Ducks

I have just waddled my way home from Matfen Village Fair.

One of our ducks came 2nd in the Duck Race on the stream on the village green. Double click on the second photo- can you see him? Duck 25!!! H1 won a coconut while D3 and I managed to miss the coconut shy and hit the road behind the stall! We won a box of green tea on the Tombola stall and bags of sweeties by picking winning straws out of a sand tray. We shall not mention that we lunched on delish cheeseburgers from Matfen Brewery's stall and dined on afternoon tea (a cuppa and slice of coffee cake)in the village hall. ALL PURELY TO SUPPORT RURAL ECONOMY, OF COURSE!



We used to have such fun at Matfen Hall Fair every year when it was a Leonard Cheshire Home.

We have been back to Vindolanda; every day of our week I said
"This is a well and when I go down it, please grab my feet" and the guys on my team all laughed.Well! Well! Well! I could not tell you last week but it DID turn out to be a well! I knew it was as I removed the capstones- and dug out the top 3 courses of shaped stones.....it has now been dug out- 8 feet to the bottom and not one votive offering.... a Roman crowbar, lots of smelly mud- and bones of lots of birds to the delight of Dr. Deb! But it will be capped and left so tourists can see my well- I hope it will be named after me - a Latin gerund! Eat your heart out Coventina!

D3 and I had a behatted and fascinatored , ladylike, Ladies Day at Simonburn Tearooms in aid of the Northumberland Air Ambulance. Being a rural county, for rapid travel to hospital from upcounty and out in the Shire, folks rely on that emergency helicopter coming to the rescue; but it depends on public donation to keep it in the air- as does the R.N.Lifeboat Institution to keep rescues going at sea- and to rescue stupid people (who really vex me) running (expensive)risks by trying to cross the Lindisfarne (Holy Island) causeway too late- Time and tide wait for no man! Haven't these roadrunners heard of King Canute?