10 paintings of potato pickers

 This  was prompted by a question on a recent University Challenge.

David Thomas Robertson (https://www.mutualart.com/Artwork/The-Potato-Pickers/F480408DC5A285BB45E8383422599F96)

Ralph Hedley (https://shop.artuk.org/potato-gatherers-northumberland-36012.html)

Maurice de Vlaminck
(https://www.wikiart.org/en/maurice-de-vlaminck/potatoe-pickers-1907)

Jules Bastien-Lepage, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Evelyn Mary Dunbar Potato SOrting, Berwick
(https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/potato-sorting-berwick-204892)

The King Everywhere, Robert Müller, Public domain,
via Wikimedia Commons

Ernest Higgins Rigg
(https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/the-potato-pickers-23550)

Vincent van Gogh, Public domain,
via Wikimedia Commons

Jean-François Millet, Public domain,
via Wikimedia Commons

László Pataky, Public domain,
via Wikimedia Commons

Day Off Week 14 2025

It's a week ago now but I did have a nice day off on April 1 not caught out by any pranks. I've now reached page 745 of David Copperfield so the end is in sight. Also had a nice walk and a coffee and watched Univeristy Challenge from the day before which I had missed because of a meeting with the architect. We also watched the last of the interesting drama based on the story of Ruth Ellis. Also a bit of research for apaper I have to give next month.

Day Off Week 9 2025

We travelled last week to South Wales but this week it was back to a more traditional day off. I did my walk in the rain, although I again deviated from the indtended path. I ready a large chunk of David Copperfield - still a long way to go. I caught up on the Univeristy Challenge from the day before and in the evening we watched the final two episodes of the latest Unforgotten. There was also work on a project for next week.

Day Off Week 7 2025

My day off last Tuesday was similar to recent ones except that when I went on my walk on the Heath I went off my usual track and ended up in the Caffe Nero in Highgate, which I've not been in for a while. While in Highgate, I popped into the Oxfam shop and spotted a nice Paul Gallico illustrated book. I read some of The small miracle and started on the papers for the Affinity conference at the beginning of next month but my main reading was again David Copperfield. I also watched the University Challenge I'd missed and, in the evening, a bit of Miss Austen.

Day Off Week 5 2025

Proper day off today. Dressed for it in t shirt and trainers, I headed off for a walk on the Heath quite early and had an early cuppa too, reading David Copperfield. Read quite a bit of that through the day (it's brilliant, of course) but also found time to watch the latest University Challenge, do some blogging and write a letter for someone, etc. Got some cheese in Waitrose to write up on my cheese blog. Near the end of the day I had bottle of pear cider that I bought from Marks and Spencer. Very nice.Reading Dickens description of Copperfield and the waiter brought back a memory of school days and acting out the scene in class (Year 8?). I was the waiter and sought to extract as much comedy from it as I could.

Christmas Week More Pics

Christmas Week 2024

We had a good week Christmas week, with various family members arriving and departing atdiffernt times. I have reported on the Christmas Day service. Christmas dinner was an excellent affair, Eleri providing amazing variety with turkey and lamb as the meats. We watched the king's speech, which was okay and I have been keeping up with the Christmas University Challenges. I also watched the documentary on Maria Callas. Very interesting. We completed a thousand piece jigsaw and had lots of time for games, mainly scategories and heads up. Plenty of late nights and mornings but we made sure to get out and walk some of the time. Lots of presents given and received. Eleri and I had stockings and a hamper full of good things including a framed picture of the grandchildren and an AirBnB voucher. Today we went into town searching for coloured penguins. We have kept well mostly though Eleri has a cold today. In the midst of all this I was able to prepare two sermons and then preached yesterday (report to follow). Tomorrow we are off to Cardiff for more family fun.

