Hope Its A Good One

Happy New Year Everyone,I hope it brings many good times :)

The Glen

I woke early made a thermos of coffee put on my boots, then headed for a place we call the Glen (valley or gorge). A little burn (stream) carves its way through the rock, tall trees cling to the banks of this wee glen.
On the steeper parts the trees and shrubs, are all that hold the ground together.Two waterfalls make this little glen a special place. Its been a long time since I've been here, we used to play up here when I was a boy.
The cold weather has left its mark here with broken branches and downed trees.
Due to the weight of the snow ,and frozen fibres which make the boughs snap easily. Beyond the damage there was a real treat with the waterfall's encrusted with the jewels of winter.
I sat beside the waterfall drank coffee and watched dawn break thinking back to when I played here, now this is a good way to start the morning.
Then homeward bound to make breakfast :)

Spoon's From Frozen Timber

I had a couple of hours to myself today so I carved a few spoon's out in my shed . The largest one on the left is Beech and the other two are from some Rhododendron .
These timbers are great for spoon carving ,when the wood is fresh.
Mine was pretty much frozen, Which worked ok as the heat from my hands thawed them as I worked on them :)

Christmas Wishes

To all friends and followers ,here's wishing you all a very merry christmas :)Brian(:

A WINTER POEM

The chirping of the robin.

The chattering of teeth.

The crackling of the fire.

The rustling of the wreath.

By Matthew

Cold In The Shed

Only two days to work this coming week ,then I'm off until Jan 5th. Our snow whitened world has thawed then frozen into lumps and ruts.
But as I type, the snow is falling quickly and heavily. Ive been out in the shed a little bit this weekend making a couple of stools .One with a gouged oak top with peeled ash legs and another, with a smoother oak top and hazel legs with some braces. Which I scribed around the curves of the legs with a sloyd knife it turned out pretty well, considering I struggled to see my pencil marks "a darker pencil would be the answer". The tops need further sanding and waxing to finish them, I also tidied up a of slab of elm with a gouge, to remove decayed wood from the edges. this will end up as seat for a chair or stool in the future its a bit chilly in the shed so that's me done for the day :)Brian(:

Family Day

Here's some pictures of a walk around town on a cold day ,just after our thump of snow.
Most of the snow has thawed now, But it will return soon enough to carpet the land for Christmas.
We don't get much time together at weekends, as my other half Amanda works weekends. So a walk together is better than trailing round shops! And Matthew with his big snowman who now, looks sorry for himself after the thaw :)

Slim Pickin's

Its hard at this time of year for birds, the smaller ones like robins and wrens really struggle.Here are a few that stick around for the winter,Blackbird ,Robin ,pheasants and moorhen .
Currently the extreme weather is making life hard for them.As they try to scratch a living .The tracks are left by a fox who will hoover up any casualties :)

Hen & Rooster

More from a winters tale,a view over Cockelroi, which is a hill that looks over Linlithgow ,popular with locals for sledging at present.Thick snow covers the boughs of trees, while walking to work this week I heard branches snap with the weight of the snow.
I helped my friend to compact the snow around his hen house. These are some of the inhabitants.
I hope the snow will stick around for Christmas,but a rise in temperature with a westerly wind wouldn't be a surprise but fingers are crossed :)

Community Spirit

This is the week I will remember for a long time, schools shut all week. Matthew was jubilant when 1 day off turned into 2 then the other three were added too.
Snow and lots of it, my car hasn't moved all week I walked to work 4 miles uphill in the deep snow which is hard work before starting work .
All the basic provisions are running out, as delivery truck's are stuck in deep snow .But good things came out of the snow all our neighbours pulled together and dug out a fire engine that became stuck in the soft snow .
Then We cleared the snow the length of the street by hand . This helping each other doesn't happen every day but maybe it will be common place from now on :)