Solstice walk

Hey, I just wrote a long story and it got deleted at the last minute! Nul points for not saving it before using the mapping app.

The gist of it was that I spent the morning trying to get our nursery garden sorted for the school fete tomorrow, then after a pleasant afternoon during which I actually managed to sit in my own garden and read for at least half an hour, I went on the Solstice walk, in support of our local daycare hospice, with my colleagues J and J and J's daughter F.

We walked ten km around the National Trust-managed commons, along a well marked route with awesome views over the nearby villages. At Winstones ice cream factory we were serenaded by the Stroud ukelele orchestra (average age 70) sitting on the bank opposite, singing "How much is that doggie in the window?" Quite an unexpected encounter.

Arriving back at the hospice grounds just two hours after setting off, we found that bars, hot dog stalls, and entertainment had been set up for our delight. A man on stilts was creating giant bubbles with a string-slingshot thing, and I just caught F's hand at thevery bottom of this shot before the bubble floated down a few more inches, and burst on contact.

Tomorrow, the school fete, and afternoon's work at the art college. Tonight, a little more R and R at the end of a busy week.

The extra photo that I've just added is of the village of North Woodchester, seen from the behind the hotel called The Bear of Rodborough, with the Tuscan-style terraces of Rodborough hill visible in the foreground. This is one of the most breathtaking views of the area I saw when I visited Rodoborough and Stroud for the first time twenty-one years ago.