Yesterday

Posted on October 28, 2023 by The Little Room of Rachell

Feeling very average yesterday morning I knew I really needed to get out to walk; to clear my head and get the blood pumping. I hadn’t had a proper walk since Monday and sometimes the need is real. We went off to walk a familiar loop around the field paths, it is just over 3 miles.

The weather was really warm and pleasant, although doesn’t the sky look ominous in this photo? It had rained overnight so the lane was pretty squelchy and the field paths too, in places. My walking trainers got pretty muddy, but it doesn’t matter. It’s only when I feel the heel of one of my shoes slipping and I go sliding backwards, nearly landing on my bottom that I worry! (This happens more often than you would imagine. I must lean slightly backwards, or something when I walk, or can I blame my footwear…)

This is Fiddleneck and has many other names including purple tansy or blue tansy. According to the Picture This app (so useful, I highly recommend the free version)

Fiddleneck flowers open in a sequence that allows for a long flowering time, which is why it attracts bumblebees, honeybees, and other pollinators. It is typically grown in vineyards and along agricultural fields. This plant is native to the southwestern United States and is grown as a cover crop, green manure, and decorative plant.

It’s so unusual to see oilseed rape planted and flowering so late in England. This field had barley and was edged in beautiful poppies during the summer. Actually I think you’ll find a photo, or maybe two, if you look back a few posts ago.

I’ve just messaged a family member who farms in Wiltshire. I’ll report the answer if I get it before I press publish on this post.

At the top of the lane we just walked up. The horse chestnut tree is half green and half orange, it really attracted our attention. It’s almost two seasons in one tree.

Spider webs in the long grasses all along one field. Zoom in to see the dew drops on this web

Autumn colour, the two in the distance in the middle of the photo, at the end of the field, are field maples

As we walked along this field path a jay was hopping along the field, we disturbed it and so it took off in a blaze of colour. We don’t see jays very often, so this was a special sighting

Then three quarters of the way around there was a longish sit in the sunshine, coats off, basking in the warmth of the sun on our arms and faces (I always think ‘Oh good, vitamin D!’) occasionally sipping water while staring at the stunning view.

Spotted these blackberries on the way back home, a very watery flavour, but what they lacked for in taste, they make up for in colour

I would say I left home feeling a three or four and came back feeling a seven or eight on my personal wellbeing scale. Good stuff!

~~~

My question about the crop has been answered:

Hi Rachel
Good to hear from you. I hope you are all well. My guess is it’s a cover crop of mixed flowering crops. The yellow is probably mustard and purple phacelia.
It’s done to reduce soil erosion and nutrient leaching. The crop will get destroyed in the spring for a crop of barley or wheat.
M❤️

So my use of the app was spot-on for the tansy, because that’s another name for purple phacelia, but my assumption that we were looking at oilseed rape was completely incorrect. Sometimes what you don’t know you don’t know becomes really apparent!

I’ll keep an eye on this field and see if I can catch what happens in the spring and what crop replaces it in the summer.

~~~

If you’re not feeling great this weekend, and you’re able to, I suggest that you go for a walk. It doesn’t need to be a field or footpath, of course it can be urban; in the centre of the town or city. Maybe along a canal, or riverside, through a wood, or even a residential area.

Have a think about how you feel on your own personal scale of well-being, where’s your head at, how does your body feel, what is your general mood like? And then reflect how you’re feeling when you’ve walked a little way, and again at the end of your walk. I would guarantee that it will be a higher number and you’ll feel better. It’s SO good to get out and move.

I’ll be back soon with a books post.

Autumn begins

Posted on September 1, 2023 by The Little Room of Rachell

It’s technically the first day of autumn in metrological terms (which I think is really all about neatness of calendar dates and forecasting the seasons.) Autumn in England lasts for September, October and November, then deep in the winter on the 21st of December we are suddenly at the shortest day of the year with fewer hours daylight but the days then start to lengthen again by two minutes per day. We all start looking forward to spring. I’m not wishing my life away, but it is nice to think about spring and which seeds to buy. The garden centre already has a full array of spring bulbs on display which you’re meant to plant any time from August onwards, for flowering in April or May. I’ve just come across this autumn list from our Met Office. I was surprised by number eight.

