Kitten

I thought it was time for a little art :) After reading Carols Blog ( Carol Ottaway on the right blogroll) I decided it was time to pull out the hahnemuhle velour paper again and instead of using coloured pencils on it again, I though I would try the medium it was designed for ~ pastels.
So this is the little kitten from outside Skiathos Diamond Apartments:



It was a real cutie pie :)

UB 40 - Signing Off Tour - Rat in Mi Kitchen

Those of you that chat to me on facebook will know that I went to see UB 40 at the Civic in Wolverhampton last night.
It was a fabulous evening. There is nothing quite like seeing a band live and if you can afford it, then I thoroughly recommend it.
Quite unusually the Band made it clear on their website that they were happy for people to take along their camera's for any of their Signing Off Tour. I took mine and here is my best effort at filming, sorry for the very choppy beginning but I forgot to stop dancing, LOL! At least with the crowd singing so loudly you cannot hear me.



I love this band, the professionality of their performance just hits you immediately and their appeal can be seen by the diversity in ages of the entire audience.
Great evening, great tunes and hugely uplifting :D

Civil Servant -A Letter to my MP

Boring Post Alert ~ unless you are a Civil Servant

As I stated in my previous post, I sent a letter to my MP regarding the current situation regarding Civil Servants. The first one was standard objection to the forthcoming changes to my terms and conditions of service. I pretty much got a standard reply but, since then, being on the mailing list I have since received others emails about other issues. Prompted by the events of last week, I thought that it was time to write again:

Dear Mr Dunne,

I sent you an email detailing my worries about the terms and conditions of my employment being eroded by your party i.e the current government. In return you sent me a glib reply saying that it is necessary to bring the deficit back under control.
Now you send me correspondence about Ed Milliband being somewhat left and how this is a backwards step for the labour party. At the minute I feel the the Conservative party has taken a serious step backwards, I do not feel that creating mass unemployment, leaving a few that are still working to pay for, will assist in bringing the deficit back under control.
Meanwhile, let me tell you what is happening in my world because at no time throughout my working life has my future ever looked so bleak.

I happen to be a female civil servant, just turned XX working for XXXX. I learned yesterday that it is likely that XXXX, my place of work is to close. However, this will happen only after a current bill is passed to reduce any redundancy payments thereby, changing the terms and conditions of employment that I have worked under loyally for more than 30 years. I have had ample opportunity to earn more in the private sector in the past but, on balance I have always considered the overall conditions of employment in the Civil Service to be beneficial. I was happy to earn slightly less for the benefit of having a reasonable pension in later life. Now I find myself in a position that retrospectively that this pension that I have contributed to for the same length of time, is also being scrutinised, not only changed arbitrarily by the RPI change but now your Robin Hood cowboys are trying to take even more of it. Except unlike Robin Hood, they are stealing it for the rich rather than the poor.

I see in the news this morning that the pension age for women is going to go up to 65, my works pension will be raised by a year and meanwhile there will be thousands of us searching for work without a hope!

On top of this like everyone else, there are VAT, fuel and food price increases that together with all the other uncertainties that I face are enough to make me feel persecuted on a very personal level. I am deeply angry, not only for myself but for lots of people that I consider have worked hard throughout their life for a modest lifestyle, providing loyal service, who are now paying a serious price on behalf of other people's greed and mishandling.

When my redundancy happens, I cannot say that I am going to feel too sad. I don't have much in the way of respect for my current employers, it seems they can alter the law to suit the circumstances. Who would want to work for anyone with such low morals, be they right, left or centre?

If you would like to discuss my concerns in a serious manner then feel free to do so but otherwise, please remove me from your mailing list.

I thought you might like to see my response ;) I am afraid you will probably have to click in it to view.




Hmmm, still pretty glib! Some of it is also quite amusing, I can't see much in the way of pain falling to the well paid myself and I did smile at the AAA credit rating. Does this mean that they want to borrow more money that will be paid for using my pension ;)
I am not too sure that he would really appreciate a visit by me either!.

Interestingly, I note that he has said very little about the Superannuation Law which is the probably the one thing that is annoying people the most. But, in fairness it is pretty indefensible. I note that it has now reached the House of Lords and is causing a lot of controversy. Both the accompanying papers and the dialogue from within the house make for some very interesting reading and are creating a certain amount of consternation.
I was quite pleased to note that some speakers had also taken the trouble to chat to Civil Servants and have a very real feel for the morale right now, which we all know is non-existent. Others were giving the government a hard time saying that the correct route should have been negotiation with the Union and not instantly resorting to a law change which provides the wrong message!
There are a few in agreement but they are few and far between.
You may like to have a read, it can be found here:

Superannuation Bill - Parliament UK

Finally, I would like to just provide a few thoughts for my colleagues. Cherie, on her blog said that in her section alone, two young people suffered strokes last weekend. With these additional worries and all the extra work that the government is currently creating in the way of studies, all I am seeing is more evidence of pressure piled on.

