Tuesday 25 December 2018

Happy Christmas

         Wishing all my blogger friends a very Happy Christmas. I hope you all have a lovely day.

                   
   

Thursday 20 December 2018

A Significant Day for Commuters

Time flies by and we are speeding towards Christmas at a tremendous rate. I thought I had started my preparations early but as always I still have lots to do hence the lack of posts on here.
 Monday was a momentous day for those who regularly travel in and out of South Wales. There are two Severn Bridges which cross from England over the River Severn into Wales. The first was opened in 1966 and the second in 1996. Both have charged a toll on the west side on entering Wales since they were built. The beginning of this week saw the abolishment of the toll on both bridges.
 Student daughter and myself had to travel to Cardiff on this momentous day. We crossed by means of the newer bridge. 


Temporary signs have been erected.


There is a lot of work to be done to remove the pay booths.


Although this is great news for the motorist. It will not be so great for the 100 or so staff who have been made redundant.


Tuesday 11 December 2018

A Late Dog Walk

Frequently I leave walking Poppy to near the end of the day. The trouble is that it is easy to get caught out at this time of year and be walking in the dark. Sunday afternoon was really quite bright and once we had all had a bit of a rest after Sunday roast it was time to coerce Poppy out of her bed.


Actually she really enjoys her walks and is always keen to go out especially if she has one of her toys with her.


Typically I didn't have my camera with me but had to rely on my phone which has a really bad battery.
I managed one or two decent 'End of the Day' pictures which could be alright for the Winter photo hunt.



And in the other direction.



Friday 7 December 2018

Moving On

I mentioned a while that we had work being done on the farmhouse roof and that changes were planned. Farmer Husband and I have decided to move from our present house into part of the farmhouse. This has not been an easy decision because this was where my mother in law lived but was also farmer husband's childhood home. It has been an emotional road clearing the house for all of the family. We have been aware that things would look worse before they could get better.
Building work has now seriously started and a long project is ahead of us with lots of work and many decisions to be made.
 These pictures show some early progress. The old kitchen is beginning to be knocked about.


Walls are disappearing.


Internal doors are on the move.




Upstairs the attic room is having an ensuite built in.




I hope to be able to show you some progress over the weeks and months ahead. Meanwhile the tea and coffee making continues. The sugar bowl is needing filling more often than usual. The cake making continues in order to keep the builders sweet and happy.
Watch this space!

Wednesday 5 December 2018

5 in 5 : A Dull Day in the City

The fifth of each month is 5 in 5 day. This is when we join Sandie at Itchifingers with her meme where you take as many photos as you wish in 5 minutes and then choose 5 of them.
 I had to make a trip into central Bristol for a check up at the eye hospital. I travelled in and out from the park and ride on the new metro bus. A colossal amount of money has been spent on the route for this bus and this was my first experience of it. You have to get your ticket before you board from a machine that takes no cash. I'm usually fairly adept at such things but couldn't fathom out what ticket I needed without some help from the lady behind me in the queue. Then more help was needed to get my contactless card the correct way round....
Anyway the journey was pretty uneventful apart from the long route the bus takes to get just down the road. I was also a little perturbed at how high the fly over bridge seemed from upstairs on the bus then I found myself ducking at the proximity of the girders above my head as we crossed the river bridge!
 Bristol initially seemed very drab on a dull winter's day as I wandered through Broadmead shopping centre. Then I came across some Christmas cheer.
Looking through one of the passage ways the Christmas lights were inviting and uplifting. This passage leads to John Wesley's chapel and the New Room which is in fact one of the oldest buildings around! The new room was built in 1739 and is the oldest Methodist chapel in the world. 


There is a statue of John Wesley on his horse in the forecourt. He was of course the founder of the Methodist movement and he and his brother Charles spent a lot of time in Bristol. Part of the building is now a museum and his horse's stable can be seen before you enter.


Looking back the other way the hustle and bustle of modern life is just visible through the archway.


Back on the shopping mall just outside the Christmas market stalls are set up ready for the day.


They too give a brightness and a feeling of cheer to the dull day.





