Post 118 part de deux - that'll be 119 then...

Here are then, this week at work. There was rain, hail, sunshine, freezing winds and lots of tea, nice...

One of the jobs I do is at two blocks of flats in Berkhamsted. Don't really like it but the plus is that I grab a cheeky pint at The Rising Sun pub, which is undoubtedly the best pub in Berkhamsted and probably the best in Hertfordshire too. Problem is, with a job like this you have loads of people with opinions on what you should be doing, which is OK, but - and it's a big BUT - when someone, just one, has an opposing opinion to the majority that opinion gets irritating. It's the old one bad apple in the barrel innit?

Also, when you take over a poorly kept lawn, full of moss and rubbish, it takes twice as long to cut. The first picture below shows it, it's horrible, creates dust and loads of particles of moss fly about getting on your chest, which is a bit rubbish if you're an asthmatic. Don't get me wrong, the money is fine and I do like the work, it's just it's too much like work. Y'know what I mean? It's almost corporate in context. All my other work is for individual families and they like what I do, ALL of them like what I do. Again, don't get me wrong, if things don't work out with people you just move on, that's fine, but corporate stuff means you just have to put up with the nonsense. Shame, why should you have put up with nonsense?

That's that off my chest and I promise it won't happen again in the foreseeable. The pictures below are all from the last 7/8 days.

The aforementioned rubbish bit of grass. It takes at
least 3 goes to collect all the cuttings too, horrible

Call me an old hippy, but I love the "LOVE & PEACE" graffiti. South Bank last Saturday...

Had to take this asa the Fabs are along the bottom of this pillar

One of the atriums at the Tate Modern, love big balloons

Cumulonimbus... The only cloud worth looking at

The above three pictures are from the big lawn at Rebecca's place in Quainton. They are getting a sit Husqvarna mower later in the year but I just couldn't leave it any longer and put in an ever decreasing circle. It was really good fun and I never noticed the 4 hours it took to do it - doesn't time fly when you're having a gooooood time?

Hellebores and Daffs at Julie's in Buckland

More Daffs at Julie's

The three above pix are the long lawn at Julie's place. I don't cut the grass here, which is good really as I would need to work there for at least 2 days a week, which would mean giving up one of my other gardens, which I couldn't do, no now. That's a Medlar tree on the right, beautiful gnarly old branches and a lovely little den for Julie's kids.

Tom & Vicky's place in Aldbury. Alison has been looking after this for me
recently. It looks great and the little lawn I put in last year, top of pic, is
looking really nice 

Yet another newly cut lawn. Again, first cut of the year, so it took very
nearly four hours to do. Lots of moss again, but far more manageable
and I really like the way it looks with the cross-cutting. Not sure about the
"installation" though... This house is in Chesham Bois by the way.

So there you have it, only four days of work, but loads done and Sophie was 13 on Monday, blimey, our little girl a teenager...


Happy happy!!!

Post 118 part uno - This Week in Tinseltown...

Hello!


Been a good week, the weather was iffie, but then it's been so dry, a bit of damp will sort us all out - don't know about the cold though, don't like the cold.


On Saturday we took the mother-in-law to Paddington, no reason, we just dropped her off there and off we went to have a look at the rest of the smoke. (NB: she did have a duffle coat and marmite sandwich, so I guess she wanted to fit in or sumfing.)


Also, it was Finlay's first trip there, which is crazy really by the age of six I had already travelled the full distance of the routes of the numbers 25, 159 and, of course, the 73, buses. We went to Oxford Street for a tinsy bit of shopping and then off down to the South Bank.


We passed the Aquarium (1 hour to queue); the London Eye (24 hours to queue); the BFI Bar (no queue); Tate Modern, where we had lunch and damn good too! (The only queuing in there was for some bloke who kills sharks and plays with them in his bath, "...call THAT art," we said); the Globe (again no queue); we went into The Clink (no queue) and attempted to read all the gruesome stuff about torture, but Finlay wanted to find rats or something; then we went to look for the Marshalsea Prison, where Charles Dickens dad was imprisoned for having no money; walked through Borough Market and we finally ended up having a drink in The George just off Borough High Street, one of my favourite pubs - the last galleried pub in Britain, and very beautiful it is too.


Here's some photos - see if you can guess where they were taken:

I will have to post again tomorrow, I have some really nice pictures from work this week too.


Anyone else totally confused about the tax situation at the moment?


Happy calculating!


PS: We didn't have any marmalade for the mother-in-law. We also didn't have a duffle coat, so she had to make do with a packer mac - well a black bin bag with a piece of rope actually...

Hello again! Par de uno

Well, the second week of the new gardening season* kicked off with a quick tidy up in Pat's back garden - don't want to take away too much though as there was a heavy frost over night and the old leaves and foliage keep the new shoots nice and warm. Then returned to the front and finished off clearing up the disaster left by some idiot scaffolders who ruined the edging of the grass. Basically drivers tend to turn round on the area of grass in front of Pat's and it churns up the grass, but the scaffolders did a really great (sic) job of making a quagmire out of it, so I have attempted to clean it up, make it look better and with the help of some strategically placed posts (rustic stylee) will make it look good and impossible to do a u-eeee over!

Should have taken a proper "before" but I only thought to do it after about an hour's work 

Then over to the allotment to carry on with the digging. I only have about a third left to do and then I'll be getting the manure/home made compost on it. Very exciting as the potatoes, onions, shallots and garlic turned up on Friday, all nicely chitting and pre-planted in the greenhouse yesterday.