The following thoughts help me through so I thought I would share them:

1. I remember that it isn't over yet. The last time the government tried to do this in the 80's, it got ruled by the European Law of Human Rights as unlawful. The current bill going through states:

Lord Wallace of Saltaire has stated, pursuant to section 19(1)(a) of the Human Rights Act 1998, that in his view the Bill is compatible with the Convention rights.

Having looked at the finer print, I do think the Lord Wallace is on very dodgy ground and it seem that many others think so too.

2. What can I do about it? I can raise awareness, I can write to my MP, I can support one of the Union rallies and I can talk about my worries to my family ~ and I do. Then I make every effort to let it go, otherwise it becomes personal.

3. I take time out ~ even if people are throwing work in all directions. I go and walk somewhere calming, those damn studies will be going on for months, no matter how much I do! It is impossible to work on other tasks and complete your day job, something has to fall off the edge.

4. I made sure that I found every pension statement that I can lay my hands on and any other documents that provide details of my terms and conditions ~ in case I need them later.

5. I don't read the Daily Mail on a bad day! LOL. On a good day, I go and temper all those crappy comments about Civil Servants with a little reality. Then I laugh at all the initial thumbs down that I get from Civil Servant bashers (none of which ever seem to reside in this country). Then I watch the same comment rise again as people with some reasoning ability come across it. It can be quite fun but is not recommended if you have a tendency to get wound up!

And on that note, let us move on to happier subjects.... :D

Doorway to Autumn

I have a thing about doors, you will probably have noticed when I am away I seem to take a lot of photographs of them. I simply love wooden doors in particular but also interesting archways too. This one looked beautiful surrounded by the autumnal colour of Virginia creeper and the pots reminded my of holiday.



This has been about the only piece of art that I have done in a while, mainly because we have made the most of the Autumn and got out and about while the sun was shining. So I have lots of photo's and lots of dust. However, I think there will be time enough to address lack of art issue when it rains, I may even do something about the dust...maybe ;)

Fighting Back for Civil Servants

This is going to be an unusually serious post for me but I am extremely angry with the current government and feel the need to fight back on behalf of Civil Servants throughout the country.
Firstly, I feel a little explanation is required for my readers across the waters as they may not understand the fury, worry and very real concerns of Civil Servants here in the UK. I will try and keep it factual.

The deficit in the UK needs to be brought under control and the present government has decided that doing this by reducing the Civil Service numbers will be good idea.
Unfortunately for the government they have found that the cost of reducing civil service numbers by such a vast amount will cost too much in redundancy payments, they have therefore decided to alter long standing terms and conditions in order to reduce these payments. Our colleagues in the union that we belong to have fought long and hard to show that this action is against the law, however this has simply resulted in our current government deciding to change the law accordingly.

For those of you reading this who imagine “Civil Servants” to be members of the bowler hat brigade in the corridors of power let me take this opportunity to advise that civil servants fulfil a number of every day roles within your community most of whom you wouldn’t realise until they are gone!..... Civil servants are sitting beside their military colleagues, running citizens advice bureau's, teaching children, taking away bed pans, cleaning corridors, the Police, the Firemen, Prison Officers, advising the unemployed, the list goes on! I find myself wondering who is going to advise us!

These people are carrying out work for a reasonable wage and have worked under fixed terms and conditions throughout their career, bearing in mind negotiations for a number of years have resulted in a reduction in potential wage increases simply because it was felt that civil servants have such good terms that this should be reflected in the wage expected!.... Now it seems that our employers have no honour and think that they can play with our lives as they see fit!....
Meanwhile, they have also decided that the current pension arrangements are also very generous, so they are in the midst of trying to change these too!
On the subject of pensions they are also putting up the retirement age for women to 66 instead of the current age of 60……so a double whammy if you happen to be a female civil servant.

On a personal level after working for this single employer for several decades I learn that I am to lose 50% of the total benefits I was previously entitled to and contributed towards during my working life. To be presented with this intended action now is bordering on theft!.........

I also have the added problem that had I been able to see into the future, I could at least have made extra provision towards my retirement age. Little did I know that a bunch of Robin Hoods were going to come along and change everything that I have worked towards for a large number of years!



There has been much talk about inflated wages and pensions in the press. How galling this is! Most of my colleagues locally are on a wage WELL below UK average earnings and the corresponding pension could hardly be considered generous. Gold plated ~ in their dreams!

So on behalf of all Civil Servants, who after last week are worried about their jobs, their houses, their future. This post is for you. I would also add that I have written to my MP again and would advise all of you do the same.

