Tag: Firestone Bay

#1376 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Aloneliness, BobbingLeave a comment

There was some serendipity in Firestone Bay yesterday. 5 Bobbers met at the bobbing zone without planning an official bob. 2 Bobbers decided on a short notice morning swim, 2 other bobbers and a grandchild went for a dog walk and just a little later another lone bobber turned up for a dip. As is the way of serendipity one thing led to another and hot drinks and radiators were offered to the three bobbers who actually went for a swim.

The night before, the Finale of Celebrity Traitors had aired. The minute all bobbers had gathered together in a warm house one of them announced that she had not seen the programme so there was to be no Traitors talk. Thankfully there was a 3 year old willing to host her favourite card game while everyone warmed up.

Probing and often delightful questions that could be aimed at three year olds or Centenarians. Predictably we only played a few rounds because 3 year olds have better things to do than entertain cold swimmers. But there was one golden moment when the question asked what we would all like to be doing in ten years. All 5 bobbers wanted still to be bobbing with the Bobbers. After a chilly November swim that is a fabulous response. I suspect all Bobbers would say the same thing. Our curious Covid-19 hobby has become more than a bit addictive.

©Helen Bobber

#1370 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn art, Firestone Bay1 Comment
Tidal Pool, now you see it now you don’t.

I have been a bit of a ‘natural’ light pedant this weekend. I am creating a woven collage abstract of the tidal pool.

Natural light because I am weaving and colour matching.

Early weaving placement.

Glueing, weaving and moving strips is curiously time consuming.

Close up.

I am slightly obsessed by the colours of the sea in Firestone Bay and the way the rocks and concrete collect lichens and marginal seaweed.

Close up.

I am about a quarter of the way through the sticking and moving process and daylight is in short supply. I am loving this new process . I quite fancy doing something similar as a flower meadow in pastel colours that would be completely out of my comfort zone.

Close up

A project for the spring perhaps?

#1367 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn abstract photography, artLeave a comment

Yesterday’s hunt for a particular sketch threw up a huge pile of unfinished paintings. Of course it did not throw up the piece I was looking for.But I found a missing stache of unused paper. The big summer tidy up was effective but not entirely logical. I had a good couple of hours weaving 2 Gelli prints together. They were prints one and two of an experimental seascape.

Not hugely interesting on their own they take a much more powerful stance as a woven collage.

I popped into a craft shop to collect some sepia ink. In a quiet corner someone had written.

“Stick it before you knock it”

A sensible woman, experimenting with paper weaving should have seen that for what it was.

There was knocking, of course there was, but knocking loosened up my weave, which actually improved things. But by then the dark evening was upon me and dogs needed walking.

Goodness I am a grumpy bitch about early dark evenings, but a very bright first quarter moon was out and about to improve my mood. Reflected in the tidal pool. Of course I took a picture.

Which I then superimposed over the woven prints.

Which at least gives me an idea for where this experiment can go. But for today I will be gluing like a demon.

Stick with me, blog friends!

#1365 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Yardening1 Comment
View from the Studio window.

The first early darkness of GMT in the studio/work room. We have installed winter lights. 4 years in, living in this house, and the yard is where we want it to be. Even last year the yard did not spark joy when illuminated in winter but the curious weather of 2025 gave us an enormous growth spurt of our container and climbing plants from September until now. We picked a fresh strawberry yesterday and there are still tomatoes ripening.

The loss of natural light in the afternoon is sad but an urban jungle illuminated  by festoon lights is going to be something to look forward to as my afternoons get darker.

The upstairs room above the studio has a deep window seat, a fabulous place for reading books. Largely ignored in the winter it will become the favourite place it often is in Summer.

The window seat also has  really heavy curtains so it becomes like a glass walled hide-out.

Of course seeing our winter yard in the dark, gives a different perspective and already I have spotted a corner where another container tree  might find a home. A Mimosa perhaps?

All this and I didn’t even turn on the old mortuary neon light!

#1348 theoldmortuary ponders

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Bobbing, SerendipityLeave a comment
Friday Morning Bob © Kim Bobber

Friday morning bob, high tide, no sun and it was a chilly one. But we had a good time with great nattering. I have been on foot all week due to missing the due date for my cars MOT. Today was the day and the car passed, not with glowing references. A return visit to the garage next week will sort my brakes out and I can get two new tyres this weekend.  Being on foot in Stonehouse there is always the risk of fascinating conversations and my week without wheels has been a cornucopia of great chat. But my productivity has suffered at home. The lists are not quite as short as they should be at 5pm on a Friday. More jolly bobbers to end a blog which is largely about real world chattering.

Bobbers swimming out to the buoy ©Kim Bobber
Bobbers at the Buoy © Kim Bobber

You can tell the sea is getting colder, our post-bobbing conversations are getting a little funkier. Today’s topic is the quality of knicker gussets. Unsurprisingly, there is no good news on the gusset front; manufacturing corners are often cut, and profit-boosting measures do not always result in a comfortable gusset.

