And now the counting starts ....

. . . but first, some shopping trials ...

Some days, I potter along very productively, getting things done and feeling that I have achieved.  I had high hopes that today was going to be one of those days.  Hmm, perhaps I was being too optimistic ;)  We had planned a shopping trip for a number of items, and all was fine at the first shop - exactly what we wanted, no problem.  Onto the next stop, where I discovered the item I was after wasn't made in the length I required; you didn't get a choice of lengths in the smaller or the biggest sizes.  The item in question is a pair of jeans and I was really pleased to find some that actually have a pretty good fit on me so I went ahead and bought them anyway, using a giftcard I'd been given for my birthday, and I'll just have to take the hems up myself.  OK, we press on.  The haberdashers didn't have any magnetic bag catches, they sold out yesterday *sigh*.  I'll have to go back in next week.  Next shop, and after a lot of deliberation and consultation with the assistant (who was very helpful), I bought what I wanted, some walking socks to replace my very old ones which now have holes in them.  Next up, another birthday gift card (I was spoiled this year) to be spent on some toiletries/cosmetics.  I hadn't got more than 4 steps inside the shop before I was accosted by the assistant who bombarded me with questions as to what I wanted.  Now, if I have to go shopping, and it's not my favourite pastime, I like to do it on my terms.  If I want help, I will ask for it.  Needless to say, I did not buy what I intended to, indeed I walked out without buying anything.

Back home, and I spent some time outside trying to finish off a gardening task that has been hanging around for a while.  It should have been straightforward  but, as so often happens, it was being anything but, and it's still not completed.  It did seem to be one of those days.

I decided, late this afternoon, that I ought to try on the walking socks I bought.  First pair fit beautifully and are really comfy.  Second pair are about 2 inches too long in the foot.  They are a completely different size, maybe mens 9-11, not ladies 4-7.  I am not happy.  Not at all.  Back in the car, back into town, back to the shop.  Grrr!  The assistant agreed that the socks were not the size stated and found me an alternative.  I now have a second pair of socks of the style I wanted, in a size that fits.  Hurrah!  

Today was also election day.  I dutifully toddled off bright and early to cast my vote - votes for women were very hard fought for (and, indeed, died for), so I feel it is important to use mine.  My daughter is being a polling clerk in her local constituency today, and at the 1997 election, I was a counter of ballot papers after the polling stations had closed.  It was a fascinating opportunity, but I was surprised just how nerve-wracking it was.  I think it made me aware, possibly for the first time, that elections are a serious business, regardless of personal politics. I remember feeling a real sense of duty, and when there are party agents prowling around the counting tables, demanding you recount the papers because they think you got it wrong, it can actually be a bit scary. (I didn't count incorrectly, and they knew I hadn't, but they just wanted to unnerve me.)  We will probably stay up for some of the results, and I will be thinking of all the people working through the night to get the results in.  And I shall sympathise with any constituency that faces a re-count!

Progress and plans in the garden

The Long Border (which sounds rather grander than it is in reality) has at last been planted with an assortment of shrubs, perennials and cuttings we have either been given or have moved from other locations in the garden.  Clumps of grape hyacinths (muscari) have been dug up, split and redistributed - they are obliging bulbs and should be OK about being moved just as they are about to flower.  I've also got my fingers crossed over the shrubs we transplanted, they were well fed and watered in so I'm hoping for the best.  There are still gaps to be filled but at least it's a start.

New growth at the base of the climbing rose we pruned back recently

N has also dug out a new bed for the beans, and repaired the garden bench which has seen better days but with a little spruce-up will certainly do for another couple of years.  As we've been working in the garden, sizing up shrubs and discovering plants hidden by others, we have finally been able to see what to do with the front 'garden'.  It had been a real problem area for us and for a long time we just couldn't envisage any planting plan for it at all, but gradually over the last week or so ideas took shape and we now have come up with a solution which we think will be the compromise we have been looking for.  

There are seedlings germinating everywhere and N has been kept busy potting on - and checking we have sufficient larger pots for growing veggies outside and in the greenhouse.  

One of the charity shops in town had a £1 sale on this week and I managed to buy two jackets which I'm really pleased with.  A wash and iron, a couple of buttons re-sewn - they've come up well and will be very useful additions to the wardrobe.

We're off to London for the day tomorrow, meeting up with children, celebrating a birthday and hearing everyone's news.  And with a surprise in store for someone, there should be plenty of photo opportunities, too.  Looking forward to a great day out.

