That went well...or not
Much to my surprise and shock our new router turned up on Wednesday so yesterday we set it up. All seemed fine, lots of green lights, excellent broadband coverage but when I tried to connect to the internet absolutely no joy! We tried various different permutations of sockets, locations and cables, turned it off and turned it on again, swore a lot and then I got on to TalkTalk again. After turning it off and on again again the person I was communicating with decided this was beyond her and now a senior technician is going to call me within 72 hours. In the meantime I have reattached the old router and we have the internet again. Hey ho!
Luckily, or not, the router turned up quite early on Wednesday as we were planning to go out after my Pilates class. We went to the Queen’s Gallery to visit the George IV: Art and Spectacle exhibition.
Some stuff about the exhibition written for me.
The Queen’s Gallery is one of my favourite places to see exhibitions as it puts on interesting shows that aren’t too big to cope with and provide very informative (and free) audio guides. This one began with some rather beautiful portraits of George IV as a young man including an excellent Stubbs where the artist had lavished rather more attention on the horse than the young George. In the same room was a caricature of George at the end of his life by Robert Seymour ridiculing him as “The Great Joss and his Playthings” with George dressed as the Emperor of China surrounded by his toys. As the exhibition was dedicated to George’s artistic tastes this was very apposite.
In the next room were the portraits that George collected of his friends and family including a rather lovely picture of his daughter Princess Charlotte. He was also fascinated by the Stuarts and had portraits of Charles II, memorabilia of Charles I and a beautiful medieval illuminated manuscript by the Master of the Bedford Hours which was bequeathed to him by Cardinal Henry Stuart. There were also some quite entertaining cartoons of George’s disastrous relationship with his wife Caroline of Brunswick who he locked out of his coronation. George was a compulsive party giver and there were some fascinating reminders of the splendour in which George lived and the lavish entertainments he put on in Carlton House including a picture of a notable fencing match that occurred there between the Chevalier St George and the Chevalier D’Eon with the Chevalier D’Eon fencing as a woman with George looking on.
Further on there were a large number of prints of buildings in Rome and some splendid models of the Arch of Constantine and the Arch of Septimius Severus. George had collected the prints because he was not allowed to travel outside Great Britain despite his desperate wish to do so. There were also many items detailing his fascination with the military though a military career was also barred to him.
Another treasure on display was the three volumes of Emma dedicated, somewhat reluctantly, to him by Jane Austen. She may not have liked him but George does deserve credit for admiring her so early.
More of his cultural interests were shown with a beautiful portrait of Haydn and a collection of pictures detailing the history of the British theatre. As his niece Queen Victoria was also a terrific theatre buff in the years before Albert died it’s a pity she didn’t realise they shared this interest.
There weren’t many things George wasn’t interested in by the looks of it but another of his abiding interests was in 17th century France. He had a fascination with Louis XIV and had acquired a large model statue of him courtesy of his pastry chef.
One of the larger rooms in the exhibition was dedicated to Carlton House, George’s London home, on which he lavished enormous amounts of money. The house itself no longer survives but prints of the decorative scheme and much of the furniture does. It was furnished with stunning pieces, many of which can usually be seen at Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle. The gallery attempted to give an impression of how it might have looked and it must have been dazzling if the gilded furniture and priceless porcelain on display are anything to go by. George also collected some of the most valuable art in the Royal Collection and was particularly fond of 17th century Dutch and Flemish art. Two beautiful Rembrandts were on display as well as works by Rubens, Teniers and Jan Steen.
George's three eldest sisters painted by Gainsborough and pagodas from Brighton pavilion.
General bling
Beautiful Rembrandt and a chair back that I liked. Reflections made some of the pictures difficult to photograph.
The final room included a large portrait of George IV in his coronation robes (quite extraordinary and partly designed by him), some portraits by Sir Thomas Lawrence from the Waterloo Chamber at Windsor Castle and more quite amazing furniture and general bling.
George IV has had a really bad reputation as a king (which the exhibition was suggesting was a little unfair) but he certainly left an extraordinary legacy of magnificence and had excellent taste in art.
We found the whole exhibition fascinating. The website is also really informative and gives a better impression of the objects on display and George Iv's role as a patron than I can.
