Cooler.

Today's photos are of the East Lyn River which tumbles into the sea at Lynmouth. The scenery is so wild and beautiful it's hard to realise that it's only a few minutes walk away from the bustle of tourists, traffic and shops.

We're still sitting under high clouds with a cooling northerly breeze. Speedy has begun to moult and there is hair everywhere. My jobs today were scrubbing the rusty bits of the dish drainer and a general tidy up in the garden.  I was planning to wait until we moved before buying new things for the kitchen but I think it's time to pay more for a genuine stainless steel drainer rather than keep having to change a cheaper one every year. We've no plans to buy a dishwasher. I believe with our lifestyle we use much less resources by hand washing and then using the water for a quick wipe down of the kitchen cooker and surfaces.

The orchids get fed and watered once a week on Sundays and today I wiped the dust from their leaves as well. A couple had either powdery mildew or scale insects so they were taken outside and sprayed with a fungicide/insecticide. When I bring them back inside they'll need to be kept away from the rest of the orchids. Maybe I can persuade Peter to keep them on the windowsill of his study.