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A welcome gift fot this would-be minimalist and blogger would be a comment from you! No ethical dilemmas, wrapping paper, queues at the Post Office. Wholly environmentally friendly, free, easy (I hope) and very very warmly received. Say hello and tell me where you are from? Your comments make my day. 
69 Comments
Mary B
14/12/2018 02:21:03 pm
Hi. Freda , sorry my comments have been few and far between. I love the owls. We have several nesting in nearby woodland and hear them twooit twooing over our garden in the evenings .I could stand and listen to them for hours ! Last night they gave a running commentary as I stood watching the meteor showers. Magical ! Thanks for your lovely blog ,reading it makes my day !
Freda
14/12/2018 03:10:05 pm
I am envying you both the owls and the shooting stars Mary B! We seem to have fewer owls in the forest than we had when I first came here, and although the forecast was for clear skies last night it clouded over and I couldn't see the meteor shower although I have a good view of that part of the sky from the studio.. Whereabouts in uk are you?
Mary B
14/12/2018 04:31:17 pm
I live in a tiny village half way up a mountain in West Wales.
Lynn
14/12/2018 03:31:06 pm
Hello Freda,
Freda
15/12/2018 05:03:08 am
I worked in Oxford (Little Clarendon St) for a few years. What a beautiful city it is, and with lovely countryside around. Love to think of you reading every morning Lynn. Thank you!
Julia
14/12/2018 04:13:14 pm
Hi All..i am here in Wheeling, WV, USA. I’ve been reading you regularly, not always commenting, ever since 2010...your blog is as beautiful as any coffee table book, Freda. Full of wide-ranging topics, always relevant to all of us in today’s world: art, beauty, nature, gardening, simplicity, fear, grief, women’s friendship..our perceived short-comings (otherwise known as self-flaggelation!), our successes, ....you are a reflection of what we are all dealing with in our own lives..and also a guide as we navigate together, this world, and our lives..AND..we’ve grown to know each other, both “virtually” and in reality...cathy and i are meeting for lunch next week!..:-)
Freda
15/12/2018 05:07:19 am
Well the support I have received from my blog friends outweighs any 'guiding' I do. This is where I process my thoughts on things and it gives me a reason to look beyond my nose! Have a lovely lunch with Cathy! Thank you so much for your wonderful comments over 8 years (that is amazing in itself...).
Mary
14/12/2018 11:14:33 pm
I live near the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland, about 50 miles from Washington, DC where I used to work until I retired at the end of last year. Autumn has been a bit of a strain with a number of issues requiring my attention so my commenting has been less frequent than usual, but I so enjoy reading the blog and the comments from others who a very supportive and caring group of people.
Freda
15/12/2018 05:11:22 am
A wonderful group of people. Sharing all around the world - I love knowing where you are! I still think of our lovely meeting in York with such pleasure Mary and I appreciate all your comments whenever you can make them. I hope all goes well for you over the holiday period.
Catherine
14/12/2018 11:16:15 pm
I moved to a small village near Malvern in Worcestershire 3 years ago. It has a real community feel with lots going on. I have joined 2 local choirs so there is lots of singing going on in the lead up to Christmas. Your owls are fantastic. I have a similar one with reindeer which rotates with the heat from the candle too.
Freda
15/12/2018 05:13:39 am
Hello Catherine - you too live in a beautiful part of our country! I am imagining it covered in snow today looking like a Christmas card! Sing your way to a lovley Christmas and thank you for commenting.
Sheena
14/12/2018 11:54:41 pm
I live on the northern fringes of Glasgow so not so far away from you, Freda, but I am ashamed to say I don't know the Cowal peninsula very well. It is a beautiful part of Scotland.The views from my windows aren't as spectacular as yours but I can see the hills. Thank you for blogging so regularly , it is like an all year advent calendar to read what has caught your attention and all the thoughtful and thought provoking responses.
Freda
15/12/2018 05:17:44 am
Would those be the Campsie Hills? I lived near Kippen once in a remote and primitive cottage. Loved it. If you ever come to explore Cowal - let me know. i love that you participate in this exchange - which is how I view the blog. Thank you so much.