Day Off Week 48 2024

As I have remarked in the past even days off require organisation and yesterday could have been a better day for that. Anyway, I was up early enough and out to get a walk in and then a coffee at Kenwood House. Back here I watched the latest (nailbiting) University Challenge whoch I hadn't got to watch Monday. Through the day I read more of this Christmas detective novel I have mentioned, which is okay but I'm finding it difficult to remember who is who (not a problem if acted). In the evening, I watched the second episode of the current Wolf Hall. Brilliant as ever. Also got rid of a few more books at a charity shop, an ongoing task here.

A Busy Monday

Monday was a very full day. Things start quite early these days. There were other things to do in the morning as well and then at 1 pm we had the next Evangelical Library lunch time lecture from Nick Needham on Robert L Dabney. An excellent piece of work. I will give a full report soon. I am sorry not more were able to hear it. After that we had a committee meeting and that was worthwhile. Finance continues to be an issue. Things are healthy enough at the moment but on current trends, it won't be long before we are in trouble. Current trends are making it difficult. Then after that I met up with a pastor friends of mine from West London and we visited a home in Golders Green where a couple are troubled about recent phenomena in the home. It turned out that Ihad met the lady before in another connection. We talked and then we prayed |(me in English, my friend in the family tongue). They kindly gave us gifts even though we were there only a short time/ I hope this will lead to further contact and a spiritual blessing on the famiily. It was nice too to have a coffee and catch up with my friend who I first met years ago through EMF

As I walked home through the park, there was a glorious sunset. My mother used to tell me that God was too good to me (she feared I would take it for granted). God certainly is very good. Then after tea I had a Bible study on salvation with two Iranian kurd refugees who come to the church. One of them has recently been transferred to Luton nd had caught the train to Cricklewood. I am encouraging hiom to attend a church in Luton but he like us, he says. anyone I was able to pass on part of the gift I'd just received to hm to cover his significant costs. The Bible study was okay bit all in translation. Their English is not great and my Farsi non-existent.

I then relaxed watching University Challenge (Cardiff beat St Andrews - not a Celt in either team!). We also watched a bit of TV - DI Ray and the ITV News.

Day Off Week 41 2024

The main thing on my day off was reading the bulk of a book I wanted to consult as part of a project I have in mind. There was soem writing uo to do with that. I hadn't watched University Challenge on the Monday as I was busy with a meeting so I watched that on catch up. Tere was some other reading too and a walk and a coffee, of course.

Day Off Week 46 2023

Somehow last Tuesday's day off went much better than the previous week. The main thing was reading most of the sermons in Volume 5 of Beddome's discourses. I have borrowed a set of volumes 5-8 not available online and am planning to work through them although I'm sure I looked at Volume 5 not so very long ago. I also watched the latest edition of University Challenge and did a little blogging.

Two Days Off Week 29 2023

It has been a while since a double day off and these two did involve getting sermon prep started for Wednesday and Sunday and a church zoom meeting on the second evening. However, I was able to devote a good chunk of my time to reading Volume 4 and 6 of Beddome's sermons. I am trying to make sure I've read them all. Four volumes are online but the other foour are not. I was up in Oxford recently to read Volume 5 and half of 8. I hope to get up there soon to do Volume 7 and the other half of 8. Back here I went up to the Evangelical Library to read Volume 6, which they have, and then read Volume 4 online the next day. I also read one of my art books, one on Chagall, on the Tuesday and dipped into other books on the Monday. Watched University Challenge on Monday evening, of course, (programme 2 of the season) with its new presenter and the end of a fact based drama about a horrible double murder case. I also found time to work on a project I have planned for my sister's next birthday.

Day Off Week 2 2023

So back to more of a regular routine this week with the famous Tuesday Day Off. My eldest son had visited the Library when he was here and so I read the brief The Illustrated Guide to Dyslexia and Its Amazing People he borrowed and enjoyed it, although now my youngest son, who has dyslexia, is 21 you read in a different way. According to the book, dyslexia is inherited. It mentions the book The Vicar of Nibbleswicke by Roald Dahl which I did not know of. I am not a Dahl fan but I thought I would send for a copy. I also read more of the Giles Morgan book on Saints and a Five Views book I have bought on Christ in the Old Testament. I also watched University Challenge which I had not been able to watch the day before. In the evening we watched the next Happy Valley episode. I also did some writng on a project I have on and tried to sort out a dental appointment.

