I'm late leaving for work so there's just time for a coffee and a stick of celery. A grind of salt completes it!

It's nice to see the celery has perked up in the jar overnight.

Born 9 July 1937, Bradford.

Died 11 June 2026, London.

I first saw his screenprint, Cleanliness is next to Godliness at the Tate in London. I later saw his digital collages and drawings at Bradford. Every encounter was profoundly affecting.

His approach to describing space in his paintings is described in his saying, "Everybody looks. The question is, how hard?"

Rest in peace.

Eating this is easy with two forks. or just use your fingers. Some amazing tastes. A simple and fairly quick dish that's full of good things and reminders of Mediterranean holidays.

I enjoyed the strong colours against the rough background.

As in all things, I looked at the bottom line: "Not to be fly posted" it says. I suspect the Trotskyists have been infiltrated by Anarchists.

On Castle Hill

This hangs in one of the kitchens where I work. Words to live by,

Just a cute little bunch of wild blossoms. Tiny little blooms smaller than my pinkie nail 😊

Lancaster is built at the foot of several hills. Here's looking out from one of them.

Processed with VSCOcam with c5 preset

It's a blessing to have this tree to look at each day.

In some countries, householders and shopkeepers are required to keep their pavements and outside areas clean. Here, it's done with this machine.

A swirl of yogurt completes my peace soup.

oil

balsamic vinegar

red onion

garlic

purple kūmara

tomatoes

carrots

red capsicum

red lentils

dried and fresh basil

cayenne pepper

veggie stock

saute onions, garlic, carrots

add everything else and pressure cook for 15 minutes

allow pressure to release naturally over 30 minutes

serve or store

A great collection of heritage species of fruit trees. Run by volunteers. Free to taste.

Another of the window dinosaurs

After the shops, it's time for lunch at one of the cafes. This was an unexpected take on a classic. And the service was prompt and charming. Couldn't ask for more.

I don't like kale on its own but just look at that color!

Safely away from buildings. The root systems are huge and will easily undermine foundations and buried pipes. Such majestic trees deserve their own space.

Provençal inspired chicken

After 6 hours on low in the crock pot.

Chicken wings

Shallots

Garlic

Tomatoes

Zucchini

Mushrooms

Parsley

Herbes de Provence

Stock

Wine

Pepper and salt

A new bin arrived that allows me to collect the recycling in one place and not have to look at a chaotic mess on the floor. Not an ideal solution, but acceptable for now.

I added a teaspoon of Dijon mustard to the tuna-mayo mix. It really enhanced the flavours without taking over.

Costing up to €1.3 million it is not feasible to have an MRI scanner in every hospital. This one is mounted in a lorry that travels the country, chipping away at the patient list.

I had a scan last night and the staff were very kind and supportive. it's a noisy activity as the magnets move around one. and if you're worried about tight spaces it can be a tad worrying. but it's all good.

with luck they found my brain still works and the wiring, while odd, is intact.

I could hardly believe how tasty and easy to make this was.

Roasted white cabbage wedge that had been tossed in olive oil and a little garlic, with roasted red peppers. Served on rice cooked with rosemary, sage and thyme. Finished with lemon tahini sauce (which comes together in minutes) - tahini, lemon juice, garlic powder, salt, honey, water.

If only a breeze had been blowing, this might have become an aeolian organ.

Once upon a time not so long ago I had the privilege of helping to manage a few hives. Keeping bees is a great way to learn about your local environment and its overall health - hungry bees don't produce much honey.

MacFie's book came out in the 1930s and it has become an absolute classic and is well worth reading today.

This is the Mary Anne, the last remaining rowed ferry that was used on Windermere. It would have been built and in use before 1870, when the powered ferries were introduced. Ferries had been in use on Windermere since at least the 1450s.

This was rowed with huge oars, called sweeps. The ferry is 40 feet long and 11 feet at the beam, and had a movable ramp, to allow cattle to be loaded and unloaded easily.

Mary Anne sank off Belle Isle sometime after WW2 and was recovered in 1978. It is now under preservation at the Windermere Jetty Museum, which is a world leader in the preservation, restoration and maintenance of boats.

