It's been a while but I have been, and still am, poorly. Nothing serious but five weeks now of Labirynthitis, or Vertigo to me and the average Joe on the street. This affects your balance and seriously hinders your ability to stand, or even crawl !!  Never mind stand still and take a photo or strangely enough, to stare at anything for too long. It is a very nausiating illness in lots of ways including 'sleep mode'.
Anyway, my Daughter spent ages decorating the tree and the mantlepiece with the Crimbo decorations. All colour co-ordinated and aesthetically balanced, baubles counted, sized and matched in pairs to seperate when placed oh so carefully on the tree. No tinsel on the tree but carefully placed around the base. The little festive ornaments all spread evenly across the top of the fireplace had their own wrap of tinsel too.
Then I found these still in the 'xmas-decs' box. I couldn't resist this little arrangement of my own.
Sally is out at School, she'll go daft when she see's what I have done.

Old King Coal

"When I wah a lad, I had one of these"
Loved trucking, especially in the days before speed limiters and 7.5ton weight limits everywhere. You could drive through towns and down country lanes and folks respected you and the size of your vehicle but also allowed for it. These days they just cut you up and curse at you for slowing them down.
Every villager and townie wants weight limits on thier roads, to match the speed limits already imposed.
If it wasn't for the truck, there'd be nowt in your shop "me-duck". In fact there wouldn't be a shop, or a road leading to it !! So leave me alone, I'll do my job, and truck off home.
This particular 38 tonner was the bees knees in it's day and although tipper work is dirty, dusty hard driving, I loved it, and this was an awesome tool for doing it in. Loads of power and comfortable, and a night heater! A real luxury in the eighties and early nineties.

House Warming

Saturday was a chance to catch up with my Sister-in-law and my Nephew. Craig has got a 'new' house with his beloved Eva. They had a house-warming on Saturday to which we all went, meeting Charlie and Co as well as my Dad there. Nice afternoon with a few nibbles.

Alex eating some of the delicious Flap-Jack cooked by Jacqui (Craigs Mum).

Voices, inside my head (G.Sumner)

Shadows, psyche, telepathy, unconciously talking to the world, or only to some, in the wake of our thoughts the memories rise and fall.
Barely ripples at times or the power to swamp all actions like a full bowl of water when dropped squarely will throw up the centre of its entirity towards the stars from whence it came,.
Vain attempts at shouting to untrained ears for we are ignorant of the multitude around us. One day we may understand before it's too late, but maybe these telepathic ramblings are reserved for unsaid farewells

Dogged Tigers

Last night Jac and I went off to the dogs with some of my work colleagues, lost bets on 14 out of 15 races so an overall wallet bashing.
Today I took Alex over to Leicester to watch the Tigers depleted team take on the full strength 'Sarries' (Saracens RFC). With 11 of the first team on World cup duty in New Zealand the Tigers second team were really up against it, as the 25 to 50 results reflected. Good effort though.

Photo group at work asks for 'homework' to keep us all picking up our lenses and pointing them at things.
This Months is "Abstract household item" and a bonus one "Red". I have killed the proverbial birds with this.

It also makes your hands feel as soft as your face, allegedly!

A ride out in windy and showery Derbyshire. Through Ashbourne and a circuit taking the famous 'Snake Pass' and 'Cat and Fiddle' roads and back through Ashbourne.
Here at the "Ladybower Inn' close to the Ladybower reservoir.

Mr Giles the farmer going cross country

A couple of years ago Mr Giles put in new gates and fencing around his fields. This year he has planted wheat on some of those fields and it is now time to harvest it. The problem is he can't get his combine through the gates!!
Here he is going cross-country to reach the rest of his crops.

Remi Jade

Ouch me-thinks. That'll be 2G Dad two then, I'm still trying to accept the title of Grandad achieved last year and here is confirmation of the name.

Remi Jade with her Dad just after arriving home.

Aye Eye

Tried to get a macro shot of wheat but it looked less than good. Then found a dead Wasp on the window-board and came up with this.. I'm sure it could have got better if I had the time and the patience.

Skegvegas. Day trip seaside for Chissits

A day at the seaside, well an afternoon at least. We had a lovely time eating seaside chips, ice creams and waffles as well as a funfair ride or two and quite a while trying to win on the 'tupenny' shove machines.
In Skegness us Leicester and Nott's folk are known as "Chissits", due to our lazy accent and when enquiring the price of goods the retailers have on sale we ask of the price,  "Owmuchissit"?

More bugs than grains of sand

Went to Skeggy (Skegness) on Tuesday afternoon. Four of us as Michael was working, Jac on a half day, kids on summer break and me on days off. Seaside chips,ice cream, waffles, log flume and sand. Millions of Ladybirds all over the rocks at the top of the beach. Some alive, some dead, but more than enough to be a nuisance.

