Meme - It's all about ME

One of my loyal readers, Saz has tagged me to post a Meme entry. Saz herself was tagged by another one of my new readers A Slice of Life. I guess this means that this entry is all about me.

Five items in my freezer:

1. cranberries - I can only find them in UK supermarkets in November and December so I freeze a few so I can have them on hand if I need cranberries for any baking.
2. Ice cream - vanilla
3. Linda McCartney Deep Country Pies - The Man of the Place is a vegetarian so there is very little meat around. I'm not a vegetarian, but I cook for one every day. These are pretty good when I can't be bothered to cook properly.
4. fish fingers/fish sticks - great for lunchtime fish finger sandwiches!
5. Limoncello! The yummiest summer liqueur ever!

Five items in the closet:

1. clean sheets and pillow cases - there is one closet in our house and it doubles as the linen closet.
2. hiking boots
3. an old wooden crate that I have used as a night stand since childhood until this past Christmas - it now holds shoes
4. His clothes
5. My clothes

Five items in my car:

1. phone charger
2. plastic spoons in the glove box - you never know when you'll need a spoon for ice cream
3. a box of business cards
4. promotional material for the products I promote - takes up most of the room in the boot/trunk
5. diving weight belt with about 8 kilos of lead weight on it - just haven't moved it out of the car yet

Five items in my backpack:

How about I just tell you what’s in my handbag? The backpack is empty and hanging limply in the hallway, waiting for the next vacation.

1. Wallet
2. phone
3. lipstick
4. hand mirror
5. headache tablets

It seemed that every year, my handbags got bigger and full of more junk. One day I just decided not to carry a handbag anymore. It was very liberating. I discovered that all the stuff in my handbag was really not needed. When I went back to carrying a handbag, it was much smaller.

Five people I tag:

Xtreme English - Does Mom know five other bloggers?
Squeaky Days - Will force her to make another blog entry :-)
Bird Woman - because I think she's a potential pal and I'd like to know her better
RuPaul - because he is tapped into a mother lode of cool - probably won't take part
J-Funk - She rocks!

Safe from my brother

This beautiful Drinker moth [Philudoria potatoria] was in our bath tub this afternoon. Who needs a moth trap when nobody will shut the lights off at night?

It is really hard to photograph a brown moth in a white bathtub. Thankfully this moth stayed still for ages while H and I took blurred picture after picture. This effort is the least blurry. I was taking photos that were perfectly in focus on the screen of the digital camera, but when I clicked the shutter, the photo was terribly blurred. Blasted digital cameras! The Man of the Place, who has a fancy qualification in photography from somewhere in Birmingham had to come and help me. Thanks H.

same moth on my jacket - flapping its wings

Note: Another moth this morning in the bathroom. This beautiful Silver Y [Autographa gamma] I had a bit of a triumph photographing this one. The picture was in focus the first time!

Thankfully my brother wasn't around. He would have just eaten him.

Bugs (not for the squeamish)

This is high season for flying insects here at Whitelees. This week the crane fly has started coming in to the house at night in their flappy hoards. We have been known to suck up to 30 crane flies with the vacuum cleaner in the front room in an evening.

They don't sting or bite and they look like giant mosquitoes. The local name for them is Daddy Longlegs. For me a Daddy Longlegs is a spider. We would find numerous Daddy Longlegs crawling across our tent when we're camping. I have seen a couple of these over here in Scotland, but not nearly as many as back in the Midwest when camping.

Speaking of spiders, there are more of those too. When the flying insect numbers increase it is only natural for the things that eat the flying insects to show up. I like the shadow that I got with this spider photograph. This guy is on the ceiling of our bedroom. It looks to be some sort of crab spider. Good thing I don't sleep with my mouth open. :-)

I'm not really that afraid of spiders. I just don't want them on me. I had a huge one climb onto my hand while I was riding my bike earlier in the week. It looked for all the world like a really fat Black Widow but I know that those aren't found in Scotland. It must have been hiding on my bike in its dry insect filled storage area. Naturally, I screamed while shaking the spider off the back of my hand. (shudder!) If it had the sense to stay on my bicycle, I would have stopped and had a good look at it before flicking it off into the weeds.

When the crane flies show up in August I am always reminded of other bugs that used to show up in other houses I have lived.

