The last couple of weeks seem to have gone by in a complete whirl of busy activity and I find that I have been almost totally occupied with the urgent - getting things going on the allotment - to the detriment of the important - this blog! The time that I would normally devote to blogging - first thing in the morning - has been replaced with the cleaning and tidying before dog walking, thus releasing me for an afternoon of digging and sowing. The cold wind, that blew almost constantly in April, deterred me from getting started with the allotment then and now there are lots of tasks all clamouring equally loudly for attention. I have ideas for posts coming out of my ears at this, my most treasured, time of year but they are having to wait politely - in an orderly queue - to gain a place on these pages as time allows. National Compost Week is already upon us, I have been thinking long and hard about the recognised benefits of allotment-holding and Hector has developed a phobia about having his hair brushed. All part of my busy downshifting day! I'm aware that this last statement might strike you as something of an oxymoron. "Surely," you might reason," this downshifting lark should be about taking things more slowly instead of rushing about like the fly with the proverbial blue bottom!" For me, the list of things I try to do each day has grown considerably longer, particularly now that things I would formerly have bought in - such as greetings cards and biscuits - are being produced 'in-house'. What has changed is that I am now the architect of my own day. If I want to go out and take photos at 7.30 in the morning - as I did yesterday, while the light was good and there was no brezze - and catch up with my e-mails at 11.00 at night, then, within reason, I can. What has gone, for me, is the sense of running round endlessly on a stress-inducing hamster wheel, trying to do several tasks at once for no appreciable benefit. This can be especially so if you work for someone else and their idea of what is a priority in your working day differs from your own. So I like to think of myself as 'intensively occupied', rather than performing the dance of the decapitated hen!
For all our toil, there is not much to see on the allotment yet, apart from our annual rhubarb glut. I weeded the patch in March, gave it a generous sprinkling of pelleted chicken manure and 'voila!', we have enough rhubarb to supply a small shop. Everyone else is in the same boat, so I cannot understand the audacity of the major supermarkets, who still insist on charging £1.99 for four rather piddling little sticks. We spent our Bank Holiday strimming both of our own allotments and that of an elderly neighbour. The strength of the sun increased as the day progressed but I was lulled into a false sense of security by the steady breeze that cooled me as I raked up the grass and carried it to the compost bin. It was only towards tea time that I noticed the tell-tale itching of sunburn on my exposed and unprotected skin. By the time I'd had my bath in the evening, it was rather red and sore and, though I've spared you a photograph, I am now musing that it was not unlike the colour of the rhubarb, pictured above! The BBC weather forecast is predicting a UV index of five for the next three days so do take care. My own recovery has involved staying inside during the hottest part of the day but since Si' has taken some more holiday to act as Under Gardener today, I shall be wearing my rather fetching straw hat with a nice wide brim to shade my neck!
Given that my wings have been temporarily clipped since Monday, I've noticed a furious lot of tweeting and much fluttering about in the back garden this week. Since their numbers are apparently on the decline, we count ourselves lucky to have a pair of resident house sparrows that nest in a gap above next door's central heating flue, just beyond our bedroom window. In fact we are privy to all the comings and goings of Spadger and his wife as we can watch them whilst drinking our morning cuppa in bed. They have thoughtfully chosen this week to fledge their babies and, since there are high walls on all sides, they inevitably end up in our garden. In previous years I have worried about the welfare of those babies and their exposure to visiting cats. Now I have my own threat in the form of one lurcher with an incredible nose for a scent. Needless to say, his visits to the garden just now are strictly on an 'escort-only' basis. I caught glimpses of the fledgelings, scuttling for cover, as I was hanging out washing on Tuesday but as I was preparing to go out to the market, I noticed this one balancing on top of the gate, outside the kitchen window. I moved away, very gingerly, to fetch my camera and was delighted to be rewarded with these pictures.
I couldn't see any sign of her fluffy little self by yesterday evening so am hoping that she has flown and that we have done our bit to help house sparrow numbers. By Tuesday evening there was screeching to add to the general avian melee to mark the annual arrival of our swift population. They make their nests each year in the eaves of this late Victorian terrace and zoom fearlessly about in the early evening catching flies at high speed. They are always very welcome and their arrival makes me think that summer is well and truly on the way. The height of the houses on our particular road seems to bounce the birdsong around so that sometimes I am unsure as to whether it's coming from the front, or the back, of the house, especially when it's very still outside. When we first arrived, I was frequently spooked by the pigeons who would sit on our chimney pots and coo loudly, as the sound was transferred down the chimneys like a funnel. The big tree in the vet's garden is coming into leaf now and in the summer it can feel as if sitting in our upstairs sitting room is like being amongst it's swaying branches.
Finally, on Friday of last week I had an email from Cally, a regular reader of this blog, to say that I had won the book pictured above in a draw, after leaving comments on her own blog. Cally is a qualified surveyor and runs her own property finding business for people looking to relocate to her home county of Wiltshire. Her own blog is full of excellent information on all aspects of home-ownership, be it acquisition, renovation or reclamation. With years more downshifting experience under her belt than me, we share an enjoyment of allotmenting, photography and being 'keen greens'! The timing of the draw couldn't have been better as it was held on the day before my birthday. It's arrival coincided with a parcel from my sister, so it was just like getting an additional present!
It was only when I started writing this post this morning that I realised just what an important part of my life this blog has become and how much I have missed doing it recently. I have met some truly lovely people, several of whom have left such encouraging comments and, having never kept a diary before, it is wonderful to be able to look back and see exactly how much I have achieved over the last three months. The icing on my cake this week was a comment from a friend, who is a professional photographer. We went to the launch of his current exhibition last week and Si' mentioned that I'd been taking photographs for this blog. After looking at it he said that he thought I had "a real eye and talent for taking pictures" and that they were "so colourful and bright!" Isn't it strange that something that started as just a means to an end can result in something that earns praise in it's own right? Please do let me know which photos you like the best; I am going through something of a tulip phase at the moment, particularly the orange ones I've grown this year. More from me soon. Enjoy that weekend sunshine!
Glad to see you're posting again! I have to say that I'm not surprised by the comments from the pro photographer - your photos are really stunning. You've inspired me to start my own blog - but I have a long way to go before my pictures will look anything like yours!
Posted by: Julie | 10 May 2008 at 09:51 PM