Just Getting On With It

The never ending coverage following on from the death of the Queen is beginning to get a bit repetitive. I understand all about" living through history", actually all of us do it all the time and  I found the Proclamation coverage interesting because it had never been seen by the general public before but watching the hearse from a helicopter on it's 165 mile drive was not something I needed to see. 

I'm sorry but I just can't feel the grief  and that need to be "part of it all". Maybe there's something  wrong with me, maybe losing so many people in my life much too soon and putting a hard shell around me makes less feeling than the majority. 

BTW. Do you know how many Kings and Queens of this nation have died in the last 1,200 years - 61 according to one website, 44 was my count since 1042. 

Anyway...................

 I seem to have spent the last 6 weeks organising things  - it's what I've found the most difficult and time consuming since being on my own. When I wasn't doing that I've been making and freezing, jamming or pickling the garden produce and keeping out of the heat.

This meant that when I went to look for Elderberries to make the cold-cure syrup I was too too late. Luckily I have one bottle left from last year in the fridge. It still looks OK - it's so high in sugar that it keeps for ages I think!

 Instead of Elderberries I gathered just a 1lb of Blackberries from up the lane.

The blackberries have gone in the freezer at the moment and I'll probably make a little blackberry syrup and hope to remember to get elderberries next year.

Because I rarely pick blackberries ... don't like the seeds, and don't need the jelly.......... The Blackberry Fairy from the Cicely Mary Barker books has never made an appearance on the blog before.

Here she is with her song.

Back Soon

Sue

Wild Fruit Syrup

Several years ago I made Elderberry Rob, so good for winter colds.

 I doubt there would have been a better opportunity to snip the Elderberries from a tree on the bank opposite the bungalow than the week the road was closed. There wasn't really enough Elderberries so went on a bike ride around the back lanes to see if there was anything else to add in.

I ended up with just around a pound and a quarter of a mix of elderberries, some blackberries and a few yellow cherry-plums from a tree overhanging the road and the only 2 red cherry-plums that weren't squashed on the road.

 

 I popped them in the freezer and later found a few more elderberries and blackberries until I had about 2lb in total. This is the recipe I used in 2018 and 2019

This time I remembered to add a cinnamon stick to the boiling fruit - cinnamon is good for colds too.

 

After straining

 

and adding an equal amount of sugar and boiling gently for 5 minutes, then into sterilized bottles it made 4 and a bit kilner bottles.

I tried a little in some hot water and it's just as good as I remember.

I'm pleased to have this tucked away for winter and two for the Christmas Hamper gifts too.

Back Tomorrow

Sue

 

This, That and The Ogham Alphabet

 E.ON who are my electricity supplier have decided they are moving everything online - perhaps to persuade more people to have the smart meter. It says I MUST register and set up an online account or I won't be able to see my bill. I'm pondering what will happen if I do nothing and don't see my bill - ha! wont be able to pay it then will I? How long would they let things go before cutting me off?  

I'm selfishly very happy with the way the swimming pool is having to operate at the moment with virus restrictions. There are many more opportunities to swim than before and so few people swimming. I went early afternoon on Saturday and had half the pool to myself, a lovely quiet swim.(Although they are now changing this session to a family one so I won't be able to go at the same time). The only down was on the way home when a stone flew up and chipped the windscreen. Bother!

Saturday afternoon and the first fire of the season and it was much needed too.

Last month I forgot to do a post about the tree that represented the 9th Lunar month in the Ogham Tree Alphabet. (It was Hazel) and nearly missed this one too.

For the 10th Lunar month, the 'tree' is a Bramble representing the letter  M -  perhaps to the Celtic Druids 2,000 years ago there was no difference in language between trees and bushes, and brambles left to themselves soon turn into a thicket.

Above and Below....The illustrations from the Ogham Sketch Book  by Karen Cater

 

This Bramble below is one of my own - newly grown - not on purpose - at the top of the ditch on the meadow. 

 

 

I haven't picked any blackberries this year  - they are not my favourite things - I'd rather have an apple crumble without the seeds, prefer strawberry jam to blackberry and have plenty of other fruit in the freezer. So the birds will benefit. 

Guess what I'll be watching on TV this week?....................Tennis! French open on ITV4 all week. Good News Indeed.

