Personal Blogs

This morning I have finally placed my Degree for language studies with English and French into a new frame.
I placed it in the lounge nearest to the window, where it will be noticed by everyone who visits. This will be a great conversational piece !

The weather has been mostly wet and soggy lately,  with some rather heavy downpours. These huge downpours have left great big muddy puddles on the footpaths and in the fields.

I decided to go to the gym today, instead of getting cold, wet and muddy walking about in nature

🏋‍♀️🚴‍♀️🚶‍♀️🚶‍♂️🏃🏃‍♀️
The gym is situated quite near the fields and trees , so I can just see the fields from the window in the gym across the car park.
The gym was nice and well heated. There was only a few people in the gym today, so it felt good because it was not too crowded.
I put my gym clothes on and headed to the treadmill.
I put the walking machine on the moderate setting, which is a brisk walking speed, but it is easy enough for me to keep up with it. The next setting is a bit too fast for me,  so I keep it to just fast walking pace. I drank some cold water from my cold drinking bottle.
I stayed about one hour in the gym and I burned up about 200 calories! Afterwards I took a nice hot shower and I washed my hair. I knew it would be cold outside walking back home,  so I wore my long black quilted coat with a white wooly hat and white scarf. I set off walking the 20 minutes back home, my muscles burning  a bit with the effort of walking against the wind. I wish I had rested a bit longer in the gym as I felt a bit dizzy!
At home I rested a lot, dried my hair and had a hot drink.

I visited the student forum in the afternoon,  to look on the 'English club.' I read the latest posts,  keeping up to date with all the conversations. I then did some reading 📚. First my english 📖 reading book about idioms and metaphors.
I then read my french  book in the french language a book of short stories, that I have read before, but it is very good practice for the understanding of the French language.
My husband came back from taking our son for his latest blood test at the GPs surgery. 

I set the table and we had a delicious home made hot broccoli and leek soup with crusty bread.
The evening was turning dark and cold, it was time to put the heating on!

   Mark Rothko

 I very much like abstract art,  my favourite two art works are by Piet Mondrian  and Mark Rothko.
I have some copies of these paintings on my living room wall at home.

Abstract paintings can  challenge our perception of reality.
it wasn't until the early 20th century that abstract art truly found its voice. Before that other artists such as Turner were painting dramatic skies using soft blues and greys and soft colourful  brush strokes.

Abstract art invites the viewer to interpret the art work in their own unique way.  Personal interpretation is why it continues to interest and enthral audiences today
Artworks are a matter of personal taste and identity. 
Art works have the ability to add energy to a space with a bright abstract painting, or evoke calm with a minimalist sculpture.
Some key characteristics include non-representational forms and an emphasis on the artist's emotional experience. 

This genre evolved through movements like Cubism and was shaped by artists such as Wassily Kandinsky and Piet Mondrian.

Piet Mondrian

We had our annual Christmas shopping trip a bit early this year to the city, partly because I wanted to get It over with and partly out of necessity! 
It is was a cold frosty two hour journey by bus, but listenining to some good  music really  helped to make the time go quickly.  I had my radio on,  my old mobile phone (now on it's last legs)  piped through my head phones, while husband took a little nap!

First stop when we arrived, was to buy my present, a new phone from the O2 shop.
Next a warm coat for my husband, then shopping for festive food for all the family!
A few useful presents for the boys ( no longer boys now! )
A quick stop at M&S,  where I had an omelette containing tomatoes cheese, mushrooms and herbs for lunch. He had a hearty soup with bread.  We also had coffee and a couple of festive biscuits.
Last but not least, we took a browse around the Oxfam book shop, where I found a french book!  Yay! 😊
Finally we headed to the bus station which was quite busy, packed with shoppers and student. On the way home after we'd  had a little conversation I settled down to read my french book.  It was ok , and I understood most of what I was reading, which was good, but it became more and more depressing.  Relationships breaking up, someone having affairs, someone lost their job, someone died, then someone addicted.
I felt so depressed 😒😢 I know 'this is life'  but I was hoping for something a bit more jolly!
"Book ok love?" Husband asked me.  "Ok, not bad" I told him. I had to play it down because he had gave😏 me the money for the📖 book!
Next time I come to the city, I will bring it back with me and buy another one, hopefully with a bit more of a happier story!
We soon arrived back to a nice cosy home and quickly got warmed up with a hot chocolate. We looked into  the lounge. Our son had fallen asleep on the setee, with the 2 cats lying on top of him!
Awe Bless him!

