August 8th, 2011
In these times of economic turmoil and civil unrest it’s easy to forget the comfort and joy that comes from a bowl of wobbly jelly. And the price of jelly is falling faster than the stock market! Hartley’s orange jelly is now just 19p in Tesco. Don’t riot: stay at home and make jelly! It’s what I’m doing.
July 16th, 2011
Bacon used to come in packs of eight but now both Tesco and Sainsbury’s are selling it packs of 10. Coincidence? I think not! This reeks of conspiracy.
July 9th, 2011
Probably not. Sadly I feel Redcar’s days as a prosperous seaside resort and steel making hub are behind it. There is still a pleasant beach though.

Much to my surprise there was a small tourist information office in the town center where a helpful lady directed me along the beach towards the last remnants of the Teesside steel industry.

July 9th, 2011
In summary: it’s better to speed a little extra and stay in a B&B. Here’s a photo from the moor near Kildale showing the moody rain clouds that were a near-permanent feature of this trip.

June 28th, 2011
It was ridiculously hot on Sunday. Probably too hot to be going walking but I did anyway. Here are some photos I took on my wanderings between Henley and Marlow via Stonor and Hambledon.
June 26th, 2011
Breaking news! doof.me.uk brings you exclusive pictures of the GIANT BEE currently ravaging the countryside in the south of England! This blurry picture of the giant bee in the far distances was taken earlier this morning…

If you see the bee do not approach! It may be dangerous!
June 26th, 2011
Now I’m not normally a fan of classical music, but this guy Max Richter, he makes some good tunes. In particular the ones on here and here.
June 26th, 2011
My beloved Corus pen has passed away. I acquired it over two years ago at a careers fair along with a steel pot of mints that was surprisingly hard to open. I’ve used it ever since, tucked in the spiral of my notebook. But finally it has run out of ink.

It’s been everywhere with me on all the adventures described on this blog over the last few years. Jotting down train times, shopping lists, and other tidbits of information. It was leagues above the usual corporate tat that I collect: well constructed with a soft grip and an arty steel twirl at the top. Truly the king of freebie pens. RIP.
June 20th, 2011
I took a break from exploring the wild lands of southern Oxfordshire yesterday and instead headed to nearby west London and walked along the Grand Union canal from Hayes to Alperton near Wembley. I can’t say it was a particularly exciting walk and it intermittently rained which wasn’t much fun. Still, I managed to take one semi-interesting photo of the Nestle factory at Hayes:

The bridge carries the Great Western mainline into London. The construction site in the distance is High Point Village. Funny, they never show the sweet factory in their publicity shots.
June 12th, 2011
I went to Rye yesterday with my family and there was the happy coincidence of a reasonably sunny day and the church tower being open! I haven’t been up here since I was a sprog. Here we can see over the Romney marsh towards the sea and the local wind farm.

The tower doesn’t feel very safe: the boards are a bit wobbly. The next picture is looking the other way towards the town and the train station. I like the uniformity of the red roofs.
