Down the Rabbit Hole

It's that precious, quiet time of day when I'm the only one awake, and the rest of the house sleeps.  It is an in-between week for us.  We've moved out of the big-city apartment and are staying with friends while we do a few projects in our new place.  It's hard to believe that in a week and a half we'll be living in our own home again!  In the meantime, I'm still sorting through pictures from last year, and I couldn't remember if I ever wrote about a small adventure I had one spring night in the barley field.

K.J. and I loved walking in the field up the road from our house in the spring and summer because there was a full-fledged rabbit warren living around the Devil's Arrows.  If you went out at twilight and walked quietly and carefully and no dog-walker happened along, you could see dozens of rabbits enjoying their nightly silflay.  (I read Watership Down last summer, which is full of special rabbit language.) 

About two weeks after I took the above photos I went out again one night.  I walked down a different path and spotted several more rabbit holes as well as a poor, wounded warrior who looked like he'd lost an eye.

I don't know if these pictures are as interesting to anyone else, but I just loved these guys.  

I was snapping away, trying to get as close as possible without making them scatter.  I stopped to look at the screen on my camera to see how the pictures were coming out when I noticed an extra face in the background of one picture.  What is that??  I looked down.  Then I looked back up at the rabbits.  At the very top right side of the picture there is a sly face in the shadows if you look closely.

Look at him!  I couldn't believe it.  I'd always wanted to see a fox but so far I'd only seen one at night and never in Boroughbridge.  I think I saved a few bunnies' lives that night because not long after I noticed him, he looked up and noticed me, too, and bolted.  I left pretty quickly after that, too, because all of a sudden I wasn't sure about what else was concealed in the barley field.  But I'll never forget the night I watched a fox prepare to pounce on these unsuspecting rabbits.

Autumn Window Shopping

I always enjoy the window-shopping in Boroughbridge, but it can be especially satisfying in the autumn, especially for the places selling vegetables and flowers.

And maybe especially this shop, which always has beautiful offerings.

Aren't those the loveliest vegetables you've ever seen?  The still life makes so much more sense looking at these guys.  Confession:  I've never eaten a Brussel sprout.  They seem to be a regular part of Christmas dinner here.

I loved that gray pumpkin at the local florist's shop.  It was very Country Living-esque.

And last but not least, I took this picture when I was out jogging because it reminded me of The Andy Griffith Show.  Leg of lamb?  Andy's favorite dish?  

Pontem de Burgo, The Bridge Near Burgh

K.J. sometimes explains differences between Americans and the English like this:  To an American, anything over 200 years old is really old, but not so for the English.  We were once told by a lady showing us around an old church building that "This part is Victorian and of little interest."  Because granted, Victorian was pretty new compared to the Celtic carvings found in the other parts of the stone church.  But distance is the complete opposite.  It's easier to drive long distances in America (not to mention cheaper), and so Americans do and don't think anything of it, but being a country only 240 years old, makes relating to signposts like this feel kind of crazy at first.

It's no big deal, just a battle fought here against the Earls of Lancaster in 1322.

The first bridge crossing the River Ure was built to access the next village over, which many years ago was a Roman settlement.  Eventually, a town grew up around the bridge.  Wikipedia told me the first mention of the bridge was in Latin (thus the title of this post) in 1155.  

There's usually a beautiful view walking across the bridge.  Ella and I walked over and back after the rain cleared on Saturday.

We had so much rain last December that the river overflowed the bottom half of the bridge.  I'm told the floodwaters have made it all the way into town before, too.  It's a good thing we live on a hill!

The Town Square and Remembering

One thing that is markedly different about being in England versus in the United States is the sense of closeness to the events of the two great wars.  Of course this makes sense because England is quite literally located much, much closer to where battles took place, and they fought longer.  The reminders of just how many young men were lost in World War I especially are graven in stone in the middle of every small town, making those events and the loss of that time period much more real to me than anything else has.

