Out and About Near St. Austell, Cornwall

Peekaboo! Approaching St. Austell I noticed this lucky cat on the welcome sign.

And below another welcome to the town - not that there is anything going on of course.

In town, however, I did see a tiger ...

... and the very large humming bird.

On the outskirts of the town are sheep ...

... and this little fellow was wearing his best coat.

A pig was rooting about, churning up the grass. What a busy life.

Darkness filled the sky for a while but a rainbow brightened the view. To the right of the rainbow you can just see St. Austell's White Pyramid. 

Moving on to the coast. Below is Porthpean Beach, about 2.5 miles from St. Austell town. Often described as the beach where the locals go, but no one about today.

Inland again and a sheep with an itch!

Then it's along to the lake at Par Beach where there are usually ducks geese and the like - though the seagulls often like to boss the surroundings. 

And finally a flower, just because it's nice and colourful.

All in all a mixed set of photos for this post, but such is Covid-19 life at the moment.

Take care.

Cornish Money and Their Very Own Parliament

Back in March 2019 I wrote a post on Cornish money as issued by the Cornish Stannary Parliament in 1974. I still have one of the banknotes - as  seen above and below. You can see my previous post here: Cornwall's Very Own Cornish Money!

I was recently reading how Cornwall, in days of old, had a special place in the country because of the Cornish  tin miners (tinners).

Early in the thirteenth century they were, by charter, given law courts, a prison and even a Parliament of their own. The last Tinner's Parliament was held in Truro way back in August, 1752.

Only for such crimes as linked to 'land and limb' were tinners subject to the main courts of the period.

The charter also declared that tinners had the right to search for tin on any unenclosed land. 

So perhaps Cornwall is entitled to its very own money, though this probably wouldn't be very practical.

In the 18th and 19th centuries there were Coins known as Cornish Pennies, though they were really only trade tokens.

Thank you for visiting my blog, stay safe.

A Perfect Chilly Winter's Day in Mevagissey, Cornwall - 12 Photos

It was a very chilly winter's day (6th Feb). We thought a stroll around Mevagissey, despite the cold, was in order. It proved to be a good choice as the sky and sea were lovely shades of blue. 

We walked around the harbour to the small lighthouse.

As we wandered along the outer wall we could see a man fishing in the distance.

When we reached the man he hadn't been very lucky with his fishing, but what a view he had as a consolation

Across the water was the Harbour Office. 

The water in the inner harbour looked polished and shining in the winter sunshine.

There were lots of boats at the far side of the harbour ...

... all jumbled together.

Fishing paraphernalia were stacked neatly on the harbourside.

As we were leaving a small fishing boat was entering the harbour.

Below, the harbour wall with not another person in sight.

Finally the view looking east from the harbour wall, all in all very pleasant.

Thank you for visiting my blog. There are quite a few other Mevagissey posts including: Mevagissey The Two Saint Village and Harbour - 10 Photos

It Rained Cats and Dogs, But Was Still a Good Day For a Short walk

As my dear old dad would have said, "It has been raining cats and dogs". There seemed no end to the rain - no wonder parts of the country has had floods.

Luckily the rain ceased and we were able to go for a walk through the trees alongside the small rushing river.

For some reason I was reminded of Longfellow's poem where he said: Into each life some rain must fall and how some days must be dark and dreary.

But I don't mind the rain, the river looked full of energy and joy.

A house was nearly hidden behind the trees.

The river rumbled on with not a care in the world.

Damp primroses looked on cheerfully ...

... as the river splashed and gurgled.

Soon the water calmed.

I spotted some Elf Cups. In folklore it is said that the elves drink the morning dew from the cups. 

Ah well, the end of our walk for today.

As we passed by a small cottage window all was peaceful.

Thank you for visiting my blog.

Chinese Jade Money Plants and Finding Coins

As I mentioned in a previous post we have a Money Plant, also called a Chinese Jade, living in our front porch. It has been with us for many, many years. To our surprise the plant has flowered again this year, which is said to be a rare event.

