The Last Stand Cafe'...

It's hard to believe it's 3 years since friend BJ 'virtually' tossed her Ruby Red Rose wedding bouquet across the 'pond' to me, in the hope that me catching it would bring now retired pilot Little Buddy & I finally together!
It was a lovely thought - it didn't work but I'll never forget the gesture.

I've no rose photograph to share today to celebrate her & Bob's anniversary but an appropriately decorated cake instead... A very Happy Anniversary to you both!

In hindsight, I should have saved my blue toned oil painting posted for Saturday's Photo Hunt for my own meme here.
And since I've been lazy, I've no blue mosaic either, despite 'cousin' Miss Peach sending me details of the web site she uses.
So what do I have???
A Negative take!

Fiddling around a while back with the features of my small Samsung digital camera, discovered you could create a negative image of your taken photograph; but what delighted me the most was that all brown/reddy/orange colours - not my favourite shades - in negative form go blue to turquoise...
A bouquet of orange & red flowers given the blues...Brown Garlic Cloves likewise...And, finally Black & Tan Welsh Terrier 'nephew' Taffy resting his head on his 'Auntie' Blue's knee...
This isn't really a meme, just a personal prompt to help keep me blogging.
Friend BJ, always supportive, has joined in - feel free to too - anything blue related goes!

tnchick's prompt for this week 'Framed' has two definitions...

When playing any meme, it's always wise to get ones 'prompt' facts correct.
For some strange reason, till gently put right, I'd got Burgundy on my mind rather than KIWI - maybe it was because I've been enjoying tippling on red wine!!!
Anyway, had to really think about KIWI as a colour as to me, it's more a delicious fruit...I remember clearly, my very first taste in the early 1970's of this then new luxury item, also called a Chinese Gooseberry here!!!
I was @ Technical College, my friend & I each bought one to try, and with a 'borrowed' knife from the college canteen carefully peeled back the furry coat to reveal lush brilliant green sweet succulent flesh - have loved them ever since!

As @ the moment I'm sort of living the life of a hermit, have regrettably not been down to the Covered Market's fruit stands to purchase some to photograph for today & then eat with pleasure; so it's local KIWI greens in nature looking lush after the recent continuing rains that I'm featuring instead...
I do have a KIWI coloured cake though from the Celebration Cake Shop's window - taken this year & not previously posted [I think?]...
As lately my blogging has been more miss than hit, KIWI as in New Zealander & not as in green friends Doyle & Mollie [who I suspect picked picked this weeks colour :)] have taken up the slack re me failing to post on 'True Colours Thursday' - they with my blessing now host the 'Blue's Coloured Thursday' meme HERE!
With no pressure, I'm happy to play with colours again - why don't you?

While I was missing from Blogland, my concerned dear pusscat 'cousin' Miss Peach, knowing I was blue in every sence, sent me the following weeping blue roses and two delightful collages made especially for me...

They touched my heart and I send my love & thanks to her and Karla!

Once upon a time, I was creative too as did Art @ College & did well - guess I missed my way there as have in many things in my life - only Blogger has given me free expression, so maybe next Monday I'll post my own blue mosaic!

Just a memory from the late 1970's to go with my earlier post!
Not my favourite Gerry Rafferty track but it does conjures up many fond memories of a lost Gay love, dancing late, late, late & more...

Not sleeping well of late - infact very badly due to an over active mind, disturbing dreams/nightmares - has meant I've been tossing & turning in the wee small hours and listening intently to every night time sound.

The inside ones of my Victorian Terraced house creaking are concerning - have a new set of neighbours!
So once again, builders are pounding on our adjoining homes walls, which brings the fear of new deeper cracks appearing in my elderly plaster ceilings & the worry of another fall!

The outside night sounds are more fascinating.
Come Winter or Summer I always 'sleep' with an open bedroom window, so hear lots!
Sometimes when the wind is in the right or maybe wrong direction, it's been the distant roar of traffic on the city's Ring Road that I've heard; other times the night Mail train passing by on the rail tracks a few blocks away - the latter never disturbs me, just reminds me of my early years growing up in a railway community, where I was lulled to sleep by steam trains puff puffing by enroute to London or the North on the now long defunked Great Central Railway Line.
Other night sounds have included regular cat flights & caterwauling and more mysterious garden noises - the scrambling over fences, the rustling in the bushes, all put down to visiting Urban Foxes.

But last night, I heard initially in the distance 'twit-to-woo', then it gradually grow closer & closer & louder, till I imagined it's maker was perched in my Apple Tree - was it a Barn Owl, a Tawny or a Little Owl ???
Most likely the latter - I just hope my caller was as handsome as this guy...
Or as funny as these...
I love Owls, so much so I have made the Barn Owl Trust in Devon, a beneficiary in my recently written Will.
And I have Ollie, meant to be an outside bird scarer but he resides in my hall...

Because of an unexpected & very welcome find earlier today, have an image to post for this weeks prompt from tnchick.
All plots @ Cowmead Allotments are numerically listed, this is Plot No. 31 ...
Today was the second 'Open Day' there this year - am seriously grieved I missed the first one last week!

Since my self inflicted 'exile / time out' from ALL things blogging, blog life has moved on as it does without me, even my own meme has! :( ...
It's now 'Blues Coloured Thursday' and hosted by pup friends Mollie & Doyle.
In truth, I have no problem with this, as they were loyal TCT participants, and since they did not want my Colours to run out started their own meme.
It is sweet they dedicated it to me, & have included a cake announcing the following weeks colour.
What better tribute to my time spent blogging/making friends can there be than that?

For those who don't know why I suddenly stopped blogging - all I can say is that as after 3 +++ years in Blogland, scattered over many blogs, I've quite literally run out of things to write about, even photograph as my life has become very futile.
Am I back blogging again - probably NOT, but I am here today to play my 'True Colours' one more time because the 'Wizard of Oz' was a fav. magical film and Dorothy's song wistfully conjures up how I feel as want to be able to dream even though I nolonger have any...

"Somewhere over the RAINBOW, way up high,
There's a land that I heard of once in a lullaby.
Somewhere over the rainbow, skies are blue,
And the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true.
Someday I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me.
Where troubles melt like lemon drops
Away above the chimney tops
That's where you'll find me.
Somewhere over the RAINBOW, bluebirds fly.
Why then, oh why can't I?"

From my RAINBOW archives, have chosen old images as not taken a new photograph in months!
I'm not religious however love Stained Glass windows in churches.
Christ Church, the city Cathedral, small it may be, has wonderful ones whose reflections create a RAINBOW spectrum...And there is my colourful Hug of bears, all who will soon need new homes - if you can help, please email me...And from my favourite diner in Brighton aka Bills, where J1 and I have met on my visits there..Sadly, I have no cake as not been cake window shopping.