Did get some blackberries! But not enough for BB gin jam making, they’re now frozen waiting to be paired with bramley apples.

For Christmas last year I was given a box of 50 Tea pigs Darjeeling Earl Grey teabags. They got somehow pushed to the back of the top shelf of the cupboard, which I can’t reach and can’t see into. Recently re-discovered, I’m drinking a cup now, only my second. I can’t recommend them enough! The smell alone is enough…

White sourdough and cheddar & sun dried tomato. The cheesy one was buttered and eaten in the garden with my cousin in exchange for a favour on bank holiday Monday.

I think this weekend is due to be sunny and warm again. Hurray! There’s a chilli festival tomorrow and a family bbq on Sunday, wearing sandals again will be perfect. Yesterday I met a friend for tea and cake and a wander. I discovered all sorts that he’d gleaned from a recent local tour, but it was in misty rain and we both got quite wet. I saw a woman wearing tights and boots, there were lots of umbrellas up and an array of raincoats. I’m NOT READY! We’ve had such a patchy summer. I’m hoping that once the schools go back the sun will start shining, it often does that. (Mainly to torment the poor staff.)

Tonight’s dinner will be a sedate meal of salmon, spicy bean salad and homegrown pea shoots. We mutually agreed first thing this morning that tonight needed to be Thursdayish as we’d already had Friday, with new to us gin (Whitley Neill Distillers Cut Dry, good with a squeeze of fresh lime juice and wedges with plenty of ice) then Rioja with a curry. It was a combination of tiredness from a late late night before and the rainy weather. As usual the other portion of aubergine curry, with leftover pieces of chicken from a dansak has made a fabulous cold brunch.

The gin was only £5; as a thank you my mother in law bought me a scratchcard and also one for herself. Neither of us have a clue about them and the rules seemed really complicated. It wasn’t until I checked out a YouTuber, who basically just scratches off the silver on £20 worth of cards and calls it entertainment (!), that we checked hers again properly and found that she’d won two lines of £5. She shared half with me so: £5 scratch-card winnings, £5 of Nectar points and it was on special offer for £15 for Nectar card holders! Good timing, as there was NO GIN in the house. Not even a miniature. This is an unusual state of affairs.

No crochet has happened yet, my hands are too sore still, but I’ve got some good books. I’ve just been approved for the advanced copy of Nina Stibbe’s new book, so what I was reading has been abandoned. I’m not meant to talk much about it yet, but it’s her diary and is putting me off doing other things. I always have this issue with entertaining diaries, because you can’t do the “when I reach the end of the chapter I will get up / head out / do my physio exercises / wash the dog / pick the beans etc because there aren’t any breaks. I keep on reading and reading. Before I know it May has turned into June, and then I realise I’m totally engrossed in August.

Harvest time

Apart from pea shoots I’ve also been trying sprouting seeds in some purpose made jars I was given. They have blackout covers, but this was the last day when I wanted them to green up a little. The seeds are from a mixed selection of varieties from Verdant Republic. They were tasty eaten with a salad and are apparently full of really healthy micronutrients.

This week a long-term blog reader told me that my blog posts are long. Too long. I feel it’s all a matter of personal preference. Too long? Read in a few goes, or not at all. I’ve been catching up with some of my favourites and realise they’re partly my favourites because I do gravitate to long meaty blog posts, with lots of photos, that I can linger over and enjoy. (Lately: Ginny’s Small Things, Alicia’s Posy and Lucy’s Attic 24.) A mere paragraph or two can be frustrating and if it’s interesting, I find I want more. If someone habitually writes short posts I will save them up and read half a dozen at a time in a batch. Like a diary. Far more satisfying.

Kate of Fox’s Lane blog has just published a brand new longish post, after a hiatus. As usual her photos are sublime and capture some of her life on a smallholding in Victoria, (the link keeps disappearing, I’ve added it at least a dozen times.) I now really want to try heating water for tea in a pretty kettle on the log burner this winter. Her post inspired me and is why I found myself launching straight into writing about it being our first day of autumn. She’s so right – I too don’t want to be ‘told’. I just want to read about ordinary things. What someone’s making, cooking, watching, or reading, how the garden is looking or where they visited at the weekend. I used to love the Nothing is Ordinary hashtag in the early days of Instagram. Blogging for me is reading about the small things, but that’s what life is about, isn’t it?

