Anything goes
Forth Valley and West Fife Smallholders' Association - meeting
Sunday 13 January, 2008
the next meeting of FV&WF Smallholders' Association will take place on Wednesday 16th January at 7pm in Stirling Indoor Bowling Club, orth Street, Riverside, Stirling FK8 1UE.
Any smallholders or aspiring smallholders are very welcome.
January weather
Wednesday 9 January, 2008
The weather overnight here has been just horrible. We've had gales and heavy rain. This morning I got up to find a few slates slipped on the roof, a dislocated downpipe, two smashed panes in the greenhouse and the garage under three inches of water - the horses' feed buckets had floated to the back of the garage. Oh, joy! And Dan's in London - so it was on with the Marigolds to get the drain in front of the garage unblocked. Then it was a case of keeping the water moving out of the garage into the drain. It's now clear and the garage floor is cleaner than its been for ages - possibly ever! I still have a few things to move that might have got damp but fortunately the bags of feed were stored on shelves high enough to keep them out of the water. The slates etc will have to wait until Dan comes home and the wind abates a bit.
Late Christmas present
Friday 4 January, 2008
A late Christmas present was delivered for me today - an adjustable floor standing frame for my tapestry frame. I almost always have a wool tapestry on the go - sometimes they take me ages, but I like to pick it up when I feel like it (sometimes I wish it was more "useful" - there's a limit to how many framed tapestries one's home can accommodate). I find it hard to get a comfortable position to sew, so I'm hoping that this will be better.
Dan's done some lovely wool tapestries - it was he who got me started - and he's currently making a beautiful rug. And has been making it for nigh on 10 years, we reckon. He bought the wool and the canvas one year for my Christmas and said he would give me the completed rug to me the following year. Boy, he's building the anticipation! It's a lovely pattern in blues, golds and creams, called "African Marigold" by Beth Russell. It will be truly stunning when it's finished - it will be a crime to walk on it!
New for 2008
Friday 28 December, 2007
We don't currently run our smallholding as a business. However, in 2008, I want to put it on a more business-like footing, at least keeping a better track of income and expenditure.
Last night, I decided to work out what the financial picture was for the pigs last year. We sold two half pigs and kept a whole pig for ourselves; I had a record of the purchase price of the weaners, the slaughterhouse and butchery charges; although I hadn't recorded all feed bought, I was able to make a fairly accurate calculation of the cost of feed. All in all, our whole pig cost us £120. We have to decide if that is OK - if not, then we need to have a think about making changes to the way we manage this "enterprise", especially with rising feed prices.
Best laid plans...
Thursday 27 December, 2007
Well, Christmas hasn't QUITE turned out as expected. Lorna, our daughter, went down with a heavy cold on Sunday, I succumbed on Christmas Day and now Dan has the lurgy. Fortunately, Lorna's now fine apart from a bit of a runny nose and I feel loads better tonight.
I had planned to start preparing for the new year today and I had hoped to get Smokey out for a walk, but the weather has been miserable and we felt rough, so it was do the bare minimum and huddle round the fire to watch the horseracing.
Merry Christmas!
Tuesday 25 December, 2007
Merry Christmas to all TAS readers and contributers form everyone here at Longcarse Farm Cottage!
We hope you have a happy, safe and prosperous 2008, full of joy and love!
TAS video tour part 1
Thursday 20 December, 2007
This morning I shot a little video tour of part the smallholding. As you'll see it was unscripted and I look like I've just woken up - too many early mornings!
The Accidental Smallholder tour from The Accidental Smallholder on Vimeo.
Lazy Sunday?
Sunday 16 December, 2007
It has been the most lovely day here - cold, light wind and sunny. Perfect for pottering in the garden. Or for killing chickens.
Yesterday, Dan and I had our annual trip to Glasgow. Before we had pets and livestock, we used to go to Glasgow regularly - bit of shopping, cinema, dinner, stay over, leisurely breakfast. Friday was our wedding anniversary, so we decided to have a day shoppping, lunch, cinema - by 3pm, I just wanted to come home. Anyway, the consequence of that (apart from my sore feet), is that we had lots to do today - but it was a perfect day for doing it!
An emotional journey
Sunday 18 November, 2007
Dan and I have just returned from a visit to Holland. The purpose of the trip was to visit the grave of my Uncle David, who was killed in May 1944 and is buried in the village of Brielle, near Rotterdam. It was an emotional journey, but I'm glad we made it.
David was my mother's only sibling. He was 21 when he died, a Flight Engineer on Lancaster bombers. His plane was shot down on the way back from a raid and, although the crew managed to bail out successfully, David was shot by snipers on the way down. He was with the Dutch Resistance for a few days before he died, which is why he is buried in a village cemetery. Neither my grandmother or my mother ever made it to Holland, but I promised my mother I would go - and now I have.
Comfort reading
Sunday 4 November, 2007
There are certain books that I return to again and again - sort of comfort reading. Falling into that category are the books by James Herriot. When I was young, I really wanted to be a vet, and devoured these books. And I keep going back to them - no surprises in them but they still make me laugh and cry.
Dan's tried but can't get them - that's why he knows less about being a "vit'nary" than me!
