Bluebell Woods

We walked down to the Co-op this morning to get the papers and check out the boot sale in the car park. before we got there a man and his dog said "Only two cars!" and indeed there was and they hadn't even unpacked the boot yet.
Anyway, plenty of other car boots today - typically a famine last week and feast this with boots at WhiteGate, Lostock and Walnut Farm.
We drove next to Whitegate and found the field eventually by peering through hedges as we sped along the leafy lanes.
It was well attended by over 50 cars and all around the edge of the football pitch.
I got a few DVD's for a few pence each including Billy Connolly Live, The Good. The Bad and The Ugly, The Serpent & the Rainbow and a great documentatry abou the Music Hall era. Also a double DVD of Wall-E that was brand new, an unwanted Xmas gift.
Hazel didnt find much but found some tiny german dictionarys and some plants.
We drove to Lostock next and found a few stalls at the Community Centre. More DVD's including Cabin Fever and a doc. and concert with Al Green.
After lunch of mushroom pate on toast and salald we went for a walk to Marbury as it was still very sunny to see the bluebells before they faded.
So nice to see the woods transformed by the colours and the other spring flowers like the wild garlic whose strong aroma filled the air.
Actually we had lunch after the walk. the day has flown by and now Hazel is catching up with some college work and Archie who should be swotting for his GCSE's is playing some old games on the SuperNintendo he's dusted off from the cupboard.
Soon be time to start thinking about dinner. Maybe those quorn chunks Hazel bought from the health food shop.

Chester

Hazel dropped me off at the railway station this morning and we had a quick scout round for the missing number plate that vanished yesterday. She's not sure if it fell off ( just stuck with double sided tape ) or someone had stolen it for illegal porpoises. Apparently they stick it on hot cars for robberies or breaking the speed limit. In the end she went to get a replacement which cost twenty quid and the Halfords chap just stuck it on with tape again and it promptly fell off! So she made him fix it securely with screws.
The train was packed to Delamere Forest with tiny tots and their minders and I had to move from the window seat to make way for little Charlie and Abigail so they could press their sticky faces against the window and gurn at the cows and rabbits.
I had to take two collage sto the Grosvenor Museum for this years Open Exhibition. I've never tried before - always missing the sending in date for some reason or other so this year determined to take something along. It didn't seem all that busy and just one person infront of me with a large canvas covered in brown paper. All the work was resting face to the wall so no idea what the competition was like. No harm in trying though I feel past doing such things and will be greatly cheesed off if I dont get at least one accepted to make up for the bother of having to fill all those forms in and the journey and the exorbitant handling fee!

My bag was lighter now so happy to go rummaging round the charity shops. Found a nice hawaiian double LP by Alfred Apaka and His Village Serenaders and a bollywood DVD for 99p in the cheapo bookshop.
Had lunch of veg. sausage roll sitting outside the town hall surrounded by cooing pigeons.
It was very warm so regretted taking my duffle coat. I got so hot carrying it around I curtailed my shopping and got the train home only to be surrounded again at Delamere by the same group of toddlers all sweaty and grubby from their walk around the forest!
Reading matter was the great book by Philip Norman about the Beatles called "Shout", Just up to where they have just had three number ones and writing hits for Cilla Black, Billy J, Kramer and Gerry & The Pacemakers etc.

Scaffolders

They have gone now but it was very noisy for a couple of hours - clank- thump! bang ! clang! I just had to go outside and sweep the side passage of debris and dust - cough splutter! I checked the roof and it looks o.k. - no tiles dislodged as far as I can make out.

Southend Art School 1967

Old ex-student of Southend Art School , Alistair Young got in touch recently which was a nice surprise and trying to think back to what he looked like made me dig out these old snaps that Phil Spellacy took at the historic sports day back in the halycon days of 1967 - the Summer of Love and beatleish hair do's.
I may be wrong but I think that is Alistair on the back row with the glasses and the blazer? I'm sure Alistair will tell me if I am wrong! My memory of names is a bit hazy - the day too is a bit of a blur like most of the 60's - you know what they say!
I expect most of these people are retired and gaga by now. I expect Tony Oldfield and Leo Hardy are long gone. I'm still in touch with Barry, Phil, and Maureen but no idea what happened to all the others.

Alderley Edge

Catching up with the week and our doings. Ive forgotten most of it though highlights were certainly the drive to Alderley Edge for a walk among the trees and a picnic by the Wizards Trail or whatever it was called. The map pointed to many exotic locations including the Mine Workings and Beacon Hill etc. It was a beautiful day for a walk and we almost didn't make it - getting lost in the town of Alderley Edge frequented by blue rinsed ladies and WAGS and chavs. We popped into a couple of charity shops with prices that rivalled Harrods and popped straight out again! Some kind man pointed the way up the very steep hill - too steep to climb so we got the car and drove up.
You could see for miles at the top and at the very "edge" of the EDge you could peer over into a sizable abyss. It was very misty so could just make out the Pennines in the hazy distance but on a clear day I'm sure you could see Yorkshire.
The Caving Centre nearby also had a small museum with a 50 foot shaft down to an ancient copper mine below. We looked down into the pool of muddy water illuminated at the bottom by a 50 watt bulb. The man in charge says they often go down and explore the caverns and tunnels below that go off in all directions. The whole hill is perforated by many holes and tunnels that once echoed to the sound of pick axe and shovel.

