
January is often a difficult time of year; it is both and end and the start. It is a time for reflection and a time when people resolve to improve some aspect of their life, or to eat less or to drink less. It can make one feel a little downcast…..where are the bubbles? More seriously, it is a sobering and sad time if you are coping with recent sudden tragedies or just trying to survive in a war zone, hoping not to be forgotten. Supposedly January is named for the two headed God Janus looking both ways, forwards and backwards, the Roman god of war and peace. Some say January is named for Juno, a complex theological female figure, a divine protectress, but one also associated with war.
Walking quietly through the gardens here, thinking what I should be doing, (calling the roaming dogs back might be helpful) it is a few moments to try get a sense of order. Just looking around, there are uplifting signs, the earth is warming up, and there is promise ahead of new bulbs as green shoots optimistically appear. The days are slightly longer too, if still full of mud.
It is a good time to think through various talks that lie ahead of me. The first is at Christies in London, and my husband is coming too (dinner is involved). He is full of helpful suggestions. I gave a talk, however at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford some time ago. He and our son were in the front row – it was just dreadful, they both told me later I should have given more time to this not that, etc etc. I felt increasingly forlorn at the detailed appraisal, but my son did begin to notice, he looked at me and kindly said “never mind Mummy, it was fine really”.
January will soon be busy and my pottering days will be few; school starts for my son, we have some private tours, a big dinner The inevitable building projects continue and they never seem to decrease in number which I never understand, (I think that it is some joke God is having with me), I am pushing on well with finishing a book and thinking of fun prizes to offer for people who love history and books I have put one up on the web site. Downton reccees start again for the next series, meanwhile The 5th Downton season is now out in North America. Highclere’s web site is much explored.
Our dogs and horses sensibly do not worry about January, they merely keep on going, ever optimistic. So perhaps we make our own challenges and make them up to more than need be. So I am going to forget the stoicism bit and acknowledge the blessings I have. I do, however, have an aim in January. I am going to enter one of our dogs in the naughtiest dog competition I saw advertised in Country Life. He is very handsome and quite irrepressible. What will be encouraging is I suspect he is not the naughtiest. He does look both ways, however, here one minute gone the next.
Happy New Year! I am new to this blog and looking forward to what you will share! Thank you so very much! I have enjoyed reading your books in the past. Beautiful writing!!
Thank you for your latest posting Lady Carnarvon. As you said a new year and new beginnings . We all have a lot to be thankful for . I loved Spring when I lived in England, the budding snowdrops, the daffodils, all new and fresh. Here in Arizona I miss that.
We just started Downton Abbey last week,and look forward to more in the coming weeks.
After visiting Highclere on Heroes at Highclere Day and being inside the lovely rooms, I feel proud to tell my friends I was there. They of course are very envious.
I hope you and your family have a wonderful New Year.
I am thrilled you came here for Heroes – thank you – and am looking forward to spring too.
I so enjoy reading your entries. They are very informative, beautifully written and pleasantly amusing. I had the opportunity of visiting Highclere on a PBS tour late summer and caught a glimpse of you at the stables with your horses. It made the experience so real for me, and your blog keeps that feeling going. Thank you for sharing posts of your lovely country life.
I love riding here – some time to enjoy their company and observe what they observe..
A new year is a time of reflection, but optimism too! Best wishes with your speaking engagements – I have watched the videos you have done for various topics regarding Highclere and Downton, and enjoyed them immensely – I’m sure your talks are wonderful! Family can be the worst critics – maybe one of them could stand up with you the next time to help? (See what they think about that! Ha!)
I’ve just discovered the two books you wrote regarding Lady Alima and Lady Catherine, and have gotten them on my Kindle to read. Now I get to look forward to another one! Yay!
I love the hope that spring flowers bring as you see them rising up from the cold earth… always uplifting to see them on a chilly walk. Animals bring joy and frustration, sometimes in equal and simultaneous parts – your little black dog looks very inquisitive! He looks a lot like my Maggie, a spaniel mix who is black with brown vs. white markings.
