Back on the Bike

It was great to get out on the bike today. Danielle had bought me an Ortlieb bar bag for my mountain bike for Xmas, so I gave it a test run. My route took me through Tadcaster then on bridle ways to Sherborne and through a strange landscape of recently shut mines and railway systems at Gasgogne Wood to Selby and back to York on the old railway line.
This shot was near Saxton; it is one of those "in loving memory" benches, made more poignant to me by the location - looking across a bleak ploughed field towards a power station.

Frendal Dale

A beautiful morning, so Rowan and I took Milo for a walk in the Wolds. I took this photo pretty blind, so was really pleased to find it looked like this; a great surprise.

This is Frendal Dale with a lot of iron age earthworks at its head.

Boston

It is always sad to say farewell to Mother; today I drove her to the designated safe-house at Peterborough for the handover to Ro. For the journey back I routed via Boston, where I saw this windmill under a menacing sky, the Lincolnshire Wolds [not a patch on ours] and the Humber bridge.

Helmet

Mother bought Danielle this new helmet for Christmas. "Bright" and "different" are some of the words that have been used to describe it.

Boxing Day Walk

We went on the Boxing Day Quaker walk at Tockwith. Heavy rain in the night meant the river had flooded so the route had to be altered. Terry had devised an i-spy quiz so everyone was happy. We invited our newish German neighbours to come and they seemed to enjoy.

Fox Hunting

Danielle's old school in the States has just received the ultimate accolade: being slagged off by Fox News  http://video.foxnews.com/v/1341417697001/students-act-in-occupy-north-pole . Fox is so bad it is hard not to believe it is an Onion spoof from this side of the pond. Haranguing against the dangerous message of peace and harmony...

Meantime the Wheel is back in York. It and the Minster can be seen from Hob Moor.

Happy Xmas 2011

Happy Christmas to all.
Danielle, Rowan, Milo and I went a run yesterday. Sad to say I can now confirm that I am the fourth fastest runner in the family. How did that happen?
Three generations in front of the tree just before present opening.
Candlelit Quaker meeting yesterday evening was a great as ever - hard to believe this is our 14th Christmas in York.

Xmas 2002

This photo is from Christmas 2002. BJ had died that October so it was good to have Ben and Royce over with us. You may notice that Rowan has changed a bit since this shot.

Cav!

Another photo from the netball, the trio arranged in terms of height and age.
A couple of parties yesterday evening. Danielle and I went to Poly and Alan's party for our bit of the street - good to chat to people; we have an amazingly good group of neighbours. Then Rowan and I went to Dave and Emma's who were having a "Cav for BBC Sports Personality of the Year" party. He duly won http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/sports_personality/16303729.stm [despite Rowan voting for Mo Farrah!] and it was good to watch it with a group [it is a truly terrible program though]. Then up early this morning to finish off a bit of work. No rest ...

Family

Rowan and I drove down to Oxford to pick up Mother from Stratton Audley. Saw nearly a clean sweep of the relatives, which was good. Then back down to Sheffield on Wednesday where Rowan was doing a netball academy session. Mother got to see Rowan playing netball at the EIS in comfortable surroundings, which is where the photo was taken.

Velodrome!

I was back on the boards at the Manchester velodrome yesterday. A mate of Edward's had arranged a session on the track. So 9 of us, including Edward's son Toby and one ex-pro met up and had a go. I was less terified than last time, I got up towards the top of the track this time. Stopping however is nerve wracking in the extreme. One of those experiences that gets better the longer the time from when  you did it. I would definitely go back though.

After the session on the track we all went into town for a couple of pints and a curry: my first night out in Manchester for a very long time [it was where I spent quite a lot of my youth]. Good stuff. The photo is after the ride.

Baildon

Today was a beautiful crisp morning. Rowan had her first Triathlon Academy get together - a mountain bike ride on the ice. Friend Dave kindly lent her his mountain bike, and she managed it without falling off to many times. All smiles. Meantime Danielle and I went a walk down the Leeds Liverpool canal at Baildon, that is a milestone in the picture [11 miles to Leeds, 161 to Liverpool]. Full of interest.

Christmas Meeting

Today was the last day of school for Rowan. Here she is with friend Amelia in the brass section of the orchestra and the Christmas meeting, when we all go and sing carols etc - very enjoyable this year.

Trespass

Another shot from the Wolds. This was high above the deserted village of Wharram Percy. I decided on a bit of mild trespass through a wood that led down to the village. Milo, naturally, chose this moment to go missing, do for 20 minutes I was wondering a) would I still have a dog and b) would I get shot by some gamekeeper. In the end all was well.

Party pt 2

Four days after our last party we hosted another one. This was the much more sedate annual book group get together with a quiz on the books we had read in the year, wine, food that people had brought, wine, a desert island disc choice [one book, one piece of music, one luxury] and a lot of good chat.
The photo is from the Wolds, a couple of the Ash trees that seem to be the only type of tree that thrives in the bottom of the dry valleys.

Keys

I was sorting out the keys at home, and thought this would look good as a photo. I like it.

Lowry

This photo should give you an idea about the Lowry trail in Berwick. Notice
a] studious tourist
b] the painting of the shelter [on wind-resistant iron easel]
c] the actual shelter
Great idea/

Berwick

Here is a shot from Berwick. It is a very interesting town with intact walls, and plenty of snickets like this one with the North Sea in the background. It feels like Scotland, with the accent being more Scottish than Geordie but is part of England [although the football team play in the Scottish league].

Party Party

The Party, was a blast. Guests were asked for three favorite dance tracks, these were then subjected to a taste filter. It meant we had a really great night, with everyone on their feet. Adrian had lent me his Fender PA which meant we had a good sound system, Danielle had done some tasty nibbles and Rowan had three friends for company. The room really came into its own.

Over the years I have often had parties at this time of year, near my birthday but not linked to it.
1978 - Princes Road flat in Liverpool 8. It was inconceivable of a party having food, or of it starting before the pubs shut. Door kicked in, TV stolen, a bloke wandering in to our room and asking if I had a spare pair of jeans - his had been stolen.

1979 - we had a sub-culture party at Taylor House in Oxford. I was in Devo, Mark was a rasta ... Rob & Doug and Steve turned up too [they always seemed to somehow]

1981 - first of a series of crazy parties at Cannonbury Place flat in Islington. Included a 70s party that was well ahead of its time, and a Mike and Derwood performance one time.

1994 - a Tottenham party that had my band performing in the garden.

After that parties tended to get a bit more geared to talk and food. We both missed the dancing, hence this party.

People were demanding a repeat for next year - we will see.

Pheasant

Here is the Pheasant that graced the garden this week. Where did it come from? Rowan was off playing Netball this morning, I got some last minute supplies for the party this evening.

Berwick

For my birthday treat Danielle took me off to Berwick for the day. We stayed at a great little hotel we had discovered when cycling through Berwick last year on the Newcastle to Edinburgh Sustrans route. In the afternoon we walked the Lowry Trail http://www.berwick-pt.co.uk/lowry_trail.htm which was really excellent. After that the storm set in so we were happy to have booked a meal in the restaurant at the hotel  http://www.sallyport.co.uk/ .
Amzingly the trains are on time today as we return home. Friend Hilary was house/dog/baby sitting for us.

When I'm 54

Birthday. Breakfast in bed, walk the dog in the Wolds. Danielle in London, Rowan gone to Leeds to see Annie [the musical not a person]. Just about to set off to play badminton - Edward is definitely on top at the moment, so if I win I shall let you know.
A few places left on my workshop in the new year.

Clarity

Sorry about the gap there. Can't believe it is Tuesday already this week. I had a good work meeting yesterday which clarified what they wanted me to do [not something that is always clear with some of my clients]. This photo is from the walk we did last week, if you look top right you will see the thoughtfully present horse and rider.
Saw a Pheasant in the garden yesterday for the first time for a few years. It looked bewildered and happy to be scoffing the bird seed.

70 miles

Dave and  I got a 70 mile ride in today. The rain held off and it was not too cold, a bit of sun, a great day. The route went via the western edge of Harrogate to Fountains Abbey which is perfect for a lunch stop. The return is more direct via Boroughbridge and Benningborough. Absolutely cattled at the end of it. Good ride.

Millington

Danielle and I both had the day off today. We had a great walk in the Wolds at Millington where we discovered this lovely waymark on the Wolds Way long distance footpath [if you look in the distance you will see the third member of the walking party]. We had lunch at the Balloon Tree then saw Rowan play in a school music evening.

Bach & Buzzard

I saw this Buzzard in the Wolds earlier in the week.

20 years after I first got into classical music I finally got around to listening to some Bach cello suites on Spotify. Fantastic stuff and it really does sound hyper-modern in some respects.

Triathlon Academy

Rowan has been chosen for the Yorkshire Triathlon Academy http://www.triathlon-academy.co.uk/ which is a great achievement. The program includes trips to the velodrome at Manchester, and a mountain bike weekend away. Here is a photo of her in tri action from warmer times back in the summer.

UFQ

Danielle and I went to a gig at the NCEM last night with Patrick and Adrian, it was the Urban Folk Quartet http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWp3xxfYBOs&feature=related who were really fantastic.

In the day I got some fresh air after three days of the exhibition by walking in the Wolds [having been talking about to punters all weekend]. These sheep wondered what I was doing. I walked for 2 1/2 hours and saw one other human [bit of a shock, that was].

Inspired 3

Final day at Inspired went the best of the three, so things felt a lot better than on Friday. This shot, of Worm Dale got a lot of interest which, again, was pleasing; I like it but was not sure how it would go down.

Inspired 2

Inspired picked up a lot today. Plenty of good contacts, some sales. We got coverage in the Press  http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/leisure/exhibitions/9385884.The_Inspired_Christmas_2011_

This photo has proved a big talking point, which is good as I really like it, but never assumed it would necessarily strike a chord with others.

Coincidence

Inspired started today, and it was a slow day. Problems with the venue. Should be better tomorrow we all hope.
Lunchtime I went for a stroll to Prets to get some lunch. The Isley Brothers on the iPod, one of my all-time favorite bands. I got into them when still at school, loved Ernie's guitar. I have since found out that Danielle's cousin has done their make-up before now. Anyway, Summer Breeze came on the headphones just as I entered the cafe, I was thinking "I have never heard the original of this song..." I order my latte and mozzarella croissant and listen to the music on the Prets sound system; it is Seals & Croft and the original of Summer Breeze. Now what are the chances of that, a 35 year old song being played on cue?

   This photo is from 2006, one of the Oxford gargoyles.

Inspired Reminder

A reminder that Inspired runs for 3 days from tomorrow. We are all set up and ready to go.

This year I have a large canvas of Coast up which works really well in that medium.
Just back from watching a school production, Alice, which was a nicely post-modern version of Alice in Wonderland that was enjoyable - a big improvement on conventional versions.

Book Group

In book group we discussed The View From Castle Rock by Alice Munro. No one really liked it, no one really hated it. Some [ok, me] did not finish it.

My scroll through old photos has got to 2005 and this shot of the Constantine statue outside the Minster, with Rowan and her red nose day nose getting in the shot.

D'Olivera

Basil D'Olivera, the cricketer, has died http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basil_D'Oliveira . I shook his hand when I was a boy watching him play for England at Old Trafford.
The photo is of Cliffords Tower in York.

Spen Valley

Saturday, Rowan was cycling down the Spen Valley Cycleway http://www.sustrans.org.uk/sustrans-near-you/north-of-england/easy-rides-in-the-north-of-england/spen-valley-greenway in Bradford with the Triathlon club. So I walked down the converted railway line with Milo and really enjoyed it. It is amazing how quickly the city turns to the semi-rural / sub-urban.
This photo show an interesting philosophical graffiti shoot-out on one of the bridges.

Hickleton Hall

My work generally takes me to the dark and dingy side of town. Visiting a social services location rarely coincides with great architecture. So you have to make the most of the exceptions when they arise. This is Hickleton Hall, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Hickleton_-_Hickleton_Hall.jpg which is now a Sue Ryder nursing home near Donny which I visited last week.

It is an amazing place, in a lovely location.

Mira Leaves

Rowan ran in the York & District schools cross country race on Thursday for her school, years 8&9. 144 competitors, one winner. Proud of her; we didn't even know she was competing.

Mira went back to Germany after staying with us for a week. She is a lovely girl, we were very lucky to have her.
The photo is of Happy Valley at Aberdvy where we go each year.

Candour

I don't often take candid shots any more - it used to be my main m.o when I started out in London. On the Walk it seemed intrusive and inappropriate to take shots without asking first. Now I focus on other aspects of my work. But I saw this shot today - the contrast of the joy of materialism and the reality of the lonely fag-break seemed to good to miss. She didn't seem to mind.

Swim Match

We got to watch Rowan swimming for the school last week - it is a couple of years since we last saw a match. It was a good close match, that they won. This is Rowan doing the butterfly.

Drinking

Danielle and I went to another Wine Society tasting at St Williams College in York last week. The wines were all from Spain, and we had a great time. As usual there were people we knew there which makes it a nicely informal social occasion. Eddie and people we had cycled in Scotland with last year were there this time.

Meantime here is Milo's approach to drinking when he is thirsty - Get in the Glass.

DVSM

On Hob Moor there has been an outbreak of a fungus all over the moor. One of the Friends found out its official title Dog's Vomit Slime Mould http://botit.botany.wisc.edu/toms_fungi/june99.html, which has to be one of the best names for anything - it is also surely a band name somewhere in the world.

