Burns Night on Exmoor

On Saturday, feeling rather tired and jaded, I went with Mr Dancing to Exmoor where we had been invited by our friends, the lovely P and L, to a Burns’ Night Supper – a great way to cheer up a January evening.  We set off under grey Wiltshire skies but, after Taunton, the skies cleared a bit to reveal some blue sky and, as we approached Exmoor, the sun started to set and I managed to get a last photo of the blueness from the car window.  I did have a good photo lined up through the front windscreen but Mr Dancing decided that was an opportune time to put on the screenwasher!  No worries I managed to capture the essence of the moment …

After a restorative cuppa on arrival and a bit of a nap for me, we set off into the night, collected friends and found ourselves at a village hall, ablaze with light.  The inside was decorated with blue and white balloons and decorations with the Saltire hanging prominently at the end of the room.  The Burns Supper was to raise funds for the hall which had been a wreck of a building – the restoration of it had been done by a group of volunteers and they have made a wonderful job of it.  The Burns evening was the “maiden event” since the renovation.

The haggis was piped in and was served as a starter with tatties and neeps and  a dram of whisky.  Our table toasted George Burns AND Robert Burns!  At the end of the meal, there was barn dancing which I refrained from as my shoulder is still playing up a great deal and all that swinging and twirling wouldn’t have been a good idea.  But it was great watching everyone else enjoy themselves.  At the end we formed a circle and sang “Auld Lang Syne” and wished each other a Happy New Year once more.

Back home, another cuppa and then it was off to bed, where I couldn’t resist taking a photo of the magnificent wardrobe in our room!

Next day we set off to the farm to see T’s pigs – sows whose litters were imminently due – I just loved the look of  the one below!  There are 2 pigs ready to farrow (is that the right word or just a maker of paint?) and it was funny to watch T tickle them as they like to roll over and have their tummies rubbed.  Next we popped over to T and N’s beautiful cosy little cottage for yet another beverage before heading back for a scrumptious lunch which included a delightful lunch guest and the best bread and butter pudding I’ve ever tasted.

And that, as they say, is the end of the tale!

No more white stuff …

At last a day without freezing temperatures and without snow falling.  Outside it looks so messy, snow is still on gardens and is melting slowly on the pavements.

Inside, on the kitchen window sill, there’s life and a promise of colour to come –  the hyacinth beaks are emerging – we’ll be in the pink soon.

Mr Dancing blackberrying in the snow

More snow again today.

This morning, I went out for a short walk with Mr Dancing and took the top couple of photos of the canal from the bridge.

Then I had work to do at home with my new little job and Mr Dancing went off on a much longer walk, taking the camera and lots of photos  - over 120!

I love the photo of the spiky burdock head burdened down with snow!  The one of the maze looks good too – we went around that in the summer when it was green and leafy.

On his way back he helped an old lady down from the top of the town to the railway station by proffering his arm (so we have a gap in the photo tour).

Just after the last photograph was taken he came across a Blackberry – the mobile phone version rather than a frozen fruit.  When he got home it was a case of trying to find the owner (which didn’t take too long).  That owner called by not very long ago to reclaim his lost phone – a 17 year old who had dropped it en-route to his snowboarding destination in fields outside the town.  He was extremely grateful to Mr Dancing and brought him a bottle of red wine and stayed to chat for awhile.

Ah – the youth of today.

The mound and a mosaic

These photos were taken  a couple of days ago by Mr Dancing.

The top one is of “The Mound” next to our house (can you see my red car?)  The other shows huge chunks of ice on the canal making a mosaic pattern.

Mr Dancing went off today for a couple of hours with the younger Mr Dancing and found a suitable nearby hill for snowboarding and sledging!