Here in Hightown we have always been plagued with ants each summer. The good thing is that they have realised that they are not welcome in the house and for the last few years they have stayed outside. I recently saw a video of a man pouring molten metal down an old ant nest in…
I’m suffering from empty nest syndrome. All the nests in my garden or which I can see from the windows are empty. The last ones to go were the house martins and I suddenly realised last night as I went to bed that I couldn’t hear the chicks in the nest above the bedroom window….
This jigsaw puzzle is one I have done many times and love despite it not being the easiest puzzle I’ve ever done. It’s called Day and Night and is taken from a picture by a Dutch artist M. C. Escher who is known for his geometric art works. This is the only one of his…
I was watching 3 large agapanthus buds in the front garden from the lounge window. This plant hasn’t produced flowers apart from the year it was planted around 6 years ago and then they were very pretty but not very tall. Suddenly this year they are taller than the garden wall with thick sturdy stems…
I have a selection of stones which have the fruits of the spirit on them; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. I also have one which says courage. When I have been going to do something that I expect to find difficult I have kept courage in my pocket. I also…
One afternoon recently Telyn, the female osprey of the Dyfi Osprey Project based near Machynlleth, started to build up the sides of the nest. She was very deliberate in her building and it was the west side of the nest that she concentrated on. A big log already in the nest was moved to the…
This sculpture is designed to show how nature is holding people up during the pandemic. There is lots of evidence that being out in nature, even if that is only a garden, can help with mental health not only during a pandemic but always. It’s a good sculpture, I like it because I understand what…
I have been in the house or garden a lot since the start of self-isolation and lock down. Yesterday I needed to take the car for a drive and decided that I’d drive down to the lifeguard station at Burbo Bank so that I’d get a view of the sea. On the journey I noticed…
Our phones are off, WiFi is down and my mobile has lost signal. There was a moment of panic – “what if people are trying to phone me, email me, sending messages on Facebook, texting.” Colin is sorting it all out. And so I take to gazing out of the window, again. I notice small…
I’m sitting in the dining room trying to read a book which I’m finding very difficult and dry. It’s one of those books that uses six words where one would have done but that also uses the synonyms tab to find the most obscure word to mean something very simple; either that or the author…