Hyde Park

 SONG - Werewolves of London by Warren Zevon

Day 33 - Sat. Jun 1

Breakfast at Paul’s and the tube to Temple Station. On our way to the Courtauld Museum today. It was a zoo outside as apparently there is some kind of big soccer final tonight between Germany & Spain here in London. But inside the museum it was calm, quiet and very few people. 

Manet

Van Gogh

Manet

Gauguin 

Van Gogh

Detail of painting above

Loved seeing their Impressionist paintings and spending time with each one.  And it was so quiet there that it felt like we had the museum to ourselves at times!

We were going to do something else downtown but it was too chaotic so we got a cab to Hyde Park and took a long leisurely walk through it. The cab we got was special to us as it was a Bridgerton cab and we have a very good friend who is now the show runner. 

Starting in the Hyde Park Italian gardens, 

then along the river to the Peter Pan Statue, 

watching birds nesting and children feeding the pigeons and swans out with their babies….

We came out of the park on the Kensington side and passed the Albert & Victoria Museum which is only a block from our hotel. It had large & small chunks taken out of it and what looked like bullet holes along its side exterior. 

When we arrived back in our room, I read that it had been bombed during the Blitz of WWII and although they had to do some structural repair work, they chose to leave some damage to show future generations what it had gone through. Impressive. 

Dinner tonight was at PJ’s Chelsea Brasserie which is about 4 blocks from our hotel. It was wonderful, casual, delightful and walkable! Yay. Great meal, wine and cozy atmosphere. Three thumbs up. 

Walked back to the Pelham and went to have nightcap in their bar. The bartender made us each designer drinks that he invented and both were delicious. 

Good day & good night!

It's Just Like Magic

....and we are in London!  Planes are an amazing contraption as they can bring you to an entirely different reality.  Everyone who knows me knows I hate, hate, hate to fly.  But it's so worth the fear & panic when you arrive safely at your destination!  

A whole new world opens up right before your very eyes.  

 

 

Leaving beautiful San Francisco behind on Monday night. 

 P

Circling the Thames & the London Eye!

 

From Heathrow we took the Heathrow Express train into London and arrived at Paddington Station.  From there we bumped around with our suitcases several blocks to our hotel nearby. 

 

After resting my tired toes and Mr. B's power nap, we decided to head over to Hyde Park & Kensington Gardens which really reinvigorated both of us.  Just people watching and being out in the fresh air and enjoying nature.  There were Cotton tail rabbits, Magpies, White Swans, Red Ringed Parrots, Doves, Ducks & loads of squirrels - some formal gardens and acres of open space for joggers, sun bathers & picnicking.  

 

 

The gardens in London are just lovely and are about on the same time schedule as mine at home. 

 

Here is a shot of a large sculpture framing Kensington Palace way, way in the background.  But what I really wanted to see was this lovely little statue of Peter Pan below.

 

The creator of Peter Pan, J.M. Barrie, commissioned Sir George Frampton to build the Peter Pan statue in 1902. It was erected in Kensington Gardens in 1912.

Tomorrow we take he train to Bath....see you then!

Mom's Glue

Song - Your Mother and Mine from Peter Pan

Mom circa 1957

See that cake pan on top of the refrigerator? Mom always had a freshly baked cake in there!  And the drawer behind her had Red Vine licorice and freshly baked chocolate chip cookies for the family and our friends. And she usually had a pot of spaghetti sauce simmering on the stove top. 

Mom could be found in the kitchen or in the garden....both favorites of hers.....they still are.

Mom is still cooking in the same kitchen (minus the plaid wallpaper) in 2016

My mom has some extra strength glue - one that can hold a whole family together.  This will be our year of "firsts"....first time in 66 years that dad wasn't with us to celebrate Mother's Day. But we held it together with mom's love.

As for my Mother's Day, it was an extra special day.  My middle son, Jon surprised me with a visit from LA - way too short Jon but a delight!  The three of us had breakfast with my mom, then while she was off playing golf with my brother & his family, I got to paint.  My three (4 with Mr. B) boys and my soon to be daughter (insert ear to ear grin here) celebrated with a lovely meal outside by the fireplace.

"Home is where your mom is."

Remembering Tinkerbell or Ethereal Thoughts

Song - Partial clip from Peter Pan "You Can Fly" by Disney

February 5, 1953 was the date that wonderful movie "Peter Pan" came out.

But I have a different story.....

For the last few years, when I wake up at night (which is a common occurrence) I occasionally see a bright light on the ceiling of our bedroom.  I have even woken up Mr. B thinking we had prowlers with super bright flashlights shining in our bedroom windows and up onto the ceiling.

 This light is blinding and some nights I wondered if it might be Spirit trying to contact me in some form. So I just chalked it up to "other worldly" and left it at that. But like I said - it's been going on for years!


Last night I was awake from midnight until 4:30 and I saw "the light" several times.  Always in the right corner of the ceiling.  Mmmmm.....  


Since I wasn't sleeping anyway, I decided to experiment.

Facts:
 1. It is always after I check my bedside alarm clock
 2. It only happens as I roll over to my right side
 3. It makes no noise
 4. There is no light on other than the clock
 5. Sometimes my eyes are closed
 6. Maybe I should go see my Optometrist or a Psychiatrist

My discovery last night -

1. It isn't Tinkerbell (bummer)
2. It's just me


In the middle of the night my eyes look more like the photo below.....

It's called Diffraction and happens when I look at my alarm clock (on my left) then roll onto my right side with semi-closed eyes (they feel like they are closed).  My eyes get moist from looking at the rather bright light of the digital alarm clock in the darkness and this moisture accumulates on my lashes.  As I roll the light from the alarm clock reflects on the moisture on my lashes and it is so close to my eye, it is almost blinding.

So long story short - I am not crazy (at least not all of the time) or having ethereal thoughts but just a girl trying to figure out her crazy mixed up world. If you pass me by and not say "hi" the next time we are together, I will understand.

Oh and by the way - "I can fly, I can fly, I can fly"!  (but only with a little bit of Pixie dust!)


 “The moment you doubt whether you can fly, you cease for ever to be able to do it.”  -- J.M. Barrie, Peter Pan