Hastings

Last weekend we went to Hastings to stay with friends who we haven't seen for four years. I don't know why that is but it was lovely to see them! They have two children and the youngest was only a baby when we last saw them so obviously wouldn't remember us. The oldest was four. I asked him if he remembered us. "No." Interesting that an eight year old's memory does not extend back to four. Same as me in that respect!

 Their log pile is impressive. They get logs from the tree surgeons in the park over the road. 

 We went for a lovely walk into town on the Saturday, and saw some pretty gardens on the way. One was of someone called 'Grey Owl' who was an English man who moved to Canada, and became a fur trapper and wilderness guide. He then took on a native identity and claimed to be of Apache and Scottish descent. He married an Iroquois woman who gradually persuaded him to stop trapping because of the cruelty involved. One day he trapped a mother beaver and as he paddled away the cries of the babies followed him. He went back the next day and collected the babies, looking after them with his wife. So he changed from a trapper to a conservationist over the years. It is a fascinating story. (I have as usual gleaned all my points from wikipedia!)

 Pink flowers, purple door and blue walls-so pretty!

 Christmas is forecast in an alley.

 The Red Arrows appeared just for us.

 Windy beach. I love the tattered plastic flags.

 I love their fire. 

 Saturday became a bit wet and squally. Sunday was hot. We went for another walk in the park opposite their house. It is much bigger than I thought it was. Perfect to have just across the road!

 There is a little railway track with small steam engines. This is one of the engineers just disappearing into the tunnel.

 These dogs looked cute and happy at first. Then they became snarling beasts as they 'played' chase with each other. They reminded me of polar bears.

The best doorstop I have ever seen. It was dug up in the garden of their flat in London. 

Lovely weekend! Must not leave it four years until the next time!

Door 2

This time it is uploaded in the compose screen. I think I have worked out the problem. It will upload videos from my phone but not from my big camera. Not sure why.

Door

The  sight and sound of the now fully functioning door.It took nearly two hours of work from the two men who were fixing it but it is now perfect! It has never worked this well.

And thanks Kat-uploading the video in the html screen worked really easily and quickly! Never had to do that before as the other screen worked but this was much quicker than it ever used to be. So bird videos tomorrow!

Skies

A selection of skies from the last two weeks. The sky outside at the moment is very blue but I am stuck at home at the mercy of the company that is supposed to come and fix my door. It is the back door and it is broken so I can't go anywhere until it is done. So frustrating! I am making a needle felted thing which is keeping me busy but I don't want to be stuck here all day like I was yesterday. Oh well. Must stay calm about it!

Sunnyland or Aaaargh Clowns!

One day we went to the hilariously misnamed Sunnyland. A large industrial estate but with houses on too-quite nice houses but in the middle of the industrialness. We were bound for The Home Skillet, a popular café in the middle of Sunnyland which does large breakfasty type food. We waited for over an hour but in some ways it was worth it. I opted for biscuits and gravy which was a mystery to me. When it came it was like two large doughy scones, slathered in a thick kind of beige sauce which had pieces of sausage in it. Linda Sue assured me it was not as it should be-that the biscuits should be thicker and the sauce less claggy! The coffee was nice.

 The outside decor kept me busy for a while.

 Choosing kept Andy and Linda Sue busy for a little while.

 Tin can man.

 Weird picture of woman dressed up as a chicken and seemingly laying an egg.

 And now-what made the visit really worthwhile for me!

 The clown infested toilet!

Great label!

Nooksack Falls

Blogger will not upload my bird videos. I have not had this particular problem before but I have now! Nearing the end of my holiday blogs now. It was such a good holiday that it has taken me two weeks so far to talk about it!

Linda Sue's friend Stella took us to Nooksack Falls, an 88 feet high waterfall near to Mount Baker. It is an impressive sight, and carefully fenced off to prevent inadvertent death on the rocks below. However, some people over the years have insisted on climbing over the fence to get a better view, which they may have done as they plunged down onto the rocks below.

It is the sort of place where, as you get out of your air-condidtioned car, you realize that air can be that fresh, and woods do smell that good. The colours of the icy water, the yellow-green lichen, the dark trees and the blue sky all go together to make a perfect scene. The giant slugs aside, it is a lovely place to visit! (As long as my hand-the slug)

We had lunch in Glacier, just down the road. The ski fence illustrates the main sport in the winter around here.

I loved this combination of signs. I think frankness in signs is a good thing but these two together are a bit confusing!

A pun on this airstream caravan made it all the more photoworthy. 'Hairstream' is a travelling hairdressers. The hairdresser was happy for us to take photos inside. The lady having her hair dyed was originally from Bournemouth in the U.K. and told us we must go up Mount Baker.

After our trip, Stella took us back to her house on the lake where she and her husband, and for Andy, some neighbours, were all very hospitable. Andy got to sample locally caught crab and lots of different beers. We were more sedate with some tasty Margaritas. Stella lives on the edge of a lake and it is so beautiful to have that calming view as you sit on her porch.

Her garden is very pretty and puts mine to shame!

The best shot I managed of an eagle all the holiday. We saw quite a few but getting a photo of one is hard!

Stella modelling her special Queen goblet, a find in the thrift store earlier in the week!

Stella's husband told us all about the animals in the local area, and how, even though you may be very nice to them, a racoon will never like you! He assured me that there would be a bear within half a mile of the house, up in the woods. No good for me though as I can't see it there!

Thank you Stella for a lovely day!