Whitechapel

The book Rodinsky's Room which I have been reading this past week, see posting below, has brought me back to my own early forays into that neighbourhood.
I wandered those Whitechapel Streets in the seventies.Exploring around the markets and the backstreets interested in the Huguenot architecture in and around Princelet and Fournier streets. In Rodinsky's Room this is the axis around which the story rotates; 19 Princelet St.
I have a friend who lives nearby and I have just re-connected with her after 25 years which I am very pleased about! I am looking forward to re-visiting the area.
The buildings around there are very special, see above. The top doorway is on Fournier St.

Unison founder dies

John Hersey an artist and co-founder of the Unison Pastels workshop has died this week at his home in Thorneyburn, Tarset.
The pastels are some of the best to be had worldwide, handmade and using a special recipe John Hersey created. As an artist he was looking for great crayons and decided to make them himself when he could not find what he wanted for his own work. His wife Kate Hersey will continue the operation out of the converted stable in their back garden, and the pastels go all over the world. A friend of mine, Terry in NYC, uses and loves them!

Rodinsky's Room

I am reading this book Rodinsky's Room at present. It is written by two authors Rachel Lichtenstein and Iain Sinclair and it is published by Granta. They write every other chapter and very much from another perspective than the other. It is a fascinating book. I am treasuring my reading time. Iain Sinclair uses a large vocabulary and I am learning new words too.
This book is about so many things but I can say that it is an autumnal book for those early dark evenings. Slow down and take this journey with these two people.

Autumn

Every year in autumn I feel melancholy. Just like every year in spring I feel filled with hope.
This melancholy makes me look backwards and not forwards like I do in spring.
I don't mind the feeling at all. In fact melancholy is very much a part of me.
Looking back I want to re-connect with old friends. People I liked when I lived in London in the UK and went to art school here. I have found a few and it feels good because I have also re-found some of the self I was then. Parts of our personality can get buried in life and for years even! This happened with me through moving, leaving language behind, culture, common reference points, and history. I wanted that very much at the time. Feeling like an outsider is okay and was okay. I needed distance from my personal life then.
Now I like to re-connect with the parts that have been dormant.
When you are in a relationship and become a parent your priorities have to change, there just is not enough time to keep up. So now is a good time to balance that and re-prioritize.
I welcome the melancholy that helps me look inward and find what I have neglected. Thank you autumn.