Day Off Week 47 2022

I kicked off by going out to do some shopping. Starting on my Christmas shopping I suppose. I was also reading. On to a book on the Cathars now. Channel 5 are showing Christmas films which I thought I might try to watch but they are pretty much poorly done romantic comedies so far. I caught the end of the Argentina Saudi Arabia game in the wolrd cup and was amazed to see that the Saudis had won. That's what the world cup is about. Also caught University Challenge recorded from the night before. More TV in the evening.

Day Off Week 46 2022

I decided on this week's day off I would grab breakfast in MacDonalds. In a charity shop I spotted a book of booklists which looked like it was made for me. I also made a start on another of these books I have on Mediaeval subjects. I haven't finished the one on Alchemy yet but I thought afresh start might be good so I dug out the one on the Gnostics. Very interesting. In the afternoon I watched Miracle on 34th street which I had somehow never seen (the 1995 remake). In the evening it was University Challenge again (after the Bake Off final with my wife).

Day Off Week 45 2022

I was still ill last Monday (not quite there even now by the end of the week) but as I tried to get back to normal I took my usual Tuesday day off but took time to do one or two things. I watched a film in the morning from the part of history I probably know best. When I went out I picked up the latest Private Eye. My favourite cartoon, I think, was a man in a tie hauled in front of a tieless committee. "We see you are weariing a tie" they say. Also watched University Challenge in the evening (currently being shown on Tuesdays due to rugby league). The latest Free Grace Broadcaster arrived. Very interested to see the title - conscience. See here.

Two Days Off Week 46 2021

I had another one of my double days off this week. I had to complete the current In Writing magazine before I could do anything else and I spent most of my time in getting my Benjamin Beddome talk ready for the Westminster Conference. I also read another two of those art books - one on Hieronymous Bosch and one on William Turner. In both cases there were quite a few things I hadn't understood or didn't know so it was good to become better informed. I also watched some TV in the evenings including University Challenge on the Monday.

Day Off Week 13 2021

Today was filled with all sorts of things. First thing, I had to contact the local GP to talk to the nurse and the doctor. They each 'phoned back later. In some ways telephone appointments work better. Nothing to worry about medically. I began reading the book Why the Dutch are different which I bought a while ago. There was also lots of TV - an Italian detective drama I have started to work through, the latest University Challenge which I was unable to listen to on Monday night as I had a meeting. Then there was a superb documentary on Jackie Charlton Finding Jack Charlton (see here for a while). Many things stood out including the way the two talent brother seems to have so far outshone his five talent brother. Anyway, good busy day.

Day off Week 10 2020

This week is proving to be a little more normal so we had a formal day off on Tuesday and did the usual things including getting a coffee, reading and watching TV. Reading matter included the latest Private Eye and a new printing of John Newton's diary for 1764, the year he became the incumbent in Olney, Buckinghamshire. Marylynn Rouse has done a stirling work of scholarship (a scholarship that is not too snooty to mention the Beatles and World War II in the footnotes) to produce this. Well worth getting (see here). TV intake included University Challenge online and (recorded) the first in the new series of Liar (which struggled a bit I thought).

Day Off Week 4 2020

Last Tuesday was odd as I fully intended to be in Swansea for the Eccentrics Conference. As it turned out the car broke down on the M4 on Monday night and I had to be towed back home. So it was a more regular day off, although Eleri was home, which is unusual. Apart from sorting the car I watched University Challenge, did some blogging and read -  a bit of Catch 22 and a good chunk of Malcolm Gladwell's David and Goliath purchased the other day on the strength of the previous book. I also caught up on Bible reading.