Photo-a-Day  (Saturday, 15th July, 2023)

Take a bow Dennis , absolutely stunning ! The colours , the feel , everything ! What a joy to embrace!

Nice photo Dennis....I like the look of Canal Row..The path alongside the canal looks very inviting for a nice walk.

There is somebody in canal row who is either a radio enthusiast or they are building a sailing ship in their garden.

A bobbies job that . I'd pay to do that .

Really nice picture of a pleasant stretch that's a joy to walk .

Canal Row has gone from ramshackle hippie to des res over the years with gardens extending down to the water side . They have their own moorings to set sail from . It looks like someone's having a crack at building the Cutty Sark .

A lovely romantic feel to this one Dennis. I like it very much.

"She's listing to starboard, Captain!"

That's a lovely photograph. Even that little blob of pink foxglove works very well. 10/10 Dennis.

Beautiful, nice one Dennis.

The boat was listing to starboard Poet. I don’t know if they had sprung a leak, or if it was just the weight of the crew on one side.
I must admit to a sneaky wish that they would have to abandon ship in a hurry, thereby providing me with a good picture.
I don’t like myself very much sometimes!
Those masts have been there for many years now Mick.

Could it be Veronica? Is it possible? Could this be Geedubya returning to Wigan after his years long stay with big Sheila in Tittibong, South Australia?
Surely Ozy would have told us?
The man certainly has that robust, sheepshearer look about him.

DTease, I'm lost with your comments about Big Sheila in Tittibong.....the mind boggles but you still make me laugh, and I know you make Veronica laugh too. By the way, where IS Ozy? We haven't heard from him for some time.

It certainly looks like GDub ( he has a bit of egg on his face) in the distance - he has a shifty look about him. I bet he’s lost his passport .Maybe that’s Oz in the driving seat smuggling him back. But there’s no sign of Big Sheila I suppose she’s been left behind in Tittybong minding the hens. They are good layers they need the touch of a good woman like big Sheila.

Water water everywhere but none to quench my tongue
On the perilous voyage coming back
From darkest Tittibong ,

Where I went native in those years that I have been away ,
And cannot change what I've become
Though I've come home again ,

So though I'm chugging lightly up towards Red Rock ,
I really think I'm in Wonga Creek
Wrestling with big crocs ,

I see those rabbits in the fields as baby Kangaroos ,
And that heron sitting on the bank
Is really an Emu ,

The worms are venemous poison snakes lurking in the thicket ,
Yes mate , I'm Aussie through and through ,
I even cheat at cricket .

Poet

I wouldn't say it was listing at all, it will be mud and junk from the clean up operation.

Ha! ha! brilliant Poet, I like that.

Very clever and topical Poet - love it. A beautiful scene and like you Irene, I love the houses on Canal Row - timeless feel to it. Makes me think of picnics in the field when we were kids. Lovely work Dennis, thanks.

'Captain Pugwash' springs to mind.

Permafrost…

Weed clearing at Top Lock, caught on video.

https://youtu.be/aaN-pIlbGs0

Irene a brief tale of GDubya ( short for GDoubleyolk.) he was the Chief Eggsecutive of the Egg Marketing Board and was assigned to deliver Eggplants to Big Sheila in Tittybong to pollinate her Eggplants in Oz. It was a disaster waiting to happen. The night before the planned sailing from Wigan Pier GDub and his crew went on a pub crawl and ended up in The Moon Under Water. He imbibed too many ‘tinctures’ and ended up in the clutches of a Henparty. They persuaded him to take them along on board. There was some riotous goings on as you can imagine. I was going as GDub’s P. A but missed the boat as it sailed without me. I was glad really as it was tricky walking on eggshells around GDub. Dtease was second in Command but he couldn’t cope and jumped ship in the Bay of Biscay cadging a lift with other boat people crossing the Channel. The HMS Bountiful ended up in the Doldrums after which an island was sited on the horizon and the boat was washed ashore. All I can say through the grapevine is that GDub
turned native and wore a grass skirt and lived on coconuts and fish from the sea. After a while he felt homesick and sent a message in a bottle to Big Sheila begging to be rescued as HMS Bountiful had sprung too many leaks to sail again. Big Sheila had been waiting on the shores of Oz like some latter day Madam Butterfly and received the message quicker than any Evri’s deliveries. She got in touch with Ozy who sailed down under to help with the rescue and as you can see there they are in the boat above pictured. It’s a miracle he survived …. There’s more to it but it would take too long to relate the full story. Ozy rented out his tin shack to raise the money for his sail down under. Wasn’t that good of him?

