Welcome to justthoughtsnstuff

I started posting to jtns on 20 February 2010 with just one word, 'Mosaic'. This seemed an appropriate introduction to a blog that would juxtapose fragments of memoir and life-writing. Since 1996, I'd been coming to terms with the consequences of emotional and economic abuse that had begun in childhood, and which, amongst other things, had sought to stifle self-expression. While I'd explored some aspects of my life through fiction and, to a lesser extent, journalism, it was only in 2010 that I felt confident enough to write openly about myself. I believed this was an important part of the healing process. Yet within weeks, the final scenes of my family's fifty-year nightmare started to play themselves out and the purpose of the blog became one of survival through writing. Although some posts are about my family's suffering - most explicitly, Life-Writing Talk, with Reference to Trust: A family story - the majority are about happier subjects (including, Bampton in rural west Oxfordshire, where I live, Oxford, where I work, the seasons and the countryside, walking and cycling) and I hope that these, together with their accompanying photos, are enjoyable and positive. Note: In February 2020, on jtns' tenth birthday, I stopped posting to this blog. It is now a contained work of life-writing about ten years of my life. Frank, 21 February 2020.

New blog: morethoughtsnstuff.com.

Saturday, 3 September 2011

bell, oaks, alvescot, black bourton church, doll

















We walked from Bampton to Langford yesterday for a delicious lunch at the Bell. Amazing weather and scenery.

A lot of oaks to the east of Broadwell, though some seemed to be dead or dying. Signs of acute oak decline disease or some other problem?

I'd never realised how beautiful the lower part of Alvescot village was--it's almost like a separate Cotswold hamlet. Also visited Black Bourton church for the first time. Charming medieval building with great thirteenth century wall paintings, described in the guidebook as visual aids to the Bible stories, which I rather liked.

Saw the slightly disturbing clown doll by the old mill steam below the church.
Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)