Today’s picture is of a spinet which arrived at our tootle evening.
It was once again too cold for a morning ride so I got myself organised and did some work on the Heritage DVD and put a week of the E&L into the database before lunch. By lunch the temperature had shot up to 6º which was most unexpected and welcome.
I stiffened my sinews, packed my new camera into its very handy rucksack, got the speedy bike out and set off once again to Grange Quarry. It was a lovely afternoon, although there was a nippy northerly wind which made the journey home quite chilly for the last few miles. The camera rucksack is very cleverly designed so that, at a touch, you can swing it round and get things out from in front of you without having to take it off. This is particularly good because it means that often I can take a photo without having to get off the bike. I haven’t tried any landscape with it before so this was a first effort.
As soon as you get a camera, you realise just how many telephone and electricity wires there are about.
In the evening Mrs Tootlepedal (who is the evil queen) went out to the first night of Snow White. It went reasonably well and the audience enjoyed it a lot, though a late change of position of a vital piece of scenery caused the actors some palpitations. I am going to see the show on Saturday when I hope it will be at its peak.
I went to Carlisle with Dropscone’s daughter Susan to play recorder and to my delight, Roy brought Heather’s spinet which he has been looking after and we spent an evening playing baroque concertos and sonatas accompanied by Heather at the keyboard. It was the first time I had played some of these pieces since my son Alistair used to lie in his pram as a baby in the sitting room being rocked off to sleep by the best of the baroque. It made my week, which has been good so far, even better.
I did find time to catch a blackbird on a hedge.
and a goldfinch well puffed up against the early morning chill..
Tootlepedal's Blog 
Your new camera seems to take landscapes just as well as birds. I do approve of the fact that you name your birds for the unintiated. The goldfinch looked really cosy, all puffed up.
Loved the landscape photos too, particularly the one from Callister.
It was a gorgeous day which helped (a lot).
So glad you enjoyed the spinet evening. The photographs are so clear, you must be pleased