Saturday 20 March 2021

Spring!!!

 Has Spring ever been more welcome?   I doubt it.   Today here in the North East we are getting the best of the weather - the weather man told us that this morning and I believe him.   The sun has shone all day.   But when I set off with Priscilla (my best walk incidentally - the Physio was quite right - the more I do it the better I shall walk) I rounded the corner at the bottom of my drive, out of the shelter of the hedge, and was hit by a brisk, West wind with a distinctly chilly edge to it.   So out came the pom-pom hat I keep in Priscilla's box.

Interestingly - the combination of age, cold weather, recovering hip and Covid make even the most ordinary happening into an event.  I rounded the corner on to the footpath and came face-to-face with the lady who used to groom Tess for me.  So we stopped for a short, socially distanced chat.  (first my carer for an hour, then forty minutes coffee morning on Zoom with my Saturday morning gang and now this - how could I contain the excitement?)  She had two small children - one around three and one around three months.   Their names ?  (both girls) the elder of the two - Jersey - and the baby - Winter.    How the fashion in names has changed.   I think of my mother's generation - Maude, Alice, Gertrude, Mary.   Albert, Abraham, Thomas,- My mother and her siblings.   Then we seemed to go through a stage of classic names - Elizabeth, Catherine, Valerie, Rosamund.   Now anything goes.

We parted and I walked on home, closed the garage door on Priscilla and heated my delicious casserole lunch in the microwave.   I ate my banana and orange pudding and then (asusual) fell asleep for half an hour).

Next on to my blog and a read of all your posts - as usual all interesting and a connection with you all - one which I enjoy tremendously.   Then think of something to write about.   Now it is time to make my ham and Dijon mustard sandwich for tea, along with a handful of Piccolo tomatoes.   My god-daughter rang in the middle of writing this and we have been talking for three quarters of an hour - lovely to catch up all her news.

Take care everyone and see you tomorrow.   I am getting together a list of blogs that I have missed - still am not sure how to put them on without them coming up in red at the top - so back to the drawing board!

23 comments:

Derek Faulkner said...

You clearly had the weather today that we had yesterday. Today it has been grey and cold and is forecast to remain that way for several days.

JayCee said...

What a very pleasant day. Your blog post sounds so cheerful it has made me smile.

The bike shed said...

My name is Mark - I went to my son's graduation the other year - there were hundreds of people there that day receiving degrees - not one of them was called Mark. It seems it is a name from the Sixties and Seventies

EM Griffith said...

So very thankful for spring's arrival this year! My DH and I had our first vaccines this week. We're planning to travel to see each of our mothers this summer and also begin the process of getting a house on land we bought for retirement just before the world shut down. It's in another state. Name trends are interesting. We used family names for our sons. One is named after his grandfathers, the other a few uncles.

Susan said...

I was nervous waiting to see what my children would name their children. I desperately did not want anything trendy although, of course, I would accept whatever came without comment. The first one is Owen which I consider timeless. Olive arrived next, named after her great grandmother. Two more are scheduled to arrive this summer. I've learned by now the little people make the names their own so I am much more relaxed this time around-silly Grammie.

Ellen D. said...

What a happy, busy day you are having! Sounds perfect! Thanks for sharing it with me!

Catrina said...

I was lucky to get one of the clasic names.my name is catherine esther my daughters youngest boy is lyric and her youngest girl is oaklyn.never heard of these names but their names do fit them. I enjoy your blog very much.

Heather said...

So pleased you had such a lovely day today. So often you don't get the best of the weather. Not exactly cold down here but grey and slightly damp. However there are a few more signs of spring each day.
No modern names even among my great-grandchildren. I have a Joel, Fearne, Seth, Leah, Callum, Connor, Evelyn, Sidney, Thomas and Stephanie.

Debby said...

I have William and Iris.

Susan said...

On a nice sunny warm day, everybody feels better and generally happier. It's been a long cold Winter and we are all so pleased to move in to Spring. You had a very full day, accomplishing a good walk too.

angryparsnip said...

I have a David, Molly and Adam with my x's last name I thought the simple names were better. Plus Adam was named after my Grandfather. The X and I had some major "talks" about the names. Plus living in Laguna Beach, Southern California, you should have seen the names. Oh My Goodness and hope you never said them wrong !
I am missing from your blog roll.

Bonnie said...

What a lovely day you've had! It makes me happy to hear that and to know your weather has been better as well. May your day tomorrow be even better!

Anonymous said...

My grandchildren are called Philipp, Julius and Adam. Here in Germany, at least one of the names needs to show whether it is a boy or a girl.
Hilde in Germany

Jules said...

Yesterday was a beautiful first day of spring. I'd hoped you might be able to get out for a walk when I saw the weather forecast in the morning. X

Sue in Suffolk said...

Good news about your sunny walk.
I love all the old names that have returned - not so sure about some of the new made-up ones.

Carol Caldwell said...

My grandsons are Link And Rain. It took a bit of getting my head round at the time but I am now used to them and they suit them. I had my first vaccine this week, hurrah. No side effects either.

thelma said...

Well my grandchildren are called - Tom, Ben, Matilda and Lillie. My two grownup children are called Mark and Karen, basically I think names should be sensible for when they grow up into adults. I will never admit to my middle name, but have just put it on my Census survey, which is today!

The Weaver of Grass said...

Thank you for all those interesting - and on the whole - conventional names. We called our son Dominic, which was a family name going back centuries which we realised on researching our family history (my husband's ancestor came over as a Prisoner of War during the Napoleonic wars, married a girl from Devon and remained here.) At the time my parents were horrified and said they would call him Nicky so that people would assume his name was Nicholas!!Within a couple of months they were calling him Dom like everyone else.

Yellow Shoes said...

Glad to hear you're chugging along Pat.
My neighbour's son has had a baby ( well you know what I mean! ) and they've called him Barney.
That goes right back to the 1950s when I played with a Barney.

Librarian said...

If only my Dad would be as reasonable and sensible as you are, Pat! We all (including my Dad) know that exercise is so important, and moving about gets easier with practice. And yet he does not do anything unless it is absolutely necessary. Out of the 12 hours or so he is awake each day, he spends 11 on the settee in front of the telly.

CharlotteP said...

The 'old' names seem to have come back into favour, there are lots of Agnes, Thomas, Lily and George's around the school gates, and even one Agatha. When I was at school, there were no other Charlottes among 600 girls, but now we are a common lot!

The Weaver of Grass said...

Thanks everyone.

Mary said...

I'm just old-fashioned Mary Elizabeth after my mother Gladys Mary, and Grandmother Olive Elizabeth, or two Queens!!!
I see I'm still in scarlet on your list dear Pat - but I'm not really screaming for attention! Hope you can find a fix soon. I've no idea so can't help out, sorry.