(If you are in the area, do go and support this charity; it's interesting, and has a great cafe that has tables right by the waterside!)

Being in a new place I was feeling a bit overwhelmed, so i found a loo in order to gather my thoughts. The porcelain was from Laufen and the flusher was from Geberit. Even the grouting in the tiles was clean - I could almost have been back in Germany. Of course, I was calm again very quickly!

Tomato soup for 40.

70p per portion.

Onions caramelized for 30 minutes. More time would have been better.

No celery available today.

Lancaster War Memorial. The memorial was designed by Thomas Mawson and Sons and was unveiled on December 3, 1924.

I still mourn for my friends killed in Iraq and other places. I've processed the survivor's guilt, but it pops up unexpectedly still.

The Garden of Remembrance is a peaceful and well-maintained oasis.

It's Friday, so that means making soup for a crowd again.

Having made the base and added chopped mushrooms, it's made a bit more attractive by a minute or two with an immersion blender.

It's Sunday, and no need to bake a cake - I've been given some nice Genoa cake that will last the week, I'm sure.

But I fancy a substantial dessert - "Apple pie, why not?"

Well, it's something new, so here it is, coming out of the air fryer.

On Moor Gate there is a row of former quarrymen's houses that are on an embankment above the road.. This airvent is at street level.

Walking through Bare I found this restaurant that emphasizes traditional home cooking. You can see immediately that it caters for an older generation of clients.

It's time for an early lunch, I think.

While it was all cooking, I steamed some green veg. A nod to making a complete meal, and being somewhat 'healthy'. Some of my vintage pickled red cabbage provided a tart ballance to the sweetly caramelised corned beef. The ketchup was redundant but nice to have, all the same.

Corned beef has has been described as 'poverty' food, and 'fit only for pensioners'. However, even though it is highly-processed, it still provides a good, sustaining meal. It can be had for breakfast, lunch, or tea - I don't recommend all three on the same day, for the sake of your arteries. I might try adding an egg as 'finishing' on top next time.

We adopted Missy in November when she was 9 months old

Today this is an unusual collective noun for snails. At the time of Doctor Johnson, an escargatoire was a source of protein that was proliferated by the Romans.

Confusingly, the Roman snail (Helix pomatia) is a protected species in England, so goodness knows what is served in restaurants.

This is very special in this season. Springflowers in the winter. It gives the grey days some colors.

As the water is added I stir the liquor to ensure all the grounds are covered. The CO2 in the grounds is released, forming that nice scummy surface. I set a timer for 5 minutes and leave everything alone.

The timer has finished and the croissants are now warm and golden. It's time to stir some more, gently, and plunge the coffee.

I love Saturday mornings. They usually start in prolonged silence and the sun replaces the alarm clock.

Today is an important day in the Scottish football calendar; Celtic will play Hearts at Celtic Park in Glasgow. Celtic needs to win.

Not too far from my window is what appears to be an extra from Braveheart, playing the bagpipes.

Being woken by the Piper to the Sovereign is just how her late majesty would start the day.

I feel just like royalty!

📷 Google Pixel 2xl - Main Sensor - Goa, India - Throwback to August 2018

Mr Hornbeam was a kindly soul, dependable, and quietly wise. Always wearing a tie with his Viyella shirt. Tweed jacket, moleskin trousers, polished brogues. Or so I imagine. That's how this tree made me feel today. The rain eased for a moment in order to let mortals take in the view.

About 1/4 cup of barley, cooked under pressure for 20 minutes with sage. rosemary and thyme. Some saucisse sèche, and salad completed the plate. Drizzled with olive oil. All ancient recipes (other than using a pressure cooker).

I thought I'd try one of the YouTube air fryer recipes. This is for French apple cake. I forgot to include the milk in this shot.

2 eggs

50 g sugar

100 g plain flour

1 tsp vanilla essence

1 tsp baking powder

50 ml milk

1 red apple, peeled and chopped

beat eggs and sugar till airy

add vanilla

combine flour, apple, milk, baking powder without knocking out the air

pour into a greased silicon dish

bake in air fryer for 30 mins at 160 deg C

turn out onto a rack to cool

decorate with icing sugar

Verbena wrapped around some agapanthus seed pods.