Category: countryside
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A Walk In The Woods
The rain hasn’t stopped all morning, so I thought I’d share some photos I took last week in Worcestershire, in the few hours on Thursday morning when the sun actually came out to play. As I was in Worcestershire, I decided to take the dog for a walk around my old stomping ground – Hanbury…
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Peregrine on the fence
It’s usually me who spots the unusual visitors to our garden, but it was the husband who spotted this little chap, sitting on the fence yesterday afternoon. Dreadful picture I admit, but I was excited and if I’d opened the door, he’d have been off. But take it from me, it’s a peregrine falcon. He was kind…
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A Good Year For The Roses…
In which Elvis Costello sings to me every time I go into the garden… I feel as if I’ve slipped into a parallel universe at the moment. My garden has decided to put on an incredible show of flowers – mostly roses – without me having anything at all to do with it. I must…
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Quirky Grey’s Court
In which we make an impromptu visit to a 16th-century manor house and wish we’d taken our gloves. Just before the heat wave that we’re still enjoying started, we found ourselves rather unexpectedly over near Henley -on-Thames one Sunday afternoon, and as we don’t go out in that direction very often, decided to visit the…
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Walking Meditations & Whiplash
Ever since the girls got too big to want me to walk to school with them, I’ve found myself spending more and more time indoors, when what I really need, is to get out into the fresh air and go for a walk. Now I know it really isn’t difficult to put your shoes on…
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Jackdaws in the garden…
In which two jackdaws decide to hang around our garden… Evidence that photos taken through the kitchen window in the rain don’t come out terribly well… We were delighted last week to discover that we had been adopted by a pair of jackdaws. They seemed to come several times every day – sometimes looking for…
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Blitzing the borage…
In which hopes of borage bite the dust… Amongst the more virulent members of our garden inhabitants, is a plant, which for the last few years, I have been used to calling borage. It was my mother – usually extremely competent in plant identification, who told me what it was. So I have been happily regaling friends over the…
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March: In Like A Lamb…
Today is the first day of March; happy St David’s Day to everyone in Wales. Until 1752, we’d also have been wishing each other ‘Happy New Year’ and in some ways, with new life bursting forth, it makes more sense to celebrate the new year now, rather than in dreary January. For the last few…
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Spring Has Sprung
I’m sitting here in a reasonably warm house (although never let anyone convince you that a glass desk is a good idea), while we wait for the next dumping of snow in the Home Counties. As the temperature hasn’t managed to climb into the plus numbers for three days, much of the snow from the…
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Chilling Out in Sutherland
I know that spending three weeks, touring the north of England and Scotland in two small tents, isn’t everyone’s idea of a great holiday, but it happens to be mine (well in the absence of funds to do it in five-star hotels anyway). Which is why, after exploring Ardnamurchan for a few days, we set off…
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A Visit To Canon’s Ashby & A Picnic.
Canon’s Ashby House in very rural Northamptonshire, is one of those half forgotten manor houses that pepper England, and when you find them, you feel as if you’ve been let into a precious secret. I probably shouldn’t even write about Canon’s Ashby in case it gets big headed and loses it’s charm; but I will,…
Mostly Motley 