Twiddling my thumbs

Note: This was yesterday's post which ended up in Drafts by mistake - another keypad malfunction ;)

I'm suffering withdrawal symptoms at the moment - I've had to dismantle the sewing table and put the machine away.  I've got a box of half-finished projects to complete, and a thousand and one crafty ideas I want to try (I'm making more lists).  And I've had to pack the sewing room away, even if it is only temporarily.  I'm trying to make do by selecting fabric and notions for some of the projects, and sketching ideas for others (always on the backs of used envelopes - what else would I use?)  

Over the past two or three months I have come to realise just how important a space to sew/craft/make things is to both N and myself, especially now we are not at work.  We each have a creative side which needs to be nurtured and given an outlet, and for that we really would benefit from a dedicated space or area that we could each make our own.  I think we both know that it is one of the reasons a slightly bigger home would be so appreciated, if it was to happen.  We will continue to wait, as patiently as we are able, and perhaps the right place will turn up at the right time for us.

I love browsing in charity (thrift/goodwill) shops, of which we have a good number in our local town.  It is amazing what little gems you can pick up if you have a good look.  These three items found their way into our kitchen recently - a glass jelly mould, a wonderful glass jug originally for cider but now holding olive oil, and a mug with ducks on it which caught N's eye.  We always have a good look around the 'shop' at the donation centre we volunteer at (should we eventually move, I'll be on the look-out for some furniture from there), and have donated larger items there in the past.  It's always busy with people looking for interesting or unusual (or old!) pieces.  

This is a bag of rags I bought last week.  It is all clothes/linens etc which for one reason or another cannot be sold in the shops (marked, stained, too worn).  It is bagged up and sold to someone who then sells them on for rags.  I paid the going rate for my bag.  When we got home and sorted through I found I had off-cuts of brand-new Christmas fabric; a pure cotton double duvet (just a couple of ink marks which I shall try to bleach out) just pleading for some applique; a pile of old towels which N wants/needs for DIY and gardening duty; another single duvet cover with a few marks but plenty of fabric to be used for clothing, and three men's shirts, one of which N has grabbed (it's just a little faded along the hem) and the other two I shall repurpose to clothes for me.  None of these items would have gone for sale in the shops because of marks or wear and tear, and I have been more than happy to make a donation to the charity, and come away with a bag of goodies I can put to great use.

I must mention I have a new mobile phone.  I've finally gone onto a contract, having been pay-as-you-go for years, but it has got ridiculously expensive to send texts now so  I've taken the plunge with a contract (very cheap and cheerful but lots of text time).  So I have been trying to let my 'contacts' know I have a new number.  My son sent me a text by return informing me the text I sent him has to be the 'best text ever' - I think he may be referring to my spelling; the new phone made me do it, honest!

Spuds, and knitting

Earlier this year we bought a 25kg bags of locally-grown potatoes that saw us through till our own crops were ready.  Yesterday we bought another bag of local spuds as we have now finished all our home-grown ones.  

The variety is Marfona, and we have tried them mashed, and very tasty they are.  We have no objection to the fact they come with a fair amount of good honest Island soil still attached to them!  We paid £6.95 for the bag; it works out at about 28p/kg which is a lot less than we would pay in the supermarket.  The bag should keep us going for quite some time.

It's been a bit wet here for the last couple of days, not a light drizzle but more of a steady downpour.  However it cleared up briefly this afternoon and I managed to get out for a brisk walk for an hour or so.  I'd been getting a bit 'cooped up' indoors and really enjoyed the fresh air - two and a half miles round the town was just right.  It may be urban walking, but there's usually something of interest that catches my attention - this afternoon it was an old-fashioned drop-leaf writing bureau in a second-hand shop that warranted a second look.  I didn't take my purse so I wasn't tempted to spend, but I may take N to show him as we are thinking of a new desk in the bedroom.  On the subject of furniture, we retrieved a dismantled cupboard from the loft this morning, and N put it together to try it out in stead of the very dark unit the TV currently sits on.  We were both amazed at how well the cupboard fits in; it's made that corner look much lighter.  With the added bonus of much needed storage space, we can hopefully now find a permenant home for some paperwork.  N wants to give the cupboard a bit of a spruce up over the next few days and then we can start moving things into it.