When we lived in Bismarck, North Dakota we had loads of box elder bugs. I also had box elder bugs on my house in Iowa City. They came in their thousands at the end of the summer. Again, thankfully they don't bite. They just get on you. You would find big lumps of the bugs on the warm side of the house. They'd crawl through any crack into the house and just make themselves a nuisance. They also will look like a cock roach if you don't have your glasses on. Thankfully you don't have to purchase poison to get rid of them. Soapy water does just fine. I could be found in the autumn, squirting the south side of my house with soapy water and standing back as big clumps of box elder bugs fall off the siding.

According to my mother, my sisters and I used to eat these when we were tiny tots and didn't know any better. We used to sit on the porch, picking up "boogs" with our thumb and index finger and popping them into our mouths. She stopped us when she saw us doing this, but the fact remains that we ate them.

My brother Tom never ate box elder bugs. He ate moths, the big powdery ones called miller moths. I remember this very clearly. It was before he could walk. As he prowled the living room on his hands and knees, he would actually hunt for these moths and eat them. More than once, I'd find Mom fishing another moth out of Tom's mouth. He seemed to really like them and would be upset if Mom stopped him. It was because of Tom's genuine desire to eat these moths, out of curiosity my mother actually tried one once. Yuck! I thank God that none of my own children ever ate bugs.

Friday Evening

There is something about a Friday evening. It almost demands celebrating. Fellow bloggers have regular Friday features that I now look forward to viewing.

I am enjoying a glass of the above wine and gearing up for a Saturday full of Saturday-type activities. It was the last glass in the bottle. Fear not, I've got this bottle's twin in the fridge if subsequent glasses are required.
The big news is that over the weekend, the hole is getting knocked through into the extension.

This window is where the door to the extension will be. George said, "this time next year we will say remember when that door used to be a window". He's right. This time next year, we won't be able to remember what it looked like before the doorway was knocked through and old photographs (taken now) will have us being yanked back in time when the window was there.

I have boxed up all the books and ornaments from this front room. Tomorrow morning all those boxes will have to go up the ladder to the loft.

I think I'll have that next glass of wine now. . . .

Great Shirt

For my birthday, I was sent this FANTASTIC cowgirl, Dale Evans style shirt by my dear mom.

She has always been very good at giving great presents. I believe that it is her insider knowledge of my personal tastes and her own excellent taste that make her so great at giving gifts.

I can't wait until the weather cools down enough for me to wear a long sleeved black shirt. (compensation for loss of good weather) I also wish I could wear it to work. I may do that anyway, under a suit jacket. I already have black cowboy boots so when the time comes, the right footwear won't be a problem.

One of the regrets of my life is that I never made it to be a country n western star - or a rock chick. At least I can get the clothes.

Scarily Accurate

Which Peanuts character are you?

It turns out that I am Lucy.

I didn't think I was a Lucy type, but then I read the bit next to the picture. Ouch! That was a bit close to home.

My response to that can only be: Power to My Kind!

We've Got Rain

It had actually been a while since it has rained here. We had a few sprinkles but it was only enough to "cut the dust". I made a point of not complaining about the heat and lack of rain. Now that it has arrived, it is very welcome. I am afraid that this rain may mark the end of summer for us. It might not get warm again.

I have decided that I should choose one kind of weather to complain about and stick with that. I will only complain about too much rain and cold. When we have warm weather, I know that it is only here for such a short time and then it's right back to rain again. I love warm weather. I don't even care if it turns into hot weather. Yes you sweat, yes you have to water things outside regularly and you can't be bothered to cook because the oven will heat up the kitchen but the warm weather never lasts nearly as long as the cold weather. You will never hear one word of complaint from me about warm weather. In fact, here's a decree: From this day forward, if anybody hears me speak one word of complaint about hot weather, I'll give them a dollar. Here in the UK you would get a pound as I don't carry dollars with me. (That's worth about $1.78 today!) I know that I will not be handing out dollars or pounds because I will never complain about hot weather.

Some old farms back home have a summer kitchen. A place away from the main farm house where the farm wife could do all the boiling that is required when you "put things up" for the winter. Preserving the bounty from the vegetable garden into big glass jars is hot work. It makes sense to do all that away from the main house so that the place doesn't get overbearingly hot. Now I guess somebody just turns on the air conditioner and bingo, no more summer kitchens.

I could do that if I had time. I often make a bit of jam but for the most part, I'm too busy to boil garden produce in preserving jars or scald beans for the freezer. Its a shame because I like that work. I've got a recipe somewhere from my Aunt Joyce for her bread and butter pickles. I could eat a whole jar of those things in one sitting. They're great! I just wish I had the time to make them.

I feel bad for all my friends and family back in the Midwest who are sweltering. Know that I am sending you cool rainy thoughts. Because you can't see thoughts, here is a photo of one of my roses.

