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| Chester City Centre - black and white buildings |
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| Chester City, black and white buildings |
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| Llanbedrog Beach, and a beautiful row of Beach huts which appear every year |
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| Listening to the Band on the Beach in the winter |
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| Cambria Band - marching through the streets of Wrexham on St Davids Day |
I love the smell of the sea!
Walking through the woodland part of Chirk Castle we stumbled across a stone hut which probably belongs to the gardener. We peaked through the window and the smell of burnt wood was so powerful. They had been making charcoal there and those sacks are full of it!
Chirk Castle gardens! I love this part of the garden because its like a cottage garden and the smell of flowers is lovely.
The smell of our pony Cola, there is nothing in the world like it. Whenever I smell him I am transported back to childhood and happy care free days.
I was passing my friends mums house and I could smell the perfume of the flowers and trees, it was so lovely.
As I walked up the hill the perfume was lovely and it must have been coming from the Thistles. Do Thistles have a perfume?
Walking past my friends mums cottage, I could smell burning. There are no other homes in the surrounding area so I looked about and then I located the smell. If you look at the chimney, you will see smoke billowing out! I love the smell of burning coal or wood.
Barry was one of my first blogging friends and one of the first blogs I ever followed. I loved his superb quality of writing, I loved his view on life, he was perceptive, imaginative and funny. He introduced me to Friday Shoot Out and through him, gave me the confidence to take part. We were fighting cancer at the same time. I am still undergoing treatment but my prognosis is good. I decided to change my blog from www.canceraintgonnabeatme.blogspot.com because I didn't want to be defined by the disease and now my blog can be found www.sarasfightback.blogspot.com
This is a book (picture courtesy of Amazon UK) and one of my favourites. It tells the tale of a dog called Copper and it is written through his eyes. It makes you laugh, it makes you cry, it is a true story which is cleverly written. I bought a copy of this book and sent it to Barry in the hope that he would be inspired to write a similar story through they eyes of Lindsey. I will read this book again and my thoughts will always be of Barry and Lindsey.
One of Barry's posts was about finding some strange encampments in the woods. I remember it as though it was yesterday and I loved it. Whenever I see a "den" no matter what it looks like I will remember that post and Barry. This particular den is at Chirk Castle in Wales.
Barry loved Lindsey so much and I loved the photos and videos he shared. Do you remember Barry's attempt at creating a vegetable patch in a box..... do you remember the fact that the boxes were raided and for a time Lindsey was under suspician? Even thinking back to that particular adventure brings a smile to my face. So, when I see a dog who looks like Lindsey I will think of Barry. When I go on my own adventures with my dogs (Wilbur pictured above), I will think of Barry.
Most of my blogging has been done in the evening in front of our chiminea. The burning embers creating a perfect backdrop for dramatic and interesting reading. So, on those warm summer evenings, when my fire is burning charismatically away, I will think of Barry.
This is a weird one. For some reason whenever I think of Barry, I think of trees, I am drawn into visions of woodlands. Perhaps it is because Barry was a bit like a tree to me.... Tall, Strong, Brave, Beautiful, FREE, Inspirational, Comforting, Safe, Escaping, Adventurous.
Yesterday my husband and I went to Chirk Castle for lunch and a walk around the gardens. This is the little pond within the gardens, it is so pretty, the photograph doesn't do it justice at all!
No.... not water BUT this is an old drainage pipe through which the water of London used to flow! I just had to share this with you! This is kept at Chirk Castle which I have been visiting since I was 3! It was lived in by the Middleton family until a few years ago and they still have apartments in the Batchelor Tower.
This is a really old photo, taken about 15 years ago at Bala lake. Me and my wonderful little dog Bobbi, she was having her first swim!
The "Cup and Saucer" at Erddig Hall. The Squire used the local rivers to feed his hall and this invention is what did this!
This is a mobile phone picture and I love it so much because of what it means to me! It is a natural water bowl for dogs! My dogs always stop to drink from it although at the moment it is rather empty!
These are my two big rocks! Without my husbands support and love, I would never have got threw 2009. Cola, well, he is my therapist and my life coach. He is getting me back to fitness and keeps me focused.
These are my two little rocks, Joe and Harry who, in their own little ways have got me throw the bad times.
My collection of rocks from the beach in Llandudno. They make a very nice surround for the graves of Joe and Harrys first guineapigs - Zippy & Willow.
and these are the names of people I think of and give positive energy thoughts to.
So sorry this is late, very late! I do apologise!
The menu on Mike Peters guitar for his opening acoustic session at the Gathering in January 2010 - it was totally amazing!
This ceanothis was planted to mark the spot where my sons first hamster "Spangles" was buried last year. A strange heroe but she was his heroe. She taught him about love, caring and responsibility. When she became ill, I explained the situation to him and told him that as she was his hamster it was up to him to decided when the time was right to have her put to sleep. He made that brave decision.
This is the War Memorial in Rossett village. My sons are very young in this picture but I can guarantee that this memorial has not changed apart from the floral tributes which are updated regularly. It is dedicated to the memory of those from our village who fell in the two great wars.
This is my big brothers grave stone where his ashes are inturred in the grounds of Gresford Parish Church. The words on his stone say it all. He was my heroe, I walked in his footsteps every single day of my life until the day he died.
The stone in Wrexham town centre dedicated to those heroes who fell during the wars in the far east.
Penny, my sons Russian Dwarf Hamster RIP 
Poppy
Cola
Cola being brought in
This is a tricky one for me. There are lots of photos I could have taken but sadly, haven't had the time to do so. Wrexham has its own football club and grounds which is called "The Racecourse" (soccer to any americans reading this). We have a race course 6 miles from us in the city of Chester which is quite well known and another in Bangor-on-Dee. We also have a triathelon club.
We love swimming and so do the dogs!
Sorry for my late posting I was hoping to have had my camara back by now but alas, I am still camara-less. I am disappointed because this is a great topic and I love trees, I have so many favourites in my village. Anyway, I have taken a couple from my archive. this shot is in Darland Woods with the trees edging the lake - so pretty.
Apologies for the poor quality of the next two but they were taken on my mobile phone and both are in Darland Woods. The picture above is my dogs natural water bowl. It always seems to collect water and the dogs love to take a sip or two.
Taken about 12 years ago in Beddgelert, the track is a disused railway line and I am pictured her with my late dog Bobbi.
We live just off Darland Lane which is where this car is situated in the picture. The main Chester Road runs across it with the old filling station dated 1796 at the back.
