"I want a dinosaur balloon"

...The Sparkly One announced.

"A blue one."

Well, obviously. The pink ones were just too...girly.

A Clueless Photographer at Whipsnade Zoo

Flash! Flash!

The man on my right is photographing the elephants, some 10 metres distant. He has a camera with an impressive-looking dual-grip body, and a huge zoom lens.

The flash fires with every shot, utterly useless at that range.

It's not just about shirts

I wore a T-shirt to work today, and the world didn't end.

The Perfect All-Day Breakfast

Joy of joys! I had the fabulous "Bubble and Squeak Cake" for lunch at The Old Spotted Cow.

I watched the chef collecting eggs from the hens moments before my perfectly poached egg (and crispy bacon) arrived. Wonderful. And so simple.

Every all-day breakfast should be this good.

The Clouds Are So Low

...that I can't see the Chilterns.

The First Corn on the Cob of the Year

What joy! My third favourite seasonal food has arrived!

(Asparagus and Pumpkin, seeing as you asked so nicely)

The Joys of New Music

"At the End of Paths Taken" by The Cowboy Junkies & The Arcade Fire's "Neon Bible" lighten my drive this morning.

The former is the latest in a line of CDs by a very-favourite band.

The latter is the second offering from a new favourite.

The speed limit is 60mph

So why the *~@! do you insist on braking to 42mph at every speed camera?

England have won the Ashes

And I wasn't aware they were playing for them.

I mean, I knew there was a cricket test between England and Australia; heard the results of the first innings, chatted to colleagues, to a call centre operative about it.

I just hadn't realised this was the final match of the series.

Wine Tasting Notes: Guigal Condrieu 2005

Simply put: outstanding.

Espresso by the riverside

After a gentle swim in the Thames, a picnic with friends, which is nicely rounded off with a cup of fresh espresso courtesy of my wife-bought birthday present, a Handpresso Wild.