RHS Hyde Hall - for the roses

On 10 September 2026, we visited Hyde Hall.  The garden is always lovely, and the roses are usually spectacular.  Last time we visited was also at the end of the summer: https://3cephas.blogspot.com/2024/09/last-of-summer-holidays-flowers-and.html However, this time we were surprised to find Lego wildlife creations around the whole garden.  They are all amazing, well the ones we saw were, there are 10 in all. This dragon fly is on the edge of the ornamental pond.  Each of the builds is accompanied by a plaque describing the build. We started by walking to the Hill-top Café, for a cup of tea.  The café is lovely, but the tea seemed to be made with brew-proof tea bags. To say it was weak and watery was to unreasonably complement it. Still onwards, because there is much to see and many things to be surprised about. After a further walk, we returned to the same café for a light lunch — soup and a roll, and some different drinks. Then back to walking round.  I had hoped to spend some time practising my camera techniques, but there was so much to see, I only really managed 'point and shoot'.

Rose 'The Poets Wife' Auswhirl The rose rope walk has been established, with small rambling roses planted and ready to grow.  It was in a sorry state on our last visit.  The rose garden, itself, however was not so spectacular, however there were some very impressive roses in bloom, and also some great dahlias. We enjoyed walking around the green house and the crops they have are incredible.

This is a Humming Bird Hawk Moth.  I don't think I've ever seen one before. Even the camera cannot freeze its wings on a reasonably bright day.  Neither can my eyes.  After I had desperately tried to get a picture that I could see the moth in, a man came up to us and told us what it was.  We see humming birds on our video calls to Alabama, the name is most appropriate, but how did it get that name, have they only been here since English people have seen humming birds?

hylotelephium matrona The bumblebees, and some other types of bee that I didn't manage to get a picture of, just love this plant. There is lots of it around the edges of the beds in the grassed areas.  Every single clump was covered with bees.

Anniston 16 July 2024 - Lego build day 3 - completion

Today must be the final day of the build, or it will not be finished on time.

	At Timestamp: 20240716_102333 we look at the tasks to be completed today, the bags are laid on the table with the shuttle as it is built so fay.
	At Timestamp: 20240716_105442 more of the tail is built
	At Timestamp: 20240716_113306 the cargo bay doors from the unnumbered bag are installed. Time Taken: 70 minutes
	At Timestamp: 20240716_154424, bag 14 is started
	At Timestamp: 20240716_162811, bag 14 is complete, and the cockpit surround has been built.
	At Timestamp: 0240716_162844 bag 15 is started
	At Timestamp: 20240716_170101 bag 15 is complete, the tail is built. Time taken for these bags, 77 minutes
	At Timestamp: 20240716_171826 bag 16 is started
	At Timestamp: 20240716_175329 bag 16 is complete Time taken: 35 minutes
	At Timestamp: 20240716_214226 the final bags are started
	At Timestamp: 20240716_220633 the shuttle is complete! Time taken: 24 minutes

Time taken for all today's build: 206 minutes (3 hours 26 minutes).  This is an amazing effort, the focus and concentration dropped a little at the end, but we got there!

Lunch today was at 'Rocket', a BBQ restaurant.  The food was amazing and the portions typically American plus-sized.  While we were eating lunch, the storm briefly cut the power in the restaurant and at home.

Anniston 15 July 2024 - Lego build day 2 and a visit from friends

Today is primarily a Lego Build Day

	Timestamp: 20240715_100835. Stickers are something that Robbie does not like.  Neither do I, so he has decided to only apply the essential visible stickers.  We start today by building the stand for the shuttle.
	Timestamp: 20240715_104211.  The stand is complete.  Time taken: 34 minutes
	Timestamp: 20240715_112614.  Now we have built the first part of the wing Time taken:  44 minutes
	Timestamp: 20240715_114718.  After a short break, we begin work on bag 6.
	Timestamp: 20240715_121002.  Bag 6 has completed the base frame for the shuttle, and we now have a good idea of its overall size.  Time taken:  23 minutes
	Timestamp: 20240715_131853. After a break for lunch, we are about to get underway again.
	Timestamp: 20240715_140251. Some of the wing has been filled in. In a later bag, the fixings of these blue plates would cause us a problem, and the removal of them and some re-work to re-position pieces under them would make the wing more solid. Time taken: 44 minutes
	Timestamp: 20240715_140755.  Bag 8 had been opened in error earlier than it should have been.  We had attempted to separate out the pieces correctly, but this bag really had us holding our breath.
	Timestamp: 20240715_143606.  Bag 8 was completed without incident. Time taken: 29 minutes
	Timestamp: 20240715_173555.  Time for bag 9 - with a dot under the number to distinguish it from bag 6.
	Timestamp: 20240715_175918.  The wings are now completed, but one side does not sit completely flat.  The reason for this is noted above. Time Taken: 20 minutes
	Timestamp: 20240715_184255. Now the engines have been added. Time Taken: 42 minutes
	Timestamp: 20240715_204129.  The rear infrastructure behind the cargo bay has been added.  The start picture is missing, but this bag was not too difficult, so I am going to estimate 30 minutes. Time Taken: 30 minutes (est)

Total time building the shuttle today is 266 minutes or 4 hours 26 minutes. 

