Faded glory

Not the most exciting of days, starting with a visit to the dentist in Oundle to have my stitches out, which took all of two minutes. I fancied a walk and drove out to Lyveden New Bield, but it was closed, so I came back to Barnwell Country Park, where it cost £2-60 to park and I didn't have enough change. So in the end I had a short walk at Cotterstock, a quaint village on the River Nene, where I came across these faded hydrangea flowers. 

The afternoon was spent working on reports, interspersed with some cooking. I made some tear-and-share bread using three tiny pots of tapenades that I'd bought yesterday in Waitrose at a dramatically reduced price. This was a resounding success, but probably shouldn't be baked too often, as it's very moreish!!  The blood oranges in a cardamom and vanilla syrup were also delicious (and again had been bought at a significant reduction). It's probably just as well that I enjoy frugal cooking, as I got my tax bill yesterday - ouch!