All the best to you and your family in 2015. I am looking forward to your future posts on the blog. Cheers from South Carolina!
I will share the Doggerel verse about the spaniel at some point too….
Lady Carnarvon,
I so enjoy your posts. I especially like the picture of the green nubs emerging from the earth. Spring comes every year… a good reminder to be hopeful.
I would love to hear one of your talks. I’m sure you do a splendid job.
Happy New Year to you and your family.
Brenda
Good morning Lady Carnarvon! It is always a pleasure to wake up and find one of your posts. As always they are informative and I always learn something new. I love the pictures of your adorable dog and his expressions I believe tell it all. You will have to let us know how the contest goes! All my best to you and with the bulbs coming up – so hopeful that Spring really is around the corner! I don’t mind our Midwest cold and snow in December, but it does get difficult to deal with as we move through January. Best to you always…Melissa
Melissa I think the verse about the spaniel will make you laugh!!! I will post it when Country Life say I can..
I love your posts. They are funny, warm and uplifting. My husband and I are planning a trip to England in April and spending 9 days in London. We have been many times and find your country awesome. The picture of your dog reminds me of mine who passed away 12 years ago. Her name was Bear and she looked exactly like yours. I swear she was the smartest dog I have ever owned. Have a great 2015. Joan
He is very cute, not sure about how smart, his sister is I think the cleverer..
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
It is always nice to find your next blog ! Happy New Year to all of you at Highclere and good to hear about your dayly january affairs and the dogs . I hope you will have a succesful and enjoyable year and we all look forward to the next series of Downton to come out !
Kind Regards , Sophie Lamping .
Lady Carnarvon, I’m envious of your sprouting green shoots. Here in Illinois, the middle of the U.S., it is so cold that our schools are closed due to wind chills of -20 degrees F. I, too, enjoyed the first episode of season 5 DA t;his week. My favorite and most memorable thing at Highclere was the green silk wallpaper. Seeing it again on TV just made me want to be in that room again. Twelve days in Europe and my favorite thing is wallpaper. LOL
I look forward to your posts and the contest, too.
Sincerely,
Marilyn Slagel
Thank you for your lovely new blog entry. It was most pleasant to wake to find it this morning. Your dog looks adorable. I love seeing photos of your animals and reading about them!
It seems we all face challenges as we look ahead into this new year. Your blog certainly helps to make life brighter.
Wishing YOU many, many blessings in this new year.
Bonnie
Winchester Virginia
Thank you!
Lady Carnarvon, I just recently discovered your blog and eagerly await future posts. Many blessings in the new year!! You are so kind to share your life with us.
Hello Lady Carnarvan, Happy New Year!
What a lovely dog. He looks like a real sweetheart. Loved the first episode of Downton Abbey, so glad they chose Highclere castle to film this wonderful story, and glad you let them use your beautiful home. It’s very cold here today, all of 20 degrees Fahrenheit with a stiff breeze in the Eastern U.S. but I don’t mind the cold. Hope you have a great weekend!
Thanks for the post. Always nice to hear from you!
Kind regards,
Mary Beth
Hello happy new year,lady carnarvon i am amazed how well you and your husband,try to take care of the castle highclere,its an amazing castle, im sure it is very hard work.you both should be so proud to take care of and live in an amazing place.i am a big fan of yours an i love what you’re doing to preserve history, good like in all you do.
Dera Lady Carnarvon,
Happy New Year to all of you and family. I enjoy your posts and as I am an enthusiast dof “fan” I love the pictures! I will try hard to come and visit Downton this year. Just to see how it is. Really. Thank you for the posts! I love reading them.
Best regards.
Diane Clavareau
Dearest Lady Carnarvon,
This is my 1st time writing in response to your blog. My friends & family know what a huge fan I have become of both “DA” as well as (and therefore)the actual Highclere Castle, and so was gifted this Xmas with many related items.
