Category Archives: Pontypool

Posted on April 10, 2012 by BarryH

Taking another trip up to Abergavenny (almost) I decided to celebrate Easter Monday by walking up the ridge towards Abergavenny again but this time dropping off the east side about half way along to have bean soup in the Goose … Continue reading →

Posted in Grey Britain, Pontypool | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

The tyranny of buying presents … but things are brightening up

Posted on March 22, 2012 by BarryH

Let’s be brutally honest.  Buying presents isn’t a chore, it’s a nightmare, a tyranny which has us enslaved.  Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I don’t want to give presents, I actually enjoy giving things which people will enjoy … Continue reading →

Posted in Grumpy Old Men, Pontypool, Reflections, Spring | Leave a comment

Out of the Winter and out of the freezer

Posted on February 20, 2012 by BarryH

Winter came to an end around here 10 days ago.  During the previous week I had been wandering around the ridge-tops of South East Wales most days to take full advantage of the snow and ice. As noted in my … Continue reading →

Posted in extreme gardening, Grey Britain, Pontypool, Winter | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Grey Britain: life at the margins

Posted on February 12, 2012 by BarryH

Thursday and I thought that my optimism of a return to winter had been well founded.  After the second night of temperatures below zero (-7.7 and -3.4oC) the forecast was for it to continue close to freezing all day with … Continue reading →

Posted in Grey Britain, Pontypool, Winter | Leave a comment

New Year: sales, contrasts and looking ahead.

Posted on January 2, 2012 by BarryH

Christmas with the family and New Year with friends were good and Father Christmas brought me everything that I wanted.  But now it’s past: left-over food eaten; wrapping paper in the bin; house tidied up; shops returning to normal before they put Easter on … Continue reading →

Posted in Canada, Grey Britain, Pontypool, Winter | Tagged | Leave a comment

Familiarity breeds selective cognition: trying to see what’s under your nose.

Posted on November 22, 2011 by BarryH

For a few days last week I was doing the ‘school run’ for my two older grandchildren.  This entailed collecting them and driving them to school for 09.05, picking the younger one up at 11.35 and the older one at … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Pontypool, Reflections | 1 Comment

Laws of physics, a Pontypool garden and an ancient Nisyros fortress

Posted on November 15, 2011 by BarryH

With the continuing mild weather, reckoned to be at least 5oC higher than the expected temperatures at this stage in November, I’ve been slaving away in the garden.  I have put off the decorating yet again and have been renovating … Continue reading →

Posted in extreme gardening, Greece 2011, Pontypool, Reflections | Leave a comment

Images of Autumn and Pontypool

Posted on October 30, 2011 by BarryH

Autumn colour isn’t only to be found in New England and Westonbirt and other UK arboreta.  Admittedly, a visit to the Westonbirt Acer Glade to catch the changing leaf colour at the right time and with the sun shining is … Continue reading →

Posted in Autumn, Pontypool | 1 Comment

Back to reality: finding ways to alleviate the boredom

Posted on September 25, 2011 by BarryH

Been home just over a week now.  An uneventful week.  Nothing to get the pulse racing.  Just plodding along.  But then that’s what much of life is, learning to cope with the tedium and trying to inject a bit of … Continue reading →

Posted in Grey Britain, Pontypool | Leave a comment

Art and about in Grey Britain: Pontypool, Newport, Cardiff

Posted on August 9, 2011 by BarryH

More friends came to stay the second part of last week and it was still grey.  It was basically dry so we were out and about walking the 3 days they were here.  It wasn’t cold but temperatures in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Grey Britain, Pontypool | 1 Comment