Friday morning shopping

With “click and collect” a Friday morning shop can be quite interesting.  There in the trolley with the weekend fruit and veg, bin liners and washing powder there’s a pack of hoover bags and a new camera.

I last wrote about cameras in February 2015.  Regular readers might remember that the new camera almost came a cropper on Boracay beach when we were in the Philippines shortly afterwards, when I dropped it in the sand?  Though it’s been mostly ok, there are still times when it crunches as it comes to life (presumably caused by a few grains of sand in the mechanism which opens the lens cover?) and there are still the irritating grains which appear inside the lens from time to time.

Can you see one in the top corner?  Whilst it stays there, it’ll be fine, but it might just find its way to somewhere in the middle, when it’s a pain in the neck!

I’ve muttered about the build quality of cameras before, because usually it’s that which propels me into buying a replacement.  It’s my own fault really – I don’t “treasure” such things, but throw them into my bag with everything else, cart them around the world without a case and generally use them – and love them – to bits.  I’ve taken tens of thousands of photographs with this one and don’t really feel it owes me anything, but recently, the battery cover has begun to spring open of its own accord.

Then, when we were in St Petersburg, I was trying to review a couple of photos, using the round dial to navigate through them when that too came loose and wouldn’t work properly.  Though neither was mission-critical, I knew it wouldn’t be long before I was looking for a replacement.

And then my textile friends began chatting about cameras and I researched the current equivalent of this one.  You’ll guess what happened next.

The new one, another Sony Cybershot is slightly smaller than the one it’s replacing, but is packed with the same features and a few new ones.

This one has a pop-up viewfinder, for those days when the sun makes it really tricky to see the screen.  I have been known to take “blind” pictures, just guessing how they’ll work out, so although I probably won’t use the viewfinder that often, it’s good to have the choice.

It also has a tilt-out screen which will also go some way to resolving those issues too.  Might be good when we do the old self timer shots as well?

It has inbuilt wifi which seems a more useful feature than I’ve found it to be so far – or maybe I’ve just not taken the time to really explore how best to utilise it?  It’s so easy to connect be cable or remove the SD card, the wifi option hasn’t sold itself to me yet, particularly since I haven’t worked out a means of sending straight to Dropbox (as I can do on my phone, for example).

But yesterday, I was out taking a few photographs with my old camera, which as you can see, is still working beautifully.

I’d looked out over the valley, wondering what that blot on the landscape was – surely someone wasn’t starting to build there?

Huh.  Using the super 30x zoom, I could see that someone has been fly tipping.  Just what makes people do such things?

So I thought I’d take another look this afternoon and took this photograph with my new camera.  Of course, the light is different today, but even so, I think the detail is sharper?

Still can’t see any fingerprints  though

Anyway, having turned off the artificial “click” sound on the new one, there was just one last custom fitting required: The little bear charm on the wrist strap

back at Daylesford

Well, not literally, even if I could move in there permanently!  But in my last post, I mentioned the fascinating Cult Vinegar display, which prompted a comment from Jonathan, who kindly sent me a couple of photos from the barn last Saturday.

We spent some time chatting about the process of making vinegar, about which neither my Hero nor I had much idea.  I suppose I might have had a vague inkling that it was a kind of ferment, possibly resulting from opening bottles of sour wine.  But beyond that, we hadn’t a clue.  No need to go into loads of detail here – it’s all there on the Cult website, which opens up a whole new way of looking at vinegar and how it can be made and used.  Needless to say, for me, the styling hit the spot right away!

What had caught my Hero’s eye were the hexagonal, slip cast vessels for making the vinegar in at home.  Beautifully designed and constructed, there’s something so satisfying about that shape, isn’t there?  Good to have the opportunity to chat to Billy about the process of making these Vinegar Vases, then, and to acknowledge the benefits of occasions like this where people with a passion have a chance to share it with the rest of us.  I’m sure that spending a summer Saturday standing in a draughty barn out in the wilds of Gloucestershire wouldn’t make the ideal weekend, but however beautiful the styling, however slick the website, sometimes there’s nothing better than actually talking to the makers and hearing the enthusiasm and commitment in their voices!

