Ah…nothing better than a birthday in the countryside just outside our town.  No need for a petsitter or train, just the little red car, sunshine and our National Trust member cards (love this membership).

First stop, lunch at Kingston’s ‘The Juggs’ pub established in 1400’s.  Sitting outside amongst all the flowers enjoying the sun, listening to the birds singing and horses clopping by, and enjoying great food, perfection.  It’s not often Dr T is so tall she has to duck through a pub door.

Next stop the village of Rodmell just down the road for a visit to the country home and gardens of Virginia Woolf.  She shared Monk’s House with her husband Leonard and it is literally out our back door.  The house is so divine and quirky it took our breath away.

Bohemian style cottages are an absolute ‘treat’ to both of us.  We instantly felt surrounded by calm and inspiring energy.  Every corner and every room held something wonderful to enjoy.  And we hadn’t even gone outside yet (but the views were enticing).

The Monk’s House gardens are vast:  lawns, lakes, bowling greens, orchards, sculptures, small flower beds, and many benches where you can sit and soak up the birdsong, scents and magnificent views.

And then, the piece de resistance, the very thing we were so excited to see…right there at the back of the garden…Virginia Woolf’s writing cottage.  A simple but profound place where she wrote the novels we had both studied in our womens studies courses and loved to read.  In fact, we declare, every woman must read ‘A Room Of One’s Own’.  Who wouldn’t be inspired to write surrounded by gardens and an orchard just outside your door.  Standing in this little gem of literary inspiration was a ‘pinch us moment’ we could only have dreamt of decades ago.

Village life in Rodmell is so beautiful it was hard to leave, but we will definitely be back again and again as the seasons change.  If you look close you can see  our little town in the distance (told you we lived close by).

We arrived home to a surprise delivery, a huge box from Fortnum & Mason department store (someone has expensive and good taste).  The Burnout Pups got so excited, they love an unexpected box!  The gift?  A cannister of favourite tea and a fabulous biscuit tin that started to play Happy Birthday!!!  That sent the pups wildly over the top…thanks Auntie Sher you know how much you’re loved for this!

Until we share our next adventure, and finish off the biscuits and tea, keep daytripping.

Love,

A day of exploring gives us inspiration for continuing to live a burnout-free lifestyle.  This April, The Burnout Queens took a daytrip (a little West) to Petworth.  The last time we visited Petworth was literally decades ago.  Now having the ‘wheels’ makes it possible to occasionally escape the work routine for a little historic R & R.

Petworth, West Sussex is an absolute gem!  Of course all daytrips start with a good cup of tea and browse around, so drink up and let’s go….

We explored all four streets of delightful shops, then it was time to see ‘the big house’ and the famous deer park.  The same family has lived in Petworth Manor for nearly 900 years!!!!  With that timeline the house oozes stories of love affairs, wars, lineage, scandals, and legacy.  We stopped to ask a guide a question and were generously treated to story after story for a good half hour!  There were walls of art from top to bottom boasting masterpieces most of us only dream of seeing.  And for those of you who are gardening enthusiasts, the deer park was designed by none other than famous landscaper, Capability Brown.  She was the first landscaper to move away from ‘fussy’ gardens and embrace wide sweeping landscapes.  Big names and big impact!

The size and scale of the house and gardens, even the furniture, is hard to imagine.  And who of us has a family chapel inside our homes? (That’s Dr B giving you some idea of how big and high this chapel is).

It was such a beautiful sunny day we enjoyed meandering through one of the many areas of lawns and gardens.  The deer park will have to wait for the next visit, perhaps with the Burnout Pups.  The landscapes, designed views, walkways of flowers, and Roman structures are stunning.  Enormous trees dating back to the 1700’s let us see beauty and age in a spiritual way.  This is so good for my HSP soul.

It was time for afternoon tea and cake (walnut and coffee sponge) and a last doddle around Petworth Village before getting home to Pups.  We couldn’t resist buying this adorable early 1900s decoy for our tiny garden trough.  It brings a lasting memory of our day to our everyday.

Next daytrip is coming up: Monk’s House in East Sussex (village of Rodmell in the nearby countryside…google it) to see the home, gardens and writing cottage of Virginia and Leonard Woolfe.  Cannot wait and promise to take loads of pics to share.

Are we inspiring you to take some time away from the usual ‘responsible stuff’ and enjoy exploring and discovering as much as we do?  We hope so ‘cause, Darling, there’s a great big interesting world out there!

Love,

In Flanders Field the poppies…

As little girls we recited the poem In Flanders Field the poppies… during assemblies.  I did not understand the magnitude at the time, but now as an adult living in the UK, distances to the battlefields in Europe and across England are all too close making Remembrance Day very real and intensely moving.

Throughout the year, and especially this 100^th Anniversary of WWI., there are exhibits, installations, and always an historic war memorial in town centres to highlight the sacrifices of troops.

We are both british by heritage so it makes us proud for our male and female family members and friends both British and Canadian who served in both wars.

Quite by accident while visiting Dr T’s ancestoral home in the countryside, we discovered a small monument to Canadian soldiers outside the Cuckmere Coastguard Cottages at the edge of the White Cliffs (Seven Sisters).  Camped here before embarking across the Channel to France, all 150+ perished overnight when a German pilot emptied his unused bombs in the valley before flying home across the English Channel.

We hope you take your moment of silence on Remembrance Day to think about the heavy loss of life (19,000 in the first day of WWI), the loss of families (3 of 4 sons from one family), and the strength and courage of all who fought and came home.  We wear our poppies for all of you.

With respect and honour,

Love, respect and never forget.

When small is beautiful!

Welcome to our special cottage edition of Hello! The Burnout Queens walk as routinely as possible and we love walking past all the cottages that make up our little town and the villages around us.  It’s a truly English thing and these little gems make you forget how far you’ve walked and how steep you’ve climbed.  Bonus.

Cottages in England are a delight to our HSP senses.  They have quirky names, are all different colours, or all the same colour with different coloured doors. The sky is the limit.

Cottages stand alone or sit in a row, they have creative gardens, no gardens, and artistic flair.

Cottages are modern, behind bars, in moats, in the field and tucked behind a castle!

Before moving to England we used to walk by a river in Canada and it too delighted our senses…the wildlife, the water, the tides, the fishing boats and the seal swimming after the salmon!  Now, cottages fit the bill beautifully. We hope you have some focus in your walk that delights your senses.

Don’t be surprised if in one of these issues you see The Burnout Queens moving in and setting up shop.  That would be a dream come true and you know what we always say…

Expect the Unexpected!

Until next issue…Happy Hallowe’en everyone.

Love,