While out walking the little doggie I noticed there is an unusually abundant crop of wild raspberries this year. In recent years I’ve seen the plants there, but the berries have only had 3-5 bits on (hope that makes sense).
This year however:
Having dropped the LD back into the garden I dived in the hedge just up the road to get me some breakfast:
They made a great smoothie with oats, milk and a banana 
For the last 2 years I’ve rented a small area of land (referred to here as The Plot) on a kind of allotment agreement from one of the local estates.
It’s a good size for veg growing, 20m x 20m, but I’ve never been quite comfortable with the agreement. I’m not sure if this is because it’s expensive for an allotment (and there’s no water or shelter there), if it’s because I’m certain the only other person with a veg patch there is paying less because the estate manager thinks I earn shed loads more than him (I’m sure I don’t – probably much the same), if it’s because I think the estate manager is a slimy git who thinks he’s funny, if it’s because I have to drive there most times I go (even though it’s less than a mile away – can’t carry loads of plants or the brush cutter on my bike), if it’s because half my time is spent clearing the strip between my plot and the adjoining empty plot of weeds (today 2 meters high x 1 meter wide x 20+ meters long) because the lads who rotivate the vacant plot can’t be bothered to do it properly, or if it’s because I’ve been trying to adopt a more peracultural approach to my veg growing over the last 5 years.
But anyway, having discussed this with the OH this afternoon, we’ve agreed to try and create a bit more space at home to grow veg. I have a small PT, and 4 small beds, but that’s not enough to grow most of our veg (and that’s the aim), but we have a few other options.
Watch this space
2 new additions and a new Harry Potter.
I wonder which is the most important in this house?
The 2 new arrivals – Greedy and Speedy (no, now their real names, but appropriate none the less) appear to be settling in well
Here are some of things I have learned about kittens already:
They’re tiring to watch
They’re uncontainable – no matter how well you think you’ve kitten-proofed an area you’ll still see a tail disappearing round the back of something on top of an eight foot bookshelf
Their poo smells exactly the same as their food - and boy does it linger!
They’re good at carding wool – well it’ll save me a job. Now if I can just stop them trying to felt it too
They’re so nosey
“Can I ask why?”
Because I don’t use it
“Do you use any others?”
Yes
“Please hold and I’ll put you though to the right department”
“Good morning Mrs XYZ, I understand you’d like to cancel your credit card”
Yes please
“Can I ask why?”
Because I don’t use it
“Do you use any other cards?”
Yes
“Can I ask which?”
No
“Do you pay it off in full or part each month?”
I’d like to cancel my credit card please
“Because we offer great offers to our existing customers for balance transfers – usually every 3 to 4 months”
[THINKS: no you don't - you have never offered one to me]
I’d like to cancel my credit card please
“As you’re a valued customer we can increase your credit limit”
[THINKS: No I'm not - you've not actually earned a single penny from me]
I’d like to cancel my credit card please
“A lot of other cards are thinking about bringing in and annual charge for cards. Here at [We Don't Listen To Our Customers Ever] we’d like to assure you that we’ll not do that for existing customers”
I’d like to cancel my credit card please
“That’s not a problem, I’ll just sort that for you. There. You’ll receive conformation by post shortly”
I had a very similar conversation with a breakdown recovery company the other day.
This morning started off pretty normally – tea, let the hens out, walk the dog etc.
I then went to clean the coop out (not exactly unusual). Opened the door, walked down the path to the shed, unlocked it, got the spade and brush and fresh bedding, walked back towards coop. Then I was stopped in my tracks. “Where’s that very large rock in the middle of the path come from?”
I looked at the recently weeded raspberry bed thinking “I don’t remember having moved it out of there”. Then thought “Well I did have to shift some rather large rocks when I put the polytunnel up, but that was a year and a half ago – even I wouldn’t have left one in the middle of the path for that long”.
Then I looked a little more to my right and saw the bloody great hole in the wall!
There were no signs of a collision, so all I can think is that a combination of old wall, lorries and tractors rumbling up the road and all that rain we’ve had recently had conspired to make the thing just fall down in the middle of the night.
I hadn’t seen the gapping hole and huge pile of rubble on the way to the shed, but it must have been there! Even when the chickens started very excitedly using it as and assault course/bridge to freedom I hadn’t noticed it.
In my defence, it was early, I was tired and I was thinking about cleaning the coop and not getting my eye poked out by the overhanging plum tree (laden with fruit and last night’s rain).
