A short slideshow looking back over last year.
Category: Garden / Allotment
Allotment Update 7th January 2017
Here’s the allotment video update that was filmed yesterday before receiving the news about my Grandma. Anyway here it is.
Spring Cleaning
I know it’s a couple of months until Spring is officially with us but I spent a few moments yesterday afternoon checking on on our bird boxes and feeders in the garden.
A bit of dusting here and there, a replacement screw or two and we’re back in business, although I will have to replace the niger seed feeder as the sun has made the plastic brittle, and it won’t last much longer.
We’ve had birds nesting in our garden every year we’ve lived in this house and they normally raise several broods. Here’s to another successful year.
Happy New Year 2017
So 2016 is over. The general consensus seems to be it’s been a bad year. For personal reasons I’d have to say that I agree, and looking at the reasons that other people are giving – Brexit, Trump, celebrity deaths – I’d have to say I probably also agree.
On the basis of two of those reasons – Brexit & Trump – I have to say I don’t think that we’ve seen the worst of it yet. So I’m a little pessimistic going into 2017.
I don’t as a rule make New Year’s Resolutions, I don’t see the point, but I do have some goals and targets both for me personally and also with respect to work. I’ll be doing that shortly, but I won’t be sharing that here in detail mainly because some aspects are private.
Work
What I can say though is that my areas of main focus will be on growing my work base, and looking at some new areas that I’ve not really explored before. I hope to be able to talk about that in more detail, but I’m waiting for some news from a local university who have a student programme that looks to help businesses with this. If the news is positive then I’ll talk about it in more detail then, if they’re over subscribed and can’t help then I’ll be looking at some alternatives. Again, I’ll talk about it in more detail then.
I may also have to consider being an employee again, at least part-time. That will depend on what happens with my own business of course, but we’ll have to see.
Allotment
I think it goes without saying that I’ll be working on the allotment again this year. I’m hoping to bring more information, details of what’s going on, and hopefully videos etc. throughout the year. At the moment it’s mostly quiet down there, a few over wintering vegetables, but the weather isn’t really conducive to doing anything much else for now.
Books
I’ve talked a little about different books that I’m planning to read this year, and I’m planning to do the GoodReads challenge again, but more to keep track of what I’m reading rather than aim for a particular target.
The photo above is of the bookshelf were I keep most of my books “to be read”, obviously there are a pile more on my kindle, and really I don’t need to be buying more books this year. I probably will though as there are some that I do want to read this year (and a couple that are already on pre-order) but I’m intending not to buy new books if I have read at least one from the “to be read” pile first.
Films & TV
Again a couple of movies that I want to catch at some point, but really we’re watching less TV all the time. There’s some good quality programs out there, but sometimes they’re a little like a needle in the proverbial haystack.
Life In General
I’m hoping for some good things this year. Beyond that I’m going to be trying to live more intentionally, and think much more about what my needs really are. The consumerist lifestyle doesn’t really interest me, although I do acknowledge that some things I’d rather do without are now more like necessities e.g. with online billing etc. having a computer seems like one of them. However my needs are relatively small so I’m going to focus on the basics and what I already have, live simply and enjoy life.
Wishing you all a very happy New Year. I hope that it brings you everything that you need.
Fourth Quarter Review 2016
Each year for the past few years I’ve been doing a year end review; books I’ve read, films/tv programmes I’ve watched and other things related to work and the allotment. You can read the end of 2015 here, if you’re interested.
This year I’m trying something a little different, and am splitting my year into quarters and trying to do a review at the end of the quarter. It helps me remember stuff more easily, and is more up to the minute than waiting to until December and trying to do the whole year in one go, or at least that’s the theory. The first quarter review is here, the second quarter review here, and the third quarter review is here.
Work
This quarter has been very quiet, mostly due to things going on in my life outside of work (see below), I have however been thinking a lot about expanding my business and will be exploring this in the New Year. I’ll be talking about this more (I hope) in the coming months, but a couple of things need to happen first. I’m quite excited about this, and hope it will see things grow.
