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Glittering and bright, crunchy under foot a fairy tale morning.

Everything suggested gets a negative response. The day can't possibly be crawled through. Gadget man wants a small something for the love of his life, the bike. I am in control of the wheels so after he has shopped, we explore "just up the road".

Retail therapy has worked, he graciously dons walking boots and navigates for me. A deer leaps over the fence in-front of us and arcs across the snow. Luck brings us out by Wroxton church.

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A boy of about ten walks toward me clutching the Argos catalogue. "Big Issue" he sings in a perfect imitation of the lady in town. And cheekily meeting my eye "only 24.99".

With a bit of help I find that the photographs I have been hunting for are kept at the Oxford Library.

A notecard arrives from someone that disappeared from my over life thirty years ago.

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Squeezing in the pew along side an old neighbor. She tells me that her mother lived on the estate once and her initials are to be found carved within the church. Mrs H has a fine send off and I find out that she had been quite an adventurer. She engaged fully and enthusiastically with life, a true inspiration.

Master of ceremonies is doing the rounds, shaking everyone by the hand followed by a "please to meet you". Our eyes lock he can't avoid it. At least he like myself is a man of conviction and no "please to meet you" was uttered. My warped sense of humor has been tickling all afternoon.

Man about the house comes in from a freezing days work on the building. I am flat on the floor. It's a measure of my discomfort that his icy hands on the sodding shoulder don't even make me flinch. He slaps the pads on and turns up the dial so that within minutes I am up with a smile serving tea. Oh him of the healing hands.

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Stein, Gertrude (1874-1946)
Just before she died she asked,
"What is the answer?"
No answer came. She laughed and said,
"In that case what is the question?"

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The dogs for the disabled are having a day out in town. The curly coated retriever is such at handsome boy.

The hands over the mouth and wide eyes conceal mirth. The trips back and forth to the loo was not to wash paint from hands but rather reapplying paint to continue the decoration of toilet doors and walls with hand prints. I like it but feel the cleaner will not, a valuable lesson in washing paint work follows, and they agree it would have been hard work for said cleaner and paper will be used in future. We shall see!

The workmen at the church on top of the hill assure me they will be on hand tomorrow should I get accidently locked in. And that their connivence is available for the asking.

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A principle of early childhood education that seems to have got smothered in the paper work.

Childhood is seen as valid in itself. It is a stage of life and not simply a preparation for the future.

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Long and lean with red hair he hunkers down hanging on to the side of the conveyor belt gazing at his lone bottle of White Lightening. "There's always something to be cheerful about" he grins at me.

From the shadow of the hill a dark mass of birds moves towards us, sidestepping into a fleeting elegant dance before disappearing. Several loud bangs explain the reason for their flight.

The walls of the house are turning pink, when I look out of the bedroom window there is a fantastic fiery sky.

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Story-time for dogs.

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Tight yellow buds of winter aconites and graceful heads of snow drops bursting into life under Ronnie's tree.

A gang of long tailed tits dart along following the saunter of the the river. Am heartened to think that they all survived the deep freeze of recent weeks.

The postie touches base with Mrs T even though she has no post today.

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I love Martha Madigan's creativity.

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Two minutes latter and there would have been no more parking spaces left.

3 young people sit with a lady in her 50's. They are making such a fuss of her going out of their way to entertain. "My aunty brought me a coloring book for christmas. I did one and me mum put it on the fridge. I put by Gary age 22".

She shows me neat piles of baby clothes laid out on the floor. Whites and creams no hint of blue or pink.. It will really be a surprise then.

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Boum Boum