LIABILITY BROWN - Dig It

LIABILITY BROWN

Heads Up - Biodiversity Week

11/5/2025

Ireland is all ramped up for their National Biodiversity Week between 16th - 25th May 2025.

See: National Biodiversity Week Ireland

Although I have done a web search it doesn't seem to be a 'thing' generally other than being adopted by our very own Gloucestershire County Council!

From 22nd May to 31st May GCC promotes action across the county to protect biodiversity and connect habitats. The 2025 focus is upon soil health and composting. At No.6 we love our composting! Healthy soil is essential for growing food, storing carbon dioxide and supporting biodiversity; composting, no mow verges, hedgehog holes, wildlife ponds and growing your own crops all contributes to helping biodiversity.

Check out this link:

Biodiversity week 2025 | Gloucestershire County Council

Minted!

5/5/2025

The raised bed has had a few identities and uses, with some being more successful than others. It has proved to be a suitable 'nursery bed' and good for hardening off plants such as cosmos, cucumbers, sunflowers and sweetcorn. However, I have now decided upon a more permanent arrangement! Enclosed at the back is a small Brown Turkey fig-tree; this is one of two in the garden as a reminder of my sister Kate, and will be a permanent spot as the roots are best contained. There is also a rosemary and some cornflowers.

The rest of the raised bed's theme is... a variety of mint! So, a veritable cornucopia of different nuance of flavours and aromas.

New finds will be added as and when.

In preparation for the summer, I am looking up different cocktail recipes which might require a mint garnish or two!

Green Is Good For You

3/5/2025

3rd - 11th May is Gardens and Health Week and the National Garden Scheme has published their 5th edition of the Little Yellow Book of Gardens and Health. The theme is ‘green medicine’ and the resource explores the different ways that gardens can offer a viable and effective alternative to standard clinical responses to people’s health and wellbeing.

It is also free via their website!

Check out this link:

Gardens and Health

Results of Last Week's Sunshine

18/4/2025

If It's Not the Garden...

18/4/2025

“The more I get to know people, the more I find myself loving cats.” Charles de Gaulle

...then it's the call of the cat! Yep... we are officially middle-aged! Our conversations seem to revolve around a cat that only belongs to us by error and the fact that we are easily manipulated (and it's real owners now live in Devon), how the garden has grown over the past few hours or or day or week, and 'isn't the weather unpredictable', how irritating the drivers are through the town and the wider vicinity of the Cotswolds (and the UK generally) and our on-and-off aches and pains and medical maladies.

Still, at least Colin-the-Cat is entertaining, even if he is eating us out of house and home and occupying far too much of our attention. So in order to indulge those proclivities, please be suitably enamoured by this handsome fella...

Prepped

13/4/2025

These photos are from the 23rd March - full-on preparation mode! However, obviously, not quite so on-it with regard to the Blog!

Various homemade structures dusted off and back in place - cucumber frame and rope-circus-top (as it were) for the sweet peas (sown in October, planted out a week ago and flowering now), the old wood-bark cleared up and used as mulch and dug into the veg-patch, and new bark delivered, some fencing painted, lots of seeds sown..... and on and on.

Things have developed a lot in the past two weeks, especially as the weather has been so glorious, so new images to follow later...

Organised Chaos!

12/4/2025

So, there I was feeling smug and full of myself for being so organised with the garden tasks (but not so much the house, it has to be said) and then the nut and bolts of many facets of modern life have fallen into chaos!

I am rather perplexed as to how I have managed to lose so many of my contacts on my various accounts (Google and Outlook)! Some of these are also linked to my two work roles as well. However, I have managed to rescue 792 people, emails and numbers from another source but can you imagine the confusion - and work - ahead?*! Hey ho!

Organised?

7/4/2025

My garden is full of anemone, grape hyacinth, forget-me-not (self-seeded) and, one of my favourites, love-in-a-mist (nigella).

The definition of organised is "arranged according to a particular system" and that is something that I have been aiming for, for the past month or so. If only to keep an 'eye on the prize' as it were.... that is, to get out of winter! And then suddenly - whoosh - it's been an amazing bright, sunny and warm week or so! What a difference it makes - not only to one's mood but also to the garden and wildlife.

The growth within the garden has been stupendous. A few weeks ago it was case of despairing over the bare, dull, muted and boring look of everything and now you can't move for frothy white blossom - on trees such as plums, cherries, apples and hawthorns (family Rosaceae) or a vibrant riot of golden daffodils and multicoloured tulips, primroses and crocuses.

History and All That (2)

1/4/2025

If Salisbury Cathedral’s 800+ years of history and architectural endeavours is impressive then Stonehenge confounds belief as a structure erected by prehistoric, Neolithic people who lived in the area 4,000 years ago.

“The Neolithic period lasted from around 4300 BC down to 2000 BC. Neolithic means 'New Stone' and so this period is sometimes called the New Stone Age. Famous Neolithic sites in Britain include Avebury, Stonehenge, and Silbury Hill” (Uni of Warwick).

Many theories have been put forward about the purpose of Stonehenge as it appears to have no known practical function. Therefore, the focus is upon spirituality and the whole layout of the stone circle in relation to the solstices, which are the extreme limits of the sun’s movement.

The first monument at Stonehenge was a circular earthwork enclosure, built in about 3000 BC
In approximately 2500 BC the site was transformed by the construction of the central stone settings – using enormous sarsen stones and smaller bluestones.
On average the Sarsens weigh 25 tons, with the largest stone, the Heel Stone, weighing about 30 tons.
The Bluestones all came from the Preseli Hills in south-west Wales – about 180 miles away - and weigh between 2 and 5 tons each.