I’ve read both your books on your female predecessors and was quite impressed with your writing, so I’m sure your ability to speak will be equal to that task.
I was also quite interested in your previous post re your finding a treasure trove of old papers. I, too, have an interest in archival family items, as I am related to many famous (or infamous) characters including Robert E. Lee, Francis Scott Key, and John Hunt Morgan.
An Ancestry.com search has led me to discover that I can trace my ancestry to the American Revolution and a young man who (of course) was born in Great Britain!
I look forward to reading more about your current everyday life at Highclere as well as any historical items you wish to disclose.
Sincerely, C. R. Galliani
California
Thank you – I still haven’t worked out what to say yet!! A title would be useful…
I just discovered your blog. It is such a treat. As an American who loves Downton Abbey, I find it so refreshing that you seem so “down to earth”. I’m not sure if that is just an American expression, but it is a good thing! Glad Highclere is in such good hands.
Hello happy new year,lady carnarvon i am amazed how well you and your husband,try to take care of the castle highclere,its an amazing castle, im sure it is very hard work.you both should be so proud to take care of and live in an amazing place.i am a big fan of yours an i love what you’re doing to preserve history, good luck, in all you do ,hope to visit some day.
ama7 sqit lady c
lovely feeling you have for companion species (garden plants lichens mosses dogs horses) the soil too by your words and photos your playful self effacing tone shows humility putting others first shows the blogee a feel for what a conversation with you might be like I know that carnarvon has welsh ancestry my guess is that you have celtic ancestry as well we were always told by my welsh grandmother to be proud of our ancestry and to show and feel humility at the same time a good kind of contradiction passed on through my mom who loved gardens and cats birds wild flowers picking berries planting harvesting putting her hands in soil
in vancouver (bc) it is foggy above zero dry for now here and there trees and shrubs teased by the sometime warm winds begin to bud catkins and shoots push through knowing weather and sunlight rather than sun declination hungry small birds crows pigeons too gulls of many kind homeless people push devices up and down the alleyways laneways recycling entrepreneurial the beat goes on kukwstum’c
Dear Lady Carnarvon
Thank you for your very personable post. This is the 1st I’ve read. I wasn’t sure what kind of read it would be. You seem to be like most women,wives and mothers I know. I look forward to the next. Jill
Thank you for this reminder about the possibilities of the new year!
we are looking forward to visiting your home in early April!
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Finally got to read your blog, after having internet issues.
Since I live in California, USA on the central coast the mild weather tempts out our bulb plants then decides to go frigid for a few days they HAVE to be tough little bulbs! The gophers move my bulbs around so I never know where they’ll pop up
Your pup is too cute hope he us successful in his contest
I recently wrote to you about my yellow lab who is similar to Isis on the program your TV lab is VERY white mine is more yellow.
I look forward to hearing how well your pup does, as well as your upcoming speech.
Happy New Year
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
Finally got to read your blog, after having internet issues.
Since I live in California, USA on the central coast the mild weather tempts out our bulb plants then decides to go frigid for a few days they HAVE to be tough little bulbs! The gophers move my bulbs around so I never know where they’ll pop up
Your pup is too cute hope he us successful in his contest
I recently wrote to you about my yellow lab who is similar to Isis on the program your TV lab is VERY white mine is more yellow.
I look forward to hearing how well your pup does, as well as your upcoming speech.
Happy New Year
Thank you – Isis was quite pale. My Labradors are a mixture of blondness, Alfie is darker for example. He would also compete with the spaniel for naughty dog of the year..
Dear Lady Carnarvon:
I just finished your book on Highclere and its history . i can send only great praise for what you have done and the detail you have presented. A truly incredible story of the nobility of the human spirit ! Some might be critical of the presence of privilege but the service and humility of Lady Almina and yourself in continuing the traditions of Highclere are an inspiration .
