Taking a swipe at an author...

It’s not often that a book review in a national newspaper annoys me... But this review from The Guardian on Tuesday has managed that. 

I’m currently reading The Secret of Secrets, and yes – I had it on pre-order. It’s light and fluffy, with enough action to keep it ticking along. But  weapons grade nonsense? 

That’s harsh. I admit, like my previous read – Robert Galbraith’s The Hallmarked Man, it does help if you’ve read the other books in the Robert Langdon series, otherwise it’s a tad confusing. 

But, if you've read the other books, then you know what Dan Brown's writing style is, and if it's a style you enjoy?  Good luck to you.

Personally, I like Salman Rushdie’s comment... 

If you don’t like a book, read another book. If you start reading a book and you decide you don’t like it, nobody is telling you to finish it. To read a 600-page novel and then say that it has deeply offended you: well, you have done a lot of work to be offended. 

And that is the best way to look at a book - *not* describe it as weapons grade bollocks. 

Time to call this quits – I want to learn what The Secret of Secrets is.... 

Karen 

Music plays 

In my head 

Heard that song before 

Met some people in my life 

But they weren’t the real deal

The traps are appearing....

It's hard to believe that the little sprouts that were in my pot now have tiny traps..  And looking closely at them, it's possible to see the differences in the traps.

I know that when I got the seeds, I was told that there would be different varieties in the seed packet, and I have to admit that I was hoping to see if I would get something slightly unusual.

Well, looking at the traps (the ones I could see) it does look like I did manage to get at least one unusual variety... I think I may have this one:

Dionaea muscipula Conquiscator

But until the little monsters grow a little more, it's hard to tell....

So, all I can do is wait and see - and keep the little monsters happy.

Back when I things move a little further...

Karen

Hold on there's a new way a comin'
Looks like it's arriving tonight
There's no more hiding or running
There's no more walking on ice

A sprout at last...

Well, I failed to keep the weekly updates – simply because there was no action... I did read that it could take a while for signs of life, and that kept me going... Especially whilst I’ve been off sick with a lower respiratory tract infection.

But I thought I saw something in one of the pots yesterday, and today has confirmed it – there is a sprout.  

A sprout - not sure what it is yet - hopefully a VFT!

This is in the peat option - there may be a sprout in the peat free, but due the green colour of the growing medium, it's hard to see...

The growing media after 6 weeks - the peat medium is the top of the image- the peat free option is the bottom.  Supplied by Wacks Wicked Plants.

I have to admit, the sprout did make me think of the Terry Pratchett / Neil Gaimen book – Good Omens – The nice and accurate prophesies of Agnes Nutter – witch.

“He had heard about talking to plants in the early seventies, on Radio Four, and thought it was an excellent idea. Although talking is perhaps the wrong word for what Crowley did.

What he did was put the fear of God into them. 

More precisely, the fear of Crowley.

In addition to which, every couple of months Crowley would pick out a plant that was growing too slowly, or succumbing to leaf-wilt or browning, or just didn’t look quite as good as the others, and he would carry it around to all the other plants. “Say goodbye to your friend,” he’d say to them. “He just couldn’t cut it. . . “

Then he would leave the flat with the offending plant, and return an hour or so later with a large, empty flower pot, which he would leave somewhere conspicuously around the flat.

The plants were the most luxurious, verdant, and beautiful in London. Also the most terrified.”

I freely admit to thinking of this quote when I checked the pots – but wasn’t quite cruel enough to read it to them...

Karen

It’s the time to make your play

Take the rose today

It’s the time to have your say

Take the whole bouquet

Have no regrets and don’t keep hanging on

Now all your yesterdays are gone

A busy day

It's been a busy day...  Baking and planting.  The planting doesn't really show - the Venus Flytrap seeds are tiny!

Venus Flytrap seeds - image courtesy of Hampshire Carnivorous Plants

So, I've planted them after standing the growing medium in the pots for 36 hours in rainwater as per the instructions.  

The growing medium after standing in rainwater

The seeds have been scattered across the serface - now comes the waiting game... The seeds can take anywhere from 10 days to several weeks to grow, and it's pot luck as to which variety of VFT I get.  Not that I mind - I love the challenge of growing the seeds...  

I seem to have the knack of getting awkward carnivorous plant seeds to grow... I can get Sarracenia seeds sprouting without problems - but I guess leaving them in the 'fridge for 6 months in damp sphagnum moss does the trick... I know it's a long term project, as these plants don't really mature for 4 / 5 years - but it's worth it.