I'll be Your Waiter This Evening

I like good food. I like a chef that understands his/her ingredients. Sadly, we're not wealthy. Places that have a chef that will prepare things properly, buying in whole ingredients, making his own sauces are usually well outside our price range. We have to go to much more modest places.

One of the places that we can afford is a wonderful little Thai restaurant up in the hills outside Dumfries. Its a charming place and there isn't a dish served that hasn't been prepared from actual ingredients. No dried packets or jars of sauce will be found in this pantry. Nothing is thawed out or microwaved to order here. Out in the back, by the bins you will see the cardboard boxes from the produce delivery stacked and waiting collection.

The way this Thai restaurant started is a charming story. The restaurant started out as a local village pub. Nothing spectacular about it. Almost every village has a pub like it. These local pubs will invariably have a pub menu. Simple easy to prepare (thaw and fry) food that will fill you up and/or line your stomach so you can continue drinking.

The owner of the pub went on a holiday to Thailand. When he came back, he had a wife. This is not an unusual occurrence in Thailand. Thai brides are a big export. When she arrived in Scotland, to keep from being bored out of her skull she asked if she could put a few Thai dishes on the end of the pub menu. This was a big success. Our Thai bride got an entire page of Thai dishes onto the menu.

Next, a back room of the pub was dedicated as a Thai restaurant. It was adjacent to the pub but it was a proper separate business with its own menu. The pub menu was reduced to a back page on the menu of the new Thai Orchid. It was very popular. Henry and I discovered the place at this point. You really had to book ahead if you wanted to get a table there. The couple in addition to creating this new restaurant on the side of the pub also had a baby, a pretty little girl.

A couple of years ago they made a few more changes, expanding the restaurant, knocking a wall through and adding a back room. The original village pub is no longer recognisable. It is now all the Thai Orchid. There is still a bar, but it is stuck out in the new back room. A second baby was added too. This time a little boy. They have also become a chain. They bought a little place in Dumfries. A great place to go for a special lunch when you're in town.

George is a fool for their fishcakes and noodles. Henry loves the soups. I try something new each time I go there. Unlike The Man of the Place, I am not bound by the constraints of being a vegetarian. I have yet to be disappointed. We love how the food is presented. Somebody spends hours carving delicate flowers from carrots, parsnips and radishes and one of these decorations is placed on each entree. The old pub menu is still available. It has to stay there for the locals. This is the only place to eat for miles around. Some of the old farmers and their wives just can't be doing with foreign food. They just want plain meat and potatoes, perhaps a bit of fried fish.

The service is either by our friend the Thai bride, a member of her family that is visiting from Thailand or some sweet faced local girl. The local girls are so charming and unsophisticated that they are always forgiven for little blunders. They do try to do well and that goes a long way. A few years ago when I ordered a glass of chardonnay, I was asked by the apple cheeked waitress if I wanted the red or the white chardonnay. I smiled sweetly and said that I would like the white chardonnay if you please.

I was thinking about the different styles of service that one receives in restaurants here and in the US. I really marvel at French and Italian waiters. They have mastered the art of hovering without being at your elbow. It will be noticed that you have stopped eating or conversation has ceased and will materialize at your table to see what you need. They are confident enough in the food that they serve that they will not interrupt you five minutes after the food is served to check that you like it. They also don't tell me their name. I know that it is policy in restaurants in the US for the wait staff to introduce themselves, but I don't really require an introduction. I know what they do for a living, they are working in a restaurant and I know this will sound crabby, but I don't care what their names are.

Bad service is unforgivable. I think everybody has a horror story or two of bad waiters and waitresses. I remember in a pizza place we stumbled into one winter's night after a movie. We actually stood up and waved our menus over our heads in order for somebody to come over and take our order. We would have gone somewhere else, but the small child we had with us was immovable. Unsurprisingly this pizza place is no longer in business.

De-tasseling

When I was a teenager in Iowa one of the rites of passage was the summer job de-tasseling corn. I did that for a couple of summers until I was old enough (16) to get a job that wasn't out in the fields. Detasseling is hard work but you won't get a better paying job when you're 14.

I am always reminded of the summers I spent in the fields when ever I see a field of corn.

Detasseling is part of the process of making hybrid seed. A seed company will plant two rows of variety A and six rows of variety B. We detasselers would walk down the six rows of variety B and pull off all the pollen tassels (pictured above) . This way all the corn will be pollinated by variety A and a hybrid is formed.

