Biathlon

Rowan and her school mates Kiri and Gabby were once more in Biathlon action at the weekend, at Macclesfied for the regional semi-final. Parents did not go, and I think it is fair to say that enthusiasm for the event is diminishing [this is their fourth year]. They still got 3rd best team though.

Joined up thinking

In the Assembly Rooms in York there is a 3D model of the city. It has braille signs on it so you can feel your way around it and read the signs if you are blind. If you can touch it that is; the model is in a glass case so you can touch neither the model nor the braille signs...

Big Garden Birdwatch

It is the annual Big Garden Birdwatch when you record the number of each bird you see in the garden for one hour over the weekend. This year I saw 13 species [a record]. Here are the details:

2011 [14 species]

Blue Tit 3

Collared Dove 1

Robin 1

Great Tit 2

Blackbird 2

House Sparrow 5

Dunnock 1

Chaffinch 1

Siskin 2

Goldfinch 1

Greenfinch 2

Starling 1

Magpie 1

Wood Pigeon 3

2010 [12 species]

Blackbird 1

Blue tit 2

Carrion crow 1

Collared dove 2

Dunnock 2

Great tit 2

House Sparrow 3

Long tailed tit 2

Magpie 2

Robin 2

Starling 1

Wood pigeon 1

2009 [13 species]

Blackbird 3

Blue tit 2

Carrion crow 1

Collared dove 2

Dunnock 1

Goldfinch 3

Great tit 2

Greenfinch 1

House sparrow 4

Magpie 1

Robin 1

Woodpigeon 6

Wren 1

2008 [11 species]

Blackbird 3

Blue tit 3

Collared dove 2

Dunnock 2

Goldfinch 5

Great tit 2

Greenfinch 3

House sparrow 4

Robin 1

Song Thrush 1

Woodpigeon 4

Family

Found this photo of Rowan, aged about 2 or 3 with her grandfather Royce and great great uncle Ralph both now sadly deceased. She seems to be managing to smile at the same time as drinking milk from her bottle.

London days

Found this photo of my house in Tottenham from 20 years ago. The globe lives on, the Dobro made its way to Derwood in California where it was used on some tracks.

Scholarship

Here is the River Ouse frozen last month. It is still cold but the snow has all gone.

Rowan has won a Sports Scholarship for school; we are all pleased and glad that she has reward for all the hard work she puts in.

Bird News

I saw a Linnet for the first time in the garden yesterday. It was on the thistle seed feeder, so I got a good look at it.

Last week I saw a Grey Wagtail by the pond, which was not a first, but still a rare occurrence. It is such a beautiful bird with such a dull name.

Peace Testimony

Yesterday Rowan and the rest of Link Group at Quaker meeting presented a film they had made on the Quaker Peace Testimony. It went down very well, and included interviews from a York Quaker who had had to attend a Tribunal in the last war.

The photo is of the group.

Wolds

Went a 100k ride up to the top of the Wolds with Edward and Robert. Great to be out on a beautiful, if freezing cold, day. The photo is of a tumulus on top of Garowby Hill; just as impressive as the pyramids to me.

Patrick & Julia and Joanna [who I have known for 35 years] and Ashley came round for a dinner party. I cooked a couple of things from my Betty's cooking course, Rowan made us a chocolate pudding, and Danielle did the main course based on a recipe from Dave & Emma. A good night.

Book Group - Pastoral

Book Group last week we discussed Pastoral by Nevil Shute. Most of us had never read anything by this writer, even though he had been very popular in the 60s. The book got all but one of us enjoying a lot more than we thought we would. It is about a WAAF and a pilot, so I asked Mother to re-read it and give us her comments which were really interesting for the group.

The photo is from the floods at York 11 years ago.

Doncaster Cross

I have had this shot hanging on the wall for a few weeks and I think I like it. It was taken with my phone, into the sun, in Doncaster. I like the bleak urban setting with the figure and the cross cast as a shadow next to the figure.

RWP @ NRM

This is the card I did for Rowan's 13th birthday. The shots were all taken over the years on the same bit of play equipment at the National Rail Museum.

CakeTime

We have a tradition that Danielle makes the cake for Rowan's birthday with impressive icing. Cakes in the past have included Octopus and trains. This year was in line with the theme of the party – a whodunit? Disaster was averted on the night before the party when I helpfully [?] noticed that the question mark was back to front; Danielle re-did it and here is the result. Tasted good too.

From Croatia

I was given this Christmas decoration by a couple in Croatia. It is a painted cookie with mirrors that you hang on your tree each year. 27 years on it is nearing its last legs I think, its partner crumbled away a few years ago, but hopefully I can keep it in one piece for a few more years yet.

The couple who gave it to me very hospitable and friendly. We stayed the night in their mountain cottage and this decoration was their parting gift to us.

I saw them once more in their flat in Zagreb in 1988. After that I heard no more. I often wonder what happened to them, these proud erudite communists [he had been a partizan fighter in the second world war] who were about to be engulfed in the wars that followed the break up of Yugoslavia.

