Two tanka

Doping in sport

sporting heroes

don’t ‘do it on lemonade’

a few chemicals

and maybe I  could have won

Tour de France and Wimbledon

Jacques Anquetil, coureur cycliste

«Il n’est pas possible à un homme, fût-il très doué pour le sport, de courir presque journellement sans le recours de stimulants. Il faudrait être naïf ou hypocrite pour répandre cette idée que le tour de France, un Bordeaux-Paris, un critérium du Dauphiné peuvent se négocier simplement à l’eau minérale… Tous les coureurs prennent quelque chose.» 1969.

Oilseed rape

the path leads clear
through cultivated fields
onwards and upwards
oilseed rape grows high and wet
we struggle through this jungle

National Insect week

I've just discovered this via Leeds Daily Photo .  But all I've done is a fleeting visit to the Butterfly House at the New Forest Wildife Park.  We had an excitable toddler in tow, so not a lot of time to stand and stare. One for the 'to do again' list!


a morning out
at the wildlife centre
little humans
need some space
to run and climb

damp earth

darkness falls
and I hear rain
I open the door
freshly planted pots
smell of damp earth

herb of choice

she brings from Germany

seeds her friend remembers

Bohnenkraut – bean herb

they reminisce – so tasty

what is the English?

It is in fact savory.  Note to self - find some!

quiet Sunday

raindrops on window

trees sparkle in the sun

quiet Sunday morning

I seek more jewels

online . . .

walking backwards

Two-person play

Ragged Trousered Philanthropists

socialist book

old-fashioned? simplistic?

are we walking backwards?

empty nest?

blackbird pair bask

in the warm sun

 - a brief respite

from showers

and childcare

I'm assuming this pair's chicks have fledged. We saw a young one a while ago. They're co-existing with the house sparrow here.

geese

flotilla of geese

and goslings head for bread scraps

wobble bums for speed

six year old looks on in awe

he’s not been so close before

rain break

French Open Final

a fight of  Titans

rain stops play

new Ganymedes as escorts

brolly-bearers to the gods?

family outing

we live a bit too far

to make weekly visits

so each drives halfway

to meet at Clumber Park

for a family outing