Tilted

I've just uploaded images of my final (for the moment) two pots. They can be found on Webshots here and as ever will be at the very end of the folder.

Now before you say they look rather wonky, they were thrown on an angled wheel head, as I've previously mentioned. It's pretty b****y tricky I can tell you. Having thrown a nice regular pot, the effect is that when placed to a level surface, the pot leans at a pleasing angle. If I return to ceramics, I think I'll give this another go...

Deathly Hallows

I've just seen the latest trailer for the final instalment of the Harry Potter series. It looks great.

It's due for release on 15 July and based on part one, it should be a good one even if it has the shortest running time of all 8 films. To be honest I thought the final book was flabby and somewhat unfocussed; thankfully the screen version- at least of the first part- corrected matters and was a much tighter affair, so I have great hopes Harry and co will leave the silver screen on a high. 




What exactly is the deal with Pottermore, I wonder?

The Sky At Night

I found this image today and couldn't resist posting it. This is the United Kingdom as seen from the International Space Station. While I feel it looks rather cool, it does highlight just how much light pollution there is. Most of it I expect is unnecessary.

The view from 230 miles (around 370 km).
















Read the full article from the Daily Mail website here.

Rocket. Man.

Further to yesterday's posting, I dug my first crop of spuds. A modest bowlful of Rocket variety yes but not bad from only four seeds potatoes. Can't wait to give them a scrub, cook and eat with a little butter mmm.

The next batch won't be ready for digging until August/September time.

Let's Talk About...

One of the things us British are famous/notorious* for is our obsession with the weather and that we seem to devote a disproportionate amount of time talking about it.

Is there, you might ask, any reason for this state of affairs? Let's consider the following: This past week vast areas of the east of England have been placed under a severe drought warning, with farmers being told to expect restrictions on the amount of water they can use to irrigate crops. At the same time here in the Thames Valley we've had rain for probably 24 hours (putting a halt on my plans to dig some of my potato crop today) with daytime temperatures down at around 12 degrees Celsius, a marked contrast on a few weeks ago. Oh and over in Wales they had snow on Thursday.

We're only a small country- in fact the British Isles will fit into most US or Australian states several times over- yet our weather conditions can vary so wildly. This is meant to be summertime; is it any wonder we're obsessed LOL?

* Delete as applicable.

Buzz-off!

So I had to go into the attic the other day and noticed about four wasps harassing the strip light in a rather demented manner. I didn't think anything of it, merely treated them to a good dose of aerosol wasp and fly killer and left it at that.

Today there were many more and I don't think they were too happy to be honest. They're entering via gaps in the exterior wall tiles up high on the side of the house and have built themselves a cosy home between the roof tiles and insulation (I can hear them buzzing around under the insulation).

A British wasp nest in a Sussex roof space. My visitors may have constructed something similar.














The good news is the wasps won't reuse the nest next summer but I can't wait that long and I have to admit to being unsure quite how to deal with it. Answers on a postcard or back of a sealed down envelope to the usual competition address. Or you could just email your suggestions.

Poppy

Thought I would share this picture I took in my front garden around 8 this morning. For some reason my poppies seem to be a little behind those in the surrounding area but it's good to see the first couple flowering.





















It's been said poppies only really grow on former battlefield sites; something to do with corpses making for good manure. Well I'm not sure about that and although Reading has seen it's share over the years, I'm not convinced any skirmishes were held at my exact location. Maybe there's just a body down there somewhere following a grisly murder LOL?

Spoilers!*

How much do I love the cover of the new addition of Radio Times, the BBC's weekly listing magazine?

Enough to publish a cropped, spoiler free, version of the Doctor Who themed cover, that's for sure.

Amy Pond (played by Karen Gillan) and some sword wielding fellows.









This coming Saturday the BBC broadcasts episode 7 of the current excellent series and with it a mid-season finale. Viewers are promised a spectacular episode (extended to 50 minutes) and cliffhanger to ensure we all tune in for the next episode.

Those wishing to see the entire Radio Times spoiler filled front cover can click here to view, together with a collection of past Doctor Who covers dating back to 1964.
 
The sixth series returns in the Autumn. Can it come back soon enough?



*As Alex Kingston's character might say LOL.