Jessica Ennis, our new World Champion

Took Bea to Eastbourne and had lunch again at The Giant’s Rest, Wilmington. We both had home cooked ham with bubble & squeak & home made chutney, delicious, this pub excels. Saw a Spitfire go overhead as part of the Eastbourne Airshow. Called in at Mill Hill to photograph some Blues and saw four planes perform an aerobatic act with smoke over the Shoreham airfield. Back home got stuck into another four hours of athletics and have just watched our new athletics heroine complete a brilliant heptathlon with a gutsy 800 metres win. What an athlete! To lead the field from start to finish of the competition was astounding and I loved the way she tore into the lead of the 800 meters and would not allow anyone to take away her first place in that final event. I haven’t felt as excited by British performances since Christine Ohuruogu at Bejing and Kelly Holmes at Athens. And then to see Usain Bolt tear apart the 100 metre world record was a delight.

Angels and Morris men

Today the Littlehampton lifeboats were practicing receiving a rescuer from a helicopter. Last week outside the White Horse at Maplehurst the Morris men were performing. Today Ikea delivered the kitchen shelving and I spent a fun hour assembling. They look good and we have been discussing who gets what space -beer/wine versus kitchen stuff :)

Steyning, a woodpecker and a toad

An early visit to Steyning showed me a Green Woodpecker which flashed yellow as I startled it and it flew off from the ground. A toad had been disembowelled on the path by an unknown predator. Various other interesting insects showed themselves including a small yellow ladybird which landed on my arm and a very furry caterpillar which crossed the path. It was another day of alternating sun and cloud.