Today oi'll be droyvin the four levered truck

It's a kind of holiday. I get away from the PC screens and my colleague gets away from work. This week he's off, for some of that time I cover his role of Forklift driver. So today I'm driving this truck with enough levers for each of my fingers on the right!
Bit boring I know but I haven't blogged for a few days. Updates comin soon.

Good boy prize

Jac bought me a bar of chocolate to take with me to another night shift. A prize for completing a whole year off the fags.
A work colleague who is recently a one year'er told me a few weeks ago that his understanding is that any weight gain during the withdrawal stages would drop off after a year. Well I stayed up all night to watch but I'm still a fat B :)
Seriously though I am seeing a small but significant reduction in my overall weight, maybe I'm losing a little muscle and replacing it with chocolate, thereby losing weight but gaining size :( Who knows?,,,,or cares?
Anyway, as of 1/8/11 (1st Aug to you Yanks) I became a one year'er off the fagerettes. "Yay go me" one might yelp in delight.

The lake at Le Fleshe

On the River Loir (not the Loire !) upstream of Le Fleshe France is a natural beach in a man made lake. Does that make sense. It's a quarry ex workings but the sandy beach is naturally occurring washed up sand. Commercialised only as far the French will i.e. A toilet block and an occasional visit from an ice cream van. Trouble is of course is that when it's nice weather it's very busy, and not much to do when its not.
It's a six mile walk from our tent, along the River, past the ice making water mill, around the lake and back to our tent, nice whatever the weather.

NB Le Fleshe AKA Le Fleche

♫ There'll be bluebirds over ♪

Its that time of year when we go on our annual holidays. This year we're off to the continent via Dover again. 2am sailing. Bon voyage

Harry Potter

Its two in the morning n I'm out collecting from the local flickture house after the first showing of the latest and supposedly last Harry Potter. Wingardium dontbelievioso!

That stumped me

Try to put a fence up with these things in the way, it's a nightmare. Still, this is hopefully the last in the way of the fence line.
Since our lovely next door neighbour (lovely lady...)decided to clear the thorn bushes behind her garden for access to the football field at the back of us, I have had to bring forward the erection I was planning!  She will regret it when they have a tournament and the tag-along little (scrotes) brothers and sisters that turn up for the day start getting bored and looking for somewhere else to (wreck) play.
The problem is she, or should I say her (lazy arse) daughter, has (got her Nephew to) cleared out the thorn bushes along the corner/back of our garden leaving it exposed to any little (shits) tykes that should wish to gain access to our property.
What this means is that the four foot high fence we intended to erect to define the end of our garden from the Haw and Blackthorns is now going to be six to seven foot high barricade instead, just to save a 500yard walk for a certain person and her under enthusiastic dog.

Petfoods is 60

Saturday 2nd July
The local petfood manufacturer reached the grand old age of 60 this year. Nice party in thier grounds with picnics and a few old fashioned fairground attractions as well as the bouncy castles. A band played into the evening and dancing was promoted using free alcohol.

Rutland Water

Thursday 30th June
A few shots taken at Englands smallest County's biggest puddle
Thanks to Jac,Knoxie and Ness (Mrs Knoxie) for the company

The Wall

June 27th 2011
Roger Waters The Wall
Comfortably Numb

 By far the best 'gig' I have ever, ever been to. EVER. What a show!

Sun-day headache

I don't do heat very well, in fact there was an area at work I was banned from working in because I'd collapsed twice in the humid heat. Consequently I keep out of the Sun until I build up a certain amount of resiliance to it each year.
Sunday 26th June.
After an eight hour night shift I decide to dig up a tree root at the top of the garden. Night shifts leave me dehydrated for some reason, my intolerance of the Sun on my head and getting to hot on top the dehydrated state my bod was in led to the inevitable headache. This one felt different. No painkillers had touched it. 31/2hrs after it began I was worried enough to let (ask) Jac to phone NHS direct.
To cut a long story short, I end up in Leicester Royal Infirmary having my head examined. Needless to say thought that the headache started to dissipate on the journey over there.
Happy Days :(

Maisie is ONE

Saturday 26th June
Charlie and Zak have a BBQ party to celebrate Maisies first Birthday. No BBQ included?
They decided to have a buffet style kitchen/garden party because the weather forecast was for light rain and drizzle. It turned out quite nice in the end.

"I love this thing"

Hartlepools sons

We buried another of Hartlepools sons yesterday. My Mums 'little brother', Dez.
He really was a fantastic Uncle to us, and a good friend to loads. "one of life's gentlemen" he was described as yesterday, very apt for this man who stood tall even though everyone was taller than him (sorry Dez, had to get that one in!).
I remember many holidays spent at thier house, left by our parents to spend time with our cousins who lived near the sea. Weeks on end, Summer, Easter, half-term and Christmas were always additional breaks from Leicester. New years Eve wasn't the same 'down South'.
My brother and I spent so long up there we came back with Geordie accents so thick that our mates didn't understand what we were saying!

