My Month in Numbers 2014: December

Hello hello.

Just after Christmas is a tricky time of year to be documenting your days with numbers ... after all, you may not feel much like totalling up how much you spent on gifts, how many calories you consumed ... or how many days you had flu after being perfectly healthy the rest of the year!![For the record it was: 7 days feeling awful ... plus a few more feeling vaguely less awful!].

So I've tried to steer clear of all those statistics and instead focussed on the fun stuff that involved daleks and dolls and getting to see your heroes ... stuff like this ...

2 = the  number of Daleks that followed me around at the start of the month.
 Just after I finished work on campus on the 1st December I tweeted: "Just gone past an office which had 2 Daleks inside. ‪#‎Truestory".

And it was a true story. And a very confusing one.

"Maybe it was just a broken fan or something" my student had said when, after we'd walked past the office I told him what I'd seen. But no, as unlikely as it sounded, I knew what I'd seen!  Then, after we'd walked back that way again later on my student turned and said "Julie, I don't know much about Dr.Who ... but those are definitely Daleks".  Which was a relief really ... at least I hadn't been imagining things.

And then ...

3 days later I had cause to tweet again: "You know how I saw 2 Dalek heads in an office last week? Well now there are two dalek bodies in the stairwell!"

So far, so strange don't you think? I mean ... it's not as if there was any good reason that the campus should be over run with Daleks. Then a day later, with all thoughts of Daleks gone from my mind, 4 of us travelled 20 miles to Carmel College in Darlington where we had tickets to see Mark Gatiss.

Oh, yes, have I mentioned that we went to see Mark Gatiss, co-creator of Sherlock [where he also stars as Mycroft] and writer for Dr.Who etc, yes, that Mark Gatiss live, in the flesh? - well ...

... and yes, I did just mention that he's a writer for Dr.Who ... and yes, I already know what you're thinking ...

4 = the number of Daleks who were in attendance at the Mark Gatiss event!
They included these two in the foyer, which moved and spoke ... 

And then ... once we were inside the auditorium there they were! The two that had been following me all week! It turned out that the event planner at University [where I work] had also planned this event. Which is a rather mundane explanation really ... it's more fun to have thought, as my sister did, that I might just be the new Doctor ...

But, as interesting as all the Dalek sightings were ... this was the really exciting part:

It was a charity event for the local mayor's charities and, seemingly it doesn't matter if you're a famous writer and actor, when the mayor knows your Dad and asks 'Would your Mark come and do something for us?' ... you apparently come and do something! Hurrah!!

2 x very excited fan-girls:

Mark chatted with the editor of the local paper for around 1.5 hours about all kinds of things including, of course, Sherlock. At which point I had to do everything in my power to prevent me from squeaking with awe / standing up and telling him how I've watched all 9 episodes around a billion times. Give or take a few.

After the formal interview part there was an Q&A with the audience [no, I didn't ask anything ... I would have shown myself up!] and then  ... then there was this ...

Mark Gatiss reading out prize-winning raffle numbers = now there's something I never thought I'd hear.
Who would? As the event was in aid of charity there was also a raffle and he got to pick and call out the winning numbers.

A moment which is going on my 'Well, I've seen everything now' list.

£5 = my pay-out in a cake-related bet.
In case we got peckish in the car on the way home from seeing Mark Gatiss [did I mention that we saw Mark Gatiss? We saw Mark Gatiss. Yep, we did.] I took with me, in my bag, some slices of Christmas cake. And when James had asked why I was cutting so many slices of cake he bet me £5 that there was no need for me to bother as my sister wouldn't want any.

In amongst the Mark Gatiss excitement I told my sister I had cake in my bag ... yet I didn't mention the bet. But on the way home, she said unprompted: "Where's the cake? I was promised bag cake!" ... and I let out a cheer knowing that that £5 was now mine!!

Considering how many Christmases I've spent with my sister ... and how many slices of Christmas cake I've witnessed her eating ... James was a fool, a fool I say! to have made the bet!

3 = the number of vintage dolls who came to live with me this festive season:
One is called 'The World's Smallest Baby' which I haven't taken a photo of yet .. you'll just have to imagine it. If you're trying to imagine its scale ... there's a clue in the name!

Then there was this one who, like James said when I opened her, is in need of some TLC [But aren't we all?]:

Her stringing elastic has gone, her hair's been chopped off and her jumper's unravelling ... and yes, of course, I cried when I saw her! It's what I do!

