Anything goes
Update w/e 10th May
Sunday 10 May, 2009
It's been a quiet week here, mostly due to the inclement weather. On the positive side, the grass is now growing better and the area that we reseeded after the fencing and the new shed were put in is faintly green if you look at it from the correct angle.
Herbert, our second lamb, has been renamed Dickie after a well-known TV personality. Can you guess who? With the warmer weather, we'll be treating the sheep this week to prevent fly strike. Jura had it last year but we noticed it very quickly and were able to treat it promptly. She seems none the worse for it but I'd rather avoid a repeat.
What happened to Spring?
Wednesday 6 May, 2009
We ate the last of our Christmas puddings yesterday. Kind of appropriate since it's cold, wet and miserable enough to be December.
Bees
Monday 4 May, 2009
I've just enrolled with our local beekeepers association. I've missed this years training course but I'm going to go on the visits and pick up the theory from January, with a view to getting bees this time next year.
Because of our limited land area, bees seem like a good way of producing more food and increasing the fertility of the land - and they don't eat any grass!
First visit is on 24th May, so I'm looking forward to that.
Clearing the field
Saturday 28 March, 2009
When we bought our house, there was a "hump" in the field. It was made of rubble and was the remains of what had been used to reclaim some land down to the river. Over the years, it has been used as a viewpoint for Dan and I, the dogs, the chickens and latterly the sheep. Since it was slightly horseshoe shaped, we also used it as a fire pit. At one time, we had plans to make it into some kind of garden feature.
However, the advent of the sheep and the need to make the most of what grazing we have sounded the death knell for the "hump". As part of the fencing and sheep shed erection exercise, the "hump" was relocated to the riverbank and planted with willow.
Willow hedge
Tuesday 3 March, 2009
We planted some willow behind the garage a few years ago. Since then, it's just been left to grow. The hens like it.
When we had the new fence put in along the river bank, I was quite keen to put a willow bank behind it to help stabilise the bank, to provide some shelter and to provide firewood, eventually.
Dan's dad got to work yesterday and cut and planted dozens of willow whips. If only half of them take, we'll be fine. In any case, they didn't cost us any money and we like feeding the bunnies...
Ice inside!
Wednesday 4 February, 2009
It took me longer to deice the inside of my car this morning than the outside. I don't think it has a leak - I think it's just carrying wet dogs, wet boots and jackets, buckets of horse poo (stables to garden) mean that the moisture content of the car has risen.
I was scraping the inside of the front windscreen and was covered in ice shavings, thinking (I must get a dehumidifier and dry this car out". Come summer, and the warm weather (?), I'll leave all the doors open to let it dry naturally but I can't wait until then.
God's country
Tuesday 3 February, 2009
An American decided to write about about famous chuches around th world.
When he visited the first church, he noticed a golden telephone on the wall with a sign below, which read "$10,000 per call". Intrigued, he asked the priest what this was. "Ah", said the priest, "that's the hot line to heaven. For $10,000, you can talk to God".
The American visited churches all over the States, in Australia, New Zealand and many countries. In every one, there was a golden phone, with a sign below "$10,000 per call".
Clackmannanshire Fact No2
Tuesday 20 January, 2009
Sir William Alexander (1567 - 1640) 1st Earl of Stirling was born in Menstrie Castle, which is now in National Trust for Scotland ownership. In 1621, he was granted land in the New World by James VI, and founded the province of Nova Scotia. Although his attempts to establish a Scottish colony there failed and in 1632, Charles I handed Nova Scotia to the French as part of a peace settlement, in 1732, it was ceded back to Britain and many Scots emigrated there.
Clackmannanshire Fact No1
Monday 19 January, 2009
My chum, Claire, loaned me abook called " I never knew that about Scotland" by Christopher Winn. As it is Homecoming 2009, celebrating the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns, I shall dazzle you periodically with fascinating facts about Scotland.
I shall start with my home county of Clackmannanshire!
"Clackmannanshire is the smallest county in the British Isles covering an area of just 55 square miles (14,245 hectares). In the late 18th century, one third of Scotland's total coal production was exported through Alloa, the county town."
More frugality!
Friday 9 January, 2009
Dan's been banging on about making popcorn for ages. Our local supermarket only stocks the stuff for microwaves and we don't have one. Eventually, he tracked popping corn down to our local Julian Graves shop.
A couple of nights ago, he decided to give it a go. I reminded him of my childhood experience of popping corn - my Mum and I made it. By the bucketload! Mum didn't think the amount on the packet was very much so she tipped in a bit more - it was like a horror movie. This stuff lifted the lid off the pot and made it's way over the cooker and on to the floor. I maybe exaggerate a wee bit but you get the idea.