Liz
15/12/2018 12:01:14 am
Currently in Edinburgh but about to fly to northern Spain where I’m going to walk a section of the Camino from Portuguese border to Santiago. If things go to plan - and they don’t always when we are on the Camino - I should be walking into Santiago on Christmas Eve where we are spoiling ourselves with 3 nights in the Parador Hostal dos reis catolicos...Merry Christmas x
Freda
15/12/2018 05:19:36 am
How exciting Liz! And how brave to do it in mid-winter. We will drink a toast to you on Christmas Eve. Have a wonderful time.
cath
15/12/2018 02:47:06 am
And there it is again. The feeling that the readers of your blog are in fact a group. Sometimes a circle even. Interconnected. I love it when this happens. Thank you so much Freda for facilitating it. It warms my heart.
Freda
15/12/2018 05:22:21 am
It's that feeling that keeps me blogging Cath. A wonderful interconnectedness with like minded people some of whom I have got to know quite well, and who have also got to know each other. Just brilliant! Thank you for commenting over all these years.
Connie
15/12/2018 02:53:42 am
Hello from Toowoomba, Queensland!
Lotta
15/12/2018 04:42:14 am
Hi Connie, love Australian place names!
Freda
15/12/2018 05:24:17 am
Hello Connie from summery Toowoomba. It's wonderful to know you read the blog although seasonally we must be out of sync - in our interests we must be in tune I think!
Julia
15/12/2018 01:40:46 pm
Hi connie...i have not been to all the places mentioned here on this blog..but i HAVE been to your beautiful toowoomba!! In 1975...i had my first devonshire cream tea there at a wonderful little tea room in the clouds! And heard my first cicadas there...:-) glorious country!
Lotta
15/12/2018 04:34:38 am
Shropshire, close to the English/Welsh border. Love knowing where people are reading from and the whole interconnectedness of this blog world... makes me smile :-)
Freda
15/12/2018 10:16:07 am
Big smiles here too!
Angela Conroy
15/12/2018 04:36:42 am
Hello Freda...have been a reader of your blog for a few years now. Gentle, Interesting, thoughtful and thought provoking.
Freda
15/12/2018 10:20:28 am
Hello Angela and welcome! I'm inspired by how active you are - I seem to be indoors far too much this winter. I do have some travel plans for 2019 though - happy travels to you in the coming year and thanks for reading. 15/12/2018 04:45:27 am
I’ve been absent too long, I’m travelling at the moment but tonight find myself with reliable internet, so hello! Hope all’s well x
Freda
15/12/2018 10:22:12 am
Happy travels - am following your progress Jessica! Thanks for your comments.
Gail
15/12/2018 05:04:23 am
Good morning from New Kent County, Va USA (home to 2 First Ladies -Washington and Tyler). Other than that, this semi rural county has no other claim to fame, but we have lots of good folks.
Freda
15/12/2018 10:28:09 am
Warm greetings to you Gail. I did wonder where abouts in USA you were - now I am going to look it up! Among lots of good folks is where everyone should live....
cathy
15/12/2018 05:22:41 am
greetings from near Pittsburgh, PA, USA. yes, Julia & I have become friends through your blog, Freda. it was a post about bridges that brought us together. For some reason, she commented about a bridge...when I said I knew & have used it, she reached out. the rest is history!
Freda
15/12/2018 10:51:31 am
That some of you get to know each other both online and in reality just thrills me! I envy you that owl - what wonderful creatures they are. It would be fun if Liz tells us something of her Camino experience...thanks Cathy.
Susan
15/12/2018 05:39:20 am
Christmas greetings from San Antonio Texas. Been following your blog and Lotta blog for a long time. Love your photos.
Susan
15/12/2018 07:57:55 am
Hello Susan in Texas.
Susan
15/12/2018 08:02:26 am
Hello to you also Susan in north Dorset
Susan
15/12/2018 10:01:39 pm
Thank you, Susan. It is a work in progress: slowly and sensitively restoring it. Despite some cracked walls, bits of damp, and wind whistling in, I'm attached to it, feeling that it deserves some care.
Freda
15/12/2018 10:54:11 am
Ah, there are two Susans! Welcome both Texas Susan and Dorset Susan - I'm glad you have met each other here. ;-)
Mike
15/12/2018 05:45:03 am
Hello - just discovered this lovely blog - thank you. The real tree is up and looking totally festive and the last of the cards are being written. Listening to some less common carols beautifully sung by Farnham Youth Choir (no connection) when my girls, now very much ladies, were members - it's a peaceful rainy day in South Northamptonshire.
Freda
15/12/2018 10:56:13 am
That's a lovely description of your Christmas preparations Mike. Peaceful simple pleasures. Thanks for sharing.