How are things with you?

September

Posted on September 22, 2022 by The Little Room of Rachell

Making: (made) an epic tiramisu for seven, all of whom are greedy for dessert. It made lots of portions – enough for seconds for the ~~greedy~~ fans, plus some to take home!

Cooking: A recipe a week from the Green Roasting Tin book, yes, still. I’m enjoying them, apart from this week’s which was a little less than the sum of its parts. Might try it again, but make my own harissa. This weekly project has really revitalised the meatless meals that I make

Sipping: Earl Grey

Reading: The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller. Only just started, so this isn’t a recommendation, although it is a very successful best seller. But it’s good so far. I’ve read that if you liked the Crawdads book, this is for you. I did, so hopefully I’ll enjoy it

Waiting: for more rain, I collected lots several weeks ago, to the extent that I began to think I was crazy. But then it stopped raining after a few days and the water is now long gone, used in keeping the plants going

New violas, 6 for £3.50 from a local nursery. So much pleasure for a little cash

Looking: stylish as usual (ha!)

Listening: to the children playing outside, they’re just home from school

Wishing: for a long settled period for us all. Lots of continuing upheaval in the world

Enjoying: autumn

Appreciating: juicy blackberries, pausing to eat a few during walks

Gorgeously red haws (not to eat fresh, though apparently they can be used to make drinks, jams, jellies & syrups)

Eating: fish chowder later tonight, the first this autumn

Liking: cake and coffee with my friend yesterday, after a nice walk for a few hours. We talked and talked and talked

Loving: my aunt’s reaction to a potential menu for a light lunch next week, she said “No, I don’t think so, thank you” to my savoury suggestion. But when I offered to make scones and take over a cream tea she leaned forward, grinned and said: “Now you’re talking!”

Buying: bargains! I’ve got new tops from Seasalt, FatFace and a Craghoppers fleecy thing, which will be good for wearing on cooler autumn walks, all for around half to less than the full ticket price. WHOOP!

Managing: to get the late payment and interest charges (circa £25!) taken off my credit card bill this morning. I’d uncharacteristically missed the payment deadline by ONE day. I was all ready and prepared to point out that I always pay off in full and have had the account for years, but didn’t have to at all

Watching: Wedding Season on Star, Disney+, so far so good and unexpected

Hoping: to go to London soon, at the beginning of the week I was waiting for the infrastructure from the Queen’s State Funeral to be cleared and things to settle down

Wondering: If you watched it? Jaw-dropping organisation, incredible sights. I loved the Scots Pipers and the Grenadier Guards and the Household Cavelry and …. It was such a spectacle. Along with over 28 million in this country, I was watching. This is the end of an era, so many of us have never known life without the Queen, just being ‘there’

Wearing: ball-gown, tiara, diamond encrusted slippers, naturally

The bees loved the sedum flowers at Buscot Park the other week

Noticing: it’s growing much cooler in the afternoons and evenings. Have you got the heating on, or a fire going yet? The fire has been on once so far, but I’ve wrapped up in my Tilted Squares blanket a few times

Getting: my preserving pan in action. So far I’ve made a batch of Chilli Jam. It’s v v pokey. I used a variety of homegrown tomatoes and hot, hot, hot homegrown birthday chillies

Prairie Fire chillies went into this, it’s definitely not for babies!

Following: what’s on at the V&A and considering Membership again

Sorting: apple recipes: jelly, chutney or jam?

A return visit to the Cotswold Sculpture Park, before it closes at the end of the month

Anticipating: the new series of Ghosts (BBC 1 tomorrow night, we’ll watch later on the iplayer)

Feeling: keen to see the next of River Cottage Reunited, such a shame there’s only 4 episodes, but wow it’s my kind of telly. Did you see it? Or watching now on catch up on All4?

Hearing: Figure it Out by Royal Blood. Needs to be loud

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

What about you? Is all okay in your part of the world? Share three things?

Oh and a warm hello to you if you’ve recently found this blog through Facebook, my Facebook blog page has now reached 4.8K followers!