Today,  I am busy with my new role as a Study Buddy, which I do on the English Forum and Joint Degree forum.. I like to chat with students about books and films, exchange study tips, and discuss what we have found helpful for studying languages.

I am really enjoying this, because  I still feel part of the Open University, It is good to be part of the Open University learning and teaching  experience! 

I do this each day at a certain time, and use my own personal blog. I am still learning (even now) through reading language books,  and watching language films.

This way I am still  learning and keeping up to date with my language skills, so that I don't forget anything I have learned at the Open University!

I like parables and wisdom sayings and often like to quote them as I have often found them to be true!

▪︎To be, or not to be: that is the question" from Hamlet,

▪︎ "All the world's a stage" from As You Like It, 
▪︎ "The course of true love never did run smooth" from A Midsummer Night's Dream,

 
▪︎"To thine own self be true" from Hamlet. Other well-known lines are;

 "Neither a borrower nor a lender be".
• All the world's a stage…” ...

• “To thine own self be true.” ...

• “The better part of Valour is Discretion.” ...

• “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.” ...

• “Cowards die many times before their deaths…” ...

• “What's in a name?
A rose by any other name would smell as sweet"

From Romeo and Juliet. Juliet here is speaking of Romeo's family name. 

Today it was pouring down. Perhaps it is soon coming to the end of the summer?
The cats were hanging around the house today,  a lot, reluctant to leave,  I was wondering why,  now I know!
The cats knew that the rain was coming, cats do not like water !well they were right! this evening we had a huge downpour!

It was lovely just to open up the windows wide,  and to listen to the rain, falling hard outside on the garden, onto the parched yellow grass. It was good to breathe in, the fresh rain- cleansed air.

Everyone outside hurried indoors, no more barbeques!  The children took their footballs and went inside their houses. The street fell silent  at last.

I sighed with relief.

It was a peaceful day today,  and after I had  done all the shopping, then I walked along the country lane on the edge of the village,  to the woods.

In the woods it was lovely and cool, so I stayed in the wood for a while,  listening  to the beautiful birdsong, and watching the birds as I quietly followed the footpath, around to the other side of the wood.
As I emerged It was very warm outside, so I looked for a place to rest near the wood, conveniently there was a bench just nearby and there it was set back a little bit in the shade, just out of the bright sunshine.

It was so nice to sit there under the shade of the trees and relax. Bees were humming and some butterflies were fluttering past. It was wonderful to get away from it all, even for an hour and this spot was a bit off the beaten path. Life has been so busy lately,  but hopefully I can now try to get out there again for a walk, and find another peaceful moment !

A fierce  heatwave is sweeping across Europe and this is causing dozens of wildfires across parts of southern Europe, forcing thousands of people to leave their homes and pushing temperatures above 40C (104F).

Red heat alerts have been issued in parts of Italy, France, Spain, Portugal and the Balkans, warning of significant risks to health.

France is under heat alerts , with temperatures forecast to reach 36C in the Paris region and 40C in the Rhône Valley.

The French Health Minister Catherine Vautrin said hospitals were prepared for fallout from the country's second heatwave in just a few weeks.

Parts of the UK are roasting in its fourth heatwave of the year, with temperatures hitting 33C and amber and yellow heat health alerts in place everywhere of England.

Two grassfires broke out in the capital on Tuesday, one in Ealing and another in Wanstead Flats, burning more than 17 acres combined.

These heat waves are exasperated by global warming from usage of  fossil fuels and from pollution which is making the atmosphere hotter and hotter across the world.

What will the future be if this pattern continues year after year?

How can humans continue to exist in these overheated conditions? What are the health implications?

What are the politicians and world leaders doing about it?

Ref.BBC News.

My vegetarian meal today was;-
2 Quorn and Mozzarella bakes and stir fry vegetables in  tomato sauce Provençale. 😘

I am very pleased to announce that I have passed my BA Honours Degree in language studies, French and English!

Good luck to everyone!

