25^th September 2022

 

Dear All,

Two outings to report this week. The first was on Tuesday when four of us drove down to Chelmsford to watch Essex v Lancashire play their penultimate cricket match of the season and I and two others had been nominated for the “Volunteer Grounds Management Team of the Year” for Cambridgeshire. We were Runners Up but were entertained with a free lunch and tea in an Executive Box and free drink on tap! The cricket was extraordinary in that 26 wickets fell in the day and Lancashire were at one stage 7 runs for 6 wickets in their second innings. They did however eventually win before tea on the 2^nd day – I think Essex let them win to save getting a heavy fine for a poor wicket!

 

 

Certificate

 

The second outing was to the Nene Valley Railway yesterday for godson Arthur’s birthday treat. He is crazy about trains and was very excited about the prospect. It was a steam train ride and he was allowed to sit in the driver’s seat in the cab before take-off and wear a guardsman’s hat. We also had a ride on a Miniature train.

 

 

Train Driver

 

 

Satisfied Customer

 

 

Steam Train

 

 

Miniature Train

 

 

 

 

Trainee Guard

 

Kate and I had another booster Covid jab on Wednesday – this time a Moderna Spikevax. We did not feel too bad that night and as we did not have any serious effects from previous jabs, we turned out for our usual Thursday walk. This may have been a mistake as extreme weariness set in and we only just made it round. We were meeting locally at Boxworth and took in Knapwell, Childerley, Dry Drayton and Lolworth.

 

 

Childerley Hall

 

Boxworth Church & Rectory

 

 

Boxworth

In the garden I have planted Spring Cabbage, Lettuce and Elephant Garlic, removed Climbing French Beans and Cucumbers and dug half of Elsom’s garden. I have also sorted seeds and ordered for next year. Kate has made the first batch of apple juice and planted a new strawberry bed, She also had a long session at Addenbrookes taking Lorna in on Tuesday and enduring a painful wait in A&E.

 

Love

 

 

 

Mike & Kate

 

18^th September 2022

 

Dear All,

We have just returned from two nights “up north” courtesy of our children’s gift for our 50^th wedding anniversary – it has only taken us 18 months to get round to spending the voucher but there have been understandable reasons.

We left Thursday morning and called in at Burghley House to break the journey. We had an excellent tour of the house and various gardens. It was built in the 16^th century by William Cecil and his descendants still live there. One of occupants collected over 350 portraits so they had to partition some of the big halls to have enough wall space to hang them all. There is a Garden of Surprises and a large Sculpture Garden and the park was of course laid out by Capability Brown.

 

 

Our Weekend Cottage

 

 

Main Hall

 

 

Capability Brown’s Lake & Bridge

 

 

Kate in the Garden of Surprises

 

 

 

The Sculpture Garden

In Yorkshire we stayed at Rowley Manor half way between Hull and Beverley. It was in a good position but was slightly tired and had seen better days. We wondered about the fire escape situation as we were on the top floor but relaxed when we saw a bucket catching drips from a leak in the ceiling of the corridor! We had a local walk after arriving and met a retired engineer building elaborate gate posts. He and his wife – an ex-magistrate explained that Rowley is a “Lost Village”, in the 1600s the local vicar fell out with the Bishop and decided to emigrate to America. He explained the situation to the villagers and invited them to go with him. They all decided to go just after the Mayflower in 1620 leaving Rowley completely deserted. There are now only four houses. We got to talking about the Queen and the wife related that her 4-year-old grand daughter reported that she had seen the Queen during a visit to London. Grandma asked where she had seen her thinking that she had been spotted in a car leaving or arriving somewhere and grand daughter said “Buckingham Palace – she was at a window shaking out a duster!” “Are you sure it was the Queen?”, “Oh yes, she was wearing a crown!” Grandma thought it was a good story and wrote to the Queen to tell her and got a very nice letter back.

 

 

Rowley Manor

 

On Friday we explored Hull catching the Park and Ride bus near the Humber Bridge. We headed for the Museum Quarter. We intended to visit the Wilberforce Museum but it was closed so we took in the “Street Life Museum of Transport” and the “East Riding Museum”, both were excellent with very modern displays. We followed this with “The Deep” an aquarium housed in a very modern building.

 

 

Hull City Hall

 

 

Transport Museum

 

 

The Deep

 

 

Ornamental Puffins everywhere

In the late afternoon we drove out to Spurn Head and walked along it for some way. It is over 3miles long but a storm in 2013 split it and destroyed the road. It was well worth seeing.

 

 

Spurn Head

 

On Saturday we visited Beverley and were very impressed. It was bustling as it was market day and the whole town seemed very prosperous. The Minster is obviously a highlight but there are several very attractive buildings.

