Early blipper catches worm

I can honestly say that this is the first day that I have ever stalked a garden bird around the park! All because it happened to have a juicy worm in its beak. Poor bird, but at least I kept my distance, and shot at macro even though I was a couple of feet away. It's a peculiarity of my camera, it has both macro and super-macro. Anyway, I was pleased enough that it is reasonably sharp, and you can see the worm, especially in large.

We went down town to the Art Flea event at the revamped Brunel Goods Shed, but found it achingly hip, with not a lot happening, apart from masses of people turning up. The styling was retro, 50s and 60s in particular. I got some shots of an ice cream trailer, (Mr Retrocool's van) with the poet John Hegley stood beside it; and a "Coffee Camper van" selling, yes, you guessed it! and some people in fabby costumes, but we were both a bit disappointed that it was a 'happening' that wasn't quite happening. Apparently it was a late entry to the SITE festival programme. After that, we hirpled up to the Stroud Valleys artspace, where I wanted to see work by Bill Jones, whom I have blipped earlier. He has a great studio with work displayed all over the walls, but will have to move out soon, as that part of the building is about to be renovated. He's also a play worker, at the after school club where I used to work. I admired his paintings greatly, but they would not work as blips, I feel. The one I liked best had been sold.

A trip through the Farmer's market, where we paused to gawp at the tour party of Japanese tourists (never seen them in Stroud before!) took us to the Shambles market, where CleanSteve bought cheese, and I attempted to blip beautiful woollen blankets from the Donegal Woollen Mill in delightful heather-and-bog shades. Yes please, for my birthday (it's next year!) CleanSteve went home, and I continued through Bank Gardens to the library, to catch my breath and borrow books. I crossed the road, went up through Park Gardens where I blipped the blackbird, to my friend Sylvia's at Cohousing, where she was holding her Open Studio. I stayed there for ages, chatting, encouraging her to put the prices of her ceramics (it worked, she sold one item while I was there, having sold no ceramics last weekend) and generally shooting the breeze with another acquaintance who'd turned up.

Eventually I walked home, stopping to chat to a few more people on the way. Saturday is Chatterday.

Blackbird singing in the dead of night