courgettes at last

courgettes at last, originally uploaded by the pig wot flies.

I went home last Thursday after a week away and found that the sun and rain had done their work and there were 2 courgettes ready to harvest. So I picked them and turned them into dinner.

bizzy backson

Not dead, busy.

Say hello and tell me nice things.

courgettes day 58

courgettes day 58, originally uploaded by the pig wot flies.

Look what I found this morning. A flower!

courgettes day 56

courgettes day 56, originally uploaded by the pig wot flies.

They've enjoyed all the rain and produced lots of leaves, but no flowers yet.

another weekend, another wedding

Chris and Caroline dancing, originally uploaded by the pig wot flies.

To Oxford for the wedding of Chris and Caroline, now Dr and Dr C.R.
It was a lovely day and beautifully sunny for a change. It was good to catch up with old friends and spend time in Oxford.

passion flower

passion flower, originally uploaded by the pig wot flies.

Here is a pretty flower, snapped while walking back to the car after Dave and Vicky's wedding.
We have a passion flower plant in our garden. Sadly, it's not producing any flowers. Someone cut it back a little too severely and it's struggling to get its head above the rosemary bush.

rain, rain, go away

Don't know why there's no sun up in the sky.
Stormy weather
Since my man* and I ain't together
Keeps on raining all the time

Yesterday there were fantastic thunderstorms and hailstorms. And it's July. What's that about?

I have come to the conclusion that Debs is a far better blogger than I am. She posts things more often, has something to say and she's actually funny. Whereas I moan too much, post too infrequently and rarely have anything of note to say. Something must be done.

My head is full of thoughts and realisations, all of them half formed and in need of more time to digest. Some of them might become blog posts. Some of them won't.

Last weekend I went to a wedding, this weekend I'm going to a wedding. Life is good, I like weddings.

I have an essay due in 16 days and no weekends left in which to write it. Life is busy. I like busy, but it's tiring.

I've run out of enthusiasm at work, probably because I'm getting closer to leaving. There are plenty of things that need doing, but not much oomph to do them. Life plods on.

*There is no man to be not together with, but apart from that it's a highly appropriate song.

living for the future

A couple of things that got me thinking about sustainable living this week.

Andy McWilliam's talk from last Sunday. Making the Most of what We Have.

Dan Edelen's letter to Rich, the Young Ruler.

Food for thought.

courgettes day 36

courgettes day 36, originally uploaded by the pig wot flies.

Getting bigger and bigger. All the rain is doing them good. I wonder how long it'll be before they flower?

May week sleepiness

I had a fantastic time at the ball. Sang, our set went well. Wandered around, drank champagne, ate yummy food, danced and danced and danced and made it to the survivors' photo. I'm still a little sleepy, but it was worth it. May week* fun continues with the Rev Garden party this afternoon.

Hmm, I've got a 4000 word essay to write by Friday. I think a couple more late nights might be in order.

*Yes, it's May week, in June. It's a Cambridge thing.

magic words

"I'm with the band".

I'm off to sing at a ball tonight.

calm

Today is peaceful, so far. I'm at home writing an essy. Not much progress so far.
Once again, I failed to stay asleep past 8am. I think I've discovered why - the number of alarm clocks that go off between 8 and half past. Alarm clocks wake me up very easily and I generally switch mine off within a few rings. It seems my neighbours don't. I'm not sure what the solution is. Going to bed earlier, probably.

Essay writing today, fun tomorrow. I'm off to a wedding. Hoorah!

good things

Doctor Who (Don't blink!), sunshine, cinnamon tea, red nail polish, singing, sleep, friends, poppies, avocado and goat cheese salad, flags, God, housemates (mine, I've no idea what the ones on the telly are up to), silver shoes, pink dresses, beads, the feeling of summer (however short-lived).

currently occupying brain space

Brecht, Chinese theatre, courgettes, the lifespan of VW Beetles, alienation, graduation, Galileo, weddings, dresses, shoes, the availability of alternators, rain, cloud, climate change, trains, shoulder ache, sleep, birthday cards, cashmere, beef stir fry, cheese, rucksack straps, the Higgs particle, MOT certificates, washing, mushrooms, bed.

courgettes day 21

courgettes day 21, originally uploaded by the pig wot flies.

They've got big leaves and they're dark green, fleshy and slightly fluffy like proper grown-up courgette plants.

I planted 4 seeds in each side. On the right hand side, they all came up, on the left, only one did. I suspect this was because I didn't shake the grow-bag thoroughly enough at the beginnning and the soil was more compacted at the left hand end. I suppose I should thin out the plants a bit. The question is when and by how much?

on time and not having enough of it

I've had a good weekend. Went to see Cymbeline on Saturday with my mum and my uncle, which was great fun. Possibly Shakespeare's most bonkers play, in which it seems anything can happen and probably will. Apparently some of the most bonkers bits were cut, so I'll have to read it to find out what they were.

Sunday, went to Jubilee, heard Adrian preach on Missional Bible Study (good stuff, lots to think about about and more importantly, put into practice) and caught up with friends. We spent the afternoon doing and finishing the Guardian crossword from Saturday. It was good to be relaxing with my family, enjoying the sunshine and just being.

And now it's Monday again. It's not sunny. I have lots of non-work things to do (sort out my car, read, write an essay, possibly knit a shawl to wear to a wedding at the end of June, although the yarn's not arrived yet and I haven't bought a dress yet, sleep) and quite a lot of work things to do. Weekends never feel long enough.

Courgettes day 10

I'm growing courgettes (zucchini) in our back garden. I planted the seeds on 9th May. (Edit: Actually it was the 16th.) Saturday was the first day I noticed shoots. They've got a bit bigger since then.

Any tips for growing courgettes? They're getting plenty of water at the moment because it keeps on raining.

suddenly coming to earth with a bump

That would be me.
I've been going flat out for the last 10 days or so. Worked all weekend at a course, was pretty tired before that, now it's time to stop. Day off tomorrow, going to London, going to see Kiss of the Spiderwoman in the evening, long weekend, planning to shop, maybe sew things, maybe just sleep.

Perhaps next week I'll blog things, like pictures, fun thoughts, a meme for Amrita.

Happy Birthday Debs!

It's my sister's birthday today. (She's the one with the big brown eyes). Go and wish her a happy happy birthday.

eurovisioning

I watched The Eurovision Song Contest for the first time in several years. It was fun, but not quite as much fun as it would have been watching with my sister. Fortunately, she was blogging it, so you too can experience the fun of Eurovision with Debs (part 1), Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, summary, result.