Good morning Mick and all GN's on a still rather grey morning in North Yorkshire.
Have been awake for hours, partly the usual wretched aches and pains but not helped by thoughts of this mornings dentist appointment. Have found small cushion to take with me - their chair is always bad for my back, stressing out doesnt help I know. Anyway I have the earliest appointment, which is good, as I cant think past this in any coherent way.
At least my bed was clean and comfortable last night, and the bedroom does look a bit neater for the general tidying up. With the weather we have been having , the wardrobe is rather a mess with warm and cool trousers etc etc, and for the last few days have definitely needed two sets of clothes, with frosty mornings needing jumpers and midday t shirts. So it is no good trying to pack anything away as ,of course ,the following day it would be something I need.
Today, once I get the dentist over, I plan to get a bit of shopping, including some picnic stuff, check my car over, for fuel and all my bits and pieces box for picnics etc, as I hope to go off for my first sortay into garden visiting with the yellow book (NGS ). My husband used to say it was the most expensive book I bought, as of course I was like a child in a sweet shop, finding gardens that I really must visit. Not only do I enjoy the gardens , especially the new ones, of course there may be plant stalls too! I am a seasoned garden visitor of many years and get smiled at by the plant stall servers, as I always have sturdy bags, loose change and the right money etc.
I usually arrive at the garden early - but never ask or expect to go in early, I remember the frantic last minute rush to get things ready- but if I see another car or person arrive, I quickly get out of the car and stand ready to go in. Once in, I ignore the beautiful garden and go immediately to the plant stall to enjoy and choose from all the lovely plants there. Then I can enjoy walking right round the garden one way, then turn round and walk round the other way. You really get different views if you do that as of course the background will be altered. Then , back to the plant stall for a look to see if there is a cutting from some great plant in the garden. Often, there will be tea and coffee and some home made cakes or whatever, which may be run by someone else such as local church, which allows the owner to concentrate on the garden side. I have returned to many gardens over the years, and made friends with many owners. I have given them snowdrops or other plants over the years and enjoy seeing them thrive there and can report on plants I have had from them too. So when you think I have been doing this for about thirty years , it adds up.
When I was having chemotherapy and things were tough, I used to read through the book , planning on gardens I would visit far and wide. The book goes with me wherever I travel in the country, and I was always pleased if I was singing in somewhere a way off as it meant a chance to see yet another garden. So it is good to see garden visiting stretching before me this summer. Do have a look if you enjoy gardens, but I have warned you about the addictive and irresistably urgent need to travel far and wide to visit them. It comes out every year and you can look through county by county for england and wales and of course you can spot good detours on your way on holiday to enjoy too!
I am amused by people saying to me "havent you already been to that garden?" Of course a garden is a living thing, and will have changed in itself, even if the owner hasnt done any deliberate changing. When you return over the years you see the garden growing and changing. Sometimes, as with children, the owners dont notice the changes until you point them out, reminding them of when a plant was moved, or wondering what happened to such and such and perhaps helping them in the search for missing flowers. Another pleasure is that I am visiting to support the charities and enjoy the garden. It is nothing to do with the fact that I have always wondered what was behind that wall!!
Ah well that has been a lovely thing to think about this morning to take my mind off the dentist. Now the joy of Bach before 7 to cheer the morning. No sign of the squirrel this morning but a fat pigeon is walking along and inspecting some of the bigger branches on the tree as at last there are leaves appearing.
Mick hope your morning goes well and I think the idea of fish and chips sounds just right for today too.
Baubles the pictures were very good. We have the yarn bombers in Thirsk who make the most marvellous toppings for bollards etc and I enjoy looking at the latest whenever they change.
grandMattie hope you have a succesful sort out . Nothing seems to be simple to organise these days and always involves you as the customer making all the effort and stress to get things sorted. Oh to go back to the day where you walked into a shop and the knowledgeable assistant would sort it all out for you and if there was any problem you took it back and they quickly dealt with it. I know there are people who now advertise that they can sort out flat pack things from Ikea for you but there is definitely a gap I would say for someone to be the equivalent of the hardware shop with all the bits and pieces, but where you would take any tech problems and they would have all the right phone numbers and know who to ring and fax and email to get it all sorted whilst you could sit with a cup of coffee and as that poster from the war said KEEP CALM or perhaps have little dolls labelled post office, utilities etc etc and a selection of pins that you could stick in them while you waited!!
Ah well we can dream cant we? Well as we used to say friday is POETS day (push off early tomorrows saturday!) I just want the morning to rush by. Hoping everyone has a good day and success with whatever the plans are.
