A Wintry Walk

 On Sunday afternoon we went for a walk across nearby Berryhill Fields.  We can walk here from home which is always a bonus when the roads are still icy.  Up on our hill we are always the last to see the snow disappear.

The sun came out as we set off across the snow covered grass.

This little bird was enjoying hopping on and off the remains of a snowman.  We think it is a female Lesser Whitethroat but please do tell me if that is wrong and what the sweet little bird might be.

Edit - Caroline from Ragged Robin blog has identified the little bird for me as a Stonechat. Thank you, I knew someone would know🐦

 

It was muddy as well as icy and you never knew how deep the mud was until you sank into the furrows.

Across the city to the hills of Cheshire.  To the left, on the horizon you can just see the folly at the village of Mow Cop.

Tractors had been out making dirty tracks in the snow.

The sculpture of pit wheels commemorate those lost in an accident many years ago.

I love this tree, it looks perfect in all seasons.  Winter trees have a strange beauty especially in ice and snow.

 In the distance one man and his dog on the hill, otherwise it was just us.

The pond, which had been dry all summer was full again and completely iced over.

The sky started to change as we turned and headed towards home.

Lots of people and dog tracks in the snow.

We thought these tracks were probably made by a crow as there were quite a few of them about their black feathers standing out against the white of the snow.

By this time it was getting very cold.

We'd had the best of the day.

Now we are back in lockdown and I feel for those who have to go out to work, those who are worried about their children's education, teachers and support workers in the thick of it, shop and postal workers and all those on the front line who care for our health and safety. For us things won't change much, local walks, local Co-op shop and staying indoors.  Keep warm and safe everyone.
 

All the 'ing' Things

Spotting

Birds in the Garden in the Snow

As well as the usual Goldfinches and Chaffinches we had pair Greenfinches and what we thought was a Siskin or a Serin.

 Reading

Nothing too heavy or taxing, mostly books from crime series I have been  reading.  Some a little more blood thirsty than others. They were all set in the weeks before Christmas.

The Quartet Murders by J. R. Ellis - a famous violinist is shot during a concert in Halifax. Music lover DCI Jim Oldroyd from nearby Harrogate is at the concert.  A gun is found but the perpetrator appears not to have left the theatre, meanwhile the dead violinist's valuable Stradivarius has been stolen.  Can both crimes be solved before Christmas Day?  The Christmas Carol  by M J Lee,  Genealogist Jayne Sinclair has just a few days to find out who the person in a dedication  signed by Charles Dickens, in the front of a copy of a first edition of A Christmas Carol is. The answer will affect the price when the book is sold at auction on Christmas Eve.  A Cotswold Christmas Mystery by Rebecca Tope, another adventure for Thea Slocombe and her faithful spaniel Hepzie even though all her family are gathered for Christmas a local mystery is a great distraction.  Set in Oxford A Darkly Shining Star by M S Morris is the fifth book in the enjoyable Bridget Hart series.  The murder of a tour guide of the ghostly areas of Oxford leads DI Bridget Hart and her team to a twenty year old case of a young student and actress who went missing after the final performance of Twelfth Night.  Murder Unjoyful  by Anita Waller is the fifth book and last in the Kat and Mouse series of books set in Eyam in Derbyshire.  Christmas is looming and the ladies of the Connexions agency  take on their most dangerous case to date.    Murder in Advent by David Williams is set in the fictional cathedral town of Litchester where the proposed sale of the cathedral's 1225 copy of the Magna Carta leads to murder.

Watching

Festive television - not a lot of interest but I did enjoy Upstart Crow, Worzel Gummidge, Peter Rabbit, The Man who invented Christmas and Uncle Vanya all wonderful in different ways.  Uncle Vanya was a stunning production with a great cast including the fine actor Anna Calder-Marshall as Nana and Toby Jones as Vanya.  I remember seeing Uncle Vanya at Nottingham Playhouse in 1970 when Anna Calder-Marshall played Vanya's niece Sonya.  Then Vanya was played by Paul Scofield.  I still have a copy of the programme in my collection.

Eating

Mostly good, home cooked food 

The Spelt flour Christmas Pudding I mentioned in an earlier post was a triumph. It tasted wonderful.

We still have some left in the freezer.

