Pannal Summer Days

 Lovely sunny days and don't we deserve them. Although someone said to me we do need rain. Last thing I want for a little while as I am content with watering the garden with the hose and can.Only just got back to golf. I have been a member of Pannal Golf Club since 1974 and I wrote the A Centenary History of Pannal Golf Club 1906-2006, The other day when I was playing we saw a buzzard chasing a red kite. There are a number of red kites around at the top of the road. Don't know whether they are nesting on the trees on the Course now as so many of them have been removed. The trees not the kites. Talking of trees the Cedar tree in Rosedale Close is still there. We had the excitement of a large crane for its removal but a gentleman who was passing said to me they can't remove it just now as the sun is in the wrong direction and that was a week ago. New one on me I know about leaves on the line but sun in the wrong direction?

I had the joy of my youngest son Richard and family coming at Easter. It was so lovely to see them all. We rolled our eggs on the hill in Crimple Valley and then spent an extraordinary amount of time in the Quarry which we all love and my intrepid young grandaughter climbed from the bottom of the quarry up the rocks to the top followed by her Dad of course, Not followed by me as I do not like heights as a suffer badly from vertigo and when I have an attack it does not help with my putting. We had some lovely walks around Lindley and i was sorry to see them go. Hopefully I might be able to see my other three children and their families soon. Talking to people we have found this lockdown particularly trying. 

Oh and at Easter I had a lovely Easter card from a pupil at Pannal Primary School and that was a lovely thought and it is a lovely well drawn card. 

There has been a lot of rubbish left in the Crimple Valley which has been collected by volunteers and I collected some dog poo bags. They were yellow bags not black ones. Do idiots think I shall use yellow ones and then other people can see them and pick them up as I cannot be bothered. This mentality has decent people scratching their heads in puzzlement and don 't get me started on the tying them on trees. Enough said. 

Marble and Tigs are fine and enjoying the sunshine and we still have the black cat. I have given in and feed it now and my cats have also accepted it.It knows when it is on to a good thing.

Shall end with this. I saw that a lady care worker down south decided instead of eating her sandwiches at the care home she would drive to a beauty spot to eat them. She was spotted by the police and fined even although she had not got out of her car. I thought this a shame and texted my kids and I put she was fined for eating in her car. Only I have predictive text and it came out as she was fined for dogging in her car and I never noticed and sent it to the kids. Only realized when I got texts back saying WHAT!!! read your text Mum. 

Pannal Walks

 Hail, rain or shine I have been walking round Pannal and further afield.I walked up to Whinney Lane from Pannal visited Rossett Nature Reserve first then down Whinney Lane. I have friends who live round about Castle Hill and how the developers were allowed to build houses so close to existing houses I do not know. It is absolutely shocking. New bedrooms face onto bedrooms of residents who have been there for many years. Long time residents have had to spend vast sums of money having mature trees planted in order to have some privacy. That was rant one now onto rant two. Cyclists on the Bilton to Ripley trail. The path is not wide enough and I nearly ended up as a mascot on the front of a cyclists handlebars there was no warning just came tearing past and another cyclist had a horn not a bell on his bike and I reckon I did an amazing jump in the air. Some cyclists are considerate and others are not so we shall see if HBC plan for more cycle areas on streets will work. It also seems strange to me when the council are saying not to use our cars when they allow houses to be built in places Killinghall, Skipton Road and Beckwithshaw where residents have no amenities and have to use their cars to shop. Pub at Killinghall being turned into a supermarket sometime in the near future Is that it? Also can the schools cope?

The Cedar Tree on Rosedale Close is to be felled. So sad as it is a Cedar of Lebanon and it was one of the trees I had protected when I mapped all the trees on the new Rosedale Estate and asked for them to be protected by asking for Tree Preservation Order No 1 Pannal 1969. There is only one other in this area and that is in the grounds of Pannal Hall. I think the ones at Rudding Park have been felled. The are an endangered species and are in the Red Book for Endangered Trees. The replacement tree will be a small Cedar of Lebanon and I hope it is planted not too close to buildings that have had extensions.

I think we are all fed up with lockdown. Golf will be allowed from end of March so we are all raring to play. I am so looking forward, as we all are, to seeing our families again. Very sad for the poor people who have lost their lives and also their relatives. My cats are the only ones not fed up as they see more of me and also sit more on me. Well Tigs my big fluffy cat does old dopey Marble is I think a feral cat and she does not.  They were both rescue cats many many years ago. Shall I use the word rescue more like dumped on me. Having said that they are no trouble. Thought I had better say that as they are both staring at me. Don't think they can read but who knows. 

