Mrs Finnegan - 1830s Housekeeper

An old French lady had a small shop in her village for years until one day a huge corporate supermarket set up across the road from her little shop. They put up signs advertising their prices, including one that said: Butter – 10 francs. In response, the old lady added a sign to her own window: Butter – 9 francs. The next day, the big supermarket had a new sign: Butter – 8 francs. Sure enough, the day after the lady’s sign now read: Butter – 7 francs. This went on for a while until eventually one of the lady’s customers pointed to the sign and said, “Madame, you cannot keep your prices so low for long. These big companies can use their buying power to sell products cheaper, but a little store like yours can never compete.” In response, the old lady bent forward conspiratorially and muttered, “Monsieur, I don’t even sell butter.”

Green Roses Are Not That Rare, But They Are Very Unusual. Rosa chinensis viridiflora. Green roses are said to have been around since about 1743, but were not cultivated until the mid 18th Century.They may even be one of the oldest roses of all, along with the single or wild roses

Formidable!? Me?

You can invite THREE of these amazing 19th-century ladies over for tea ☕️ Whom do you pick? 🤔 Top (L to R) A: Anne Brontë B: George Eliot C: Jane Austen D: Elizabeth Barrett Browning Bottom (L to R) E: Charlotte Brontë F: Emily Dickinson G: Emily Brontë H: Elizabeth Gaskell

Top ten? Hmmph she should be first in my humble opinion. I have said my peace.

Did you see these three yesterday?

Three ladies looking for The Regency Town House...

Caravaggio Boy Peeling Fruit c.1592-3. This may be his earliest surviving work. (Royal Collection Trust, HM CIII)

“The bluebell is the sweetest flower that waves in summer air;
Its blossoms have the mightiest power, to soothe my spirit’s care.” — Emily Brontë

Benches outside a library in Bulgaria

I scratched off some paint from my white brick fireplace and saw some curios green underneath. I coated it with suddsy water and let it soak for a while, then rubbed it with a washing up sponge. And hey presto, look at those glorious tiles! What lunatic would paint over these?!!