The Changing Seasons – January 2020

This challenge is hosted by Su from Zimmerbitch. You can find out how to participate at the end of this post!

Another difficult month. I was actually pleased to return to work because of my low mood during the holidays, which has persisted all month. The last weekend of the holidays did see a return of some energy and I got out of the house a little.

The first Snowdrops were already in bloom during the holidays:

We went to Williamson Park in Lancaster so I could try out the new camera. The park not only has the lovely Ashton memorial (the highest point in the city) but nearby there is a tropical butterfly house and there is always something nice to see even mid-winter.

Ashton Memorial

Very near to the park is an industrial estate which houses the Lancaster Brewery and also, allegedly, the largest Antiques centre in the UK. I have always tried to avoid this place, quite deliberately, as I would fill the house if not careful. To be honest, it transpired that there is a lot of junk in the antiques centre but this little cast iron glue pot caught my eye:

The week I returned to work I decided to join a new gym. It is the same one my wife uses, not that we ever work there together. It is not as convenient to get to but it does have much better facilities. One thing I am not enjoying is the crowded locker room, loud with semi-articulate ‘banter’. And as for the smell….

During this month I also became aware that a something has damaged the lens on my phone camera – as you can see!

Shiny new gym.

The next week saw the start of the refurbishment of our bathroom at home. By the second week we did not even have a toilet so we decamped to a hotel. It is bizarre staying in a hotel only a mile from your house, but handy if you have forgotten to pack anything.

This has been a somewhat trying experience. Week one saw two minor floods in the utility room below, week two saw a broken window. We have been back in the house this week but don’t expect the job to be finished for at least another week.

Not-so-shiny bathroom

Art-wise this has been a quiet month, largely because my studio is sealed up to exclude builder’s dust. I did try a new company for having prints made – and am very happy with the proofs. I also had the butterfly designs printed on mugs and some have been sent to Australia. I went down the route of getting them printed and posting them myself because the carriage prices charged by Cafe Press are ridiculous.

Towards the end of the month and I have a cold. This is a good thing because normally I get one during the Christmas break! Outside, the garden is seeing increasing signs of spring, with this rather nice Hellebore catching my eye:

The elephant in the room this month is, of course, Brexit. A populist and xenophobic media-assisted coup has resulted in the UK leaving the EU on January 31st. I am reminded of Rod Serling ‘s closing narration to the very relevant 1960 episode of the Twilight Zone: ‘The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street’:

“The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs and explosions and fallout. There are weapons that are simply thoughts, attitudes, prejudices…to be found only in the minds of men. For the record, prejudices can kill…and suspicion can destroy…and a thoughtless, frightened search for a scapegoat has a fallout all of its own – for the children and the children yet unborn. And the pity of it is that these things cannot be confined to the Twilight Zone.“

If you would like to join in, here are the challenge guidelines:

The Changing Seasons Version One (photographic):

• Each month, post 5-20 photos in a gallery that you feel represent your month
• Don’t use photos from your archive. Only new shots.
• Tag your posts with #MonthlyPhotoChallenge and #TheChangingSeasons so that others can find them

The Changing Seasons Version Two (you choose the format):

• Each month, post a photo, recipe, painting, drawing, video, whatever that you feel says something about your month
• Don’t use archive stuff. Only new material!
• Tag your posts with #MonthlyPhotoChallenge and #TheChangingSeasons so others can find them.

If you do a ping-back to Su’s original post, she can update hers with links to all of yours.