Photo Diary

Archive for August, 2007

Berry

Sunday, August 19th, 2007


DSC_0039.JPG, originally uploaded by michael_jecks.

And one last shot for today. As all her well-wishers can see, our beautiful Bouncing Berry is absolutely fine now. her spine is perfectly OK, and she is a gorgeous animal. Excellent companion, whether walking or just sitting around and doing not a lot. She does have an unfortunate habit of knocking the kids over, but they seem to forgive her, and she does look very apologetic afterwards (especially when I bellow at her!).

Thanks to all those who’ve sent messages to her.

Fiddle Drive

Sunday, August 19th, 2007


DSC_0024.JPG, originally uploaded by michael_jecks.

Of course, once Folk Festival was over, I had to go to have my latest acquisition fixed. Ah. Yes. Not only do I have a Bodhran and melodeon which I can only play in a rudimentary manner, now I’ve a fiddle too.

And it was a pleasing little machine when I got it for the grand old sum of £30 (thanks, Annie!). My neighbour was throwing out all excess things, you see, and mentioned to me that she had a fiddle she’d hardly used, and I offered to equal anything the professional proposed for it . . . but she accepted an offer of half what he asked, which I think was rather sporting.

Less sporting was the fact that my (astonishingly still alive) son kicked it (ok, it was an accident, but still) and dislodged the sound-post. My fiddle developed a rattle. So this morning I had to pack it up and drive it to an expert violin-mender in Chudleigh, Martin Vosloo, who fixed it for me. Not only that, he tuned it, set up the bridge, the lot – and then refused any sensible remuneration. A very pleasant and kind gentlemen.

But, on the way home it occurred to me that I hadn’t taken many moorland shots recently. So since I had my camera, I stopped a couple of times to take some.

It seems that the photos are doing some good, too. Other people quite like some of them. Yesterday we had the Sticklepath Flower Show, and I won a first, a second, and a third prize in their photo competitions. Most satisfying!

Sadly, the end . . .

Sunday, August 19th, 2007


DSC_0006.JPG, originally uploaded by michael_jecks.

No, not of this blog. However, the Dartmoor Folk Festival had to end after the weekend, and that meant that on the Monday there were any number of exhausted organisers and stewards who had to take the day off, firstly to help tidy the South Zeal recreation ground, and secondly to enjoy a session all of their own. Where, funnily enough, quite a lot of ale was consumed. For a bunch more pictures, take a look at the Flickr.com website. Type in www.flickr.com/photos/michael_jecks and you’ll be taken there, and once you are, go to the set which has the Folk Festival on it. There you’ll see all sorts of perfectly sensible, sober people. Like this one.

No, actually, Matt was the only guy there who had to drive (say Ahh!) so he had two J2Os and nothing else. The rest, though, they were a different matter!

Blacked up Grimspound Morris Man

Sunday, August 19th, 2007


DSC_0140.JPG, originally uploaded by michael_jecks.

Yes, I know that there’s been little on this blog in the last few weeks, but the trouble is, there’s so much going on. Last week it was the Dartmoor Folk Festival, which means hundreds of people descending on South Zeal for a weekend, playing loads of music, singing, and drinking so much beer that the one weekend accounts for a third of the total pub profits for the year. Yes, I did mean that!

We were lucky with the weather. It threatened rain a few times, but it always held off. Instead we had this bright sunshine all through. And the best thing of all was that I had a small table in the craft tent, and in there I sold over forty books. Very convenient, because as those who’ve been receiving my newsletter will know, last year I had far too many books in my loft, which made the ceiling collapse. Now at least the weight’s been reduced a little. I still have a pile (or rather seven boxes) of books to sell, though.

Particularly good to meet with a reader who brought a load of original hardbacks to be signed. It’s hard to get about all over the place on a writer’s income, so having people come to see me here makes life a lot easier!

Hope all the readers of this site are having a good summer, and don’t forget to write in with any suggestions as to how to improve the site itself, or anything else you reckon would be useful to readers.

Cheers!