A Spring Day in Pannal

Started off frosty then it turned into a lovely sunny warm spring day. I decided to walk the Crimple Valley. Enjoyed it took a picnic sat in the sunshine and it was good. Apart from the fact that it was very very wet and muddy in places and my feet got very wet and muddy.  There were so many people out all enjoying a hopefully not a one off day. I took the camera and took some lovely photos. Also met a lot of people I knew but have not seen much of as we are in lockdown but the sunshine brought us all out walking. I do love the Crimple Valley all the way up and under the Crimple Viaduct. It is an imposing structure 1873 feet long crossing the valley at a height of 110 feet and has 31 arches each of 50 feet span. When the new central station in Harrogate opened in 1862 a connection was built at the southern end of the viaduct to permit trains from Leeds to join the York and North Midland line and to cross the viaduct to reach Harrogate's new station.That and the Brunswick Tunnel highlights of the rail journey. One walk I do quite a lot is walking all round The Stray from the bottom of Tewit Well Road towards the hospital and all the way round and up Montpellier Hill and back to where I started. I have walked round Pannal Golf Club a number of times since it closed. I walk all the holes and look forward to when I can golf there once again. I enjoy my walking and have walked over the years the Cleveland Way, all round the Yorkshire Dales and the Lake District. My lovely husband Bas and I walked every Wednesday and Friday setting off early we covered some ground. All this year I have been rediscovering all the places in Harrogate, Ripon, Knaresborough, Otley and Ilkley. Dare I say it but I am getting fed up now. I say we as it is not just me but we want to be able to see our children and grandchildren. We want to meet friends for lunch. We want to visit restaurants and pubs.Most of all we want to be able to hug. All I have got to hug at the moment are the cats. Tigs is very affectionate and loves hugs. Marble is I am quite sure not really all there as sometimes she will come up to me and other times she is like who is this stranger I had better run away. My book Pannal and Burn Bridge - Their Stories is at the publishers and Terry my publisher likes it which is praise indeed as he publishes so many books.

All stay safe and hopefully we shall get some life back soon. 

Pannal and me

 I had a phone call from my Drs when everyone else said they received a text. The young man said my name is A and gave me my date for vaccine. I said tell me why did you phone on my house phone when everyone |I know received a text. He said we have not got your mobile phone number. I said yes you have and that is how I receive messages. He said give me your phone number and I will write it down. Suspecting a scam I said no where are you phoning from he said !! Surgery. I said ok tell me what you can see out of the window. He got quite upset and eventually did.  Finished call and I phoned the surgery and they said oh yes A is upstairs phoning patients. So sorry A you were legit.

I attended at the GYS Ground and thought I know it is only just up the road but I will go reasonably early. Good job I did as when I joined the queue chap comes up to the window and says follow the car in front. I said the brown one. He said yes. I followed and guess what brown car was not going to the vaccination centre. I had to turn round and then of course I was in the out lane and not the in one. Chap who told me to follow the brown car shouts at me you are in the wrong lane. I shouted back well you told me to follow a car that was not going to the vaccination centre. So all in all an exciting "call up" for a vaccine. When I did get vaccinated all smooth sailing and very well organised

Hole in the pavement looking for gas leak filled in and they have now gone. I did email Northern Gas to ask why the continual patching and not pipes replaced. Received an email saying could I phone. I emailed why can't you answer my email instead of me phoning? Well they did and said it will take five years to relay new pipes. The gas pipes are over 100 years old so expect for the next five years it will be a patching up job until 2026. 

Snow showers and very cold. Wonder what our heating bills will be? We are in lock down and only told to exercise local. Roll on Spring. Roll on out of lockdown. Most of all roll on seeing our families all together. Cats I think are fed up to as they are in all day now. Still have the black one visiting and pinching food. Have tried all social media to see if it does belong to anyone. No luck so far. All black I think as I only see its rear end going out the cat flap when I open the door. Anyone have a black cat in Pannal? 

Pannal and Burn Bridge - Their Stories

 Pannal and Burn Bridge - Their Stories is the title of my latest book. I have Written A History of Pannal, Postcards from Pannal, The Centenary History of Pannal Golf Club 1906-2006. My latest book has , today, gone to be printed. That is one milestone but the big milestone is when can I have a launch and where. I certainly cannot do anything until the lockdown is over. Would be nice to launch it at Pannal Memorial Institute or St Robert's Chapter House but that is in the near (hopefully) future. At least you all now know it is on its way. I shall let everyone know when it will be ready to buy. I am pleased to do this for Pannal and Burn Bridge and it will not be an expensive book as I want everyone to be able to buy it and know a lot about where you live. If anyone has any thoughts about where to launch it please let me know via this blog or email annesmith.pannal@yahoo.co.uk. I do hope we shall all be able to meet up before very long.

Now if you are all wondering why traffic lights again on Main Street well they - Northern Gas- are back. They started off before Christmas up the top of the street now half way down and probably they will go further down. The pipes are over 100 years old and as soon as they find where the leak is. (reported to them by a pedestrian who smelt gas) they repair it and then there is a gas leak somewhere else. Keep this up and we shall reach Station Road, Incidentally, not just one side of the road they have been on both sides. . I was in my drive when a gentleman said to me. I worked for the Gas Company and this will keep happening s the pipes are so old they need to be replaced and the only way they will be replaced is if everyone writes in and complains. If you don't all they will do is keep repairing. The pipes are down to be replaced in five years and they will keep to that unless there are complaints. So we now know what to do everyone. 