Allotment
This time of year is when things start to quieten down a bit on the plot. I still have quite a few things growing: parsnips, chard, leeks, Brussels sprouts – all of which I am harvesting still – and purple sprouting broccoli, regular broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, onions, garlic and broad beans – all of which are crops for the early spring.
I’m going to try and keep track of things from a financial perspective a little more next year, I want to understand just how much money we’re saving by growing our own, compared to buying things in the supermarket. It feels like the difference is quite small, and being honest I’m doing this for more reasons than just saving money, but I’ve never really tried to quantify the benefits.
Books
My reading has slowed down a bit this quarter, but there are two books that I particularly enjoyed:
Dogging Steinbeck by Bill Steigerwald [GoodReads] this is the author’s account of his retracing the steps of John Steinbeck’s “Travels with Charley”, and uncovering that the original may have been more of a work of fiction than non-fiction. It was an enjoyable read, and the author also kept a detailed blog, of this journey, including photos and videos. Around the same time that I was reading this I was also listening to the audiobook of “Travels with Charley” [GoodReads] in the car, so I was able to track where Steigerwald had gotten to, compared to Steinbeck. It was a good way to “read” both books alongside one another. As things at the time weren’t going well with my Dad (see below) it was a welcome distraction to have Steinbeck and Charley with me in my car, and Steigerwald at home each evening.
Nigel: My Family and Other Dogs by Monty Don [GoodReads]The title of this book might not mean much to people outside of the UK or who don’t watch Gardeners’ World on TV, but Nigel – a Labrador retriever – belongs to Monty Don who is the presenter of the programme. The dog has become a little bit of a personality in his own right, and this book is about him, plus some of the other dogs that the author has owned over his lifetime. It’s a good read whether you get the references or not, and particularly if, like me, you are a dog person.
Films & TV
I don’t really recall anything much that stands out this quarter, probably because we haven’t actually been watching much. We have been watching (or rather recording and watching later) a few daytime series on BBC; The Coroner, The Doctor Blake Mysteries, and The Father Brown Mysteries. All very good.
Life In General
Not a great quarter. As you may already know my Dad passed away in November, and we have had to put my maternal Grandma into a nursing home. Many people have said how bad 2016 has been, and frankly I couldn’t agree more. For me though it will always have more personal bad memories than perhaps other years have had.
Finally
If you’ve read all four quarterly posts, what do you think? Does it work better than one end of year round up? Let me know in the comments.
I wish all my readers a very Happy New Year.
Solar Allotment Shed
I had a kit for a solar powered shed light. The receipt was still in the box, and it was over 4 years old, so I wasn’t sure that it would work, but I thought it would be worth a try.
It was a fairly simple build, just required a couple of screws and no wiring; so I installed it on my allotment shed. The back of the shed faces south, and is also where my bird house is, so I installed the panel on top of the bird house, as it has a good angle to catch the sun, and I placed the light inside.
I wasn’t surprised when I connected it up, that it didn’t work. I figured that the two rechargeable AA batteries that come with the kit would probably be completely discharged, and I wasn’t convinced that they would take a charge, but I left it switched off, and in theory charging for the next week. Then I tried it…
I’m really chuffed. I was prepared to get some replacement batteries if I’d needed to, but it doesn’t look like I will.
I’m rarely down on the plot after dark, but it is good that I can have a little artificial light in the shed on the more gloomy days.
Allotment Update 5th November 2016
A short update on what’s happening on the allotment, plus talking through some plans for the winter months.
Third Quarter Review 2016
Each year for the past few years I’ve been doing a year end review; books I’ve read, films/tv programmes I’ve watched and other things related to work and the allotment. You can read the end of 2015 here, if you’re interested.
This year I’m trying something a little different, and am splitting my year into quarters and trying to do a review at the end of the quarter. It helps me remember stuff more easily, and is more up to the minute than waiting to until December and trying to do the whole year in one go, or at least that’s the theory. The first quarter review is here, and the second quarter review here.