What we had to eat in our lunch wasn't very important. It was usually some sandwich that would get partially crushed before lunch. More important was what we brought to drink. Sally and I used to pack our lunch and make up our drinks the night before. Lemonade was best. We put our chosen drink in a clean plastic gallon milk jug and popped it into the freezer. In the morning it would be frozen solid. I can't remember if the two of us shared a gallon jug or if we each had our own. I think it would have made more sense to have our own.

We had to get up very early to walk with our lunch and drinks to the pick-up point. A big yellow school bus, usually a really old one, would collect us at the pick-up point and after it had hit all the pick-up points, the bus drove us out to the fields. Always being so sleepy at this part in the proceedings, I hardly remember being picked up or waiting for the buses.

The fields were cool in the morning and the stalks of corn would be damp with dew. A long sleeved shirt protected you a bit from the chill. There would be a quick morning break. During the morning break a little bit of the frozen lemonade would have thawed. Enough to give us a drink before we started working again.

Generally after the first break, the dew will have gone. The long sleeved shirt can be tied around your waist and you can work away in your shorts and swimming suit top. I do remember wearing those baseball style caps that the seed corn companies we were working for handed out. I don't remember wearing any sunscreen at all. I was very cavalier with my skin back then.

The company that we always worked for was Pioneer Seed Corn. My theory was that the infinity symbol on the company logo represented the length of the corn rows. They had HUGE fields. It took so long to reach the end of them. Sometimes we'd just get down one row and it would be break time. A second row, going back brought us near to our starting point and lunch time.

At lunchtime, the gallon of frozen lemonade would be mostly thawed leaving a little for the end of the day. After lunch the long sleeved shirt went back on to protect your skin from the worst of the sun's rays. It would get very hot out there. With the corn surrounding us any cooling breeze was deflected by the tall corn. Towards the end of the detasseling season, some pollen would be out and flying. It would stick to our sweaty skin and itch.

By the late afternoon we were finished. That last little drop in the gallon jug had melted in the summer heat and was warm. Looking back now it was probably good that the last drink wasn't chilled. We were often overheated by this time.

After the bus had dropped us off and we had dumped our stuff at the house we would make straight for the town's swimming pool. A cooling afternoon dip in the pool was exactly what was needed. I don't think I have had a more refreshing swim since.

It is no wonder I used to eat like a horse. Working in the fields, then walking to the pool and swimming. That's a lot of physical activity.

As hard as that it, I think perhaps walking beans is worse. Walking beans is where you walk down rows of soya beans with a very sharp "corn knife". I found a picture of one under Bean Hook. The inside curve is sharpened to cut like a scalpel. The flat bit on the outside curve is sharp too. It is used to hook and slice carry over corn that has popped up in a newly planted soya bean field. It will go right through the sole of your shoe if you accidentally step on it.

When walking beans, the sun beats down on you from early morning and you can't wear shorts. I tried wearing shorts the first day. I discovered that the bean leaves brushing against your legs starts out being unpleasant and before you get half way down one row, begins to hurt. You then have to get back to the end of the row where your jeans were. Not an experience you ever wish to repeat. You wear your trousers while walking beans.

This sort of work builds character. Because I had these hard manual labour type jobs as a teenager, I now have loads of character. I also have a dodgy shoulder that still hurts if I move it wrong.

Summer of 65

Here is a photo of two sweet little girls visiting their grandma and grandpa. The one being held by Grandpa is my sister Sally. Grandma is holding me. I must have been about three and Sally, two. Katie and Tom weren't born yet. Katie comes along just after the following Christmas. Tom comes in later when I am seven.

Our parents had driven all the way from North Dakota to Northern Wisconsin for this visit. I can only imagine what that long journey was like with two lively tots and NO car seats. Those boiler suits/coveralls must have been very practical.

This was the Grandma that had the cookie jar that was never empty. She would bake chocolate chip cookies all the time when we weren't there and freeze them in old bread bags. When the hoards of grandchildren arrived, she would just go to the basement and get another bag of cookies to put upstairs in the cookie jar. We got very good at taking cookies without the jar lid making a sound. Sally has that cookie jar now and makes cookies JUST like Grandma.

Grandpa died when we were very young. I don't think Tom was born yet. He had the only reclining chair I had ever seen. He used to let us sit on his lap and the recline the chair waaaay back. I remember squealing with laughter when we got a ride in the chair. (didn't take much to thrill us back then)

This faded photograph was taken that same day. Me and Grandma. Its a shame it is faded and damaged because I love it so. Both of these photos are actually framed up and on the wall. They were taken down to be scanned for inclusion in this blog. I remember the aluminium cups they had very well. My favourite was the blue one.

