28 February 2018

Very cold. Today the main event was a trip to Wythenshawe Hospital for my annual CPAP appointment. All is well. The hospital is a great sprawling place but I really like it - it feels friendly, secure and a place of healing where all the 'natives' are civil and easy to talk to. Thank goodness for the NHS! Despite the Tory cuts it is still delivering for our people. However, I was so busy chatting to other patients I forgot to take a photo! It will be colder tonight so back to the wood store.

27 February 2018

The Siberian weather has arrived - a cold blast from the East which is now being called 'The Beast from the East'. So far its mainly affected the East coast - East Anglia, Yorkshire and the North East, with some snow in Kent. Scotland has borne the brunt of it. Woke up to a couple of centimetres of snow which began to melt around lunchtime in bright sunlight.

My footprints in the snow. Not sure who the paw-prints belong to.

Vale Royal Locks

Viaduct on River Weaver

Woods by the Weaver

26 February 2018

Quiet day. Cold but fairly bright. We have had an amber warning for this week. There is going to be snow on Tuesday - tomorrow - and it could go as low as -10C. Meanwhile, some shopping to do and usual visit to the ducks at the marina.

25 February 2018

Its turned colder but bright and sunny. In the afternoon I was summoned by my neighbour, Geoff, to watch Utd in our local. A good win for us beating Chelsea 2 - 1 and a few excellent pints of Pedigree which I can recommend..

After the match

24 February 2018

Catch-up on jobs and shopping. The main event was the Six Nations clash between Scotland and England which we lost. The Scots made mugs of us 25 - 13 - a great win for them!

Baron's Quay

23 February 2018

Trip to Manchester to meet up with Adrian. Took in the People's History Museum and some iconic pubs.

At the station. Notice the decrepit train we have to put up with, and these are not the worst!

Market Street. Its Chinese New Year

Adrian at the museum

There was an excellent exhibition of political sketches

The Marble Arch. Great Manchester pub with its own brewery - recommended.

The ceiling in the Crown & Kettle. Another great Manchester pub.

22 February 2018

Working to sort out the driveway entrance. Irritating and frustrating. Enough said!

21 February 2018

A good day at work. Foodbank in the morning, Citizens Advice in the afternoon. I really enjoy both jobs.

20 February 2018

Beautiful day. Cold but very bright. Went for a walk around the edge of the village. A footpath I rarely use.

Trees in the winter. Very photogenic by my reckoning. Stark, skeletal beauty against the Winter sky.

Trying to catch the Sun of the Scots Pines. Difficult because there was a huge fence around the garden.

The Fountain

19 February 2018

Gloomy day. Unremitting gloom. Its this time of year that makes you desperate for a warm, sunny day. Went for a walk to our church. Its difficult to get a decent picture from a narrow street, but this one came out best - despite the clutter.

18 February 2018

Another dull grey day. Slightly warmer. Went for a walk down by the river in the Town Centre.

Newish hipster bar. Very popular and pricey but it has little competition.  Arrived about 20 years late!

There are some interesting spaces......

Swing bridge on the Weaver.

17 February 2018

Bright sunny day! But cold. A day of 'sorting things out'. Trip to B & Q and a DIY store to try and get a new toilet seat - a long-running saga which I'd rather not talk about!

DIY store

16 February 2018

Visit to the Mother-in-Law's . She lives in an old rectory which she, and her husband, bought for a song in the 1970s when nobody wanted to buy 'old' houses. It has six bedrooms and a wood in the front garden.

The front garden

Snowdrops, you can see them in the photo above.

The Old Rectory

15 February 2018

Another fairly grim day weather wise. Cold, gloomy and raining. Foodbank in the morning and CA in the afternoon. This is the exercise bike on which I do my high-intensity training (HIT). This takes a total of 120 seconds a week - I kid you not. Look it up.

14 February 2018

13 February 2018

Miserable day. Cold, grey and raining. The highlight of the day was taking the van to Liverpool to be repaired. Had to wait three hours despite being told it would take an hour. next time I go there I'll remember the packed lunch!

12 February 2018

Hmmm, seem to have had a day of 'sorting stuff out', tidying, cleaning, ironing etc. I do lead an exciting life!

Inner peace

11 February 2018

Weather a bit better. Some snow but it didn't last. Quiet day. Started Doughnut Economics by Kate Raworth - the latest book in our Radical Readers group.

Snow on the van

10 February 2018

Saturday. Lousy weather. Dull, cloudy and raining. Perfect weather to stay in and watch the Six Nations. First Ireland vs Italy and, as expected an easy win for Ireland. Then the main event - England vs Wales - a tough gruelling encounter which England Won 12- 6.

Ireland vs Italy

9 February 2018

Much better day. Sunny but cold with a biting wind. Went to Liverpool to meet up with my friend Peter. We visited the Beatles Story which was OK but a bit steep at £15. No shortage of photos.

Sgt Peppers in the Beatles Story

Near the Ferry Terminal

Mersey Promenade

The Three Graces

Exchange Flags

Alleyway full of amazing art

'What unites us is greater than what divides us'

In the Vernon Arms

8 February 2018

This is annoying because I've done it again - forgotten to take a photo!  To be fair it was a dull, grey day with lots of rain - so not much worth taking a photo of. Most of the day taken up with a trip to Liverpool to get the van assessed for repair. Here's a very recent photo of my riverside walk.

7 February 2018

Very cold day. Spent the morning in a Citizen's Advice training course on Universal Credit so missed working at the foodbank. UC seems pretty grim to me - very intrusive and paid in arrears which means you have to wait 5 weeks! We viewed this video by the DWP as part of the training which may prove useful to anyone who needs to apply - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WgJU8Y_bQg&t=594s

Came home to find Rio snuggling.

6 February 2018

Today it is 100 years since some women got the vote!

It snowed in the morning but not well enough to stick for long. In the afternoon it got milder and the snow was gone. Also, a bad day because I caught the bumper of the van on an obstacle that was low down and I couldn't see. It will have to be repaired 😡. Then in fixing the toilet seat by replacing a wingnut, I found the thread was so rusty that the nut wouldn't go on, so new toilet seat required!

Managed to catch a bit of the short-lived snow though.

5 February 2018

Met up with other members of Transition Northwich today for a photo shoot. Article coming soon in the local paper.

4 February 2018

Went to see my friend Simon on the Wirral. We had a walk and a pint by the Dee estuary. Sunny but cold and a decent pint in the Boathouse.

Simon and Ziggy

3 February 2018

Moon over Eaton Lane.

2 February 2018

The long riverside walk today. Takes you down to a set of locks with a view of the salt mine. There are also a number of 'lagoons' that were created when the Weaver was straightened.

Salt mine

Swans feeding in the 'large' lagoon.