shhDRink me

The weather has been wet and windy, but not cold. Made some tomato chutney (or was that Friday?) De-frosted the other half of the chest freezer, but as the frozen stuff was thawing, fast freeze will have to wait. Found the rhubarb so will put to defrost in the pan with strawberries for jam. Bite has now gone, thank goodness. Hurray for A's cream! Hips a bit ache-y. Got out of bed too quickly today, lightheaded and bumped in to window. P said it was a good job we had strong windows, could have been awkward explaining the accident to the fuzz. Had gammon for lunch, with fresh pineapple pudding for afters. Terry Skyped P (or possibly the other way round) and had a good moan. Family seem fine, back in NY now but no chance of coming home until November at the earliest. Will phone M later. Big news is P has got fed up with lockdown hair and shaved it all off. Just like when he was at work!

Felt like a 'can't be bothered' day today, so we went over to Chinese supermarket and Costco for some shopping. Came back with dim sum for us and to share, and sugar and other things for preserve making. A and LB came round late afternoon to collect some things. LB is loving being back at nursery, and he has graduated in to underpants! So pleased with himself, the transition has happened very quickly. Just goes to show, it happens when they are ready. Phone call and email from Rosemary about putting up prices of jars, then she sent a bossy email to everyone else hoping the increase (which we decided upon!) was okay with them! J wasn't happy - a bit mean, really, but I shall let them get on with it. After all, I can always bow out. And if P is having treatment at the end of July, I wont be able to do the Market anyway. Notice on the Wirral side of the tunnel, on the matrix board -                             ...

So this is Thursday and predicted to be the hottest day of the year so far - certainly feels hot and a bit muggy. Not really a day to do the tomato+basil dip, but having started it yesterday, has to be finished today. Have also made some cherry rock cakes and lemonade with the lemons I bought last week. Coal arrived, without the warning email, so had to curtail phone call to Doreen and sort space. P had gone to Morrisons and had tidied to shed last week, so easy to do (not that the stacking was done to his standards, but re-arranged easily.) P took shopping to A's and she gave him some more cream for my arm. Tues night/wed morning it was really itchy and swollen, and I have been covering it with lavender oil - will have to get some more. So now I can use the cream. Swelling has gone down some, but still itchy. Irritation is a terrible thing. Bottles for the dip arrived yesterday so have loads. Will try the Thai experiment at the week-end. Will also try to do the Strawberry...

Appointment was late, but she did apologise. Radiation is booked, with consent form in the post but there needs to be a referral to urology before it can go ahead. She expects it to be in August, with a week to recover before our hols in October. Here's hoping. Went to the plot this afternoon and A and LB came later. Picked lots of raspberries so might be able to do some jam. In the freezer meantime. Put curry in oven before going, so smelt wonderful when we got back. Got bitten by a horsefly and it blistered almost immediately so put some tea tree on it. When A came, she gave me some calendula cream she had made. Very soothing. Later she put some plantain on it (it was itching) and some more cream. Now it is just a warm circle, about an inch and a half diameter. LB had a fun time collecting fruit, most of all blackcurrants and putting the June drop apples on the compost heap. They have announced that social distancing will go down to 1 meter on 4th July, also lots of places...

Psorisis is a bother. Under boob, on scars and thick on the scalp. Part and parcel with the aching joints, particularly the hips.  Has been since beginning of April so I suppose it will be until all this is over, or at least more like it used to be. Bother. Yesterday was Father's Day so baked a coffee cake to share when A and co came round. M sent a card and phoned. The card was apt! Echoes of last Sunday! We talked about the tree and A thinks Codona might be Spanish - they too made fans in the eighteenth century. J and I picked logans, almost a full (large) punnet. Spoke to M after P and he sighed when I said about LB - social distancing doesn't exist in his little world! Jill came round for coffee in the garden yesterday afternoon and the weather was so nice. After catching up on the news and deciding we are all going to be more wary of people, crowds and general business when things calm down, she offered to put my stubborn bottles in her dishwasher. I only just had e...

There was a social-distanced meeting in Rosemary's garage this morning. Rain was heaving down, but at least the thunder and lightening seems to have passed over. Still muggy, a breath of fresh air would be nice. Market meeting was to decide how we should do a re-opening. So much faff! What with perspex screen for the cashier, card reader for cashless payments, ways to clean and sterilise - so much to consider, not sure it will be worth all that effort! Oh, and we will have to increase percentage to 12 to cover extra costs. Thankfully, others are investigating the important stuff - all I have to do is buy cheap kitchen roll. Now it is Friday. P bought tomatoes from Costco for me so we went to West Kirby for apples, basil etc to make tomato+basil dip. Have mint in the garden so trying to come up with something to use it. Current thinking is tomato, crab apple juice (in freezer), mint, grated root ginger. Maybe a touch of chilli for bite, maybe cucumber for coulth. Have done a f...

Monday and it is now 12 weeks since lockdown - which means those who had to self-isolate can now go out. Doesn't it? Non essential shops are opening today, with social distancing, of course. Also their own take on how to avoid customers touching everything and buying nothing. Good luck with that, I shall stay at home and make chutney. Possibley Portuguese custard tarts as well. P. has gone to the tip with the bags from the allotment. M tried to fix our mac from home, but said it needs to be a personal job - us to him or him to us. When travel is allowed, of course. Till then, nannysoo is a problem so I will just tell a few people to use rocking horse and let P. deal with the rest. P is making a raised bed for the asparagus, from a pallet the logs were packed on. Cut, fixed together and creosoted, all it needs now are a few posts to pin it in the ground. So off to timberyard. P's tablet wont switch on, so thinks he will have to buy a new one. Not today, though. The sk...