Went into town yesterday to do some shopping. Found a John Lennon - Live Peace In Toronto for 99p on DVD. Some nice clips of old rockers - Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, Bo Diddley, etc. on the same bill. Spoiled only by the wailing banshee that is Yoko Ono at the very end. Also a cheap DVD from some newspaper of "Millions Like Us" a film made to boost morale in the war years.

Today we ventured to Chelford again and the huge boot sale in a big muddy field. Several big muddy fields around it too for all the cars that had to pay two fifty for the privelege of parking! It was very crowded again with the sunshine eventually breaking through the early morning haze. I didnt buy a thing despite money burning a hole in my pocket. Hazel got qite a lot though - mostly metal keys, pins, needle holders etc. Also a very old Nymph razor made of vivid green bakelite or some form of early plastic. A lovely green glass eye bath. A Medico medicine glass and some signs for the outside loo - "in case of electric shocks" and one for Archie which says "No Admittance!" Also a small tin clockwork train with the chimney missing.

Time to go and light the bar-b-q for lunch outside.

Easter Sunday/Monday

A nice sunny weekend up in Cheshire though we hear the South East was a bit grey and damp. Makes a nice change for us to get some good weather at Easter. Though this will probably turn out to be our Summer!
Hazel and Archie had fun with their circus skills in the back garden. It was nice just to sit out there and enjoy the birds tweeting and ants running off with the cake crumbs.
On Sunday hazel and I went to the big boot sale at Chelford which costs two-fiftyto park. It is huge though and took us a good hour to walk round. Hazel was annoyed at first with all the jostling and crowds but soon relaxed and bought a few things including some nails and rusty Elastoplast tins etc. I found a few DVD's including "Help!" with bonus disc of extras for two quid and loose 50p extra disc of "Pans Labyrinth".
In the afternoon we had lunch at Granma's and weeded their back garden. Took out three buckets of dandylions! Also had tea and trifle later on which was far too filling. They wanted us to eat cake as well!
Today Archie has gone off to see a friend in Weaverham and we drove on to Frodsham to look round the charity shops and have lunch in a bakery. Afterwards went to Lady Heys antique centre to rummage in more junk. Bought another recycled tin indian lantern to balance up the other one. Its made from baby milk cans. Also a record by Jimmy Durante which will no doubt feature on my blog soon. It has all his hits on it like "Ink Dinka Doo" and "The Lost Chord" etc.
Hazel got more metal thingies for her blog. We tried some freee samples of beer in the Staion House micro-brewery that's just opened. Delicious bottled ales . We bought three to try.

Nantwich - Alsager

A nice day out to Nantwich to go round the charity shops. We had lunch outside a cafe watching the world go by. It was very sunny and warm - like a real Summers day.
There was live music too from a great band called the Swing Commanders on a small stage in the town square. They played lots of western swing and some old Andrews Sisters songs etc. Here you see a clip of their Hawaiian War Chant. This Flip video really doesnt do them justice.
Then off to see Tony and Pene and their sons and new grand-children Esme and Ellwood. Sat in the garden and had tea and cake. Nice to catch up with what everyone was doing and see the babies do their thing. Being cute and the centre of attention ofcourse. I bounced Esme on my knee but she looked like she might cryso I gave her back to Daddy pretty sharpish!


We got home just in time to see the easter Dr. Who and have some cheese on toast.
Have also been watching the new Red Dwarf trilogy which is O.K. but nothing special. I found the old Smeg Ups afterwards much funnier.

Another Week

Another week has flown by.
Our chimney has been knocked down by Bruce the builder and he's putting it back up again. It looks pretty good so far but his visits have been a bit erratic being "double booked" and the house over the road has distracted him too - overseeing the plumber and electrician etc.
I have a new Epson scanner which I managed to track down and had delivered on Friday. Its been working fine ( touch wood) and have enjoyed raking through piles of old negatives and slides to upload, I still have trouble with some of the settings for more obscure size negatives but it seems to cope with most things. See results at Flickr or on Facebook.
Today we avoided the rain and went to Chester for a wander round the shops and see the buskers etc. Motley groups of musicains playing accordions ( four in all ) and two trumpet players within a hundred yards of each other. Standing in the middle you got a weird ossilating sterao effect! Also the juggler above who had trouble atrracting a crowd at first and could hardly be heard above the din of the accordion and trumpet group. One of the highets diabolo throws I have ever seen. One of those big halibut faced aeroplanes flew over during his performance which brought a surreal slant to the proceedings.
Had a nice vege sausage roll for lunch. Managed to drag Hazel from the Morgans shop before she spent huge ammounts of money on a tentlike dress.
I got a Victor Borge 10 inch LP from a charity shop but not much else. hazel bought a book about inventions in the Oxfam and Archie got a book about piano chords ( much to our surprise) in the Works.
Got the "park & Ride" back and got home in time to make Bruce a cuppa before the rain came down and he covered up the chimney and went home.