SPRING IS HERE AT LAST !

Its lovely to see the leaves on the trees and flowers blooming at long last, after the long, long winter we've had!

Just outside our gate into the park this tree is looking gorgeous against the blue sky.   I thought it was young leaves at first, but when I looked closely, it was flowers.   Its some sort of Maple, so we will be getting little winged seeds everywhere soon!

The Weeping Willow is looking fresh and green.   Just behind there is a little island, and the female swan has been sitting on eggs there for ages.   We are all waiting anxiously for cygnets to appear!

At the top end of the lake, the garden on the right hand side is private, belonging to a rather lovely house.   Funny place for a house, right in the middle of a public park, but I daresay there is some historical reason for it!   The house is up for sale, and I am hoping they respect the wildlife that take refuge in their garden.   The willow tree fell down in the gales, but coots are nesting at the end, where it is right in the water.   it would be a shame if they removed it.

This is the house that is up for sale.   There doesn't seem to be anyone living in it at the moment, but they may be just very quiet people!

The Council employees always keep the Park looking neat and tidy, and plant out loads of plants each summer and autumn.   Usually they have six beds of pansies, which last year looked fantastic, but this year were clobbered by the snow, ice, frost etc.   However, the primulas have done very well, despite the weather.

There's always something to look at in the park, which is just as well, as its about the only place where I take the dog for a walk!   The leaves aren't on the big trees yet, but it is warmer and Spring has definitely come!

SATURDAY MORNING AT LEEK MARKET

A sunny Saturday morning tempted us out at last after all the dreadful cold weather!    Leek is a small market town in Staffordshire, and has a good Flea Market on Saturdays.   It's about a half hour journey from home, and though we knew perfectly well its higher than we are, being in Staffordshire Moorlands, I was amazed to find that there were still big piles of snow at the roadside on the highest, twistiest bit of road.   It must have been very bad up there, where the road was on the north side of the hill, and I suppose never saw the sun.   I would have liked to have taken a photograph, but I was driving at the time!

The market is held in the Market Square (where else??) and there are stalls selling all sorts of items.

Things for the garden...............

Things for the cook  (and that the biggest colander I have ever seen!)

Bits of linen clothes and lace.........

All sorts of cutlery...............

And just all sorts.   There were also "bits for the boys" like model soldiers, tools, a jumble of keys, hooks, washers, grommets and things I don't know the names of, but I didn't shoot those!

There's a good Greengrocer, who flows out into the market place with a couple of stalls, and where I saw these really yummy eggs.

Inside in the old Butter Market, these are lots of permanent stalls, books, needlecraft, cheese, fish - you name it.    There is also an old painting on the wall, presumably showing the merchants trading.

It was very difficult taking photographs inside, so I went out, bought two packs of strawberries, three mangoes and some new potatoes from Cyprus, which are a sort I particularly like.

Weighed down with this lot I went back to the car, where I met Mr.G who was laden with books, and we drove gently home to lunch.

Although we found it tiring, I really enjoyed it, as I haven't been out much all winter, and it was really good to see the countryside again, even if there wasn't a breath of green along the hedge and there was still snow in the fields.    But there were lots of lambs around, so maybe the farmers didn't have the really bad experiences farmers elsewhere did.

SPRING DISAPPEARED AND WINTER CAME BACK!

Winter has still got a grip on us here in the North West of the UK.   And in other parts too - out of the town there are snowdrifts and blocked roads.   The pictures on TV look horrendous.   Luckily we have gas and electricity, and all the roads are free, certainly in the town.   My Tesco (supermarket) order came early, as the delivery man said some orders had been cancelled as the roads to Buxton, across the moors, were blocked with snow.

But this time last year we were basking in hot sunshine, wondering if anything in our garden would grow if the hot weather continued.   But of course, it didn't and it was the wettest and coldest summer on record for I don't know how many years!   And now we have the coldest March and the coldest Easter for some years to make the record books.   Though I can remember, when my daughter was much younger, that we had snow at Easter, and we actually went sledging on Easter Monday.   That was very early April.

Those That Know tell us it is all due to global warming, and the loss of Arctic ice has somehow pushed the jet stream further south, which is why we are dragging cold air from Siberia down to here.   And global warming is also blamed for the hurricanes like Sandy, and the droughts/floods/cold in the USA.

I can't see any reason to doubt these Scientists.   I know there are those who say its all a natural cycle, and so it may be, but I am sure the human race has speeded it up a lot.   I try and do my bit towards all this, but its hard sometimes to know what is right - saving on one thing seems to involve using a lot of something else which is more dangerous!

But whatever the reason for the cold spell, I wish it would pack its bags and go away!   I am tired of negotiating slippery ice-covered paths in the Park, or having to walk on the grass.   (Did that yesterday and fell into a small snow drift!)   I want Spring back, with Summer on the way, so I can pack away all my winter woollies, most of which are now wearing out, and look several pounds thinner in lighter clothes!