Other things that happened today:

Two of Karen's teacher friends visited us.  It was good to meet them and to know that she has already made some good friends during her short time in her new school.  Karen had made scones, and we discussed cream teas a little.  Jam first, or cream?  The answer is here https://www.seriouseats.com/british-cream-tea-correct-order-5225936 part of which is repeated below:

Devonians lay claim to the first ever cream tea being served in Tavistock Abbey in the 11th century. Following Viking raids in the year 997, the Abbey was damaged and had to be restored. Fragments of manuscripts written by monks from this time, and discovered by local Devonian historians, tell us that the Earl of Devon, Ordulf, rewarded his workers with bread, clotted cream, and a strawberry preserve. At some point down the line, the bread was replaced with scones and the cream tea was realized. This, according to Devonians, was the original cream tea and was served cream first and then jam, and still is today—the right way, if you ask me. Devonians say the cream is like butter and forms the base of the scone “sandwich.” 

Which ever way you choose does not affect the taste, and all of us agreed the scones were very good.  Other English topics were covered a little, as was our general family history, but I'm not going to repeat those stories here!

There was also a little discussion of ex-president Trump, as he was shot yesterday.

Anniston 13 & 14 July 2024 - A sporting day

13 July

We got Maiev back from the kennels, she had just been bathed and still had the classic repugnant 'wet-dog' smell.  Her damp fur stuck to your fingers when you stroked her.  She seemed happy enough.

Otherwise, a quiet day to recover from the long drive.

14 July

Well, a sport's watching day, mainly.  With the men's Wimbledon final, Alcaraz beat Jokavitch, the Euros' football final, Spain beat England, and the Americas Soccer final Argentina beat Columbia, it was a day spent largely in front of the TV.

We also went shopping for two Lego sets:

The space shuttle discovery, with the Hubble telescope for Robbie and I.  

A bunch of roses for Madelyn and Jo.

I will take a picture at the start and end of each bag, so that we can estimate the time taken.

Here's how we started:

	At timestamp 20240714_163301 we had the bags out of the big box and on the table, where construction will occur.  There are 17 numbered bags, one unnumbered bag and one bag with the same number as another.  The box is rated 18+.  Here we have the two children and all the bags, nicely sorted into their numerical order.
	At timestamp 20240714_165100, construction has begun.  So far, only the stand for the Hubble telescope has been assembled.  In the background, at the far end of the table, is a Lego heads puzzle that we bought at Lego land. Time taken: 18 minutes.
	At timestamp 20240714_174351, the Hubble telescope construction is complete enough to put on the stand.
	At timestamp 20240714_182201, the Hubble build is complete. Time taken:39 minutes

Total build time for today: 57 minutes

Alabama 2023 - July 9 - Land of Lego (2)

We completed the Lego build today, well I say we, I mean Robbie, who did at least 95% of it. As with all kits, there were a few mistakes, and a few places where the instructions were not entirely clear. Robbie had measured the time taken on his tablet.  The build total time for all sessions, excluding breaks, was 4:31:48.83. Jo and Madelyn completed theirs yesterday, and did not time themselves.  The picture below was taken by Madelyn.

Later we went to Buc-ee's, it's new(ish) to Auburn. For those who haven't seen one, it's a Gas (Petrol) station.  As with all such places, there's a shop attached, the difference here is that the shop is enormous and stocks almost everything you can think of.  Why would you suddenly need to buy a large gas barbecue on your way across America?  Well, you can get one, and all the things that go with it.  But it doesn't have everything, the cowboy hats come in many sizes, but not mine, how sad.  The place was heaving, I think it has become a local tourist attraction in its own right - definitely an experience.

After that it was nail painting time, my turn will come tomorrow, I think.

Alabama 2023 - July 8 - Playground

We completed another bag of Lego today, perhaps the smallest bag of the kit, tomorrow we will tackle bags 6 (2 bags), 7 and 8.

In the early evening, we played with Mave and watched the birds flitting between the two dead trees just beyond the fence.  Like all 5-year-old dogs, she has calmed down a lot.  She clearly remembered me, but I'm not so sure if she remembered Jo, last time she saw Jo was a long time ago.

Opposite Robbie's school, there is an accessible play area for children, it is a remarkable place, undoubtedly the best play area I have ever seen.  We visited in the evening, once the heat of the day had gone, today has been wet so not as oppressive as other days.  There are climbing frames, percussion instruments, monkey bars, slides, swings and a whole load more, including a zip wire.  It was there last year, and while there are signs of wear and tear, the accessible zip line is closed, some patches of the rubber floor have lifted, and some are worn, there is no sign of vandalism.  The children had a great time, and so did the adults (well, this one anyway).  There is lots of shaded seating too, but unusually for America, not a huge amount of car parking.

