Friday, December 30, 2005
Happy New Year
Thursday, December 29, 2005
The tree
Getting ready for the New Year now.
Tuesday, December 27, 2005
Congratulations!
Monday, December 26, 2005
The essence of Christmas
Well here we are Boxing Day already! How did that go so quickly? Saw all the kids which is the main thing . Our daughter came down for the morning with her husband and our grandson and we had the grand present opening as well as the placing of Jesus in the crib. Our younger son came home for Christmas dinner (well he had been out all night!) and our elder son and his wife came in the evening.
In between times we were driving back and forth to Colne to get my stepmother up and ready and then back after she had wakened up properly to bring her on for the day , then back home in the evening... so it did feel like a lot of running about inbetween cooking and playing the hostess with the mostest!! Thank goodness for kind husbands who did some of the running round and entertaining my 83 year old stepmother who has altzheimer's.
I decided to put this photo on to mark Christmas Day 2005 as it is, for me, what Christmas should be all about!
Friday, December 23, 2005
Quietly waiting now!!
Want to see? See below.. as usual let the video stream in jerkily once and then play it again.
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Wednesday, December 21, 2005
Just us! Dec 21 1968
I was a child bride as you can see and I am still quite young!
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Antarctic Heroine
Looking at her photos is amazing and at this time of year reminds me of all the people away from home for Christmas.
My hat goes off to all the young people out there with this 'Antartic Heroine' and hope they have a joyous and wonderful Christmas.. it will certainly be a white one!!!
Sunday, December 18, 2005
My favourite shepherd
Happy Christmas Oz!!!
Happy Christmas .. only one week away now!!
As always let the video stream in jerkily once and then click on play to watch smoothly.
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Saturday, December 17, 2005
Weekend in Southport
The shops were wonderful and I walked for miles round them. We walked on the front for a while but it was so cold I could hardly bear it!!!
Back home now for the last push before Christmas!
Wednesday, December 14, 2005
Christmas Concert
The woman in pink is the wonderful teacher in the language unit which he attends.
Hope you enjoy him as much as we did.
Again please let the video stream in jerkily once and then play it again.
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Friday, December 09, 2005
Come sail with us!
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Wednesday, December 07, 2005
View through the lifebouy
Thursday, December 01, 2005
Off to Paris.
Monday, November 28, 2005
Days of the week.
I am not ingnoring him in the video but trying to work the camera (honest)
As always let the video stream in once jerkily and then play again.
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Candles in the chapel window
Friday, November 25, 2005
Monday, November 21, 2005
Boaters breaking the ice.
As always please be patient. Let the video stream in once jerkily then just play again and it will play smoothly.
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Sunday, November 20, 2005
Sinterklaas
i thought you might like to see Santa from another country . This is a collage that a friend from Holland made centring around Sinterklass.
Friday, November 18, 2005
Brrr ....frosty morning
Everything looks different somehow in the deep cold. I was driving back from my grandson's school this morning and as I dropped into the town I saw a skyline which I have driven past so many times and never even noticed. It has the townhall and several mill chimneys and the whole thing was lit from the back by the rising sun. Just perfect!!
Sunday, November 13, 2005
The abbot's shadow
Friday, November 11, 2005
Thursday, November 10, 2005
Eid Party
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Saturday, November 05, 2005
Bonfire night
If watching the video please be patient. Let it stream in jerkily first time and then play it again and it will play smoothly.
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Friday, November 04, 2005
A day in Yorkshire
The highlight of the day was taking our 4 year old grandson bowling for the first time ever. He loved every minute and after watching the guys around in the other aisles he soon began to develop the 'post throw' strut when he got lots of the pins down. The weather somehow held off until we left for home and then proceeded to bucket it down unitl we arrived home. Never mind great day out for all!
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Tuesday, November 01, 2005
Halloween
Saturday, October 29, 2005
Sailing into the sunset!
The canal loooked wonderful with the sun on it and even up there at windy Barrowford it was still enough to get some good reflection pix.
