Duvet Day

Took the day off work as I am sick to death of it. Chilled in the garden and did some house chores instead.

I love the lickle sparrow in the top right hand corner of this pic of me reading:

And thus plant is still looking pretty fantastic:

Penllergaer Woods

Had a lovely evening's walk down Penllergaer Woodscthis evening. How come I no-one told me how beautiful this place place is? And it's less than a 20 minute drive from my home!

We ended the walk with a gorgeous meal in the cafe outside the woods entrance.

Look What the Postie Delivered

The head of department and senior tutor of my first 2 years of photography training was a huge fan of John Blakemore's work. 

When it was time to move on from Further Education to Higher Education, I applied for and attended interviews for 2 Art College places, a degree course at Derby and a HND course in Bournemouth. The BA (Honours) interview was headed by no other than John Blakemore!

Unfortunately, my photography expertise at that time was more documentary and picturesque orientated, and I understood little about the art side of the artistic side of the practise. As such, I was not offered a place at Derby, but was accepted at Bournemouth, where I spend the next 12 months, before applying for another degree course, this time at West Surrey College of Art and Design, where I met my soul mate. But that's another story...

Anyway, I have always held a soft spot for John Blakemore, who was knowledgeable enough to see my inexperience at the time. Sadly, the great photographer recently passed away. Rest in peace. Your photographs will be continue to be cherished by the photography/art world into eternity.

And, on that note, look what the postie delivered this morning, signed by the great man himself too!

Pennard Step Count

There are not many places better than Gower to earn your step count, especially when you get to sample a couple of pints in 2 of its finest pubs. Our first drink was at Gower's oldest drinking establishment - the 15th Century Beaufort Arms in Kittle:

Our real step count for the day were earned visiting Pobbles and Three Cliffs Bay.

 Scarlet Pimpernel and Forge-me-nots:

Vetch:

Pobbles Beach:

A Rook:

Balanced Boulders overlooking Pobbles Bay:

Limestone Caves and a rock pool:

Three Cliffs:

More decorative flora at Three Cliffs Bay:

Pennard Golf Course:

Our steps under our belts, it was time for further refreshments before heading home.

The Southgate pub:

Malvern Spring Show 2026

I am not going to go into any details, but Mrs P.L. was in great neeed of a chilled getaway this weekend. And what a lovely break we had:

Our Shepherd's Hut near Malvern was absolutely fantastic. And the owner seemed such a decent guy. 

The main event, however, was the Malvern Three Counties Spring Garden Show, Tthe highlight of which, along with our favourite Old Rosie cider, was a 2 hour talk by Monty Don:

A great weekend, and I was so chuffed my better half got to meet her hero and have the TV gardening legend sign his book  😎