frayed at the edge

Out and about

On Monday, the sun was shining and the sky was blue, so after lunch we abandoned our domestic chores and went out for a walk.  I thought the heavy chain and padlock were pointless on this gate, when even I could climb over it!

 

this bit of metal fencing has seen better days

 

I do like a bit of higgledy piggledy fence

 

I wonder why they just didn't nail some struts between the two fence posts, instead of making a separate piece to fill the gap

 

a little bit of nature in the verges

 

some things are still flowering although it is November

 

although others have gone to seed

 

it's a while since I posted photos ......

 

of gubbins!

 

we saw all sorts of trees - small

 

old

 

perhaps struck by lightning?

 

a very large stump

 

stark against the skyline

 

twisted

 

and very, very tall - Malcolm provides the scale

 

and at the end of our walk ........

 

....... sheepies!

 

and not just any sheepies, but Jacob's sheepies, my favourites!

 

I won't be here on Friday, as Malcolm's brother-in-law's funeral is on Friday morning, so I will wish you a good weekend, love Anne

The third walk

On Monday we went to Alnwick for another long walk.  We stopped to admire this larger than life statue of Harry Hotspur

 

a detail from his armour

 

as we crossed the Lion Bridge, I paused to take an arty shot

 

looking over the bridge to the sheep below

 

we walked down on to the river bank, looking over to the castle on the other side of the river

 

unlike a lot of castles, it isn't built on a rocky outcrop, but I wouldn't want to attack it ......

 

....... with these fearsome men on the battlements

 

but don't worry if you visit the castle, they are statues!

 

the ewe in the centre of the photo was keeping an eye on us as we walked past

 

but these ones weren't interested in us

 

I was slightly nervous walking past this cow and her calf, as there was no fence between us!

 

then I had a bit of fun, first taking a colour photo .........

 

....... then taking a black and white one a few yards further on

 

Malcolm suggested this shot, with the clouds over the castle looking menacing

 

we couldn't decide what this is ...... it looks like a giant deck chair!

 

I do  like an old door and a stone wall!

 

beautiful blossom on the way into the Alnwick Garden

 

the Owl and the Pussycat, in their beautiful pea-green boat

 

we will have to go back another day to explore the Treehouse Restaurant

 

we were back in Alnwick yesterday, as I had an appointment for a check up with my new dentist.  After a collection of dentists over the last few years who had names that would score highly at Scrabble, it's nice now to have a dentist called Victoria!  Although when I went into the room, I thought at first she was there as part of a "bring your daughter to work day", as she looks about twelve!!  As I really, really don't like going to the dentist, I bribed Malcolm to go with me, with the promise of a cuppa and a very tasty cheese scone!

Righting a wrong

I realised that it is quite some time since we had cut creatures on the blog, so after lunch I popped out with the camera to put that right.   The ewes are getting plump - they will probably have their lambs at the start of April

 

it's a tiring life spending the day eating grass!

 

the grass is still very green for this time of year

 

I wonder if they get bored with grass?

 

these two look as if they have had a shampoo and blow dry

 

I don't think I have seen sheep before with their fleece parted in the middle like these three - and did you notice that amazingly they all faced the camera and didn't turn round and present their bottoms as they usually do!

 

I walked on up the road to have a look at the horses.  The field was very muddy

 

and this one looked extremely fed up with the cold windy weather

 

this donkey was having a good scratch against the back of the trailer

 

while this one peeped round the corner from the stable

 

we have had a visiting bird in the garden for some months that I just haven't managed to take a good photo of

 

they mostly turn out like this

 

as it bobs up and down

 

so finally, a reasonable photo!  I had wondered what sort of bird it is - it looks part blackbird and part thrush.  Then I saw a mention in a newspaper that it is a European blackbird.  It is quite a bit bigger than the pair of blackbirds that live in the front garden, but they co-exist quite peacefully, pottering about under the bird table picking up spilled seed

A selfie!

When I was sorting through my photos for today's post, I came across this one.  I took it on holiday with my Kindle, which I was trying to set up to take photos of our meal, to email to Stuart and Alison.  I don't usually take selfies - but I rather like this one!

 

I used to have two lovely, delightful friends in Melbourne ......... Meredithe and Helen.  But when they were recently at a quilt exhibition, they not only took lots of photos of nasty little beasties cats, they then arranged them in a collage to send to me.  I have told them I may start speaking to them again in about a zillion years time!! (M & H, you know I love you, really!)

 

I hope it really is an old wife's tale that lots of berries in the autumn means we are in for a hard winter, as our rowan tree is laden .......

 

....... with pink berries, which the blackbirds love

 

the climbing rose on the front of the house is still flowering

 

and this clematis in the back garden is flowering for the second time

 

this fuchsia has been flowering for weeks and weeks!