Magna

Last night Rowan had friend Helen and their two German exchanges for a sleep-over. They were all upstairs leaving the downstairs nice and quiet for us. It seemed to go OK. Then today Rowan, Mira, Danielle and I went to Magna http://www.visitmagna.co.uk/ in Rotherham which was quiet and good fun. We then had lunch at Meadowhall http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meadowhall_Centre which was neither, being a massive mall. We did choose Giraffe though, which is a great place to eat.
The photo is of Rowan and Mira amidst Magna, an amazing old steelworks.

Harrogate

Rowan was playing netball for the school in a round-robin event at Harrogate, where they played five matches. She went in the school minibus, so Dave and I decided to combine a good bike ride [no rain this week, just mild sunshine]with seeing her play two games. She was brilliant [TISSM] and they did really well as a team.
From Harrogate we went to Knaresborough for lunch then back to York. Dave is still annoyingly fit from his climbing trip to Kyrgystan las month, so I spent a lot of time in his wheel.
Friend Derwood sent me this link http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-15689652 reckoning it looks like one of mine. I agree, a bit underpriced though...

Exchange

Rowan's German exchange arrived yesterday evening. Mira is a lovely girl, I hope she likes it here. We took her straight to the Weatherby Wailer for fish and chips which seemed to go down well

Woody Returns

It has been a couple of years since we saw our Greater Spotted Woodpecker, so it was a great surprise to see him today; I had just put out some new bird-feed so it obviously attracted him.

Inspired

I am exhibiting with five other artists at Inspired again this year. Still the St Nicholas Fair weekend, but in a different venue this year.

Coffee

When I left home to live in Leeds, aged 17 in 1975, I stayed initially with my brother-in-laws brother in Chapeltown. Day one, I had courgettes for the first time in my life, cooked by Jane. Day two Steve announced “don't have sugar in coffee, it's too expensive”. I was their guest so I obeyed, but he never said “don't have sugar in tea” so despite not having sugar in my coffee I carried on with sugar in my tea for another 10 years before it dawned on me that I didn't like it.

1984 I was hitching up north. I arrived, unplanned, at Joanna's family house in Leeds. Jo was not there, but here mum welcomed me into the busy home. People in and out, conversation criss-crossing the room; “Would you like a coffee Simon?”,

“Yes please”

“Well here's the grinder, and here is the coffee”

Up to then I am not sure if I knew that coffee came from ground beans, but I got into the swing of grinding then by hand. It is a ritual that has stayed with me, coffee from pre-ground powder is just not the same.

The photo is one of the first of Rowan walking - although actually she was already running by this stage

Light Showers

Dave and I went a ride yesterday. "A couple of showers" said Accuweather. Started off dry, after half an hour a heavy drizzle began, and carried on, and on to Knaresborough for lunch, and on all the way back to York. Oh, and I had a puncture. Wet through, but warm and surprisingly happy, we both rode strongly [the only way to keep the cold away].

In the evening I went to John & Katy's traditional allotment bonfire party - Danielle and Rowan stayed at home to look after Milo.
The photo is Mother and I in 2000 at Waddesdon manor.

35 Years On

Tuesday evening in London I met up with Charlie, Rob and Mark and went for an Indian. 35 years on since we met. Then I stayed with Mark & Mandy in their arts & craft house in Wimbledon - very nice.
The next day I had lunch at Regents College where Maria is a lecturer in psycho-therapy, four years or so since we last caught up with each other.

Continuing the trawl through old photos, this is Rowan and her adored friend and neighbour Helen when we lived in Newlands Drive in York. 

Halloween

Rowan went to a Halloween party on Monday night - that is one annual ritual I am very happy to outsource. Here she is in her ghoulish costume [and hand made t shirt].

London

This is Rowan playing with her cousins James & George long ago.
Yesterday I came down to London for the second of my autumn networking trips. I had lunch with Victor at the House of Lords which is always a bit of a hoot. Then I walked up to Long Acre via the V&A who had a really good photography exhibition on [tucked away on level 3] There were some great Cartier-Bresson shots there which I had not seen for a long while. It made me realise how much I was influenced by some of the old masters. There was a very good Ansell Adams landscape as well. Very inspirational

Deer Barnsley

Cycling through the woods on Sunday I stop and look around me. A magnificent stag is having a look at me; but this is no wild beast, but part of the famous [well it was on farming today once] deer farm of Barnsley. Fenced into fields but still magnificent, ready to be eaten by humans. Other unusual animals I have seen farmed recently include Ostrich at Alne and Llama in the Wolds.