Category Archives: Farm and Countryside Life

The Farmhouse Kettle!

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KettleAll visits to the farm whether by agronomist, accountant, neighbour or first-time visitor always seems to end up in the farmhouse kitchen. Much is discussed, both on and off original topic! The most important implement on the farm is used time and time again…

The old kitchen kettle,
sits boiling on the range,
“Fancy tea or coffee?”
The question doesn’t change!
Around the farmhouse table,
a meeting then ensues,
Perhaps discussing crops,
or woodworm in church pews!
“What weather we’ve been having,
have you seen this week’s forecast?
All the weeds in the crops,
are growing mighty fast!”
Perhaps some farming gossip,
“…didn’t know he had a brother!”
The following question,
“Would you like another!”

© Baldock Bard 2016
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above
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E-mail: baldockbard@www.baldockbard.co.uk

The Baldock Boot Sale
SG7 6RD
is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Every Saturday
April – October 2016
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

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Keep Calm and Carry On!

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keepcalmWe have nobody to blame anymore! In the past we always had the default fall-back scapegoat for all our national ills: ‘It’s the EU’s fault!’. Following the monumental decision on Thursday, the only piece of common sense I’ve heard is: Ignore the media, switch off the broadband, enjoy your weekend and start afresh on Monday when the dust has settled…

Keep calm and carry on,
enjoy the weekend,
for as far as I know,
the world won’t end.
Have a barbecue,
enjoy the sun,
meet old friends,
have some fun!
If a friend voted,
a different way,
that’s their right,
uphold it I say!

Ignore the media, switch off the broadband, enjoy your weekend and let’s all start afresh on Monday when the dust has settled. You could always visit a car boot sale!

© Baldock Bard 2016
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: baldockbard@www.baldockbard.co.uk

The Baldock Boot Sale
SG7 6RD
is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Every Saturday
April – October 2016
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

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A New Dawn!

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The prophets of doom are out in force after the referendum results have signalled our exit from the EU. Had our deaf liberal political elite recognised the elephant in the room and allowed a full and frank discussion on immigration, then the result might have been quite different. However the result stands and we will survive…

Turn off the media and calm down,
all is not lost in countryside or town.
Remember the Seventies a three day week,
we thought it was the end the future was bleak.
Despite what’s been said by German politicians,
To lose the UK markets would be bad decisions,
Aldii and Lidl, car makers as well,
want to be here with products to sell.
So lets take a breather neither berate, argue or shout,
the electorate has spoken and we’re now out.

Here’s wishing you luck for the future. I have a feeling it won’t be as bad as it looks right now. Please remember you need an undertaker only once in your life, but a farmer three times a day! Unfortunately it was French and German governments, through valuing their farmers, that gave the sort of support to UK farmers that our politicians never will.

© Baldock Bard 2016
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: baldockbard@www.baldockbard.co.uk

The Baldock Boot Sale
SG7 6RD
is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Every Saturday
April – October 2016
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

 

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In Europe By Accident!

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BelgumYesterday morning I drove up the drive to collect my granddaughter to take her to nursery school. Something about the sat-nav was very wrong. I was 35 miles north of London, yet it had me driving down a street in Belgium! Within minutes it was welcoming me back to Britain, complete with Union Flag…

My car thinks I live in Brussels,
not near Baldock town,
Driving up Kerstenmannekensstrasse
I take a look around!
It all looks very familiar,
if we remain in will it change?
If we leave will my sat-nav,
find Brussels out of range!
When I wake tomorrow morning,
will we still be afloat?
I’d better face Belgium’s traffic,
and get out to vote!

Have a good day, I’m so looking forward to the day when the politicians slither back under the stone where many of them belong.

© Baldock Bard 2016
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: baldockbard@www.baldockbard.co.uk

The Baldock Boot Sale
SG7 6RD
is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Every Saturday
April – October 2016
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

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Precious!

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There has been an exciting birth on the farm! One of the geese has managed to produce a gosling! This might not sound extraordinary, however they had been very industrious with their egg-laying and nest-sitting to no avail. Suddenly a small yellow fluffy thing, escorted by a very proud and noisy mum and dad, made its way into the yard…

Precious, a tiny ball of fluff,
comes from the stable to learn some ‘stuff’
first of all there are other geese,
honking and hissing at their new niece!
Mum and dad instruct and shout,
they’re so pleased that she’s come out.
A whole new world waits out there,
as for the referendum – she doesn’t care!

Have a great day. If you too are starting something new, it may look big and scary but soon it’ll be so familiar you’ll wonder what the fuss was about!