Thankfully my other Stonehouse conversations do not feature knickers at all. Have a good weekend.

.

#1327 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn BobbingLeave a comment
Digitally enhanced

Fantasy Bobbing is the slightly unrealistic thought process that goes through most bobbers minds. This is one of our bobbing areas with just a touch of Disney. September is the cusp month of sea temperatures, they start to drop around now.

Another fantasy is tide times. There are a core of bobbers who like to swim between ten and eleven on aFriday morning.

We swim as near as possible to high tide.  Over excitement from the Friday bobbers declared high tide at ten today ( the opposite was true). So bobbing was replaced by breakfasting and great quality nattering.

High tide was at 4pm only two of  us bobbed. It was somewhat chilly.

We bobbed between the first paragraph and the one you have just read. Today is not the cusp, that moment has officially passed.  The sea temperature has actually dropped .

Last week I bobbed about in a beautiful balmy sea not really wishing to get out. Today we bobbed about but knew that it would be sensible to get out. 

The difference? Maybe 2 degrees. The temperature is 15.4 degrees today. An early start for our winter hardening. The irony is that in May, when the water hits 15.4, we bob about, joyously frolicking in what, after a long cold winter and Spring feels like swimming somewhere tropical.

But today it was a wooly hat kind of moment.

Cold digits and all other parts.

#1310 theoldmortuary ponders

On By theoldmortuary.designIn autumn, Serendipity1 Comment
The Tidal Pool, Firestone Bay.

My walking and swimming destination of the day. A day when the summer,which ended just one day ago, has been declared the best on record.

In between my idyllic swim this morning and the afternoon dog walk. Rain fell briefly, in fat, heavy, blobs. Followed by fabulous sunshine. Meteorological Autumn has started in a frisky mood. My raincoat is officially out!

#1356 theoldmortuary ponders

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Firestone BayLeave a comment
Another high tide. Another great swim.

Unlike yesterday my great swim did not propel me instantly into a great confrontation.

Instead a chilled glide around a supermarket. I am not sure a supermarket is the best place to glide in a chilled way but it was essential to our overall household wellbeing. Some practical domestic admin is now needed for household wellbeing.

Stuff needs to go into the attic.

Neither supermarket shopping nor attic hopping is particularly visually appealing. So another swim spot image it will have to be. Full disclosure I did not have the swim spot to myself today. 5 people and a dog were launching there at the same time as me.

One puzzling pile of lost property. A single left shoe and a left knee brace. Makes you think of possible scenarios…

#1355 theoldmortuary ponders

On By theoldmortuary.designIn ponderingLeave a comment
High tide at the swimming steps.

Some days the tide and time come together to create the perfect swim. What I had not expected was for the perfect swim to set me up for the perfect uncomfortable encounter.

Some time ago myself and one of my dogs were attacked by a large local dog who had been allowed off its lead. We were both injured and traumatised, the owner of the dog left the scene of the attack without apology or any obvious concern. The incident was reported to the Police bur despite being initially supportive their interest dwindled to nothing. It has been in my mind for some time to confront this man if the chance arose. Which it did today after my perfect swim. I was somewhat surprised by my calm conversation with the individual. Since his behaviour and that of his dog on the night in question was indefensible, he had little to say and none of it of any value to me. But it feels good to know that I am no longer his silent unknown victim. He is now in no doubt of the harm he caused. A small victory but one that I am glad to have delivered eloquently.

Somewhat shaky when I got home though. Thank goodness for the perfect swim earlier.

#1352 theoldmortuary ponders.

On By theoldmortuary.designIn Firestone BayLeave a comment
Oops

Hard on the heels of yesterday’s blog comes todays’. I failed to push the publish button yesterday. Too busy getting out of the house to join the bobbers.

The tides and the weather are being kind this week. This is not our usual location for a bigger bobbing group but the perfection of tide and weather had made our usual jumping off spot very congested.

This location with slopes and steps is perfect for solo or two person swimming, but as no one else was there it accommodated 9 bobbers and a dog very well. But it was the previous day swim for two that prompted this illustration that prompted this blog

Rocks as a Snicker Chocolate Cake

A friend and I had planned a late afternoon swim the previous day. Beyond the swim she arrived very much as a woman on a mission. She needed chocolate and she needed it now. So as no swimmer should ever do we headed off to the pub first.

The pub in question the V.O.T serves very good cake.

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As it turned out the pub sold exactly the cake that would set my friend very much on an even keel. She said, throwing in a nautical cliche.

She chose an epic chocolate cake embellished with creatively deconstructed Snickers bars.

Choosing the healthy option I went for Blueberry and Lemon embellished with gold leaf.

Both cakes set us up for a wonderful, seemingly endless swim, and a good long chat and laughter that definitely put the worlds to right.

Not much more needs to be said.