Turn it into a film script, Veronica. The writers are on strike in Hollywood,
This time next year we could all be millionaires!! And we could forgive you for jumping ship before we even left Wigan Pier.

Well, ah cornt speyk! Brief Encounter was never like this, Dolly dear! I'm sure Big Sheila has "a rose in her hair and a gleam in her eye and love in her heart for Ozy!" Anyway, we are only "Little Sheilas", aren't we, Veronica, on the banks of The River Duggy? But then dynamite comes in small packages, so watch out, Dtease!

Hey good idea Dtease! I can see an Oscar or two me and walking the red carpet. We would have to play the parts ourselves though…I’m used to being a Girl Friday/ Dogsbody…Marlon Brando and Trevor Howard have popped their clogs they won’t be available. We would definitely have to have a plank on the ship I think we could audition one or two of the regulars on here for that part. I wonder if Big Sheila and her Egg Plants would be available and is it possible she could sing ‘One Fine Day’ whilst paddling on the sea shore and avoiding the sharks at the same time. We would have to trawl the pubs for Hen Parties, that’s going to be difficult there’s not many get married these days! We need to get in touch with GDubya seeing as he’s back in town although he could be suffering with PTSD he’s gone through a traumatic time as you well know. Perhaps he’s hiding out at Ozy’s tin shack and they’ve turned it into a bed and breakfast digs. Or maybe they’re both in disguise staying on the above weeding boat trying to earn a dollar or two so they can get back to Tittybong. I think we have put Tittybong on the map as a tourist attraction don’t you? ;o))

Folks may like to know of a book ,
' Once Upon a Time in Tittybong ' by Simon Sheridan .
Amazon £6.06 .

If the film ever gets made Veronica. Tittibong could become like Holmfirth is to Last Of The Summer Wine, a famous tourist attraction.
Big Sheila would love that wouldn't she? She could become the Marina of Tittibong.

Joking apart, I loved Marina! I wrote to her, (Jean Fergusson), twice, and she wrote the loveliest, friendliest letters back. I have her book about the life of Hylda Baker and my daughter and I saw her one-woman play about Hylda's life at The Octagon, Bolton. She was fantastic and her portrayal of Hylda was amazing! I was devastated when she passed away. I think she would have been tickled pink to have been Marina of Tittibong!

There’s a wise old saying that can’t be ignored…
We can take Big Sheila out of Tittibong but we can’t take Tittibong out of Big Sheila.
There’s one or two film titles that would suit Big Sheila .. ’Last Tango in Tittiebong’ or ‘The Ten Pound Poms to Tittibong’.. it would be a role for any famous celebrity from Dame Edna to Dame Helen Mirren. The list would be endless …it would be like in the days of “Gone With the Wind” where so many film stars fought for the plum role of Scarlett O’Hara from Bette Davis to Greer Garson who were both too old! It’s a very tricky situation… it’s not what you know but who you know and they would have to know the eggcentric
GDubya for a start….plus I think GDubya and Big Sheila ‘have a thing goin’on’.

You’re right Veronica, you can take the bong out of Tittibong, but you can’t take the first bit out of Sheila.
Er…I think I’ve gone wrong there somewhere Veronica?
I can feel one of my dizzy spells coming on now.

I’m not surprised… just lie down in a darkened room Dtease …all will be well- or will all be well? It’s the Tittybong effect . I blame Ozy.

I loved that story, you two V & Dt.I was going to say are we going to be seeing the on ITVX. But DTease has already took it to Hollywood.Brilliant. What would we do without your humour.