Monday 10 August 2020

The Distancing Diairies - Day 142 & 143




On Sunday (day 142) I was downstairs making tea at just after 6am. Although we'd another warm day forecast it was gloomy, grey and overcast. I went back to bed and was joined by the lads back from their exploration of the garden shortly afterwards. I read till 8.30 am while Jon snoozed.


For breakfast we ate the rest of the tin of beans & vegan sausages we'd opened yesterday and the last three slices of Jon's homemade spelt bread. After he'd headed off to the council tip to dispose of the old washing machine, I went online, confirmed that our details were correct for the council's electoral roll and printed off a claim form for Stephen's pet insurance policy.


 My job for the morning was to give the bathroom a proper clean which, since lockdown I've done every couple of weeks and hardly takes any time at all. I dusted the shelves, pictures & mirrors, scrubbed the bath, sink & loo and swept and mopped the floor. I had a bit of a change round with houseplants and hung the Indian tin plate sign G'n'T had bought me on the wall. In the mood for more cleaning, I swept & mopped the floorboards on the landing, in the spare bedroom and the stairs.


Talking of G'n'T, they'd brought us round a huge pile of wood when they visited last week. As it's soft wood, we'll burn it in the open grate in the lounge rather than the wood burner in the dining room, but hopefully it'll be a while before we have to start thinking about heating. Jon spent the morning moving it from the builder's bag on the drive up the garden to the wood pile.


I did my daily deadheading and harvested some dwarf French beans to throw in our curry later.


Nail paint of lockdown week 20 - Barry M's The Way You Make Me Teal. I do love a pun.


 As always my feet match my hands.


Jon did his daily inspection of the greenhouse and moved things around to accommodate the oak shelf we used to have in the kitchen


And carried this one round the garden like the big baby he is.


After a noodle break the sun had finally broken through the clouds and I was able to strip off to my bikini and prostrate myself on the lawn for the rest of the day. 



Pre-bikini, this was how I was dressed. I wear this Ayesha Davar midi skirt & Oasis Trading Indian gauze blouse almost every other week, slightly updated this time with the addition of my new-to-me vintage Christian Dior sunglasses, Afghan earrings and the tooled leather belt I bought from the charity clearance shop last week. I think mask-wearing must have made me slightly befuddled, when I picked the belt up I could have sworn it was my size but when I got it home it was enormous. I punched a new hole in it and chopped 10 inches off the end to stop it flapping around like an unwanted appendage.


After the sun had vanished behind the trees I washed my hair, which had been slathered in conditioner all day, epilated my legs and watered the garden. Tea was, as I'd mentioned earlier, a curry made from some Morrisons' vegetarian mince (far superior to Quorn), green beans from the garden, tomatoes, onions and peppers, served with half a nan, veg pakoras & mango chutney.


Giving the dreadful A Suitable Boy a wide berth, we caught up on a couple of episodes of the Danish crime drama, Advokaten (The Lawyer), currently being screened on Channel 4. We'd enjoyed the previous series and loved that Sara, one of the main characters, dresses in particularly cool vintage '70s gear. Her brother, Frank, (seen below) is rather easy on the eye.



It was another dull grey start to the day on Monday. After I'd let the lads out at 6.30am, I mopped the utility room floor and put the crochet cat blanket through the Rapid 15° wash in the new machine, pegging it out on the line fifteen minutes later. After my Wii Fit session I caught up with Blogland until Jon joined me for fruit & yogurt in the kitchen.


We were expecting friends later and, with a mixture of glorious sunshine & torrential rain showers forecast, Jon dug out The Egg from the depths of the shed. It's a professional pop-up trading marquee I'd spotted in a charity shop a couple of years ago and, at a tenth of the normal retail price, we'd have been mad to leave it behind, although dragging it from the shop to the van nearly killed Jon. We'd just managed to erect it when the first shower arrived, within minutes giving way to glorious sunshine and 30°C heat - hooray!


The outdoor rug has been part of our festival shop set-up for years and has usually been in constant use at this stage in the summer. It felt good to give it an airing.


The flower bed beneath the lime tree was demanding my attention so I raked, weeded and tidied up the clumps of montbretia that had been flattened by the dreaded tree debris. After a stop for an al fresco coffee in the sun, Jon wheeled my sweepings to form a pile at the top of the garden as the garden waste bin was already full (it's due for collection this coming Wednesday).