As for the baking - three lots of biscuits.  Triple chocolate cookies, vanilla biscuits and sweet mix spice biscuits. 

Triple chocololate chip, Sweet mix spice and vanilla

They're easy to make, and I know what's in them, so there are no nasty nuts to worry about for me.  

Ah well, time to call this quits - I want to listen to my audiobook.

Back when I get chance...

Karen

It’s the time to make your play

Take the rose today

It’s the time to have your say

Take the whole bouquet

Have no regrets and don’t keep hanging on

Now all your yesterdays are gone

Trying to grow Venus Flytraps from seed

As those who know me well know, I love my carnivorous plants.  But, there's one problem...  The government is looking to ban peat from being used in compost..  And my monsters grow in.... Peat.  

But one nursery Wacks Wicked Plants is offering Venus Flytrap growing kits - in two versions.  Peat (the normal growing media) and peat free (the new variety growing media).

Taking the media out of the boxes (very helpfully labelled so I knew which was which) I placed them in the supplied pots and labelled them, thinking I wouldn't know which was which... But that hasn't been the case.

The media is visibly different. The peat based compost is the dark brown with the usual perlite mixed in.

The peat free? Well I am glad I knew it was compost. It looks nothing like the compost I am used to when repotting my monsters... It looked like someone had emptied a bottle of bleach over the compost.

I’ve labelled the two pots so I know which is which once they are fully hydrated and will plant (ok carefully place) the seeds on the top once the compost is ready... Then let the experiment begin!

Growing media - peat with red lables, peat free with green

The pots are standing in a saucer of rainwater in a minimally heated (frost proofed) south facing conservatory, so light won’t be an issue as these seeds need lots of light to sprout...

I’ll update on a weekly basis and give my honest (and hopefully) unbiased opinion. And no – Wacks *didn’t* ask me to do this – this is my interest in my beloved monsters...

Time to call this quits – got to go and work on my other passion... My car.

Back with updates tomorrow – the planting!

Karen

I gave no thought to wisdom

It all but vanished in the haze

This fragile hand of fortune

Had changed and turned it all to grey

Death of a legend

I got home this evening, and Mum mentioned that one of the founder members of one of my favourite rock bands had died...  Then she said it was Magnum.

I went onto Magnum online, and saw this:

The lead guitarist of Magnum.  The statement read as follows:

From the Clarkin family:

On behalf of the family it is with profound sadness that daughter Dionne is sharing the news of the passing of Tony Clarkin.

Following a short illness, he died peacefully surrounded by his girls on Sunday 7th January 2024.

“I know that Tony has touched so many people through his music in so many different ways. I don’t really have words to express what he meant to me right now as the grief is too fresh.

As many of you know Tony had a great affinity with animals. It is the family’s intention to set up a charitable trust in his name to aid this cause, further details to follow. Please do not send flowers or cards, as he would have much preferred expressions of sympathy to go to charity in this way.

It was a privilege to call him my Dad.”

“I didn’t look to live forever”

The world is a poorer place with your leaving Tony.  You were a true gent.

Karen

I know if I could live forever
Nothing would change to better
Nothing would change at all

Secret Santa - bang on!

 It's the time of year I used to dread at my previous company...  The dreaded Secret Santa.  Because it was very rare that I actually got anything I liked...  Think I only managed it 3 times in the 18 years

I was there.

But not here.  Both times the gifts have been bang on for me - last year was a "Voodoo doll" - and don't mind admitting that gets used when someone really annoys me.

This year - perfection.  I'm known for my love of Carnivorous plants (my computer background is a Heliamphora specimen that I saw in Kew Gardens (The Princess of Wales conservatory has a collection of carnivorous plants I would have sold a very good friend for glue to have!)

So, this year I wasn't too worried...  But opening my Secret Santa left me speechless.  Simply because it was the *last* thing I expected....

A pair of socks.  Not just any socks - they're from Dolly Cool....

Yes - they have Audrey II from Little Shop of Horrors. And considering I grow Venus Fly Traps, they're perfect.

So all that remains for me to do is say "THANK YOU SECRET SANTA"

Ah well, guess I should call this quits - I'm on lunch and need to eat.

Back when I get chance....

Karen

I gave no thought to wisdom
It all but vanished in the haze
This fragile hand of fortune
Had changed and turned it all to grey