That old...Market Square, Ambleside.

      This is the traditional centre of Ambleside, known as Market Square and the stone pillar is the Market Cross. The cross is no longer in this location but was moved to a new site nearby. Fortunately Ambleside was blessed with some great early photographic pioneers, like Moses Bowness, who took these wonderful photographs for posterity.

  

Bridge House.

      Probably Ambleside's most notable landmark, the small and quirky one time dwelling, known as The Bridge House, which straddles the river Stock, in the centre of the town. Originally a part of the 17th century Ambleside Hall, residence of the Braithwaite family.

      Inside there are two tiny rooms, in reality not enough room to swing a cat, but over the years many resourceful people have made use of the confined space to find use of the building, which include, a cobblers, a tearoom, counting house, fruit store, even accommodation, for a sizable family.

        These days it's run by the National Trust and even by it's compact size is probably the best known and most popular attraction in the area.

Time For Bed.

      One of the most prominent, centuries-old houses of South Lakeland is Sizergh Castle, longtime home of the Strickland family, from the 13th Century until 1950.
      The house, now in the hands of the National Trust, is to sell off an old and interesting oak bedstead. This remarkable piece of furniture, was commissioned in 1570 by Alice Strickland, the wife of Sir Walter Strickland, during extensive lavish refurbishment and renovation, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1.

        The bedstead, said to be one of the most important pieces of Elizabethan Oak furniture, still remaining in private hands and considered to be in the top ten, of English oak beds of the Elizabethan period and British Furniture design.
      The piece will be sold by Bonhams, in London at Bonhams Oak Interiors Sale, on 28th September and is expected to raise around £150k.

      We await the final hammer price.

Prince George.

      In the early hours of Sunday morning (UK time) a Royal Canadian Air Force plane arrived in Victoria, British Colombia, flown directly over the Atlantic from the UK.
      Their special passenger, the young Prince George, with his sister Charlotte and their parents in tow, was greeted by Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife Sophie Gregoire-Trudeau.
      With the eyes of the world watching his every step, George easily held everyone's attention as he skipped down the aircraft steps and dazzled in his dashing sky blue sweater and navy shorts, with knee-length socks and a first pair of proper lace-up shoes.
      Then a quick meeting with Premier Trudeau before George gave everyone a warm and beaming smile with a generous wave of his hand. And next George and Charlotte, not forgetting William and Kate, were whisked away to begin their official tour.

Levens Hall, Southern Lakes

      South Lakeland's Levens Hall, home of the world famous Topiary Gardens, has this year a 30 foot specimen, known as the Umbrella Tree, shortlisted by The Woodland Trust, in the running to be crowned "England's Tree of the Year." 

     The tree, planted in the 1690's as part of the original garden layout for a Colonel James Grahme, who came to Levens, after being in service to King James ll with him he brought a young French Gardener; Guillaume Beaumont, a pupil of Notre et Versailles, who planned this fashionable garden.
      Just one of over a hundred individual tree designs, the umbrella tree has been carefully cut and shaped, over the past three hundred years to achieve it's iconic appearance.

      The Umbrella will compete against nine other trees, selected by the Woodland Trust and the winner will receive a grant of £1000, and go forward to the "European Tree of the Year," event.

Apple Mclaren.

      Apple Inc, producer of the IPhone, Smartphones and a host of other cutting edge technology, appears to be embroiled in something of an unofficial battle, if not war, with other leading tech companies, to construct, electric powered cars, self-drive electric vehicles, etc.
      Now there is talk and it is talk, no one appears to be admitting anything, but there is always rumours and these rumours relate to speculation that Apple, have made an approach to Mclaren (cars) with a view to taking over the company. the price should be in the £1-2 billion, bracket.
      Mclaren, producer of the Mclaren F1 is owned by Ron Dennis, Mansour Ojjeh and the Bahrain Sovereign Wealth Fund.
     The F1 sells for £866k and Mclaren also runs the Formula One racing team and is renowned for it's technological expertise, the use of carbon-fibre in Mclaren chassis, and their list of many patents. In which Apple, holds great store and would give their car manufacturing plans a certain advantage over rivals. The company employs around 1300 people and produces about 1500 cars a year.  

