... in the pink!

 Just a short ponder this month on the use of colour in our vocabulary. Andy and I have been busy travelling recently. Attending Wimbledon again this year was an unexpected treat, due to us thinking that last year was a once-off. Not quite the bucket list but we certainly didn't plan Wimbledon as being a regular event on the calendar... but then we got to thinking... why not.

So that got me thinking ... yes more thinking... about why is Wimbledon so special. I realised that I felt "in the pink" when watching the players and spectators. Not just drinking the champagne but feeling that everything at Wimbledon is just that little bit special... and of course it is.

Everything about the event for us, is up in the 5* bracket. The customers service, the tennis service, the smiles, the umbrellas, the Pimms, the strawberries and cream... the atmosphere of utter enjoyment. The event is vibrant even on the greyest of days.

Is it about blue sky thinking? No clouds and everything being perfect. Now, not sure if you noticed, but that isn't a common occurrance at Wimbledon... and I am not just talking about the weather!

Then I got round to more thinking about how we use colour in our language to evoke specific feelings. Green with envy - in the red/black - purple patch - or even that now "old" slogan "The future's bright - the future's Orange". No-one knew what that meant originally but the power of advertising changed our perception of the colour orange.

So when you are feeling a little "off colour" and wondering what to do about it. I suggest changing just a shade and make "being in the pink " your catch phrase.
I have a feeling that regular use of this colourful language could change... everything!

Travels and travails...

Alex

Well hello there... Alex of "Madagascar" fame and all his chums were on the cruise with Andy, myself and our chums, Billy and Catherine... as we sailed the Western Mediterranean Sea at the beginning of June. We have gone on a cruise with our chums before when we explored the Adriatic. However this time it was sailing from Barcelona to call in at Palma, Marseilles, La Spezia, Civitavecchia and Naples and as you know my love of Italy would be satisfied by visiting the three major seaports on the west coast of Italy with their associated tourist attractions, such as Pompeii.

What we didn't know was that the cruise ship we were going to be on was the largest cruise ship in the world ... or so we were told. If that fact isn't true, I would hate to be on an even bigger ship than the Allure of the Seas. It was plenty big for us... 6000 passengers and 2000 crew!

Allure of the Seas

The main attraction for me was going to be visiting Cinque Terre when we docked in La Spezia. This has been an area that I have long wanted to visit. You can only travel along this coastline by train or boat and it was the area that Shelley and Byron loved in bygone years. It is a cluster of five villages that are sheltered from the storms and are far removed from the bustle of city life.

La Spezia

 Andy and I were signed up for a 9 hour "trip" visiting three of the five villages. This trip involved a bus journey along the top of the hillside, from where we could see the most southerly village, Riomaggiore.
This was just enough of a peek to realise how secluded these five villages are from the usual motorway frenzy.


The bus parked above the second village, Manarola, from where we enjoyed a long walk down the hillside into its' quaint rolling street to catch a boat trip to Vernazza and then another boat trip to Monterosso. From the boat we were able to see the village of Corniglia perched on an outcrop of rock, well fortified from the pirates of long ago who terrorised this stretch of land and its' inhabitants.

However we weren't terrified. We were enchanted, as many before us had been, by the  steep mountain terrain behind the sleepy villages.

The land had been worked over centuries in terraces, to grow crops including the famous wine of the region and yes we did a fair amount of wine tasting that day! We had the most amazing two hour lunch at Monterosso before getting the train back to the bus for the return journey to La Spezia. The train of course was 40 minutes late... the doors wouldn't open and the 250 of us that were on the trip found it exceedingly difficult to get a seat. This can be a typical Italian local service train journey. I have "enjoyed " many such experiences in Italy when travelling by train. Italy's trains can turn a travel into a travail at the drop of a hat.

Marseilles

I always ask people "what was your best bit?" from any experience. It consolidates the whole experience and means that appreciation is always foremost in your thoughts. You would think from my love of all things Italian, it would be the visit to Cinque Terre or the inspiring tour of Pompeii. However it was actually a visit to a hideaway setting in Marseilles. This once hospital/hospice was so peaceful and healing that it could calm the most anxious of souls. It was just like an oasis in the desert... a place to stop and rest before continuing on your journey.

 It is what I consider to be the best architecture for a healing environment, with its' balconies and its' windows, wide open to the world outside and yet the whole building is hidden away from the city itself. It is no longer a hospital but is still a place of healing, as just sitting in its' shady cloisters and walking around the sundrenched olive trees, gave us chums, a most welcome pause...

This pause, this interlude of peace, showed me that when on any trip, any journey... whether travelling by boat, bus, car or plane... the best moments in life are savoured in the hidden away treasures of time shared with pals and the unexpected gifts that appear when you are open to receive...