In my enthusiasm to get it sorted I never took a before photo, it's not the most exciting area but it looks a lot better now.


After a break for noodles I thought I'd use the newly cleared bed for a posing area. 


The more eagle-eyed amongst you might remember seeing me wearing this vintage India Imports of Rhode Island dress last week. In the year I've owned it it's travelled to Corfu and India & numerous festivals and no doubt will pop up a few more times whenever the weather is warm enough. Maxi length, halterneck, Indian block print and cotton, it ticks all the boxes and makes me feel six feet tall - even though I'm only 5' 3 and a half inches!


After I'd submitted a very cheeky bid for a Buy-it-Now item on eBay (and to my great surprise, had my offer accepted) the rest of our afternoon was spent lazing around in the sunshine annoying the lads who wanted to be left alone to snooze in the shade in peace. 


Stephen refused to look at the camera, Jon's not strangling him...honest!


It's been so long since we last saw Liz & Adrian and it was wonderful to see them today, fresh from their holidays in Dorset. We sat in The Egg for the rest of the afternoon, catching up on the last six months over a beer (for us) and tonic water for them (they're being good)! Jon loved his beach-themed birthday present, a lidded enamel camping mug & a card by a Dorset-based artist.


Tea was salad with a half a goat's cheese quiche (or it will be when it's cooked). After I've watered the garden (the threatened rain never materialised), we'll be watching more of The Lawyer.

Stay safe & see you soon!

PS This blog post was brought to you courtesy of the new Blogger, after months of glitches and weird quirks it appears to be working perfectly...unless you tell me otherwise!

43 comments:

  1. Love The Egg. What a great place to entertain friends, comfortable al fresco! You have very attractive friends, Vix! Your garden just keeps getting better. Another section tamed and groomed. Your greenhouse is very posh with its new shelf. A bit overcast here today and it's to be very wet tomorrow. Will make myself tackle some indoor jobs.

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    1. Thanks, Catmac! You'll make their day when they read your comment.
      With it looking very much like we'll be social distancing for a long time yet I think many of us will be coming up inventive ways to sit outside with our guests well into the Winter, at the moment The Egg fits the bill perfectly!
      Hope the weather doesn't inhibit your gardening plans for too long. We're off National trusting in a bit, it'll definitely be macs at the ready! xxx

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  2. Hi there Vix! ahh so our Sundays were similar then.. housework rewarded by some time in the sun. I will never keep up with your efforts though. Love this weeks nail colour as blue is my favourite! The oak shelf is great in the greenhouse. That was a good idea to use "The Egg" all your friends look so stylish. No I just have to comment on that pic of you in the halterneck dress. You look so fab!! Your hair is gorgeous and that dress suits you so well.No wonder it is a favourite. I am trying to get better at "self care" and do a lot more pampering than I used to. Your hair obviously benefits from the care you give it. We have had blistering heat today so kaftan and then sarong today. I must confess not a lot got done. Have a great evening. Shazxx

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    1. Hi Shaz, yes, our Sundays were very similar indeed! To tell you the truth I was thinking of you entertaining your friends during your birthday week in your carport, which inspired me to bring out The Egg.
      I'm often guilty of letting self-care take a back seat, now I make sure I dedicate a few hours once a week to deep conditioning hair, epilating & nail painting, it's a bit like housework, it's easy to keep on top of it.
      Glorious weather demands you take it easy and just relax & enjoy, there are no rules! xxx

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  3. More "use what you have" inspiration in this post! Makes sense when one wants to entertain in the garden to set the stage: shelter from inclement weather (The Egg), flooring more civilized than grass (the colorful rug), places to put thinks (the resurfaced table). All boxes checked! * My neighbors across the way have extended their summer living quarters in a similar manner, furnishing their patio with tent, real furniture, rugs & lighting. Oh, and unbreakable dish and glassware, for they do have kids.

