Full of Beans

   

    After a two week break I'm full of beans, meaning I'm feeling energetic and enthusiastic. Forgive me for sounding like a dictionary of idioms, but I didn't want there to be any misunderstandings as to what I'm on about.

 

   I want to thank you guys for keeping on reading, whilst I juggled my regular scheduling of posts around. This post is short and sweet, however  things will be back to normal as from Monday, March 3rd.

    So I hope you will join me then and don't forget to click on the side menu to check out my blog archives if you want to keep on reading.

Romantic Notions

Dunure Castle

    I find that when I visit some place new, especially if it has a historical past that my mind goes into overdrive. One such place was Dunure Castle in Ayrshire, sitting high above Ayr Bay, overlooking the Firth of Clyde. Just a short 5 mile drive from the town of Ayr on the west coast of Scotland, I found myself emerged into a world that Devil slaying fantasies are made of.

    The castle itself is now in ruins and has a play park next to it, but nevertheless I felt it could be easily the setting for a story of romance, tormented souls and murder. Bronte's, Heathcliff and Cathy or Shakespeare's, Romeo and Juliet would feel at home here.

    The backdrop of the Carrick Hills, the white horses riding high on the Firth of Clyde and thunderous sky cry out to be written about. The Kennedy Clan, called this place home and was there powerhouse in times gone by. Each large stone that remains in the building today must have a story to tell. However, as it refused to retell its secrets, I'll just keep the romantic notions it left me with, alive in my imagination to tell another day.

   

Togetherness

   
How long have we been together?

Maybe ten.

It's hard to think a way back then.

You walked into the room.

Was it your eyes? Was it your face?

I don't think it was one of those things,

I could put my finger on and outline trace.

I tried to avert my eyes, when you hovered near.

At that time it was only a dream,

 That you would ever become someone dear.

You finally came over, we chatted and danced.

My heart might as well with an arrow been lanced.

From that night forward,

We became a team.

Me the strawberries, you the cream.

It was one year on and the 14th February came,
The restaurant was picked, the table booked.

Not one detail had been overlooked.

The wine was poured, the waiter smiled,

I couldn't help but feel like a child.

Before the kitchen served the main,

I hoped my excitement hadn't been in vain.
You took my hand,
You stumbled over your words.
But that didn't matter, I said Yes.
 So now and forever there is nothing but togetherness.

   

Planning Some Me Time

   

Playa El Medano, Montana Roja in the distance

      Over the next couple of weeks my blog will only be updated on Fridays. That's because I'm having some downtime, otherwise known as me time. It wasn't something that I had really planned for, so this last week I have been frantically been trying to get ahead of the game.

The boardwalk edges Playa El Medano

 

    I've been planning my blog posts for the weeks that I won't be around much and pushing to finish editing my current work in progress. After all, it's not as though I can temporarily hand my responsibilities over to a colleague. Yeah, the buck most certainly stops here with me.

    The pictures I've included this week are of the seaside town El Medano on the south coast of Tenerife, Canary Islands. I will be hopefully spending some time there, soaking up some sun in the coming weeks.

    Whilst I'm there, La Tejita Beach, on the western outskirts of the town will be where some scenes of the upcoming Fifty Shades movie will be shot. Since I didn't get a call saying I had got the job as a body double, I can only assume that the production team weren't impressed by my last holiday snaps. The bathing suit didn't flatter my curves at all.

    Remember next post 14th February, see you then!

Freedom to Choose

    When February comes around, the display racks in stationary shops are crammed with cards decorated with red hearts. The florist's order books overflow with orders for roses; as well as the jeweller's windows being chock a block with sparkling diamond rings in velvet boxes.

    The weeks running up to Valentine's Day fills many a teenage girl's imagination with dreams of romance, love and ever lasting friendship. But for girls in the underdeveloped world romance, or courtship will never play part of their lives.

    As gender inequality continues, young girls under the age of 12 years old are being made to dropout of school, forced into marriage and endure difficult pregnancies that sometimes lead to their death. If that isn't bad enough they face the risk of contracting HIV, Aids and often live a life violent abuse.

    This year UNESCO has drawn up a 7 year action plan focusing on gender inequality and we can only hope and pray that the work this organisation and others like them do, will help stop these girl's childhood years being stolen from them. Eventually allowing them to have the freedom to dream and choose who they want to be with, when they are of the age to have romance on their minds.

www.unesco.org      www.savethechildren.net

The Year of the Horse

    Happy Chinese New Year, the year of the horse. The year of the wooden horse to be exact. To honor this wonderful creature, here are a list of some well-known horses and how we got to hear about them.

The Trojan horse      - Greek mythology

Silver                       - The Lone Ranger

Black Beauty           - Anna Sewell books

Meg                         - Robert Burns (Tam o'Shanter)

Bess                        - Dick Turpin (Famous
                                    English Highwayman)

Tornado                    - McCulley's (Zorro)

Rocinante                 - Cervantes's (Don Quixote)

Black Nell                - Wild Bill Hickok

The Black (Stallion)  - Walter Farley books

The Kelpie               - Celtic folklore

       HAPPY NEW YEAR! 

My Gothic Interest

   

York Minster, York, England

      Death, Heaven, Hell, angels and demons feature in my published novel, Salvation No Kissing Required and in my current works in progress.

La Seu, Palma, Mallorca, Spain

    Therefore it won't be any surprise to you I'm sure, that I like to read books where death has a habit of cropping up. I'm especially a lover of Gothic or fiction with Gothic influences. Some of my favourite authors are Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Edgar Allan Poe, Daphne Du Maurier and Stephen King.

York Minster, second largest Gothic Cathedral in Northern Europe



    So, searching through my stock of photographs the other day I don't know why it came as a surprise to me, that my love of the Gothic style doesn't stop at literature. It seems I have a great interest in Gothic architecture too. After all the years I've been around, I had no idea until now. It goes to show you can learn something new every day, even about yourself.
   



    La Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain