Hepworth

This is a Barbara Hepworth sculpture at Snape [good to have a bit of Yorkshire art down there I think].
Saturday evening we went for dinner with new-neighbours old-friends Nick and Carol, with Heather and Fiona. Great food and chat, and always nice to have people we know nearby.

Little Hob Moor

There is a part of Little Hob Moor that we call the orchard; not a real one, but plenty of trees. The sunlight was catching the leaves last week in the warm sun.

Pau

Here is our lodger Pau who seems to be getting on OK with his English summer school - he was playing 5-a-side with some Lybians and Angolans yesterday.
After the customary England debacle we are now fully behind our second team, those plucky underdogs from the USA.

Humberhead 2

I appreciate that you see one shot of the desolate marshland of Humberhead and you have seen quite a few of them, but here is one more with a scrape in view.

Humberhead

The Humberhead peatlands are one of my favourite places. Sheltered from the real world by grim pitless pit villages and chain-mailed pitbulls and their dogs, you have to be a real determined explorer to ever get there. Once there I walked for four hours and saw one person [this is a bit of a shock]. On the ipod I had a play about a distopian future where people had been banished from much of the country; just for a moment it really felt as if I was walking through that world myself.
I saw a Hobby http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/h/hobby/index.aspx which was a first for me, and a Marsh Harrier http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/m/marshharrier/index.aspx which I had last seen in Spain.

Busy Times

I am now safely home. Meantime we have a Spanish lodger, Pau, for a month [the son of a friend of a friend who is studying law in Barcelona and needs to brush up his English in the summer from a language school here in York]. And Rowan is doing her work experience in central London, so is staying with friends in Muswell Hill. So there is plenty going on.

The photo is from Snape, where I took Mother on a off-piste wheelchair excursion on Saturday.

Saxon Classic

I have been down in Suffolk this weekend, to see my Mother and Sister and to also ride a 100 mile sportive - The Saxon Classic which loops around Suffolk from Ipswich to Sutton Hoo, Dunwich etc. It was a great route and my plan to have a cup of tea with the family in Great Glemham collapsed when I got there too early. My fault. My ride time was well under 6 hours which is a PB I think [don't really know my times from 20 odd years ago]. For my age group, it qualified as a Gold standard. So all of that adds up to why I might look a bit smug in this photo which Ro took of me [on her iPhone of course].

Lectures

Another two lectures; one on Mapping the First World War http://yorkfestivalofideas.com/2014/talks/mapping-wwi/ which was fascinating [this included the memorable line that "Not all generals in the First World War were stupid. Some were very intelligent". Then yesterday was architecture with the author of "Bricks and Mortals" http://yorkfestivalofideas.com/2014/talks/bricks-and-mortals/ This was a much more academic affair with a little too much pomposity and preciousness; still good though. There is always someone I know one way or another at these events, and Maggie was there yesterday - good to catch up.

The photo is of a Flag in the pond in the garden.

Friargate

Outside the Quaker Meeting House after meeting one sunny summer's day

Festival Of Ideas

The brilliant York Festival of Ideas has started http://yorkfestivalofideas.com/2014/ . This is a series of free lectures on various topics, across the City.
Yesterday I went to one of The Moor http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/may/08/moor-lives-landscape-literature-william-atkins-review a book by William Atkins. He was very good and I even ended up buying a copy.
Tonight is Mapping the First World War which will be good too I am sure.

The photo is of Rowan and Milo by the Pocklington Canal.

Meadows

The meadows alongside the Pocklington Canal were a delicate beauty.

The First Selfie

Fathers Day yesterday - Danielle was away at Woodbrooke so Rowan brought me breakfast in bed, before we went a walk with the dog along Pocklington Canal. Another lovely sunny day. My gift was the new Tony Parsons book which, so far, is a good read.

London Day

The day after the awards I walked up in the warm sunshine from Kings Cross to Muswell Hill through many old haunts. There I took some photos of Kath then went into town with Rob & Kath to meet up with Mark at the Century Club in Shaftesbury Avenue to watch Cameroon v Mexico in the World Cup. A really great sunny lovely day with [very] old friends.

As you can see I am some way off Danielle's glamour level.

Charity Awards

It was the annual Charity Awards dinner in Park Lane this week http://www.charityawards.co.uk/. Danielle is one of the judges so she had to "host" a table. I go along as the trophy husband. On our table were Gaby Roslin and Nelufar Hedayat  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelufar_Hedayat who I sat next to, she is an amazing young woman, and various dignitaries. It was a really good evening, with some inspiring award winners to hear about.

The photo is of Danielle being interviewed on camera.

The Garden 6

We have attempted to plant a chamomile lawn underneath what used to be the swing and climbing frame. Not sure it is going to work but it is fun trying.

The Railway Pond

One of the old brick ponds that are scattered around York is just across the tracks from the Moor; it is known as the Railway Pond on account of the sidings that used to cover this part of York. An energetic group of local people have recently completely cleared the scrub willow and general undergrowth to reveal a beautiful oasis. Here it is one evening.

Garden 5

The logs are stacked around the garden. A beautiful thing to behold.

Chilli

The Chilli plants I bought three years ago are still going strong churning out great peppers. They are upstairs in the extension, which they obviously love. I made another batch of Chilli Jam this weekend which should keep us going for a good while.

Balloon Season

The Balloon flights that launch from the Knavesmire have started again. It is a fairly remarkable sight to see a big bag of material emerge from the grass and slowly raise itself up to the sky. I have no real desire to be in it, but am always glad to see them take off and fly.

Garden 4

The pond has settled down really well, it must be about 10 years old now. The two log-stools are a new addition and make it easier to sit and look at the pond-life. There are many newts that live in the pond - lovely things.

Break Time

Rowan does give herself breaks from revision, one day we went for a walk in Bishop's Wood, near Cawood. A marvellous forest which we all love.

Garden 3

The Foxgloves have managed to emerge from the battering rain to look pristine and lovely.

Garden 2

Using the tons of woodchip from the Willow felling I have been able to sort out the beds around the bee-enclosure which should mean I can keep on top of them - for a while anyway.

Garden 1

In amidst the perpetual rains of June there has been the odd dry day enabling me to get into the garden and try to keep on top of it. So here is the first of a few photographs of how it is looking these days.

This is a part of the huge haul of Willow that the tree felling produced. These logs will season and dry out for a year of two, before being split and burned on the wood burner.

In the background you can see the climbing frame that has now become a plant arch. The idea is to get clematis and vines all over it. Not sure if that is going to work. Time will tell.

High Jump

Rowan was jumping for York yesterday. She won. Thought you might like to see how it all works.

Rescue Bee

As a bee-keeper Danielle sometimes gets called out via the Police or Fire to collect swarms that have landed amongst unsuspecting residents. Yesterday we went to an estate in Clifton to try to get the Queen into our bucket. It did not work but it did create maximum entertainment for everyone in the street

House Guest

Cousin Will came over from Manchester to see us at the weekend. Great to see him and catch up on how he is getting on. 23, living with four friends in Manchester, working in a hospital, sounds good. Friday evening we went to see neighbour Andy's band again, then Saturday we walked into town for lunch, and I cooked a curry for tea.

The photo is of Rowan and Danielle on the way down to London last week.