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    1. Yes! There's always something you can utilise. We've got plenty of tarpaulin and clamps in the festival shed so, if needs be, we can even made The Egg inclement weather resistant, too.
      Your neighbours outdoor living quarters sound very sensible. We've also got the unbreakable dish & glassware at hand, no kids, just Jon! xxx

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  4. Not looking forward to the new blogger, I keep switching back to he old one, but I do know that the end is nigh with this and the new blogger it must be. Love the two outfits and that you do wear your same clothes, often. It's actually inspiring xxxxx and the mince you talked of - is that tvp mince? I'm allergic to eggs so quorn is a no-no.

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    1. I've tried it a few times and I couldn't get photos to load or text to align but on Sunday I managed to do it without any major glitches - other than having to hit "upload photo" three times before it did anything. I thought I'd better try and use, I notice that Legacy Blogger is disappearing altogether on 1st September.
      I'd much rather have fewer clothes that I really love, I never get bored with things that fit well and make me feel fabulous.
      Yes, that veggie mince is TVP, not at all like that awful textured soya that was the only veggie option back in the 70s and much nicer than Quorn which I'm not keen on. xxx

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  5. Well done on New Blogger, Vix! Today's fun issue: my pics load in reverse order (if you delete them all and reload them again, they load properly - go figure!). Also, weird spacing (resolved by selecting the entire post and using the "remove formatting" button). So many bugs.

    Well, enough of that technical sh*t, what have you and the lads been up to? Cleaning, weeding, gardens, lovely nails (I also love puns), some kitty snuggling (I see you, Jon), and frolicking on the lawn with pals? I approve of all of it (well, maybe not the cleaning - this is why we have cleaners come in!).

    Have a lovely week, Vix!

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    1. Morning, Sheila! Funnily enough I was having similar issues with Legacy Blogger last week, the photo uploading was driving me mad. It's definitely working a lot better than it has done when I've tried it over the last few months, lets hope it'll be perfect on 1st September when we have no other option.
      I love it when the sun's out, I can wear halterneck dresses and frolic on the lawn with the lads! xxx

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  6. The garden looks great, and nice to see you out enjoying the warmth and sunshine. The New Blogger seems ok, although I find loading a comments is super slow.

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    1. Thanks so much! I haven't noticed the comment bit yet on the new blogger, it does seem very slow with uploading photos, I have to ask it three times before it does anything! xx

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  7. Hi hun, the egg looks fun !! Love the name, we have started to tidy the garden, as at last I can kinda move. We have this annoying vine, that we have tried everything to kill it as it grows out of control. It was tiny last week, this week attacking my other tree, so Paul attacked it and gave it a good drink of bleach. Harsh I know, but it will be back next year.
    The camping mug is so pretty. We have a thing for lid covers over here mine is hello kitty and we use them to keep out the flying critters. We had an almighty storm last night, so bad it made the house shake!! Looking good as good as always take care and keep safe love and hugs allie

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    1. Hello Allie! Back in the day there was an all-night cafe in Birmingham called Mr Egg "Eat like a king for 99p" and it had a huge fabric egg stapled to the ceiling. It brings back happy memories of post-clubbing fry-ups!
      Tell Paul to try vinegar on that pesky vine if he hasn't already, it's brilliant for killing off weeds.
      I hadn't seen a lidded camping mug before, we using stick a coaster on top of our cups when we're camping to stop insects dive bombing our tea. This is a much more attractive option. Take care! xx

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  8. I like 'the egg' think we need one, it's sweltering here, allegedly 33 degrees yesterday and expected again today, no rain. I love your skirt and top and the halterneck dress is fabulous too. That border looks very tidy and a great new spot for posing :) I haven't tried Morrisons mince, only quorn, will look out for it (quorn makes me feel so full up but we mix it with meat for the men as they need filling up! so it has its benefits). Jon's greenhouse looks very well organised, I noticed the pea sticks across the top - what a great idea - will hold that thought if we ever get a greenhouse (on my bucket list when we eventually move house). Have a wonderful week Betty x

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    1. We had 34°C today, just perfect! We had torrential rain in the night (although I slept through it and wondered why my pots were still damp this morning!) and we've got a storm right now. I wish we could have temperatures like this all the time.
      I'm not overly keen on Quorn, Morrison's do some really good vegetarian stuff. I do recommend their Taste mince.
      We'd love a proper greenhouse! xxx