Thanks Dez for the football games on the North Yorkshire Moors and on the Beach at Seaton Carew. Thanks for entertaining us with stories and those epic 'smoke rings' that I have never seen emulated by anyone else. Thanks for looking after us when we needed it and putting up with us when we didn't. Thanks for taking us to all those matches at 'The Pool' (Hartlepool Utd FC)
Thanks for being you. If there is a Heaven, say hello to my Mum please. "Hawaay lad"

God Bless You Uncle Dez, may you Rest in Peace. 

Another son of Hartlepool (Created by Reg Smyth)

How much

I just filled the car. From a quarter of a tank to full costs a fortune (£86.54). Good job it started at a quarter as the £99 limit at the pump wouldn't have been enough

Reflecting at work

Toothache and holidays

Broke a tooth in France last year. In fact half of it, eating a burger. No pain although slightly increased sensitivity to temperature.
Had it repaired poorly in January, the repair lasted 25hrs.
I had a better repair in May, trouble is though the repair in January gave rise to occasional minor infections. Now the infection has returned and cannot escape my gums through the Amalgam barrier. Now it hurts,,,,, big time.

French holiday booked for this year today, campsite prices remain static (pun intended) for our tent and the ferry reduced by over £50. The GBP v Euro not as favourable as last year.
Still cheaper than Cornwall.
Still 200 miles further than Cornwall
Still a damn site warmer than Cornwall
Still a lot nicer and a lot less crowded than Cornwall.
The further bonus being we can get a years supply of smokes for a third of the UK price therefore saving us the full price of the holiday and something towards the Diesel.
                      SORTED ..... CAN'T WAIT   :)

Woo Woooo

GCR HDR
This is where we went on my Birthday for a couple of hours. It's not far away and you can get a nice coffee at Quorn station. A bit of chill time without the kids.

Chocolate it ya face

Gave her some chocolate, she loved it. She also loved the bath in the sink to get clean.

Ha ha this is great!

Our Sal

50 years old. Never thought I'd get here but hey! here I am. We went out for a meal at a pub in leicester(ish). The Pub used to be called 'The Foxhunter', but due to the politically correct bunch it is no longer the brewery view that this is an acceptable name for one of their watering holes. For goodness sake sez I, the roundabout it is sited next to is, and always has been, known as the Foxhunter-roundabout.
Anyway, here are a couple of shots from the evening.

Sally

Sally and Maisie

Sally and Maisie

Paper Shredded Tulip

Last year Jac and myself went to a 'garden' and I saw tulips like I had never seen before. Jac got some ordered and planted in our garden. They look like they have been dipped in a paper shredder.

Transport

TKC is the camera club we run at work. For what seems like too many times I have submitted images for the monthly challenge of Daffodils being abused in some way.
I think Daffs are beautiful which is probably there downfall when it comes to abusing them. I have had them with springs and fags (cigarettes in colloquial UK) hanging from their trumpets to belting them with a cricket bat.
This Months challenge is Transport, to be interpreted as you wish. Unfortunately for the Daffs one of my colleagues quipped 'I can't wait to see how you incorporate a Daffodil into Transport'.
That sounds like a challenge!!! Here's the results.

Far too busy

I have been busy, but not with the camera.

I must take some photos. I feel like I'm missing out on something!

Clean, clean and clean.

The Father-in-law has a motorhome to sell. I have the task of photographing it for the sale. The only trouble is it isn't clean enough to sell/photograph so I have spent two days washing, fixing bits, vacuuming, polishing inside and photographing said vehicle. Now it needs a wax and polish!

Another Church photo ?

I'm not that religious but  I keep taking photos and unintentionally find a Church that screams at me to point my lens in it's general direction.
Wednesday this week was a typical example, I went to photograph some work colleagues playing five-a-side at the park. Another colleague said he would probably be in the park with his young lad, feeding the Ducks. As I had some 'on-the-card' I wandered through to the Duck pond to see if they were there. They weren't, however, on the way back I couldn't resist this.

Sorry it leaves the confines of the column but it looks better bigger.

Perigee

The Moon at it's closest point to Earth in Twenty years.

Magic in front of the window in front of the Moon

A different take on it.

Peaky

Went for walk in the Derbyshire Peaks with Jac. What a beautiful day in a beautiful place.

Lot's of Red Grouse strutting about, it's that's time of year.

And a rare animal indeed. This shot took some nailing.

Moutain Hare

All in all a lovely day out, and an Ice cream on the way home too!