We were speculating on its cost, I guessed at about $1,000,000.  I was way off, the actual cost, a matter of public record, was closer to $4,000,000.

Alabama 2023 - 7 July - Land of Lego (1)

To distinguish the subject from the theme park is important for me, as I wouldn't want you to mistake what I'm talking about.  The main activity today was to purchase and start to build Lego kits.  Robbie bought the Chamber of Secrets (76389), and Madelyn bought Friends Hair Salon (41743).  Robbie's was budget busting, but we rarely visit, and it was clear this was the only one he wanted.

I've blogged about children and Lego before, the other grandchild who builds Lego, sorts and plans before the start of the build.  This grandchild likes to jump right in, so the first few pages have been done before I can collect my thoughts, let alone some bricks.  There are 8 bags in the kit, we did 4 today, for a total build time of about 1 hour 58 minutes.  There were several breaks for picture taking to track the activity.

Early progress

Early Progress

Robbie enjoyed taking pictures as much as the build I think, after we stopped building, he continued to take pictures for a while, not just of the Lego, but he started to make a story with a small dinosaur. 

In the afternoon / evening, Robert and Karen's friends came over.  We have met Erica and the boys before, but this was the first time we had met Kwasi.  Robert and Karen prepared another excellent meal for us (salmon cooked in the smoker, chocolate brownie) we had a good time chatting and eating together.

Lego McLaren MCL35M (2021 Italian GP first and second place) - Bags 2

 

Bags 2 almost ready to go

Here are the pieces for the second set of bags.  Like all the activities that follow, I have a beginning and end for each of the sets of bags, so I can work out how long each took.  Neither this nor bags 3 & 4 were completed at a single sitting, so I'm going to have to work out the timings carefully.

Part of the way through bags 2 and I can start to see the basic shape of the car.  Here, the front axle and the steering assembly are taking shape.  At the end of bag 2 there is a clear chassis and both axles are evident.

The engine has also been mounted.  There were a couple of dis-assemble / re-assemble of parts, particularly around the front axles, as I realised that the car did not look symmetrical. Other than that Bags 2 was a straight forward build and gave a good sense of progress.

Lego McLaren MCL35M (2021 Italian GP first and second place) - Bags 1

The kit was given to me by my daughter and son-in-law as a thank you for letting them stay with us while they were between houses.

The full kit

Here it is, unboxed, and ready for assembly to begin. There are 1432 pieces to provide a model car 13 cm high x 65 cm long.

As usual (I've only done a few, but I doubt they differ that much), there are a number of bags, and multiple bags will have the same number.  So I start by opening each bag and putting the small pieces in trays (old take away containers), and arranging the larger pieces, so they are easily found.

The first part to be assembled is the differential:

Differential assembled from the 'bag 1' set

This is a reasonable working model of a differential (no lubricants involved) and allows the wheels to turn at different speeds.

Next it is placed on a frame and some suspension added:

Basic frame holding the differential

 Then the engine is assembled:

Engine added to the differential

The engine has 6 cylinders and pistons that move when it is turned over.  All very impressive as this is all hidden inside the car.  But where is the gear box?

Alabama 2022 - 6 July: More lego

Leaving the hotel, my glasses steamed up, and didn't clear until I got to the top of the ramp.  It is too hot and humid to walk Mauve today.

Today we started the other Lego kit - The Lunar Module.  Here's Robbie with the lower part of the lander.  It's a 16+ build, and some of the parts are very intricate.  I enjoyed the time that Robbie and I spend together.  He is starting to 'see' the build, and assemble pieces before I have read through the instructions.

A large part of the day was spent on the veranda talking with Karen (8+ ft away), watching the birds in the trees, and Mauve eating ice cubes.    In the evening, the humidity seemed to increase again, but the predicted thunderstorm did not arrive.

Later, a lightning bug settled on my forehead, I caught it and watched it crawling across my hand, and lighting up multiple times.

Alabama 2022 - 5 July: Lego Jurassic Park

Karen is still COVID positive, so I am still in the hotel overnight, and we have to meet outside on the veranda.  

This morning, Madelyn and I took Maeve (the dog) for a walk.  Their old hose is just down the road, and Madelyn decided that it had been abandoned.  She really loved that house, despite only living there a short while.

Later, we went shopping and purchased two Lego kits, one of which Robbie and I built later in the day.  It is now displayed on the mantle piece.

It was good to be inside in the air-conditioned house most of the time.

In the evening, I returned to the hotel to find that no-one had cleaned the room - exactly as they had said.  This is another small way to reduce COVID transmission.