Category Archives: Weather

‘Snow Bomb’ Sunday!

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Yesterday, unusually for a British December, we had around eight inches of snow! Having seen the forecast on Saturday evening I had found the snow-blade in the yard and put it ready for attachment to the JCB Fastrac tractor should the need arise. In the past it has raised much mirth when I was prepared but to no avail, this time I was ready, willing and able! Unfortunately some of the drivers I encountered had obviously never considered snow when they bought their expensive Mercs, Audis and BMW’s…

Out on the Baldock Bypass,
the traffic grinds to a halt,
a tyre-spinning expensive car,
doesn’t think that it’s his fault!
I pass them on the inside,
over the bank beside the road,
they look surprised to see me,
“We can’t believe it snowed!”
The blade goes down in front of them,
just misses a Mercedes bonnet,
they wave a grateful thanks,
(or a finger says ‘sit on it!’)
Most days they swear at tractors,
“Get out the ‘effin way!”
But they seem pleased to see me,
on ‘Snow-Bomb’ Chaos Sunday!
© Baldock Bard 2017
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: simon.holtom@btconnect.com

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Peering Through the Gloom!

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We have been very lucky with our autumn weather this year. We have reached November with by and large dry and bright days! However just around the corner lies winter and as a prelude we have to endure gloomy mornings…

It’s a murky Thursday morning,
almost wet like rain,
the leaves are mostly off the trees,
November’s here again!
It isn’t quite cold enough for frost,
the grass is soaking through,
Autumn will soon be a memory,
and so will Christmas too!

Enjoy Thursday! Friday will be sunny and then it’s the weekend!!

© Baldock Bard 2017
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: simon.holtom@btconnect.com

 

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No Words!

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Yesterday I flew my trusty Mavic Pro drone in the village churchyard to check on the progress of the new roof (replacing the copper that thieves stole). By mistake I pressed the wrong button and swung the camera up into the sky capturing a breathtaking view. There are no words to describe the result, so I shall not spoil it.

© Baldock Bard 2017
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: simon.holtom@btconnect.com

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The Problem with Lowest Cost Airlines!

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Taking into account problems with low-cost airlines recently, two resourceful sellers at the car boot sales decided to give DIY flight a try. The take-off area was cleared of stalls, children and animals, the local airport control tower was informed and the two intrepid flyers prepared for take-off…

“We’d like to go to Portugal,
but anywhere will do,
so long as the wind doesn’t change
and we end up in Peru!
Are you prepared for take-off?
have you stashed the duty-free?
I can feel the ground is moving,
is that power lines I can see?”
Just then a mighty gust of wind,
(pre-flight checks complete)
and the tarpaulin took off without them,
All they could shout was “SHEET!”

With grateful thanks to Team Fairfield for their humour and joy!

© Baldock Bard 2017
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: simon.holtom@btconnect.com

 

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The Last Bootsale!

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It is not yet 5am on a Saturday morning and I am preparing to leave the warm kitchen to go down and open up the car boot sale for the last time this season. Some may view this with a tinge of sadness, however I can’t believe that I’ve been doing them for so long! Over 40,500 sellers and an estimated 800,000 buyers have visited over the years and we’ve held over 650 sales! Hey Ho! Hey Ho! It’s off to the Bootsale I go…

They’re queuing in the dark at the bootsale,
eager to get in and sell,
hoping that the weather will hold out,
and that they will do well.
The buyers are still asleep,
tucked up in comfy warm beds,
but in cars and vans in the farmer’s field,
treasure from garages and sheds!
Around the bootsale this morning,
the end of out twenty-fifth season,
“Happy Christmas” will be the greeting,
and friendliness will be the reason!
May I be the first to wish you all Happy Christmas (only 72 days early!)

© Baldock Bard 2017
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: simon.holtom@btconnect.com

The Baldock ‘Boutique’ Boot Sale
STILL HERE AFTER 25 YEARS!
It is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Feed your hungry sat-nav with SG7 6RD

LAST SATURDAY MORNING THIS SEASON!
Season Ends 14th October 2017
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

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Sunrise!

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I was going to write a long diatribe about the wonderful sunrise last Saturday morning just as the car boot sale was opening. I was going to marvel at nature’s light-show and how the birdsong echoed around the field. Perhaps I might even have mentioned the rabbits and hares that were seen stretching as they arose from their slumber ready to face another wonderful day. However, I took one look at the photo I took and decided that words on this occasion were just superfluous and for once in my life I should shut up…

Enjoy the photo!

Have a great weekend with the ones you love and stay safe. BB.

© Baldock Bard 2017
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: simon.holtom@btconnect.com

The Baldock ‘Boutique’ Boot Sale
STILL HERE AFTER 25 YEARS!
It is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Feed your hungry sat-nav with SG7 6RD

2017 Season
EVERY SATURDAY MORNING!
Season Ends 14th October 2017
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

 

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Proliferation of Rainbows!