Sounds melancholy. I do hope your spirits remain high my Lady. I am excited about the new season of Downton. My family cannot understand why it is about all I watch. English life is classy, the speech and accents are proper, and the appearance of the ladies of society are that they are of utmost elegance, and sophistication. I admire those qualities in people. Those qualities are often lacking here in America. I enjoy high tea with scones and biscuits, and dressing in a conservative, yet feminine way. Your doggy is so cute. I could just eat him alive. (not literally)
Thank you for my very first post from you. I like to believe that January is “named for Juno, a complex theological female figure, a divine protectress”. In 2014 I began HypnoBIrthing and have met some wonderful women who did not realise their very own power. I trained as a Pregnancy Yoga Instructor and whilst on the course my eyes were opened to the strength and energy of the female. Unfortunately in this day and age women do not acknowledge their own natural powers and sometimes can spend to too much energy developing in areas they THINK are important. I am so excited for 2015, for the women I am to meet and also to see their ultimate journey unfold. Fighting our own battle. Making our own birth choices. Storming the world by calm.
apologies…my post should have read HypnoBirthing ….NOT …….HypnoBIrthing.
I guessed – re spelling. Thank you. I love yoga, it helps me focus and I can practise yoga as I travel.
Dear Lady Carnarvon
A very Happy New Year to you and all the family, may it bring you happiness in many ways.
I too am blessed with owning a horse, who lives out but has the most cosy rug on to keep him snug, he would probably be fine without one as he is a hardy type, but we do our very best for our animals don’t we as they give us so much. As for your lovely dog, I am sure he will charm the judges, how ever good or bad he is on the day.
I look forward to future posts.
Kind Regards
Susie
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
I’m a French teacher and I have always felt a deep admiration for what the English Aristocracy embodies: Class,elegance but above all ,as the Greek origin of the word proves it, Aristos: the best and Kratos: strength.What I appreciate as well is your involvement in good causes and your humility. My children bought me the DVDs of
“Downton Abbey” for Christmas because they perfectly know I ‘d love them! They were right! I wish I could visit your property one day! It’s a dream!
I wish you a Happy New Year! Fabienne Taillez ( in love with England since childhood and for ever!)
Lady Carnarvon, I also love reading your latest blog. I have something to share that you might find to be interesting, I belong to a Social Club called Club Continental on the St. John’s River( in Orange Park, Florida)and on Friday, January 30th will be a Downton Abbey Theme Dinner!!! Starting with Tea& Cocktails then Dinner Service which starts with Watercress Salad, Yorkshire Pudding,Beef Bourguignon,Carrots,Broccoli and Red Potatoes. Dessert is Crepe Suzette. After dinner is Harp Music,Cigars,Cocktails and Sherry. Period Attire is optional and will be an award for best Downton Abbey Costume. Should be a fun evening as I am such a fan. Happy New Year to you and your family. Best regards, Jacquie McDonald
It sounds as if you should have enough to eat!
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
As usual, I have found your blogpost to be thoroughly delightful, because you are such an articulate and interesting author. Your blog has become one of my absolute favorites (or favourites, as the case may be!), and the only one I read from England. I agree that January is a wonderful time for reflection, and hopefully, after some of the horrendous international troubles of last year, we can look forward to better times in 2015. Also, I smiled when I read about your husband and son’s critique of your talk, and about your son’s ultimate air of compassion. I had just written a blogpost for a professional blog, by request, and asked my husband (my best and worst editor) to critique it before I sent it off. Oh my! He began axing the very first sentence and demanded (nicely) a rewrite of the first paragraph *six* times! I would say he had not as much compassion as your son. He also edited my books before I sent them to my editor. I am generally glad to have his input, though admittedly, I usually wince first. And reading about your beloved and potentially naughty dog reminds me of our own. We affectionately call him our incorrigible pit-poodle (he’s actually a handsome black Standard). We, too, went to puppy school, where Chevy flunked and was always chosen by the trainers as the example to other owners of what their dogs should *not* do. In the end, I’m afraid, the only advantage to our attending was that my husband and I definitely learned how to be puppies! I’m very excited about your books, and have gotten them, looking forward to reading more of your wonderful writing. I’m so glad you had mentioned them, because, likely, I am the only American on the planet who was not aware of them. I hope to enter your contest and keep my fingers crossed that that important personage mentioned on the Highclere site shall draw my name from the proverbial hat! Happy New Year, Lady Carnarvon.