 

after pottering round the garden with the camera, I had a stroll along the road.  There are sheep in the field across the road

 

I think this one was saying "who are you looking at" in a picking a fight sort of way!

 

a little further on, the donkeys were out in their field

 

I was surprised they didn't have their coats on, as they seem to wear them for most of the year

 

three of them stood nicely for the photos

 

but this one just would not turn round!

 

the horse sharing their field just has such a superior air - look at me, I am sleek and handsome, unlike those shaggy donkeys!

 

after spending the summer out in the hedgerows, the sparrows are back in the garden

 

I didn't mind this one turning its back, as it means you can see the striking patterns on his feathers

 

these three were deep in conversation

 

while this one ignored them

 

for every successful bird photo ........

 

........ there are a lot like this

 

and like this, where the camera has focused  on the metal bird, instead of the robin (yes, I am blaming the camera, not my photography skills!) (according to my spell check, both focused and focussed are acceptable spellings, but neither looks right)

 

it's Friday, so that means cake!  This afternoon, we shared a slice of banana bread, which was delicious

 

we are visiting Stuart and Alison this weekend, going out for a belated dinner to celebrate our Anniversary ....... I even have a new dress to wear!  I hope you have a good weekend, love Anne

Keeping a beady eye .......

on the photos which are languishing in folders, waiting to be included in the blog, is this magnificent wood pigeon

 

he reminded me that I had taken photos of lambs in the field across the road

 

although they are getting big, they still like to be with mum

 

 

this horse, also in the field across the road, is gleaming with health

 

the plants in Malcolm's planter are growing well

 

an old tractor cutting hay in the field behind the studio

 

one day, I set the camera up on the tripod in the summerhouse, to try to capture the pair of tits flying in and out of the bird box

 

despite using the remote control shutter button .......... 

 

I just couldn't capture a good photo

 

so I moved the tripod to the deck, where it was partially concealed by a little tree, so that the birds wouldn't be disturbed by it

 

well, I got some good shots of their tails as they flew into the bird box

 

and another blurry one of one leaving

 

but I had more success with Mrs blackbird having a bath

 

but the pigeon flew off just as I snapped!

 

and finally ....... in a recent post, I showed you a photo of my lace panel curtains that at still in the bedroom window of the house we moved from in 1997.  I had kept one of the curtains, which I cut down into a cafe curtain for the kitchen window ....... not because anyone can see in the window, but to provide some insulation from the cold glass for my orchids!

 

I was washing up the dinner dishes on a sunny evening when I noticed the shadow pattern on an orchid leaf - I do like a good shadow shot!

Spring!

I had a walk round the garden this morning with the camera, to capture these signs of spring.  First, two photos of the ornamental quince

 

then three photos of the flowering currant

 

this honeysuckle will flower soon

 

strong growth on the climbing rose

 

this is the rowan tree in the front garden

 

the bright green of the hawthorn hedge

 

a drop of water on the birch tree

 

and more drops caught in a lupin leaf

 

a very dark hellebore

 

and a paler one

 

self-seeded ferns growing in the cracks in the wall

 

the log store needs replenishing, a sure sign that winter is just about over

 

now, get ready to say aaaaah and oooooh, as we have some more lambs!  They were just behind the hedge, so I had to creep up to try to take a photo ......

 

....... before the ewe walked away with the lambs

 

but this little one stopped and looked back

 

as did this one

 

twins snuggled up next to the water trough

 

before their mum took them away from the strange lady peering through the hedge at them!

 

I'll be back tomorrow to show you how Malcolm's latest creation turned out.

The things I do for you!

It was a bit wet when we got up this morning, but by the time we popped into Hawick the sky had cleared and the sun had come out, so I decided to go for a walk when we got back home to take photos of the lambs.  This involves walking for a mile there, then of course a mile back ....... only for you, dear readers, would I do this!!  Along the way, I kept seeing snowdrops - why do they grow in the verge and not in my garden?!

 

I think these are aconites but I don't have my wildflower book to hand to check

 

the "whomping willow" tree is still standing, despite the gales

 

I thought I would see if there were any lambs in a field some distance from the road.  This meant either climbing over this gate

 

or walking along this muddy path ....... I chose the path

 

but I should have paid more attention to where I stepped!

 

there were no lambs in that field - but there was this handsome chap

 

so it was on down the road to the other field, where we saw the lambs yesterday.  Are you ready to go aaaw and aaaah

 

and all those woolly little lambs lead to a knitting update!  My mojo is well and truly back - indeed it is working overtime!  I have knitted a blanket for Linus

 

the blanket makes a nice backdrop for my socks

 

I've started another blanket for Linus.  I'm using two balls of four ply in different shades of purple.  It's an unusual pattern, knitted on two different sizes of needles - you do seven rows using one pair, then seven rows using the other

 

yesterday I got out my swift

 

and my ball winder

 

to wind this hank of sock yarn

 

in no time at all the hank was turned from this

 

into this

 

I popped the ball into my yarn bowl

 

and started another pair of socks!