In a gardening book I read: 

"Jade plants are not usually grown for their blooms, but should they begin to flower, it is the result of great care given to the plant, and therefore the friendship. Blooming jade plants reflect positively on the owner, his or her friends and family symbolizing great friendship, luck or prosperity."

So I'm hoping that 2021 will be a very positive year, despite the coronavirus - fingers etc. crossed.

It's strange because we had grown a few small Money Plants from cuttings and decided to give them away. We left them in our driveway with a sign 'Please take'. They were gone within a few hours. After this our Money Plant decided to flower!

Okay, many readers won't believe that a plant can attract money but you may have seen these plants in Chinese restaurants and take-aways as they supposedly attract happy, paying customers. Like so many things in life it all depends on what we believe.

For example, I have also written previously about how my wife is always finding coins. The photo below shows just a few of the coins she has found.

I put this down to the fact that she expects to find coins - so she does! My wife's father died when she was only four but he had a saying that the streets are full of money just waiting to be picked up. So perhaps he's sending her a reminder that he's still about - who knows!

I won't drone on but it does seem to be in life that what we believe we receive, whether this be good or bad.

Good wishes.

See also: Cornwall's Streets Are Filled With Money Waiting To Be Picked Up!

Magic Brought Us What We Wanted!

There are many tales of sorcery and witchcraft within Cornwall and sometimes magical things can happen all by themselves.

A while back my wife insisted that we needed a new broom for sweeping our garden paths. Me, being me, said, "What's wrong with the two we already have?" They seemed  okay to me. I'd only used one of them a couple of days previous.

Anyway, to keep it short, I was wrong! We needed a new broom. "Okay, I'll conjure one up by magic," I laughed.

Two days later we set off for a walk from home. We have several routes to choose which give us a three to four mile journey. We decided on which direction we should take and set off without a mention or thought of a broom.

We walked about a quarter of a mile and reached a house, where the owner was clearing out unwanted bits and pieces. Most of this he had thrown into a rubbish skip but, against the gate, was a sign which read: Free. Please take away. Next to this were five new brooms still with their original labels!

We stopped and the man saw us looking at the brooms. I asked if I could have one of them. He replied that he'd rather I took all five of them. He went on to say how he was clearing out his garage and sheds of everything he no longer needed.

So, suddenly, we were the proud owners of five new brooms. They were exactly what my wife wanted - magic!

I know there are only four brooms in the photo above but we had already given one to our son.

It's a funny old world at times, especially if you believe in magic!

Thanks for visiting my blog, I hope you have lots of magical moments.

Out and About: Piskies, Flowers, Art Work and a Rainbow.

As we walked along the damp Cornish lane we wondered if a piskie would try to send us the wrong way or play some other trick with us - as is their custom. They are always full of fun and even have their own nursery rhyme.

"See-saw, Margery Daw,

Sold her bed and lay upon straw,

Sold her bed and lay upon hay, 

Piskie came and took her away."

Somehow a pansy had flowered, it's roots squashed between a crack in the surface of the lane.

A tree had recently been cut and was now laying comfortably on a bed of moss.

There is always something to see on a walk but often we don't seem to have time to stop and stare.

The sky turned a dark blue. The old pillar of a viaduct, which once carried trains to Cornwall from London stood, proudly next to the updated viaduct. It was originally built in 1859.

Suddenly the world looked brighter, there are always a few flowers to see even in winter.

The Camellia below is from our garden, where my favourite border collie dog is buried. He was so wonderful and will never be forgotten.

We wandered into St.Austell town centre. All was quiet because of the Coronavirus lockdown.  

Some artwork caught my eye.

I have walked through St. Austell many a time but have never noticed the art work high above the Fore Street.

On our way home a rainbow, but we didn't see any bluebirds flying high.

Finally, for today, a few bursts of winter colour.

Thanks for visiting my blog - all good wishes.