Waxing about wonderful Waxwings

They have arrived in Frampton at last. Waxwings!!!! We went to see them today at Court Lake. There were at least 62 birds. They are beautiful birds and they do make your heart sing! (a picture below -not great quality.)

An absorbing game of football yesterday with a good crowd a pity it was only a draw!

Cycling in the rain to my Story Telling Gig tomorrow.

 

Hurricane

Bob Dylan title for today as storm Doris is battering us! Bob’s song was about a boxer but the title is right for today. Interesting cycling up for a paper today-I flew up there but it felt like climbing a mountain coming back!!!!

Had a lovely meet up with old friends for lunch on Wednesday (I wrote that especially for one of my loyal readers!)

Busy with Gigs next week so currently learning the stories, a couple I haven’t told for a couple of years.

 

This Land is My Land

Ironic title today with events around the world and especially across the water! It is a great song and Woody Guthrie was singing about the dispossessed which seems to be off the agenda at the moment. Enough of that!

Had a lovely morning on Monday seeing old friends at a local Infant School. Pirate Pete went down well with the whole school. I was delighted with my Book Hunt story and will develop this over the summer. I’m currently planning for the Gigs next week.

I had a first on Friday we were in a restaurant in Piccadilly waiting for our Peter when I was recognised and asked for a selfie! Is it the Big time? We re-staged the moment when Peter arrived for effect! It was a teacher who had visited Wick Court three weeks ago so he wanted evidence for his pupils I assume; I like to think it is because I am a celebrity (sic) !!!!!!

We had been to the Royal Academy to see the exhibition on Art in the Revolution 1917-32. Art flowered in the early days of the Russian Revolution. Disillusionment set in later and then came Stalin!

Absolutely worn out tonight after a wonderful cycle ride up and down, up and down, up and down!!!!!

Sunshine of Your Love

Well we are really going back in time for today’s title well it was the week with Valentine’s Day in! So we go back to that one time Super Group Cream You could say we marked the day and I have to say it wasn’t my idea the last part!

We went to Oxford and the Ashmolean  Museum during the day we went to a really good exhibition on the development of the Impressionists called from Degas to Picasso. I learnt much on studying on how techniques developed in Paris and beyond. We went onto my old home town to visit my parent’s grave and tidy it up. Finishing off going to the Theatre of Comedy that is the home of my favourite football team. Easy win at home for a change. Clare even suggested we could go to Doncaster on Saturday! I think not as we are in London tomorrow.

I did finish my story for Monday I’ve called it “The Book Worm” and it may be the basis for a longer story in the future. Now I am trying to learn it!

 

California Dreamin’

Chose the Mammas and Pappas song about winter for today’s title.

It has been bitterly cold this weekend! My toes were like frozen blocks yesterday at football. An ugly win for a change! My toes were also feeling the cold on Friday when I cycled down hill. Certainly tests out your Winter clothing on the bike! I am trying to climb a big hill three or four times a week.

Just finished my first draft of my Book Hunt story for next week.

 

Moongirl

An old Barclay James Harvest song for today’s title! A slightly spurious link because when I was bird watching with the children at Wick Court this week they asked me to put the scope on the full moon! I enjoyed Story Telling to them yesterday and told the Native American Story “Turkey Girl” and had the children singing softly in the background. The only negative because of the wind the fire kept blowing ash into my face!!!!

An enjoyable book club on Wednesday night discussing “His Bloody Project” which got an all round thumbs up from us all despite the rather gloomy theme.

At last we are getting some proper winter birds in our garden Siskins last week, today Redpolls and a Blackcap earlier this week. Still hoping Waxwings will turn up in Frampton.

Finally I am hoping to create a story for a school I am visiting on Monday week. One class are doing a “Book Hunt” based on Julia Donaldson Books. So my story hopefully will be a book hunt in my own distinctive style. I am also telling stories to adults in Bristol one evening that week.

 

One Love

Had to be a Bob Marley song today with the news of those tapes being found and restored. Sadly he was someone I missed when doing Gigs in and around London when he was in his prime.

A full on day Story Telling in my local school doing stories from around the world. I was tired afterwards and then had to go to a Children Centre Meeting. The new stories I had learnt went well and I surprised my self with a couple of added bits of improvisation involving audience participation.

We had our first Blackcap of this winter in the garden over the weekend. Clare and I did the BTO Winter survey on Saturday we were given a kilometre square in nearby Eastington to record all the birds seen.

Radio Nowhere

Merging two things together for today’s title! I am currently reading the autobiography of “The Boss” so his song from the Magic album seem appropriate. I also went to a school yesterday to work with a group of children who are about to make a pod cast and so we were looking at how to talk to an audience, and perform etc. I also told them the story of “The Golden Apple” that leads to the Trojan War to illustrate different Story Telling styles. So that is why I picked a song title with radio in!

I did indicate I would mention football in my last blog. After watching a hard fought game on Saturday against a decent Cambridge team I was feeling optimistic for the rest of the season. Sadly on Tuesday at the Theatre of Comedy we gift wrapped three points to a poor Cheltenham team. I suppose the circumstances of losing our goalkeeper before the game was the main contributing factor resulting in our defence that is so normally rock solid having a bad case of the jitters! It is the hope that gets you!!!!!!

On a positive note we have had Siskins in the garden yesterday and with frequent visits from the Goldcrest the garden is attracting a good variety of birds. I popped to see Waxwings by Asda of all places today!

Trying out a new story this afternoon!