© Baldock Bard 2016
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: baldockbard@www.baldockbard.co.uk

The Baldock Boot Sale
SG7 6RD
is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Every Saturday
April – October 2016
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

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The I-Spy Dog!

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Whenever we drive anywhere with our two terriers, Chip (who is now 17years old), demands that we follow familiar routes. Any deviation from these set routes and he stands up at the window and shows his displeasure. Until recently I presumed it was because he doesn’t like change, I now think it’s because he’s left his I-Spy book and pencil at home…

Our dog likes to play I-Spy,
Has completed more books than you or I,
Every journey that we do,
He stands at the window admires the view!
He’s already completed ‘On A Journey’
final sighting haulage firm Bernie!
He’s now onto I-Spy ‘The Town’
having trouble to find a football ground.
If he’s barking with alarm,
we simply bring out ‘On The Farm!’

If you’re on a journey, stay safe and don’t forget the I-Spy book and pencil for your dog!

© Baldock Bard 2016
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: baldockbard@www.baldockbard.co.uk

The Baldock Boot Sale
SG7 6RD
is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Every Saturday
April – October 2016
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

 

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Wonderful Woodland!

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This morning we are hosting a visit from a primary school from North London. Yesterday, when we’d finished preparing the barn and yard, I took a walk through the woods to plan their walk of discovery in a totally different environment to the one they are used to…

On one of the hottest days so far,
I, for once, abandon my car,
and take a walk through our ancient wood,
to prepare for the visit as I should.
I follow a path made by deer not man,
the air is cooling without need for a fan!
The sunlight breaks through the tall green roof
nature is wonderful, of that this is proof!
Wood 062

© Baldock Bard 2016
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: baldockbard@www.baldockbard.co.uk

The Baldock Boot Sale
SG7 6RD
is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Every Saturday
April – October 2016
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

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Vandalism in the Village

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DCIM100MEDIADJI_0073.JPGOur tiny village is in shock. Unwanted visitors to the church have removed part of the copper roof and left many thousands of pounds worth of damage. My (very un-Christian) thoughts wish that either they’d been stranded up there or fallen off into the churchyard. To have taken such risks for a roll of copper sheeting beggars belief and one must question their sanity…

Thieves have stolen the copper
from our village church roof
it’s enough to make one think
thoughts that are very uncouth
The church has been there
for many a year
witnessed war and disasters
sadness and fear
I wish I had caught them
up on the roof
removed their ladder
leaving them all aloof!

© Baldock Bard 2016
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: baldockbard@www.baldockbard.co.uk

The Baldock Boot Sale
SG7 6RD
is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Every Saturday
April – October 2016
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

 

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Johnny Hunter

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Johnny HYesterday I went to a ‘farmer’s funeral” (‘We Plough the Fields and Scatter’ as the first hymn!). I can’t say I knew Johnny Hunter well in recent years, but I knew him well enough to appreciate his tremendous courage, humanity and his unforgettable dry sense of humour. Many years ago I knew him better…

Many years ago I was a member of
a small discussion group
made up of farmers.
We’d meet up at a farm
and walk their crops
(grumbling when they looked better than our own!).
Later we’d sit around a cup of tea
and discuss weeds
or fungal diseases
or other exciting crop-specific topics.
I used to like to sit
within earshot of Johnny
because although
most of the time
he wore
a serious face,
it was simply there to heighten
the impact of a
sometimes wicked
joke or observation
that was about to flow
from his lips,
followed by
an unforgettable
smile.

It was my pleasure to have known you. Rest in peace.

Baldock Bard 2016

For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: baldockbard@www.baldockbard.co.uk

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Terminus 2066!

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PaddingtonThe other day I went down to Paddington Station in West London to collect an aged relative. On my way to spend 30p at the conveniences I looked up at the roof of this ancient monument to mass transit solutions. It led me to wonder what lay in store for rail travel in the future and which of our present customs would remain…

Will there still be antique stations,
when trains are supersonic?
Will platforms remain the same,
some arrival times still chronic?

Will the guard still blow a whistle,
even though trains automatic?
Will we alight in London,
next stop the Adriatic?

Will commuters pack like sardines,
on their way to Town?
Or will the work come to them,
still in their dressing gown!

Will it still hold a child’s wonder,
an open-mouth gasping stare,
I hope it’s still spectacular,
even though I won’t be there!

I consider myself very fortunate that I walk to work and don’t squeeze into a over-full carriage with other city-bound commuters. So for me the excitement of a train journey remains something special and reassuring in this ever-changing world.

© Baldock Bard 2016
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: baldockbard@www.baldockbard.co.uk

The Baldock Boot Sale
SG7 6RD
is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Every Saturday
April – October 2016
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

 

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