The Distancing Diaries - 3rd & 4th May, 2021

Monday was a Bank Holiday, not that it made one iota of a difference to my usual routine. I was up by 6am and, after a wander around the garden, did my Wii Fit workout, caught up with blogland and joined Jon for our weekday fruit & yoghurt breakfast. 

WEARING: Anokhi block printed cotton midi dress (Mumbai, before the world went to shit, 2020), Lotta from Stockholm clogs (eBay), vintage umbrella (car boot sale)

After a dry start, the forecast for abysmal weather proved to be correct and by 10am the high winds and deluge had taken a grip. 

With gardening off the agenda, Jon decided to clean the kitchen & utility room floors so I swept the floors and rugs upstairs and, while I did some mending, he made leek and potato soup with some of the crop we'd harvested at the weekend. We'd searched the internet for a recipe that didn't involve cream (I can't bear rich food), adapted this recipe- we had neither carrots nor celery - and the result was delicious. 

After lunch, Jon sprayed the seedlings and I repotted the Mother-in-Law's Tongue. 

 I took myself upstairs and accompanied by 6Music tidied the spare bedroom, tipping out drawers and donating some unwanted jewellery, sunglasses and bags to the Kinky Shed.

During the colder months, I hang my gloves from a wire on the wardrobe door. I optimistically packed these away and replaced them with my collection of Indian silk screen printed scarves.

With the rain lashing down, the sky iron-grey and the wind rattling the window panes, it was the perfect afternoon for snuggling and sleeping (if you're a cat) or staying indoors and researching more of Lord Jon's family tree. 

We'd often pondered on the results of the Ancestry DNA test he'd taken a few years ago, the connection with Malcolm III, King of Scotland answered the Scottish ethnicity question but what of the Scandinavian? Well, William the Conqueror's 4 x great-grandfather was Rollo Ragnvalsson (860 - 932), a Viking warrior who founded the Duchy of Normandy, making him Jon's 33 x great grandfather.

According to Scandinavian legend, Rollo, making himself independent of King Harald I of Norway, sailed off to raid Scotland, England, Flanders and France on pirating expeditions. Early in the 10th century, Rollo’s Danish army attacked France& he established himself in an area along the Seine. The French King, Charles "the Simple" III defeated him near Chartres and negotiated the treaty of Saint-Clair-Sur-Epte, giving Rollo the area that came to be known as Normandy; Rollo in return agreed to end his brigandage. He gave his son, William I Longsword, governance of the dukedom (927) before his death. Rollo was baptised in 912 but is said to have died a pagan. 

Apparently, Rollo is one of the central characters in the TV series The Vikings (played by Clive Standen, above) but we only have Freeview so haven't watched it although now I've seen this picture I'm wondering if we should!

More internet research led me further down Rollo's branch of the tree, all the way down to Rollo's 15x great grandfather. Feel free to use this info if you're also an ancestor of William the Bastard Conqueror, I know there's a few of you out there!

• Ragnvald Eysteinsson, Earl of Møre, born in Norway in 825AD
• Eystein "the Noisy" Ivarsson, King of Oppland in Norway during the 9th century
• Ivar Halfdansson, King of Oppland
• Haldan "the Aged" Sveidasson, King of Oppland
• Sveidi Svidrasson Haytirsson, Sea King b.650AD, Telemark, Norway
• Haytir Gorrsson, Sea King b.514
• Gor Thorrasson, Sea King, born in Finland
• Thorri Snærsson Snaero, King of Finland
• Snø Frosteson, King of Finland 
• Frosti "Jøkull" Karasson, King of Finland 
• Kari Fornjotsson, King of Finland 
• Fornjot "the Ancient Giant", King of Finland (160 - 250AD)

King Frosti or Jøkull Frosti (translated as icicle frost) is believed to be who Jack Frost, the mythological figure originating from Viking folklore, is based. Ironic considering how much Jon hates the cold!

Tea was quiche with salad and a Greek-style feta and spinach parcel. Later we watched Waking the Dead before I retired to bed early with my book.

