Waffle and Whinge

23:54:00 o'clock BST

 

I’m back. I must admit I was getting a little twitchy there for a while. A week without my computer was almost as bad as running out of brandy! I came back to more than two hundred emails although they were shared between three of my screen names. Still, it took me  awhile to get through them I can tell you. The pc is running much sweeter now although it still isn’t perfect and may have to go back to the doc for a little more tweaking. Twice it’s failed to boot up at the first attempt and I think one of my fans is struggling. But it will have to wait. Tomorrow I’m off for another injection in my knee followed by a few days off work so I’ll need it here.

 

  Remember the customer who didn’t like me to say ‘there you go’ when I handed her mail over? Well, she’s been back. I was very polite and made a point of not saying the dreaded words. But when I handed her mail over she accused me of saying it again. Now, on the last two occasions I had been very professional and polite but this time I’d had enough. Especially as I hadn’t said it at all. We had a few words and I ended by telling her I wouldn’t serve her again. She was just about to leave when Phil, the union rep, pipes in. Before long there’s a full blown argument going on. The woman threw something on the floor in temper and Phil asked her politely, but firmly, to leave the building as she was becoming abusive. She refused.

 

  PHIL: “If you don’t leave I’ll have to call the police and have you removed.”

  CUSTOMER: “Call the police, I’ll tell them you are being rude and abusive to your customers.”

  PHIL: “Mr North, [that’s me] will you call the police please?”

  ME: “You’re not serious!?”

  PHIL: “CALL THE POLICE!”

  ME: “You can’t dial 999 for something like this!”

 

  At which point Phil called the police. It was all so stupid. The woman was just about to bugger off when he butted in. It took them twenty minutes to arrive, during which time Phil had had the cheek/decency to take her a cup of tea while she was waiting. Eventually, after more shouting on her part and some cajoling from the boys in blue, it’s settled. We will allow her back in again but if we have one more incident like this she will be barred from entering the office.

 

  “That’s alright” she said, “I’ll call the police and they can collect my mail.”

  “Yes, just give us a call next time.” The copper tells her, trying to hide the smirk on his face, and then they escorted her off the premesis.

 

What a palaver! And it was all so unnecessary. To be honest, I was embarrassed by all the fuss. It’s quite obvious the woman’s not playing with a full deck and to call the police was just irritating the situation. But Phil was in playful mood and thoroughly enjoying himself. I guess it brought a little excitement to an otherwise dull day. It changes nothing though. When she comes in again I’ll refuse to serve her. I’ll go get the boss and he can deal with her. Wouldn’t it be funny if, when he hands over the mail, he says “There you go madam”.

 

  Reet failed her exam. It was a really silly mistake but, unfortunately, an important one. No worries though, she’s already taken it again and is awaiting the results. They should come through sometime next week. She’s been under the weather this past week and I don’t suppose that’s helped her concentration. She has some pain in her arm and shoulder which is probably due to her arthritis. It’s been quite bad and she’s on all manner of pills from the doctor. What a pair we make.

 

  Friday is brother John’s birthday. He’ll be 55. More importantly, he’s having a barbecue to celebrate so we’re off for food and drinks on Saturday. Should be a fun night, especially since I have to provide the music. That suits me as it means I get to here all my favourite sounds.

 

  The early retirement edged a little closer this week. A letter has been sent to all the over 55s to see who is interested. If they don’t get enough takers in that age bracket they’ll ask the 54s and under. And that’s me! Fingers crossed on that one. Of course, this being Royal Mail, they’ll probably change their minds again by next week.

 

  And that’s me all caught up I believe. I just have time to answer a couple of emails and then I’m off up the wooden hill.

 

  Tata. x

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22:39:35 o'clock BST

 

Three days and three entries! What’s got into me lately? Well, truth be told I have no reason to write tonight other than the fact that my computer is going to the docs tomorrow for a little TLC and I don’t know how long it will be gone for. I must be sure to check the visiting times.

