Wet Weather for WoW at Ashover - Great Pub

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Ashover is an attractive Derbyshire village, quite high in the hills and a most friendly place. I parked outside the Crispin Inn and was walking 'with wheels' towards the Church. A gentleman coming towards his car nodded and I asked him "Will the Church be open?" he answered "Yes. But if it isn't I'll open it for you". Inside the Church were ladies and a 'bride' discussing flowers. One lady showed me where to look for the interesting bits.

In particular a leaded font dating from the 12th century and one of only 30 in the Country. A picture of the font appears in the bottom left corner of the above collage. There were an unusually high number of people WoW-ing this morning, 11 in all and in spite of the more or less incessant drizzle I think they enjoyed their walk. As always I messed-about closer to the car. When they arrived back we all went down to the Old Poets Corner further down the village where the chip-cobs proved of a high standard. And we had a warm welcome, as can be seen from the snap in the top left corner of my picture. Well worth another WoW when the weather is better.

This picture is courtesy of Helen C. It shows WoW-ers busily at work photographing Roy's blue hat going through the wringer !

Mike, on the extreme left, seems to be struggling with an old-fashioned plate camera.

It reminds me of something by Pieter Bruegel the Elder circa 16th century. Maybe it's the colour or the mix of activity/inactivity, or just the viewpoint of the artist.

Bill took away with him a spare Nikon body-cap I had bought on e-bay. He has the equipment and the know-how to drill a counter-sunk pinhole in it and had offered to do it for me. Then lo-and-behold, when I returned home, the one I had sent away to be drilled had arrived in the post. Not wasted though because my aim is to have several and experiment with 'em. Watch this space.

Y and Hannah had had a good day, 'geoggo' homework about desert plants done and dusted. And then, after I'd had a kip, Hannah helped me cook a spagbol which proved a tasty success. A good handful of fresh basil from the windowsill was the magic ingredient.

My responses to your previous comments

Tilly ..... Thanks for your kind words about the chaffinch picture. You have got far too much on at the moment, but we'll move onto pictures soon !

Yvonne ..... It is good to watch different TV shows. I never do, but I approve of it being done.

Bob ...... I agree. Sorry about the linkless Wendy Cope. I couldn't find the poetic texts on the web. I should have taken them from the Telegraph on the day of publication.

The thoroughbred poll was as you see a close-run race. The poll closes this evening but, at the last time of looking the 'no' voters are ahead by a single vote.

Jill ..... I'm afraid I haven't been following the goldfinch corres in the Telegraph. Should have but keep getting sidetracked.

Sorry to hear about your bulbs being damaged. Y's all look in rude and splendid health. She is good with bulbs ! And 'poached egg' and loads of other things too.

We have crocii (?) out too, but all ours are yellow. No purple or blue yet. Mostly I seem to remember, they come at the same time. We have noticed in the past though that one year the birds bite through all the stems of the purple ones and leave the yellow ones alone. Then next year its vice versa.

You are certainly early with Viburnum - ours is nowhere near ....

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I found the temptation to share this morning's Matt cartoon with you, from the Telegraph, irresistable. With all the current debate about the security services and the police subtly widening their powers and the rights of the citizen being steadily narrowed, it seemed relevant.

Last week's Law in Action gave a reassuring description re the legal position of photographers. I have it on my computer but I think the best position is for me to take my laptop along. To download a half-hour programme to create a link would take ages and ages.

In anycase the legal position has probably changed again since the programme was made.


Quotation time......

"Her crocus dress she wore, lowcut, belongings on show"

James Joyce

The link is to the man himself reading from 'Finnegan's Wake' a novel which I have found almost half-readable, as against Ulysses.

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