It is probably autumn, whichever way you look at it

Posted on September 6, 2022 by The Little Room of Rachell

I’ve been trying to eke out and make the most of the last days of summer. Over the weekend we went to a chilli festival. One of us ate a bratwurst and the other a brownie for lunch, while sitting, then lolling full and content on the grass in the warm sun. (Well, calling it grass might be exaggerating rather since most is closer to hay, after the hot summer we’ve had here.) We chilled listening to a mariachi band, who made us laugh and cringe at the same time! I’ve always loved Don’t you Want me Baby? by the Human League, but I’m not sure I ever need to hear a mariachi version again.

The photos above are from another garden visit, on Sunday, to Cerney House Gardens. It’s the time to go while there’s still some colour. As you see, the dahlias and sunflowers are absolutely stunning, vividly coloured and a real shot of brightness amongst what was mostly over and overgrown borders, as you’d expect at this point. The calendars and school terms are now telling us it’s the beginning of autumn. Today it’s pouring and it does feel like it. But that’s the meteorological point of view, the scientists’ neat way of dividing up the year.

In the astrological calendar autumn begins from 23rd September this year. Normally around 21st September the first day of autumn is marked by the equinox – when daylight and dark hours are equal. The word equinox comes from the Latin aequus (equal) and nox (night). This year here it’s Friday 23rd. There’s other info about autumn on the Woodland Trust website, here.

I’m so glad that yesterday evening it was dry and warm, so walking trainers on and up to the fields for a 2 1/2 mile loop. Ambling along, we stopped to pick the last few tart juicy red plums which are high up on the little trees, but we turned our noses up at the damsons which looked quite withered, and anyway are always too tart to be enjoyable eaten raw. The blackberries are a mix of mostly sweet and juicy, but it’s a real lottery and sometimes they shock the senses. The brambles must go down deep into the soil. They don’t seem to mind the lack of rain. They’re abundant as usual. I lamented the lack of a tub and suggested chugging down the last of our water on Sunday, thinking we could fill the water bottle with berries to freeze. Apple picking won’t be far off now and I fancy baking an apple and blackberry pie, or crumble.

I’ve just started reading a summer holiday type of book, although I love the change from summer to autumn I still have this feeling that I don’t quite want to let summer drift away. I’m in denial though; right now I’m standing in the conservatory dictating this into my iPhone and I can see the buckets and bowl we put down to catch rainwater are absolutely brimful. It seems a pointless exercise as the flowers and plants have been well watered already, with the terrific thunder and lightning rain storms we’ve had the last couple of nights. And it’s due to rain all week anyway.

We paused what we were watching last night and came in here. The lightning lit up the whole of the dark garden, while I shrieked “Don’t touch the edges of the conservatory, in case we get struck by lightning!” It was really dramatic as the storm raged overhead. Stood in a little metal and glass box, alternately light and dark, it was a little bit scary.

I feel so sorry for the fairs which are coming for their annual visits to the towns and cities around. Torrential rainstorms are going to be terrible for business, but I am glad it’s finally raining. Maybe the grass will be green again.

August

Posted on August 24, 2022 by The Little Room of Rachell

MAKING: salads still. Today’s lunch was delicious! You know when you really enjoy a meal?

Rocket, watercress, cucumber, vine tomatoes, sunblush tomatoes, artichokes and peppered smoked mackerel

COOKING: a new courgette recipe tonight from my latest KDD – 99p!

SIPPING: water

READING: Silent Voices by Ann Cleeves – fourth in the Vera series

WAITING: for my free tickets and food vouchers to a craft fair this weekend. I finally won something. Whoop whoop!

LOOKING: at the large miniature rose bush, I need to go and deadhead it again

LISTENING: to Craig Charles on BBC 6M

WISHING: for a garden dibber

ENJOYING: researching my family tree

EATING: fresh berries, greengages and nectarines

APPRECIATING: that I can see censuses from well over 100 years ago. Family Tree research has been consuming my thoughts and a fair bit of my time lately as I’ve been given a year’s sub

LIKING: all the colour in the garden still

LOVING: that the things I took on a long weekend away to the seaside recently are pretty much the same as I would’ve taken as a child! Something to make, read, colour/dot-to-dot, in case of rainy days and for quiet moments

BUYING: well, failing to buy some grey mats for the bathroom, currently out of stock. Wins were a Craghoppers top and a linen skirt from the M&S sale last week

MANAGING: to put off transferring my photos from the cloud to my laptop. I must because my phone told me I have 3,000+ on here at the moment

WATCHING: Rev on BBC iplayer. Why have I not watched this before?! It’s funny, touching, sad and thought-provoking. Absolute quality

HOPING: for RAIN. We’re going to have a hosepipe ban soon otherwise. It’s been so dry for so, so long

WEARING: shorts & a tee

NOTICING: The birds are really quiet today and not around

Breakfast (at this rate I’ll need to send you all a pic of today’s dinner*)

FOLLOWING: I thought of a good line for this one in the shower this morning. Can’t remember it….