Rosemary
15/12/2018 07:00:10 am
Hallo Freda, I, too, read your blog nearly every day, it is part of my routine. It was recommended to me when I lost my husband and I have found your shining example of resilience, practicality and creativity a real support. Your photos remind me of when I was in your part of the world a lifetime ago -when I was a Girl Guide and 11. We camped in a church hall in Inellan and visited Dunoon. I still remember standing on the rocks by the water and all of us singing 'Morning has Broken' as part of our morning service. That trip took in my first visit to Edinburgh - lunch for all of us at Woolworths' Cafeteria on Princes Street. Happy Christmas and thank you, and all the other people who follow this lovely blog.
Freda
15/12/2018 11:01:39 am
Oh what a lovely image of you all singing Morning Has Broken! And lunch at Woolworths in Edinburgh. I look back and think how easily pleased we were...Thank you Rosemary and be kind to yourself this Christmas won't you.
Damsonlily
15/12/2018 07:08:15 am
Hello. I’m ‘helicoptering’ in again from Hereford, always reading but only commenting in bursts, I’m afraid. I have said before Freda, that your blog fills me with delight every time I read a post. Most certainly, each one is a gift to me.
Freda
15/12/2018 12:57:55 pm
It's good to be part of this blog group of interesting people - living in so many different places. I wonder if you will ever meet up with Catherine or Lotta? Who knows! Happy cristmas Damsonlily and thank you for commenting.
Susan
15/12/2018 07:56:06 am
Hello Freda and Freda's friends.
Freda
15/12/2018 01:00:00 pm
Thank you Susan. I wonder if your cottage us under snow tonight - it has just started snowing here!
Susan
15/12/2018 10:03:58 pm
Sadly, no snow: I love being snowed in, and everything stopping (not meaning to be insensitive to people who are struggling with it, up country). Just gales and rain, rain, rain.
Cristiana
15/12/2018 08:08:36 am
Hello from Vila Real, Portugal, Freda. I love reading your blog and the comments, through I have been quiet for a while. Thank you so much for sharing and creating a rich lovely space on line.
Freda
15/12/2018 01:01:59 pm
How lovely to hear from you Cristiana in Portugal with your little son and simple life. Wishing you a lovely Christmas!
Paulette
15/12/2018 02:17:30 pm
I moved to the Southern Highlands in New South Wales, Australia in May. I feel at home with seasonal weather again, after some years in the sub-tropics, as I lived 20 years in New Jersey with my late husband who was American. I am Australian but it is New Jersey where we raised our family. Thank you Freda for your inspirational writing and photographs - your time put into your sharing is greatly appreciated. Wishing you a lovely Christmas and all good things in the New Year
Freda
15/12/2018 02:27:41 pm
Hello Paulette and thank you for joining us! I feel I have made new friends today and learned a bit more about geography - Google maps is wonderful. Best wishes for your happiness in New South Wales and I hope you have a lovely Christmas.
Judy
15/12/2018 10:10:28 pm
I have lived a long time, now, in Chicago, but my heart is still rooted in the mountains and waterways of the Pacific Northwest. I used to write a blog as Nib of Nib's End where we stumbled into one another. I left off blogging to write stories of a different kind, but I still follow my two favorite girls: You and Lucille (Useful or Beautiful). I enjoy many things about your blog, but what I like the most is the sound of your writing voice and seeing your corner of the world through your eyes. Merry Christmas, Freda.
Freda
16/12/2018 02:39:14 am
How lovely to see you here Judy! I enjoyed Nib's End and am interested to know you are still writing (and curious about what) .Chicago city life must be very different from mountains and waterways and from my tiny Scottish village but it ts the contrasts and viriety that make life to interesting. Thanks for commenting.
Judy
16/12/2018 12:22:04 pm
You are right about the contrasts, Freda, and I am a bloom where you are planted kind of girl. I'm writing poetry, a couple of novels and childrens's stories. I ascribe to the Winnie the Pooh school of writing: "poetry and hums aren't things which you get, they're things which get you and all you can do is to go where they can find you." They found me and I am giving them my full attention for now. May I hop in here to thank Judy for her very kind mention and to say how much I miss her writing. Freda you are such a stalwart in the blogging world. Utterly reliable, always fresh and inspiring and a joy to visit, high on my list of dwindling bloggers for years now. Many thanks from London and East Sussex and I look forward to hearing your plans for 2019.