 

Meanwhile I bought this festive fairy for myself from a box of vintage decorations. She's currently having a pose-off with the little ceramic figure on my sideboard:

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 And that's where I'm going to leave my numbers for this month and for this year! and, if I'm honest, it was almost forever ...

I wasn't sure if I was going to continue documenting my Month in Numbers in 2015, after all I've been doing it for 5 years now! 5 years month in, month out, without fail! But. it's hard to let go ... so I'm going to keep going ... and see where my statistics lead me in 2015.

As always ... you're welcome to join me, if not this month [goodness knows there's enough to fit in already!] ... but next year? Maybe? What do you think? New Year, new start, new number-crunching adventure?

Trust me, if you do, in 365 days time, you'll have a whole host of stories and moments to look back on. And if you keep going for 5 years like I have well ... that's ... erm ... 5 times 365 which is ... now ... did anyone get a calculator for Christmas ...

But, whether or not you decide to count your moments... here's to 2015 bringing you moments that count!

Julie x

My Month in Numbers 2014: November

Greetings, greetings. Come on in, don't linger on the doorstep, your hair'll get frizzy if you stay out in that damp air for much longer. 

I've got some November numbers for you today ... and if you've got any you'd like to give me in return you can link me up after you say 'hi' in the comments [and if you'd like to know what on earth I'm talking about, then all is explained here.]

For me it's been one of those months where I feel I've been constantly on the go ... and yet when it came to write it up I couldn't find a lot of evidence of that! Being busy with my campus job, my magazine work and my shop products hasn't really led to any great stories to share ... unless ...

... unless I counted up:

•  how many hours it took me to write my '101 alternative crafty supplies and where to find them' post ... which may well have been 101 for all I know!
• or the longest day I spent finishing festive flavoured kits and adding them to Etsy [13hours ... if you're interested].
• or how many ridiculous new jargon words I came across in one particular Uni module. [Anyone know/care what a 'scrumfall' is? And no, it's not a James Bond movie!]

But ... I have managed to summarise a few key moments in numbers, and here they are:

12 = the number of Doric columns in the hall at Belsay Hall, Northumberland, where we visited a Christmas fair at the start of the month:

We intended to make a good start to our Christmas shopping but instead we mainly just bought a beautiful piece of glass for ourselves from Joia Glass, tried tasters of Cherry Brandy and then went for a wander around the hall and its grounds ... in the rain ...

And it was wonderful.

We hardly bumped into anyone at all as we made our way from the hall and through the 30 acres of gardens in their autumnal, decaying, glory:

And, although we've visited the impressive quarry gardens in summer before now, there was something even more atmospheric about being there in the mist, damp and drizzle:

Eventually, at the end of the walk we came across this view of Belsay castle:

Imagine having that tucked away at the bottom of the garden [we just have 3 wheelie bins and bag of compost.]

The castle began life as a fortification against conflict in the border regions [between England and Scotland] in the 14th Century!

Then later, in 1614, it was extended to become a family home for many subsequent generations:

 ... until December 25th 1817 when the family moved into the newly built Hall:

How's that for a Christmas present?

But, alas, in 1962 the last family moved out due to dry rot eating away at many of the rooms: leaving much of it a shell:

 Despite, or perhaps because it's abandoned it does still have an intriguing atmosphere and is worth a visit if you're up/down that way sometime.

Now my next statistics will take us from one set of bizarrely abandoned things ... to another ...

 

20kg / 3.15stone = the weight of the box of original retro Christmas cards I bought as a job lot! When the delivery man knocked on my door he said "Will you let me carry it in for you? It's heavy." ... and I didn't argue!

 

Here's what most of them looked like after James and I sorted them into piles on our living room floor:

 But of course ... for someone who documents her months in very specific statistics ... the overall weight was never going to be enough of a measurement for me to document and so ...

... I counted them. All. And, give or take a few - where I went Christmas-card-blind for a while - the total I reached was ... wait for it ... 863!!! Not to mention the 5 retro Advent Calendars that nestled in amongst them all too!