After we'd been to the exhibition we went and had something to eat and then J went to watch a masterclass on conducting. As it was for people with an intermediate level of musical knowledge I decided that maybe it wasn't for me so I came home. He really enjoyed it and learnt a lot but from his description it would have been way over my head so I made the right decision.
Back to the meme.
12. Would you rather be locked overnight in a library, a museum, or a zoo?
My instant first response to this was Library, but having thought about it I think I would prefer a museum. It would be a wonderful opportunity to actually look at things properly without crowds of people though it might be a bit spooky at night.
13. What are your top three long-range goals?
To sort out our house so we can have both our sitting room and our bedroom completely gutted and redecorated. If we don't get some kind of new flooring in both rooms by the end of the year I will not be very happy.
To carry on the work we've already begun in making our garden look like a garden and not a mass of weeds. Ironically the mass of weeds are probably better for wildlife but the bees enjoyed the flowers I grew last year so I hope I have similar success this year.
To lose some more weight to prevent my knee problem getting worse. I have made a reasonable start but I need to lose some more.
14. Who was the first person you had a crush on? Was it requited?
Sadly not as it was with a character on the television and the actor who played him did. Pete Duel RIP.
The rest of the questions for February below the cut.
15 What’s your favorite piece in a box of chocolates?
16 Have you ever won a game of Monopoly?
17 If you could go back and caution your twelve-year-old self about something, what would you say?
18 What is the newest article of clothing you’re wearing right now? How old is it?
19 Do you think anger is generally a positive emotion or a negative emotion? How does your thoughts on that help you deal with your anger?
20 What’s a childish thing you still do as an adult?
21 You’re making yourself a fruit salad with five different fruits. Which five fruits will you include?
22 Do you prefer being left alone on a long bus or train ride or would you rather chat with a random stranger next to you?
23 When you think about your future, what are you most afraid of?
24 You are out at a restaurant and you notice that a celebrity you really admire is at a nearby table. What do you do?
25 You have been given a complex task to perform at work. How do you approach it?
26 What’s a belief that you hold that most people probably disagree with?
27 Winter is soup time. What’s your favorite kind of soup? (Please post the recipe or source?)
28 If you learn that a celebrity of whom you are a fan of has done something horrible, does it affect your ability to enjoy works they previously produced?
29 If you were given an extra day every year to do whatever you want, what would you do?
Luckily, or not, the router turned up quite early on Wednesday as we were planning to go out after my Pilates class. We went to the Queen’s Gallery to visit the George IV: Art and Spectacle exhibition.
Some stuff about the exhibition written for me.
The Queen’s Gallery is one of my favourite places to see exhibitions as it puts on interesting shows that aren’t too big to cope with and provide very informative (and free) audio guides. This one began with some rather beautiful portraits of George IV as a young man including an excellent Stubbs where the artist had lavished rather more attention on the horse than the young George. In the same room was a caricature of George at the end of his life by Robert Seymour ridiculing him as “The Great Joss and his Playthings” with George dressed as the Emperor of China surrounded by his toys. As the exhibition was dedicated to George’s artistic tastes this was very apposite.
In the next room were the portraits that George collected of his friends and family including a rather lovely picture of his daughter Princess Charlotte. He was also fascinated by the Stuarts and had portraits of Charles II, memorabilia of Charles I and a beautiful medieval illuminated manuscript by the Master of the Bedford Hours which was bequeathed to him by Cardinal Henry Stuart. There were also some quite entertaining cartoons of George’s disastrous relationship with his wife Caroline of Brunswick who he locked out of his coronation. George was a compulsive party giver and there were some fascinating reminders of the splendour in which George lived and the lavish entertainments he put on in Carlton House including a picture of a notable fencing match that occurred there between the Chevalier St George and the Chevalier D’Eon with the Chevalier D’Eon fencing as a woman with George looking on.
Further on there were a large number of prints of buildings in Rome and some splendid models of the Arch of Constantine and the Arch of Septimius Severus. George had collected the prints because he was not allowed to travel outside Great Britain despite his desperate wish to do so. There were also many items detailing his fascination with the military though a military career was also barred to him.
