Kath Buckley
@buckers2023
Reader, gardener, quilt maker, dog servant. Easily confused. Geriatric hippy. 💙📚
New neighbourhood update. Look what I found this afternoon! And wait till you see where it goes… 1/2
This is the view from the back of our house. How incredibly lucky are we? Unfortunately we can’t see it from our garden at the moment because if an overgrown hedge full of sparrows (this is from next door’s garden) but come September/October that hedge will be half the size.
Our house has been empty for about two years. Look at the chuffin’ garden!
As well as being the 41st anniversary of Live Aid (I remember it like it was yesterday *sigh*) it is also Boo’s 14th birthday. As you can see she is excited for any celebrations that may happen…
Morning dog walk. In a garden next to the canal a man plays football with his dog as the sun dispels the overnight mist. A Red Admiral butterfly lands briefly on the path ahead of us. Disappointed to find the cafe shut a group of men hunting a full-english breakfast discuss alternative venues.
Morning dog walk. Our last walk before we move house. By teatime we will be 250 miles away. This knowledge causes everything to appear vivid & I am acutely aware of all the things I’ll miss. As we near home the removal van passes us, heading to collect all our possessions & take us to another life.
I think it’s safe to say the dog has got the hang of why the fan is there 😁
This is Woody the Woodster. He’s 15, can’t see very well, is pretty deaf and has dementia. Out walking this afternoon he lost us, even though we weren’t far away, and didn’t know what to do so he went and sat down on his own in the middle of a huge field and waited for someone to rescue him. 😢
I fell in love with this teapot about three months ago in a charity shop but it was £15 so I couldn’t justify buying it. Every time I’ve been in since then I’ve checked to see if it was still there and today my doggedness paid off! It was reduced to £7. Couldn’t leave it there could I? 🤭
Morning dog walk. The day dawns sunny but surprisingly fresh so we take a longer route before this afternoon’s predicted heat restricts our later stroll. Swifts voice their joie-de-vivre as they swoop & scream energetically above the town. In a verge ox-eye daisies shine cheerfully in the sun.
Morning dog walk. We walk early through air which has lost much of yesterday’s heat and is scented by nature and summer gardens. A male blackbird feeds a fledgling on the path ahead of us then takes flight. The river flows slowly & smoothly as if encouraging an easy going attitude to the morning.
This is Lola. She lives next door with Capability the cat. Isn’t she a beauty?
RIP David Hockney 💔 This is my favourite photo of him. (Sadly I don’t know who took it so don’t know who to acknowledge.)
This is Capability. He belongs to my friend next door. He went missing for several days and was discovered lodging with a complete stranger about half a mile away. He’s home now and in bad books. He doesn’t give a monkeys.
Morning dog walk. For the third day the cry of the swifts is acutely absent. We detour through the old churchyard, long disused, embraced by nature and beautiful in its relaxed irregularity. Two rabbits dart for cover as we approach. A fisherman stands almost waist deep in the fast flowing river
Morning dog walk. The river, swollen from recent rain, thunders beneath the bridge as it propels itself through the old stone arches. In their quest for food swallows dart low above us, unmindful of our presence. As if to brighten the dismal morning a pride flag flies high in the town square.
Morning dog walk. We cross the high street with unaccustomed ease thanks to the ‘Road Closed’ sign. At the visitors centre a man smiles a greeting to us as he sets tables and chairs outside the cafe. A heron steals slowly and carefully over the riverbank stones looking for a prime fishing spot.
Morning dog walk. The predicted hot spell has arrived overnight & despite the early hour the morning is heavy with heat. Seen through a curtain of laburnum the river looks cool & inviting. Swifts, unconcerned by the temperature, scream & swoop high overhead as if celebrating the promise of summer
Just come back to Galloway after a week in England and while we were away this came for me through the post. If anything could sum up my life right now this is it. 😂🤣