Nothing wrong with being old and square

Colchester Holy Trinity Church Tower.  Canon S120

9th January 2016

We have been travelling today and ended up for lunch in Colchester.

We passed Holy Trinity church and had a brief moment to marvel at its ancient tower.

With some parts thought to be around 1000 years old, it can be forgiven for being simple in structure; the fancy buildings from the same period were obviously not made to last.

Fronds of Frost

Frosty Leaf.  Canon S120

8th January 2016

The last few days have been promising some cold and dry; we have the cold but are still getting the odd shower, causing lots of ice.

This leaf managed to get a light dusting of ice, rather than a casing of it.

Prime condition: no, A Frayed Knot

Xena's rope toy.  Canon S120

7th January 2016

Xena has had this rope for many years; right from when she was a puppy so over a decade now.

Muppet has played with it on and off, but over the last few days has decided to attempt to destroy it.

There are bits of shredded rope all over the carpet now, and quite a few strands stuck in his teeth.   Hopefully it will at least help keep his teeth clean.

Winter flowers

Hellebore.  Nikon D7000

6th January 2016

The warm wet December has kept the garden plants very well watered.   The Hellebores seem to have relished the weather and are all looking good.

Most years, they are the only flowers in bloom at the moment, but the clematis on the patio is out too; 'Spring' flowering!

Barking up the wrong bottle

Cork.  Nikon D7000

5th January 2016

Cork is a wonderful natural product.   Although it is tree bark from the cork oak, it is still used for making stoppers for many types of bottles.

Its use is being replaced slowly by screw caps and plastic stoppers, but for the special cases of 'fizzy white wine', proper corks still seem to be the chosen bottle sealant.

Popping the cork on a Champagne bottle will always sound different to releasing the fizz by unscrewing a cap.

In for the chop

Pastry Cutters.  Nikon D7000

4th January 2016

Jo has made a super supply of Mince Pies this Christmas period: These cutters have worked their wonders with the pastry to make the holders for the Mince Meat.

They are due to go back into the cupboard again shortly; it may be some time before they are out again as a bit of dieting is needed to remove the "Mince Pies".

Starting Early

Rhubarb.  Nikon D7000

3rd January 2016

The warm and very wet December has made all sorts of plants restart growth much earlier than normal.

I am not convinced that the grass has ever stopped growing, but the Rhubarb certainly did.

The rhubarb has started growing again already though; this year I intend to keep all the nearby bushes trimmed to get the best crop I can.

Life in the Freezer

Thawing Ice.  Canon S120

2nd January 2016

It might be unseasonally warm and raining outside, but the kitchen freezer is cold, and very frosty.

With the Christmas turkey eaten, there was a decent size hole left in the main freezer which allowed me to empty the smaller kitchen freezer into it.

It takes quite some time however for the ice to melt, and meant the floor got an impromptu mop too!

Household Items: Shiny New Year

Glazed Bowls.  Nikon D7000

1st January 2016

Something simple to start the New Year:

The collection of bowls in the kitchen are very pretty indeed.  Although glazes are only made with heated sands with some metal additives, they are not only good to look at, but very functional too.

Without the glazes, the stoneware bowls would still hold water, but they would be harder to clean; luckily we have a dishwasher :)