Photo diary: week 2, project 365

 I don't know about the Blue Monday, it was a whole Blue week. Sasha's tutor called me last Monday to inform that as they have staff shortages, his college day on Wednesday was to be cancelled, which totally messed up all our plans. 

Sash's not good at adapting to any changes in his routine. Holidays are not easy but at least we can prepare in advance, telling him that they are coming, how long they would last, when he is going back to school/college etc. When things happen so abruptly and he has had no time to absorb the information and adjust accordingly, he gets anxious.

With my husband being away that week, Sash staying at home full-time, it was as stressful as you get. I baked and did some sketches to keep me sane. 

Taking part in the #penandinkchallenges has given me another opportunity to open my numerous art books. The last week was all about great artists, where you had to pick a favourite quote by the artist and do some doodle or sketch with it.

I love Matisse's nudes, and have a beautiful edition of Leonard Cohen's Dance me to the end of love, with illustrations from Matisse's artwork. This is one of my favourite songs. I always tell my guys that I want it to be played at my funeral. It brings back all the memories of when we were young and in love.

Another of the sketches with a quote - this time from Picasso. I have opted for a neutral quote. Some of the things he said were awfully misogynistic. For example, he said, There are only two types of women: goddesses and doormats. That's just wrong on so many levels.

He was also known for treating his women appallingly.

Olga Khokhlova was the Russian ballet dancer and the first wife of Picasso. She was his early muse, and there are many beautiful drawings of Olga by Picasso. He betrayed her, living a double life, and she was later portrayed as a neurotic, depressive and jealous wife who was dragging on the great artist.

But she was a major influence, being his main model and muse through his classical period.

The Midnight Man by Caroline Mitchell is one of the few books I read this year. I started reading it on the new year's eve. It is a tense and unsettling murder mystery, with Gothic undertones, and supernatural elements.

Erm, that's the stash of books I bought recently. I had to take a photo to remind myself that my book-buying habits are getting out of hand. And that's only the paperbacks. I don't even dare mentioning how many Kindle books I got recently.

A very stressful day. Sash was unsettled. I decided to bake some biscuits, as he likes to watch me cooking. Rather than make something sweet, I baked savoury snacks - chunky cheese straws. They were very tasty.

I was reading Bjorn Larssen's Creation, it's a retelling of the Norse myths. Bjorn has a wicked sense of humour. We follow each other on Twitter, and I love his style, so witty and imaginative. I am also a big fan of his books.

A quick stroll through the garden. One of the flower pots has overgrown with moss. I really need to get rid of it, but it looks so pretty, especially with the rain drops, like an alien landscape.

The water in the bucket has frozen over, forming a round lid. When I picked it up, it broke in two. I walked around the garden, looking through my "magic glass".

My first book subscription box from LoveMyRead has arrived. Unlike many book subscription services offers, you don't get a mystery book - which would not work for me, as I buy lots of books, and the chances are they would send me something I already have. At LoveMyRead you select a book for yourself. You also get some treats.

I'll give it a go for another month, and then decide whether to continue. To be fair, their choices for the next month are very good, it was hard to pick one book. There were at least three I would love to read.

I had five deliveries last Friday, some for reviewing, some treats that I have ordered. We love the cream tea, especially Cornish, but this time I wanted to try a cream tea from Devon Hampers Ltd. I had a discount code, and we needed a treat, it being such a tense and taxing week.

The scones are huge and rather crumbly, not easy to spread the clotted cream onto them. Strawberry jam tastes lovely, but is a bit too dense, almost like a jelly. I prefer softer jams. I have squirrelled the fudge and shortbread for laters, or my horde would demolish them in one go.

Have you tried a cream tea delivery? What would you recommend?

This Saturday we said Good bye to our Christmas tree. I kept it until the Russian old new year's eve (something to do with the difference in the Julian and Gregorian calendars). According to the old calendar, the new year starts on the 14th, and many Russians still celebrate it. 

It was a bit sad, but as Eddie said, it's now less than a year to put it up again.

How was your week?

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