Wednesday, October 26, 2005
7.30pm..still wet
Sunday, October 23, 2005
Day at the Penguins
As for us here on a very grey and wet Lancashire day .. we were anticipating a brisk walk round one of the reservoirs at the top of the valley but the weather was very threatening and ended up entertaining our grandson for couple of hours whilst his mum and dad went to pick his Christmas present. We all had a meal together and our grandson taught his mum how to play Thomas the tank engine snap!!!... maybe not quite as interesting as the photo here but we do our best!!!
Friday, October 21, 2005
Never plan ahead!!!
Every weekend we say 'Come on, lets getout.. it won't last forever. We have never made plans just waited until Saturday morning to see and then set off.
So as it's been so good I got myself some new walking boots in the week, and we had a look on the internet at Ingleton Falls walk.. recommended by a friend. Worked out the route to get there and the walk round the falls themselves.. weather forecast???
Pouring down all weekend it says. Typical!
Never mind we will probably be able to have a slither along the towpath at some point , don't think it will be quite as nice as in the pic though!!
Thursday, October 20, 2005
Come to Lancashire
Monday, October 17, 2005
Walking Home
Burnley from the canal embankment/ one horizon 2005 12 noon
Friday, October 14, 2005
How green is my valley!!
Tuesday, October 11, 2005
Family History
We think Joseph James is the man sitting on the the back of the buggy middle photo on the left hand line.
Sunday, October 09, 2005
Different colours of Autumn
The delightful name Three sisters has been retained but the original sisters were slag heaps from the pit!
Saturday, October 08, 2005
Tree stump carving.
Next news we went in the park and it had been painted. We aren't sure if this is also a sort of vandalism or whether it was done by the artist but it has lightened the whole thing and as you can see they look like a group of little boys out for a bit of mischief. I love it!!!
Wednesday, October 05, 2005
Detail on window
Monday, October 03, 2005
Beach hut with veranda
Friday, September 30, 2005
Stained glass under the influence of a grey Lancashire sky.
There are many delightful things about living in a older terrraced house in Burnley, Lancashire Many of the houses have retained their original character. One of the things about our house we love is the hall window. When we moved in it was very delicate and everytime the front slammed we thought it might fall out. We had it renovated and it is lovely. It changes colour all the time. Today was a very grey wet day and the window took on this very sort of moody look to it.
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Reflection on tiles
Sunday, September 25, 2005
Reflected sister
Saturday, September 24, 2005
Off with the old.....
A good one for an example of an idiom ... maybe a proverb really any way off with the old and on with the new.
Friday, September 23, 2005
View from the tow path
Our house and garden actually overlook the canal and it is amazing the huge number of people who use it. Not only is there a fair amount of leisure boat traffic during the summer but there are also many walkers , bikers and joggers. One of the nicest things about our canal is that of course, as it was built to supply the cotton mills (now no longer here) with coal from Wigan and cotton from the port of Liverpool, it does run through the centre of busy towns like Burnley and Blackburn. This makes it the perfect 'scenic route' for people just walkng into town to do the shopping.
This photo was taken a little further out of town near to Fouldridge just outside Colne and perhaps here in the town it is not quite so pretty. However the old industrial architecture and views of the valley here are very under-rated.
Ok I know I am beginning to sound like an advert now.. pity I don't do bed and breakfast!!!
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
The Victorian Gem, Burnley Cemetery.
Strangely enough though I had never been round our own cemetery here in Burnley as from the road you can just see row after row of modern headstones. However about 3 years ago Steve noticed in the local newspaper that there was guided tour of the cemetery. Well of course we had to go and we discovered this hidden Victorian gem. It is absolutely amazing.
Not only is the older part stunningly beautiful and full of atmosphere but the whole cemetery can be read and gives the history of our town. The impressive mill owners graves stretching skyward and the open spaces, unmarked graves of the thousands of workers who died in their factories. We found the grave of Dan Irving the first Labour MP for the town and monuments to victims of WW 1 and 2. There is a tribute to the men who lost their lives in the Hapton mining disaster in the area in 1962 along with one to several local people who were killed during Wakes Week in plane crash en route to Spain.
Finally the newest edition is the area set aside for parents of lost neo-natal, still born and miscarried children. There are benches to sit on and the path is made up of small bricks with the children's names on, often just 'Baby Smith'.
So Burnley Cemetery, a piece of history... . see the pix by clicking on the pic here.
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
When in Rome......