Gillie
16/12/2018 08:43:35 am
Hello Freda My life is extremely complicated! I live between St Albans in Hertfordshire, Kildare in Ireland and Belfast. Your blog is top of my list to go to for inspiration, wise words and beautiful photography. I yearn to make life less complicated and am Kondoing ( in 3 places!) I love looking at your serene garden and view. I love the great outdoors and would love to waken up to a setting like yours. We hope to visit Scotland in our camper van and experience it for ourselves. Thank you for sharing it with us all. It’s been fascinating reading where everyone comes from in their comments.
Freda
16/12/2018 02:10:47 pm
Wow Gillie - Kondoing in 3 places! I did live in two places for a while - York and here - complicated but worth it. Get in touch if you are coming to my part of Scotland and thank you for your kind comments.
Mary R.
16/12/2018 09:03:37 am
Hello Freda, I love reading your site. It is amazing how you have begun to feel like a dear friend. Thank you so much for sharing your life with all of us. I live in San Antonio, Texas but spend half our time in Ruidoso, New Mexico. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year,
Freda
16/12/2018 02:13:14 pm
Welcome Mary R. Like Gillie above you live in two places which both sound very exotic to me. I am so glad you enjoy the blog and thank you for commenting.
Judi
17/12/2018 10:54:16 am
Hi Freda. I’ve never left a comment before, but I’ve been following your blog for a few years now and I really love it - it’s like a sort of meditation, and I always feel more peaceful and serene after reading it. Thank you so much! I live near Banbury which isn’t quite so beautiful and scenic as where you live! I love your red gate!
Freda
17/12/2018 12:07:44 pm
Hello Judi from Banbury (not so far from Kidlington where I lived for a while). I am so happy you like the blog and the red gate which is particularly effective on grey otherwise colourless winter days. It is lovely to hear from you!
Mike
17/12/2018 03:42:39 pm
Hello Judi - via Freda I guess - just 3 miles from Banbury and in the same way as Freda's scenery is unmistakably Scottish, ours is equally unmistakably middle England - we feel blessed with our view - though I am now seriously considering painting the gate red in tribute. It will confirm our status with the neighbours..........
Freda to Mike and Judi
18/12/2018 06:35:00 am
It is so nice when people talk to each other here! Mike I am curious about your 'status with your neighbours' comment....?
Misuzu
17/12/2018 11:18:51 pm
Hello Freda (I am a few days late, having been off-line, but better late than never!). I live in the city of Sendai in north-eastern Japan, and have been following your blog since I discovered it some years ago through Miss. Minimalist. Your photographs are so beautiful and your posts so gentle, friendly and thoughtful. Thank you Freda, for sharing your life with us; it is a blessing to be able to read this blog.
Freda
18/12/2018 06:40:02 am
I am so thrilled that someone from Japan reads my blog Musuzu! I am so interested in Japanese design and culture and am off to Google Maps (where I've spent more time than usual since I wrote this post) to look up Sendai. Thank you.
Elizabeth
22/12/2018 01:08:23 pm
I, too, found you thru MissMinimalist several years ago. I'm a southern American, and lived in Berkshire and London the last three years. I visited Scotland 3 times whilst living there and hoped to find myself at your red gate sometime. I am back in Tennessee, US, and my Christmas gift is my first grandchild! Thank you for your lovely pictures and joy in what is around us.
Hello from Switzerland! And a lovely Advent to you all - sorry I am so late to the party...
Freda
18/12/2018 06:43:52 am
I've often wondered what your name is Melanie! So nice to know a little more about you - I adore your little washhouse. It will be a good home for that new puppy...
Lotta
20/12/2018 12:57:54 am
A new puppy, how fabulous! I'm dying to know what breed?
Mike
21/12/2018 04:13:44 pm
To Freda, and Judi, thank you for following up my comment - you have so many conversations going on. Why the 'my status with my neighbours' comment - well - I'm a Samaritan listener, a Churchwarden, a rubbish guitar player and a railway-man (that is an enthusiast, not an employee) so my neighbours harbour grave misgivings already - a red gate would confirm their worst fears.........
Rebecca
5/1/2019 12:41:03 am
A late g’day to everyone from hot and sunny Sydney. 39 deg Celsius today. I love reading about your winter activities and pretending that I am somewhere cold! 😁 Leave a Reply. |
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