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  9. "the dress" is a stunner! made for you!
    but i love the blouse/skirt look too - its so "natural" in its elegance. (i´m a bit lost for the right words).
    better to collect the fire wood in the summer, when its free or cheap. august is usually the month to get our coals ordered.......
    your "summer salon" looks cozy - especially with good friends in :-D but i have outdoor carpet envy - here this things are grey, abstract patterned uglyness. german.
    after a slightly cooler day with micro rain we are back to heat and watering the garden - but the pole beans are ready - we´ve eaten them the last 2 days for dinner - once with noodles and once cold in a salad with goats cheese - yummy! a curry would be a great idea too - thanx!
    xxxxx

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    1. Thanks, Beate! I had to take it up about 6 inches but it's perfect now. Those earthy colours of the other outfit always make me happy!
      Yes, now's the time to get organised for winter with the coat & wood supplies when it's cheaper, although I'd rather not think about cold evenings just yet.
      Our Egg isn't as fabulous as your amazing salon. I bought my outdoor rug from Ebay. I had been told that Ikea occasionally sell them but they were really small. xxx

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  10. Still using legacy Blogger until new set-up is forced on me coz I'm an Aquarian and hate change! Your pop-up gazebo thingy reminds me of a nomad's tent. Did you watch the Ranganation prog when he was in the desert with that really handsome Moroccan gentleman?Lovely nomad tents on that! I don't know how you and Betty find such lovely stuff on Ebay, whenever I have a look, it's full of over-priced tat!!!What do you put in your curry mix, looks yummy. xxx

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    1. I was going to stick with Legacy until I saw that it's being discontinued on 1st September. We've got three weeks to learn it!
      I haven't seen any of the Ranganation stuff, not sure why as he has me in stitches. Handsome Moroccan gentleman? That'll be next on the watching list.
      Ebay's ace although you need to spend time looking for stuff, I set up loads of searches and just click on them daily to check if anything's been added. xxx
      PS I shared my curry sauce recipe here: https://vintagevixon.blogspot.com/2020/04/home-alone-day-20-21.html

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  11. I've tried a couple of things with the new Blogger but keep reverting to the Legacy one until I'm forced to do otherwise. Tech changes absolutely terrify me! Your post looks fine to me, but as I sometimes read blog posts on my phone, which I did with yours last night, I noticed that the some of the portrait format photos are very large and elongated. Probably nothing to worry about, if it weren't for Blogger claiming the new version would be more mobile phone friendly! You'd think being at home more would be an improvement to our cleaning routine, but it so often falls by the wayside lately. Both the bathroom and kitchen are regularly receiving a once over, but I'm afraid dust balls aren't an unusual sight elsewhere. Will have to get our acts together -- after the heatwave! Your Ayesha Davar skirt and Oasis Trading blouse are a match made in heaven. No wonder you're wearing it so often. The halterneck India Imports of Rhode Island maxi is sublime, and looks as if it was made especially for you! The Egg is just perfect! It would probably cover most of Dove Cottage's garden, where there's no escaping the heat from late morning onwards. xxx

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    1. I'd been trying for a while but I couldn't get my text to centre and uploading photos was a nightmare. Jon said the same, there's a couple of photos on his phone that look strangely elongated yet I've done nothing different to them than the others. Teething problems! I was going to stick to Legacy until I'd noticed that they'd changed the caption and it was being discontinued on 1st September, that gives us just under three weeks to learn it!
      Even with regular cleaning our house is full of dust balls, Jon used to blame me & the cats but I think it's open fires. I never thought I'd be converted to housework but I really enjoy it, it's an attempt to relinquish control in our crazy new world.
      The blouse, skirt & dress would be three of the first items I'd pack if we ever buy our dream house in Greece and am only allowed a small suitcase to escape with!
      I'd love to know hoe big Dove Cottage's garden is, it never looks that small in photos! xxx

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  12. I have just read your comment on Sheila's post. Regarding the captions, I think I found it! If you click on the photo, you get a row of icons underneath. If you hover over the one next to the "+" icon, it says "toggle caption". Although it didn't make sense, I clicked in it and then the "add caption" thingy appears under your photo! xxx

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    1. Thanks so much, Ann! I've just read both yours & Sheila's tips and you're quite right. It's not at all obvious, is it? xxx

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  13. That halterneck dress is divine, you do look 6' tall in it and its beautiful.
    The egg is perfect, you don't need to worry about the weather. It's been sweltering here today, mid 30's and sunny with sudden downpours, so very humid. With the festival rug in place, it's almost your own personal venue! xxx

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    1. Thanks, Sally! I do love a halterneck.
      Hasn't it been gorgeous? The storm has just this second reached us, it was just a distant rumble of thunder last night, it's making up for it now! xxx

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  14. Hey, Vix, me again - saw your comment about adding a caption. It's there under the pictures when you click on them. It's a line with a smaller line underneath (I know, totally NOT intuitive) next to the + -. You can increase/decrease the font size through the post's menu bar (the font used to be automatic).

