An Outside Day.

It's been quite grey today but with the winds blowing from the south it's been warm. I did hang some washing outside but there wasn't a lot of wind at ground level so the washing didn't really benefit from being on the line. For me on the other hand outside is always best. I'd rather wrap up and work or even read outside than stay indoors. Maybe it's because this house doesn't get a lot of light especially in the winter or perhaps it's just my love of being out in the fresh air. I've been watching a lot of house building/design programs recently and for all their eco-cred I couldn't live in a passive house. Windows and even doors are usually open here except in the coldest weather.

Every day I tell myself that I'm only going to do some light gardening and then each evening my body tells me I did too much - again. But if not me then who will keep the garden in a reasonable shape? Peter works full-time and his arthritis is far worse than mine so he can't help. I know I'm gardening partly because I love it but I've also got future buyers in mind too. Today I cut down the loosestrife by the back lawn, cleared out the little drainage channel that runs around the lawn and then stomped and raked down the grass cuttings I have been tipping onto the bank. My plan is to put all the scrambling hardy geranium that needs to be cleared out of the raised bed, on the bank along with some soil from just below the hedge onto the grass cuttings and let it romp away. 

After my gardening I sat outside for a while with my eyes closed and I could imagine myself by the sea. The wind in the trees sounded like waves, I could hear seagulls in the distance and the sun was shining on my face. With a bit of imagination the sound of the tractor could have been fishing boat engines while the strimmer next door was with an even bigger stretch a jet-ski. It was so nice that I took some mending outside, a good sheet that had a little tear. I even got out an embroidery hoop which I don't remember using before, you can do some really teeny stitches when using a hoop. I wasn't quite finished when I thought I felt some rain so I rescued the washing, hung some of it over the rayburn and ironed the sheet dry.