Just The Old Folk At Home.

It has been another quiet day today. I took Linas into town this morning to catch the train back to Plymouth. His tenancy runs out in the middle of August when he will be home for good. No job and although he has been accepted to do a Masters from January the £3000 fees would not be covered by a student loan. Lots of rain again today. I feel so sorry for those people who have come down to the West Country for their holidays. When we were driving north up to Bristol on Saturday the southbound side of the motorway was almost solid with caravans and holiday makers. At one point the traffic was stationary for several miles. At least when I drive up to Hampshire very early Sunday morning the roads will be clear. I did some shopping while I was in town including some cheap (99p) reading glasses to leave scattered in all the places I might need them. I also bought a pair of extra strong glasses for close work such as my jewellery making. The one disadvantage of having my eyes done is that I have lost my very clear close up vision. I did know this would be the case and my family always laughed when I peered over the top of my glasses to see things close up. Playing the piano is still a little strange as the reading glasses make the music nice and clear but if I shift my eyes to look at the keys there is a bit of a wobble. I shouldn't be looking at my hands anyway. I get a lot of pleasure out of playing the piano but I'm not very good so I'm trying to do some sight reading every day to keep my brain and hands working. I also intend to learn a few more pieces by heart instead of just bits and pieces. The road at the top of the drive almost looks like a private garden now that my neighbour has driven his mower over the grass and the himalayan balsam is flowering.
Looking the other way down towards Bowden Corner. I though about going for a longer walk this afternoon but rain clouds were threatening and I didn't fancy getting caught in a heavy shower. I read a bit outside and did a little gardening before the rain started. The swallows have another brood of youngsters in the swimming pool house (pool is now the scree garden). I tried to take some pictures of the parents feeding the young but the light levels were too low to get a clear picture. The adult birds were not too happy with me sitting there with my camera and darted around outside waiting for me to go. Last night I was sitting at the pc when I heard lots of bird noises close by. Went into the kitchen to find 2 swallows swooping around watched by 3 sets of feline eyes. I didn't dare leave the room to get my camera so I turned off the room lights and waited for the birds to fly out through the front door, which they did. We are very disappointed that for the first time in 15 years we have not seen any house martins. We have always had several nests under the eaves by the bedroom windows but this year there have been no birds at all. Checking out the wildlife forums other people have noticed a drop in numbers though some people are still seeing them.