    You will be a Nu Blogger before you know it, ha ha!

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    1. You're a superstar! I've just looked and you're quite right. Not obvious, is it? Thanks so much, Sheila! xxx

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  15. Well done for braving it with the new format - I’ve switched back to the old legacy version and (if I was posting at present!) all would be well 🤭

    Love your ‘Egg’. We have something virtually identical so I can understand what it took Jon to carry it back to the car, fantastic bit of kit but not a lightweight. It looks wonderful set up with your carpet and chairs.

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    1. Thanks, Jayne! To be honest I was going to stick with Legacy blogger until I saw that it'll be discontinued after 1st September so I thought I'd better get used to it now.
      The Egg is so heavy, a decent bit of kit and a strange thing to donate to a charity shop. xxx

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  16. PS: Morrisons veggie mince vs. Quorn . . . are you talking about the fresh or frozen please?

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    1. https://groceries.morrisons.com/products/morrisons-v-taste-meat-free-mince-248429011

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  17. A friend of mind would love your skirt. I recall those lawn chairs when I was younger.
    Coffee is on

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    1. We had similar chairs back in the 70s, too - that's why I had to rescue one that had been dumped in the street one day, happy memories of childhood holidays on the beach! x

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  18. Lots of lovely things and lovely photos!, your garden looks more and more lush, your nail color is stunning (and I also love a pun!), and no wonder you wear this blouse and shirt together frequently, as they look Fabulous!. You Totally Rock!
    And I'm loving The Egg, such a nice idea to install it in the garden and put some furniture and your cute rug to receive some friends. You're so talented and kind!. I'm missing some of my friends who usually come to visit us in our home, but this is impossible now. I have not visitors at home since January and this is So Unusual!.
    Love your halterneck maxi, it's such a gorgeous piece and totally made for you!. So lovely photos, they totally made my day!. And the photos of Jon with the lads have put a smile on my face!, ;DD
    besos

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    1. Its lovely to have some outdoor space to entertain friends, even though we're allowed to have people in our houses most of us are playing it safe and staying outside for as long as we can. It must be really hard not to have visitors. xxx

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  19. I love the newly cleared area. The plants look great. How clever you have used it for posing right away. That maxi dress looks great on you. Sometimes it pays to be cheeky, great job on making that proposal and winning that e-bay maxi piece. I also really like the outfit you have worn before this maxi, that Ayesha Davar midi skirt is so lovely. I also like the Oasis Indian gauze blouse you paired with it, very pretty combo together. The statement earrings and the new-to-you vintage Christian Dior sunglasses that Jon got for you make for perfect accessories. Awesome combo.
    Nice that you were able to see your friends, very stylish people they are. Have a fab day ahead!

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    1. Thanks, Ivana! I'd been meaning to clear that area for a while, the sunshine inspired me! xxx

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  20. Your garden gazebo looks like a wonderful place to sit with friends. Like you could have your own mini-festival. Your garden's so nice; ours looks awful again at the mo... hopefully I'll get round to sorting some of it at the weekend.

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    1. I can't believe your garden isn't looking lovely, the snippets I've seen are wonderful. x

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  21. So that's what "the Egg" is! This is what happens when I get behind in reading your blog and don't read the posts in order. My neighbours put a similar type of canopy up in our backyard but as we prefer our front porches, it doesn't get used very often.

    Frank is such a "Daddy's Boy"!

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    1. I do the same with Sheila's blog, reading in the wrong order and discovering where she bought something a few days after she's worn it. xxx

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Thanks for reading and for leaving a message. Please don't be anonymous, I'd love it if you left a name (or a nom de plume).

Lots of love, Vix