 

  My pc has developed a strange problem. Every time I load a cd into the drive it reboots itself. I’ve spoken to the pc doc about it and he’s suggesting I might need a new rewriter. I don’t know what the cost of one of those is these days but I suppose if it’s needed then I’ll just have to dig into my pockets and pay for it. Might as well upgrade the RAM while I’m at it. No need to tell Reet that though. ;O)

 

  Reet took her exam today and, as usual, fears the worst. I’ve learned to ignore her pessimism these days and I’m fairly confident she’ll get through. The next stage is online communications so I can see some problems arising from that. Her computer doesn’t have internet access and she sure as hell ain’t gonna push me off mine.

 

  Last Sunday’s brekkie was indeed a fry-up. We’re getting quite a little crowd of us there now.Last week there were seven of us. If we recruit any more I think we should qualify for a discount.

 

  Thanks for all the congratulations for our anniversary. Seems thirty years isn’t such a milestone though. Bunny (Sorry, can’t find a link) and hubby have clocked up a whacking fifty years and Andy will be hitting the thirty two mark this Wednesday. I don’t know whether to offer congratulations or commiserations.

 

  What else is there to relate? Well, Friday week I’ll be going back for another injection in my knee. Hopefully, this will stop the pain. If not, I think I’ll just give up with the pain killers completely, they’re next to useless most of the time. The brandy works best but it doesn’t last long so I have to keep topping up. ;O) 

 

  At work, I’ve now officially signed into the office duty that I’ve been covering for the last few months. There’s not much chance of me getting back to my driving duty now. But I’m getting to quite enjoy myself in this new role which is a good thing I guess since I’ll probably be doing it till I retire. The jury is still out on when that might happen. Early retirement is still hovering tantalisingly close but ever elusive. If I don’t get that I’ll be working for another seven years, till I’m sixty. Or, if Royal Mail has its evil way, until I’m sixty five! Now that doesn’t even bear thinking about!

 

  The guys at work are planning a cricket day for July 12th and they’ve asked me to take a few pics. I might as well seeing as I won’t be able to play. If the weather’s good it should be a real fun day. Another guy I work with (Les) has asked me to take some photos of him on his mountain bike. It could be interesting as there will be a lot of bikers there throwing themselves and their bikes over logs and off of huge wooden platforms. Les has broken at least three bones in the last two years so that should give you some indication of how stupid, crazy, dangerous this sport can be. Still, it’s a good photo opportunity so I might tag along one weekend.

 

  Okay, I’m all talked out for tonight. It’s time to disconnect this hunk of electrics ready for it’s surgery tomorrow. Wish it luck. And me. I mean, what am I going to do whilst it’s gone? I can’t talk to Reet, I did that yesterday. Maybe a trip to the bookstore will pass some time since I’m right out of reading material at the moment. I’ve had to rummage through my book shelf and re-read an old favourite - Spike Milligan’s war memoirs. It’s a great read but not something you can get your teeth into. I like a good thick epic of a book for that, preferably of the sci-fi/fantasy genre.

 

  But enough, let’s get this thing to pieces. Now, where’s that crowbar…?

 

  Cheerie– bye. x

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22:51:25 o'clock BST

 

I thought I’d better write an entry today if only to mention the fact that it’s our wedding anniversary. Twenty nine years for goodness sake. Where has the time gone? And, more to the point, when does the license expire? I have no idea how we’ve survived so long together. We’ve certainly had some rocky times but I guess the fact that we’re still hanging in there must mean something.

 

  We’ve never really celebrated our anniversaries, except our 25th when we treated ourselves to a holiday in a five star hotel overlooking Lake Maggiore in Italy. (And if you’ve never been I can thoroughly recommend it.) We had intended to go for a meal tonight but Reet has her exam tomorrow and wanted to get in some practice on the computer, so we stayed in and had Chinese. A friend of mine gave me some tickets (two meals for the price of one) at a plush Italian restaurant, just a short drive away, but you have to book weeks in advance to get a table. So we thought we’d save it for now and maybe share the evening with our friends Andy and Liz.