As these photos are obviously taken during high summer, it could have very well been my birthday. Just like today.

Where I've Been So Far

I found this great site. You can mark up a map of the world and a little map is created. The US States are all lumped together are all Canadian provinces. That covers most of North America, especially if you've been to Tijuana and can tick the box marked Mexico.

It does seem that I concentrate on countries that border the Mediterannean. There is a reason for that. They're fabulous!

I have made one little foray down to the Southern Hemisphere. I must say that it threw my sense of direction all to hell. I was just starting to get used to it when it was time to fly home. South Africa was great for the bird watching life list amongst other things.

There are some compelling reasons to visit Australia and New Zealand soon. Henry has a cousin and an aged aunt in Brisbane and we have some friends that have moved to New Zealand's south island. As far as ticking places on the map, then we could then add in Dubai or Singapore as they are the two most used places to refuel.

George and I are setting out our stall in a campaign for a holiday in France next year. We haven't been there as a family for a number of years and I miss France. However, we could be persuaded to go to Italy instead of France next summer.

This is all in the pre-planning stage. With the extension still chugging along we may not be able to afford to go anywhere.

I love to travel. I love airports and getting stamps in my passport. I enjoy packing and seeing how little I can take and still be comfortable. Now that I've been home for over 10 days, I'm ready to go again.

Summertime

It might actually be my favourite time of year. The sneezing is passed and I always lose weight in the summer. We can keep the doors and windows open. Fruit comes into season and is not only dee-lish, it costs less too! There are flowers and vegetables in the garden. All is right with the world. When the weather is nice, this place is paradise! We're not the only ones that know this. The summer people have arrived. Up here in the north, there are loads of holiday caravans and cottages. This time of year, the get booked up with people from The South. They're clogging the supermarkets and grizzling because their favourite brand of olive oil isn't on the shelves and they can't find that anywhere sells sun-dried tomatoes. So they stock up on white bread and ice cream and go give our community it's summer injection of cash. We're having a barbeque tonight. George is in charge of getting the coals ready. I'm in charge of everything else and H is working away on the extension. This is The Man of the Place beavering away while I cook dinner and take photos. Please note the new plaster in our extension. It was put on the walls while we were away. Now we can start to think about paint colours. The colour that is second from the right is the current favourite. The third from the left seemed nice, but is almost the same colour as the plaster!

George came with me on the trip to the supermarket this afternoon after work. Its funny how I always spend a bit more when I take a boy with me. Marshmallows seem to feature into the reason for the increased amount at the check out.

The chickens are moulting now. Moulting - sounds a lot like moulding. It makes them look a bit unkempt. The new feathers are great though. They're shiny and un-sunbleached like the old feathers are. I'm just glad that the chickens are going through this NOW. They were always late moulters before. Maybe they'll finish their moult and go back to laying more eggs. They slow down or stop laying when they are in the business of growing new feathers.

14th Anniversary

The Man of the Place and I are celebrating 14 years of marriage today. We got married at Hickory Hill Park in Iowa City. We rented out the pavilion in the park, had Hy-Vee cater a picnic and invited a few friends and family. It was a bit one sided on the friends and family front. All Henry's family and friends were in England and couldn't make it over.

It was a busy week for us, getting married, I had a birthday and then me and my boys moved to a new country to start a new life here in the UK.

My Dad

A lot of my family photos were damaged in a fire. The few that I have tend to be damaged so they live in an envelope up in the loft. The following photos are a tribute to my dear darling Daddy.

Most of the early photos will have been taken in Elcho, Wisconsin. This is my dad's mother, Julia holding her first born up for the photo.
This another one of my dad as a baby. I guess he is about one as he seems pretty unsteady and needs to hold on to the highchair.

He seems to be a bit of a show-off even way back then.

As I mentioned, my dad is the first born of his family. His arrival in the world was followed by his sister, my Aunt Mary Ellen. Good pose there Don!

After seeing the appearance of a sister, my dad watches as his parents produce two more children, my Uncle Jim and Uncle Paul. This is the most damaged of all the photos, but it is so darling, I couldn't bring myself to throw it out. From left to right: Don, Paul and Jim.

My dad and his brother Jim seemed to have the closest relationship. Indeed Dad was always going to visit his brother Jim. When Jim got married, it was he, our Aunt Joyce and their children Mike, Paul and Steve that we saw the most. Sadly both my Uncle Jim and Uncle Paul are no longer with us. They are greatly missed.