An Old Plate.

      A Car-Boot customer couldn't believe his good fortune when he turned up this old plate at a South Lakeland Car Boot Sale. He managed to purchase the plate for the sum of £20, The plate which measures slightly more than 2 feet wide, is in fact a rare 19th century piece from the Leeds Pottery, known as a Burmantoft's Faience Plaque,
      The Plaque was entered at the 1818 Auction House at Crooklands, where at an estimate of £4-600, the item eventually sold to a private collector for the astounding sum of £7000, after a lively bidding session between several telephone bidders.

Loughrigg Fell.

Loughrigg Terrace

      This, is a dangerous time of year and it's all about those darker evenings and a shortage of evening light. Through summer evenings I can roam far and wide, but at this time of the year, I'm more or less limited to one and the same climb, Loughrigg Fell and this ties in with the leisure club at Elterwater, swim and sauna.
      Firstly I've got to get myself onto The Terrace, which is quite a energetic canter in itself.

      Next I've got the Staircase, can be something of a knee-grinder, it goes about half-way up the fell and it's been put there to ease the erosion of so many millions of tramping boots, even this is starting to get worn out, in places and needs constant attention.

 

      Finally and after a bit of a slog, that is a slog for someone who isn't on the fells every other day, finally I reach the summit and the trig point. There's a panoramic view and a certain feeling of satisfaction and quite often, the views are pretty good as well!

Grasmere and the Lake, looking towards Dunmail.

Hermes - Birkin

      A chance meeting on a 1959 London - Paris flight, between Jane Birkin and John Louis Dumas, over the contents of a broken straw handbag, eventually led to the design and manufacture of a certain handbag, which would, in time, become the worlds most sought after and indeed, expensive handbag.
      The bags are of course, reassuringly expensive, if you should need the reassurance, this is all due to the refined skill and experience of the single craftsman, assigned to the manufacture of each bag and the lavish use of the finest materials and of course the assured exclusivity of the product. So exclusive in fact, that Birkins are not just available off the shelf, You won't just be able to pop into your local store and just buy one from a selection. Firstly you must convince Hermes you are a serious and genuine purchaser and then you must order the bag of your choice and your order may take a year to be produced and reach fulfillment. You may well be left under the impression your custom is unwelcome, but it's all part of the tried and tested process.
      Of course it would be all very easy to purchase a so-called "high status" bag at a number of other fashionable names, which should content many purchasers. But if your desire is the Hermes - Birkin, then you must follow this procedure.
      Hermes isn't just a manufacturer of world famous handbags, they also design and produce a wide range of leather products, silk scarves, wristwatches, jewellery and fragrance to tempt the customer and they all have the name and are readily available.
      Not only this, Hermes does manufacture at least 70k Birkins a year and there are thought to be more than a million in circulation, which says something about demand and satisfaction.  

Pippa Middleton.

   
      She's probably world famous for two things in her life, of course her celebrity status, through possessing a notably slender and well proportioned posterior. There appears to be various web locations and much discussion, over this famous part of her anatomy, some rather tongue-in-cheek. And of course the other great event in her life, which she might either choose to like, or loathe, she is the sister of the future Queen of England. And this in itself will bring her world wide attention, open loads of doors and never let her fall from the public glare. All she must learn to do is cope with all the attention and perhaps even benefit as a result.
      Of course she has a perfect slender and well defined figure, unquestionable beauty and a university education to match, which will no doubt have brought her an army of admirers.
    There was her early and memorable stab at a writing career with the much maligned book; "Celebrate," which was devoid of sales, but swathed with criticism. To her credit, she has kept in touch with her journalistic side by writing a column for the Waitrose magazine; "Kitchens" and various pieces for; "Vanity Fair," also sensibly working at a few charity slots.
      Now there is her new book; "Heartfelt," in collaboration with the British Heart Foundation, for whom she has an Ambassador's roll. The book is all about food, recipes and fitness and there are a number of contributions from certain athletes, such as Roger Federer, with all the recipes being appraised by the BHF.
      There is also her recent engagement to the financier James Matthews, I recall he made the proposal recently, one weekend in The Lake District! It also turns out they are both fitness fanatics and charity fund raisers, like a 3000 mile cycle-ride across the USA Which they both completed and several different swimming, running and even rock-climbing events.

