Tales From The Big Chair

One of the many lovelinesses about my day job, and why I hope that I can keep juggling the two careers,  is wonderful little things like this.

This gift was made by a patient who was an telecom computer person and managed to escape early to retirement. I don't see him all that often but he turned up at the practice simply to hand in this gift that he had made for me. It turns out that he had an old friend who really likes working with wood and that he got him interested in  making these small chairs, bespoke for an individual,  and they tell a little story  for the recipient,  about the recipient.

My chair is very pretty, hand crafted over many hours. It's about 12 inches high, incredibly fine and as light as a feather. Under the seat is a bracketed shelf with four rests on which I can place.... PENS!

When it was handed to me,  there were two antique fountain pen nibs resting on the little cradles - one inscribed Mitchell, the other Ramsay - a chance find on the internet my friend told me.  Once my life is less hectic, I am going to dig out my fountain pen accessory box and fiddle around, getting covered in ink and achieving nothing much, using some of the inks I have picked up on my travels around the world. ( So far Italy is my ink capital). 

So this little chair, reads like the story of my life - 

Mitchell and Ramsay - my two names.

A yoyo - ? I had to think about that. I think in book two, Singing To The Dead, there is some yoyo action.

Propeller- my travel?  Is it a propeller or is it a flower? I am pondering. Oh yes I did poison somebody....

The date - Robert Burns Birthday..... and yes, something does happen in a book on Burns night.

Thistle - Scottish

Noose - oh yes, the estate agent swinging   by the neck....

Bow - A bow tie?  Yes, a main character does wear a bow tie, as does a crime writing friend and fellow sleuther Michael J Malone.

Stiletto- yes, her red stiletto gets left in a puddle after a character gets  hit by a car in an underground car park. There's a red stiletto on the cover of the new one... and  a main character has put her stiletto down the shin  of a man who was annoying her. Zoe Sharp taught her that.

Ink - obvious!

Quill - I do have a quill made of raven feathers on my writing desk. Do I sound odd? 

Ring -  yes, I see that from one book, very important plot point. 

Heart - a stiletto through it puts an end to things! 

I think that's all I can see at the moment. To keep it safe it's packed in a box at the moment..... more about why in a further blog, but there's a lot of packing going on....

Caro