A cracking and crackling thunderstorm last night. Went on for ages, thunder and lightening all around, all the time. Lots of water! As it is Sunday, am going to make pastries for breakfast, but not just yet. P turned the Aga down last night and it is not hot enough. It is a Terry day, not sure who is phoning who but P is still in bed, so hope she isn't early. Yesterday went to the plot with compost and loaded the car with bags to take to the tip sometime. P played with the strimmer again, think he has done all he is allowed, for now. J is of course fascinated with how it works and wants a go - he knows that the goggles are important! Tidied a bit in my garden but need to do some more today or tomorrow. We have had breakfast and lunch and P has been on to the broardband provider help line. He couldn't access his email and many hours of frustration ensued. Much was wiped, so this side seems fine but nannysoo is not. They will be in touch within 72 hours - Wednesday? I thi...

Not written much this week, as you can see. Deaths recorded have gone up to about 200 - 55 was just a week-end blip. There is a drive to reduce distancing to 1 metre so that schools are more likely to open. After all Cheshire Oaks, Chester Zoo and the Safari Park are allowed to open now. Suggestions for 'Nightingale' schools, extra portacabins and asking recently-retired teachers to come back to help could work as well for education as the similar plan for NHS. Went to the plot and P had fun with the new cordless strimmer. A had baked a lovely cake which we shared for elevenses. Need bags of compost to earth the spuds some more. J. put his hand down on the tree trunk and a 5-spotted ladybird ran over his hands and on to his jumper. He was entranced. Then P put it on the broad beans to eat any blackfly. Logs came on Wednesday. I helped for half the pallet the Pp came (with A + J) and did the rest. No exercise video today! Shopping Thursday, then to Helen's to collect...

So the start of another week. P got his disc of exercises which he has been doing and I have joined in. Really, only the warm up is suitable for me - the cardio does lots of things involving hips and ankles and makes me ache. Let him do it by himself today, will try again tomorrow before going to the plot. We had boned shoulder of lamb yesterday, with peas, beans, celery and carrots and jersey spuds. Syrup sponge and custard, by special request! A + co. also had lamb. They went to the plot and Chris helped with the blown-over wooden pieces. J ate strawberries! Talked to M. and he had had a rotten migraine on Friday. Doesn't often have them, but this was bad enough to take the day off. Weather is more windy than wet up there and his strawberries have given up. Thinks he may have put them out too soon - but then, who thought we would have a slice of winter at the end of May?? P. has gone round with a bicycle pump, to see if it fits their bike. Then he said he might go to B+Q ...

A is feeling a bit off so they didn't come to the plot today. I tied up the tomatoes that the wind had blown down and did a bit of weeding. The old shed end has fallen on the asparagus bed but it was too heavy for me to lift - will take two! The water butt by the door is full, so hopeful the well is too. Picked a few strawberries. P. collected me. Saw a 5-spot yellow ladybird, a lilac (or maybe grey) long bug with apricot (or orange) spots in 2 lines down its back. After some research, it could be a ladybird larva. We went out earlier to Helen's, to collect face masks she had made. Lots of choice and came home with 3 instead of four - idiot! She is looking well and pragmatic about her health. While I was at the plot P went to the tip (an hour and a half today - chap said last week was quick because everyone was at the beach. Probably why the R rate is back up to 1.) Also got some milk and spuds for tomorrow. Still windy, but the sun is trying hard. Confusing emails f...

What is this wet stuff, falling from the sky? Oh, yes. Rain! It started during the night and has been quite heavy, so am hopeful for the water butts and the well. Went shopping this morning, early. No queues. What a difference the weather makes! There is other news than the virus, but it's just as depressing. Trumpton is melting. Sam Vimes is needed to shout his affirmation that police are civilians, not military. Dropped off the shopping. Had lunch, washed yesterdays dishes as well as todays. Inspected various red blobs on my fingers, hands, arms. The plot has been taking lessons from my garden and is fighting back. Or maybe it's like COVID toe - COVID finger, hand, arm. It is now Thursday and we went for a walk and now I have baked. Apple+Almond muffins (with choc drops) and 3 x choc-chip cookies. The man on No. 23 gave us some netting so plan to take some cookies on Saturday, in case he is there. If not, I'm sure J+P+A will eat them!

We are now ten weeks, so I suppose it must be Day 71. Hair washed and tied back with a scarf. Bit arty-farty but it keeps the hair off my forehead and neck. Still sunny with a little breeze. Rain has been forecast over night. Not sure I believe them. Awake early so got up. So did P, so we collected plants, goosegogs, meringues and cherries. Filled water containers and make flask of coffee and went to plot. A said she would come this morning as she didn't have time to water yesterday, so P left me there while he did shopping. A to text him when we are leaving. There was a plan to net the fruit so I set to weeding the fruit bed. Found lots of strawberry plants. Later, when A and J came, we also found the first ripe strawberries - hurrah! The marestail seems to shelter and keep them warm so they grow and ripen early. A few raspberries were ready as well. Useful marestail! A even suggested keeping some of it to carry on doing the job. Very warm on the plot, so kept stopping for ...