Gaynor in Ambleside.

      Saw my good friend Gaynor, walking through Ambleside today. Er by the way this isn't Gaynor and that isn't Ambleside, but it kind of looks like Gaynor and you get the general idea!

Waterhead Bay.

Ah got to be grateful for another warm Summer's Day, here at Waterhead Bay!

The Rolling Stones, The Beatles and John Lennon

      In the early sixties, when I was a young lad, I sometimes used to sit on a high wall, next to the gate at my house, my sister would sometimes sit with me, watching the world go by. The world was a quieter place in those days, not like it is now, especially in The Lakes.
      One day a group of young lads walked past us and they were friendly and said "Hello" to us both. My sister, who was a few years older than me, later told me they were The Rolling Stones!
      A little later, same scenario, another group of lads, this time it's The Beatles! We later discovered they'ed both played a concert, sharing the bill, up in Carlisle, the night before.
      Probably by a remarkable coincidence, in the later 1960's older and  maybe wiser, I was again sat on the same wall, this time by myself, when I saw a yellow Rolls Royce, drive past, the driver waved to me, perhaps by way of memory, the driver had long hair and a white suit, he was John Lennon!

I'm Not...Dick Van Dyke

    My family home is one of a very old British period and is full of many overly thick stone walls, slate floors and high ceilings, hellish to keep warm in Winter, but very pleasant in those warm Summer months. Of course there are many interesting architectural features, some not so easily explainable whereas others can be just downright awkward!

      Now every room has a fireplace or two and most of the flues flow into the same stack and it's this stack which I must sweep, every year. It's frightening really, when you think about it, my ancestors swept it before my time, I've swept it with my Father and I now sweep it with my son. And it's not just a case of pushing the sticks up and giving it a quick sweep, there are angles and bends, even false passages to be negotiated. Also, every time you add another stick to the sweep you must give the whole run a good twist, to prevent any breaks in the chain.

      Over the years, I've sought to make the job easier, I did hire a professional sweep, to come and do the job, but he made a complete hash of it and got lost up another branch. There was also someone who turned up with a vacuum cleaner, filled a couple of bags and then gave up!
      The reality of all this is, I've got to roll my sleeves up and get on with it myself!

Build that Wall

    I wouldn't normally dwell upon such matters, but I suppose you might say all hardships are there to be endured and through sheer power of the will, to be overcome and no doubt, conquered. And with this in mind, I am quite prepared to put up with a constant flow of people, visitors to the area, telling me, reminding me, that I should be grateful, be glad, that I'm fortunate enough to live in the English Lake District! And how lucky I am to be somehow protected, from all the turmoil and indeed strife, of the outside world!

   The only problem being, just exactly what they don't seem to realize is, a barrier all be it a invisible barrier, is meant to keep people out, as well as in!

Judah Ben Hur.