Happy Easter to you all!

SPRING !

I always think Spring is just around the corner when the crocuses come out. At the end of our garden, under an apple tree, we have a little group that come out, usually first - before the ones nearer the house.



The ones nearer the house are unfortunately under the bird feeders, and so tend to get trampled down by blackbirds and wood pigeons looking for bits that have been dropped. Also by big furry paws - our dog cannot tell a flower bed from a nice well-cut lawn!



I can never decide whether I prefer the white and purple striped ones........



.........or the big purple ones. So I make sure I have both.

Gardening-wise, I have done a bit of pruning, rescued some daffodils in danger of being dug up/trampled on as Mr.G did a bit of gardening work, and studied the bulbs in pots and troughs. Which are rather slow coming up. However, the daffodils I planted on Boxing Day are coming up nicely, though the 40 free ones Mr.G brought home from the Garden Centre, and which got planted at the right time, are rather dilatory in appearing!

I have some beautiful flowers indoors, which my daughter brought me for Mothering Sunday (I much prefer the old, and correct name, rather than Mother's Day!!) plus some daffodils from Church. The children, rather over enthusiastically sometimes, make sure every woman in the church has a bunch to take home. No enquiries made as to motherhood status! Which is really as it should be, I think. Nothing is more embarrassing for a single woman, apart from teenagers maybe, to have to stand whilst all around her clutch flowers!

I will be glad to get home this afternoon to enjoy my flowers - I have a dental appointment to look forward to first!

Spring will soon be here - and Easter as well! Then surely the year will turn the corner into some sun and warmth?

CHECKING IN ........

If I don't get a new post up, you will all think (those of you that are left) that I have given up! But I am still here, though not doing very much.

We had some lovely sunny days last week, or maybe the week before, and the Park really looked good.



I noticed there is a big mob of gulls on the lake. They fight and squabble for the food that people give to the ducks, but they do look good, wheeling against a blue sky. Of course, when I was there with my camera, they just sat on the water.



The swans were feeding on the grass by the picnic area. I was a bit wary of them, having Max with me but he was on a lead and took no notice of them. And the swans more or less ignored us!



My daughter gave me an Amaryllis for Christmas, and it has grown really fast. The second stalk is very high, I measured it this morning and its 31ins. high, which is 80cms to you metric people! The first one was about the same.



The flowers are very unusual, delicately coloured, and pointy rather than big and blowsy! I think they are very beautiful.

I am hoping the weather will soon get warmer. I find I am disinclined to go out when it involves coats, scarves, gloved and an extra layer or two! I also tend to get house-bound, and can't even get myself out to social meetings. I still go off to my Creative Writing Group, where we all have a laugh, read out what we have written and generally enjoy ourselves. I have also rejoined a Church Group of Elderly Ladies who have talks, or knit squares for blankets and just chat. It is a very gentle time, and very restful, whilst still being able to meet other people and chat. I have also gone back to the church the group belongs to on the occasional Sunday morning. I would like to keep this up. At least they have chairs and not the Victorian pews, that I can't sit in for more than 10 minutes, that my Church of England is stuck with!

Thank you to all those of you who read my blogs (including )

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WEATHERWISE...............

We've had a fair old mixture! We've had snow, ice, and rain, rain, rain! But life goes on,and apart from an emergency hospital admission (which is why this post is very much overdue, I'm fine!

The snow looked very pretty from the bedroom windows.

And the tree in our front garden looked quite spectacular with the contrast between the snow and the branches.

We put lots of food out for the birds, but the squirrels were apt to come and steal it! This one was right outside my kitchen window on the water butt!

This morning when I took the dog for a walk, the park seems under water! It had rained so hard during the night, and we had had hail and thunder as well.

On the plus side, the tulip bulbs are coming up in my pots, and the daffodils are showing signs of stirring! The ones that didn't planted until Christmas so far haven't sent out the tiniest shoot!

I'll get things planted early, next year! But Spring is definitely on the way!

SUNNY AND FROSTY SUNDAY IN THE PARK

For once the grey cloud lifted, the sun came out - albeit a bit hazy - and the Park sprang to life.

Ducks were being fed -

and the gulls were screeching trying to get some of the scraps!

And the swans were doing whatever it is swans do in the reed bed!

and the play ground was full of excited children.

There were also small children on scooters and slightly larger children on bicycles - all of them a bit of a hazard to a dog on a long lead with no sense at all. Lots of dog walkers, throwing balls and sticks, and LOTS of dogs! I would have taken photographs of the children, as they looked rather good, but I thought people might think me a bit, well, weird, if I did that.

So I came home and tried to take a photograph of a blue tit on the fat we have put out. Its not the best photo I have ever taken!