Work
This quarter marks the anniversary in my change of employment, going from being and employee to self-employed. Looking across those 12 months I’d say it’s been pretty productive, although things have slowed down a bit over the summer. There are a couple of things on the horizon, but as ever they rely on things outside my control, so it’s a little difficult to say at this stage how things might pan out. Having said that I currently have a close family member in hospital, so having the time to be able to visit has been a bonus, and something I can’t ever see that I would have been allowed to do (quite rightly) when I was an employee, so things seem to work out.
I am hoping that things will pick up, as I do like being my own boss, but if they don’t I will have to look for alternatives.
Allotment
It’s been a very good year on the allotment so far, we’ve spent most of this quarter not having to buy any fresh produce from the supermarket, as we’ve been able to provide our own from the plot. This has started to ease off a little now, and I am having to buy odd things – either as crops have started to slow down their production with the shortening days or because things aren’t quite ready yet. In some areas though e.g. potatoes, onions, garlic, we have lots stored that will see us forward for many weeks yet.
I’ve also been trying to do regular update videos on my YouTube channel, and often embedding them here too.
Books
I’ve been reading pretty consistently and have gotten through a number of books this quarter including a couple of “biggies”. I’ve started adding a “currently reading” item to my Quick Links entry each week (when I remember too!).
There are a few that I’d like to mention specifically, and in no particular order they are:
“Normal” by Warren Ellis – This was actually a novella released in 4-parts, one a week over a month. What I liked about it the most was how it told the story in that weekly pattern and how well this worked. Whether or not that was intentional I don’t know, but I don’t think it would have worked as well as just a single book. It reminded me a lot of one of those weekly black and white serials that used to be shown in cinemas e.g. King of the Rocket Men, when I get time, I’m going to sit and reread all four – hopefully in a single sitting.
“Joyland” by Stephen King – I’ve had a copy of this for quite some time, but had never gotten around to reading it until recently. What I liked about it the most, was that it reminded me of some of the early Stephen King books, which I enjoyed far more than some of from the late ’90s / early 2000s. I’d stopped reading his books not long after Geralds Game and The Tommyknockers, so can’t speak for other ones he may have written more recently, but I did think that Joyland was more of the old King.
“Seveneves” – Neal Stephenson – This was one of the biggies and took me a while to get through, but it was worth it. Although it is a work of science fiction, it has a very believable story and characters and despite it’s size held my interest throughout.
“The Book of Yaak” – Rick Bass – Rick Bass has had a mention in both of the previous quarter reviews, and I still have a number of his books that I haven’t read yet, so may well feature again. I really enjoy his writing, both fiction and non-fiction. This is a work of non-fiction and brings to the fore another area of this writers passions. As an environmental activist this book highlights the issues in the Yaak Valley in Montana and the tensions between preserving the old growth forest, the nature and wildlife that it supports and other areas that are important for their nature conservation and the pressures of development and modern intensive forestry. It’s a treatise to the area and the issues, and a fascinating read. It stirred the passion in me for some of the environmental issues that I feel are important.
Films & TV
It’s been a bit of a summer of sport with Euro football and the Olympics and Paralympics. I don’t generally watch much sport, so we’ve been watching a lot of reruns or turning it off. Outside of that there isn’t much to report. We’ve watched a few DVDs but nothing that really inspired me enough that I want to mention it here.
Life In General
Pretty good. As always there are areas I’d like to work on. I’d like to be writing more, and I’d like my business to grow a little, but for the reasons mentioned above I’ve been occupied in other areas and am grateful to have had the time to be able to do those things.
Allotment Update (17th September 2016)
Things are slowing down a little on the allotment now, courgettes that were producing one fruit a day, are now producing about one a week. Other summer crops are coming to the end of their season. It’s now however the end of work on the allotment – I’m already thinking about next year – the planting of over-wintering crops like onions and garlic is just starting as well as broad beans. I’m a little later than I was last year with my broad beans, and they haven’t gone in yet, but the onions and garlic went in last weekend. Here’s a quick video:
Electronic Scrapbook 