I'll share more photos of the cards themselves in a future post but for now, in case you're wondering:

• I don't know where they came from, I bought them from a charity who, I assume, had them donated to them. Perhaps from a house clearance.
• Judging by how many are immaculate, still in their cellophane wrappers with many still bundled together and wrapped in brown paper packets from the manufacturer ... my guess is they were overstock from a shop during the 1970s and 80s. Where they're been in the intervening years ... I'll never know.
• And as for what I'm going to do with them ... well, you'll find 5 of them  inside each of the 'Festive Junk Journals' in my shop. And I'll offer some for sale individually too eventually [or you can get n touch if you fancy buying a lucky dip pack or ... whatever! There's plenty to go around!]. 

And while were on a festive theme ...

6 = the number of Santas who rode past us on motorbikes as we headed home on Saturday! And, once we were home I ate my 1st iced mince pie of the season. Ho ho ho indeed!

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There were doubtless more Novemberish numbers ... but I'll better get out of the way for now ... I can feel an eager December waiting in the wings ready to put on a full festive performance.

If you'd like to join me with your statistics ... you're very welcome to. I've not been perfect at pinning and commenting everyone's in recent months ... but I'll keep trying! Just let me know if I've missed you.

See you soon.

Julie

My Month in Numbers 2014: October

Hi and Happy November to you!

[Do people say that? Well, I've said it now ... can't take it back ...]. So as a new month begins it's time to summarise the old one ... in numbers.

And if you're going to write about notable numbers you can't beat a record-breaker for a good place to start ...

31st October in the UK = the warmest Halloween on record!
Apparently it was 23.6C in London and while I doubt it was quite that here, it was certainly a balmy day and evening. We walked home from a party at 23.15 and even at that time it was still too warm to be wrapped up in the winter coat I'd dressed in! 

30 mins = the duration of my 2nd sports massage. This one left me not only completely exhausted ... but also pretty bruised. My back had 1 large plus several smaller bruises which all left me wondering: how am I meant to judge the success of the massage process?

I don't seem to be getting as many aches and pains as I used to ... but am I meant to weigh the bruises against that?! Is it a case of things getting worse before they get better? Or being cruel to be kind? Or do I have to learn to embrace my inner masochist?? Who knows??!!! I need to get my head around it before booking myself in for a 3rd session ...

5 [at least] = number of times my campus work timetable changed. I'm working 2 days a week there this term and it took at least 3 weeks for everything to finalise, and we'll just get used to that pattern of working ... before it changes again in February!

But enough about work ... let's move on to some play ...

15 = the number of crafters who attended at crop which was another record number.

In fact, there were so many of us there that [a] we could hardly see the people at the other end of the room and [b] we very nearly had too many to fit in! Oh the perils of popularity ... we're really not accustomed to it!

And, as if we hadn't had enough of each other from being trapped in that room crafting together at crop ...

October marked the 2nd time my friends and I have stayed here together:

The holiday cottage we stayed in is a converted barn, on a working farm [for the record, cows seem to start making their presence known at around 7.30am in October. Moooooooo.] in the Yorkshire Dales National Park:

[BTW: I didn't know my post-craft-shop-shopping, fresh air-seeking, dale-gazing was being photographed until this photo appeared on Facebook. Thank you Andrea - you can take over James's role as my official paparazzo!].

And while this was only the 2nd time we'd stayed in that particular place ...

11 = the number of times, over all, I've been on one of our 'crafting in the country' weekends!

• This time around there were 9 of us, who arrived in 6 different vehicles.
• I took 3 bags with me [1 for clothes, 1 for crafty stuff, 1 to stop my tool tote from tipping out in the car!] plus 1 trolley full of crafty supplies.
• And I came back with 1 small bag of fresh supplies from visiting Samuel Taylor's craft shop which was a mere 15 minutes away from our cottage. I know! It's almost as if we plan our trips so we were never too far from a craft shop ... but who would do a thing like that? Who? ....

We tend to have a theme to our weekends and this time it was Christmas ...
67 = the number of days early we ate Christmas lunch.
Here it is complete with the regulation number of sprouts:

Hannah counted up the number of sprouts in the bags to ensure everyone had a fair share!

Thanks to Jean lunch with all the trimmings was delicious, and thanks to Jackie so was the homemade Christmas pud:

But, thanks to health and safety rules meaning the cottage didn't having any matches on site, and thanks to none of us having a lighter with us ... Gail didn't get the chance to douse the pud in brandy and set it alight! [Which, in our circle, is her duty whenever there's a Christmas pud involved; seemingly we have official sprout counters and pudding lighters in our friendship group!]

After lunch these numbers became rather important:

5 things for £5 = the rules for our early Christmas gift-giving. We each brought with us 5 items we'd found, spending no more than £5, then we decided who got which by picking out a raffle ticket.

And finally ... while we're on the subject of receiving parcels you know nothing about ...

 

 285 = the number of vintage postcards I received in a not-especially-well described job lot I bought:

Rather enigmatically the product description read "do not know anything about these but there are a lot! many used through the post". And, as they were a bit of a bargain [if you love old paper like I do!] I decided I didn't care what they were ... I wanted to be surprised [you know I'm a sucker for serendipity!].

They turned out to be a collection of all kinds of odd postcards, some used, some blank, some in English, many in German. With postmarks dating from between 1947 [for the German postcards] up to 1981 for a pile of cards sent to an outdoor sports retailer in Tuscaloosa USA by people requesting, amongst other things, kayaking catalogues!  Remind me to share some with you here sometime - they're a fascinatingly random bunch!

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And so ... those were my numbers, you can join me with yours if you fancy it.

The number of people joining in has tailed off somewhat this year, but that's fine! I've struggled this last 2 months to get my own vital statistics blogged ... so I know how it is.

But, it's like I always say, you're welcome to dip in and out of the numerical pool whenever you feel like it; whenever you find it fun or useful. I'll still be here sharing mine and visiting the other counter-uppers each month.

At the end of this year - after 2 more Month in Numbers posts - I'll have been memory-keeping-by-numbers for 5 whole years!!!!! So I've no plans to stop counting before my half decade anniversary.

Wishing you a happy, healthy, month filled with things you just might feel like counting up and sharing this time next month.

Julie x

My Month in Numbers 2014: September

Well hello there. We're just past the start of a brand new month and I can't remember the last time this happened.

Let me clarify ... I can remember the last time a new month happened, if memory serves me then that was round about this time last month ... but I can't recall the last time I was a little bit late in sharing my Month in Numbers - I always try to share mine on the last day of the month but this time it eluded me .. but I'm here now .. .albeit 5 days after I planned!

BTW: When other number-crunchers say they're 'late' posting theirs I tell them not to be silly; that there's no such thing as late - and all that still holds true: you're welcome to join me a week after, a month after, 6 months after the fact ... I really don't mind at all. But as the host ... I hold myself to stricter standards! ;-)

So, now that I'm duly admonished ... allow me to share the statistics that made themselves vital to my September 2014 ...

315ish = the number of book pages I set free [do you see how I phrased that nicely for those of you who flinch when I say 'cut up'?] from inside 'The Traditions of Edinburgh' to prepare it for my altered book project:

This was the 4th September in a row I've paused to document a lesson as part of Shimelle Laine's Learn Something New Everyday project and each year I try to record those thoughts in a different creative format. 

In previous years I've used:

• a notebook,
• recipe cards
• and postcards ...

... and as I have plenty of old books on hand ... and as I'd never made an altered book before ...it seemed like the ideal option.

I plan to share my finished book pages, which feature a scrappy collage for each day of the month, here on my blog in the month ahead just as soon as it's all finished.

£0.00 = the cost to park for a day out in Redcar
This isn't the most exciting number I've ever shared and yet ... doesn't it make a difference when you don't have to pay for parking?

James knows of a little car park that's free on Saturdays [in Fisherman's Square just behind all the boats + trailers if you're interested!] and, because we didn't have to fork out for a ticket or rush back when it was due to expire, it meant we spent a much more relaxed day. So much so that we chose to spend it like tourists [even though it's just up the road from us!].

And being a tourist in Redcar means that you need to have fish and chips [as well as free parking Fisherman's Square has a great chippy too! They even do small portions which are perfect when you don't feel like ingesting something the size of a deep fried whale.] and ...

... having a lemon top from the ice cream legends Pacitto's.

1 lemon top [mine] + 1 strawberry top [James is awkward!]

And when I say it's an age old tourist tradition to eat a lemon top in Redcar... it's a slightly newer option to actually become one:

And, in between all the eating and touristy doings we also hunted out some vintage treasures in the charity shops ...

99p = the cost of 6 mini tea cups and a sugar bowl:

 They didn't come with matching saucers, which is probably why they were so cheap, but still ... how could I leave such pretties on the shelf for less than a £1?!

 And, while I was filling my house with vintage treasures on one hand ... on the other I was clearing them too ...

133 = the number of items I placed on my Pop-Up Market Stall on my Facebook page.
I certainly didn't sell all 133 items but it was a success nevertheless and packaging up all the orders certainly kept me busy for a few days!

I didn't have any sales target [my hope that I'd sell everything was clearly unrealistic!] however ... do you remember the real life stall I told you about in last month's numbers? Well ... I made more in the first few hours of my online sale than I did in 7 hours at the real world version. Which taught me something about the importance of having, taking time over, and appreciating my virtual niche!

Thank you so much to those who dropped by to browse, share and buy - brazen self-publicising link alert: many of the items left over are now back in my Etsy shop at their reduced prices!!

3000% = the increase in new 'Likes' on my page during my market stall sale!

While the sale was taking place lots of nice folk shared my links, photos and details on social media [thank you!!!!] which I can only assume is what led to an increase in my Likes. This was a big surprise to me and was something I wasn't anticipating. At all.

And while a 3000% increase sounds humongous ... what it actually means is that my usual growth rate is so small [come on now, I meant on my page ... there's no need to be rude about my height!] that any increase looked quite drastic! But hey ... when you need to write a post summarising your month in numbers ... the drastic ones are definitely welcome!

Several thousand = the number of old product images I deleted from my hard drive.
In organising the market stall I needed to find all the images of  my older stock to add them to the Facebook photo album. Then afterwards I went through all the photos of all the products I've ever listed in my Etsy shop sorting out ones to keep [so I had a record of all previous products] and what to delete [all the detail shots, doubles etc]. It felt almost as good to clear out the digital versions as it did to send off the physical items to their new homes!

Millions = the number of confetti scraps which filled a greenhouse at the Festival of Thrift:

'Full Circle' by Beccy McCray was an interactive installation ... but we didn't go inside. For one thing ...  we didn't know if it was just meant for kids [who tend to have all the fun at these kind of events!] and, for another ... from the traces of the cofetti that were in evidence all around the festival, here, there and everywhere ... I'm not sure I could have faced having it all drop out of my crevices for weeks to come ...

 And finally ...

 

3 = the number of episodes of serendipitous circularity that visited me this month ...

For a reason yet to reveal itself moments from my past kept resurfacing during September and while none of them, on their own, was especially momentous ... together they made an impression. Here's the 3 main blast-from-the-past moments:

 

11 years after he sold the house to us ... a letter addressed to the previous owner dropped through our letterbox. And not for the first time. In the past we've put the letters [all from the same company] back in the post and even emailed the company to tell them the recipient had moved. But they continued to arrive so, this time, I turned to Google, searched for the [fortunately unusual] name, found his work email address and asked him if he'd like his mail back! After sending me his new address his response was ... 'I hope it's not a bill'!

 

7 years after attending a one-off event with a student on campus ... he's returned to do some further study ... and, entirely coincidentally, I've been matched with him again. The best thing about this whole situation is ... if you're a long-standing reader here ... you'll know him too.

Well, you won't know him in person, but you'll remember he was the one taking part in the 'Laughter Workshop' I wrote about here a few years ago. Remember? The one where I used my professional status to avoid having to join in? If you missed it - do drop in here to catch up on the finer, more ridiculous, details. Since starting work with him once again last week we've reminisced about that afternoon which neither of us have forgotten! [Let's face it ... it's not the sort of thing you really can forget!]

And lastly ...

 

6 years after finishing it ... 4 random pages of a draft of screenplay I wrote resurfaced last week and yanked me out of the here and now and right back to the time I wrote it:

I took a screenwriting night class, for fun, back in 2008 and wrote a 15min comedy drama as part of the course. Then last week, while hunting out some scrap paper, to help me work out the construction of a craft project, I grabbed some sheets from a scrap pile I rarely ever use beneath the printer. When I turned it over ... there it was ... the draft with my handwritten edits scrawled across it.

 

So I stopped what I was making [a project using pretty patterned papers and flowers] and read this snatch of the whole [a drama about a boy with a disability and his struggling mother, with a dead cat and rabbit thrown in for good measure!]. Needless to say it was a bit of a culture shock ... and left me pondering my rather diverse interests and career paths!

 

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And so ... those were my numbers; the digits that documented my September days. How about yours?

 

If you'd like to join me then - as always - if you leave me a comment with your link I'll be round to visit when I can [bearing in mind that it took me 5 days longer than normal to publish my own post ... don't be offended if I don't pop in for a little while. I will get around everyone's vital statistics in the end!].

 

If you'd like the full details on how to join in - with inspiration on how and what to count up each month ... then visit those here.

 

And if you just dropped in for a read then ... hello ... nice to see you! I hope something in my month connected with you in some way ... I often find in reading through all the Month in Numbers blogger's contributions that there's something familiar to me wrapped up in their numerals somewhere.

 

Happy October!

 

Julie :-)

 



My Month in Numbers 2014: August

Hello!

How was August for you? End-of-Summer-ish? Start-of-Autumny?

Despite a few days of unforgivable chilliness - where after wearing 3 layers plus a blanket while I crafted we finally resorted to putting the heating on. I'm sorry August but can you stop trying to be December please? - we did have some decent weather this month. Enough to make several days out very enjoyable in fact.

So let me dive into those days and share how my month looked ... in numbers

[As always you're welcome to join me; all the details are here].

8 = the number of friends who trooped off for a shopping day in Ripon:

This is the Wakeman's House café in the corner of the town square, a 16/17th Century building, where, as a party of 8, we piled in for lunch. Fortunately [for all of the other guests] the staff welcomed us into a separate room at the back of the café where we began to move around all the tables and chairs so we could sit together.

Well, I say we had the room to ourselves ... but, actually, when we first arrived there was a couple sitting at one of the tables.Yet, for some reason, while we were completely redesigning the place ... they swiftly finished up and left!

We apologised for the disturbance and they played their part by assuring us that our sudden appearance was not the reason for their departure; it was all very British. 

As I said, this was a shopping trip and while we made sure to visit the lovely Gray Finch and Hornsey's for some nice 'bits' ... my friend Janet and I spent the remainder of the day popping in and out of all the charity shops in town.  And here are a few of my finds-of-the-day ...

60p = the price of 2 new-to-me retro pillow cases:

Retro/vintage bedding is one of my favourite things to hunt out in charity shops; and for 60p ... there was no way I leaving the shop without these beauties!

Similarly this heavy glass bead bracelet - 99p - and gloriously medieval-meets-the-60s style pendant - £1.79 - were always going to be destined for my jewellery box!:

Other bargains of the day included some vintage 'Happy Families' playing cards [which will be familiar to those of you who've ordered one of the latest batches of Junk Journal kits in my shop], plus a Fiskar's slot punch for 50p!

30 minutes = the duration of my first ever sports massage. [BTW: there is no photograph to accompany this number!]

I went to the in-house therapist on campus and - apart from the strangeness of taking your top off in the place where you've worked ... - it was fine and not painful as she warned me it might be. And, while I think it did my back, shoulders and neck a world of good, they would have felt even better if I didn't go home and spend the rest of the day/evening hunched over on the floor pricing up all my stock and packing lots of bags and baskets. Which is explained by my next set of numbers ...

10am-ish on a Thursday = the time a friend texted to say the vintage fair she was attending - in less than 48 hours - had a table going spare ... and did I want it?

Well? Did I?

I wasn't sure. I was [a] terrified and [b] entirely unprepared [no business cards, no labels, no branding, no confidence!]. And yet ... I went for it anyway.

I might just do  a full post on my experiences here sometime ... so I won't cover all the hows and whats on you now ... I'll just show you the time line ...

35.5 hours to go / 5.30pm-ish = the company hosting it confirmed my place at the fair ... which led to complete and utter chaos as I dumped into my dining room everything I could possibly stock a vintage stall with:

I got as much pricing-up done as I cold that evening so I could go for that massage the following day knowing that at least something was organised! I then spent Friday afternoon and evening tipping shoes, paperwork and general house 'stuff' out of baskets so I could take them with me on Saturday!

 

5am / 5 hours to go = woke up ... worrying! But fortunately I grabbed a bit more sleep before I had to get up!

 

8.30am / 1.5 hours to go = I arrived at the greenhouse location of the fair to begin putting a stall together ... off the top of my head ... with no dress-rehearsals!

[p.s: see my lovely retro tablecloth? It's actually a bed sheet which was another charity shop bed linen find; I told you it was one of my favourite things to pick up!]

 

9.40am / 20 minutes to go = All finished! Just awaiting customers ...

I was really pleased with how it turned out in the end. It certainly looked like the kind of stall I'd stop to look at. But, alas ... both it and I spent much of the 7 hour day awaiting customers; and after taking out the fee for my table I made a grand total of  £31.50.

 

It was my first fair and I'm not ruling out ever trying again ... but right now I can't reconcile all that time and effort with such a poor outcome ... it did look pretty though.

89 = a rather interestingly-located number spotted at The Egton Show:

Working from home there are times when I have to be disciplined and force myself to sit at my desk and work; then there are times when someone says 'We're going to the country show on Wednesday ... do you want to come?' ... and you do. Because if you worked somewhere where that simply wouldn't be possible ... you'd wish it were. So, because I can, I did.

1st, 2nd, 3rd = the familiar sights of the red, blue and yellow rosettes on the various categories of things in the show that were there to be judged.

Things such as ... Texel sheep, which apparently are not naturally yellow

... they just get coloured that way for showing! Also on show were cows, beautifully coiffured bay horses, ponies, sheepdogs, rabbits, guinea pigs, birds and hay ... yes hay or straw or ... whatever it's called!  Here are my family inspecting it ... like they know what they're looking for!

Then, in the craft & produce tent there were the usual paintings, carved walking sticks, jams, cakes, vegetables, flowers, handmade cards [I might have to enter that category next year!] etc and, naturally ... a knitting-for-dolls section:

... and finally - especially in light of this insane vintage knitting pattern I blogged a few years back - this was the winner of my favourite craft category:

You know you're at a country fair when there's a 'balaclava' category on show!

And while we're on the subject of finding things at the show that could keep you warm ...

Approximately 20 = the number of episodes of Game of Thrones James and I have watched. In fact, over the course of the summer, it's actually 30 episodes; all of series 1-3. And when I say we've watched 'approximately' 20 this month it's because I can't quite remember when we started; let's face it it's all a bit of a blur of blood, boobs and beautiful faces isn't it? And eventually when you've seen three seasons in the space of one summer they all kind of merge into one.

But, while we were at Egton Show my sister and I spotted these rugs ...

... which we considered buying so we could dress up like Jon Snow:

Click for image source, or just to see more photos of Kit Harrington. You're welcome.

What with one of those around our shoulders [a fur rug I mean ... not a Jon Snow. Although that would certainly keep me warm!] and a knitted balaclava we'd be sorted as the weather continues to turn colder; and after all ...

 

... winter is coming!

 

 

 

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So, that was my August and I now feel pretty accomplished ...

... not only did I experience my first solo vintage fair, a lot of Snowy-swooning, all that charity-shop  bargain hunting, yellow sheep ... and a cow's backside ... I also managed to squeeze them all into a single blog post afterwards! And now it's your turn  ...

... join me if you fancy it, leave your link [and a comment] and I'll be round to see you when I can.

And if you just dropped by for a read, that's lovely too. Thanks for making it to the end of the post ... consider the Jon Snow pic as your reward!]

Julie :-D

[Note: I haven't seen season 4 so, if you plan to mention GoT in the comments, NO PLOT SPOILERS ... PLEEEEEEEASE!!! Otherwise I'm going to have to pay someone to check through the comments before I dare look! Thank you!]

My Month in Numbers 2014: July

Hello hello.

One of the best tips I always offer to anyone looking for a starting point to a Month in Numbers post is: browse through all the photos you took during the month, all your moments are there, just look for the numbers in them.

And, when I did that myself for my July I realised that the entire month was coloured by two - quite opposite - themes. All my photographs were either of the 5 Christmas magazine commissions I've completed ... or were the hundreds James and I took on our summer holiday!

To spare you the unseasonal mind-shift I'll just focus on my holiday statistics!  Here goes ...

Reference No. 39047 + 39046 = the numbers on our tickets for the RAF Waddington Air Show:

And, as you can see on the pedometer, we fitted in 12,596 steps in while looking around. Thank goodness for comfortable shoes!

I've blogged my annual exploits as James's non-expert-sidekick-who-just-goes-for-the-day-out many times before here so I won't bore you with the details ... but do let me tell you a tale about what happened before the show - less than 24 hours before to be exact - which almost led to us not going ...

A few weeks ago on Facebook I wrote a silly status mentioning how I'd just casually dropped by the page of the hotel we'd booked to just double-check it hadn't experienced some calamity that would ruin my holiday! Fortunately everything was in order ... and I continued looking forward to the break.

Then, on the morning we were due to set off for Lincoln, while James had something last-minute to organise at the office, something made me do the same 'just checking for calamities' thing with the air show's page ...  which is where I learnt, for the 1st time that ...

... all tickets to the show had to be bought in advance!! No tickets would be on sale at the gate. Anyone without a ticket would be turned away.

Which meant us.

Now, it wouldn't have ruined my week if I didn't get to see another noisy plane doing a flying thingy ... but I knew a man who'd feel differently!

So, angel that I am, I read up about where on earth we could get tickets in the remaining 7 hours we had left before places closed for the weekend. Especially considering we live 2.5 hours and 130 miles from the showground itself!

And then ... I had to just had to sit wait until he got home to break the news to him!

Fortunately ... the website detailed where the tickets were on sale; branches of HSBC bank and Morrison's supermarkets, so I printed off the full list of all the participating stores in the hope that at least 1 of them along the route down would have 2 tickets for 2 very stressed holiday makers. [well, one was more stressed than the other ...].

If you can remember Anneka Rice running around the country collecting clues against the clock in the Treasure Hunt TV show in the 80s ... you might get an idea of how I expected the afternoon to pan out!

But - stop the clock, stop the clock!! At 12.40pm-ish,  4 hours 20 minutes before the close of day, in a HSBC close to home we finally breathed-out ... because we secured 2 tickets!!!!

And we let the holiday commence ...

2 = number of rooms we stayed in over 6 nights at The Rest hotel.  This was purely due to a scheduling/ room availability thing and was something we knew when we booked the holiday. And as both rooms were lovely [and the helpful staff moved all our bags while we were out!] it was rather fun ... as if we'd stayed in 2 different places!

The first room, named 'Sunflowers' was on the ground floor:

 ... and then we literally moved up into the tree tops ... kind of ...

As you might have already spotted each room was decorated with a wallpaper whose pattern reflected the name of the room, here's the arboreal paper and side-lamps of our 'Treetops' room:

And the remainder of the rooms continued the matching name/paper theme too!

[I cannot confirm how I know this. OK, alright then, I peeked in all of the windows on our floor when I learnt that we were the only guests staying on that level one particular night!]

14% = the gradient of the steepest part of 'Steep Hill' Lincoln ... on which our hotel stood, so if we wanted to go anywhere ... and then return home again ... we couldn't avoid tackling the hill at least once a day [and more often several times!]. I shared photos of this noteworthy street - including the ways people ascend and descend it, in a Summertime Photography Scavenger Hunt post earlier this month here.

 

The outdoor veranda overlooked Steep Hill and from there, in between people-watching, I wrote out my 6 postcards for Sian's 'Pile of Postcards Exchange' and enjoyed some guilt-free holiday reading: 

1 = the number of books I read this month. Just when I thought there couldn't possibly be room in my life for yet another Sherlock Holmes adaptation ...

...I came across 'The Beekeeper's Apprentice' the first in Laurie King's Mary Russell / Sherlock Holmes stories in a charity shop. It's a fun read, nothing too taxing [which is what you need on your hols isn't it?] and, if I come across the next in the series for a bargain price ... I might just continue with them.

At the start of the book Mr. Holmes is in his mid-50s and I must admit I spent a good part of my reading time trying to think of a hot actor in his 50s who I could visualise in the part!! Call me shallow but, I like my Sherlocks to be beautiful as well as clever! [Jonny Lee Miller and Benedict Cumberbatch have utterly spoiled me!]. ;-)
 

£2 = all I spent after browsing the hundreds of thousands items at Hemswell Antiques Centres! £2!!  

One full day of our break was spent wandering around the VAST antiques centres at Hemswell - which consists of several huge, sprawling ex-RAF buildings. And even after being there all day, we didn't get to see inside all the buildings on the site!

 

While browsing though I did stumble across this number ...

 

902 = the code for one of the dealers, inside one of the Antiques Centres, who dared label one item of his stock like this ...

... and the hairstyle in question? Was this one ...

I hope his wife never visits  ...

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So, those were my vital July statistics ... how about yours?

 

If you'd like to join in - this month, next, or at any time at all then all the My Month in Numbers rules/details can be found here. Everyone's welcome. If you've lived through a month and can throw a few numbers at it ...  then you're in!

You can visit all previous contributions from both me and the entire number-crunching community on the Month in Numbers Pinterest board here.

 

Here's to doing anything we can to keep the summery / holiday atmosphere going well into August [especially as Christmas is almost over for me!].

 

Julie :-D