Books, glasses and writing

Signs of spring

 I've never been one to read a book to the end if it doesn't suit me. The Sea by John Banville was one of those. The book was adapted for TV, but I'd not watched it. The blurb on the back of the book made it sound my kind of read. Sadly, it wasn't. Don't get me wrong, it's beautifully written, but so slow. Description far outweighed dialogue (and I'm a dialogue kind of girl) and I'm afraid I gave it up after around 60 pages. Thankfully, this was a library book, so at least I'd not spent money on it. 

There is a backlog of books here at home waiting to be read, so I picked David Bellamy's autobiography, a book that belonged to my cousin and which I rescued when clearing her house last year. I'd grown up watching David Bellamy on TV and still own his book Botanic Man. Eveyone on TV in those days was doing impressions of David Ballmay romping through the foliage. He was just one of those guys. I even did it myself, along with my impression of David Attenborough and Alan Wicker (the Monty Python version). Yes, I am a sad person! Or is that mad?

Anyway, Jolly Green Giant is an apt title for David Bellamy's autobiography. I learned that he was born not that far from me in a place I love to visit - Carshalton, and he mentioned catching the 213 bus which runs all the way to Kingston (one of my bus routes).

David charts his life through home, school and university and how he became a Don at Durham University. He married Rosemary and after a stream of miscarriages and baby deaths, they finally had a child. After that they adopted many children. As well as a being a botanist David taught, lectured and wrote so many books. I don't know how he found time while travelling all over the world for projects and TV shows. He campaigned widely on issues close to his heart, and he gave a speech on how he would like to see the future of this world. He died in 2019. David did so much to encourage others to take species loss and the damage to our planet seriously. He was one of the greats, a man I admire. He was funny, but serious about his aims. 

David talked about Gerald Durrell, another wonderful man. I first came across Durrell at school when we read one of his books. I think it was The Bafut Beagles. If I am right, and this was about 50 years ago, some of it was written in the pidgin English of the natives in Cameroon. For some reason we never finished the book. I wasn't a great reader in those days, but that book intrigued me. As an adult, I visited Gerald Durrell's zoo in Jersey and loved it and what he was doing. Of course, a few years back there was the wonderful TV series. I miss that.

I've always been interested in nature and in my later years have even been on protest marches standing up for the environment, but like David Ballamy says, sometimes it's like banging your head against a brick wall getting people to change. Having just watched the documentary called Dirty Business on Channel 4 about the state of our water, it brings it home to you how companies lie for profits. I hope the documentary (which was excellent - do watch it) changes something.

I needed a lighter book after all that, so I'm reading one from the Summer Mysteries series by LJ Ross.

I now have a pair of reading glasses. This is to make things easier when I use the laptop. They do help a little, but I think the main problem is that I cannot get the laptop at the right height. What I need is a separate screen and keyboard. Basically, I need a desktop. The alternative is to raise the laptop on some sort of platform and use a separate keyboard plugged into one of the USB ports. All this will take space I don't have, so I am persevering and making the best of it. It's a sad fact that my sight isn't ever going to be perfect. I've been wearing glasses since I was five years old, so I suppose I've not done bad all these years.

Meanwhile, back at the writing, I can tell you I am writing again and it's going well. I manage around 1,000 words or more a day, but because I don't want to put the kibosh on it, I'm not yet revealing what the project is.

I've just had the proofs through for two poems to be published by Stoat Poetry. The journal is going to the printer next week, I believe, so I should have something to report about it next time, I hope.

And here we are at the beginning of March. How did that happen? Easter will soon be upon us. If I get my act together I might even try and make a few Easter cards this year. See you next time.