Down Memory Lane

Liz and Eileen

I recently became re-acquainted with a school friend from Primary School, Elizabeth McKellar. I received a Facebook message from a Liz Lang asking if I had been Eileen Burbidge in a past life. With the answer being yes to being Eileen Burbidge, I enquired as to how she knew me! Imagine my surprise when a blast from the past came roaring into view... and with that connection lots of other names and faces began surfacing.

Liz and I managed to meet up... and catch up about what had happened to us in the intervening 52 years! It's amazing that when one connects, so many other connections come together... and the brain synapses start going into overload. Liz and I are delighted to have found each other after all these years and will keep the connections flowing. I am also delighted that Facebook can bring something good into our lives but then it is up to us to post responsibly... more of that another time!


It seems as though this connection has opened the flood gates for many of my "past lives" to be revisited. Having had quite a nomadic educational life, attending two primary schools and two secondary schools on the west coast of Scotland, due to the family moving from place to place...  there are quite a few people along the way that were great friends to me as I settled into yet another "home".

My memories of friends past and present are a joy to me and are very much part of the phrase "life's a journey - enjoy" that was part and parcel of my business endeavour ... and central to my personal life now.

College Dance circa 1972

Friends do come and go, this we know. However perhaps friends also come and go... and then as seen below, come again once more.

Well Connected Gang circa 2015

Looking forward to becoming re-acquainted with many more "past life" friends.

Giving It!

Recently I have been enjoying many charity events... from supporting my friend Waiyin Hatton's Ayrshire Sportsability to our own Forever in-house Pamper and Prosecco day in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support. It came to me when enjoying these events in the company of wonderful friends that a very important aspect of Living It... is understanding the power of "Giving It"!

It could be our time... not necessarily our money. Certainly our compassion and for many of us, it is sharing our skills and/or our talents.

Thinking about what it is that we can give to others today...
Could it be as simple as a smile.
Or an invitation to dinner...
if not dinner... perhaps a lunch out?

Could be an email or even a text.
They all can been seen as gifts. So let's reach out to others this month and give ourselves the gift of "Giving It"...

Peace... just a thought

It comes to mind
It forms from space
It changes fast, and doesn't last
unless... I make it hold a place.

It flies around
It forms a void
It seems alive, and wants to thrive
unless... I make it feel annoyed.

It changes shape
It forms a word
It follows feeling, senses reeling
unless... I make it strike a chord

It brings a face
It works with love
It connects the dots, inspiring thoughts
it's not unless... it's more... like a dove.

It settles down
It claims its' place
It travels wide, no need to hide
it spreads its' wings... it's Peace, it's Grace.

It works like magic
It feels my need
Don't think it's nought, as in just a thought
Peace can grow from the smallest seed.


                                                                             Om Shanti, Eileen

Gourmet Reads.

It's always wonderful to meet up with friends especially over a sumptuous dinner. Last week not only did I have the pleasure of meeting friends but I met a writer, namely Doug Johnstone at an event called Gourmet Reads.

Doug lives and writes in Edinburgh and his books breathe... you know the ones you can't put down, not even for a moment. I can heartily recommend his books especially Gone Again. It was great getting to meet the author and find out why he writes, not just what he writes. Only through the experience of Gourmet Reads, hosted by Edinburgh Libraries can you experience this amazing opportunity. I was even able to dine and chat with Ian Rankin in November last year and look forward to visiting Edinburgh and dining yet again with an inspiring author in April, this year.

I love the term Gourmet Reads as it implies a fantastic dining experience... but also signifies that the writers and their books are also those worth taking time to savour and enjoy... just as you would with an exquisite meal.

Time away...

View from the lodge of snow in the distant hills

What a view we had while "whiling the time" away at the end of January. Off we went as a family and with friends to celebrate my husband, Andy's birthday. His birthday is the day after Rabbie's so we were able to have a Burns supper on Saturday and then a celebratory dinner on the Sunday... and a birthday tea on the Monday. No January detox for us, saving that experience for Feb.

We had booked a lodge in Perthshire and enjoyed some wonderful scenery and some amazing socialising. Although the social media that Andy and young Kenneth (elder son) were enjoying was not as popular with me as Natalies's (Kenneth's girlfriend) take on being sociable.

Natalie

Andy and Kenneth

Communication seems to be heading into using more and more IT tools, however I am still a big fan of direct contact as in... eye contact... massages... meeting over a coffee or like Natalie, a glass of wine... and chatting on the phone. No this doesn't mean no facebook or twitter for me, it just means that I am more interested in inviting you round for dinner and catching up with a group of friends round the table...

so if this is of interest to you, drop me a line ...
by email is fine
or even better
send me a letter!

Ciao amici,

  

Last day of holiday... snow arrived just as we were leaving!