Homeward Bound

My pollarded tree

And so it was that my time in Cornwall had come to an end. Mark returned from his trip to Malaysia to spend two nights sleeping on his own floor while two other friends and myself had the comfort of his beds. At least Syd the dog chose him to cuddle up to him! It was party time for OAPs. We played Polish Poker, had a few drinks and laughed a lot. This is confirmation for the other friends that I have been away with - yes - I did get up and make the teas and coffees far too loudly each morning. That is me, I'm afraid. 

I got Bridget Bar-dough going for Mark and made one loaf of bread for him while I was down in Cornwall. My sourdough starter, Sally, stayed in the fridge at home for the time I was away. She has been with me for quite some time now and rewards me with great bread. Having a sourdough starter is a bit like having a pet. 

The train journey home, although long, was surprisingly comfortable. As we sped through the countryside of southern England I noticed how much of it was under water. Fields were lakes and villages looked like isolated islands. I have never seen so much flooding and still it rains! I walked along the towpath to Danielle's on Friday - it was more of a paddle than a walk. On the way back the night sky was momentarily clear so I took a picture. Having a clear sky is quite unusual these days. 

Clear skies at night

Saturday, I was lucky enough to play a tennis match in dry conditions and then when I got home, I got the ladder out and pollarded the tree in my courtyard garden. On previous years my son has done this for me - now it is down to me to climb up a ladder and wield a chainsaw - picture that Sammi! It took most of the day as the battery on the mini-chainsaw kept wearing down. There was one dodgy moment when two branches were counter balancing each other and I thought one of them would topple on top of me while I was up the ladder. As I am writing this, you know I didn't come to harm. It started to rain again in the afternoon while I was chopping the tree so I gave up for the day. However, on Sunday after tennis, I got back in the garden to continue the job. This time I got hit in the head by a branch as I was trying to chop them up into smaller, more manageable chunks. Ouch! 

So with the last week of February ahead of me, I look forward to cold showers again. For a few years now I have cold showers from March 1st to September 30th. Once you get the habit, it is quite enjoyable and very refreshing. Along with this, I have lined up a long list of jobs to be done now the weather should be warming up - mostly painting and deep cleaning. Springtime heralds Spring cleaning! Fun!

Last picture from my holiday