River Cam Granchester - Post Flood.

Last time I brought my sketch pad down here, sun shone brightly, walkers paced the bank - there was a lot of excited chatter in the background. That was almost exactly a year ago - high summer.

The grassy track is now a mud bath, the river flowing faster than I could punt upstream. Hardly anyone has come down here to enjoy their lunch, read or pass the time in pleasant company.

But I do hail the adventurous spirit of 4 youngsters, determined to keep School Leaving spirit up. Exams done, Balls danced and released from the fetters of education - the River Cam must be swum.

So with one on the bank and four - no, that would be 3 - three in the water, a bit of normality is returning to this sleepy bank.

In the background birds lift their chirruping above the distant, but sadly constant rumble, of traffic setting off down the M11 to London.

As I write this a spider has begun spinning his web dangling from my beard. He has mistaken me for some country hedgerow!

The sun is now out, ramblers have emerged from their lunchtime beverages. Time, methinks, for this ancient hedgerow to find a cup of tea.

Cedric & Max: Return to the Page.

I have not see much of Cedric nor Max recently, singularly uninspired in my sketching. But today, pleased as punch, they walked quite randomly back into a letter I was writing and sat down  at top and bottom corners of the page.

I say, 'sat', but indeed Cedric was swimming in the warm waters around his island.
Max was heartily singing Camp Fire Songs, standing maybe a bit too close to the fire for safety. I must speak to him about that.

The letter is almost finished now, but will be posted after Final Collection tomorrow to plop onto S's doormat on Saturday. I always aim for a Saturday delivery, so much nicer to receive a Hand Written Letter on a Saturday as the weekend is just kicking in.

Foraging Plod

Like many of mine, drawn on a blank postcard, and will be safely in the postbox before last collection tonight.

I sketch directly onto 140 lbs, 6" x 4" card using an HB pencil. Most important to always have a good clean eraser handy, and in some places to artistically smudge the sketch rubbing over with my fingertip.

Finally I 'Fix' the sketch using hairspray to stop the sketch accidentally becoming more smudged in the hands of the postman or recipient.

RanDOM Cartoon Strip: Unique!

First entry in my new Journal...

I wonder if you can read it all.
If you click on the picture, a larger version should appear.

GoogleMaps!

Following my last abortive trip to hospital I am preparing to return - this time as a day patient only. Hooray. :)
The procedure involves feeding a camera through my mouth down to the stomach so Doc can possibly determine a reason for the incredible pancreatic pains.

GoogleMaps despatched a driver to Plot the Pancreatic Hills

My orriginal thought was to draw a TV Crew preparing to enter the unknown, but somehow a GoogleMaps journey seemed more appropriate.

Sinking Moon

The moon looked so magnificent this morning.
This was the view before I made my porridge. Breakfast eaten the moon had sunk behind the roofline.

Bin Surfin'

In a phone call yesterday to Scotland we chatted about the high winds, 150mph! - and the fact that maybe the wheelie bins needed to be weighed down.
This brought to my imagination the new sport of Whellie Bin Surfing.
This is the first draught of what will no doubt make it to my Postcard Series...

CherryHinton Hall Pond

Methinks the swan is slightly swan like, but the Mallard is more penguin like. At least it is a aquatic bird.

GrassHopper Ablutions

Found in the bathroom, kitchen, shower - whilst on holiday...

Candle 'n Quill

A Post It Note doodle using a black fibre pen.

Bird Bath

It has bean a beautiful summers day in spring, my sketch pad and I wandered into the garden.

I wonder how, though our garden is a small lawned area with brick walls and a bird feeder, this doodled onto my canvas.

Old Boots

To fit with my new theme of losin' a few inches off my waist,
these boots were made for walkin'!

Mill Pond, Cambridge

I am sat in the Granta Pub on the Mill Pond sheltering from the rain - enjoying a pint. I have just drawn the view from my stool.

Sweeny Todd of course has not been there for 20 years, or maybe longer, that is where I went for my Stag Night feast, hmm - 28 years ago.

I have missed out the large fleet of punts which are moored and drifting into the center of the pond, seemingly more a storage yard!

Today it is raining, but there seems to be an ever increasing need to include punting come rain or sunshine whilst visiting Cambridge.

Several punts have set off since I sat down, a most interesting increase in punting backwards and/or from inside the craft. In Cambridge of course, one punts from the platform on the back!