GETTING: stiff from sitting a bit too much. I’ll move soon and dead-head those roses

BAKING: I made wholemeal pitta bread last week. Pleased with them. Will definitely be making pitta again, such a treat to eat one fresh from the oven for lunch

Nope, you can’t even eat lunch in peace here

COVETING: knowledge – what can I grow radishes in? I bet there are some good ideas online, but it’s nice to ask people, not Google all the time. At work I once grew potatoes in two tires which were stacked up, then you add another when the soil needs topping up. I need some ideas for radishes please

FEELING: relaxed and happy

HEARING: Craig talking about embarrassing listener experiences. Lots of wind in funeral services and inappropriate laughing

*****

Tell us a few things? Maybe 4?

* Don’t panic, I promise I won’t

An autumn walk part 2

Posted on October 10, 2021 by The Little Room of Rachell

A few sips of water, a good look around in all directions. I took a few photos and then we went on for the next part of our walk.

There used to be a couple of fallen tree trunks which were lovely, clean and smooth off to one side of the green crossroads. Lying on the grass. They were removed sometime in the early year. I still miss them. During the first Lockdown last year, when we were only allowed to see people from our households and nobody else, not even social bubbles (the term had yet to be invented, our poor isolated elderly and vulnerable people) we came across a few teenagers there. From their furtive looks at us I guessed they were sneaking out to meet up and socialise, as an illegal part of the allowed daily exercise. I couldn’t really blame them, although it was all such a worrying time and no one really knew what was ahead. Anyway, I miss sitting on those tree trunks. After avoiding the roots, stones and ruts of the lane it was always good to have somewhere to sit and relax for a moment, or five.

Bonus blue skies in October and freshly ploughed fields.

If you go down this way you end up on quite a fast little road, which leads to a picturesque village. You can take another footpath into a meadow, then walk alongside some fast flowing water, go through a few gates, under a railway bridge and ultimately up to a large farm. There’s a public right of way along the road through the middle. There was a bull in a field with cows and calves, which scared the bejesus out of me last spring. You’ve never seen such a flimsy fence and such a mahoosive bull. He kept staring at me!

The corn is as high as an elephant’s eye, I loudly sang as we walked past.

The deer have been munching and trampling the sweetcorn. They’re all around here. We saw hoof prints and ‘other evidence’ of their presence near the maize fields.

At this point my hoodie was firmly off and tied around my waist. Such a lovely warm day.

There was a massive rainstorm in the middle of the night last Saturday.

We saw a red kite with a huge wingspan being chased by two or three crows around that tree. It always amazes me how crows can be so aggressive to such a scary looking bird. Confidence or aggression in numbers? They must be highly territorial when in a flock (a ‘murder of crows’ is the collective name after all!)

I suspected there were tasty, juicy things around this corner of the hedge.

Someone had started to walk on and hadn’t come back around the corner with me. So, I called that he should; because there were very big juicy fruits that I couldn’t reach, which could be all his if he wanted.

He remembered something we had seen back in the summer. But wouldn’t tell me what. It would be a surprise.

Another stretch of footpath which goes along a narrow green lane between field hedgerows. Quite an adventure, this is very narrow. You can easily get caught on brambles and have to avoid nettles and thorns. I usually walk with my elbows and hands up in the air. Quite a sight, especially if I’m also singing.

Other kinds of traffic have recently been along here too.

Ah yes! Fields and fields of the potatoes. I’d forgotten we’d seen these before, when they were small plants. The ridges of rich iron earth that are heaped up around the plants are so neat and pleasing. I missed a photo opportunity.

