A fixer-upper opportunity

We visited another plot of land for sale this week. It was located next to a lovely coniferous woodland, but had a number of big disadvantages, the main one being access. The land was accessed by a half mile long lane, only suitable for four-wheeled drive vehicles, with 5 gates between the main road and the land. The land contains a "cottage" and another small building. The estate agent's details state that the cottage hasn't been lived in since the second world war and that there is no planning permission to live on site.

I'd be highly surprised if anyone was interested in restoring this.

The cottage:



Ian in the cottage (note the lack of roof)



The fireplace:



Inside the other building:

Only the best

A couple of weeks ago I had my first ever Ben and Jerry's ice cream. I've always considered it a bit expensive to try and now having done so will probably not be buying any again.

Last night Ian finished it off and left the lid on the bed. William proceeded to lick it and then (not being able to resist the photo opportunity) Ian gave him the pot to lick. It seems that William was more fond of it than I was.

Introducing Panambi

We were a little concerned that Panambi might be shy, having only been at the Chestnut Centre for 3 weeks. She was actually very friendly and came right up to see us. Manoki and Panambi are getting on really well and we were lucky enough to watch them play together (mostly in the water) for over 30 minutes before dinner time.

This is Panambi:



You can tell any two giant otters apart from the markings on their neck. Manoki has more white on his:





It was extremely difficult to get a photograph of the two together as they were constantly on the move

Manoki & Panambi

Ian and I received this lovely (if a little blurred) photograph from the Chestnut Centre yesterday.



Manoki the giant otter has now been joined by a female called Panambi. They seem to be getting on really well together. We've decided on the spur of the moment to go North and visit them this weekend. Thanks to Gary and Dewi for letting us stay with them.

A seat by the pond

GB was kind enough to get me some Otter Nurseries vouchers for my birthday. We decided to spend them on a bench for the bottom of the garden. It's not quite in place yet and will move back behind the new path when we've prepared the ground.




The photos also show the new fence panels that Ian put in last weekend.

Thank you GB. We look forward to lots of time spent sitting by the pond.

Just one more

I once bought some echinacea plants from Future Primitive Plants. They have a wonderful selection of unusual plants, but they are rather expensive. That is they cost roughly the same amount as plants in the garden centres, but since I tend to buy my plants as plugs from ebay I usually pay much less. Each month Future Primitive email me a newsletter. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who can't say no to 'just one more'...

So, June has arrived...pretty much.

At this time of the year, most of you will have filled those spaces in the garden with new plants....to replace the ones you managed to kill last winter...am I right?
You're not alone - you'll be pleased to hear.

My fatalities this year are...

We will experience a lull in June - it always happens...we all take a much needed rest and scan the borders in the garden to see what we've achieved so far with our planting skills.

There will always be a little room for 'just one more'...the magazines inspire you whilst you lay in bed reading them...then you buy more plants...and hide them from your spouse...then you sneak them into a gap, which is too small!

Marriage is like a jacuzzi

I use both facebook and ebay daily. That is I use facebook several times a day - I check it as often as I check my email. I tend to use ebay only once a day unless I'm actually bidding on something. Most of the time I search for plants - I find it a wonderful way of finding new species, which I then add to my list of plants that I'd like (if I had money and space).

A couple of days ago a facebook friend brought this ebay item to my attention. I'm not sure how long this will be on the web, but do check it out if you want a laugh...

A few excerpts:

Available for sale is my ex-wife's Trek 1000 Alpha. This is one of those items she absolutely had to have so her life could be complete. Somehow I wound up with it in the not-so-equitable distribution...

Although the previous owner was posessed with demons, I can not guarantee the bike, itself, is haunted.

Proceeds from this sale will be invested in anger management classes for me, and possibly a few additional voodoo dolls of the ex.

Remember, marriage is like a jacuzzi. After you get in and get used to it, it's not so hot.