Whose getting fed up with lockdown? I for one am as I want to walk further, the Dales preferably. Will the vaccine help us I hope so it is the only lifeline we have. I just listen to the news on Radio Four about 8am and that is enough. I do not watch news on tv as it is all doom and gloom. TV programmes not much better as they seems to be about aids, murders, hospitals. I am sticking to walking ones around the UK and fingers crossed we will be able to all be out and about soon. 

Still got the black cat visiting still stealing food and now it sleeps in the utility room but flies out the cat flap when I open the kitchen door. I have always said my cats are numpties but perhaps I am misjudging them and they feel sorry for it from on high that is as they never go onto the floor whilst it is about. 

Doing our bit in Pannal

 When the bin men arrived to remove our refuse I went out and clapped them and they were chuffed. I put this on the Neighbours site and suggested we all do this. They like the NHS have worked all through the pandemic and deserve a bit of applause. I remember the days when we had the same bin men every week and we used to tip them at Christmas as we saw more of them as they came "round the back" to pick up our heavy metal bins and bring them back empty. In fact I used to see one of our lovely bin men David in Morrisons and we always had a chat. In fact one time years ago he said to me have you ever been to Malta? I said no and he said go its brilliant and go to Gozo. We went and he was right and we have been back a few times since but like Britain it is having a lot of development. One time we had a bungalow on top of a hill and we went to the shop at the bottom. Bought some water 6 enormous bottles and as we paid the lady said oh its 2 for 1 so take another 6. One of our party had to carry them all the way up the hill. Oh how we laughed. Rotten really.

Notice Mill Lane is closed once more.Not at all surprised as I said at the time it would happen again. This has occurred over the years but of course made worse by the constant rain. The chap that has the house by the mill pond said thank goodness they are putting the fencing at the bridge as last time there was a landslip last year people were climbing over the pond fence. This time they can't. 

I am still carrying on with the idea of Crimple Valley Country Park as I have had a couple of very supportive letters from Andrew Jones our MP. Pannal Parish Council know of my idea as do our local councillors. No one has said it is not a good idea so I am hopeful but we shall all have to be behind my plan as we all know what Harrogate Borough Council is like when it comes to Pannal. In all my nearly sixty years here I have heard only detrimemtal remarks when it comes to Pannal. In other words THEY DO NOT LIKE US.

My new book Pannal and Burn Bridge - Their story is waiting to be published but I cannot see my publisher. It was supposed to be out in October in time for Christmas but I could not launch it as we were all being careful because of Covid 19 so no crowds. Never fear it is ready to go when Terry and I can meet. Terry does not live in Harrogate and we are all having to stay local.  

Cats are like bees they can pass messages on telling each other where there is a source of food.  For months we have had a ginger cat come through the cat flap and scoff my cats food. They were frightened of it. He has now been joined by a black cat. Tigs and Marble cats are also scared of it..I cannot think of a solution. My neighbour near the top of the road sent me a photo of Tigs lying in his arbour on a sunny morning. On his chair too. I think in the summer he has to race my cat for his chair. 

Pannal in the snow

 Now then the snow was a surprise to me and it came down all day and I was quite happy as I love snow. I also love what happens in the snow, drivers that take a short cut through Pannal get stuck coming in and going out we have two steep hills. This provides endless fun for those of us who live in Main Street as they got stuck at the top of Main Street and had to back down causing a jam with cars coming up. This was happening then the snow plough/gritter came and cleared the road. Boo we were all shouting well I was anyway. What a thing to admit but with this lock down we have to take our pleasures in different ways. 

I have heard of a couple of virus cases in the village and I have also heard of a couple of burglaries, So as they say everyone stay safe from both. 

I now have new neighbours. Sophie and Munib left and Patricia and Brian moved in and both managed to get out and in safely with their furniture removals the day before it snowed. Ah the snow I build a snowman in the front garden and a polar bear in the back garden and I loved doing them even although my neighbours probably think I am not all there. I shall not ask them what they thought. 

This morning we lost our Broadband as the workmen at the end of Rosedale cut through the cable. So we lost the computer, the telephone and the tv. Came back on this afternoon. Amazing how we all missed them.

Now one thing I have put on Neighbours site is a black cat that I have been feeding since about March. Well I am not feeding it by choice but it has taken to coming through the cat flap and helping itself and one morning it was in one of my cats beds and they were huddled together in the other bed. It flew out the cat flap and someone replied to my query " does anyone have a black cat" and said could you take a photo of it and put it on this site. Answer no as all I ever see of it is its bum as it flies out through the cat flap. I am tempted to get one of those that only open with a micro chip. Both my cats are micro shipped but I havn't as I have the worry that one time it may not work and they were not able to get in. My two numpties are afraid of it and are no help what so ever.

The snow has now gone and we are back to rain but a bit warmer but all the powers that be are doing is giving us miseable news as they are saying oh its going to get much colder again. Can anyone give us a bit of good news as every bit of good news they impart is always followed but something saying well its not really good news because.....

This is why a write this column and try to be humorous. Is it working do you feel a little happier.?