Participating

In a wildlife treasure hunt organised by one of people in an online group of which I am a member.  The Self Isolating Bird Club has been a joy through these dark days of tiers and lockdowns.  It's run by Chris Packham, Megan McCubbin and their team.  Everyone is kind, gentle and very helpful to others who are just learning about wildlife.  There are some amazing photographers in the group too.

 

I've also registered to take part in the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch.  We've participated in this event for quite a few years now.  It is something I look forward to doing. 

 

The snow had been melting away this morning but this afternoon we had another downfall.  How is the weather where you are?  What have you been reading lately?

 

 

Snow Day

This morning we woke up  to the muffling silence of snow.  The garden was snuggled under a brilliant soft white blanket.

People are out on the street.  A mum is pulling her two girls along on a sledge.  A  mum and dad are walking along with their little one who is wide eyed at the first snow he has probably ever seen.  I can hear squeals of delight as I'm typing.  Each family is keeping their social distance but smiling and waving to all who pass by or call encouragement from their garden gates.

 Four young male blackbirds were clamouring around the feeders waiting for nibbles so a path was made to the bird feeders.  On the hanging feeders it was finch time as we saw a bullfinch, chaffinches and goldfinches.

There are two snow caused casualties in the garden. 

The Hebe is down but hopefully may bounce back

The netting cover constructed last Spring to protect the vegetables and fruit from badgers and birds has completely collapsed and stands no chance of bouncing back.

What to do on a day like today?  I have a basket of ironing , that will keep me warm.  I have a good book on my kindle to curl up with later.  I'll write a post about my recent reading soon.

Christmas Morning

Just popping in to say thank to all who visit me here.  Thank you for reading, commenting and being such lovely blogging friends.

 Christmas will be different for us all this year but wherever you are my wish is that you have a peaceful day today finding joy in small things. Take care and stay safe.

 

Morning Sun

 We've had such strange weather over the last few days but we have been able to get out for a quick walk a few times between the raindrops.  Over the muddy fields, for which wellies are definitely needed, or around the streets locally varying the route, clockwise or anti clockwise around the block.

This was the sun at just before eleven o'clock this morning. 

We risked going out for a quick walk and were lucky. It started to rain just as we  got back home.
 

We made cheese scones for lunch but had eaten them before I thought to take a photograph, they were delicious.

I've been sorting out the Christmas decorations and gradually putting them around the house.  I was pleased to find my little singing shepherd.

I bought him from a shop in Stratford-upon-Avon some time in the late seventies or perhaps early eighties. We had probably been to see a play but I can't remember which one, we were also Christmas shopping because I remember the lights in the darkening streets as we emerged from the theatre in the late afternoon . He is actually a candle snuffer.  I remember there were other nativity characters to choose from but he appealed to me then and I still like him.

Finding the shepherd candle snuffer reminded me that I also bought a little dish from the same shop as a present for my Mum.  Of course it is now back with me and full of memories. 

Meanwhile, in the garden, little Snowdrop shoots have begun to emerge from the damp soil. Signs of hope, of new beginnings, at least one small thing to look forward to in the new year. 

 

Scents of the Season

There are quite a few delightful aromas around at this time of year to make us feel festive, even in these strange and troubled times.  

Sweet evocative smells of childhood Christmas.  Pink sugar mice, marzipan and chocolate. 

Herbs and spices, dried fruit and mixed peel.  All things citrus.  Coffee, hot chocolate and mulled wine or cider.  The kitchen aroma of mince pies fresh from the oven and gingerbread biscuits too.

The spruce smell of the door wreath.

I expect you all have a favourite.

 

This year we will miss visiting Little Moreton Hall and Haddon Hall for their Tudor Christmas events and displays.  Below are some photos taken in past years.

 

Little Moreton Hall near Congleton, Cheshire.

Haddon Hall, near Bakewell, Derbyshire

 Time now I think, for a mug of tea and a mince pie.

New Foxes

 Updates on last Friday's post.

Foxes are back but it's a new pair.  

They appeared on our wildlife camera last night.  Just look at the rain!

These two seem to have taken over from the two older foxes.  It has happened before when familiar foxes move on and new ones take their place.  They don't have a long life span especially in urban areas, perhaps two or three years.

In other news the gas people are stopping at the house next door and the rest of the road have to wait until after New Year. 

Still no post, not even junk mail.  The parcel of fruit teas cannot be tracked and the parcel from a friend, sent on 26th November, still hasn't arrived.  We posted all our cards on Monday morning so lets hope they get there in time.