I have finally started knitting a jumper for N with the beautiful North Ronaldsay wool we bought on our trip to Orkney last May.  I think it may prove to be a challenge ;-).   I have spent quite a bit of time on the internet researching traditional gansey jumpers to reflect this very special wool.  The traditional fishermen's jumper  is usually knitted in very fine wool on fine needles and showcases wonderful intricate and very traditional patterning.  The wool we have is aran weight and after much consideration N has decided he is happy with a much plainer design, letting the wool itself carry the jumper.  I don't have a written pattern as such, so I'm 'winging' it just a little, using another jumper for sizing, and information I have gleaned from various websites on shaping etc.  I have worked a tension square to determine my gauge (which rather inconveniently seems to fall between two options) and have had the calculator out to work out the number of stitches.  To date I have cast on with 4mm and 4.5mm needles, and various number of stitches, all of which have been unpicked with growing frustation!   I took a break for a while, started afresh with 5mm needles and a different number of stitches, and it all seems to be going a lot better.  I was advised by the lady who sold us the wool to knit the body of the jumper 'in the round', something I've not tried before, so I'm looking forward to tackling that and hopefully becoming competent in a new technique - I did look up a couple of videos for advice on YouTube.  Hopefully I shall have some photos of knitting progress soon.

Not much is growing in the greenhouse at present, except this apple seedling (the other only has two leaves, although it does still seem to be alive), and the four lavender cutting I took at the end of summer.  I check on them every so often and hopefully they can all be successfully nurtured through the winter.

Depending on the weather tomorrow morning, we may be supporting the U9s football, or we may be curled up on the settee with a good book (him) and knitting (me)!  It's screen-free Sunday and I shall try to be good.

Hot weather, visitors and barbeques

The days seem to have passed by in a bit of a blur, the weekend came and went and the new week is under way.  Lots of photos taken, but no time to blog.  So, a quick re-cap ...

The hospital stay was thankfully short - in on Wednesday and out on Friday, having been dosed up with i/v antibiotics to deal with the infection.  However, the bed did have a very good view of the helipad, so that was something of a pleasant distraction!

The hot weather has continued.  Phew, has it been warm!  We've taken to saving all shower water, and some water used in the kitchen, for the garden - we've progressed from a bucket in the kitchen to a plastic garden-trug in the bathroom!  Needs must, we think, and it has certainly helped the plants get through this dry spell.

We had a lovely time with my son over the weekend, lots of catching up over some cold beers.  Wedding plans, his new job which starts next week, and his attempts at gardening - he has reluctant green fingers at the moment, but I have assured him he will 'get' gardening in due course!  He was able to try out the new bed we have sorted out for the spare bedroom, and reports that it was very comfortable indeed.  Good news.  

Wooden slatted bed-frame with lots of storage space underneath - always very useful

The wooden bed-frame cost us £20 at the local hospice furniture store - it was just what we were looking for and helped a very good cause in the process.  We did splash out on a new mattress, although it was half-price, possibly slight seconds as some of the threads had come undone on the fabric cover.  However, a few minutes patiently weaving the loose threads back through with the assistance of a crochet hook, and you couldn't tell the difference.   

We've been watching the young birds in the gardens recently.  They are still in their juvenile plumage and it is a bit confusing.

Young starling with brown feathers.  In time it will get the shiny irridescent black/blue plumage as an adult.

Young blackbird.  It's quite speckled, and I mistook it for a thrush when I first saw it.

In the garden, everything is growing well.  We've had more peas but sadly the beans we harvested were very stringy and we had to put them in the compost bin.  We think it must be the lack of rain in the growing season (which is annoying when we remember how wet it was earlier this year) as our neighbour's beans are looking a bit thin and weedy too.

In the greenhouse the tomatoes are filling out and it's looking like a good crop.  Poor N suffers every evening he goes in there to water, as the plants aggravate his hayfever, so he's sniffling and sneezing.  Hopefully it should only last another couple of weeks; he's been quite bad this year, especially with the hot weather.

The courgettes are also doing well, and we've cropped a couple already.  And the potatoes N dug up over the weekend were delicious.

Finally, the antirhinums (snap-dragons) have flowered.

N is very proud of these annuals.  We got a packet of seeds free with a box of cereal in the spring, and N sowed the seeds and potted them on, not really expecting much to happen.  So he was pleasantly surprised when all 36 seedings grew on.  They were duly planted out, spent several weeks looking a bit spindly, then all of a sudden took off and have rewarded N by flowering - it the pinky-red flower in the centre of the picture above.  We both remember snap-dragons in the gardens of our childhood - if you pinch the flowers, they 'snap' open.

We had a lovely barbeque with all our neighbours from the flats yesterday afternoon and evening.  Lots of good food, drink and very pleasant company.  

As I was busy typing this post this evening, I noticed the houses outside my window just catching the light of the setting sun.  The picture is taken from the bathroom; by perching somewhat precariously on the edge of the bath, and opening the window as far as it will go, and leaning out .... what I will do to get a photo ;)