Another treasure on display was the three volumes of Emma dedicated, somewhat reluctantly, to him by Jane Austen. She may not have liked him but George does deserve credit for admiring her so early.
More of his cultural interests were shown with a beautiful portrait of Haydn and a collection of pictures detailing the history of the British theatre. As his niece Queen Victoria was also a terrific theatre buff in the years before Albert died it’s a pity she didn’t realise they shared this interest.
There weren’t many things George wasn’t interested in by the looks of it but another of his abiding interests was in 17th century France. He had a fascination with Louis XIV and had acquired a large model statue of him courtesy of his pastry chef.
One of the larger rooms in the exhibition was dedicated to Carlton House, George’s London home, on which he lavished enormous amounts of money. The house itself no longer survives but prints of the decorative scheme and much of the furniture does. It was furnished with stunning pieces, many of which can usually be seen at Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle. The gallery attempted to give an impression of how it might have looked and it must have been dazzling if the gilded furniture and priceless porcelain on display are anything to go by. George also collected some of the most valuable art in the Royal Collection and was particularly fond of 17th century Dutch and Flemish art. Two beautiful Rembrandts were on display as well as works by Rubens, Teniers and Jan Steen.
George's three eldest sisters painted by Gainsborough and pagodas from Brighton pavilion.
General bling
Beautiful Rembrandt and a chair back that I liked. Reflections made some of the pictures difficult to photograph.
The final room included a large portrait of George IV in his coronation robes (quite extraordinary and partly designed by him), some portraits by Sir Thomas Lawrence from the Waterloo Chamber at Windsor Castle and more quite amazing furniture and general bling.
George IV has had a really bad reputation as a king (which the exhibition was suggesting was a little unfair) but he certainly left an extraordinary legacy of magnificence and had excellent taste in art.
We found the whole exhibition fascinating. The website is also really informative and gives a better impression of the objects on display and George Iv's role as a patron than I can.
After we'd been to the exhibition we went and had something to eat and then J went to watch a masterclass on conducting. As it was for people with an intermediate level of musical knowledge I decided that maybe it wasn't for me so I came home. He really enjoyed it and learnt a lot but from his description it would have been way over my head so I made the right decision.
Back to the meme.
12. Would you rather be locked overnight in a library, a museum, or a zoo?
My instant first response to this was Library, but having thought about it I think I would prefer a museum. It would be a wonderful opportunity to actually look at things properly without crowds of people though it might be a bit spooky at night.
13. What are your top three long-range goals?
To sort out our house so we can have both our sitting room and our bedroom completely gutted and redecorated. If we don't get some kind of new flooring in both rooms by the end of the year I will not be very happy.
To carry on the work we've already begun in making our garden look like a garden and not a mass of weeds. Ironically the mass of weeds are probably better for wildlife but the bees enjoyed the flowers I grew last year so I hope I have similar success this year.
To lose some more weight to prevent my knee problem getting worse. I have made a reasonable start but I need to lose some more.
14. Who was the first person you had a crush on? Was it requited?
Sadly not as it was with a character on the television and the actor who played him did. Pete Duel RIP.
The rest of the questions for February below the cut.
15 What’s your favorite piece in a box of chocolates?
16 Have you ever won a game of Monopoly?
17 If you could go back and caution your twelve-year-old self about something, what would you say?
18 What is the newest article of clothing you’re wearing right now? How old is it?
19 Do you think anger is generally a positive emotion or a negative emotion? How does your thoughts on that help you deal with your anger?
20 What’s a childish thing you still do as an adult?
21 You’re making yourself a fruit salad with five different fruits. Which five fruits will you include?
22 Do you prefer being left alone on a long bus or train ride or would you rather chat with a random stranger next to you?
23 When you think about your future, what are you most afraid of?
24 You are out at a restaurant and you notice that a celebrity you really admire is at a nearby table. What do you do?
25 You have been given a complex task to perform at work. How do you approach it?
26 What’s a belief that you hold that most people probably disagree with?
27 Winter is soup time. What’s your favorite kind of soup? (Please post the recipe or source?)
28 If you learn that a celebrity of whom you are a fan of has done something horrible, does it affect your ability to enjoy works they previously produced?
29 If you were given an extra day every year to do whatever you want, what would you do?