Sincerely,
Lynn Morrissey
St. Louis, Missouri
I love reading your blog ! I am such a fan and hope to be able to visit Highclere Castle this year. Wishing you and your family much Happiness and the Very Best in 2015 ! I wished I could have heard you speak at the Ashmolean, one of my most favorite museums. I look forward to your books !
Happy 2015, Lady Carnarvon.
Sincerely,
Susan Fry
Aurora, Colorado
Good Evening Lady Carnarvon, ( it”s 6pm here in North Carolina) Yes, I agree the new year can be over whelming to making plans, project”s,& that one thing a person plans to do may have never done before, but for some it”s that positive affirmation they have to say YES I CAN! I can do this! Those challenge”s will turn into blessing”s , there really is so much to be thankful for, I hope to receive , as I”m a history geek ( my family can vouch for that lol) looking forward to hearing and reading of your book(s) here in America I have not seen them unless I”m looking in the wrong places, in closing wishing you and your”s many more blessing”s in this new year most sincere, Jennifer Wiggins Pasour Concord NC P,S ya”ll have fun at Nautiest dog contest!
I hope the books are page turners as well as history books – try Amazon and you will hear about the results of the naughty dog contest!!
While looking for dates we can visit Highclere I was pleasantly rewarded with your latest blog post. As a devoted Downton Abby fan I also watched your special presentation of real life at Highclere Castle. Since discovering the location of Downton Abby filming, I have wanted to visit but only traveled to Great Britain during times no visitation was allowed. In August of this year we will be there again and plan to visit. Until then I will look forward to your blog posts as I anticipate seeing the castle and grounds. Unlike the gloom of January, may the rest of your year be filled with projects being finished and gardens showing off their beautiful colors.
Mary
Nashville, Tennessee
August should be sunny here and funnily enough I was just Paul and Robin the gardeners looking at planting some agapanthus in a summer bed to improve the appeal for August!!
So excited to discover your blog and look forward to future posts. After other trips to Great Britain but at the wrong time for a visit to Highclere, we look forward to a chance to see the castle during our short stay in August. I enjoyed your special about real life at Highclere and can only imagine the constant challenge to keep your lovely home in good condition. Take care of the beautiful puppy and we can only hope that during our visit we might catch a glimpse of you both on the estate.
Best wishes to you and your family in 2015.
Mary
Nashville, Tennessee
Great tickets go for August on sale in February…
I savour, result in I found exactly what I was having a look for.
You’ve ended my four day long hunt! God Bless you man. Have a great day.
Bye
Dear Lady Carnarvon:
I love your blog. Thank you so much for taking time to share your life and Highclere with us fans. I have read Lady Almina and am half-way through Lady Catherine. I’m enjoying Lady Catherine as much as Lady Almina. You mentioned that you were finishing up a book. What is the subject and when will it be ready for publication? I so love your writing style.
Best regards,
Debbie
Westlake, Ohio
Is that Winston? He is a handsome man. Even though dogs have no vanity, they still seem to know to show off their profiles. I love the little white blaze on his chest.
My dog has some white on his chest and toes. Now that he is a senior citizen he also has white muzzle and eyebrows.
I would love for Spring to bring the surprise of bulbs coming up, but unfortunately here they must be intentionally placed every year. Of course, the trade off is that there are plants that live year round with no effort at all. Citrus, geraniums, roses and fuchsias. Succulents and cactus too. But then we miss tulips, daffodils and cherries.
I think the thing I like best about the New Year is it is an opportunity to start afresh. It is the season of renewal and rebirth.