Feel free to leave your comments and have your say and I will publish them. If you have arrived here and wish to castigate Civil Servants, I think they are getting enough of that from their own employers, so do feel free to head over to one of the tabloid sites instead. Your comment will not be printed here, not fair? Tell us about it, we know ALL about unfair!....... ;(

Further Reading
Observer article 24 Oct 10 _ Thanks to the cuts, we would all be better off in prison!

Chris Bellinger, a UK artist has put up some interesting considerations on his blog:
Cuts, Cuts & More Cuts - Uncertain Times

Cheries Place is a mine of information on this subject with many articles and some important links for Civil servants including local & National PCS Sites.

Shrewsbury - the Quarry

In the midst of the worst working week I can recall for some considerable time, I took myself off to the Quarry in Shrewsbury for some autumnal colour.













I hope you enjoy my moments of tranquility.

Cannock Chase -Birds

On Cannock chase, the locals have been feeding the birds for years. This has resulted in the most fabulous display of varieties if you sit/ stand quietly or simply sit in your vehicle. It is slightly harder to take photo's, you almost have to get there early and feed them in the open. The locals tend to feed under the tree, which is too dark to take any decent shots, although quite a few of them are kind enough to throw some at the pile of logs that has usually been set up by one of the togs too :D
However, if you visit at a weekend, be prepared for the irritation of constant yompers, oblivious to you, them or anyone else, you do need to have a little patience and be prepared to wait a while. In my case, a gentleman asked me to move (complete with camera and coat under my bum) because he wanted to park his car *deep sigh* (especially given the number of car parking slots in the vicinity!)
It is a terrible admission but the older I get, the more reclusive I could become..............
However, nothing can take away the sheer privilege of watching these;







And, if I must go on a sunny Sunday (in the week is much more restful & friendly somehow) ~ I don't allow my irritation to become too great before clearing off to a lovely local cafe, having a lovely mug of chocolate and a piece of cake. Their feeders are also alive with activity, so I get a second shot at some action ~ irritation soothed by a big cocoa fix! LOL



I have been changing my photographic methods a little lately. These were all shot in RAW and tweaked a little, I never thought I would do that, so thoughts will be interesting.

Skiathos Journal - Random Memories

Sometimes there are scenes from a special time that cannot be linked together, they just stand individually. It is almost difficult to choose images for this bit, I still have hundreds that conjure up wonderful memories. But, here are a mix of just a few including my remaining journal entries and a few photographs with some of the thoughts that went with them.



I loved this view over Skiathos town and although we have visited Skiathos many times, this was one of our first views of it from above.

I haven't tried to capture someone in this way for years. Working quickly is quite alien to me now and both of these were a lesson long since forgotten. In fact this next one seemed impossible. People move around so quickly in cafe's along with the tables and chairs. If you check out some of the perspectives it shows. However, I only need to look at those milkshakes on the table........and I am there on the Bourtzi :D





I spent some time with the camera around the town playing with various settings. We had some vivid colour:



Some Black and white...



And some sepia...



Some more wonderful views from restaurants, this one was from Plakes.



The gorgeous pool at Diamond where we stayed....



The most prettiest kitten that welcomed us back to the apartment every day.



This post could go on and on but, it is suffice to say that there are some chairs waiting somewhere in Greece for the next year...............

Sunlit Flowers

I am going to take a quick break from my Skiathos journaling for some flowers. Whilst in Skiathos we met up with a lot of people. There were quite a few there for an important event but that is a story to be told by someone else ;-) However, one of the people we met again was Mary Dillon. Despite sharing several glasses of wine, I never did get her permission to blog one of her pieces of art so you will have to go and see them on her gallery. Actually, I don't think I want one of her pieces next to mine anyway…..LOL
Mary's Gallery
However, if you check out her paintings, particularly Dancing Poppies, you will see that her art is much like the person, full of colour and vibrancy.
So inspired by Mary, I found a photo of some sunlit tulips from the Spring and tried to loosen up a little and this is the result.



I did practice doing flowers in a tutorial first. In the beginning I used the Susie short demo of a single Poinsietta, before going it alone on a bigger piece of paper. I am working on the theory that practice is the key ;-) But, the nicest thing is that whilst painting, I can visualise Mary in my mind and I am thinking of her....and I am hoping all is ok in her world X

Skiathos Journal - Magical Forest

It is always good to read books containing local knowledge because you can pick up some wonderful tips. We had been reading the hiking book of Skiathos written by Ortwin Widmann.
Not only do I recommend this book for walkers and hikers but also to those who like to discover treasures beyond the beaches. One of the walks within it describes the hidden magical forest. I had come across a small bit of it at Kehria but we wanted to go inland a little. I still cannot walk great distances, especially if on uneven ground but we followed the walk around on the map and parked a little closer to the area that we wanted to see.
The book describes magical trees with butterflies and that was exactly what we found.




