Daydream thread continues.....

rozeepozee

:A

Davesnave wrote: »

We planned to see the spectacle of thousands of crocuses and snowdrops in a local manor house garden, because the early forecast was for a sunny afternoon. Didn't happen, but we still went.

The manor was a thatched Georgian building with the same aspect as ours, so we were interested in their garden ideas. They have a much better view, but we could still copy their ha-ha if we want to:


Their chickens had great scope to run in that field, but they had scaly leg and didn't look too lively. Being posh doesn't make people good chicken keepers!

Half-frozen, we then had tea & cake in the local village hall, only to find out that theirs has a similar problem to ours, namely a leaky roof. In our case the bill will be £20k, but the materials for theirs will only be £2.5k because theirs is thatched.

Got home to hear that the Panto had raised £1465 towards that £20k....a record.

one of the kids and OH have coughs - so I'm awake at 2.30 am. When we first arrived here, we were envious that the local manor house had been bought in the late 80s by a former ex-City good lifer type for £100k. A similar sum to what I'd bought my London terrace for at the same time. Now, wiser, I just shudder at the thought of the maintenance costs on the place.

Well done with the fund raising, Dave. It's sort of a shame we can't hold pantos for our own roofs

COOLTRIKERCHICK

well done mr & mrs Davesnave ( and all the other peeps with the panto):beer::beer::beer:

I really do hate Monday's. :rotfl: it allways feels as though the weekend has gone too quickly

Think this cold snap is going to last a bit longer

RAS

Rummer wrote: »

Today I had high hopes of going out into the garden and clearing some beds however it has started again with the little whisps of snow and I can't face being frozen to the core while working :eek: Oh I am such a wimp! There is loads of heavy weeding and digging to do as well which I am quietly trying to avoid

Not sure whether to thank heavens for neoprene wellies which kept my feet warm despite the snow flurries or to curse them because I kept going for four hours and then realised that I really had come to the end of the road as my middle was frozen where the wind crept into at the joins. Third day of snow flurries

Still got two patches cleared/dug over and a lot escaping raspberries etc shifted as well as chasing the wretched couch grass. Managed to get a proper bonfire on Thursday night as well and some escaped garlic re-planted.

lostinrates

I love my insulated r boots, keep even my vampiric toes warm. Often the warmest my feet get all day actually!


Well, still feeling ok, so fingers crossed this last set back has actually been a bit of a blessing for a period of sustained improvement for me.

Showing how out of shape I am even thought I feel better, I was out of breath and got a stitch mucking out the barn today!

I think we have the builder and or chippie in tomorrow to do some tidying up.

Itismehonest

Davesnave wrote: »

It's a distance from here, so I'm not expecting to hear much on the local grapevine, but it wouldn't surprise me if there was a bit of sabotage going on.

Although our crime figures are very low, it's rumoured that a fair bit of 'alternative justice' occurs. For example, 30% of barn fires in Devon aren't accidental.

"Endurance Windpower released a statement revealing the reason the turbine at East Ash Farm, in Bradworthy, collapsed on January 27 was because of a problem with the structural grout and the manner in which the tower was fixed to the foundation. The company has said the problem affected the durability of the anchor rods resulting in the tower collapse and has affected 29 other turbines."

http://www.thisisnorthdevon.co.uk/Turbine-manufacturer-admits-fault-35-metre/story-18248382-detail/story.html#axzz2LtnXxiJG

Davesnave

Itismehonest wrote: »

"Endurance Windpower released a statement revealing the reason the turbine at East Ash Farm, in Bradworthy, collapsed on January 27 was because of a problem with the structural grout and the manner in which the tower was fixed to the foundation.

Thanks for that. I'd decided that it was probably an engineering failure, as sabotage would be pretty easy to prove, so someone would have shouted "Foul!" by now.

Egg on their faces then.

I have tried to get up close & personal with our latest turbine round here, but although I glimpsed it a few weeks back, the road didn't go as close as I thought it would. I'll take a map next time.

The elderly horse lady whose paddock is 'next door' has just had solar panels fitted. They face east, but other options were not available.....She told me how impressed she was with the company that fitted them today, so my ears pricked-up. Then she added, "And they've recommended I get Fischer electric radiators, so the man is coming to see me about those." :eek:

I instantly crossed them off my list!!!:rotfl::rotfl:

Davesnave

It seemed somewhat more springlike than I was expecting today. Some of the birds have changed their songs and maybe I'm just picking up on that. Anyway, I wasn't cold.

I took down the whole front fence (1/4 had already fallen down.) Now I have to put in a gravel board that I can strim up to and plant a hedge behind it.

Working out by the road, I get occasional vehicles beeping and folk waving, but often I haven't a clue who they are. As a 13 metre long puddle forms outside our place, this dry week is just what I need. I couldn't possibly do this work after rain. The council have the puddle on their "to do" list, but it involves severe digging. There's no drain here and I think successive road surfacing has made it impossible for the water to go in any useful direction, so it just hangs about, causing trouble.

EDIT: I'm not the only one appreciating the dry spell. Just noticed the headlights in two big fields nearby. They're ploughing.....

lostinrates

Yep, the big wet patch round the veg border is finally drying up, which means weeding and clearing out there for this year cannot be reasonably put off for much longer. Summer field is still a bit damp though. The hat is in the dampest part on the side we need to enter from, which seems a bit daft, but hey ho.

I also just saw a mosquito. Gads.

alfie_1

hi all...
well im kernacked... got into my big shed today ,hauled out 2 old sofas and took to tip...:j
sorted a big pile of burnable stuff and another pile for the tip on wednesday. now put any furniture of use/value NEATLY in there now....

had a young lad from local scats to help me for the day...:D

got another pic from son...hes having a great time...loves it there.. motorbiked an island with a gang of lads, wants to do diving next...
to say im envious is putting it lightly...:D

alfie_1

i had 11 robins, 17 long tailed tits, other tits, bullfinch ,2 woodpeckers,3 nuthatch, a magpie, 2 wood pidgeons [and my doves] descend on my bird feeding area within minutes of putting stock out ....