Wednesday 27 April 2011

London on an April Sunday Pt. 3

Could not decide which photos to post as it is so close to 'the wedding' but here is a little of Westminster Abbey and 
St. James Park
and
for those who have asked if I will be going into London on Friday, the answer is NO.
Already today (Wednesday) people have begun to camp along the route and the ones we saw on TV were from Canada
The best view in my opinion is from the TV screen


Westminster Abbey in the centre of the picture


The Back of the Abbey




Westminster school to the left


looking through to the courtyard


beginning to put the scaffolding up for the media
This wedding is said to be having the greatest media following ever worldwide



We have left the Abbey now and are passing the
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, part of the Supreme Court



and walking along Whitehall, we are about to turn down King Charles Street, past the Foreign and Commonwealth office on our way to St. James Park where we will eat a picnic that we have just bought.
Downing Street is the next road along but that is for another day


Looking back


and into the park


The toilets across the lake
They are free
Most toilets in London cost 50 pence to use 



Pelicans on the lake





nearing the Palace



One can see the eye from many places in London


The park is certainly busy on a warm April Sunday
(double clicking you will see just how many people are out there)

If you are wondering why I am  not 'visiting' as much as usual
I have a brand new computer
a top of the range 17 inch laptop
and a 23 inch HD monitor and wireless keyboard so that I can use it also as a desktop
Because it is so up to date, everything is new and different so as I am learning, especially Windows 7, it all takes longer at the moment. Even the soft touch keyboard is proving an issue with my long nails!
Not to mention  getting everything off my old machine 
Even the new E-mail account is daunting
I am sure that in a few months I will be wondering what all the fuss was about (I hope so anyhow)

Saturday 23 April 2011

Everything is not always Rosy in the Garden

Gardens never stay the same. Always evolving throughout the years
My neighbour on one side had a new fence erected
Certainly a good move as the previous construction was an eye sore
However as they are in their nineties it involved a lot of hard work for us as we endeavoured to dig out lots of stuff on their side for them in order for the men erecting the fence to be able to do their job
However it also meant I had to remove the shrubs I had growing up trellises next to their fence. This has left me with quite a bare area so not wanting to increase my workload I have planted 3 Eunonynous that will 'eventually' cover the area needing only miminal pruning




Here we see a large gap where I have removed a very diseased Variagated Virburnum. I have planted a Choisya in it's place which will take quite some time to fill the gap.




As we see here our bottom shed has decided enough is enough and is leaning at an angle.



When a shed decides to 'lean' it exposes the 'stuff' that has been hiding behind it

On the brighter side a few of our house church prayer walkers last Sunday - the others are behind me

We have a good advantage point of our town from the top of this hill - in a heat haze

A hint of the beginning of Bluebells in the woods
Not normally flowering until mid-May

This week has seen a heatwave reaching into the low 80's here in the South East. Unheard of in April ever before.
As I type it is breaking a little with a thunder storm.

So what have I been doing in the heat?
Lots of gardening, pruning, cutting back, planting and weeding.
Have chosen a new car to replace our ancient one
and bought a top of the range laptop PC with a 23" monitor and wireless keyboard etc. for when I want to use it as a desktop. Also an all-in-one high tech photo printer

Quite a bit of my time is now well taken up with learning Windows 7 and all that is entailed transferring so much data not only to a new computer but to a new system. I will be running the two alongside each other for quite a while I think!

Obviously clearing out an old shed and setting up a new one will be a priority too. Life is never dull!

Lots more of London to come.
Easter Greetings to all.




Monday 18 April 2011

London on an April Sunday Pt.2



Having walked through St. James's park

We now turn left down The Mall towards the Palace
All traffic suspended as preparations have begun for the Royal wedding in 3 weeks time

The broadcasting stand all sealed off





and gates to Green Park closed

Something has 'tickled Alan's fancy' as they say
(made him smile)

as we walk past the beautiful Spring flower beds

I read in the newspaper just last week that because of the unseasonal warm weather the tulips are way ahead and will be finished by the wedding. The faded bulbs will have to be cut back before then.




The Queen Victoria memorial


Buckingham Palace




The Royal Coat of Arms


Taken through the railings


and just to the side, Clarence House, the official
London residence of Prince Charles and the Dutchess of Cornwall
and the Princes William and Harry

Friday 15 April 2011

Friday 15th April

Dear little Rebekah is 2 years old today
Happy Birthday

Here she is in a picture I took last week when visiting
She just refused to look at the camera and ran so fast that this was all I managed

I can put up my own chair thank you!

The card I made for her


The present

Then Janie is celebrating her 12th Wedding anniversary
This is the card I made for her and Chris

Alan and I popped to Leigh-on-Sea in the afternoon to visit a very sick friend. It was sunny but misty on the estuary


And lastly some shots in the garden today







The Heron keeps coming back and we are not seeing any of the mature fish now but there are a lot of babies so we are hoping they will survive