As you can see from the very damaged photo of the three boys above, fishing took up a lot of leisure time both in the summer and winter (ice fishing - yuck!) The other activity that seems to go hand in hand with fishing in Northern Wisconsin is hunting. My Grandpa (left) and Dad with a couple of nice fat deer. They're posing outside the garage behind the family home in Elcho.

Children grow up, as children do. They learn manners, join the military and then they get girlfriends or boyfriends. After that they get married and have children of their own. From left to right, Dad, Mary Ellen, Jim and Paul.

My parents had moved into my grandparent's home in Wisconsin as my dad had just left the army. My mother went and had their first baby while staying there. Me! The above photo are the shell shocked new parents. Doesn't my mom have great legs? She's looking pretty glam for having just had a baby. This is my dad back in 1965. My Uncle Jim can be seen on the left edge of this photo. I can't help but think that Dad looks a bit like Drew Carey. These are the oldest photos I have of my dad. He had a birthday this week. Happy Birthday Dad. I love you. Peg

This Week at The Whitelees

Red Admiral sunning itself early this morning on the east wall of Whitelees.

I was going to start by saying that it's been a quiet old week here at Whitelees, but then I thought that might sound a little to much like Garrison Keillor. It has however been a week that whizzes by before I can even draw breath. Man!

We've had some beautiful warm weather. So warm in fact that I've had to get out there and water the garden. In addition to this blossom end rot on the tomatoes. A sure sign of patchy watering. I've seen some fruit and blossom dropping from the beans and tomatoes, a sign that things are far too dry. I sure hope I don't get any further blossom end rot on my tomatoes. I have been really plagued with that in the past. So frequent watering to prevent blossom end rot and blossom/fruit dropping off.

These are examples where the fruit and or blossom drops off because of lack of water .
Runner beans - See the stalks with no flowers at the ends?
Tomatoes - same thing.

Incidently, congratulations to my cousin Susan who has harvested her first tomato. Mine that haven't dropped off or have rot are still too green and bullet like.

There is one thing that is doing well in the heat (It's not really that hot by continental standards. Its only been in the high 80's but that is very hot for Scotland!) My corn!

You can see that is has perked up a bit since I last showed it to you.
The corn looking better is making me feel better about the infant beans and tomatoes dropping off the vines in the warm weather. It looks like I may even have some cobs on this one! Woo hoo!
Here is one more thing that has annoyed me in the Whitelees garden this week. Remember that pumpkin plant I purchased from the lifestyle store/garden centre. Well not only did it turn out not to be a pumpkin. It was a courgette (zucchini). This week I have discovered that it is a MINI-courgette plant. Producing little bitty miniature courgettes. Aarrgh! Pumpkin from SEED next year! Here are the courgettes right next to my keys so you can see the scale properly. What the heck is the purpose of mini-vegetables? Granted the plants are a bit smaller but you've got to tend them just the same as full sized plants. The vegetables are too small to use. Is it a cuteness thing?

The wild raspberries are ready to be picked. I have taken a photo of them to illustrate how ready the wild raspberries near our place are. I noticed them yesterday evening as I walked the quarter mile up to the neighbours to deliver some sweet peas. I have to pick sweet peas almost every day now so that they'll continue to produce.

Its turning into a sweet pea jungle!

The lettuces are doing well. Lolla Rossa is doing a bit better than the Little Gem which had sparse germination too. I see that the Lolla Rossa could do with a bit of weeding. Will do that right after breakfast.

While I am sitting here writing up this blog, the rest of the family is still asleep. Polly is patiently waiting by my chair for her breakfast and the blackbirds (member of the thrush family over here in the UK and Europe) are clearing my cherry tree in the front garden of all cherries. I have yet to have a single ripe cherry from this tree as the blackbirds get every single one every year. I guess if I could be bothered, I would put a net over the tree (Lazy Gardener!).

The swallows that I was so worried about after we had denied them their nest sites by modernising the cottages have built nests. Yesterday I noticed that a swallow was taking fluffy things into the newest nest in the roof peak above our bedroom window.

When I mentioned this to The Man of the Place, he said that the swallows had built a nest on the other side of the house too. I went around this morning to check. Sure enough. There was another swallow nest. It was obvious that this one had already been home to a brood of chicks by the amount of guano on the roof. It seems that all the swallows are preparing to start their second batch. Go swallows go! There are more than enough flying insects around at the moment for them to eat.