Tag Archives: Joe

Sep 14 2026
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Daily Post, Family Member, Portrait

Joe in “The Family of Man”

Sunday 13th September 2026, 12.15pm (day 5,498)

Joe in Family of Man, 13/9/26

“The Family of Man” is a famous photography exhibition featuring more than 500 prints that was first shown in New York in 1955 and toured the world. It is now preserved in Luxembourg because it is the birthplace of the original curator, Edward Steichen and resides in Clervaux Castle in the north of the country (which is not all that far from the capital in the south of the country, this not being a very big place). Well worth a visit, and I am being a little mean to Joe here by using a picture of him yawning: he wants me to note that this is unrepresentative of his actual reaction.

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Sep 10 2026
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Daily Post, Family Member, Portrait

Eurostar collage

Thursday 10th September 2026, 1.25pm (day 5,495)

Eurostar family portrait, 10/9/26

Another railway station — but it’s been a long journey. Either this one is a complete mess or it is an interesting collage taken through the window of the Eurostar as it passed through Lille Europa. We traversed four countries today, with France being the only one which we did not touch soil at some point, but nevertheless, it can provide today’s shot. On the left, Joe, coming on holiday with his old folks for the first time in years. Where we are going, you can find out tomorrow.

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May 12 2026
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Daily Post, Family Member, Portrait

The family

Sunday 10th May 2026, 7.55pm (day 5,372)

Clare and Joe, 10/5/26

There’s something terribly familiar about this scene (and there’s me just noticing that ‘familiar’ and ‘family’ have the same root). Only it doesn’t happen all that much any more: this is Joe’s first appearance on the blog since our Christmas trip to Dundee, and his first in Hebden Bridge since early August. We did spend some time talking to each other, by the way.

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Dec 23 2025
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Daily Post, Family Member, Portrait

Re-engaging with the favourite child

Tuesday 23rd December 2025, 5.30pm (day 5,234)

Joe’s first appearance since — chainsaw in hand — 4th August. It’s Christmas. It’s time to re-engage.

Re: the title. You do understand Joe is our only child, right? Just checking.

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Aug 05 2025
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Daily Post, Hebden Bridge, Urban scene

Putting Joe to work

Monday 4th August 2025, 2.45pm (day 5,093)

Hedge trimming, 4/8/25

Yesterday’s journey home was done with Joe in attendance. Up on the allotment, the hedge needed trimming. A conjunction of child, hedge and the necessary hardware was facilitated. All parties seemed reasonably satisfied with the outcome.

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Jul 12 2025
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Daily Post, Family Member, Portrait

Joe prepares to graduate

Friday 11th July 2025, 1.45pm (day 5,069)

Joe, graduation photo queue, 11/7/25

The photo of Joe (with Clare) on 9/9/2021 was the last one of him taken before he headed north, to Dundee, and his studies at the University of Abertay. 1,391 days later, here he is at the other end — his graduation ceremony. Yes, of course I am a proud parent, how could it be otherwise? We cannot know what his future will bring, but he has made it to this particular transitional point relatively unscathed, at least. Congratulations to him and everyone else from Abertay (it’s a small college and so got through the entirety of its graduations in two ceremonies today: at Manchester there are three ceremonies a day for two whole weeks).

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Jun 12 2025
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Daily Post, Family Member, Portrait

“One day lad, all this will be yours”

Wednesday 11th June 2025, 11.50am (day 5,039)

Doune Castle window, 11/6/25

Joe makes his first appearance on the blog since December. Why this window? Why the post title? This is Doune Castle, and some 51 years ago, in 1974, Michael Palin and Terry Jones were stood by this very window during the filming Monty Python and the Holy Grail; Doune stood in for at least four different castles in the movie. “But mother…..” “Father, lad, father.” “But father….. I don’t want to marry her, I just want to, want to…..” (The ignorant can check out the scene at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3YiPC91QUk)

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Dec 22 2024
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Daily Post, Family Member, Portrait

Joe’s card trick (with risqué deck)

Sunday 22nd December 2024, 3.20pm (day 4,868)

Risqué cards, 22/12/24

Joe — or his hands, anyway — makes his first visit to Hebden Bridge since the summer, and first appearance on the blog since 7th September, demonstrating a rather nifty card trick: I did work out how it was done in the end, but it took some figuring out.

Can we both note that the deck of cards (and they are all like that, more-or-less) in fact belongs to the wife, although she claims I bought it for her….

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Sep 09 2024
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Daily Post, Family Member, Portrait

Meeting Joe halfway

Saturday 7th September 2024, 4.00pm (day 4,762)

Clare and Joe at Heaton Stannington, 7/9/24

With Joe now living in Dundee we have determined that Newcastle is the halfway point between us, geographically. Hence, this weekend, built around an evening out but also (it being me) a trip to a football match and a chance to laze around in the sunshine on the grassy acres of Heaton Stannington FC (a ground which thoroughly deserves the awards it has received for its beer, by the way).

Of course, the title of this blog has non-geographical implications too, as with all parents and their children. And if you saw pictures of me when I was Joe’s age (21) — this shot, particularly, is like looking at a magical mirror that projects one back in time. That’s me, in the summer of 1991, right there. Only with bigger feet.

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Jul 27 2024
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Daily Post, Interior

In the training ring

Friday 26th July 2024, 1.55pm (day 4,719)

Totopoly with Joe, 26/7/24

That faceless mass of hair over there is Joe, down on one of his occasional visits from Dundee. This being the case, an afternoon off work was called and more exciting pursuits engaged in. And Totopoly is a pretty good game, all in all — it keeps up the interest to the end. Number 9 won, by the way — and it was my horse.

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