Today’s guest picture is the Silk Mill in Derby which was passed by my brother Andrew on a very calm day recently. He notes that the rowing eight in the background seem to be lacking a sense of direction. Perhaps they are our Brexit negotiation team relaxing.
We had a very grey and dismal day here today and I made the best of it by having an extremely relaxing morning doing nothing at all. It was the sort of day that Saturday newspapers, with their endless supplements full of guff, are made for.
Well, to tell the truth, I did do a little as I made a venison stew for the slow cooker and some potato and carrot soup for lunch. The soup would have tasted better if I had remembered to put some onions in.
I did occasionally glance out of the kitchen window. A collared dove looked about as fed up as I was…
…but a blue tit looked a little perkier…
…and even did some tricks to entertain me.
The chaffinches were confused and flew in all directions at once.
A jackdaw took a dim view of the whole situation. I know how it felt.
After lunch, Mrs Tootlepedal went off to an Embroiderers’ Guild meeting and I retired to the computer to waste time doing things so badly that they had to be done again. In this way, I passed the time until I was driven out to stretch my legs by boredom.
I had a look round the garden before setting off on a short three bridges walk.
I discovered that I had been underestimating the clematis in the back bed. I thought that it had only had one flower but not only could I see a new flower coming, I could clearly see a seed head as well so it may end up with three flowers for the year.
The autumn colour was not very exciting today….
… but I was excited to see Mrs Tootlepedal driving over the Langholm Bridge on the way home after her meeting.
The Christmas lights have been strung along the bridge already. We must be the first town on the light erectors’ list this year.
There were almost as many leaves on the ground as there are still on the tree beside the suspension bridge….
…but they make a cheerful sight on the road.
Our lone gull was still standing on its rock staring fixedly down the river, presumably with the hope of seeing a friend coming.
It wasn’t a day for views so I noted the variety of lichens on the Sawmill Brig parapet…
…the herb robert growing out of the wall opposite the sawmill….
…and the water retaining moss on the top of the wall.
I took the new path round the bottom of the Castleholm…
…and kept an eye out for fungus.
I didn’t have much luck and when I finally did see a crop on a tree beside the Scholar’s Field, some creature had got there first…
…and eaten my photo opportunity.
When I got in, I had a cup of tea with Mrs Tootlepedal and then went off to practise music for our Carlisle choir. The musical director has very kindly made demos of herself singing the various parts for several of the trickier songs and I used these to help learn the tenor parts. The trouble is that it is quite possible to persuade yourself that you can sing the parts only to find that it isn’t so easy with another eighty people singing different parts at the same time….especially if the composer or arranger has a taste for crunchy chords. Still, any help is welcome.
Mrs Tootlepedal cooked some potatoes and marrow to go with the slow cooked venison stew but couldn’t get over the feeling that she was being watched as she prepared to eat her meal.
The flying bird of the day is a suitably gloomy chaffinch to match the weather.
I generally have a problem if my meal stares at me. Some posh restaurants seem to like serving fish with their heads still intact. I try to cover the head with mashed potatoes. Trying to work out who her dish reminds me of. Would I be correct if I guessed that it was you who arranged it?
It was more serendipity than intention but I was the waiter on this occasion.
I don’t want to see the fish head!
Onions are a critical ingredient to savory dishes!
The sun shone from a cloudless sky here in London…
Shining on the just. 🙂
I love the color of that clematis and I’m surprised to see an herb Robert blooming in October.
The shot of the fallen leaves is very good. Excellent colors!
The new path is very colorful too. I think I’d walk it regularly.
Mrs. T.s plate looks owlish. I can imagine how she felt.
I was hoping to see more fungus along the new path so it was a bit of a disappointment for me on this occasion.
Walking through drifts of colourful leaves is one of the joys of autumn. Sadly most here are raked up now or flattened under tires, but they were a treat while they lasted.
There is a special childish (in the best sense) joy in kicking up a cloud of leaves.
GREAT POST and GREAT PHOTOS as always. Our landscape is beginning to show some color now, too. ‘Tis the season…
Enjoy it while you can. There is talk of a cold winter again here.
I try not to eat things that are still looking at me. 🙂
The leaf picture was nice and colourful.
That tree has particularly cheerful leaves.
It is indeed a fine tree.
I once read a vegetarian quote about never eating anything that once had a face.
It’s good advice, though my fondness for bacon and sausages has so far prevented me adopting a more ethical lifestyle.
I loved that shot you took of the fallen leaves and the clever way you arranged the food on your supper plate, very amusing.
I am sure it must be very difficult to sing tenor with all those other people singing something else. Good luck with the practising.
I liked the photo of Mrs T returning home. Nothing makes me happier than seeing the Homestead mobile pull up at the gate.
A very proper feeling.
Lovely to see that you still have colour in your garden to cheer you up. Love the photos of the leaves on the ground and the herb robert. The face in the meal is spooky maybe it will reappear for Hallowe’en!
There is more marrow to be eaten so googly eyes may re-appear.
The stew has disappeared so who knows when the opportunity will occur again. 🙂
Despite the grey day, you were able to find quite a bit of color in the flowers and the leaves. If your blue tits behave as our chickadees do, they are always entertaining to watch, but hard to photograph because of how quickly they move around, even when perched.
You can add me to the list of people who don’t care to have their food staring at them as they prepare to eat it, although in jest, they do say that presentation is everything when it comes to fine dining.
Mrs T tucked in with relish.
Blue tits are kinder than coal tits which are very flighty.
Best to look out when your food starts watching you. Nice of picture of the tree with leaves on the ground and leaves on the branches.
I suspect that spies were lurking beneath the mashed potato.
No doubt!
I like that tree, It is always a picture both in spring and autumn.
I like the seagull watching for a friend! Your garden is much more colourful than mine – it’s good to know the clematis has done better than you originally thought.
The garden is a lot more colourful in carefully selected photos than it is real life when it is a bit of a soggy mess.
Edited highlights! Our garden is still too dry.
You live in a dry part of the country of course. We could do with better weather sharing.
Hehe! Yes!