 

  I remember our wedding quite well. I know we paid a little over a grand for the whole shebang. Doesn’t sound much now but back in ’79 it was a fortune. We hired a huge hall and my brother in law’s band played in the evening, interspersed with a disco. Reet’s aunt made the wedding cake, a three tier extravaganza that tasted as beautiful as it looked. I also remember I was much skinnier back then. I had a twenty eight inch waste – and thirty inch flairs on my suit trousers!

 

  The honeymoon was spent on the Isle of Wight. We got lost going through London on the outward journey and had to be guided through by a policeman who took us all round the back streets at a squillion miles an hour. Reet was panicking that once they’d got us to the other side of London they’d stop and nick us for speeding. The most memorable thing about the honeymoon was the horse riding. Reet enjoyed the experience as she hadn’t ridden since her early schooldays. Me? That was my first time and most definitely my last. As experiences go I think I’d sooner stick pins in my eyes.

 

  On the way home the car broke down and we had to join the AA right there and then to get them to fix it. They had trouble finding the parts though and by the time they got it sorted we had no less than five AA men from all over the Guildford area working on the car. They did us proud though and we got home safely, if a little later than expected.

 

  Our first fifteen years of marriage were spent in a high rise flat where we never really settled. The flat itself was huge and we really liked it. I even had a darkroom set up in one of the cupboards, that’s how big it was. But the area wasn’t so great and it wasn’t a place we ever thought of as home. Although we had very little money, we always felt that something would turn up and we wouldn’t live there forever. We went to the pub most nights and had parties frequently but we never decorated after that first time when we first  moved in. It just didn’t seem permanent, even after fourteen of those years.

 

  Our escape came in the form of a council scheme that allowed tenants to part rent and part buy a house. We decided to go for it but when we went for a financial check we discovered that house prices had dropped so much that, with a few hours a week overtime on my part, we could actually afford to buy on the open market. And that’s how we came to buy the place we’re living in now.

 

  We moved here in ’94 and have never looked back. I knew when I first viewed the place that I wanted it and we were lucky enough that the lady who was selling it liked us enough to wait for us to sort the finances. Fourteen years on and we still love the place. It’s probably the only reason we’re still together. None of us is prepared to give it up. ;O}

 

  I had hoped to add a wedding photo to this entry but it turns out I don’t have one on my computer. Guess I’ll have to scan some in a bit sharpish. Or maybe I’ll leave it till our thirtieth next year.

 

  Right, time for bed methinks.

 

  Tata. x

 

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06:04:44 o'clock BST

 

The good news is that Reet passed her tests that she took a week or s ago. The bad news is that she still didn’t make it through to the interview stage. We’re not sure why that is but what can you do? The job she applied for was within the Dept for Work and Pensions. It’s what used to be the DSS, I think. The good news about passing the tests is that if she applies for any other job within the council, she doesn’t have to resit them. Hopefully, that will help with future job offers.

 

  In the meantime she’s still taking her computer classes. She’s now bringing it home with her and sits opposite me when I’m at my pc. Sounds very cosy doesn’t it? Well believe me, it’s not. I can’t get anything done on my own machine, whether it be catching up on my journal reading/writing or putting my family magazine together. Every minute, and I do mean EVERY minute, she’s asking me how to do this, or how to undo that..! Other times she switches on her computer just as I’m switching mine off for the night. Then it’s even worse as I’m having to keep climbing out of bed to come and help her. I wouldn’t mind so much but I know she can do this stuff. She’s been doing it at college for months now with hardly any help at all. I guess I’m just too available.

 

  I do recall just how much I struggled with the basics when I first started though. It took me ages to master the art of copying or cutting and pasting. I simply couldn’t figure out how to find the object after I’d cut it. My brother Derry managed to drum home the fact that it wasn’t actually anywhere UNTIL you pasted it. But Derry is a much better teacher than me. I do try to be patient with Reet but I’m just not very good at it.

 

  The stuff she’s learning is called CLAIT. I still can’t recall what that stands for but it involves Word files and formatting, spreadsheets and graphs etc. She knows more about headers, footers and indents than I’ll ever need. She’s also learning a lot of the keyboard shortcuts which is a good thing. I’m too lazy and rely on my mouse. Spreadsheets are a thing I’ve never really got to grips with in any depth so maybe she’ll be teaching me a thing or too in the very near future.

