I Broke Out!

From early yesterday morning I planned a break out.  The day looked good for it, they said the sun would shine, and it did rising early around 6 am and encouraging people to rise also and queue outside of Sainsburys!  
I was not one of them.

The day was indeed warmish, you can see how the crowds flocked to the park er, well, later on that is.  I remained hooked on staring into space, this now replaces football as my favourite sport.

 
I sit at the desk, piles of work all around, 'To Do' lists littering the area, and stare out the window at the sunshine across the road.  This is usually more productive.
I listen to the news and decide that I can say little, occasionally grieving as a 5 year old dies, or anger rising as another minister lies barefaced to the camera.  It appears to be what they do these days.  No shame is felt, lie barefaced Boris style and they expect to get away with it.  This the result of not having a 'Free Press.'  The lackeys are all tied in with the Boris gangland so they cannot grumble, they may be found out also.
These are the men who demand footballers give up their high pay to help the NHS.  These ministers who have deliberately run the NHS into the ground, failed it in the hour of need, and are themselves all multi millionaire who are not putting their hands into their own pockets for the NHS, which they all wish to privatise, demand footballers pay towards their, the ministers, mistakes!
The irony.   

I broke out.
Late at night, as the sun began to hide behind the trees, I left my abode, dressed for the chilly wind, and took pictures of the dying sun.  Nobody was about, except one poor lad who is either of low intellect, has mental problems or is on drugs.  He walked ahead of me talking and singing to himself. He often passes this way and I wonder what goes on inside, what is the cause?  Not much I can do.
No-one else is about.

The round yellow thing goes down there every night, there must be hundreds of them lying there burning themselves out...

A flock of Geese fly over, or is it Swans, surely not?  Geese I think, heading to a farmers field or down towards the Blackwater Basin for the night.  They could at least have come closer.

A walk in the park, a blast of cold air, some pictures of the sunset, I went home happy but cold.  The little things in life are more enjoyable, going outside, when no policemen are about, is more enjoyable than before.  Finding things hidden away indoors, things long forgotten and now appear as new gifts, is also fun.  Cooking however remains a drag...

Today I ventured out in the hottest day so far of the year, large coat and pullover,  to deliver a letter I thought urgent.  The park was busier, two or three dog walkers and a couple with kids, those I met on the road kept more than 6ft apart from me.  One poor man (with mask) jumped 6 ft as I came around a corner, was the mask to protect him or us I wonder?  Are we genuinely protecting ourselves from the virus or overreacting?  I'm not sure face masks help unless we sit at a checkout or drive a bus.     
However, I did attempt to catch a picture of this Red Kite twirling around.  Several groups of pigeons were scurrying while a flock of seagulls languidly made their way south.  I fer the Red Kite caught no-one as the gulls would put him off trying anything.  He refuse to pose either, coming quite close and disappearing.  I have several shots of the sky!   
I hope you remain at peace, but I fear this period has a long way to go yet.  The virus will only die when  vaccine arrives.  Some pre-vaccines are being tried on Chinese volunteers (do they know they have volunteered?) but at least a year will be required.  I hope the sanity remains with us...

Today is Palm Sunday, therefore here is our improvised social media church service.

Hosanna!

'Tis the Season to be Jolly...?'

No it isn't, not yet, but the attitudes of the people in town today represented the Christmas cheer we meet annually.  Women blocking the way with buggy's, women walking into you in shops, miserable faces all around, cheerless shop staff cheerlessly dealing with the cheerless customers who cheerlessly obtain needless cheerless goods for others to break or wonder how to hide.  In short the Christmas season has started already.  All I needed to find was a drink sodden Santa Claus to make my day!

