Mapping

Continuing my map project, I wrote this piece of creative writing.  Not prose but possibly not a poem either!

Mapping 

Folded up.
Keeping information enclosed and secret.
Unfolding.
Fold up.
Fold down.
Concertina folds.
Slowly unfolding.  No longer hidden.

Spread out.
Spread across a table.
Spread out on a car bonnet.

Tracing the route with a finger.
Following the blue, the red, the orange, the yellow
And even the white.
Tracing the dotted lines of pathways and bridleways.

Refolded to show the area required
Tears along the creases from frequent folding and unfolding.

Churches with spires. Churches with towers.
Viewpoints, historic houses, gardens
Symbols, names, scale.

A route from A to B.
A straight route.
A meandering route.

Rivers, canals and railway lines
Geography and history side by side.

Miles and mile of potential.
Adventures waiting to happen.
Here be dragons!

But life. 

Life doesn’t come with a map.
No manual. Just the clock.
60 seconds.
Tick.
60 minutes.
Tock.
60 hours.
Tick.
60 days.
Tock.
60 years.
Tick tock. 

Morning
Evening
Afternoon
J Alfred Prufrock
Measuring out his life with coffee spoons
Tick. Tock.

Thanks for joining me today
Bernice

Buildings

This month's theme has been buildings.  Yet again I haven't been out anywhere to take new photos so I searched the archives for some photographs.

I quite like taking pictures of parts of buildings as you will see.

For the summer we are going to take part in this Summer Photo Scavenger Hunt.

Thanks for joining me today
Bernice

What3words

Have you heard of the app what3words?   To quote the website: 'We have divided the world into 3m squares and given each square a unique combination of three words.'  It's quite amusing - although it does have serious uses.  Amusing because if you walk around your house different parts of your rooms have a different 3 word list.  And the words are so random!

I had been thinking about mapping my life and returning to places I'd lived and taking photos.  However the teacher training college I attended has since been demolished and I'm not keen on taking photos of other people's houses without permission.  And no way was I knocking on people's front doors!  So I hit on the idea of using what3words.

However, as I mentioned each house is divided up into 3 metre squares so it was pot luck which combination I ended up with.  And time consuming to go through each 3m square to find a pleasing set of three.

Then it struck me!

Why not make up my own three words for each place based on my life or memories.  So that's what I did.  These aren't all the places I've lived and I'm not identifying them here.

Baby. Child. School 

Church. Bus. Lawn 

Bungalow. Job. Mini 

Mortgage. Property. Vodka. 

Commute. Pub. Divorce 

Lodgers. Rowan. Future 

Marriage. Masters. Baby

Retired. Admin. Travel

It's actually quite hard to sum up parts of your life in only three words.  For example, the last three words cover 33 years.  Some of the things I came up with required 2 word answers eg empty nest.  So I stuck to the challenge I'd set myself and therefore lots of areas of life got cut out.

What 3 words would you come up with?

Thanks for joining me today.
Bernice