January 16th, 2020: 70th birthday. A fine day of celebration marked by our walk on Bamburgh beach all the way round to Kiln Point on Budle bay. In biblical terms such a birthday is a significant milestone, alluded to in Houseman’s memorable lines (1) “Now of my threescore years and ten Twenty will not come […] Continue reading → 
My cycle ride to the Thomson monument, recorded in my previous post, wasn’t the only excursion of recent weeks which triggered a journey into the past. Beth was home and keen to visit her friends from University days, one of whom was living in Lanark. When Lanark was mentioned I suggested that I come along […] Continue reading → 
Way back in time we swam in the Evenlode river beneath Gritney Hill. Today it was the Shereburgh and Staerough hills which overlooked our late summer bathe in the Bowmont river. Towards Clifton it had cut into its bank and scooped out a twenty yard deep stretch of the river bed. For this fast flowing […] Continue reading →