For some reason when we come out of that narrow overgrown path and walk along this field edge, we always remember the surprise of passing a teen during Lockdown in summer, last year. She was wearing noise cancelling headphones, had a brightly coloured backpack on and was so confidently tramping along. She’s really stuck in our minds and we’re not quite sure why. I think maybe it was because she was so incongruous. It looked like a route she walked regularly, like she was going to visit a friend or something.

I needed to lean against a big five-bar gate to reorientate, before we turned left for the third part of the walk. I heard a sound and turned around to see a man-child throwing a chunky stick into a tree, followed by the sound of things clunking to the ground…

I stuffed these into my conker pocket and on we went.

The next part of the walk went along a hedge to our left, which has occasional trees interspersed among the bushes. The field on our right gently slopes down to a stand of trees. This is where we watched a young muntjac deer wander earlier in the year. This time there was no peaceful little deer wandering, instead we disturbed about a dozen pheasants in the hedgerow. They took off right in front of us, flying and squawking in alarm. They made me jump. I took up in the air, flying and squawking in alarm too! Someone found this all rather funny.

It can’t be too cold at night yet, otherwise the ferns would be brown and dying. It can’t be far off though, the evenings are much chillier.

I had to limit myself to two fern photographs. I really, really like them.

We crossed a road and plunged into the start of another green lane. This is an ancient byway which used to lead commercial travellers from the Midlands to London. We call the start Freezer Corner because unfortunately sometime ago someone dumped the contents of the freezer under the bushes near the road. They must have pulled up their vehicle and just thrown it all out. Some were probably opened by foxes, others were intact. For quite a while we noted the disintegration of the packaging of once frozen lasagna, fishfingers and a carton of ice cream etc etc. Then it was cleared away. A friend asked if we had reported it all. I’m ashamed to say neither of us even thought of it (though someone else obviously had) partly because it was so fascinating watching the food and packaging disintegrate in the wild. But what an awful thing to do, and why? Why not dump it into a bin? Was it an act of revenge? You’ve hurt me, so I’ll empty your freezer? Weird.

A little sit on a rock. A sip of water and onwards again.

I photographed these thistles when they were glorious purple flowers, back in the summer.

Many brambles on both sides of this path, but few blackberries. Perhaps they doesn’t get too much sun.

A little handful of emergency almonds to crunch, hunger was coming on with a vengeance now, it was way past lunchtime. There’s a few miles to go.

We’ve turned left again. We’re heading to very familiar fields with landmarks: the cherry trees, sloe alley, blackberry corner and plum row.

Higher up now than at other points of the walk.

We paused at the top of the field and heard very, very loud unselfconscious singing coming from some distance away in the shady lane. As it’s stubble now we preferred to walk out in the open field, to keep feeling the sun and wind on our faces. The singing was hilarious. She obviously had headphones on and was belting out JoJo’s Leave (Get out). I glimpsed her; a grey haired lady walking a lurcher, definitely getting something out of her system. Good for her!

This one is tiny. Do mice make burrows?!

In the last part of our walk, in a field not far from home we looked for the dead adder that we came across last week. It’s gone. I’ll pop the pic I took into my Taking Stock post at the end of the month, if I remember. That was quite a sight. That and seeing a headless pigeon made for a memorable walk.

Home and a late-late lunch of cheese & biscuits, apple & grapes. What a great walk, so fab to go out-out again.

I hope we can do it again very soon.

Taking Stock – September

Posted on September 30, 2018 by The Little Room of Rachell

Making : sourdough pizza, because Friday night was made for it

Cooking : spicy lentil soup, the first of the new season

Drinking : red wine, it’s particularly fine for autumn

Reading: My Name is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth Strout (only just; sort of as I got halfway through the first chapter last night and woke up a couple of hours later with the light on in the early hours…)

Plymouth Hoe

Wanting: to crochet again

Playing: The Police, Greatest Hits

Polperro, with a boat ready and waiting outside the house

It still has an active fishing port

Deciding: whether to have a dry October or not, what do you think?

Wishing: for these lovely warm sunny days to continue

Porth Ledden Bay near Capewall

Walking some of the SW coast path from Cape Cornwall to Levant

Enjoying: my new Sony Bluetoooth speaker. Saw it on someone’s Instagram, mentioned it and had one for a birthday surprise!

