Knackered but Happy

Our 'hygge' house in the fog

It's been a busy time and my old bones are complaining, but I'm not, I'm enjoying every minute of it.  I was determined to make a lifestyle change and my body will just have to get used to it.  No more soft city life, oh no, it's spending Sunday mornings in the wind and rain pulling up ragwort in the field from now on!  I know how to rock and roll :)   I now own lots of brambles (not something a lot of people would be pleased about) so I picked the first few blackberries to appear, only half a pound but with apples they will make a nice crumble when I have time, so they have gone into the freezer. Hopefully I will have tamed the Aga by then, if I turn my back it goes from uncooked to burnt.   I also rescued another exhausted bee clinging onto some ragwort and revived it with sugary water, the storms seem to be taking their toll.    I could then be seen kneeling in the veg patch in the pouring rain pulling bindweed from what may be gooseberry bushes.  I'm not sure what to do with the ragwort or bindweed so I put them in an old bin for now out of harms way.

I then decided on a bit of light indoor work......which turned into hauling boxes up into the attic. I did cull some more books though, but I just don't seem to be able to let go of the boxes of my sons paintings and school books, even though they would happily throw the lot in the bin!  We still have way too much 'stuff'  I don't know how I managed to cram it all in our other house, it was literally full to the rafters, hidden in every crook and cranny.

Talking of stuff, I am about to bring more into the house as I will need another freezer for the various wild and hopefully home grown fruit and veg.  We had an integrated freezer which I left at our old house. I'm debating whether to get a chest freezer which is more efficient and has less waste of space or an upright which takes up less floor space.  I'm tempted by the chest freezer but have visions of little old 5' me leaning in to get something and falling in, the lid closing and a frozen Chickpea is found hours later....yes I have a vivid imagination.    I'm also thinking of getting a dehydrator which among other things could be used to turn some of the hundreds of grapes in the polytunnel into raisins.  This self sufficiency thing is turning out very expensive!

Oh and for the first time in my life someone knocked on my door to ask me if I had lost any cows.  Never thought I would be asked that :)

Ziggy Stardust is still being kept in, she doesn't seem too upset about it, it will be interesting to see how this city cat copes with becoming a country cat.  I will be very nervous about letting her out for the first time.  I have put butter on the feet of previous cats when I moved, yes it probably is an old wives tale but may be worth a try.


So my new life involves getting up even earlier than I used to, more physical work than I am used to and evenings in the conservatory knitting, reading or listening to music, before hobbling to bed.....literally.    The television hasn't been on (apart from the bearded one watching a football match) and I haven't missed it at all.  I walk around the field at least once a day regardless of the weather and I am absolutely loving it.  I really needed to get out of a rut and this has certainly kicked me up the backside.  Lets hope it lasts.

I will leave you with a little film of our favourite lodgers the House Martins,

Chickpea xx