I am clearing out my flat! I have been here for nine years, and have accumulated many mountains of things. I must clear some space, because my friend S (who is living here while I try out Canada), has nowhere to put her collection of Wade's Whimsies (she has a collection of over 10,000), and despite having spent a week clearing things out last year, there are still dusty cupboards full of nonsense that seem to endlessly expand.
This clearing and sifting and sorting is both very entertaining and very sad, for even if you are happier than you have ever been (for lots of reasons, and not just ones of pathology), old love letters and photographs and birthday cards from dead grandparents still hurt a little bit.
But I digress and become maudlin and yet - curses! There's more! I have found a thing that I made when I was a very tiny child, possibly no more than 6. It is a school project (in the form of a plain exercise book with things stuck in it) about Horses, and it is really quite good (as well as being informative). But it has confused me, I must confess.
Is it happy? Is it sad? Perhaps it is not so sad; after all, it is not too late - maybe one day I will have a horse, particularly as soon I am leaving London (no room for horses) for Canada (lots of room for horses, and puppies).
Giddy up!
(If you would like to see more of my very early juvenilia, "Horses by Lucy" (c. 1974/5), please let me know - there's more where this came from, including a really good drawing of a bridle and an excellent two-colour plate, "The Points Of The Horse".)
UPDATE!
Due to overwhelming demand (from one person), I will now reveal (for the first time) more pages from my previously unseen juvenilia, "Horses by Lucy".
If you do not know exactly what horses are, you would do well to read this:
If you are not sure which bit of a horse goes where, you might like this. Note: I remember tracing the horse, but the writing is all mine.
Here is some early evidence of my political sensibilities. They did not develop much further.
If I was going to adopt a horse from an Unwanted Horse Centre, I would show them this drawing to demonstrate that I understood exactly what horses need to be clean, dry and happy.
(I am not sure why the sun is red, but I am not going to argue with my tiny, enchanting self; I am sure I had my reasons.)
Coming Next: "Spanish Costume", c. 1983, aged 13. Here's an extract to whet your greedy appetites:
"The Spaniards loved extravagance, yet had simple tastes in foods. They were sensual people although highly religious and these contrasting aspects brought about clothes of great luxury but comparative simplicity of line."
Holy shit. Can you wait? I know I can't, and I wrote it!
11 comments:
Oh, yes please! Of course.
No page on Belgium, horses in, use of?
No, better not.
it would be perverted of me to point out that your diagram doesn't include any mention of a horse's girly bits or boy bits, wouldn't it.
but seriously though, i wish i had some of my drawings from when i was younger. i remember specifically sitting at the living room coffee table, drawing a portrait of my father in pen. the right half of his face was drawn with my right hand and the left half of his face with my left hand.
he thought so much of it that he entered it in a christmas contest at his work. i was so embarrassed because all the other kids had painted and colored their drawings while mine was this plain thing drawn with a ball-point pen. peculiarly enough, and much to my surprise, i ended up winning the contest. the prize was to go sit on santa's lap. (the company had hired one for the occasion). the bastard never gave me the puppy i asked for.
I wrote a description of my family when I was in grade 2. I wrote that I had 2 "big bothers". The teacher posted in on the wall of the classroom, and my parents saw it when they came to meet the teacher. I never lived it down. And you know, they really were big bothers.
I can't wait to hear more about those extravagant yet simple Spaniards.
The caption may not mention the horse's boy bits, but they are in the picture.
Most interesting and informative. A little poignant, the bit about not having a horse and not seeing your granny very often, but stoical rather than sad, I think.
More about Spaniards would be splendid.
Marion Richardson! I can spot a Marion Richardson lower-case F from twenty paces. Or at least, I think I can. Did you do Marion Richardson handwriting at school? Have you the faintest clue what I'm talking about? Did I get her name right?
That's one melancholy looking horse in the first picture, looks like that extra long foreleg's kind of annoying him. I love it.. more please.
The Spaniards are coming. The drawings are good and clean; the writing is loopy and annoying. I shall show you tomorrow.
Z - Yes. I am a stoic. I have decided. Thank you.
Tim - It made him stumble.
B - very strong work. I like your story. 10/10.
BELGIUM?
Kermit - I will give you a puppy. Here.
I thought the boy bits were just incorrectly labeled? The lines lead to what seems to be the knee area but it quite clearly does say "chestnuts."
Hello. I was so impressed by your horse extravaganza I emailed it to my friend Matt, who likes horses. A lot. I feel sure he will be very impressed too.
I am living in Wales at the moment and don't worry they do have internet, but not at the weekend obviously.
I was indeed impressed.
Post a Comment