In the bleak mid-winter

We have had gloriously cold winter weather here for the last few days. Air frost has descended on air frost until frozen surfaces look like they've been hidden in the back set of the lion the witch and the wardrobe.

This kind of cold weather, for me, is almost as satisfying as a hot summer day (it's winter, it's cold and frosty).

Yesterday we ventured down the frosty, wintery hill to the allotment with the bags of vegetable matter that have accumulated in the yard over the past couple of weeks, and guess what? our new tools are still there!

Oh how my faith in humankind is restored.

I just don't know what to do with myself

Ok, ok!

It's not dead, only resting!

I have been back since the beginning of August and I have only posted one lousy blog entry. I could say that nothing report worthy had happened, but that would be a big fib. I have actually been rather busy.

Since our return I have:

• supervised our double glazing installation
• visited Eigg
• been to Wales
• started a new job
• bought a new vacuum cleaner (not a hoover)
• had a burglary (on the allotment)
• planted some garlic and onions
• had another burglary (on the allotment)
• embraced the new council supplied big blue recycling bin
• took my first half day holiday from my new job to do some decorating at home
• grown a beard
• been to Manchester to help with some of my mum's decorating
• bought a beard trimmer
• bought some Purple Vienna Kohl Rabi seeds
• done some more decorating at home
• had a bonfire
  

I just don't know where to start! Perhaps I should do a(nother) lazy blog entry and post some pictures instead...

We need to contain this mess...

With a little judicious recycling we are now alost fully equipped with storage containers for, well, things that need containing!

We actually bought the can for the coffee when we first arrived, it was something of a priority.

Plastic pots we bought olives and humous in from the Naschmarkt are enjoying a dual existence as herb pots. The dried herbs, we bought at the same time in crammed plastic bags, were crammed so full that once they were opened they proved more less impossible to reseal or stand up, so that their contents didn't spill across the *shelves/work surfaces/cupboards (*delete as appropirate). The placcy pots aren't fantastically serviceable, but until we have emptied more pesto jars (one so far), they'll have to do, and at least we're not having to wipe everything down every time a cupboard is opened too quickly!

My favourite re-purposing so far has been the little wooden crate that the (rather delicious, Hungarian) mushrooms arrived in from the local Inter Spar that now houses our eggs on the work surface for all to see.

I wonder sometimes whether I oughtn't to credit Biddy Baxter for our resourcefulness. Although I haven't solved the "spewing muesli bag" problem yet so perhaps I'm not worthy of a Blue Peter badge anyway.