 

 

Entrance Gate

 

Minster Entrance

 

We drove home via the Humber Bridge, the whole length of Lincolnshire including the Wolds, Spalding and Crowland. It was only a couple of nights but seemed a long break.

Earlier in the week it had been “Putting the wicket to Bed for the Winter” time as we scarified, reseeded, fertilised and added a ton of Ongar Loam. It was quite hard work as there were only two of us this year.

 

 

 

Loam Application

Esther and Emma stayed one night while we were away as Esther had another Addenbrooke’s appointment. It was Albert’s 7^th birthday and we clubbed together for a swing and climbing frame. He was also Star Pupil this week!

 

 

Star Pupil

 

 

Swing & Climbing Frame

 

Love

 

 

 

Mike & Kate

 

11^th September 2022

 

Dear All,

It was back to swimming this week after 6 weeks of holiday schedules. Monday also included a haircut and a CEEM meeting in Sandy and a certain amount of digging. We received our U3A Course allocations this week. Apart from “Just Vegetating” and “Biographies” which I or we help run and the Walking I am on “Napoleon Bonaparte” and “Next Question” a course on quizzes.

The car sailed through it’s MOT this week which is always a relief and we have been asked to present a quiz at the Day Centre again after a two-year Covid hiatus.

News came through this week that we have been short listed for a Cricket groundsman award, it involves a lunch at Chelmsford during Essex’s last home game. I do not expect we will win but a free lunch is a free lunch!

Our walk this Thursday was reasonably local starting at Linton and taking in Hadstock, Great Abington and Hildersham. It was a good walk on what proved to be the driest day of the week, five days running with rain has been unprecedented this week as we had not rain on three consecutive days before this year.

News came through at lunchtime that the Queen was poorly but it was still a shock when she died having looked quite perky chatting to the new Prime Minister.

 

 

Linton Ford

 

 

Linton Water Mill

 

 

Cultivations

 

 

View towards Linton Tower

 

On Friday we were in Cambridge for a military style briefing form Philip for the U3A walking holiday in The Forest of Bowland starting on 9^th October. Being Philip, we have already chosen our dinner for the 9^th! We have been allocated leading a walk on the first day so we are planning to go up the day before to carry out a recce as it does not look completely straightforward. Kate invested in new walking boots which is always a challenging purchase. She has been wearing them round the house to wear them in! We also returned our Street Pastors uniforms – the end of an era!

There was a Men’s Breakfast at chapel yesterday, the speaker was an ex-Policeman who lost his wife suddenly with a brain haemorrhage aged 34 leaving three children aged between 6 months and 6 years old.

Plenty of digging this week so I have finished 50% of the allotment and a few pieces here. It was Winter Squash harvest this week – only about 50 this year compared with 80 last time. Kate has been working on the front garden and a man stopped and said to her “every time I come past you are on your knees” – pious woman!

 

 

Allotment Squash Patch

 

 

Pious Kate!

Our old neighbour Derek Medlock and partner Joyce were here again yesterday so we invited then to lunch. They were due at Sandringham for a rabbit show but for some reason it was cancelled!

 

The Cambridge News theme this week was “Swimming” and I had two photos printed one from the Dead Sea and one of Albert in the paddling pool.

 

 

Mud application before Dead Sea swim

 

 

Albert in Hove Paddling Pool

 

love

 

Mike & Kate

 

4^th September 2022

 

Dear All,

Highlight this week has been the delivery on Friday of two loads of FYM, one for the allotment and one for the garden. As the garden load was dumped on the front drive, we spent Friday afternoon moving 40 barrow loads to the back. Kate loading and me on transport – don’t tell me I don’t know how to give a girl a good time!

 

A Good Time in Over!

No more rain this week so watering recommenced. The forecast seems to fall into a pattern of promising rain a week in advance with the likelihood diminishing as the day approaches.

I have been working on my Biography presentation for the next session the subject this time is “Robert Bakewell” an eighteenth-century agricultural improver. He dramatically improved Leicester sheep and Longhorn cattle as well as developing Shire horses, pigs and cattle cabbage,

  

Robert Bakewell

 

Our Thursday outing this week began at Chrishall and circled via Langley and Duddenhoe End. This took in the highest point of Cambridgeshire at a giddying 147 m! It was noticeable how the blackberries had improved after the previous week’s rain. We met some striking Zwartbles sheep from Holland and spotted several autumnal fungi.

 

 Near Chrishall

  

Zwartbles Sheep

 

 

Parasol Fungi

 

On the family front it has been back to school in Hove with Amḗlie having the trauma of starting a new school.

 

 

Brave smiles!

Meanwhile Ben was Master of Ceremonies at a Kings College graduation ceremony.

  

MoC Ben

 

On the garden front I was very pleased to pick the best melon I have ever grown, something else which appreciated the hot weather – and it really tasted good.

  

Cantaloupe Melon - Emir

 

love

 

Mike & Kate