Barendina Smedley

Are there any fairies left in Norfolk? For those of you who like that sort of thing, I've written a new short story on this topic. It's called "Ferier's Hill". If you want to read it, there's a link in the thread below.

@PainterPay I think of Cley as being on the Wash, but yes, in the greater scheme of things, it's also on the North Sea. (There's a pretty sand beach at Holkham, but Cley is much nearer where I live.)

@fugitiveink They look juicy and ripe. Is this a beach at the North Sea?

I also had a small picnic (these strawberries were from Sharrington and they were absolutely delicious)

@PainterPay I just lie on a towel, but some people bring chairs. As for the shingle, most people around here own a pair of quick-dry "aqua shoes" for these occasions — they make walking on the stones very comfortable.

@fugitiveink It is. It's more or less the beginning of the summer season in the States, though most kids are not out of school for the term quite yet. Do you have to wear hiking boots to walk on those pebbles that seem larger than even gravel? What do you sit or lay upon when it's this bumpy?

This seems the right day for a holiday by the seaside

@bellsandbikes @AlabasterMiss If the wind is blowing the right way we can hear the bells from Wiveton church while sitting on our lawn — it's one of the most beautiful sounds there is. Good luck this time!

St Mary's, Wiveton this morning

@PainterPay The sea water was very cold yesterday — it's not a shallow part of the coast (which is why that area was always seen as a potential invasion site) so it stays chilly.

@fugitiveink Does the sea warm much with heat from the summer sun and air or are these cold currents keeping it cold?

There was quite a breeze by the sea, and the water was lovely and cold — the walk from Cley back to Blakeney, though, was definitely on the warm side

@jpdsoho Oddly enough, he has had that neat way of sitting from the first hour he arrived here, as an absolutely tiny kitten - it is a key Spoon characteristic.

@fugitiveink Little Spoon is sitting very neatly, and I'm glad he's found a cool spot!

Good evening, little Spoon. It was very warm outside today, and even warmer weather is predicted tomorrow. I note that you have abandoned the kitchen for the coldest spot in this house, little Spoon — the stone-floored hall. What a wise creature you are, darling little Spoon!

@GilesMacDonogh What a sweet photo — he's well bundled up, too, which is usually the right thing for our beloved coast!

@fugitiveink My son on a north Norfolk beach. Must have been 20 years ago and Cley? Salthouse?

@RobinSmithNR21 The ones I had today really couldn't have been any better. Not least, I don't think they had ever been refrigerated — and that does so much to keep the natural sweetness, and inviting "bite", intact.

@fugitiveink Oh lovely. Having moved away from Norfolk I really miss Sharrington strawberries- I don’t think I have ever tasted such lovely ones anywhere.

@YstradHistory I'd have said so, yes.

Is my cousin all he same age here? Clothes have a consistent colour. I'd be looking to see around 6 months old, when he was Christened?

@StephenOld You're fortunate. There is nothing better than really fresh, local produce — it tastes better and it always seems healthier, somehow, too.

@fugitiveink I am sure they were! I now live on the northern edge of Liverpool. There is a farm with a wonderful farm shop just to the north of us in the countryside.

To be fair, it's something like a four-and-half mile walk each way — but even so, I know we're very lucky here. (Niche comment, but I wish there were a bridge from the coastal walk at Blakeney directly across to Cley — I'm not usually a big fan of innovations, but this is a special case.)

@fugitiveink @GilesMacDonogh Within walking distance! I resisted my first jealous impulse at seeing the photograph but within walking distance! 🙂🙏

@JohnGle31144612 @Daffers560510 Particularly when I post via my phone, my spell-check perpetually sabotages my perfectly accurate spelling, so believe me, I honestly never judge about that sort of thing any more. I knew what you meant!

@fugitiveink @Daffers560510 I just noticed the spelling mistake.. Soz 😂😂😂 And thank you for the info

@gibberingphil You certainly picked the right week to be here! I'm glad you had a lovely time.

@fugitiveink Sadly, we’re homeward bound today, but we’ve had a lovely week.

@StephenOld These Sharrington ones were perfection!

@fugitiveink The ready availability of strawberries is another thing which I miss about Norfolk!

@todbooklady There was definitely a cooling sea breeze — it's surprising how different it felt down by the sea than even a five-minute walk inland — and I also swam in the sea, which was absolutely freezing but, in the context of the weather today, also rather pleasant.

@fugitiveink Oh my! What delight! I trust there is a light, cooling sea breeze.

@JohnGle31144612 @Daffers560510 It's at Cley-next-the-Sea, in Norfolk.

@fugitiveink @Daffers560510 Where is that beech?

@GilesMacDonogh Possibly not the most sybaritic beach out there, but within walking distance from home, and actually delightfully cool even at midday — so, a good choice.

@fugitiveink I think I have sat on that beach, possibly even swum on the water.

@dorristalfonso That is typically wise of you. I keep an ancient pair of quick-dry "aqua shoes" for moments like this!

@fugitiveink It looks wonderful, but I wouldn’t want to walk barefoot over the stones.

@Gda1238 What a beautiful and evocative photo! At least one of your great grandparents must have been quite a gardener, too, as what one can see there, even in sepia, looks absolutely delightful.

This is my Great Grandmother and Great Grandfather, Nancy and George in June 1921 in their back garden. She worked in service all her life as a cook, much like Mrs Patmore in Downton, at a country house in Somerset. George worked on the railways. They both died in the 1960s.

@dorristalfonso It's about four miles back, of which I'd say about 50 feet was in the shade! Still, we rarely have weather like this here, so I rather enjoy the novelty of it.

@fugitiveink You didn’t have much shade.

@Lusa42874 There was a point along that path where I was consciously working out where the next shady interlude would be!

@fugitiveink No shade!