 

  On Friday she had a tutorial which is like a mock exam which she coped well with and next Tuesday she takes the exam proper. She’ll do fine so long as her nerves don’t fry her brain first. I’m quietly confident. She’s already passed the first stage and has a certificate to prove it. And she’s passed her literacy tests too which will result in another certificate. See, she’s not anywhere as near as daft as she thinks she is and the only reason she bothers me so much with her pc lessons is because I’m there. If I wasn’t she’d figure it all out by herself, I’m sure. Still, the more she uses it the sooner it will all sink in and stay. Then, I hope to teach her about desktop publishing so she can help me sort out my family magazine (see, I’m not daft either).

<>

 

  Things at work are bubbling away once more. We have a lot of building work going on all around our office and rumours are rife: early retirement is back on the cards; they're going to make the walks one and a half hours longer than they already are; the office will be closed and we’ll all me moved to our main office in Romford … and on, and on.

 

  Actually, that last one is very possible. The rumour has raised its head regularly for the last twenty years but never came to fruition. This time though, there’s a great deal of building going on around us and it’s quite likely that Royal Mail could sell our site for a huge profit and move us all out. Where that leaves the public when it comes to collecting their mail and packages is anybody’s guess, but then, quality of service hasn’t been a priority of this company for many years now. Whether these rumours prove true or not, time will tell. It’s a sure fact that big changes are on the way though. Royal Mail have some new super duper machines that will  not just sort the mail into walks (delivery areas), but will also sequence the walks too, making them ready for delivery. In effect that means the posties will just have to come  in, load a bag and start delivering. Whereas, at present, they start at six and don’t leave the office before nine.

 

  So, in theory: you post your letter, it gets collected and fed into a huge machine that sorts the mail into towns. From there it’s put into another machine that sorts it into walks and then into a third machine that gets it ready for delivery. The postman arrives, packs his bag and off he will go. Simple dimple. (Yeah, right!) Sounds like utopia doesn’t it? But how will the machine know if somebody has moved and had their mail redirected? How will it know if a customer has asked for his mail to be kept at the office for collection? And, of course, it won’t be able to handle anything that’s thicker or larger than A4 size so what happens to all the other stuff? The ebay items? Amazon parcels? The Braille literature? Hell, what happens to anything remotely out-sized?

 

  As you might gather, I have less confidence in this new technology than I have in the management that are steam rolling them into action with little or no forethought to the men on the job and even less consideration to the public they are supposedly serving. Nevertheless, the technology is there and it WILL be in place very shortly whether it works or not. So, if you thought the postal system was bad at the moment, just watch what happens next.

 

  From my own personal point of view, I’m not too concerned about the changes. It looks as though I’ll be working inside now for the rest of my time. I quite enjoy it actually, but it can be a thankless task working with the public. Just the other day a woman came in to collect her mail. As I handed it to her I said quite innocently “there you go.” Well, shave my beard and call me normal if this woman didn’t throw a hissy fit right then and there.

  “Don’t you say that to me” she wailed, “I find that very offensive!”

  I was a little taken aback but I recovered quickly. Adopting a clipped and official attitude I said “my apologies madam, thank you for your custom.” I wouldn’t always be so polite but, well, it was quite obvious the woman didn’t have both her oars in the water, if you know what I mean, so there was no point retaliating. The trouble is, when she came in again a couple of days later I remembered this, but no matter how much I told myself not to say ‘there you go’, I still managed to say it to her (what can I say, it was force of habit). Oh boy! She was off again, and this time there was a queue!

 

  Ah yes, we sure have fun where I work.

 

  Tata. x

  Brekkie with the guys in a while. Yummy.

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20:35:42 o'clock BST

Yep, this one.

  Perhaps I should explain although I’m not sure I want to because some of you now think I’m really clever at this trick photography lark. Truth is though, I didn’t manipulate the picture at all, well, apart from a little enhancement of the clouds and putting a frame around it. Here it is again in its natural habitat, with no editing. Oh, and there’s Reet taking a shower. This quaint and clever piece of street art is in Menorca, where we holidayed a year or three back.

