For Alma......

I was up and out earlier than usual but wanted to get to Trentham before the crowds and while it was cooler. I knew what I would be photographing too. A flower for a lady I'd never met, Alma, but wanted to remember today as we'd had a few exchanges on blip from the very first photo I'd blipped. In fact she was the very first person to welcome me here. I'm sure she would have loved having all these flowers sent to her. And hoping our small tributes bring some comfort to Biker Bear her daughter and fellow blipper.

It was a beautiful morning and I had a couple of hours to wander before my coffee and toast. Things are starting to come to life and this photo was the one that summed up Trentham Gardens for me today. A new flower emerging (Astrantia) and the bees responding to that.

This evening we went off to the second Stoke Literary Festival held at Emma Bridgewater's pottery factory in Hanley. We went to see Michael Palin take us through 25 years of travelling and Alan Johnson talk about his early life and how he became a politician. Both great talks but very different subjects.