Wednesday 30 November 2011

Hoe Hoe Hoe

I have just spent 5 hours mulching today - so what, I hear you ask... well for those of you in the dark, as opposed to the green, of mulching, these two photos should clear that up..... Mulch = Miracle Grow. Annual Mulching = Continued Miracle Growing






Our delivery arrived at 9am today, late for that sort of work, but our van driver had already completed 2 drops, in glorious sunshine,  before she came to us. Anyway, by the time we started, the heavens had, of course, opened, so,  for the first hour we soggily, drippily, plodded our way round the garden, lugging 90 bags of fine, rich compost mulch... Whatever it was, the bags were  heavy and wet and we looked forward to our coffee and peppermint tea break. ( I know, I am just too cool!)


 As the morning wore on, the sun donned his hat again, our spirits lifted, and we chatted and lugged and hoed and chatted some more - and I was reminded yet again of how magical a garden is, how uplifting gardening is and how gentle and tender time spent with friends in a garden can be. Even on the wettest, most inhospitable morning, being in a garden is, I believe, good for the soul. It's certainly good for this Soul... even though it will take most of the week to dry out my jacket and boots and clean my nails!

Tuesday 15 November 2011

The Grand Adventure Starts Here... Or Does It?

Day one of my super dooper new fitness regime to kick start my grand adventure next year - a cycle trip around Vietnam and Cambodia, for charity, of course - same team as the Kilimanjaro trip a couple of years ago.... but more of that later.

Anyway, I checked all the nuts and bolts on my bike, well, my electrician did - I know, odd, but multi talented and  very useful to have around!.... donned my shades and gloves to look cool and stay warm, in that order (I thought lycra was a bit excessive at this very early stage, and really I wanted to keep something to look forward to!) and bravely set off. I had planned to cycle 3.5 miles this morning, not a great deal, I do know,  and nowhere near our daily target of 60 kilometres, even allowing for errors in conversion, but one has got to start somewhere...

I got out the door,
   
        I got on my bike,
               
                    and   

That was that.   

 Not a puncture, but yes  two flat tyres combined with what would appear to be a broken pump. What are the chances of that happening? To say I was annoyed might be a slight understatement.... but an especially beautiful sunny morning such as this was not to be wasted, so I walked instead, and took some more photos,  and planned some more oil pastel landscapes like these ones, 




which were inspired by a series I did from my walking trip in Drakensberg, which all sold this summer. They are small, around  5 inches square in old money,  and  I am now in full flow, as they say.... in between, that is,  trying to find another friendly electrician who can  mend my pump, so to speak! Hey ho...