Thanks Jonathan (and Billy).

More weather

Well, what else?

Today, the sun is shining, the temperatures have soared and there was far too much flabby flesh on show in Cheltenham today.  Indeed, it could be that the English Summer has arrived.

A shame it didn’t arrive a couple of days ago, though.  There were so many plans for last Saturday; everywhere we went, it seemed there was yet another sign for a fete, a school fair or village revels.  We’d arranged to meet friends at Daylesford, for their Summer Festival but eyeing the weather forecast, we went well equipped with coats, umbrellas, hats, sensible shoes…the lot.

Arranging an event in California must be so easy.  Decide on a date and time and Bob’s your uncle, the sun will shine.  (Though maybe not necessarily in January….)  Pity all event organisers last weekend, then, who had spent months putting all their ideas into action, only to find the day dawning overcast and threatening rain.  Oh well, we are English.  We make the most of it, don’t we?  So, with map in hand, we sallied forth to find the fun.

It didn’t take us long to find it, for the whole place was full of things to try and yes, things to buy, too.  In the courtyard was a gazebo with Seedlip flavours to try.  Delicious!  (Yes, of course we did…try *and* buy!)

I must say, everything was looking beautiful, even without the sunshine.  Every time we go to Daylesford, there is something new, some new addition or extension and this time was no exception.

The extension to the farm shop had been built last Christmas, for I’d taken a photograph of the amazing advent calendar in there.  But further development has brought an indoor link along the front of the building, and on such a chilly morning, we were glad to minimise our time outside!  With all doors open and the whole place at our disposal, we took the opportunity to take a look in the corners we don’t usually explore

such as the Cookery School.

The barns were also open, cleared of livestock and filled with interesting things.

Plenty of goings on to discover and to talk about.

Since we arrived early, we had the time and the space to chat too.  I didn’t take a photograph of the vinegar makers and we really enjoyed chatting to the knife makers (whose name, sadly, we also neglected to note)  But I did enjoy finding out a little more about the basket maker from Barbados!

Thinking that it’d be a good idea to capitalise on the outdoor activities before the heavens opened, we took a look around the car park.

The Daylesford car park is usually a pretty interesting place with a smarter-than-average class of car parked there (!) but today, there was a rather older style to the area

The usual, glorious selection of vegetables were on offer – but at those prices, we’ll take the Waitrose route home.

But who can resist the bread?  Not me!

And there’s more!  Such a shame it’s not picnic weather – we’d have had a feast!

Instead, there were yummy pizzas baking in the wood fired oven, pink frizzante sparkling in the glasses and a rather fine fire pit to sit by.  No, of course it’s not going to rain, we said…(with our hoods up)

Well, we did stay dry (ish), had time to make a paper flower in the workshop, too.

A little smaller than those adorning the light fittings, but sweetly scented with organic flower oils and all made from recycled paper too.

Eventually, we made it outside again, just to see what we’d missed.  But looking at those clouds rolling in, we thought it time to do a last circuit of the farmers market and head off home.

It was a great event, plenty to enjoy and apart from any purchases made (!) more or less free of charge too.  The organisation was fantastic and clearly a great deal of time had been spent in getting everything shipshape, ready for the big day.  Of course, knowing Daylesford as we do, it was bound to be pretty grand.

After all, when the site plan comes in the form of a Turkish map fold, how could it be anything less than splendid?!

(in seeking a link for that last sentence, I’ve discovered a variation and fresh challenge.  Hungarian map fold, anyone?)

Green

Today’s post is brought to you by the colour green.

I know, we needed the rain.

I think (hope) our water stocks are replenished and will last through the summer.

The rain didn’t spoil our plans thankfully, because neither of us were planning outdoor activity and could appreciate the wet outlook from the comfort of an open window.

The results are greener than ever.

What a special place this is.  A few rainy days are welcome.

Even if our pond is a bit green too.  We’ve never seen quite so many newts in it!

Whilst we are away

The fun continues at home.

The bears who get left behind have the time of their lives too.

Fun with friends, eh?