Misty Morning Spin

Yesterday morning started off foggy. Wanted to take the bike out for a spin to see if the cleaning of the injectors did anything to the mysterious misfire, but I thought I would give the fog some time to burn off. The day before yesterday, the fog lingered around all day, so I did not hold my breath.

But then, lo and behold, the fog lifted and the sun came out.

So I left home. The sun was shining. I checked.

As I went over the hill at Dundrum heading down to Blackrock, the fog returned. And properly so.

But I persisted.

Rode all the way to Dun Laoghaire harbour and parked on the old quay at the old coal harbour. I've not been down here in ages. Was amazed to see that quite a lot of boats were still moored there. 

The fog made for some great pictures, though.

It made  such an impression that I could not help myself, and had to have a stab at sketching it. I'm pretty happy with the result.

Poolbeg Towers

So I previously posted on the little walk Narina and I took on the Dublin Harbour east pier. I took a photo that morning of the Poolbeg Towers, and everytime I look at it I think that it should be sketched. I am also interested these days in Pen and Wash sketches, so watch this space, it may get a facelift 😁. But for now you will have to live with the Pen Sketch as it is.

(I also noticed that I have dated it 2023.... new year syndrome!!)

Naas Harbour

 The wife and I drove out to Newbridge in search of a market. We found it, but was not impressed. We heard about a farmers market in Naas, and drove over there. Mheee. So we walked around and explored the area. 

Just off the main road there is an old harbour on the Grand Canal. An absolutely lovely little corner of Naas. I can definitely recommend a visit.

Grand Canal - Wilton Terrace

On my way from one meeting to the other I stopped for a bite to eat next to the Grand Canal at Wilton Terrace. There was an open bench. I had a book and pen, and an hour to kill.

Howth East Pier

Out and about last week and visited Howth, looking for Chocolates, of all things. Not a great sketch, but you get the idea.

Christmas Time !!

When I was small, and Christmas trees were tall. Now I am not so small anymore.

When I grew up, Christmas was always a big thing. It felt like that to me, anyway. And I always try to keep it a big thing. I always did anyway, until the kids grew up and stopped believing that I was Father Christmas. 

So my daughter came to me and said we should have a competition to see who can draw the best snowman. This was my attempt. I think it is not half bad.

So a merry Christmas to all, and a prosperous new year. May the best of this year pale in comparison with what is to come.

 

Just a doodle

 I have to admit that the deer look a little "Oh Dear"!

Quarry Drive Park

 

Working from home has it's perks. One of those are that I can walk over to Nariko's school and fetch her. It allows me to get some exercise, and for some reason she is not too keen on walking home on her own.

Next to her school is a green area. I will not call it a park, per se. The school uses it for some PE, but it is also not a curated field, as such.

It sits next to the school, in Quarry Drive, so I will call it Quarry Drive Park, for lack of a better description. Now, while I am waiting for Nariko's school to come out, I usually stand around in this park, because the sun shines down on it nicely, and heats up the old bones.

Spring has sprung (or that is the rumour anyway) and the trees around the park are just starting to leaf up. I was looking at this, and the myriad of dandelions in the grass, and thought it would be fun to try and sketch it. So here, for your viewing displeasure, my pencil sketch of the Quarry Drive Park.