WIDE WEDNESDAY - AM I ON THEME...

...you tell me!

I went this morning to visit my friend, Gill, whose husband, John, died a few weeks ago and you can see more about him here.

I went for two reasons, firstly because it’s her birthday and as it was the first without John, I wanted to be there for her, so it was lovely to see her and to give her a hug from me, Mr. HCB and Louise, a friend from Church - but who needs an excuse to give hugs - not me, that’s for sure!

Secondly, I went to check some forms she had filled in, but quite honestly, she had done a brilliant job and all I did was check that all the relevant boxes had been filled in or ticked, so well done, Gill!  

I had already looked at the theme for today’s WidWed challenge and it was “Orderly” so told Mr. HCB that I was going to ask Gill if I could photograh her Murano Clowns - when I got there and asked, she was happy for me to do so.

You will count 17 in the collage I have made, but in fact, I did see a few more in various places in her home, but those can be for another time.  

Gill started collecting these about 15 years ago and bought her first one, she told me, at the Winchester Antique Fair on New Year’s Day and has been collecting them ever since - her first purchase was the one on the very bottom right.

According to Mr. Google when I asked him the origin of Murano Glass Clowns, he said:

“Murano glass clowns are much more than just a decoration; they are a testament to an ancient art, born in Venetian furnaces and passed down through generations. Each piece is handcrafted by master glassmakers, blending vibrant colours with finely worked details.

These glass clowns are not just ornamental objects—they embody Murano’s creative expression, combining the elegance of blown glass with the playfulness of circus figures.

The glass clowns are made in vibrant colours and have intricate facial expressions that give each figure character and personality.”

I know that some people have an aversion to clowns, so looked this up and again, Mr. Google told me:

“An aversion to clowns is called coulrophobia. This term refers to a specific phobic disorder where a person experiences irrational fear, anxiety, or disgust when encountering clowns, or images of clowns. The word originates from the Greek word kolobathristes, meaning "stilt-walker," which relates to a common feature of clowns.”

Personally, I would have just called it “clownophobia” but obviously I’m not familiar with Greek!

So, am I on theme or not?  I know it’s not a particularly “wide” shot, but having looked at various shots on Wide Wednesday, some of them aren’t, but you must admit that they are “Orderly” so I hope I may get some credit for that - but if not, so be it.  I could have stitched them together, but then they would have gone off the edge of the screen/page!  

However, I had fun photographing them and then putting them into this collage;  I think Gill will be quite happy to see them having their 15 minutes of fame on Blip!  

Mr. HCB is feeling much better - thank you for all your good wishes for him - and when I got home, showed me the bountiful harvest he had collected from the garden - so I have put this in as an extra.  I guess our meal this evening could well be another stirfry to include beans and peppers, with raspberries and Greek yoghourt for dessert!

We have had about 5 minutes of rain today - not enough to do much good, but it’s a start.  M xx