Sunday, September 18, 2005
Salford Diocese Celebration
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Saturday, September 17, 2005
Gabriel with some Grass
I know I've said before that the new online system I use for photos is wonderful but I just had to show you this one. Isn't he just beautiful. The person who took the photo is Jennifer Esperanza, his mum. Her photos are simply wonderful although as far as I can make out is a professional.
It is very nice to know though, that she has looked at some of my photos and left me very nice comments., which is encouraging for those of us who really just take snaps. If you want to look at the rest of her work just click on the photo and it will take you straight to her page on flickr.
Jennifer Esperanza's website
Friday, September 16, 2005
First flight
We only ever buy very cheap ones which usually just last a year. We get the one stringed variety as they will fly in almost any conditions.
Well Joseph of course has been many times with us and we let him hold the plastic handle and one of us wears gloves and holds the string!! Today as the kite was only from Poundland (yes £1) I got it flying and then he held the handle alone and was able to copy how we pull it and then he ran with it. It was so wonderful to see. He had a look of pure joy on his face as he watched it fly. Everyone around in the park stopped to watch him with shouts of 'Go on' , 'Keep it up' ...
If you haven't tried it, it's a must!
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
Towneley Park
>It was great to have Joseph for the day again today. We have missed him so much since he went to school. We took him to Towneley park, a favourite with us all. We had to look at Towneley's famous bear in the museum part and the stuffed cat in the old kitchen as well as the park itself with sand pit swings etc.
I always like to have wander round by the cenotaph. I can never resist taking another photo of it.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Blackpool 'lights'
September holidays here, which of course means the obligatory visit to the 'lights.' I must be getting old as I actually enjoyed nature's lights, a lovely sunset, rather than the illuminations themselves. Our peaceful stroll along the prom on a quiet Monday evening looking at the lights pales into insignificance when compared to the childhood excitement of standing up in Uncle Harold's side car (probably be arrested nowadays) or squashed into a 'sharrer' with lots of others .. craning their necks en route for the first view of the tower and the promised threepenny bit for the winner (yes I am so old I remember threepenny bits.) Then the drive throught the lights themselves with the communal 'ooohs' and 'aaaahs' and finally perhaps a shared bag of chips with my sister if I hadn't nattered too much for rock and monkeys on sticks etc. I think I must have been a real 'I want' sort of kid.
Don't get me wrong the lights were lovely and we did recapture the old excitement on occasions especially as hundreds of bikers drove through the town pipping and cheering. Our evening was brightened even more as they paraded along the prom road with flashing reflections from the lights themselves. Everyone clapped and cheered as they rode past.
For us though the most glorious part of the evening was watching the sun set. It was beautiful and it is years since we saw the sunsetting over the sea. We get withdrawal symptoms if we don't visit the coast once a month. We are such an island race aren't we?
Actually the most welcome lights of all were the lights of the RAC man on the motorway as he came to our rescue after we drove over some thing huge, metal and pointy which burst the inside wall of one of our tyres.
For the rest of the photos click here.
Monday, September 12, 2005
And did those feet!
We watched 'the last night of the proms' on Saturday night and as it finished we couldn't help but say how wonderful the BBC is. Where would we be without it? It has the most amazing website imaginable; it allows you to keep in contact with the UK wherever you are,when we go to France for the summer our main contact with England is through Radio 4; and then it organises events like this.
We were delighted to see that this year the whole nation was involved with simultaneous concerts in various parks around the UK. The organisation of the rendering of 'And did those feet...' is mind bending and yet it worked perfectly.
One of the striking things about the evening was the fact that we seem to have claimed back our Union Jack flag from the BNP (British National Party). Whilst I am not tremendously patriotic for the UK, I always felt sorry that the flag had been comandeered by this group and people have since then been afraid carry the Union flag in case they were seen to have BNP mentality.
So well done the BBC and thanks to Simonski on flickr for putting his photos from a park prom so we are able to get a 'park view' of the concerts rather than our usual fireside view.
The rest of Simon's photos are here.
Sunday, September 11, 2005
The last Clarion house
We went to Barley at the foot of Pendle Hill today and did a circular walk taking in this Clarion house en route.
