All things Selfsufficientish

The Bycycle diaries – Day two – Lower Shaw Farm to Oxford

Posted by Andy Hamilton - 11/11/08 at 11:11:41 am

I awoke to sunshine on the farm a welcome respite to the rain. Breakfast was the typical Lower Shaw Farm of eggs and whatever else they might have; this farm has slowly become a refuge for me over the last year and I thank all that live there for that. I explained that on the way I was smelling food such as apples then filling my bags with them, “Gosh, you are like piggy”, exclaimed Claire one of the inhabitants. I have been likened to many a person in the past but never a pig, so that was first.

It was difficult to leave, something I had not accounted for and despite being up at 7-8am I did not leave until around 11am. One of my gloves had disappeared perhaps due to the confusion of having most of my clothes hanging around the farm to dry and the prospect of cycling with just one glove and the thoughts of blisters, cold and chaffing were worrying me somewhat. Luckily I took the wrong turning thanks to Claire’s directions and ended up finding a pair of gloves on a roundabout.

The cycling was great for the rest of the morning as I whizzed through countless picturesque villages and watched the game birds as they flew above my head in sillouetted by the warm autumn sun. Then my gears went, if only I had learnt some simple cycle mechanics. I tinkered for a while outside an Oxfordshire village called Colehill which seemed to cause great fascination for the locals (of course none stopped and helped just staired, how very English). I refused to get wound up by the gears and knew that I could still use my bike, I did curse the man in the Bristol Bike shop a little, thinking that really he should have done his job properly.

I decided that Autumn was a good time to see this country especially after a wet summer as this made the autumn colours that much more vibrant. Round here there are many thatched cottages, stone churches and country villages all empty as people only use them to commute from, good to look at but I imagine very boring to live in.

Oxford Camera

So Oxford, I arrived in good time at around 5.15pm having only got lost once or twice. Stayed at Writer Paul Kingsnorths house. Someone I have met due to doing the literary festivals and I guess my only published writer mate. Had another traditional English bit of fare with some stewed mutton, it was delicious. Slept in his office and wondered if I would absorb any inspiration from being in the same room that two books were written, decided that I would not and questioned my sanity instead.