Karen day - Y lunches - RG much better

After dropping Y at Phoenix Park en route to the City where she was meeting June C for lunch, I decided to drive round Back Lane at Moorgreen. I think Y is in danger of becoming a 'lady who lunches'. Back Lane is a delightful country lane about 10 feet wide and very few passing points and eye-spied a rape field.

OK, I'll plead guilty to photoshoppery, - I flipped the image and then merged it with the original. Scrutiny will reveal the join. But the result gives you a better idea of the field-full because I only had my little Casio with me. When I saw the yellow I thought surely rape-fields are May - then I realised we are halfway through April anyway.

More importantly, 'Night Surgery' yesterday is an original painting by Bungus. He both draws and paints like an angel and he don't write bad either. A veritable Blake !

Which is a good excuse to publish another, a self-portrait this time, in charcoal. And it is, I can assure you, an excellent likeness. Except that he doesn't usually look as neat and tidy as this !! Sandra must have sorted him out. I know he won't be offended by my weak effort at humour.

We own a 'Bungus' which is of a JCB on the beach on the East Coast near Skegness. An unlikely subject you may think, but it is a great painting and we love it. It graces the wall above our dining table and, like 'The Old Man and The Dog' it cheers me up as soon as I see it in the morning.

Camera Club judges would moan that there aren't any catch-lights in the eyes. Of dear, oh dear, - how out of order can you be? Bungus and Rembrandt can't both be wrong !

Comments..... Jill ..... You may be right about it being the last Delia. And, although I never thought I'd say it, I'm not really sorry. She had the germ of a good idea but mostly it just didn't work out. The dishes were certainly not simple, as claimed, and in many cases, rather than go to all that trouble you might as well go out and buy something ready-made.

Your Portuguese Custard Tarts with hot chocolate sound dreamy.

Bungus..... Pleasure to publish the picture. And I assumed this current one would be OK too. In fact, unless you specifiy, I assume if you send me a picture, it's OK to publish it. You will have noticed in the top left of the blog, words about copyright, but I can always prove date and time, so if anyone knicked one we would be after 'em.

'Codger' is OK. My Roget also suggests 'skinflint' which I would accept. When I saw the word I started to speculate how long the word had been around? Presumably from the days when 'flints' were a current topic of conversation. I spent around 20 minutes reprogramming my new office-phone. Instead of calling itself Malcom, it now identifies itself as Office. The phonebook is now clear and waiting for our stuff to be entered. That would need doing anyway, with a new one, so the costs of my frugality are minimal. And satisfying !

And I agree with you also (am I sickening for something?) about Delia. Your lambs liver dish sounds great - I feel the bacon is essential for it to taste traditional. And Yes! I seem to have some vague recollection of a rather tumultuous private life in the 60s.

Your - "this day in ???" column is good. Well worth a second glance. I actually remember the first cordless phone in 1983. It was enormous as I recall. At around 5"x 5" and almost a foot long. Hardly a shirt-pocket job.

AnonymousRob....... Glad to have another member in the 'shower' brigade. Although when I was playing rugby I got used to communal baths I don't like the idea of soaking in dirty water. Apparently in Russia they don't provide plugs for wash-hand basins in hotels because it is considered unhygienic.

I enjoyed the 'potato' story. Just shows what 'foul' minds people have !

Sorry to have missed you at Maureen and Reg's. You must both come over. Or we could meet you at the Dixies. I think the spoken word via the 'tellingbone' is called for.

When I was driving down Back Lane at Moorgreen (please see above) I saw a large bird on top of this telegraph pole. At first I thought it was a sparrow-hawk but people have mentioned a buzzard in the area. Needless to say, as soon as I stopped and pointed my Casio, it winged it. Reg reports a similar effect that his long telephoto lens has on interesting aircraft.

I realise the picture isn't very good but perhaps some knowledgeable 'birder' could hazard a guess ?


...... Hoping to venture out tomorrow, although my walking range is zilch. They will park me somewhere pretty though, as they always do, and I shall take my thermos, papers and lappy and it will do me good to get out.

Sleep tight and I'll catch you tomorrow.