Pub goers have no respect for the light.

Went out with my rambling club on Sunday but once at the destination, I decided to go it alone. I had a whole five and a half hours to kill and thought I would become bored but the time went so quickly. Most of it was spent sloshing around in the mud and trying to find my way back to the coach.

The village of Dufton, near Appleby, is very picturesque but I did not get many shots of it. On arrival, I noticed that there were very few cars and assumed that I was going to be able to get some good photographs. The sky was dull so I thought it best to sit and wait for the light to improve. Big mistake! It wasn’t 5 minutes before the cars arrived - in what seemed like hundreds. The cause of this mass invasion – the pub had opened its doors.

An old lady in an apron and wellington boots came out of her house and I thought a candid shot was on the cards but as soon as she realized that I was taking her photograph, she struck a pose. She offered to show me the way to the woods and I mistakenly thought it was going to be a slow start. I couldn’t have been more wrong! She set off at a real pace and kept this up for about 300 yards before setting off back at the same speed. She was lovely - and very kind.


I have no excuse for getting lost. I have an eTrek GPS but hadn’t input the map the night before and couldn’t be bothered to set waypoints as I went along. I don’t mind being lost – it is an adventure and I see things and places that other people never come across or notice.

In future I will check out the pub opening times.

Oh yes they will!

I have just been on the phone to my son's school because I didn't get an academic report for last year. I am told that they don't do them now but I shouldn't worry because his teacher is pleased with him. He got 100% for chemistry but he has some quite serious dips in other subjects - which he needs to work on at home. That is as much as I got. Nothing else. I don't know what he needs to work on and my son is confused.

It seems to me that they are so busy testing, testing, testing and getting the results off to some government department that they haven't got time to bother with learning and reporting, let alone talking to parents.

I am not happy but I will get a report.

My son did too many tests last year. He is distressed with it all and I am fed up with the backlash at home.

I have asked my son about the chemicals, mixtures and liquids in my garage but the little bugger won't tell me what they are or what he is doing with them!