Grey.

Mild and very wet today. This morning we had lost the view to the surrounding greyness. As we ate breakfast we had fun watching the surfers trying to catch the sizeable waves rolling in. Naturally we are surfing experts as we provide a running commentary on the real surfers' technique and ability to read the waves. A good thing we don't actually put our 'knowledge' to the test.

Feeling a lot better after a day of plain eating (though the old rib cartilage seems to have flared up) I planned a day of distracting shopping. Having been too tired to think clearly when we dropped in at Morrison's on our way home the other day there were a few things we needed and I wanted to have a good search around for something to complete my indoor hanging baskets idea. I've already bought fittings, which have just had their second coat of white Hammerite and a wooden pole but hadn't worked out the actual basket parts. Ideally I needed some mid-sized, white plastic tubs/pots that could be hung up. To that end today I searched Charlie's, pricey but you never know, where I found plastic hanging pots which were cheap but too large and black. From there I went to B&M, a very cheap shop that sometimes has random stuff. Looking through peg baskets, bathroom storage, kitchen storage and random tubs I found exactly what I needed, small white plastic tubs with handle slots at either end through which I can thread the white rope I also bought there. The only drawback was that there were just three in white while I really wanted four but I shall go back and hope for one more. While I was there I also found some large cork coasters big enough to put a vase or small dish on. Sometimes I think I'm being fussy but I would rather not find marks on our antique furniture which I polish with wax. We have some small cork coasters for mugs and I've been looking for the bigger ones for quite a while.

There wasn't much of the afternoon left once I got home, I had a rest and reviewed the trail cam only to find a couple of photos of my leg and one of a delivery lorry going past the garden hedge. I've set it for video clips and put down peanuts around the water dish.

Now that Christmas gifts have been opened I thought I'd show the things I bought at the craft fair. They were both made by a local wood turner who happens to be the owner of the B&B Peter stayed at when he came up to check on the work being done on the place. The little bird house is simply an ornament, he had a number in different kinds of wood and different shapes and it was very hard to choose just one. If I had put the top back correctly on the string pot you would be able to see that it is made from a single piece of wood. I find turned wood so tactile and even if the shape is the same the variation of the natural grain makes each object unique. 

I regret not having taken more photos inside the pub in Whitchurch which is genuine Olde Worlde not fake timbers and mass produced décor. Perhaps I'll remember the next time we visit. This display of drawings done on the pages of a book was above the table that we were sat at.