Hull

After a leisurely morning spent opening presents [photo] we set off to Sheffield where Rowan was playing for York in a netball match against the bad girls of Hull Chevron. A lot of allardycian tactics from the east yorkshire team[moving the net-post when York were shooting being only the most blatant] left our girls a little shocked. The Chevrons won but by the end of the game York were doing a lot better, not getting pushed around so much; a lesson learned. Rowan did score with a great one-foot swivel shot that got even the dour Hull parents clapping.

For the first time Rowan was in the bath listening to the charts this evening – becoming a teenager bang on cue.

Teenage

Rowan is a teenager today. Despite Harry Enfield fears, she has been charming this morning. Yesterday she had her party - a murder mystery for her 15 [count them] class mates. It all took place upstairs in the extension and involved fancy dress, lots of screaming and no tears; a success.

More Netball

Here is the last photo from Christmas. Ben with the children. It already seems a while ago. It would be good to be able to see them all more often.

Rowan's school team won at Netball today against a school who make a big deal about being a netball school. It was a real achievement.

Dales 2

Another shot from the Dales.

Today I got a ride in, to Knaresborough. All the weather-enforced lay off has taken its toll on my condition. I met a few other cyclists, all of us feeling a bit rough.

I was listening to a dramatisation of Tolstoy's Anna Karenina on the ride. I have not read the book; the character of Anna is so annoying, are you meant to sympathise with her?

Dales 1

Another view from the Dales. Hawes is a proper little market town with real shops etc. It must be one the most remote such towns in the country; it really is miles from any main road. This is partly because Wensleydale is a relatively fertile and broad dale, meaning that the head of the dale can support a town. Most other dales become barren and unproductive by the time they are this far from the plain.

Hair Style

There has been a lot of requests for photos of Danielle's new hair style - so here it is. One of the presents I got Danielle for Christmas was a Groupon deal on a local gym, which we went to have a look at today. Very nice but all a bit too auto-centric for me, it would be hard to cycle there in the dark etc.

Waterfalls

Near the hotel was a waterfall with paths around it, perfect for walking the dog and absolutely full of raging water. Here are Danielle, Rowan and Milo on the twisting cobbled path that leads down to the beck.

The Dales

The Wensleydale Cheese creamery at Hawes holds a special place in our family folklore. It was here that the one year old Rowan ate her first cheese. Up till then cheese had been an idli food [I don't like it]; however at Hawes the waiter in the restaurant had insisted that "kids often like our Wensleydale even when they don't like cheese.." and he was right.

So for our Danielle birthday weekend away location this year all four of us went to a hotel near Hawes http://www.simonstonehall.com/. Previous locations have included Whitby, Newcastle, Hull [two nights reduced to one when the reality dawned], London [without Rowan] a couple of times and now Hawes.

Getting there was a real Friday night drive and a half. Snow, ice, twisted steep country roads. All was fine until the final rise into the car park where the car said "no" [in Czech obviously, being a Skoda]. Luckily we could drive round and in the exit. So we had two great days in the Dales.

This photo is from a walk we did on the Saturday afternoon. Any sheep we have to put Milo on the lead. He is definitely a hard-wired sheepdog from somewhere in his unknown genetic make-up; so much so that he went crazy when he saw four sculptures of sheep [more abstract than realistic] in the town centre.

The Minster

I try not to take if for granted being able to see York Minster from the moor, when I walk the dog. This was the scene on Christmas morning, with the sun just beginning to rise and catch the Minster before the rest of us felt its warmth.

KC

Another photo of KC from the family visit. They are all safely back home in DC now.

New Year's day I went round for the traditional meal at Patrick and Julia's. A great way of starting the new year.

The end for North End

Rowan made this Chocolate Pie over Christmas; it was demolished in record time.

Preston North End are heading for relegation from the Championship. The mistake was to have anything to do with Alex Ferguson [his son was PNE manager]. So it will be back to the lower leagues for a few years. My dream of ever seeing them in the top flight looks to be staying that way; the two play-off finals seem a long time ago.

Looks like cousin Will's team, Ipswich, may well join us down there.

Snow News

The snow which fell in November and has been with us ever since was just finally totally disappearing by yesterday, a few bits of ice still around. This morning we had a fresh load of snow, so the winter goes on.

The photo is from the Boxing Day Quaker walk - Milo being the star attraction.

Blackstone Edge

Yesterday I took Ben Kari Liam and KC back to Manchester Airport to get there flight back home. The time has gone quickly, sorry to see them go.

On the way back I nipped up Blackstone Edge. I love the grimy south pennines.

Baking

Danielle did some baking with Liam: it worked a treat, he was happy and the cookies were eatable.

New Years Eve we went out early for a meal with John and Heather at Caesar's Italian restaurant in town. Danielle and I then nipped out to our new neighbours who were having a New Years Eve party. Good people with some interesting friends. One woman turned out to be a lute player, who knew Jacob [our lute playing friend from Richmond] - usual small world realities.

Edinburgh Trip

Happy New Year!

We all went up to Edinburgh last week, it all went well with the visit to Dynamic Earth http://www.dynamicearth.co.uk/ being the highlight. This is a child friendly exhibition about geology.

This shot is from Waverley station; I love the different levels in Edinburgh, a real change from most British cities.

Happy New Year