've let themselves in for:-

 

They are two lovely  examples of Begonia Rex (with 'Escargot' on the right...).  I saw a particularly wonderful example in a B & B in Skye a couple of years back, which sparked an interest, but discovered that they're like gold dust.  You can't get them for love nor money anywhere - except Uplawmoor, obviously.  They're not novice plants, so I hope I haven't been rather rash in acquiring them...  And now I have to find an appropriate spot for them both.  They require good light, but they can't cope with direct sunlight ('Well, that won't be a problem.  They won't get much of that in the next 6 months, will they?' quipped my dear husband...)

Yes, I guess I kind of like my Begonias....  Now it only remains to be seen how soon I kill these two unfortunates...  Just because I keep a nice garden doesn't mean I've got green fingers!!