Waiting: for Invisible Sun to play next

Trengwainton garden , always a must-see

Liking: Apple picking socialising while sharing recipe ideas: pork and apple, apple crumble, apple jam, chilli & apple jelly, apple cake….

Wondering: about trying baking baguettes. Have you ever ?

Loving: my audio book. Only an hour left now, then into the new Robert Galbraith Lethal White

Some of the many Trengwainton Scarecrows, made with local primary school children. The theme this year is Inspirational Women

Emmeline Pankhurst and Frida Kahlo

Pondering: nothing high powered

Considering: going to the V&A soon

Buying: birthday wish list gifts

Watching: The BBC’s Repair Shop (S2:8) for the first time, it won’t be the last episode I watch. So good to see skilled people at work

Saffron Chelsea buns, we shared one. Delicious

Fantastic little bakery in St Ives, must buy another SCB next time

Hoping: my right hand sorts itself out by my next appointment (4 weeks time)

Marvelling: at how many people have talked about the Bodyguard series

Cringing: that I saw a major spoiler on the cover of the Radio Times magazine, which put me off watching any episodes. Viewers no longer watch programmes as they are screened and this was only a few days later

Needing: to drink something soon

Barbara Hepworth Museum & Sculpture Garden, St Ives

Questioning: what am I currently questioning? Anything?

Smelling: orangey perfume

Wearing: comfy house clothes, actually I always call them ‘dags’ like my Aussie friends when I was living in Australia

Nicest bookshop in Cornwall? The World? In Penzance. So many signed copies too as many authors live nearby, including John le Carre and Patrick Gale

Following: my own instincts

Knowing: these things come and go

Thinking: fluffy thoughts

Admiring: the way everyone’s taken to autumn clothing

Cornish Cheese Tea: cheese scones with cream cheese and a spicy tomato chutney

Cornish Cream Tea: one plain and one fruity scone with Cornish clotted cream and strawberry jam

The cafe at Trengwainton is always a must-visit too

Penzance harbour, our week away was mixed weatherwise but we walked every day regardless

Waking to Marazion watching the kite surfers pass St Michaels Mount; which is only accessible by the causeway when the tide is out, or by boat

Sorting: summer clothes to put away

Getting: used to team cooking, one-handed doesn’t work *that* well. But no washing up (always so much despite having a dishwasher.) One. Good. Result

Bookmarking: articles about personal power

Back to Plymouth for a night, arriving at lunchtime in torrential rain. Finding the lounges of the hotel full of people having a drink to hide from the weather, so decided if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em

Coveting: more local gins

Disliking: wrist pain / hating that sock knitting. Ride in a Time Machine please? (Which reminds me; new Dr Who on Sunday)

Opening: multiple webpages and crashing my middle aged iPad

Giggling: at Life in Pieces. I’m on S3 now

Dyrham Park National Trust, Gloucestershire, it’s an impressive filming location for movies and tv (Poldark, Far from the Madding Crowd and Sense and Sensibility, to name a few)

Feeling: chilled

Snacking: no carrots!!!!! Argh!!!! Hate running out

Helping: increase family’s carb intake by baking them sourbread. I bake much more than I eat

Hearing: the fizz of tonic and the chink of ice, my G&T has arrived (yes, spoilt)

Mixing: in red wine later with dinner

Two rye sourdough loaves I baked this morning

Worrying: I’m a sourdough bore now (but you’re lovely. I know you don’t really mind)

Slicing: and peeling a few cooking apples then completely stopping as OUCH! Not the working definition of Do Not Use Your Hand for Three Weeks

Celebrating: Autumn produce; Barty’s Bramley apples, the picking of which he was closely supervising, sitting by the asters! Trengwainton squash and blackberries all along the SW coast path in Cornwall

Forgetting: where I left my watch on 12/9

Pretending: I’ll find it, but it’s looking more and more unlikely. So hard not to keep looking at my wrist, like it’s going to magically appear there

Hello Autumn. I’m ready. It’s been a lovely summer but I always like to see you

Sneaking: M&S buttermints and blaming Mr Scrappy (remember him?)

Embracing: walking, reading and good tv

Hoping you’re fully functioning in a two-handed healthy fashion, cross your fingers / pray / send out vibes (or some chocolate) for my right hand please. I’m chipper, but concerned. Who wants a stupid third of a sock, needles and yarn??!?!