I've been so homesick lately and so caught up in where I've been, I thought it was about time I showed up in my present. Time to be here now, as they say. It's time for a tour through my village....
Our tour begins out my front door. Hey! Who's that in the window?
Yup, it's the traditional Victorian semi-detached (I've always found the term semi-detached so optimistic! You're still attached to another house, just not on both sides!!) 'two up two down' style of old worker's accomodation. There's this big farm out behind our house, which I reckon was once much bigger and more productive and probably the reason the houses in this row were built, for the farmhands. But now the land is used as pasture and a portion of it as a fair grounds for the weekly car boot sale (kind of like an antique fair, but anybody can bring anything down to sell - so there are also lots of pirated DVD's and CD's and probable stolen goods as well! You drive in and set up a table stall in front of your trunk or your boot if you're British).
The rest of the week the farm is inhabited entirely by....
Donkeys! Thus our journey begins with a big hello to my donkey friend, Abner. Abner is called Abner only because
Donkey Doodle Dandy is already taken. Here, you can also see scenes like this - proof that it's not only Americans who leave their cars up on blocks in the back yard!
From the donkey farm we'll walk down the lane to the centerpiece of the village, The Green and the Village Pond.
The banners are up already in anticipation of Guy Fawkes Day. Remember, remember the 5th of November.... See that big Tudor house in the background, apparently Queen Elizabeth I stayed there from 1572 to 1575. I wonder what she was doing here?
Here's the ugly duckling on the pond. More about him later......
The light was fantastic this morning.....
So, we've fed the ducks our moldy bread and we're off into the center of the village where.....
you'll see things like this as you're walking through....
A few folks are showing support for England in the Rugby World Cup tonight. England v. South Africa! Go England!
But, why would you want to go anywhere else?
As a girl who has spent most of her adult life living in the city, there's something I find so charming about having to clear out of the way for a tractor.
So, we've made it through to the other side of the village and we're now on Stonebridge Lane which leads us through the surrounding farmland and under believe it or not, a stone bridge! This is where I try and jog most mornings.....
The horses have got their jackets on to protect against the freezing cold nights we've been having.
Or else they've got a rider to keep them warm.
Did you notice that she's on the phone?
This is where our journey ends, because it's here where our narrator was looking up at some birds flying overhead and not watching where she was walking and rolled her ankle off the edge of the pavement! This only slightly proves her husband's description of her as someone with her head in the clouds, but her feet on the ground. She took a good fall into a nice deep pool of mud, banged her shoulder and her camera up and was rolling on the ground in self pity when a nice little old lady drove by and asked if she was alright and was kind enough to offer her a lift home. A big shout out to Pam of Long Itchington, you're a peach! Thanks!
favourite knits...
the arrival of winter birds
harvesting the tomatillos and making salsa (recipe coming soon....)
A couple of weeks ago I mentioned how good it would be for me to revisit some of my favorite photographs and share the where's and why's with you. Well, here you go! These are some of my favorite photos of all: the birds.
Familiar? You saw this little wagtail on my roof earlier this autumn. I absolutely love this photo, it's probably my favorite of all the lucky shots I got this year. I am in love with the sense of movement that the blurred last remains of the sweetgum tree in the background provide. It was only a fleeting moment that the little guy alighted and in this photo you can sense his panic when he saw me in the window behind him.
This little Sawhet Owl turned up to roost on my parents' porch in the weeks leading up to my wedding last year. My folks have a ranch bed out on their back patio, and I like to sleep out there when I come to visit. For whatever reason, I never sleep sounder than when I'm sleeping outdoors. Even when I'm camping I usually just use my tent as place to stash my backpack away from the dew and the ticks and mozzies, while I prefer to sleep under the stars. This little fella woke me up in the early hours one morning when his wingtips brushed my face as he swooped in and perched on the vines only about 4 or 5 feet above, staring down on me with those suspicious and knowing eyes all the while.
Another Czech bird, a european Jackdaw (a relative of the crow and the blue jay) eyeing me up for a tasty snack.
And the grand finale, a guardian of Warwick castle here in my neck of the woods.
1) Sharing a breakfast of champions with the man I love and (yesterday's) Guardian. The supplement this weekend was the guide to baking, how auspicious was that?! By the way, the secret ingredient of the breakfast of champions: maple syrup and tabasco, baby. Mmmm.....
3) Discovering where Brussels Sprouts come from.
4) Making these cookies. Oatmeal scotchies...the toll house recipe of course, smuggled in from America and my all-time favorite cookie.
5) This souvenir from my in-laws' recent holiday in Egypt. Those belly dance lessons will be coming in handy afterall.
6 1/2) That in England you get to say Happy Christmas instead.
The view out my work space window this morning. I am completely in love with this photo!
I've been so homesick lately and so caught up in where I've been, I thought it was about time I showed up in my present. Time to be here now, as they say. It's time for a tour through my village....
Our tour begins out my front door. Hey! Who's that in the window?
Donkeys! Thus our journey begins with a big hello to my donkey friend, Abner. Abner is called Abner only because Donkey Doodle Dandy is already taken. Here, you can also see scenes like this - proof that it's not only Americans who leave their cars up on blocks in the back yard!
From the donkey farm we'll walk down the lane to the centerpiece of the village, The Green and the Village Pond.
The banners are up already in anticipation of Guy Fawkes Day. Remember, remember the 5th of November.... See that big Tudor house in the background, apparently Queen Elizabeth I stayed there from 1572 to 1575. I wonder what she was doing here?
So, we've fed the ducks our moldy bread and we're off into the center of the village where.....
But, why would you want to go anywhere else?
Did you notice that she's on the phone?
Who is this handsome devil? At first I thought it was a Ruddy Duck in winter plumage, but have come to believe that she is, in fact, a female Tufted Duck after scouring the RSPB guide to the birds of Britain and Europe. Did I mention I'm a birder? Isn't that dorky?