On Tuesday morning I did my Wii Fit workout and moved a few houseplants into the lounge. It was still atrocious outside but I had to brave it to dash to the Kinky Shed and retrieve the stock I'd sold on eBay over the weekend. I was momentarily distracted from wrapped my parcels by a visit from another of the cats from the colony up the road. As you can see, he's well looked after, but I'd be more than happy to give him a home if he insisted upon it.

After breakfast, Jon did the Post office drop off, the supermarket run and picked up Stephen's prescription from the vet. Meanwhile, I caught up with Blogland and made some hummus using peanut butter as opposed to tahini and replacing the lemon with a lime 'cos that's all we had.

I'm sure you've noticed that Jon does all the food shopping and most of the cooking. By trade, I'm a classically trained chef and my natural aptitude for organisation and being bossy led to a high-flying career in corporate hospitality management back in the day. I was a high wage-earner, spoke at seminars and was often featured in trade magazines &  hated every minute. 

It was a strange day, bitterly cold with torrential rain one minute and gloriously sunny the next. The lads got caught out a few times, basking in the sunshine only to return home like drowned rats moments later and I didn't fare much better after posing for this photo, you could have wrung me out when I got back inside!

WEARING: Vintage Anokhi embroidered cotton skirt (eBay), bodysuit (£3, TopShop sale), 1960s-does-Edwardian lace-up boots (car boot sale,2010), 1970s Sheffield stainless steel choker (fellow trader friend), turquoise earrings made by Afghan refugees (eBay)

After sanitising the shopping & putting it away it was time for noodles, the rest of the leek & potato soup could wait another day. I repotted a couple of my spider plants and had a wander outside to check on the garden.

 The French marigolds were out...

As were my Unicom tulips. I love their stripy leaves.

I can't believe all these plants, grown from just a handful of the seed pods we collected last year's Empress of India nasturtium.

Despite the battering they've received over the last couple of days these amazing Black Parrot tulips are still standing tall.

After opening the post, which contained some excellent news, I decided to take a closer look at the family tree I'd inherited as a child and compare my research with my great-aunt Phyllis's. Written in pencil next to Harriet, my 4x great grandmother's name, was the word "miniature" which I'd never noticed before. This must refer to this sweet little painting that was one of many on the wall of Phyllis's office when we cleared her house after her death.

 Harriet Cook (1780 - 1846) married Andrew Chapman in Stoke on Trent and had none children, of whom 3 died in infancy. Phyllis had written of Trentham, formerly of Montrose in pencil next to his name. A bit of research on Ancestry.com led me to discover that he was born in Montrose, Angus in Scotland in 1776 and, according to the information on his marriage certificate issued in 1806, he was employed as a gardener at the Trentham Estate in Staffordshire, whose 300 acres of celebrated gardens were designed by Lancelot Capability Brown in 1758 and remain a popular UK tourist destination to this day (HERE). 

Trentham Hall circa 1820

Andrew Chapman is still listed as a gardener in the 1818 edition of the Parson and Bradshaw trade directory, which made me wonder what life was like for a gardener in Georgian England. In Darton & Harvey's Little Jack of All Trades, published in 1814, a gardener appears alongside other practical tradespeople such as the carpenter, blacksmith, cabinet maker and hatter, a respectable & skilled trade. Interestingly, a couple of centuries ahead of his time, William Darton makes the connection between gardening and well-being, writing that ‘Working in a garden is a delightful and healthy occupation; it strengthens the body, enlivens the spirits, and infuses into the mind a pleasing tranquillity, and sensations of happy independence.’

The Georgian gardener

 In the 1841 census, aged 65, Andrew is listed as a "gentleman of independent means" meaning that he must have been quite successful. He died in 1844 at the age of 68. 

How about that? Not only did some of my ancestors sell their estate to the man who went on to create the celebrated Biddulph Grange Gardens, but others also owned the world-famous, Lost Gardens of Heligan and another was employed as a gardener at another horticultural tourist attraction and retired a wealthy man. No wonder I hated catering, my DNA clearly suggests that I was born to be a gardener!

After all that research, it was time for roast halloumi and vegetables and a glass of wine! Later we'll be watching ...you guessed it, Waking the Dead. 

See you soon!

BIRTH 860 • Mære, Nord-Trondelag, Norway

DEATH 931 • Rouen, Seine-Maritime, Haute-Normandie, France