The day was indeed 'Dreich!'  Gray, rain sprinkled clouds from the south east hurried across the sky, blowing the remaining leaves around the streets and chilling those forced to walk therein.  Indeed the only bright lights came from the ambulance helicopter which landed in the park opposite to collect someone and rush them onwards to hospital.  
Umbrellas early on, removed by the 'breeze,' as the weatherman calls it, sprinkling rain afterwards and many a coat turned up and yet, as I wandered out of B&M after a fruitless search for children's cheap gifts I passed a man and his son in t-shirts.  Macho men who walked fro the covered car park to the shop showing us their strength.  Ponces!  

 
Boris has been on the hustings again, or rather has not been.  He was to attend a debate in his own Uxbridge constituency on December 5th or 6th, date not sure as yet, but has not responded to the call to attend.  This is the normal local debate at any election and he knows he ought to be there.  Possibly he cannot cope with an outraged audience, such as the one facing Dominic Raab at his local meeting in Esher.  He was 'booed' and catcalled and did not have an easy time.  Boris is not good at handling such scenario's.  Maybe he will just run away?  If he does they will just put an empty chair there and ask questions anyway, the chair might know more.
Of course it may be a ploy?  Maybe he hopes to be deselected by the election.  Possibly he hopes the electors will choose another candidate and dump him.  That would save him losing face with his financial backers and avoid having to deal with the Brexit farce.  We shall see.

Now I discover, this shows how little I have looked at news today, that a 'Question Time' special is to be aired tonight with, it says, 'Leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn, First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Scottish National Party Nicola Sturgeon MSP, Leader of the Liberal Democrats Jo Swinson and Prime Minister and Leader of the Conservative Party Boris Johnson facing topical questions from an audience.'  This will be the only real debate, depending that is who asks what questions!  I suspect myself, if she is allowed to speak, that  Nicolas will wipe the floor with them all, however I will expect the chairwoman Fiona Bruce to ensure she does not get a 'fair crack of the whip.'  I wish I could watch this....

Unfortunately, as always, this programme will clash with the Linlithgow Rose v Falkirk Scottish Cup Tie at the same time.  How inconsiderate and quite possibly racist is that?  I am convinced this is to stop Scots watching the debate.  I wonder if Boris will actually show, if he does not will they 'empty chair' him or cancel the programme?   
It appears each leader will be given 30 minutes, they will take questions from the audience (how are they selected I ask?) one after the other.  Then I suspect they start breaking bottles over one another's heads and screaming blue murder.  It may not be nice but will suit the TV audience well...

The dreich weather along with my dreich walk about town, caused by missing the Free Bus, meant no photos were possible in the mirk.  So, instead we see a lot of old birds who hang around here, or did in times past.

Friday Frippary

Thursday lunchtime I took the airport bus, air stewardess included as always, to the good quality charity shops.  There the rich dispose of their worthy items long before you and I would do so.  I searched all four shops, although this was difficult in one as it was closed, but found nothing whatsoever worth looking for.  How mean of them, don't they realise I need a new jacket?  
I did however visit my favourite card shop, Oxfam!  
There is no doubt the cards on offer here, often misusing old photographs, are very clever and full of wit, something missing in so many 'funny' cards today.  I had to buy some as with all these wimmin having birthdays I found my collection of cards were all aimed at men.  This was unfortunate.  Now I am ready for the next woman as long as she does not want anything like money to go with it...
Lovely short bus journey passed green fields, Barley almost ripe, sun glinting on farm machinery and one single farm worker as he prepared his field.  No EU workers on sight, I suspect Theresa has sent them all home so it will be big crops around here from now on.  

The problem with birds is their great ability to see something they wish for and then go get it.  The trouble they then fond is they cannot work out how they got in and therefore how to get back out again.  The Robin has been in, a Blue Tit the other day, another one was found on the window today and yesterday this young Starling worked out how to get in and then screamed blue murder because he could not get out.  
You will notice the mess on the window, this comes from the dust from the stuff they are feeding on these days.  The shop cannot get the usual seed pellets, someone appears to be arguing over money, and what is on offer is not good enough for these brutes.  It also has left a lot of dust down the wall and with no rain to speak off it is not getting washed a way. My neighbour might speak to me soon...

