One of those days in England 3 – Whistley Wood

see all the pix here I did eventually manage to find some woodland to wonder through. Pleasing both in that I’d correctly remembered that there was such a place just around the corner from Syresham, and in being so delightfully named. It’s true, and here’s the photograph I took to prove it.   Un-typically, I […]

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Surfing the green wave

It’s a breezy but sunny afternoon  and I’ve been cycling through the green and pleasant again. Happily traversing the gently undulating, tree-dotted and pleasantly sheepy landscape of south Northants. As is often the case when the wind is tossing the treetops about with that lovely rushing, roaring sound, I am irresistibly reminded of the sigh […]

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In praise of pedalling

I’d be the first to admit I’m not the fastest thing on two wheels (if God had meant this to be, I’d have been born Belgian, and have at least one ‘x’ in my name), but I’d be prepared to wager if not a king’s ransom then at least a prince’s pocket-money that there were […]

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Universal zoetrope

There’s nothing like turning a corner in the gently undulating countryside to be surprised by a sudden curving dip – like a caressing the curves of a body, hip, shoulder, belly – it’s very sensual and I can’t help but think in terms of the physical. I find a very personal satisfaction in such discoveries. […]

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The Wild Blue Yonder

Thankfully, the world is full of mysteries. I live in hope that some may eventually be resolved, but some will forever remain impenetrable, such as ‘just what is it about Bluebells?’ Where do they get that extra-ordinary, almost hallucinogenic quality that somehow manages to transform – albeit briefly – even the most prosaic patch of […]

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The sound of breathing

Another sunny – stripped back, soon to be spring – Sunday, another walk in the woods.  How English, how middle class can you get? I don’t care, sometimes the effort of stepping outside the stereotype just isn’t worth it. Especially not on a glorious day like this, cold, crisp and clear.  I’m conscious of a […]

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Man vs. rodent

I went for a bracing 6 mile walk several nights ago – a distressing experience in more than one way. It hurt, for one thing. This was almost a week ago, and my calves have only just stopped aching. I’m back to striding manfully about the place, instead of tottering around like an arthritic tortoise, […]

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Swallows

There’s something about those tiny, hurtling, hunting scraps of life that always makes me smile…swallows, swifts, martens. I love them all. They always seem to me expressive of the sheer joy of flight, madly attempting to zip across the whole breadth of sky, all at once. A sight so vicariously exciting, I sometimes find myself […]

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Looking and seeing

view all the photos Went for a walk in the woods a couple of Sundays ago. Partly as an antidote to an unsuccessful shoe-buying expedition (great sale…the shop doesn’t open on Sundays, as I now know) and to wash the cloying taste of commercial-mass out of my mind, but  mostly ‘cos it nearly always makes […]

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