While cleaning out the chickens yesterday there was a very loud bang and crash. Yep! Footballs and greenhouses don't go together... Poor Finlay got shouted at, which is always wrong - note to self, anger management, anger management, anger management...


A few catch-up pictures. The first one is the seed, mixed with sharp sand, for the wild flower meadow at Quainton. A cornucopia of loveliness...

And these are some of the many signs of Spring at Church Farm, Buckland, Julie & Andrew's place...

I do like a daff or two and those hellebores make my heart jump and the narcissi at the bottom even beat the daffs - speaking of daffs, well done the Welsh for winning the Six Nations, marvellous stuff...


Pat left me the keys to let Fergus out today, so he could have a run about and do his "business". The below is as far as he got from the back door! Bless the ol' fella!

And finally, yesterday being Mother's Day, here's a picture of mum and son that I just couldn't resist...

Happy cuddling!


*NB: The new gardening season is a figment of my imagination by the way, I just call it that as I am now back working on all the regular gardens I have and it's a rather lovely sign that Spring is really here and I can stop being a miserable git for the next 8/9 months...

Blimey, what a day...

I spent over eight hours preparing the first bit of the wild flower meadow at Quainton and doesn't my poor old back know it?(!) As I have explained before I was knocked down when I was eight and damaged three vertebrae at the base of my spine. I actually get constant pain from it but do not want to go about freezing the area as it could well constrict my activities. I am far too young to have constricted activities ain't I? (Plus my livelihood would end... Not a good idea.)


Finlay continues to delight - as does his sister, but at fast approaching 13 it's difficult sometimes to appreciate! There are currently five planets on view in the night sky, Venus and Jupiter very close together, Mars, Saturn and Uranus (that's Your Anus, yah yah yah...) He was telling our next door neighbour about Mars's position the other day and she said, 


"Where is it now then Finlay?" 
He replied, "It was over there last night." 
"Has it moved then?"
He sighed, "It doesn't move, we do!"


Cosmologist/Astrologer at six!


Anyhoo, here's the meadow:

And:

Hiring a turf cutter next Tuesday, so should get moving along nicely!


There's a bright golden haze on the meadow!


Happy Howard Keel-ing...

Man of the Match; wild flower meadow; Karcher again, etc

Well hello! It's been a long time - ish...


Busy, busy, busy, but no excuse for not doing this since February. Biggest, most important thing that's happened since? Finlay, age 6, Man of the Match against Bovingdon on Sunday and he didn't even want to play in defence! He was class, even going on a couple of David Luiz style raids forward. Proud parents is all I can say.


As to gardening, well where to start. Karchered my way round Rebecca's in Quainton:

I know I have an obsession with this contraption, but it does do a superb job, but please wear waterproof trousers if you ever attempt to do a job on this scale...

Also, made a really good start on the meadow area. Cleared away lots of weeds and rubbish from under the trees and will hopefully get the OK on hiring a turf stripper/cutter which will mean I can clear the area out in the open in just one day. This is the area shown from both ends:

The area I've cleared is the far end. This is fairly late in the day so does not show the full effect of the sun on the open area. It's a long term project, which I love, because it means I am going to be here for some time to come. Love it!

And, finally at Quainton, here's the hellibores I moved from the proposed tennis court area, plus a few ferns and such like. They have settled in beautifully, but then again they're not my favourite flowers for nothing, they're just so easy...

Over at Buckland and the pond had some visitors the week before last, couldn't believe it!

Yes a duck couple, unfortunately you can only see the male as this was taken on my mobile and the camera isn't that good.

A view of the pond from the top, delightful!

And finally a quick look at the allotment:

The digging is coming on a treat, I will be putting on some compost this week. Sowed the cabbages at the weekend, awaiting the potatoes, sowed five different varieties of tomatoes, put in some salad leaves in the greenhouse, as well as salad onions and some onions too - eat your heart out Tesco!

And absolutely finally for this blog, the new chicks arrived three weeks ago and they are very cute, as you can see:

Tallulah - who has a "gammy" toe on her left foot, she hobbles a bit but seems in no real discomfort - she chirrups all the time bless her...

Tilly, very robust!

Clarrie, Harriet, Bridie (hidden somewhat) & Betsy - all laying! We had 12 eggs last week, so basically now they are in full flow, so to speak, we should start getting well over 20 eggs a week from them. Half dozen Murray Eggs anyone? £1.73 to you!

Happy laying!

Spike Milligan, fairies, pond cover cleaning and early lawn mowing...

This really is a quickie, as I must get some sleep!

Today at Pat's place in Berkhamsted I actually cut the grass - light touch of course this time of year - and found evidence of fairy activity. The latter was rather poignant for me as today was the 10th anniversary of Spike Milligan's passing on.


When Spike's kids were little there was a rather magical exchange of notes, placed in a little tin box, at the bottom of the garden. The fairies wrote to the children and the children wrote back. Spike always said he preferred the company of children over adults, basically because he always had a little child "inside"; he never grew up. Too sweet for words and as I brush away a little tear in the knowledge that I too have that little child just under the surface, here's some pictures of today's activities:

The grass always looks good when cut...

And finally, undeniable evidence that fairies exist!

It says, "for fairys. Queen sits on fowler (flower)"

The petals of said flower were definitely showing signs of disturbance, so there you have it, fairies do exist... A few of my mates already know that.


Don't know about you but I am chanting, "I do believe in fairies, I do, I do..."


Happy fairying about!