January Blues

So today is Blue Monday, a gloomy day apparently. (I started to write this post on the 21st January!)

 The cats are staying close to home these cold, grey days.

 They love to sit under the lamp on my work table....it really doesn't matter that they sit or lie all over what I am trying to do!

 Hubby and I have not ventured far from home either...

A drive through Halifax the other weekend and I spotted this window painting on an empty shop window....It seems a popular thing to do at the moment around here.

 I sat playing the other day with my calligraphy pen.....only halfheartedly I'm afraid,

 Then Daisy decided I needed to look at her instead!

I have had a couple of my own Winter Berry Gins with tonic...I must say I will make it again as it is so delicious.....No Dry January for us!

 Misty decided I couldn't do the ironing either!

 More alcohol....this time, Christmas gifts....and then it was time to mull some cider to go Wassailing!

I spent one whole weekend scanning some old photographs from my mum's photograph albums. I came across this photo-booth photo of my brother and me......what a cheeky grin I had!

 At school the children are doing a short after school workshop about photography and I offered to be the member of staff to stay and supervise....of course I joined in with this weeks lesson...taking photographs from different angles. The children enjoyed it and I had some fun too!

Driving home in the freezing fog

Then yesterday we had some snow and it turned the drive into work into a trip through a winter wonderland.

It was safe enough to pull over as ! followed the moon towards work but as I dropped down on the other side of the hills into Lancashire it turned into something magical. At this point in the journey there are less places to stop safely so I couldn't capture it on my camera.

So at lunch time I ventured out for a drive back up the hill and down again and took some photos.....

I am really lucky that my 20 minute drive to work is such a pretty and stress free one. And I was so glad I did go out as the freezing fog descended again as I left for home that night.

Today I tried to do the RSPB Big Garden Bird Watch but the cats had other ideas. I still put seed and fat cake out for birds but I no longer put food on the ground which means less birds visit our garden but that also means the cats are less likely to catch any!

I managed sparrows, blue tits, a robin and a blackbird. In the past we have had many more varieties.

Then we decided we needed a walk....so we walked from our village and up and round Rishworth. It was a really cold wind but we did spot a blue sky every now and again.

This is a different view of Ripponden than we usually have

 

It was good to blow away the cobwebs on the last weekend of January.