    There's a book and there are also half-a-dozen screen versions, with two or three truly epic productions. I've grown up with the Charlton Heston, William Wyler spectacular and recall it as one of the all-time-great films. That wonderful scene where Jesus gives Judah some water!
    And with the release of the new 2016 version I was keen to see this latest attempt, of course the reviews are terrible, so I've tried to avoid reading them and I was worried about Jack Huston, perhaps he would make a good Jewish playboy, but how would he cope with being lashed to the galley or in a life and death chariot race at the local track? At least there's Morgan Freeman, so much experience, many defining rolls and you're convinced he's a sheik, and not just by his thobe,
    Remarkably I'm in the same Cinema in which I saw the magical 1959 screening, it was as a young boy in the mid-sixties, films would take a long time to get this far North, back in those days. I'm pleased to say the seats are more comfortable and spacious now, and I also thought it wise to forsake the 3d Ice Lolly and the three 1d Gobstoppers, as of my childhood.
    The film, well it rolls along well enough and there are a few variations here and there, but generally I felt let down, maybe it's all the digital CG which seems to be everywhere, and when you least want to see it. I would suppose the studio took a gamble with the project, thinking the 1959 movie needed, somehow updating, better cinematography perhaps. Wyler, worked on the 1925 production and no doubt had similar ideas, and when you compare these earlier two, you can see the advances in technique. Look at the 1959 & 2016 films and you are more likely to wonder, exactly why did they bother?      

Delia Smith.

    It shouldn't be too much of a surprise, but there always seems to be an abundance of celebrities turning up in the Lake District, the thing is, they are not usually attention seekers and you are generally unaware of their presence.
    Last week I met a few friends in a local hotel, on our way to a restaurant, one of them said to me; "that woman from Norwich, is in here, you know, the cook, the one who likes football, wot's her name? Oh yeah, Delia Smith!"
    So I had what I would consider to be a casual and at the same time searching, glance around the room. Can't say I saw Delia, to recognize her, but I did notice how oddly everyone else was behaving, which told me Delia, was probably in the house!  

Fiver for em...

    We've just got the new Plastic £5 in UK circulation and to be honest, they're pretty good, but I'm bound to say as much, I've been using the Irish fiver's for the past seventeen years, without any problems. But paper or plastic, I love them both/all.

Friar's Crag, Derwentwater North Lakes

      On my way back from Cockermouth, heading to the South Lakes, I decided to make a short stopover in Keswick, it's probably the North Lakeland principle town. I used to work here, some few years ago and I still have a number of friends in the area, like to visit the shops and those old familiar haunts. 
      I can still happily recall spending my lunch hours walking by the lake shore, on some of those cold and crisp winter's days. And because of this I decided to make a walk down to Friar's Crag and perhaps re-live some of those happy memories. The route is still very familiar, past the theatre and along the track by the shore, only the numbers of people have soared in recent times.

      But then at last I'm at the view point, it's a nice sunny day and the panorama of lake and fell is staggering, there are quite a few other people here as well and they too, are swept up by the sheer majesty of the place.  

  John Ruskin, is immortalised at Friar's Crag, simply by the erection of the well known monolith and a few well chosen words from his diary.

Ring, Ring, Ring.........

    Been having a few problems with my Telecom Landline and have been in need of a new telephone, or more preferably, a telephone system with various hand sets to run through the house. Due to one thing and another, I'd never got around to doing anything about this matter even with constant verbal encouragement from certain members of my family. To be quite honest I've been looking for some sort of telephone, which, to some degree might be able to manage itself and be able to deal with nuisance and cold callers and people using withheld numbers. There seems to be something of a gamut of these sort of callers, just at the present.

    So one day I'm in Asda (walmart) and I'm thinking; "just take care of this problem, buy a cheap phone, sort it all out!" So I do, I get it home, set it up and the problems begin, won't work, the ansaphone won't respond, won't dial properly, the battery compartment keeps falling apart, etc. And I put up with this nonsense, to the next day, by which time I've had enough and put it all back in the box, then return it to the shop. At least I can get my money back, without any quibble! So I do what I should have done in the first place and go straight to Curry's/PC World and buy a good Panasonic system, KX-TG816. I come home and set it up and it's so good it almost sets itself up. I'm using it now and it's everything I need. I'm living in the digital revolution!