Not used the car in a week. That is good. Ironically had we had much snow I would have been more likely to have driven it just because I could. Not really had to test the 4WD other than when we went for a jaunt to Stourton Woods to see the Strawsons not long after I bought it. Also last summer it wasn’t needed for Beyond The Woods for obvious reasons. The only real use it has had recently is to go to the shops and I’ve been leaving that to Anne. A hidden spinoff benefit to this is that we spend a lot less. I’m the spender of the family.
Although we have no snow it is very cold out there. V frosty. I woke up in the night thinking about this. What would it have been like in cave man times. We would have had a pile of bearskins or similar on top of us and just had our noses peeking out. Generating lots of frozen breath no doubt. Unless we somehow kept the fire going all night. Dunno how it worked.
So a busy day ahead of us. I have to prepare the beef casserole. Stew? What’s the difference? I also have to do some festival work with Tom. No peace for the wicked. I’ve never really kept a clear separator between work and play. When I worked in an office this blurring tended to result in more work being done whilst at home but not the counterbalancing play at the workplace. Having “worked” from home the last 7 years it is a lot easier to slot in some leisure time during what others might consider to be the official working day. I also somehow squeeze in festival work plus helping Anne with the vans business.
Anne herself is out scraping ice off her car as I write. She doesn’t have a remote control that sorts this out for her. Wossthatallabout?
In the news we are hearing less about the USA now that the orangudon has left Washington and more about covid and Brexshit. Seeing as this is a lockdown diary talking about covid is quite appropriate but it has been relatively quiet on the Brexshit until very near Christmas when negotiations with the EU concerning a “deal” went to the wire. We are now seeing a lot of fallout. The inevitable result of a rushed law with no scrutiny and a weak negotiating position.
Time will tell but it does feel as if the deal hasn’t gone as well as Bojo had hoped. Suspect that he and his chimpanzee accomplices have been eating too many hallucinatory banana leaves or whatever it is the troupe likes to munch on when sitting around the jungle chattering amongst themselves. They believed their own hype. It is probably fortunate for them that the public has been distracted by the pandemic side show even though that itself could prove to be their nemesis. Enough of this negativity…
OIn the positive front I saw a blue tit munching away at the suet balls on the feeder near the greenhouse. This is good. I did also see a blackbird try and fail to get at the seed dispenser on the apple tree. Maybe it’s only designed for smaller birds. I don’t mind though I also don’t mind feeding the blackbirds. It’s the wood pigeons and rats I don’t want. As I type I see a robin on the deck in front of the shed (for that is my location). I’m sure I’ve got some dried insects for robins somewhere but can’t quite lay my hands on them.
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Couldn’t find the insects but stuck a small handful of bird seed on top of Solomon Owl’s bonce. See if they go for it.
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Beef stew on the go, fire lit and just having a cuppa before heading out into the icy cold wastes that are the streets of Lincoln for a constitutional. Is that a saying anymore?
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Ended up driving to the Ham of Nettle to go for a walk in the fields around the Old Bishop’s place. Now this is a thing. I only found out about this place last week after Anne had been for a walk with, funnily enough, the current Bishop’s wife! I guess Bishops wives know about these places. Whether she looked wistfully upon the grassy mounds that were all that was left of the old gaff I know not. Very interesting place though looking at the information board. A pretty substantial operation in the 13th century or thereabouts which was when the Bish was given it by the King.
We tramped around what actually were icy cold fields for an hour or so returning to the voiture via the beck in the village. When I had parked the car there was plenty of space both in front and behind me. Upon my return someone had carefully reversed in front of me. Must have been someone with OCD as there was loads of room and they didn’t have to park that close. I had to reverse a bit before driving off. Woot! 🙂
One thing that struck us on our walk was that the few shops we saw were closed including the pubs and newsagent. It reminded us that this is what life was like on a Sunday afternoon when we were kids. Absolutely bugger all to do. Kids these days complain that life is boring but back then Sundays really were completely boring.
Back in the hoose and the fire had made the front room lovely and warm. I topped it up with fuel before retiring the shed to do some more work. I know I know.