Monday 3 December 2018

A 15th Century Legacy

Last Friday I went on my walk with my walking group from a village in Wiltshire called Langley Burrell. Our route took us along a road which has a long history. A local land owner Maud Heath had left a legacy on her death in 1474 for a cobbled causeway to be built for 4.5 miles from the village of Bremhill to Chippenham market in order to improve the walk for villagers taking their goods to market. The trust from this legacy then built a bridge of 64 arches in 1811 to cross the River Avon and the surrounding flood plains. This walkway is still in use.


It still provides a dry walkway when the road floods in wet weather. 


There is also a sundial at the side of the road in her memory.


The day was too dull to tell the time.


A lady with far reaching foresight.

Saturday 1 December 2018

Outside the Rules

Today is the first day of December and the beginning of the Winter Photography Scavenger Hunt. This is created by Eileen at A Bracelet of Days and she has given us another great list. She is encouraging everyone to join in. So here is the list.

1. At the end of the day
2. Pool of light
3. Fastener
4. Nail
5. A group activity
6. Water dispenser
7. Horse
8. Chocolate
9. Peel/peeling
10. Holly
11. Dressed for the season
12. Glitter
13. An instruction
14. A crossing place
15. Flight
16. A measurement
17. Orange
18. A natural feature
19. A carved object
20. A method of communication

If you find any of the above hard to get you may substitute one or both of the subjects below.

Alt A. A keyring  
Alt B. Show and tell - something you made 

I will be joining in again this year. I only read the list yesterday evening and found that several of the pictures that I had taken on our walk during the afternoon would suit the categories. Here they but sadly they were taken outside the time limit.

Pool of light. The river we crossed.


Dressed for the season. Wrapped up for our walk.


Horse. This grey horse obligingly stood in the right place.



I shall enjoy searching out possibilities for this hunt.

Wednesday 28 November 2018

Birthday Celebrations Continue

Thank you for your birthday wishes. I had a lovely day and I must admit to feeling any different now I have arrived in the next decade. We had lunch at a venue which I have been wanting to go to for a while. The Yeo Valley Headquarters Canteen. 
It has a novel display outside it's entrance. I don't expect there are many children that can resist playing with it.


The farm theme continues in the vestibule.


The headquarters to this well known dairy producer is high up on the hill above the village of Blagdon just on the northern edges of the Mendips. The view of Blagdon lake and the surrounding hills is in theory magnificent. Sadly yesterday rain and low cloud obscured this for most of our visit. It cleared slightly just as we were leaving.


It is in close proximity to one of their main farms. A huge map on the wall in the corridor indicates their location and that of the producers that supply the canteen. 


The canteen started out as it's name suggests as the staff canteen for Yeo Valley employees. It became known by locals, it was officially opened to the public and now requires the booking of a table sometimes weeks in advance. All of the food served is organic and is mainly sourced locally.
Much of the decor is quite quirky and includes many 'up cycled ' items. 




There is certainly plenty to look at while you await your meal.


We were joined by my mum and my sister.


Note the interesting lampshades behind us on both sides.


The food was all delicious. Trying the desserts was almost essential. I went for a lemon posset topped with their compote.


Farmer husband tried an apple crumble sundae.


Mum and my sister both went for ice creams.


One of the benefits of visiting the canteen is that you can use their discounted shop. We therefore stocked up with yogurts, ice creams and other dairy products before leaving.
Then it was home for birthday tea with the rest of the family and another fantastic cake made by farmer daughter.



Monday 26 November 2018

Beginning to Celebrate

It's a while since I did a post with being quite busy plus a lack of photos to post but here I am on this overcast Monday morning. I am making the most of today because tomorrow I leap into my sixties! How did that happen?
The celebrations have actually already started. Student daughter arrived home for the weekend with a lovely bouquet of flowers.


Yesterday we took my family out for Sunday lunch. It was a rare occasion to get all of us together even though we now all reside back in the UK. 


I had the obligatory badge and glass.


I share my birthday with my younger great nephew who will be 1 on Tuesday. 



It was then back to enjoy some family time together. Farmer daughter had done an admirable job cake making and decorating with a little help from her sister and my mum.





There are further celebrations to look forward to during the week.


However by the end of yesterday everyone was ready for a rest.