Last year we couldn't be bothered to struggle to get the Christmas tree out of the roof space since then it has been cleared out and the tree left where it could be easily retrieved.  Today it was brought down from the roof space so that we can decorate it a few days before Christmas.

I've found one of the boxes of decorations for the tree.  Now where is the other one?

There was a letter in our newspaper this morning which ask the question 'Do I have the oldest artificial Christmas tree'  the writer's tree was thirty years old. I have an older one. 

Tucked away in a cardboard box alongside my childhood teddy bears is a very small tree bought for my first Christmas in December 1950, I would have been almost four months old. 

 

Into December

As it is Friday here are five things from this week

 The Calendar has turned to the last month of the year.

The four weeks of national lockdown ended on the 2nd December and we are now in tier three, so there are still many restrictions. Just as we could possibly go a little further afield than a nearby walk, although of course still within the city, the gas company who have been working in the area have reached our corner and will dig up the road outside our house, we will have walkways to get beyond the garden gate on foot but the car will have to stay put for a few more days.  The heating will have to be turned off for a while too, I hope it won't be for too long.

We received our first Christmas Card (hand delivered) on 29th November, so it's now time to think about Christmas cards and letters.  I started yesterday by writing the envelopes.  Today I will write the greetings inside the cards and put them in the envelopes then split them into three piles, local to be hand delivered, those than can be sealed with just a personal note on the card and lastly those that I will send with a longer letter which will probably be written over the weekend.  Of course the moment it is needed the printer has decided it has had enough and won't work, so  the letters will have to be hand written. 

 

Above a photo of an old postbox in Buxton taken in 2018.

 We have huge problems with post at the moment. Letters and cards are takng over a week to reach us.  We still haven't received a small parcel a friend told us they had sent over a week ago.  From comments on our local neighbourhood forum people seem to think that the explanation is staffing levels as postal workers are either off sick or self isolating as other family members are ill or have symptoms. They do work hard and have done through this year especially in difficult circumstances.

Christmas baking has been done over the last few weeks.  The cake first, then the pudding and lastly mincemeat made with the vegetarian suet we had bought for the Christmas pudding before we changed our minds and used another recipe with Spelt flour.  We used this recipe (halved) - here.

We've been stocking up on tea and coffee.  We are still using loose leaf tea to avoid tea bags.  I have English Breakfast tea in the morning and a combination of Earl Grey and Assam tea at lunchtime and in the afternoon.  Paul drinks fruit teas and one he purchased recently had a seasonal ring to it.  Partridge in a Pear Tree.  It has lots of lovely seasonal ingredients - pears, apples, rosehips, cinamon, cloves and figs but thankfully no partridge.

 

There haven't been many visitors to the garden lately.  The wet weather has put them off.  No foxes or badgers for over a week.  We are hoping that all the road works and heavy machinery haven't stopped them getting to us although it is the time of year when foxes do move around a bit more looking for mates. Up until last week the older fox we had treated for mange was visting at lunchtime for a few dog biscuits but he's not been seen for ages.  Several local cats, grey squirrels, collard doves, magpies, goldfinches, chaffinches plus great tits and blue tits make up the rest of the visitors.

 

It's going to be colder this weekend so stay safe and warm.

Ordinary Things

Times are difficult for most if not all of us at the moment in fact they have been throughout this very strange year. Events have hit some of us harder than others so it is good to dwell on the ordinary, everyday things that get us through each day. Yesterday was a typical day.  We woke to a light frost which soon melted away as the sun came out to brighten the dull morning.

 

Milk and a newspaper were collected from the local Co-op

 

and fruit and vegetables bought from the local farm shop.

We were home in time for coffee and the crossword in the newspaper and to peg out the laundry I'd left whizzing away in the machine whilst we were out.

There was time then to take our neighbour's little dog for a walk.  She can't walk him now as she has MS and is confined to a wheelchair.

 We took him by Sammie's Pool and over Fenpark. The longer walk over Berryhill Fields is waterlogged and too muddy for a little fluffy dog.

Then it was back home to warm soup and a bread roll. 

This post is just a tentative step into blogging again as I still have problems with my eyes if I am on the computer for too long.  I have been following your blogs and looking at your wonderful photos even if I can't always read all of what you have written about and comment on it.

 

Thank you to everyone who has contacted me to see how I'm getting along.