The collector

A sunny morning in Hexham, first for a haircut and then to do a bit of shopping. Being Hexham, I kept meeting people and stopping for little chats.

Finally I reached the fruit and veg stall. As I chose my veg bag (carrots, cauli, broccoli and spring greens all for £2), there was a man carefully lifting a label from a melon. He told me that he has been collecting fruit labels for years. Bananas are easy to come by, but this melon label was a rare find. As you might guess, this was too good and opportunity so I asked for a photograph!

On my way back to the car I had a long interesting conversation with the farmer on the Gloucester old spot stall. He had Jacob's fleeces for sale and was showing me the horns which some people use to make buttons. He told me that he is hoping to learn to spin soon.

Then I found a steady trickle of toddlers making their way to the teddy bears' picnic.

It was all happening in Hexham today.