Definition
"Deforestation is the permanent destruction of forests in order to make the land available for other uses."OpenUniversity(2019)
The National Geographic states; Deforestation occurs around the world, though tropical rainforests are particularly targeted. If current deforestation levels continue, the world’s rainforests may completely vanish in as little as a hundred years, Open University (2019)

 
Context

If we look back in history, there has always been the clearances of forests. Deforestation takes place to make space for agriculture, for growing food, pasture for grazing. logging wood for fuel, manufacturing, and construction. This happens all over the world and throughout history, ever since man has built settlements and farmed the land. However, forests are beneficial because forests and trees release oxygen, which is essential for good air quality and benefits human health. Trees 
use carbon sequestration which is the process of capturing and storing carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is one of the gases that contribute to a problem known as global warming
(Open University (2019) When trees are felled the air quality becomes significantly poorer.

Rainforests
Rainforests are forests that have a tree canopy, this keeps the forest healthy and retains moisture for moisture- dependent vegetation, it also protects the forest from fire.  Forests consist of a lower, middle, and higher level. Rainforests can be classified as tropical rainforests, temperate rainforests, and other types of forests throughout the world.
Healthy forests are important, especially for the health benefits they bring to the people who live and work in the area. The Rainforests also contain special health-giving plants used for medicine; these plants cannot be found anywhere else on the
planet.

Deforestation -
Benefits

People can make their living by working in the forest, in logging and in construction 
companies.  This creates jobs and employment for local people.(Open University (2019)  There is the constant need for urbanisation, to support the expanding population in
the area. Road networks are needed for transportation which have to be built to accommodate new communities of people. All this of course, depends on wood obtained from the trees. People must carry out basic daily living activities, this utilises wood, and most homes contain some type of wood,
whether for furniture, fuel or cooking tools and other wood derivatives.
However, other materials could be used instead to replace wood. Land is needed for agriculture to grow vegetables for local people food is essential for human survival.
Alternatively, another option, could be green growing vertical roof tops.

The main agents in the process of deforestation belong to the private sector, land owners  who can aid the process of managing forests,to capture carbon by maintaining scenic beauty,  preserving resources and for this they could be compensated. However,landowners could also be fined for depleting the forests. Social ownership may be an alternative solution to this problem, with careful management of resources.
OpenUniversity (2019)
The rain forests are a part of the world that is under threat and is an important place, especially because it has the most biodiversity of species in the world, therefore rainforests need preservation.

The Disadvantages of Deforestation: - Climate change

In recent times, scientists have discovered that deforestation has been linked to climate change. It has been found that deforestation causes air pollution, because it releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and after the burning of fossil fuel, carbon is the second highest reason for global climate change.(Open University (2019). 

Each year about 18 million acres of forest is lost to deforestation. It has also been found that forests that have been cut down are even more prone to wild fires. Wild fires can easily start due to loss of tree coverage, when drought increases, this leads to evapotranspiration, which causes vegetation and soils to dry out, thus making forests susceptible to wildfire.
Soil erosion caused by deforestation can cause silt to leak into rivers and pollute the water in the area. This can be dangerous for the people and animals who drink it, because it can kill fish and other species that live in water.

Extreme weather caused by climate change has been increasing across the world, bringing in its wake, disasters like flooding, landslides, droughts, hurricanes, and wild fires, contributing to poor air quality, which leads to decline in the health of the population, including lung problems and airborne diseases.

Whenever trees are felled, animals lose their habitats and eventually become extinct. Chimpanzees are becoming endangered and are at risk of losing their habitat. They live in the canopy, eating fruits such as figs and can disperse the seeds around the forest. So, they are ecologically useful for the forest’s environment and must be protected. Many endangered animal species face extinctions because of global deforestation, therefore precautions must be taken to ensure their future survival.
(Open University (2019)

The indigenous peoples also live in the rainforests, and thedestruction of the forests, could ultimately lead to losing their home, as well as their way of life and way of making a living.

Solutions
We now know the problems but what are the solutions?

Here are some possible solutions:Turn forests into conservation areas;

The introduction and enforcement of regulations and controls concerning felling and land use at both governmental and organisational levels (Open University(2019 )
Recycling materials already available, that are as durable as wood to replace wood usage. The deployment of eco-forestry techniques which is available tool for decreasing the impact of logging. OpenUniversity(2019); Having educational campaigns to raise awareness.Reforestation, Community forestry initiativescan beeffective in creating green spaces in rural and urban locations. Open University(2019); Encourage people to eat a more plant-based diet. Reducing the need to use land for animal grazing. Open University(2019)

Conclusion
A careful balance is needed, between utilising the resources of the forests wisely, while at the same time protecting forests from damage, therefore reducing deforestation.

References:
Open University (2019) L185 Resource Texts