The Distancing Diaries - Day 134 & 135

Weekend? What's that? In lockdown life Saturday is just another day and, as usual, I was awake at just after 6am to let the lads out. The only variation to my normal routine is that I take two mugs of tea upstairs and I get back into bed and read for an hour or so. Jon got up at 8am to start on the breakfast whilst I stripped and changed the bed and loaded the washing machine.

We ended up throwing the bread on our sandwiches to the birds (a disappointing ciabatta loaf from Morrisons), only eating the sausages. Although it was still warm it was overcast but I risked pegging my washing out on the line. After I dressed I started on my to-do list, cutting back the spent blooms on the lavender plant, just like Monty Don had told me to do on Gardener's World last night.

I did my usual deadheading and raking up the leaves routine and then, after soaking it for an hour, we planted our new Phormium (New Zealand Flax) in the border. Jon took a photo on his phone so he can show the lady on the supermarket checkout who was kind enough to give it him for free.

I smashed up some broken plant pots and a couple of chipped saucers (we're a clumsy couple!) and raked & weeded the area by the pond.

When Jon brought me a mug of coffee he suggested we turn the area into a bog garden, obviously on a far less grand scale than the one we'd loved at Coughton Court. With little prospect of life returning to normal and vintage fairs resuming this year, it'll be a Winter project we can really get our teeth into.

Ever the optimist I'd put a bikini on when I got dressed earlier, hoping to whip off the wraparound skirt if the sun stayed out. Sadly it didn't.

WEARING: Crochet bikini (retail, 2017), organic cotton, block print maxi skirt (Cotton Cottage,Goa 2019), Vintage 1960s turquoise & copper pendant (inherited, with the matching cuff, from Mum)

The postman arrived with my new earrings - brilliant service considering I'd only order them on Wednesday.

As we'd only had two sausages for breakfast we had noodles for lunch - rare for a Saturday. Jon had been busy in the kitchen making spelt bread.

Just as Jon had started up his electric saw in the garden the rain started. Fortunately it was only a heavy shower and he was able to resume work after half-an-hour. The task? To box in the electric cables leading to the fuse box in the kitchen, obviously using repurposed wood from our stash.

Testament to how wonky our walls are, the top part measures 4 inches across and the bottom 5.5 inches. Once he's filled in the gaps it'll be painted the same arsenic green as the walls and then the tiling can commence.

I had a lazy afternoon, painting my nails and finishing off my dreadful thriller. For a change we walked around the block for the first time in ages before tea, another Indian Greek fusion.

Later we drank rum & cola and watched the award-winning Polish film Cold War on catch-up, beautiful to look at but I wasn't overly enamoured by the plot.

Both cats woke me at 7am on Sunday, pacing up and down the bed. I let them out, made tea & took it back to bed. Jon had had another restless night so he snoozed while I started on next book. I love William Boyd, a vast improvement on the previous trashy read. At 8.30, after I'd painted my nails, Jon made us a  poached egg on toast each for breakfast.

Barry M nail paint of the week is Rhubarb.

 Jon went round to visit Tony taking with him an olive tree and a loaf of home-baked spelt bread, I stayed at home & caught up with Blogland.

 Once dressed I swept the patio and watered the plants. With Friday's proper summer weather more fruit had formed on the tomato plants and the peppers had started to flower. A gladioli I'd bought from Poundland 8 years ago had also sprung into flower, somewhat hidden by the glorious agapanthus.

The forecast was for another day of sunshine and showers but, despite a big black cloud darkening the skies earlier, the sunshine broke through and it turned out to be a lovely - if not particularly baking hot - day.

I started the day in my Harrods Indian cotton kaftan but by the time Jon returned from Tony's - bearing some early birthday presents and real ale - I had stripped down to a bikini and was busy invisibly mending my kaftan as I'd managed to put my foot through the hem (I told you were were a clumsy couple). Apologies for the state of my hair, its been five weeks since I last did my roots, I'll sort it out tomorrow.

After a bowl of lunchtime noodles I returned to the lawn with my book while Jon decided to clean the works van which, as it hadn't been moved for over five months was in a shocking state.

It's my brother's birthday today and he popped round on the way to his girlfriend's house. We sat in the sunshine, drank tea and chatted for an hour or so. Marcus hates his photo being taken so you'll have to make do with one taken by my Dad the day he was brought home from the maternity hospital in August 1968. It can't have been a great Summer weather-wise, look at how we're all wrapped up!

After he'd left Jon continued cleaning the van and I went back to my book, joined by Frank. Jon & I shared a bottle of beer in the late afternoon sunshine before he disappeared inside to start cooking tea, a mixed vegetable tikka masala with rice. It's part two of A Suitable Boy later, if it's no better India or not, we're abandoning it.

Stay safe, thanks for reading  & see you soon!