I'm not even sure I knew why we celebrated Veteran's Day on the second Monday of November until watching the Downton Abbey episode when the Armistice was signed and peace declared at 11:00 on November 11.  Ohhh....  Then I immediately understood the significance of the date we remember U.S. veterans.  I'm sure this must have been covered in history class somewhere along the way, but I never had a regular ceremony or reminder about the significance of the date to cement it in my memory.

Remembrance Day in the UK, observed on the Sunday instead of Monday, is a big deal.  The Remembrance Day service at St. James's is one of the most highly attended services.  It's followed by a ceremony in the town square that much of the town attends.  Individuals and groups lay out wreaths of poppies on the war memorial to remember those who fought in both wars.  There is a two-minute silence at the first stroke of eleven, a prayer offered, and a hymn sung.

We remember the events that had the biggest national impact.  In my experience, it most reminds me of services held in the United States around September 11.

10 MORE Random Pictures Around Boroughbridge

Whoops.  I totally missed posting yesterday.  Yorkshire winters can be wet and muddy because the sun isn't up often enough or long enough during the day to ever dry everything completely out, so we were on a quest yesterday to find the kids winter boots that can keep their toes warm and withstand mud and water.  Let's just say Saturday at the outlet mall was completely exhausting, and all thoughts of blogging went completely out of my head last night when we made it back home!

In the spirit of being on top of things today, I'll leave you with ten more random photos from around town in Boroughbridge from the 2015 archives.

Isn't this seemingly abandoned house beautiful?  Can't you just imagine how cool it must be inside and what it would look like restored?  It reminds me of the house in It's a Wonderful Life that George and Mary throw rocks through the windows and make wishes that they eventually buy and restore.  I love it.

These pictures are all from the same August evening last year.  In the above picture is the canal that runs parallel to the River Ure through Boroughbridge.  They're both a good place for sunset and cloud reflection pictures if you happen to be walking across at the right moment.

The wheat fields around Boroughbridge go from green to golden at harvest time.

In the summertime the canal is filled with boats.  I think lots of people spend their holidays on the intricate canal system across England, mooring in different towns along the way.

What was called The Fruit Basket has just been re-branded with the owner's last name.  It's a lovely shop with all kinds of special flours, oils, jams, coffee, as well as fresh fruit and vegetables.  Their sidewalk display is always beautiful to look at.

England is so far north on the globe I really expected the autumn color to be on a par with New England.  It's not quite like that as a result of that warm gulf current that keeps their temperatures moderate, but it is quite beautiful.  The temperature always seems to be around 55 Fahrenheit, which feels very fall-like.

Supermarket parking lots are one of the surprising places to find some beautiful fall foliage.

Looking up the High Street, there's another little cafe.  I've got to get started on my visits!

Hooray for Fall!

10 Random Photos Around Boroughbridge

Tonight, because it's late and I don't have many original thoughts left in my brain, I thought I'd just post a few pictures from around town in 2015 that I have on file. Sometimes you do what you gotta do to make it through a 31-day blogging challenge!  Here's 10 photos snapped on my phone of ordinary life for us in Boroughbridge.

Several people commented on how little James was in the post about his first Boroughbridge haircut. He really was so little when we moved!  But what always gets me more is Ella.  She's always the big girl, the big sister, but every time I look back at older photos I want to cry at how little she is.  She's grown a lot taller in the past two years.  As she should do of course.

The beautiful crocuses!  I felt like I understood The Secret Garden so much better after our first spring here.

This trail runs beside the River Ure, which runs through town, necessitating the bridge in Boroughbridge.

St. James's is the Church of England church in town.

This is a funny picture to me of James and his pal Jethro wrestling in the school yard after school one day.  Yes, this is their play area.

There's always something that makes me want to stop the car and take a picture.

Sniff, sniff, because all the clothing Ella is wearing in this picture is now too small.

Beautiful things just grow here so easily.

A Sunny day on the High Street - KJ likes to eat the all-day breakfast at Tasty Snacks on the left.

Evening walks are lovely.