The last bank holiday for 3 months

 

For this bank holiday weekend I had hopes of going to see The Devil Wears Prada 2.  That’s a fail then.  The timings in the local cinema (local here is 15 miles away) are not really fitting with other plans including sleep!

The blinds have gone up.  That was a blue job.  There was a point where it was not going quite as smoothly as it might.  I identified this from additional power tools being called into action and mumbling about a couple of millimetres needing shaving off the top bar as S disappeared into the garage.  Obviously, I took the course of all sensible domestic supervisors in such a situation and decided this was the moment to go and visit my parents.  

I arrived at my parents to discover their neighbour cutting their hedge.  This made me feel momentarily guilty but only momentarily.  We can only do so much, they would need to get someone in, and the neighbour has something of a shared interest re that hedge.  I’ll take my wins where I can find them!  Besides which I needed to try and find a very lightweight battery operated strimmer that can trim the lawn edges without any risk to toes (more re that later) and that was higher up my ‘to do’ list than the hedge.  The robot mower is very good but every few weeks the edges need attention and we have now arrived at every few weeks!  We are more on the industrial side of such tools and “grass ticklers” as S would call them are not within his field of expertise.  Some research is needed.

Still when I got home the blinds were all up and the two roller blinds were ‘charging’.  Yes, you read that correctly.  This is a relatively new concept to me.  Roller blinds used to have a pull cord alongside.  No more, or not these at any rate.  These work by remote control.   So we now have 2 remote controls for blinds to add to the two remote controls for two oil filled radiators, two roof lights/windows, TV, the soundbar, Apple TV (not sure I have ever used that one), the Firestick (the TV is fine as far as we are concerned but Netflix have deemed it to old to be supported - this was the more economical option) and the 2 Dyson fans.  Those are just the ones I can think of right now.  Some also operate via our phones and others operate solely via our phones eg smart plugs, immersion heater and a wall mounted radiator in the back lobby.

It doesn’t seem that long ago that a remote for the TV was considered an innovation, now, getting up to search for the remote/phone seems more likely than just getting up to switch something on.  

Sunday was the first proper BBQ of the year.  The venue being the MiL’s,  it being easier for her mobility issues.  It was a joint effort.  S cooked, of course he ddid it was a BBQ.   We. generally conform to stereotype around here.  I left the MiL is in charge of puddings.  Predictably she exceeded her shopping remit and Waitrose it seemed had either supply or too much success on the bank holiday sales side.   I am told there were more substitutions in her order than actual order.  Still we ended up with S’s signature pulled pork, potato salad, pasta salad, coleslaw, steaks, burgers, sausages, various dips/mezze a salted caramel roulade alongside pineapple, mango and passion fruit.  

Not for the first time the family “joint effort” might be said to be lacking a little effective communication on the planning front.  I predict something similar on the menu today!

On the plus side, hiding behind her bin was a lightweight battery operated strimmer.  Seemingly not used for a couple of years and not likely to be in the foreseeable.   We have a test option for my parents to see how they get on.  As I said I’ll take my wins where I find them.

On the vegetable gardening plus side things are slowly getting sorted thought watering has felt like the main aim of the weekend and the weeds do not appear in the slightest bit  stressed by the heat.

I have still to get supports in place in the greenhouse and the chillis are not all in final pots yet but the tomatoes (Moneymaker in the greenhouse) are in place as are a couple of cucumber plants.  I understand, in theory, cucumbers and tomatoes do not share ideal growing conditions but I do not need many cucumbers and they always seem to do ok.

I still have the second tranche of sweetcorn to go into the main beds, some more squash if I can find a place for it and half a dozen climbing beans but the rest is about succession planting now and a few later sowings - primarily fennel, pak Choi, mustard and leeks.

It is already getting away from me re weeding but no real surprise there and watering is having to take precedence and taking time come to that.  I have some rocket, Chinese cabbages pak Choi and mustard that have already bolted.  The last two were a bit of a surprise as I did not know I had planted them but some seem to have been in a salad leaf mix and one pak Choi plant appeared in the middle of my Chinese cabbage seedlings.  I suspect the radishes will be next though the mooli is doing incredibly well.  The mixed bed is a bit chaotic.  I had planned neat rows and last year the plans came good.  This year things are a bit more haphazard so I have filled in gaps with other stuff, the second batch of kholrabi and lettuces in the main.  I’ll see how things go and gaps can be plugged as we go along to keep it producing even if not quite as I had intended.

The Robins have now had a further clutch in the box cone outside the dining room window.  I see little prospect of that getting a proper trim until much later in the year at this rate.  I also have something nesting in the guttering above my study window.  That is going to be a pain at some point but looking at the weather forecast probably not just yet!