  

  See, I’m not as clever as some of you thought. Still, confession is good for the soul, apparently, so maybe I’ll sleep easier tonight knowing that I’m no longer hoodwinking you all.

 

  Reet’s interview, turned out not to be an interview. It was a numeracy test and an English test. If she gets a pass on those the interview will be next. Reet is a born pessimist and is sure she blew it. She said she was so nervous she could hardly write her name. I have more faith in her abilities though and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if she won her way through to the interviews. Guess we’ll have to wait and see on that score.

 

  Yesterday we went to a celebration dinner with Royal Mail in recognition of the long service some of us have put in. And what a bash it turned out to be. It was held at the very swanky Five Lakes Golf Club in Malden. They laid on cabs for everybody too. Ours cost around £250 for the return trip and they had cabs from all over East Anglia picking up the guests. The cabs alone must have cost a small fortune.

 

  Inside the club we were directed to the very regal looking King Arthur / Camelot bar. When we were called we made our way through the plush corridors to a welcoming foyer. Here we were greeted with a choice of champagne, Pimms or orange juice to enjoy whist we waited to be called to our tables. We lingered awhile trying to spot familiar faces in the crowd (I only knew about three people, other than Derek who came with us in our cab and who works at the same office as me) then we were asked to take our seats at the dining tables. And boy, what tables! They were large enough to seat ten people and they were done up to the nines. White wine in buckets of ice, three bottles of red. Jugs of iced water, candles and a huge floral centrepiece. Reet had her eye on those flowers right from the off as they match our newly decorated living room. And, luckily enough, it was decided that the longest serving member on each table would get to take the flowers home. Well, that was me, and look, here they are on our windowsill.

  The meals had already been ordered when we replied to the invite. I had soup to start, roast beef for the main course and summer pudding for sweet. It was absolutely delicious. Whilst we were waiting for our meals there was a guy going round the tables doing close up magic tricks. Cards, spongy balls, lengths of rope, you know the stuff. He was good too and very funny.

 

  After dinner one of the top management bods made a speech congratulating us all and awarded special gifts to those who had managed forty years in the job. A rare achievement but, surprisingly, there were five of them. After the speeches the bar was opened and the disco began. We drank and danced till midnight. Well, some danced, I shuffled and shifted painfully around for a song or two.

 

  All in all though, it was a great night. I’ve been to four of these long service bashes now and this was definitely the best yet. We couldn’t believe the expense they’d gone to. Discussions around our table estimated the cost to be upwards of fifty grand for the whole shebang! I reckon it must be their swansong though because, in all honesty, I can’t see Royal Mail lasting much longer, at least, not in its present guise. Such a pity to see another great British institution go down the pan.

 

  Still, I’m usually the first to slate the company when it fails its staff so it’s only fair that I congratulate them when they get something right. And last night’s bash was really special. Excellent food, free drinks and transport laid on. The event was a great success so well done to them. Now if only they could apply that same success to the running of the business…!

 

  Okay, that’s quite enough from me for one day.

 

  Toodle – pip! x

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20:39:57 o'clock BST

http://journals.aol.com/fisherkristina/SometimesIThink/entries/2008/06/03/jland-photo-shoot-135---water/1650

 

Here’s my entry for this weeks photo shoot.

    If you want to play along, click the link above. Best hurry though, last day of posting is tomorrow.

 

  Tata. x

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23:31:43 o'clock BST

Last Saturday I went to a charity football tournament arranged by the Royal Mail sports and social club. Our little backwater sorting office rose to the challenge and sported two seven-a-side teams for the event. Not bad from a workforce of just forty odd blokes. It was a good sunny day too, if a little on the windy side. Given that the following two days were an out and out downpour that would have had any modern day Noah reaching for hammer, nails and a tin of yacht varnish, I think we got off really lightly. Sadly, the two teams we entered were not so fortunate and didn’t make the quarter finals but still, everybody enjoyed the day. My mission on the day was to photograph our teams, following their progression through the tournament. Okay, it turned out to be a rather short journey but I still took a few shots along the way.