 

and to finish - I grew up drinking Irn Bru (Scotland's other national drink) and I still drink it (although I do drink the sugar-free one now).  Over the years there have been wonderful (and at times controversial) adverts for Irn Bru, and one theme is celebrating its 30th anniversary - "made in Scotland from girders".  I bought this special edition can the other day.  I have to show you it in two photos, because of the curve of the can

 

ps - never mind a vodka and tonic, I can recommend a vodka and girders!!

 

 

Out and about

Yesterday, I went for a brief walk after lunch - brief because it was very windy and very cold!  Here are a few of the photos I took .......

snowdrops in front of a neighbour's wall

 

the Minto Hills, misty in the distance

 

some very nasty potholes!

 

my favourite view

 

 

the church

 

a rather muddy horse

this one's mane was blowing in the wind!

 

a miserable looking donkey

 

the next photos were taken from the car on the way to Jedburgh this morning

 

just look at the blue sky in these photos of the Abbey!

 

more blue sky behind the Clock Tower

 

an excellent shadow shot

 

a traditional red phone box

 

then it was on to the Woodside Garden Centre for lunch

 

I had bacon, brie and cranberry sandwiches

 

and Malcolm had ham, cucumber and mustard mayo

 

while Malcolm paid the bill, I had a look at the garden round the tearoom.  An interesting seedhead caught my eye

 

I couldn't quite read the label for this - I think it was a variety of crocosmia

 

a lovely rusty old water pump

 

I saw this in the shop - I don't think I will be buying it for the birds in our garden!

 

we haven't been using the back road to and from the house, because of all the potholes (see above).  But we did today, to see if the Jacob's lambs had arrived ....... and we were rewarded with a few.  I could just see some more way over at the back of the field - I will need to go back with the big lens to capture them

 

back home, the birds were enjoying the better weather.  This great tit was flitting about, flying off before I could get it in focus, before it finally settled on the bin store

 

this is a very fierce looking sparrow, but I don't know what the bird behind it is - I forgot to look it up in my bird books

 

The continuing story ......

......... after the technical problems, let's hope this post is problem free!

So, on Wednesday morning, we popped into Hawick, and walked round to see how much water was roaring over the rocks in the River Slitrig

 

did you notice the heron - I don't think he had much chance of catching anything!

 

we popped into the Damascus Drum for lunch

 

we both had soup, which came with delicious thick slices of bread.  Malcolm had leek and potato, and I had Lebanese chickpea

 

after lunch we walked round to look over the bridge at where the Slitrig runs into the Teviot.  The Slitrig had carved out two deep channels and created a new island  

 

and can you spot another heron?

 

when we got home, I grabbed the big camera and went out for a quick walk.  First stop was to take photos of some sheepies for Anna

 

the I walked on to see if there were any donkeys for Bumblevee.  There were horses (or are they ponies?) in the field

 

then as I turned for home, look who peeked out from behind the stables

 

we didn't seen many birds in the garden when the weather was so bad, but on Thursday they started to reappear.  First, the nuthatch, which is an infrequent visitor

 

then Mr Blackbird

 

several blue tits

 

but the star of the show was the red, red robin, bob, bob, bobbing

 

yesterday we had our Christmas lunch at patch'n'chat, with a special visit from Fairy Twinkle ....... but you will have to wait until Monday to see her!!

 

 

Stuck up!

I have been gluing a lot of things together over the weekend (including, at one point, two of my fingers!).  Some things had to be re-glued, as the first glue used wasn't strong enough, but eventually I had produced ........

sea glass boats

 

beach combing paperweights

 

a beach combing scene on slate

 

sea-washed brick paperweights

 

stone stack paperweights

 

slate and sea glass hearts

 

a cute stone dog

 

another cute stone dog

 

these have now had hanging loops of ribbon added

 

after I took this photo of the copper Christmas trees, I thought they looked a bit plain

 

so I added these little presents (they are actually buttons!)

 

the studio was somewhat messy by the time I finished!

 

Malcolm made the driftwood stars, raiding my string and ribbon stashes, and using some of the little boxes - I have been making more of them

 

when we got up on Saturday, there was a sprinkling of snow

 

and the bird bath was frozen for the first time this winter

 

so I was very glad to have my stove to keep me warm ....... I took the photo at the end of the afternoon when it was dark, and turned the light off to highlight the flames

 

then, when I went out to shut the back storm doors, I saw these sheep on the skyline, with the sunset behind them

 

yesterday morning we popped out to get the Sunday papers, and to have a cuppa ....... and a wonderful cheese scone!

 

to finish ...... on Saturday, Malcolm was doing a bit of tidying in the garden, and found these grapes  Sadly, still not enough to make wine!