A trip to the Toon....

In Newcastle today for some time away from the computer and work. First stop lunch at The Coffee Rooms.... lovely mushroom soup and a bap. Not used to the old-fangled waitress service I finished up and then walked out without paying my bill! (I returned as soon as I realised my error, me being a lad with mother's honesty values solidly in place.) The Christmas Market was in full swing at Greys Monument...

Then, heading towards The Biscuit Factory to pick up a print I won in a prize draw, I spotted these gorgeous panels at a nearby building site.

This is the site of one of the earliest dispensaries in Newcastle. Now sandwiched between a jobbing printer and a computer accessory store I wonder about its chances of survival as the demolition progresses along the street. Further down I snapped this shot of a place I used to work, now due for demolition and redevelopment. New tat replacing old tat I should imagine!

And now for the WhitleyBUNIONS....

A bracing trip down to the beach Sunday to give Gracie a stretch after being cooped up on account of the rain. Big seas and chilly winds were the order of the day.Popped in on T&K who were baby sitting for granddaughter Teresa before she departed to Germany with her parents.

Feet don't fail me now...

Last Thursday I paid a visit to Wansbeck hospital to get my feet assessed. Trevor confirmed that I did indeed have a couple of bunions, and after a few tests and a walk up and down he gave me a catalogue with a selection of what I'm going to call 'special' shoes.

The decision is simple... opt for a pair of these 'special' shoes and gain more comfort when walking, whilst looking like someone from a 1930's man's store advert, or buy regular, trendy looking but badly fitting shoes and damage my feet even more. There's also a third option which involves some anesthetic and a very sharp knife. The decision is mine... but perhaps you'd like to tell me what you think?

Poppy is eleven!

Following the family theme of the last post, here is a photo of our granddaughter Poppy. It's her birthday today and she's eleven years old. What a wonderful girl Poppy is... lively and engaging, with a charm and smile that can knock you down from six feet. Mind you, she's not averse to the odd 'lip' when things aren't going her way! Poppy has had much to endure in her eleven years, and she has born it, as far as I know, with bravery and determination. I have no doubt that the next eleven years for her will also have their challenges, but I'm equally confident that she will rise above them all and become a young lady of talent and vitality. With that quick wit and disarming smile she's got it made!

Sokell's x4

Bearing a slight resemblance to a police line up.... here are four Sokell blokes (three generations) in one shot. Bren managed to get this while we were all together this weekend.

I'm a CLAS act me...!

Today I received my membership of CLAS - The Calligraphy and Lettering Arts Society. Along with my membership came a couple of copies of 'The Edge' (CLAS magazine - the current magazine has information and a report about the Summer Symposium that I attended, and there was a picture of me in it!), a free 'Tools & Materials' brochure, an offer on a boxed set of Calligraphy gouache and various bits of information about what's going on in the world of calligraphy right now. I also got info about how I can proceed on the CLAS Certificate of Calligraphy and 'Ladder of Progress'. Can't wait to get started on it!

ASBO Jesus keeping it real again....

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