 

  It was a good day out with a fair amount of our colleagues turning up to offer support. There were some thirty teams involved  from all over the area and along with the footie there was a quasar tent, bouncy castles, beat the goalie competition and a local radio DJ who repeated himself almost as often as he repeated every damn football song he could find. The main thing, of course, was the charity and I’m guessing the amount raised was well in excess of three thousand quid. All proceeds will be donated to the Little Haven Children’s Hospice.

 

  Other news is that my knees, or rather, my right knee is still giving me grief. I went back to my consultant last week and he’s going to repeat the steroid injection in the hope that this time it will work. If it doesn’t, I don’t know what’s next. They’ve told me I’ll eventually need new knees but that I’m way too young at the moment. I quite agree with that. If I have to have replacement knees then I want them when I retire, not now while I still have eight more years to wear them out. My only concern now is pain relief and if the injection doesn’t work then I’ll have to pester my GP to see what else they can offer. Call me a whinger if you like but after twenty odd years of just putting up with this, I’ve finally had enough. They can put me on morphine for all I care. I just want to be able to get around without wincing or having my leg give out on me. I don’t think it’s too much to ask, although it might be too much to expect.

 

  Tomorrow, Reet’s off to a job interview. She’s not at all confident about it. She has never had to do such a thing before and at her age (not telling, ‘cos that would be rude) it’s a little daunting, to say the least. She has to do a literacy and numeracy test before, hopefully, winning through to the actual interview. Personally, I think she’ll breeze through the tests but her lack of confidence may well let her down at the interview stage. I haven’t told her that, of course, I’m encouraging her all the way and crossing fingers and toes too.

 

  Next Sunday I’m off to Brugge on a day trip organised by the work social club. It’s an all day affair with some time to explore the town and also to pick up some cheap cigarettes for Reet. That’s the main reason I’m going, of course. Well, that and the peace and quiet that’s gained from leaving wifey at home. ;o) My brother, John is coming along too so it should be a good day so long as the weather behaves itself for the crossings. Of course, I’ll be taking my camera and hoping for some goodshots.

 

  The week after that we’re off to a celebration bash for my thirty years of service to Royal Mail. That’s looking to be a good night although I’m not sure that I’ve cause to celebrate. The company I work for now is a completely different animal to the one I started with way back when. It’s no longer a public service, as it should be. It’s a money making machine for the government, at least until we become privatised. And it will happen, sooner rather than later is my guess. I met my new area manager last week. He’s no older than twenty five! And the charity football bash I mentioned earlier? That was arranged by a team calling themselves The Apprentices. The apprentices are so called because they are recruited by Royal Mail, given one years apprenticeship and then they become managers. None of the ones I met were over twenty! I think that tells you more about where the business is heading than I can.

I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised really. It’s the way all the big concerns have gone. British Gas, British Telecomm, you name it, they’ve all sold their souls for the sake of profit. This country’s obsession for making money above service will be its downfall, I’m sure of it. That and the health and safety rules they keep on inventing. I hope, sooner rather than later, someone will be elected who has the common sense to scrap all these nanny-state regulations they’re bringing in and if anyone decides to sue for a stupid reason, kick them out of court with a flea in their ear. And bugger what the European beaurocrats have to say about it. (What are they gonna do, kick us out of Europe? I don’t think so. And would it be a bad thing if they did?)

 

  Okay, after that little tirade it’s time to scoot. I’ll just add the footie pics and I’m off up the wooden hill.

 

  Nighty night. x

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19:48:42 o'clock BST

 

I can’t believe it’s been almost three weeks since my last entry. Where does the time go? And I’ve hardly taken any photographs in that time. In fact, it seems as though I haven’t done much at all really. Reet and I did go out and buy some pictures for the living room. It’s looking quite homely now.

