Trees, Bread and CDs

Today has been spent running around. Solihull, Kings Heath and Knowle.  It was quite a pleasant day weather wise so, whilst in Kings Heath, took a stroll around Highbury Park.  It was lovely seeing the trees with their autumn foliage. 

After Kings Heath it was off to Knowle (via Solihull) to have a rummage in the charity shops.  I managed to pick up a couple of CDs in a charity shop in Solihull (Looper and Tindersticks) but didn't have as much luck in Knowle.

Whilst in Knowle we stopped at Bread Collection and picked up some bread and cheese.  It's not the cheapest of places but is a great little shop with all sorts of bread, pastries and cakes on offer as well as a cheese counter and deli.  Apparently it has been voted one of the top ten bakeries in Britain by The Times. 

With food and CDs in hand it was time to head home.

Autumn and The Homemade Lo-Fi Blog

I miss Summer,  long hot days and warm nights. Autumn brings with it it's own rewards though.  The trees look great at this time of year and with a little less foliage you can make out more wildlife. In fact, as I write there is a Nuthatch climbing the tree outside my window.

Things have been quiet of late and if I'm honest I've quite enjoyed the cosy nights on the sofa in front of the TV (not that there is much on at the moment). Saying that though, the diary is starting to fill up over the next couple of months which I'm glad about.  I do enjoy cosy nights in but I'm not quite ready for hibernation just yet. I'll save that for the depths of winter.

If you are having a quiet night in and you want some music to chill out to then go here. The Homemade Lo-Fi Psychedelic Blog Spot.  I have to admit I haven't really listened to much of the music on the site but the bits I have are quite interesting.

Warwick and Leamington

Shopping in Leamington today with lunch at Gusto Ricco, a small Italian cafe.  I hadn't been there before. I was impressed by how many tables they crammed in.  Every available space utilised.  I had a toasted mozzarella and tomato panini.  Nice, but nothing special.

Prior to Leamington we stopped off at Warwick.  Having scoured the antique and charity shops we headed for the market to find that it had been replaced by a fun fair!  It was the we decided to jump back on the train to Leamington. 

As we headed back to the train station we stopped off at The Golden Monkey Tea Company shop on Smith Street.  I've walked past it before but never popped in.  It's a great little shop selling teas and tea paraphernalia (reasonable prices as well). I ended up with a small tea infuser and some chocolate. Zotter Labooko, two bars wrapped together. One a 90% cocoa bar and the other a 100% cocoa bar, for purists only apparently!

The Golden Monkey is holding a chocolate tasting evening on November 2nd.  Check out their website here.

Fortuna Pop! - Free Downloads

Fortuna Pop! is an indie record label from London.  Over the last 15 years or so they have put out some great records.  Current artists on the label include the likes of Darren Hayman, The Pipettes, Tender Trap, Allo Darlin', Milky Wimpshake, The Pains of Being Pure At Heart and Airport Girl.

If you are not familiar with the label or the bands then you can try before you buy.  Go here to download some great songs!

Jenny Eclair @ Adrian Bolt Hall

As part of Birmingham Book Festival, Jenny Eclair came to the city to promote Chin Up Britain, her new book.  Filled with witty advice to help us through these tough times.

I figured prior to attending that I would be one of only a few blokes in the audience. I was right.

The evening took the form of a question and answer session with Jenny going off at a tangent every now and again. Funny at times with some of the more female orientated bits going over my head. She talked a lot about Grumpy Old Women (both the TV and stage show) and also about bringing back the battleaxe. The funniest bit for me was when she was talking about celebrity weddings "You know the ones, where the bride gets religion and Disney a bit confused".

The venue had been changed to Adrian Bolt Hall, somewhere I'd not been before.  It's a great little place for a mid size venue. I can't believe that I have never had cause to visit it prior to last night .

All in all, a pleasant evening as I expected it would be. A nice touch was the tea and cake upon arrival.  My only criticism was that the whole thing lasted about an hour before she disappeared to sign copies of her new book. It's a shame really as I could have quite happily settled in for the night.

The Town

Went to see Ben Affleck's The Town last night.  I heard mixed things about it but I thought it was a really good film. 

A group of bank robbers take a hostage and then release her only to realise she lives around the corner. Affleck is then sent to talk to her to see if she knows anything and to find out what she has told the FBI. He inevitably falls for her. 

With the FBI breathing down their necks Affleck decides it's time to move on but before he can there is one more job to do.

The film is quite long at just over 2 hours but never drags and builds quite nicely.  A strong cast and some great scenes.  I really enjoyed  it!

Apple Day

Today the weather smiled on us.  Blue skies, sunshine and mild temperatures.  There was only thing to do and that was to head to Blakesley Hall for Apple Day. 

 

Blakesley Hall, for those who don't know, is a timber framed Tudor house. Each year they hold an apple day where you can learn about apples (I didn't know but there are over 4000 varieties) and taste the juice from the fruit of their own orchard.  Hand pressed in front of you it tastes a lot nicer than the cartons on the supermarket shelves.

After watching the apples being pressed and tasting the result, it was time for honey.  The person selling it said he had no idea what it tasted like as each year was different. This is because it depended what plants his bees had been to to collect pollen.  Honey and a bees wax candle bought and it was time for a sit down and a coffee.

 

The Green Man Morris Dancers kept us entertained. I have a new found respect for them since watching A Life With Bells On.  We decided not to hang around for the apple tour and instead bought a selection of apples and pears. All were vintage varieties dating from around 1745. 

We left Blakesley Hall with apples, pears, honey and candles having spent a lovely afternoon in the sunshine and headed home.