Today the plan was simple, eat a good breakfast and then eat little until evening, great idea.  
I had a good breakfast and fell asleep.
After this I spent all morning on this laptop either reading the grubby papers and arguing with Brexiteers or listening to the 'iPlayer,' sorry 'BBC Sounds.'  It was indeed better as the iplayer but there you go, someone has £10 million to spend and so it must be spent even if in a daft and needless manner.
The radio was good and it took me till after two to remember to get out and get milk, but I fell asleep instead.  This has not been a great day...

I see that nice Mr Farage has been taken apart twice this week, once by Andrew Marr of Sunday and then by a Channel 4 newsman the other night.  The vast wealth he has been given by Aaron Banks, who does not disclose where his cash comes from, is helping him with his Brexit Party as it did with his dying UKIP party.  It is interesting to note he has arranged it so no 'member' of his new party can influence decisions, only he can, with two others, very democratic.  
The sheep rose to the occasion claiming all this was a smear campaign against Farage by the 'establishment.'  How he has them hoodwinked.  There is a kind of blindness which hangs over Brexiteers, facts do not deter the need for Brexit, the emotion goes deep and no fact lies behind it so it cannot be opposed.  The opposite is occurring and if a second referendum is given they will all vote 'Leave' with more belief and yet with few facts.  I see Scunthorpe is losing 900 jobs because of Brexit from the plant that is the mainstay of the economy yet North Lincs voted strongly in favour of Brexit, what did they expect?  
The more I hear of Farage the more I think of  Alcibiades the chap Thucydides wrote about after the death of Pericles through the plague.  His view was that Pericles spoke for the good of the nation, Alcibiades was in it for himself, and it appears so.  It is also interesting that Boris Johnson is a great Thucydides fan, I wonder who he sees himself as?
I would explain this on the 'Daily Mail' forums but the sheep would not comprehend.  Anyway they would see them all as foreigners!  

We can always take our minds off Brexit by watching the US attempt another war this time against Iran.  It is unknown if Trump realises what he is doing here or indeed if he knows what is going on but Spain, Germany and the Dutch among others have withdrawn their forces from the US alliance in the Gulf.  The US will be on their own in Iran, bar the Conservative Party that is.

Up on the Roof

Having spent an energy filled day weeding the front and attempting to clear up the mess left behind by neighbours who have left leaving their remnants behind, packed mostly in plastic bags yet spilled across the waste space, I had little energy to do anything else last night.  Add to this a little item I eventually finished for the museum re the armistice, it has taken three months, and what brain cells I have left were not functioning either.  For reason hard to comprehend the TV people failed to feature any football leaving me with no respite from my aches thus forcing me to climb upon the roof and howl at the moon.
This indeed made me feel a lot better but did not do much for the old lass in the bungalow next door who switched off all the lights and locked all the windows and doors loudly.  It must have been loud as the noise from all the dogs in the neighbourhood barking at the same time create what some call ' noise nuisance.'
I must confess I was a little stiff once again this morning when I had to attend to all the visitors by myself, my associate having flown off to Corfu for yet another holiday.  I realise that having retired and having some money to burn it is right for them to make the most of the years they have left, in her condition we do not know how many, but my couple of days in Bournemouth look weak in comparison to their world travels.  Not that there is any jealousy in any way, no siree!   
I might seek that moon again tonight.

I wonder if this bird understand the situation in the nation?  Sitting there in the sun in the late evening, resting from the labours of attending to her mate, stuffing her face and er, that's it, she now sits there high above the world allowing the fading sun to warm her before bedtime.  Do these birds not know we have an inept government?  Do they not realise we have no opposition?  Do they not realise the state of the nation?  They will find out soon enough for within a year most of the population will be eating the worms and grubs they are living off when Brexit comes in and the economy collapses.
Oh dear, I am back off onto the roof...