 

Going back to my Friday Library Book Photo and all the interesting comments - here are some replies.

Unknown.....................I like sharing ideas for reading and collecting ideas from other bloggers 

Rachel..................I think it was you or Pat Weaver who mentioned the Jan Morris book. I had just started work in the library when he became her and remember the fuss about the new book at the time and change of name 

 Ang.....................The Little Library Year is more recipes than books - disappointing (for me anyway) 

 Sharon...................I'm glad you enjoy the library photo  

Pat..........................Fewer books on shelves now! 

Mazda...................Hope you get your proper library service back   

Sooze...................Hope you reading mojo soon returns

Later this week there will be photos of men up poles! Our electric in the area will be off while they switch us all to a generator for the week as lots of upgrading of poles and wires is happening. Including the pole right outside my gateway.

 

Back Tomorrow

Sue

On Track

Last week I heard the noise of big machinery across the field and guessed it was things to do with the Heritage Railway Track Extension and as the weather on Saturday was better than the forecast  I took my new walking shoes to have a look.

Sure enough here is the new  end of the Middy Railway. Its just quarter of a mile from home. They wanted to put a big turntable in here to turn the trains round to run back to the station. But with this new ending to the railway being just  50 metres from houses and as the railway didn't own the land they needed, they couldn't get permission, which I'm quite pleased about for the sake of the people who live there. Because it would have meant lots of people getting off the train to watch the turntable going round and probably wandering about the lane by their houses which would be quite a change from how their lane is at present.

This "new destination" 1km from the museum is to be called Aspal Halt. Heavens knows why as the village of Aspal is several miles away! The railway museum has an open day on the 21st April then their Middy in the War Years weekend on 5th and 6th May. I expect they are hoping to have the sleepers and  rails laid by then - depends on the weather I guess.

  This is where we picked loads of blackberries in 2017, now all cleared for the railway extension

Here's what was making all the noise

 I don't know how I feel about this, it was a lovely path (although not an official footpath)down the old track-bed, now its stones ready for sleepers and rails

There is a footpath crossing the railway here not sure how that will be sorted out

This is where the railway used to end

And the other way shows where it will be going - up hill a little, so I expect to hear the little trains huffing and puffing up the slope every Sunday through the summer.

Other machinery I might have been hearing was this, it's a willow cutter

 And here are the bundles ready to be collected

 I'm glad they haven't removed the cherry-plum tree -  blossom just beginning to appear.

 Heading home...........this is the footpath where  boots get caked in mud after rain, and that cream house is my cottage at the end of a lane.

Lovely lot of primroses this year on my meadow, among the new trees.

Thank you for all the comments about the random odd blog yesterday.

Back Tomorrow
Sue

Autumn

Some say Autumn doesn't start until the Autumn Equinox on 22nd September but  meteorological speaking Autumn starts on 1st September and as it's about halfway between I've put my recent purchases on the Autumn mantel- piece.


Ta Dah

,

The wooden fruit from the big carboot sale, a giant fir-cone  bought for £1 from the church sale-sitting on a curtain ring and the lovely colours of the swag - (not real leaves! -that was my one new purchase from ebay). A little jug with Autumn leaves was 50p at the small car boot and at the right hand end is a pottery acorn that one of the children made at school many years ago. It was a bedroom doorstop at the smallholding and I'd forgotten all about it until I looked in the dining room cupboard for something else for the Autumn display. Finally a mini swag of hops, still green at the moment. These were from the car park at the Emmaus charity shop in Ipswich. I remembered seeing hops there last autumn so we called in on the way to hospital, sadly no hoppy smell at all and they might go mouldy instead of brown in which case they will be chucked out.
 

Also in Autumn mode we finally got across the fields  to pick blackberries from along the old railway track bed.
11 bags have gone in the freezer and more went into two crumbles with windfall cooking apples from our tree.

Nothing says Autumn like a Blackberry and Apple Crumble.

Thank you for comments about things I don't buy, sorry I didn't get to reply as we were out all day. Also welcome to a new follower.
I take comment moderation off and the weird comments from somewhere in Asia are back again. Oh well, deleting them keeps me busy I guess.


Back Tomorrow
Sue