This is the last Clarion House of the area. This was built in 1912 bit there were several such houses in this part of NE Lancs. They were inspired by the Independent Labour Party to encourage the textile workers of the area into the country and to hear the message of hope for the future. My dad walked us over from Colne many times for a cup of tea. It is still open every Sunday.. take your own food to picnic and enjoy the views, have a cup of tea... and yes feel the message of hope for the future.
Saturday, September 10, 2005
We have bluetooth.
Blackburn boulevard
Had a busy day yesterday. I visited my mum's home town of Blackburn. There I met up with new family whom I discovered through the internet in my family history research. We are all the great grandchildren of Joseph James Howard. We have never all met up before. One of the cousins is Graham whose mum and my mum were half sisters . We all three myself, Graham and another cousin Christina met together just near this statue on Blackburn boulevard. Our parents all lived and worked in Blackburn yet never met.
The photo is from a sculpture on the boulevard.
Wednesday, September 07, 2005
Fame at last
Tuesday, September 06, 2005
September holidays loom
Work is really settling down now and the class is beginning to 'gel'. It's fascinating watching all the different personalities trying to work together as a group. Already I am receiving homework by email which is great . Students these days are so much more computer literate than previously . It's about 2 years since I asked the question 'Who has an email address?' and only two students put their hands up . I asked this class and only one student hasn't!!!! Not bad as I teach adults not youngsters. There are online computers, in the classroom where I teach, which the students have free access to. Things at work have really changed in another way. As I am now hourly paid it was always expected we attend meetings for nothing... not now.... I have just got back from a meeting where I was paid extra to go. I won't tell you how much but it was worth walking down for.... especially as I got home in time for he Bill. On that note I am going to watch it now.!
Monday, September 05, 2005
Class of 2005
It is probably the most diverse class I have ever taught. At the moment there are 15 students and they come from 12 different countries and they speak 18 languages between them. Portugese, Hindi , Gujerati, Slovak, German, Fresian, Dutch, Mandarin, Urdu, Punjabi. Kossovan, Polish,French, Arabic, Twi, Ukranian, Russian ... oh yes nearly forgot and English of course!!!
Sunday, September 04, 2005
Guess where!!
We also walked the Three piers but then unfortunately ruined the calorie intake with a trip to Harry Ramsden's !!! Never mind they were rather good!
Settle and its hills
As we were driving back from Settle and we saw the 'back of Pendle' rising in the distance it made me think what a glorious hill it is. it doesn't matter from where or when you look at it, it always looks different. My favourite view of it is the view from my home town Colne... in fact I have just bought a Keith Melling print of that view. To me that's Pendle exactly.
It can tell you the weather of course.. the rhyme goes
'When Pendle Hill doth clear appear ye men of Colne have no fear,
When Pendle Hill doth wear its hat ye men of Colne beware of that'....
I think it's about the weather or could it be something more sinister???
Saturday, September 03, 2005
Friday, September 02, 2005
House hunting
Well what started off as a good fun day turned into a house hunting day. We have been thinking for ages about a move. We have been here for 12 years and as the area has changed we have started to feel maybe we should live a bit further out of the town and have a little peace and quiet. We have always loved it here and the house is wonderful ..tall Victorian terraced with stained glass window and a lovely garden but it is very near to town and becoming more and more difficult with parking, litter etc.
Anyway it was such a nice day we decided to have a drive out. First we had a look on the internet to see if it was possible to get anything decent for about the same value as this and after about half an hour we realized that ours is probably worth about £30/40 thousand more than what we thought. Anyway we had a drive round and we saw some quite attractive 3 bedroomed semis for about the same price as this.. at the moment we do want to keep the house in France .. anyway we were really pleased. We do want to have another garden and we were thinking perhaps we would only be able to afford a small terraced house with just a back yard if we didn't sell in France.
So we are on the hunt. We probably won't go on the market for a bit as I am still working but I think next year we will be looking towards getting this on the market and who knows....
I am putting a pic of a very nice house we saw... we don't anticipate looking round anything yet as it seems unfair to get people's hope's up but we are both quite excited at the prospect of a move!!!
By the way still experimenting here, this is being sent by email with a picture of one of the houses we looked at attached.
No must have to go through flickr to do that... put this photo on manually from here... ah well never mind!