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For the last few days we seem to have had nothing but rain indispersed with sunny intervals. The only good by-product of days like these has been the proliferation of rainbows. In this modern tipsy-turvey world we must apportion blame, even for something like rain. I couldn’t find anyone to blame until I saw a friend’s new car…

I’m fed up with all this rain,
it’s as if April’s here again,
although that month was so dry,
September’s enough to make men cry!
I rounded the corner in the yard,
without a topic for the Baldock Bard,
when an amazing sight made me stop,
friend Val’s bought a white soft-top!
She won’t have the hood down I fear
until at least summer next year!
at last I’d found someone to blame,
it must be her fault all this rain!
In reality I’m just jealous as I’ve always wanted a soft-top since a friend bought a MGB Roadster back in the seventies! Go Val!
Have a great weekend and may the sun shine enough to let down that top!

© Baldock Bard 2017
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: simon.holtom@btconnect.com

The Baldock ‘Boutique’ Boot Sale
STILL HERE AFTER 25 YEARS!
It is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Feed your hungry sat-nav with SG7 6RD

2017 Season
EVERY SATURDAY MORNING!
until mid-October
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

 

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Droning on at the Boot Sale!

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Last Saturday in unusually glorious weather, I overflew the car boot sale with my trusty Mavic Pro drone (following the regulations to the letter of course as my licence is more precious to me that a good photo). Afterwards I received varied comments from “Playing with your toy again I see!” to “You checking up on us from a different angle!”. I struggled to explain that I use it mostly for work and so gave up and agreed that it was great fun as well as being useful (it also helped that it was sunny and the field was full)…

Saturday, September the second,
summer has reached us at last,
Farmer Giles has his drone in the sky,
if it crashes he’ll say “Damn and blast!”

A few sellers have noticed,
they point to this thing in the sky,
others approach with a question,
“Tell me: What or Where or Why?”

Then come out the stories,
“A mate once had one of those,
it chased his girlfriend round the garden,
until she tripped and fell on her nose!”

“There’s one came over our house,
it won’t be coming no more,
I scored a direct hit with the hosepipe,
it came down on the roof next door!”

I did a perfect landing in the car-park,
away from all bar me,
“I wanted you to crash it!”
a seller said with great glee!

“You call yourself a pilot,
I have no wish to be rude,
but you ain’t a proper live pilot,
‘cos there’s no stewardess serving food!”

Have a great day and if you’re going flying make sure there is a drink and food available and stay safe!

© Baldock Bard 2017
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: simon.holtom@btconnect.com

The Baldock ‘Boutique’ Boot Sale
STILL HERE AFTER 25 YEARS!
It is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Feed your hungry sat-nav with SG7 6RD

2017 Season
EVERY SATURDAY MORNING!
until mid-October
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

 

 

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Unseasonal Bank Holiday Weather

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This August has seen some quite extraordinary weather, both here and abroad. My grandfather, who died some fifty years ago, always considered August a wet month, ideal for drilling grass seed! However the normal rain-curse of a Bank Holiday failed to materialise this year, despite continued talk of climate change…

There’s nothing like a Bank Holiday,
when the weather’s fine,
a heady mix of friendship,
barbecue and wine!
Then if you’re able,
lucky some might say,
the weather is so perfect,
you sneak another day!
…and make it even harder to get back in the saddle of work!

Thank you to the kind person who e-mailed suggesting my absence from my blog was ‘unfortunate, but probably necessary!’ your concern has been noted!

© Baldock Bard 2017
For more from the Baldock Bard click on ‘Home’ above

Facebook: Baldock Bard
Twitter: @baldockbard
E-mail: simon.holtom@btconnect.com

The Baldock ‘Boutique’ Boot Sale
STILL HERE AFTER 25 YEARS!
It is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Feed your hungry sat-nav with SG7 6RD

2017 Season
EVERY SATURDAY MORNING!
until mid-October
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

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Harvest Home!

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Last Saturday night at 8:59pm we finished harvest. Harvest 2017 is now consigned to our history as one where we rode our luck and came out the other side relatively unscathed. My faithful Mavic-Pro drone recorded the last harvesting moments, little did I know then that my daughter had taken over driving the combine (under instruction)…

No more beans to harvest in the field,
no more loads to help the yield,
no more bindweed seed in the barn,
no more watching the sky with alarm!
no more listening for the home-coming trailer,
no more “sounds like here comes the baler!”
no more dust masks making sweaty face,
no more dirt lines in the bath to trace!
no more postponed meals at night,
no more worrying if the quality’s right,
no more calls from the combine driver’s phone
We can now say “Harvest is home!”
The Baldock ‘Boutique’ Boot Sale
STILL HERE AFTER 25 YEARS!
It is the friendliest bargain bonanza anywhere!
Feed your hungry sat-nav with SG7 6RD

2017 Season
EVERY SATURDAY MORNING!
until mid-October
With more FREE parking and a field full of bargains!
www.u-boot.co.uk

 

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