Friday Frippery

Having struggled to do so yesterday I eventually made it to the shopping centre today to enquire about mealworm pellets to feed the birds.  I found the big shop there sells them and has plenty in stock.  However at £3:50 for a bag that costs £1 in the other shops or £2 in the wee pet supply shop I can see why they are a big national company.
I trudged home via the Marks & Sparks food hall spending my money there on overpriced foodstuffs, though I failed to see the meat I wanted, the greedy Friday shoppers had got in first.  Still I got something and the empty fridge was pleased.
Later I ventured out for bird seed and found a tub costing £5:99, from which I got 10% off as the top was broken, and a similar tub in the big pet shop cost £12:50!!!!  I am amazed!
Since then, birds happily squabbling outside, I have spent an enormous amount of time attempting to log in to the online bank.  I appear to have made a mess of the password so changed it after three attempts to log in, then after several more failed attempts I changed the next bit.  This also failed after I changed it so I am none to happy with the bank that now says I must change things again!
I went into a huff instead.
Where would we be without technology...?

ITV

The local elections did not trouble me yesterday sadly, we had no vote this time, this is disappointing as I like to  vote for someone who fails to unseat the Tory.  However in spite of the Tory press claiming victory when you stand back it is clear Labour and the LIb-Dems did well and the Tory succeeded simply because UKIP voters returned to vote for the Tory party.  The 'Swivel-eyed-Loons' are coming home.

Those Brexit areas full of Little Englanders and racists continued to vote Conservative, elsewhere folks voted against Brexit by choosing the Lib-Dem though our Conservative dominated council lost a seat and now one member of the Labour Party can be found there, that area is not a UKIP stronghold however.  

Not much change overall, no change in Tory cost cutting hitting the poorest, no change in the mess that is Downing Street, no change in the nation.  A sad day.

I did notice the  Conservative members in Peterborough in that picture.  The many Asians there are renown for their hard work and Tory approach, I wonder if they will remain loyal to the party when the Home Office visits and tells them they are 'Not British' and about to be deported back to Pakistan or India...?

Fatigue

This one is a Goldfinch surely?  
He was sitting chatting away on the TV aerial this lunchtime just waiting to pose for me.  I suspect Dave sent him so that I would know the difference between a Goldfinch and a Chaffinch. 
However I have discovered a wee book on birds, you have seen the type, in amongst the few bookshelves and will endeavour to identify the beasts properly in future.  A handy book ideal for pocket, I wonder where it came from? 

The Spring Bug has still not left me!  Three months every year it bugs me and this year it has hung on longer than usual.  I have hardly got out and about unless I really need to go. This makes life boring.  It also means I do little here as I just canny be bothered to think, anything that requires thought is just left aside.  Outside the sun has often shone, half naked wimmen stalk young men, persons clad in dark glasses T-shit and coloured shorts roam the streets while staring into their phones all while I sit indoors half asleep much of the time.  Exercise does not help, my aching knees don't help and dirty looks from checkout lassies when I do get out help none either.  
I'm really cheery today!

  
Tomorrow I will drag the bulk down to the museum hoping there is little to do.  This is unfortunate as there is much to do in preparing the new exhibition and I really canny be bothered offering to help.  The energy just is not there and this is embarrassing.  Nothing has got done indoors and apart from food shopping I have not been out.  I look forward to Wednesday so I can have a day off! 
Bah!

 

Birds and Blue Skies

At last a wee bird appeared outside the window.  I have not seen any of these (Goldfinch?) around this year and there used to be lots of them.  There is a lack of wee birds all round though I have heard but not seen Finches singing in the trees on occasion.  At the museum we have installed 'Swift Boxes' in the hope that Swifts will make use of them to nest, I think some Sparrows did instead!   All these birds appear to be in decline.  Farming methods, concrete for cars instead of front gardens, and changes elsewhere in Europe have cut their feeding and we are losing them.  I notice the Starlings are eating else at the moment, the young have almost reached maturity and are no doubt using me as back up instead of main meal as before.  Once it was two bags of pellets a day and now it has been several days since I filled the feeders.

I wondered out this afternoon in search of something to photograph.  I have been almost everything there is in this wee town and pictured all the things that are interesting so when I heard there was something on in the park I hurried over to see.  I was wrong, it must have been last week!  
Anyway in the hot sun I staggered round to the town centre like a man crossing the Sahara to see the other event, free Indian food for the hungry, and got there just in time to find it ending. Bah!
All that was left was sitting in the park taking pictures of the interesting cloud formations above and twiddling my thumbs.  Nothing else to take pictures of, I have done all this bit so often and there were no animals/people/things of note to be seen.
Bah!

  
The G20 is meeting somewhere surrounded by demonstrators showing their contempt for capitalism by stealing as much as they can from the shops in Hamburg.  Each of these events is followed by the same crowd of pretend and real protesters who either object to the political stance or are just a bunch of thugs on an outing, any excuse will do.  
It seems to me that while many would find reasons to protest it is clear the leaders of the mob are easy for the security services to find.  It must be that many are known to the police and their use of 'social media' must be read daily so why is it that they can always produce a riot at each event?  Could it be the security services of some nations are not as good as ours?  Could it be the attention on Islamic headbangers has reduced the number of officers watching these guys?  
Some nations are quite happy to have riots in their streets, Greece has them after every football match, so is it possible that some nations are happy to see the likes of Germany suffer from the mob?  
What has happened at this meeting?  Putin twisted Trump round his little finger, Angela was seen to roll her eyes when talking to Putin, Mrs Trump took his place and upset the US media (but actually understood what was going on) and Theresa May was there but nobody noticed.  I'm all for leaders meeting one another, this is a sure fire way to change things.  If they get on no matter what the many differences are something can be done.  If they don't get on they can always slap one another it will make no difference in the end.  Quite what anyone gets from meeting Trump is hard to understand.  Usually these guys meet once all the main talking has been done by lackeys, one of his 'tweets' and it is all undone again.
Just remember Trump has his finger on the nuclear button....if he can find it...

Rain

Being stuck indoors while the plumber mucked about under the sink replacing the taps that fell apart I had little chance to get out.  This was just as well as after I had finished the clear up the weather broke.  The usual weather round here in Spring/Summer is a few hot days and then a 24 hour period filled with thunder and lightning and torrential downpours.  I hide under the bed...choking in the dust!

The torrents that fell, only for a short time it must be said but repeatedly all afternoon, forced normal people indoors.  Those dressed for the heat ran, walked or stumbled murmuring anti-rain words as they made their drookit way home.  The rain begins suddenly and caught many out, I laughed empathised from the window safe inside.
However the wood pigeons, possibly because we have had so little real rain recently, made for the developing puddle in the park and thoroughly enjoyed the bath/shower that ensued.  At least two were there in the downpour, other birds appeared when the rain eased up searching for beasties forced to the surface by the water.  The Crows when they appeared also cast mere disdain on the rain as they do on anyone or anything that passes by. 
Birds, they are not human are they?

Something happened re the election today but I really don't care.  I know how I will vote however this plan has been changed since last week as I hooked myself onto the Twitter feeds of the candidates and discovered the UKIP man does not have one, I wonder why, I already offer advice to the sitting Tory, the Lib-Dem woman was impossible to discover info about and the Green was not worth it.  This left the Labour man who has lost any chance of my vote as I discovered he must have blocked me at the last election!
I wonder what I said?
I must vote but this makes things difficult.  We know the national outlook but it is here at local level votes count, or in this case don't as the Tory always wins.  Even more chance now they are using UKIP policies.  How I miss that inner London constituency where there was no guarantee for any MP no matter what party they belonged to, this one feels like a one party state!  
One more week and then we can complain about something else.

Zimmer Bus Day

 

I took a risk in clambering aboard the Zimmer Bus this morning, what with it being half term I expected the bus to be full of kids but as it turned out only one was seen.  She sat at the front with mum and placed 14 stuffed animals on the window in front of her and played with them all journey long.  Thankfully the rest either were away on holiday or found something nearer home to keep them out of trouble.  Most I suspect are rich enough to have a car and drive the brats out of town to a beach or parkland somewhere. 

A quiet journey other than the kid in the front seat and we passed the fields full of green crops awaiting the time to turn golden.  Quite a contrast, the green fields with gently swaying crops on either side of a narrow road full of traffic, much of it heavy traffic at that.  The major roundabout where every main road meets causes several mile tailbacks but just wait until the same fields are given over to the new 'little town' they wish to plant there.  Another entrance to add to the roundabout perhaps, or merely yet longer tailbacks as planners are ignoring the road system being over full even now?  

I am not sure what the three trophies on that sign are supposed to represent.  I am not clear as to whether it is new made to look old or an old sign slowly dying.  I never even looked into what the shop sold.  It did stand out from the Town Hall tower behind and I thought it worth a shot.  I looked into the proper bookshop just before this and forced my hands behnd my back and myself out quickly enough, I am reading three books and have ten more lined up so spending cash on more was not a good idea.  I could not however walk past the bookshop, it kind of dragged me in! 

 

This snatched pic from the bus sums up Camulodunum for me.  On the one hand there is the church tower going back centuries, old buildings, great history, residing alongside derelict shop fronts like this one.  What ought to be a well run tourist town, they refuse to be called 'city' as they claim they are the 'oldest town in England,' is ruined for me by being crowded, dingy and choked by traffic.  Add to this the number of what are called 'homeless' and the place takes on a grubby run down appearance.

The town appears to draw the 'homeless' like no other and I do not understand why.  On a sunny day it is not unusual to see a man, wrapped in blackets or old sleeping bag, sitting in a dark, damp underpass begging for handouts.  Some feel sympathy but I sense a chancer!  No-one begs just anywhere, certain places are money spinenrs and this is one of them, though not much spinning when I passed.  Too many offer coins to such beggers to ese their conscience, some from care and others thinking they may help such people.  All too often they are conned.  If you really wish to help homeless people then give at least £5 a month to a suitable organisation that works amongst them.  That way those that can be helped out of this lifestyle, and who knows what got them into it, these will be given help.  Those that do not want out can be left to it and many chancers who take home good money to add to JSA benefits or just live of the takings can be avoided.  Some of course, and I have a little experience of them, some need really professional help and a few coins may not do them any good.  If the conscience hurts offer a 'Mars Bar' or some such rather than money. Not much can be done about the traffic however, unless banning it all bar buses and taxis can be tried.

This young Starling was having trouble landing on the feeders, he ought to be able by now he comes everyday, and instead filled himslef up with the crumbs lying on the window ledge.  Do you notice I have as yet not got around to the window cleaning part of the 'Spring Clean!'  That may remain the case for a while...

I did however manage to visit every remaining charity shop in Camulodunum and find nothing that I wished for.  The nearest was a jacket that was too small wth a price that was too high!  Anything over a fiver is too high in my opinion.  Only one woman in the shops acknowledged my existence, there were plenty of women around filling the space being acknowleded however, and I note the mens secions in these shops appears to be shrinking.  Maybe the men are not throwing out the stuff they used to, Conservative austerity reaches even here.  

The bus home was empty, although a teenager managed to fill some time loudly talking on her phone to a friend about nothing for a while.  I preferred the child and mother on the way in.  We even arrived ahead of schedule in spite of the drivers attempts to slow down.  More chance to take in the green fields swaying as we passed, more chance to observe blue sky with the sun piercing the clouds, more chance for teeny to talk to her friend about nothing!

 

 

This Thing...

This thing has taken all my attention today.  Adding things, swapping from one to another, working out what went wrong and why, then attempting to put it all back together again.  I am just glad I did not buy one of those expensive laptops, some approaching £1900!  This was vastly cheaper and I obtained a discount to make it almost bearable, almost.  

Because of the busy day, I also had to eat and sleep, I dd not venture out into the blazing hot sun.  Instead I remained trapped indoors.  Occasionally I looked at the park and there, at great distance, I managed to capture a reasonable shot of this Thrush looking and listening for worms and beasties rummaging through the undergrowth, or is that underground?  The birds are fattening up and soon eggs will appear.  Already my feeders are emptying quicker than usual and soon it will be filling them daily I expect.  Of course as I have been in when the sun shone it will rain tomorrow when I am in the museum with hundreds of kids/mums and others.  Half term brings them out and rain brings them in!

 

The other day our boy Trump walked out of a  meeting forgetting to sign the Bill he went there to sign.  The next day we read he might resign because of testimony regarding Russia that a man is willing to offer, today we read he is instead going to nuke North Korea or share a hamburger with the Dear Leader, or is it Young Leader?  Every day is something new, never safe but certainly new.
Theresa May, the imitation Thatcher but without the intellect, has once again been cunning with the
EU people.  She first threatened to use EU nationals as bargaining chips then run from that one, next she threatened to withhold security information, and that was put down, yesterday Lord Howard ('Something of the night about him') one time failed leader of the Conservative Party blustered about Theresa 'Going to war with Spain over Gibraltar like Maggie did with the Falklands.'  Good grief!  Clearly this has come from No 10 yet it is so daft as to make you wonder what is happening to world leaders.
Putin the gangster is dangerous and mad, Trump is innocently madder, Theresa knows we need the EU yet rushes into leaving it with no plan, the French have a liar and a fascist as potential leaders, the only sane one in Germany has overstepped the mark and suffers for it, and who really knows what is going on elsewhere?  I really am beginning to see the end in sight.  Judgement is falling by allowing such as this to lead us.  Return to morals stability before it is too late and elect proper politicians who rule for the sake of the people and not the lunatics I say!

 

Christmas Eve Again

The panic is over, the shops closing as early as they can, people wondering if the goods bought will do, some already half way through the generous wine and spirit bottles proffered to them, others indulging in friendships across the bar of many a public house.  Too late to worry now if the gifts will be accepted, just hope it is the thought that counts, not the Christmas jumper, the coloured socks or the cheap after shave uncles are used to getting at this time of year, for them giving is better than receiving, especially if it is another Christmas jumper!

The desire for bread got me out before the hordes descended on Sainsbury's for their last minute buys.  To get there I went the wrong way round to get a glimpse of grass and the pink sunrise.  Pink at one side yellow at the other.   The sky is always a wonder, except when it is gray of course! 

Now I always thought seagulls were bright birds able to spot lunch a mile away.  However this lot were swirling around like they were going down the plughole and avoiding the contents of last nights KFC box that was strewn across the grass not 50 yards away.  After a night sitting freezing on the estuary they pass over heading into the farmland seeking fields to devour yet they missed the deployment of cold chips that they usually manage to find in the bottom of bins.  Maybe they were expecting Christmas Pudding?  

Darkness has fallen, night closes its tired eyes, well maybe in an hour or so, kids everywhere are overexcited and unable to sleep, adults scramble to wrap presents in paper that will be a crumbled mess in 12 hours time, and publicans begin to recognise which of their clients will be helped home earlier than they expected shortly.  
Me I sit at the laptop working away on things of great importance, listening to radio, browsing Amazon to make use of the book token received, sipping tea, and wondering why I put so much on my plate!  This few days will not help the diet....