Today’s guest picture was sent to me by Mary Jo from Manitoba. It was sent to her by a friend and was taken by her friend’s nephew, James Greig . James farms near Melita, MB and is the third generation to work that land. He has a good eye for a photo and those interested can find a lot more of his work here.
Thanks to the long spell of good weather, I have got well behind schedule when it comes to putting the data miners’ work into the newspaper index database on the Archive Group website so I am going to have to cut down on words and pictures in the blog posts for a bit while I catch up. (Enormous sigh of relief, politely masked, from beleaguered blog readers.)
Looking back, it is eight years since I started this on-line diary on June 16th 2010 with a post of 45 words and one picture. Things have gone downhill since then. I have had 2921 posts and I think that my sister Susan has read every one!
Anyway, here is briefer than usual summary of my day.
I got up early, had breakfast and got on my bike for the 20 mile Canonbie circuit. I stopped twice.
Umbellifer at Canonbie Bridge (Hogweed Heraculeum sphondylium?)
The view from Hollows Bridge
The combination of the early start and a brisk breeze caught my legs napping and I found it hard work but I got home in time for coffee and a walk round the garden.
Two shrubs which had Mrs Tootlepedal worried earlier in the year have done better than expected.
The Weigela is flourishing
And the Cotoneaster is producing flowers
The bad weather has hit the lupins badly. They were doing so well in the good weather, it is sad to see them now.
There is plenty of white about
Jacobite rose with visitor.
Yet another Philadelphus coming out
I like this Euphorbia. It gives me the impression that it is the result of a potato print by a competent child in the school art class.
The espalier apples are showing the benefit of some hand pollinating during our cold and beeless spring.
I went in and made some soup for lunch and watched the birds.
A young siskin works out how to land on a perch
It makes a man cry when a fine flying bird of the day hides behind a pole
After lunch, I mowed the middle and front lawns and then gained extra credit with the gardener by going round with the lawn edger. A little compost sieving followed and that completed the energetic part of the day. It was really windy which made taking flower pictures difficult and it was grey and chilly which made a walk unattractive so I did what I needed to and went inside and put a week of the newspaper index into the database.
In the evening my flute pupil Luke came and we had a productive session. Onwards and upwards.
I watched the first half of the England world cup football match but watching England trying to play the ball out of defence always makes me nervous so I wrote the blog during the second half. I noticed that they won so well done England.
The flower of the day is the lamium, which after a slow start, is going great guns.
And a FBotD too.
It is always a pleasure to read your posts, a pleasing mixture of plants, birds and views. Your use of language is always interesting too. However it is not true that I have read all your posts. Until I bought my tablet and all hotels had free WiFi I would have missed everything you posted while I was on holiday!
Happy blog birthday. Your entries are a gift to your readers, so it’s a bit backwards as you’re not getting a gift . . . but that’s OK as many of us are likely at an age where we’re thinning things out rather than adding to the mass, and as a blog doesn’t take up much room it matters not if you write 45 or 4500 words!
It is having such attentive and kind readers that keeps me going….and an addiction to taking photographs.
I’m always amazed how much you fit into each day as it is, so I understand why you’re getting behind with the newspaper archives. Still, this post was filled with your excellent images of the birds and flowers, so much so that I couldn’t tell that it was a shorter post than usual.
Your politeness is only exceeded by your skill with the camera.
It’s kind of you to follow England in the World Cup. Come to think of it, you’re probably more interested in their progress than I am. Roll on Wimbledon!
I harbour kind thoughts about English football and hope that they do well. Tennis matches tend to go too long for me.
Happy blog anniversary! 🙂
Thank you HJ
Eight years and if your number of blog posts reminds me of someone’s incredible bird list. Happy Blog Birthday indeed. I like the Euphorbia too. It has an almost oriental print feeling to it.
Thank you Lisa. I hope that you continue to see new birds every year.
Please don’t stop – yours is the first blog I read in the morning!
I am not going to stop on purpose but you never know what life holds.
I remember seeing that Euphorbia when I visited your garden recently – it seems to be flourishing.
I heard a lot of loud cheering from the local pub on my home yesterday – had an idea of what must have happened!
As ever an excellent blog, long may it continue! I too read it first thing, It never ceases to start my day well. I can’t recall when I began however it was a review of R Mctell at the center [you’re local, not the world ] I found it via a search while in hospital, It was a joy and lifted me then, still does daily, with or without scones.
I am glad to have provided you with some morning cheer. It is an honour to have regular readers like you.
Yes, an excellent blog and long may it continue! I really can’t add much to the above comments. Write on!
I will do my best.
A common complaint but you do seem to have much more wildly variable weather than us.
I think we do. We Mainers have to contend with both heat and cold. Makes us plucky. 😉
Your Happy Birthday Blog is as interesting as ever…love the ‘potato prints’ and the cotoneaster. It’s a lovely guest photo too. Today I’ve spent some very happy time reading some of your first blogs…hosepipe ban in June 2010 and your poor lawn getting frizzled! Also it’s a ten year wedding anniversary for your son! How exciting!
It is surprising what I remember from that time. I can remember the 100 mile bike ride but I had forgotten about the drought entirely.
Somehow I almost missed this one. It was that short! That guest picture was remarkable. Great photo and a very impressive sky! I honestly can’t imagine how you keep up with your daily posting! I sometimes struggle to put something together once a week or so! Shorten if you must, but keep it up with t least some bits of flowers and birds and bike tours and all the rest. It’s been a pleasure seeing bits of life on the other side of the pond. 🌺
I do the posting at the expense of other things that I should be doing like talking to Mrs T, practising my flute and watching the telly to keep up with current thinking.
There’s never really enough time for everything you’d like to be doing, it seems.
Congratulations on keeping your blog going for over eight years! I also love the cotoneaster and the euphorbia photos.
I have a lot of fun taking the pictures.
I’ve read every post except for a couple of months around the time Matilda was born, when I got behind from overwork and never got back to catch up.
You are a hero!