Some of the trees were incredibly old and twisted, it truly is amazing woodland. The sound of the stream was ever in the background and huge butterflies that live in the pine trees danced in the sunlight.



In some case the trees were so gnarled that you could see right through them or in some cases get inside them!



The ground was carpeted with the first sign of autumn leaves and cyclamen were growing wild across the woodland floor or, in some cases inside the trees themselves.



On another trek to the mountain area, we came across crocus growing wild in the fields.



So not only were there magnificent views across the island but the wildlife became more interesting. The birds seemed more prevalent in some areas like this female red backed shrike which is now not seen in the UK.



There were spotted flycatchers and what I think were finches flying in abundance.


The beauty of having the vehicle meant that you can go exploring for the morning and then relax on a beach in an afternoon. Some of my journaling reflects this. Here, I wondered along the beach picking up bits of debris for my still life.
Pine trees are a familiar site on Skiathos and the pine cones are everywhere. It is worth picking up the fresh ones and actually smelling them. I look back at this little watercolour sketch and can smell the fragrance of the trees!



One thing I should say is that when I envisaged doing my journaling, I bought a very cheap watercolour book. In hindsight I would not do it again. I knew it would get very battered and that was my reasoning for not getting anything too pricey. However, the paper floated at times which was unpleasant and it also meant that I had to be quite careful. I would also point out that this little sketchbook means more to me now that I ever anticipated when I set out. Whilst, they are only quick (by my standards) pencil and watercolour sketches, on my return, they invoke the most powerful memories. This is an interesting discovery because generally, with one or two exceptions, my art has previously been quite unimportant to me once complete. An important lesson maybe..............

Skiathos Journal - Kehria

One of the places that I really wanted to visit whilst we had a vehicle was Kehria. This little beach and taverna is on the North of the island so more difficult to get to. Transport in the form of buses only runs along the South of the island where all the apartments and main beaches are. So we set off along dirt tracks to get to this one with stunning views from the top.



From here you can see Asselinos Beach but there are other small beaches tucked away. These are understandably much quieter and as we drove along, sometimes we could go for half an hour without seeing anyone else but the goats.



The taverna and beach is very low key and almost a shock after not seeing anyone for ages. There are hammocks strung from the trees, a few tables and chairs are beneath the shade of some olive trees. There are some sunbeds scattered here and there, some on the grass and some on the small beaches.





I loved it, not only was it beautiful but fresh water streams run down from the mountains and make it a haven for wildlife. I saw the most beautiful damselflies and dragonflies that I have not seen before. I want to go back here another time! For those that have an interest in insects, this is a keeled skimmer but I also saw some very unusual damselflies that I was unable to photograph and also what I think may be an Eastern Willow Spreadwing.



On the beach, for my journal, I painted the scene. It looks deserted but it wasn't, people were around but, they were out of sight!



Just up from the beach, beyond the olive grove, the stream winds it's way through some very old woods. I had heard that up from here were the magical trees that form part of Skiathos ancient forest.



We knew this had to be worthy of a separate visit. So, we chilled on the beach, ate a lovely meal, I confess to having two beers in that lovely taverna but I did swim to work some of it off!

I have so many gorgeous sunsets shots to choose from from here, it is almost a sacrilege to have only one, so here are two!

Skiathos Journal - Kolios Calm

After all the stormy weather, the island set into the most glorious calm period. This is the time where we simply go and enjoy our favourite beach.
I painted this on a morning where rarely the sea was like glass, it usually goes like this in an evening.



Here, I tried to depict the mood of calm, although I am not quite sure that I achieved it. One thing I did realise as I painted my way through the holiday was that painting scenes does not come very naturally to me, I am more proficient at actual objects. An interesting discovery. I also found out how immensely frustrating it can be painting live subjects!.
In this next images, I was painting the two beautiful white geese that frequent Kolios beach. They were quietly sitting next to me and I was really enjoying the capture. After a short period a German man walked up determined to take a photo, he completely ignored me, my sketching and walked right up to them with a camera in hand. There was no gentle approach, no thought for them, just a man on a mission. Needless to say they scarpered and I was left spitting feathers! My temper seems to be getting worse as I get older and what followed was a colourful, pithy choice of words by me!






However, the total calm of Kolios soon returns the peace, I could have done with some of it for myself this week ;-)



The most wonderful thing about Kolios is that you can get away from the bat and ball brigade if you wish. Don't get me wrong, I admire people for keeping fit but the constant thwack of a ball being batted around on a beach drives me crazy! For some reason, I also appear to be a ball magnet. So with this is mind, if you are prepared to walk a little way you can get away from it all.



I spent a few days, watching the dragonflies, the crickets, numerous other creepie crawlies and gathering handfuls of hermit crabs which never fail to amaze me. Little things and all that.............. ;-)



Postscript: two of Andy's photo's that just add to the narrative, boats and hermit crabs lol: