For the summer holidays
Withenay’s Wednesday Word: hay bale
Welcome to Withenay’s Wednesday Word: a wandering, wondering dip into the dictionary. The topics are always varied and rarely predictable!
For the summer holidays, I have chosen a series of summery words, illustrated solely by pictures.
hay bale (noun)
a bundle of hay, usually tied up with wire, for ease of transportation
from Old English hieg hay and Old High German palla ball
Withenay’s Wednesday Word: bunting
Welcome to Withenay’s Wednesday Word: a wandering, wondering dip into the dictionary. The topics are always varied and rarely predictable!
For the summer holidays, I have chosen a series of summery words, illustrated solely by pictures.
bunting (noun)
small strips of coloured cloth or paper hung from strings as decorations for a boat, street, etc.
etymology uncertain
Withenay’s Wednesday Word: cricket
Welcome to Withenay’s Wednesday Word: a wandering, wondering dip into the dictionary. The topics are always varied and rarely predictable!
For the summer holidays, I have chosen a series of summery words, illustrated solely by pictures.
cricket (noun)
a jumping insect of the family Gryllidae, related to the grasshopper and locust, the male of which makes a chirping sound by rubbing its forewings together
from Old French criquet
Withenay’s Wednesday Word: sunflower
Welcome to Withenay’s Wednesday Word: a wandering, wondering dip into the dictionary. The topics are always varied and rarely predictable!
For the summer holidays, I have chosen a series of summery words, illustrated solely by pictures.
sunflower (noun)
a composite plant (Helianthus) or its large head with yellow rays and edible seeds from which an oil is extracted
from sun + flower
Withenay’s Wednesday Word: flipflop
Welcome to Withenay’s Wednesday Word: a wandering, wondering dip into the dictionary. The topics are always varied and rarely predictable!
For the summer holidays, I have chosen a series of summery words, illustrated solely by pictures.
flipflop (noun)
– a fruit-seller’s dance (historical)
– a form of somersault
– a firework
– a revolving apparatus for public amusement
– a bistable pair of vales, transistors or circuit elements, two stable states being switched by pulses (in Britain: a similar circuit with one stable state temporarily achieved by pulse)
– a type of flimsy sandal, especially one held on the foot by a thong between the toes
Withenay’s Wednesday Word: clippings
Welcome to Withenay’s Wednesday Word: a wandering, wondering dip into the dictionary. The topics are always varied and rarely predictable!
For the summer holidays, I have chosen a series of summery words, illustrated solely by pictures.
clippings (noun, plural)
– small pieces clipped off (e.g. hair, grass, twigs)
– newspaper cuttings
– acts of obtaining money by deception or cheating
from Old Norse klippa to cut
The Wimbledon effect
Ever felt that the world of writing is conspiring against you?
Through bitter experience, I have learnt that I just have to abandon any hope of doing work during the Wimbledon fortnight. The rest of the year I spend looking after the children, feeding the family, doing the washing, taking daughter to swimming lessons, taking son to music lessons, attending concerts, watching sports day, as well as going to (paid) work and attending meetings. So, for a couple of weeks, I treat myself whenever I can to a mug of tea, a biscuit and whatever is going on in SW19. In some respects it is payback for the rest of the year. Writing, as well, gets put into second place.
Now that Wimbledon is over (thank you, Murray, for winning!) I find that the weather is against me. Temperatures are soaring and killing all motivation to work. You might think that years of living in Zambia would mean that I find it easy to cope with, but it is very different being here. Our buildings are designed to keep heat in, whereas in the tropics they are designed to let all the heat out. The stuffy feel of our atmosphere hits the head and deadens its resolve.
I thought that the end of term would wind down gently, but seemingly I still have a diary full of concerts and events to attend. One concert actually involves me playing the cello, so be warned: steer well clear that afternoon! And then family time takes over during the holidays: time that I will have to squeeze writing around entertaining the children. All of a sudden it will be September, back to school again and a deteriorating weather system … and then – just maybe – then I’ll get back to a decent writing routine.
I’m taking this time for ideas and rejuvenation. Until then, please forgive erratic postings. It is merely a sunny blip!