Somewhat exposed

Today’s picture from my sister Mary’s recent walk shows a very unbalanced looking building beside the Thames.  As it is the offices of the Greater London Council maybe it is the weight of bureaucrats that is making it top heavy.

I was surprised that Wauchope Cottage didn’t look a bit like that when we got up because there had been a howling wind during the night.  It eased off a bit during the day but it was still brisk and very chilly.  I was tempted to go cycling as was Mrs Tootlepedal but we had a lot of tidying up to do and whenever we looked outside, the wind seemed to be blowing particularly hard so we resisted the temptation quite easily.

After breakfast I went up to the High Street to deliver my photographs (and Sandy’s entries too) to Mel who had offered to take them over to Newcastleton for us as she had to go anyway.  We were grateful as it saved us a journey.  I also picked up a camera lens cap that I had mislaid at the Moorland feeders and which Dr Barlow had found and retrieved.  When I returned, I noticed this wagtail, a resident of Henry Street, on the pavement.

It is fearless and hops across the road between the passing cars.

Mrs Tootlepedal had gone off to a choir practice and I took a moment to look out of the window

We are promised more snow and the birds must have sensed that it was coming as the feeders were very busy for most of the day.

There were a lot of bramblings about today, sometimes even outnumbering the chaffinches.

Total feeder takeover

A siskin managed to sneak in here

I had the end of an old loaf about me, a rare occurrence, and I scattered some pieces on the lawn and waited to see who would notice.

A starling arrived but treated the bread with deep suspicion. It must have thought it too good to be true.

The jackdaws were less picky.

..or more, depending on how you look at it.

The chaffinches would rather queue for seeds than pick up bread.

I went to an upstairs window for a different angle.

And caught a different bird

The robins do not linger on the feeder for longer than it takes them to pick up a seed.

This jackdaw didn’t like the look of the bread either

When Mrs Tootlepedal returned we set about tidying up the front room which I use as my office and a music room.   As this is the room with leaky wall and is not fully decorated, it has a somewhat rough and ready appearance and I had let it get very disorganised.  With the extremely active help of Mrs Tootlepedal, it was in a more respectable state and ready for visitors by the early afternoon.  I took advantage of a dry spell to go for a brisk walk in the equally brisk wind.  I had sandycam with me and for once left the wildlife alone and focused on the built environment as they call it these days.

The impressive gable end of the Victorian Police Station

This digger is taking the very first steps in the building of a new primary school

A colourful wall on the Lodge Walks

Although Langholm is in general a rather grey town, there are nice touches on all sides. Does this indicate a house with two earners?

A rendered house by the waterside sticks out among the prevailing greys

A wonderful conglomeration of different styles of stonework at the Skinyards.

A more cohesive example in Lizzie’s Entry.  Even this is not in any way monotonous.

Every terrace in Langholm has been improved over the years by the addition of dormer windows.  This example is in Caroline Street.

Looking across to the other side of the Wauchope, I fell once more for the geometric charms of our parish church.

In the evening, my flute pupil Luke came.  He is continuing to make progress and this week he is going off to Carlisle to visit a proper flute teacher who ought to be able to give him some useful guidance on how to improve his technique.  I have told him to pay attention to her and to ignore anything that I have told him if she says something different.  He is an attentive lad and I am hoping that he will be able to pass on some useful tips to me when he comes back as my flute technique can best be described as primitive.

After tea, Isabel and Mike came to play trios with me instead of me going to them.  This was so that Isabel could try my electronic keyboard which offers a harpsichord impersonation.  She thought that it was very good and played away with vigour but all the same I think we will play at hers next time as Mike says that playing with a harpsichord accompaniment lets us hear ourselves playing too clearly for comfort and he prefers to be wrapped up in the comforting sound of Isabel’s grand piano.

A brambling, not unnaturally, takes pride of place as flying bird of the day today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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