 

  The only other thing I’ve done is to sign up for a flickr account. I found another company that looks really cool – Smugmugs – but they want money for the privilege of joining them. I’m not ready for that just yet. I’ll stick with Flickr until I know exactly what I want from such a site. If anybody wants to visit, here’s the link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/26420206@N02/ although there are only a few photos uploaded at the moment, and most of those have recently graced these pages. When I get a chance I’ll add some more.

 

  I might have some to add after this weekend as I’ve been asked by my boss to take some pictures. Our office has drummed up a couple of seven – a – side football teams to take part in a charity event in Basildon and I’ve been nominated to take the team photos. The weather is looking quite promising so it should be a good day, especially as the bar is open till midnight after the trophies have been awarded.

 

  I did take one photo today. This is really for Jenny http://journals.aol.co.uk/jmoqueen/MyLife who does her shopping by bike. Lately it’s been giving her some grief and I suggested she mug the postman for his one:

 

 

  This is state of the art Jen, it’s got a bell and a chain guard and everything. Three gears, cable brakes and even a stand. There’s room for another basket on the back too. Oh, and see that black thing just under the saddle and hooked around the wheel? That’s the lock.

So much better than the penny farthings we used to use. I used to get dizzy just climbing into the saddle!

 

  Okay, that’s enough twaddle for today.

 

  Toodle-pip.

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21:26:32 o'clock BST

Following my trip to Finchingfield I moved along to Dedham, a village on the Suffolk, Essex border. Here is where John Constable lived, worked and found inspiration for his excellent paintings. I had hoped to take a photo of Flatford Mill but I didn’t find it. Or at least, if I did, the mill has gone the way so much of our heritage has gone – it’s been turned into a block of flats.

 

 

  I’m hopeful that’s not the case though and I’m guessing I simply missed the footpath that led to the real McCoy. Never mind, Dedham, being situated along the banks of the river Stour, as it is, offered plenty of other photo opportunities. The storm clouds rolled in once more and Ithought I was in for another dowsing. Luckily though, the rain held off and the clouds stayed put giving me an unexpected opportunity to take some cloudscapes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  The last one of the set here is the original. I could have done a whole lot better with the shadows exposure but I was concentrating on the clouds. But look at what a little photoshop editing can do.

 

  These three shots of the boats are the same image with different editing. The first is the original, apart from the frame of course, which was added later. I wasn’t sure which of the two edited ones I preferred so I thought I’d include them both.

 

 

 

 

  So there you are. Thus ended my first day out and about with my new toy. Yesterday was spent catching up with a few chores as I promised Reet I would. Today, I had another day out. I went to Tilbury Fort. I didn’t know what to expect other than a fort and a view of the Thames where I hoped to see some of the bigger ships as they made their way to or from London. (I did see a huge freighter lumbering in but it wasn’t exactly photogenic, just impressive). Of course, It also rained but that’s pretty much par for the course, it being April in England and all. (Actually, it’s May now but let’s not be picky). In fact, it wasn’t just rain, it was more of a deluge. At least I remembered to take my hat this time. But more on the fort another time, plus a few pics of course.

 

  Friday is  the day before my birthday (53 for the curious amongst you) and I’m off for a drink with the guys from work. Seems we have quite a crowd going this week so that should be good. Think I’d better leave the camera at home though. Saturday is my birthday so I’m hoping Reet will leave me alone and not find me too much to do. If so I intend to check out the Flickr and Photo bucket sites and maybe set myself up an account with one of them. Ooh, and there’s a nice long weekend looming too. All things considered it’s lining up to be a good week off work and I can’t ask for more than that, except maybe another week?

 

  Toodle-pip. x

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19:32:37 o'clock BST

 

I thought I'd spoil you and do another entry today. Well, the closing date for the comp is Friday so I thought I'd best get in quick.

  This shot was taken at Dedham, in Essex, UK. Dedham is known as Constable country since that's where the artist lived and painted. I checked out some of his work before my visit and I was surprised to see he painted many cloudscapes. Having been there and seen them for myself I can understand why he was so impressed by them.

 

  So here's my attempt at a cloudscape. Not to be compared to the great artist of course, but I'm betting it didn't take me quite as long either, and that's including the travelling time and the editing in photoshop.

Tata. x

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