It hasn't been much of a weekend. I was kept awake by the wind last night (the outside kind) it rained all night and the wind was very strong. It woke me up and then I couldn't get back to sleep because I was worried about the roof, it felt as if the wind was strong enough to dislodge tiles from the roof. I got increasingly irritated with myself because I was tired and I really needed to get some sleep. Then this morning I really didn't feel very well, I am cold and shivery and I ache, I really hope it is not a bug, I haven't got time to be ill.
This morning Robbie was anxious about the state of the railway, it seems it took a bit of a battering last night and fallen trees and such like have caused problems today. I was more anxious about feeling unwell, Robbie brought me a cup of tea to make me feel better. Then he cuddled up next to me and talked about the weather (and trains). He was surprisingly perceptive in noticing that I am sick and tired of 'weather'. It seems to have rained every day since I they declared that we are in a drought area! I have to admit that Robbie managed to cheer me up with his next topic of conversation. Only Robbie could cuddle up in bed on Sunday morning and talk excitedly about his childhood collection of erasers. Apparently his favourite was one in the shape of a cassette tape which fitted into a cassette player shaped case.
We went out briefly this afternoon to see my mum, there were floods on several roads and our lovely park is flooded; we saw the ducks swimming along what should be a footpath. We were glad to get back to the relative sanity of home. I was still feeling out of sorts, so I wasn't that bothered when Robbie asked to watch Get Carter for the second time this weekend. I had my head buried in the computer when Robbie gave a shout of excitement. He said he had seen a Deltic and he insisted on rewinding it so that I could see it too. He sat there on the floor rewinding it and watching it over and over again. It seems he is easily pleased!
If it is true that gardens are a form of autobiography then it probably suggests that my life is a bit of a disaster! I am not a gardener, given the choice I would always choose a beach to a garden, in fact I would choose field in preference to a garden. I don't like to see things growing in rows and I don't like big brash plants in bold colours. I prefer a gentler, more natural look, with more subtle flowers such as bluebells and primroses.
In our back garden we have a couple of large lilac bushes, which I am quite fond of. The trouble is that they are thugs, if you turn your back on them they double in size and start marching across the garden. In the far corner is a large Hawthorne tree, I love that most of all, the blossom is beautiful, it cheers me up when I look out of the kitchen window. We have a couple of other trees too, the holly is still there because it puts off anyone who may think of coming over the back fence, but maybe I should plant a couple of Pyracanthas as well, they have some serious thorns! There is a big tree at the back of the garden, I don't know what it is, but I know it is too tall and it really should come down. The trouble is that it is easier said than done and it is one of those things that keeps getting put off because there is always a more urgent call on our finances.
In the front garden we have several rose bushes a climbing rose, clematis, forsythia and my absolute favourite a very large Philadelphus. I am fond of the roses, especially the climbing rose, but it feels as if they are in competition with the hedge to see which one can grow fastest and take over the garden. Allowing things to look natural is one thing but allowing them to take over is quite another. The rose bushes had become too tall and too wide so that it was hard to walk around the front garden and the hedge was reaching out into the garden and threatening to stop anyone walking down the path. Clearly it was time to take drastic action, so this weekend we the whole family made a concerted attack on the front garden. Robbie was incredible, he tamed the hedge next to the drive. I was really worried that he would aggravate his back and I could tell that he was hurting but he did a good job. I did battle with the roses - they fought back and they fight dirty, but in the end they were cut down to size. My daughter's boyfriend tackled the rest of the hedge and my son and daughter tamed the other shrubs. It looks a lot better now, but it will be a while before I want to do that again.