The quote from Nigel Tufnel is from This is Spinal Tap -A Rockumentary by Martin Di Bergi - a 1984 American mockumentary comedy film. It is one of Paul's favourite films and he can recite it at length!

The film satirises the behaviour and musical pretensions of rock bands. The link to Stonehenge is that Nigel (vocals and guitar) suggests staging a lavish, Druid-themed glam-rock show based around the Stonehenge trilithon. However, Nigel mislabels its dimensions, and the resulting prop is only 18 inches (46 cm) high rather than 18 feet (5.5 m), making the group a laughing stock.

Stonehenge - Song by Spinal Tap

In ancient times hundreds of years before the dawn of history
Lived this strange race of people, the druids
No one knows who they were what they were doing
But the legacy remains here into the living rock of Stonehenge

Stonehenge, where the demons dwell
Where the banshees live and they do live well
Stonehenge where a man is a man
And the children dance to the pipes of pan

Stonehenge, 'tis a magic place
Where the moon doth rise with a dragon's face
Stonehenge where the virgins lie
And the prayer of devils fill the midnight sky

And you my love, won't you take my hand?
We'll go back in time to that mystic land
Where the dew drops cry and the cats meow
I will take you there, I will show you how

And oh, how they danced
The little children of Stonehenge
Beneath the haunted moon for fear
That day break might come too soon

And where were they now
The little people of Stonehenge
And what would they say to us
If we were here tonight

Songwriters: Harry Shearer, Christopher Guest, Michael Mc Kean, Rob Reiner. For non-commercial use only.

Check out:
https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/stonehenge/history-and-stories/understanding-stonehenge/

https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/stonehenge/history-and-stories/building-stonehenge/

History and All That (1)

30/3/2025

Salisbury Cathedral - its spire is 123m / 404ft tall.

Although initially it was a visit tinged with sadness, Paul and I enjoyed a weekend in Salisbury (Wiltshire) recently.

Paul’s grandmother died a few months ago – but at the grand old age of 103 years so whilst sad it was to be expected. We completed the official requirements and paperwork and then scattered her ashes near a small town called Wilton, where she had lived for over fifty years.

The Red Lion Hotel

We stayed at The Red Lion Hotel in the centre of the city. It was originally the “White Bear Inn” and was constructed to house the draughtsman working on the 'new' Cathedral - where building started in 1220 ! When the basic construction was finished in the late 13th century, the White Bear continued to house visitors to the Cathedral and subsequently the ‘New City’ of Salisbury. It is therefore probable that the hotel is possibly the longest running purpose-built hotel in the country. In the early 1700s the name was changed to the ‘Red Lion and Cross Keys’. This name remained in use until 30th January 1769 when the sign was altered to the ‘Red Lion’ only. The name was changed by its new owner, Daniel Pearce Safe, who was the Postmaster of Salisbury. He subsequently moved the Salisbury Post Office to the hotel building and therefore the Red Lion became the main entrance for all mail coaches arriving in and leaving Salisbury.

The new Cathedral foundation stones were laid on 28 April 1220. The Cathedral’s foundations are only 1.2 metres (4 foot) deep and underneath these there is just gravel and water. There is a specific hole in the Cathedral floor to check the depth of the water.

Salisbury's original Cathedral was built two miles from the current city centre on the site of an iron age hillfort, known as Old Sarum.

A cathedral and a royal castle were built at Old Sarum following the Norman Conquest by William the Conqueror in 1066. In 1075 the original Salisbury Cathedral building commenced and was finished in 1091. However, because of problems with the lack of water and stormy weather at the hillfort, as well as stormy relations between the monks and the army garrison, a new site in the river valley below was chosen and an official Papal Bull was issued agreeing to the move.

Old Sarum - a motte-and-bailey castle

Built between 1310 – 1330, the cathedral spire towers 123m (404ft) above the ground and weighs 6,500 tons. It the tallest church spire in the UK.
The cathedral was constructed between 1220 and 1258, in a style called Early English Gothic – emphasising height and light in comparison to the bulkier, heavier buildings of the 11th and 12th century.
The cathedral is built with Purbeck marble. However Purbeck marble is not marble, nor does it come from the Isle of Purbeck – it is actually crystalline limestone and was quarried in Corfe Castle, Dorset (a distance of 43 miles).
The cathedral is 473 feet long. The nave is 82 feet long and 84 feet high.
Salisbury Cathedral houses the best preserved of only four surviving original 1215 Magna Carta, and the only copy on permanent display. Arguably Britain’s most important piece of written history, it was also the inspiration for the American Constitution.
The world’s oldest working mechanical clock was built in 1386 and is situated in the church. The clock has no face and was designed only to strike every hour. The mechanism is driven by falling weights which must be wound up once a day.
Houses for the priests were built on the land surrounding the new Cathedral an the 80-acre Cathedral Close is the largest in Britain.
The Close reflects 800 years of rich and varied architecture including medieval and elegant Georgian dwellings. Buildings include: The Wardrobe which is a military museum, home of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Royal Regiment and Kings House is the Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum, The Medieval Hall, once the Deanery, is among the oldest buildings in the Close, and Mompesson House, built in 1701, is a Georgian townhouse now owned by the National Trust.

Mompesson House,

Check out:
https://www.visitwiltshire.co.uk/salisbury

https://www.salisburycathedral.org.uk/

Cat Therapy

26/3/2025

My sister sent a surprise gift of a CtC Vase because it made her - and everyone else - laugh! It now has pride of place in GH1. (below).

I'm feeling a bit fed-up but CtC is proving to be quite useful in the cheering-up department, in lieu of limitations in the garden (it being March and all that). Having said that, the last week or so has seen leaps and bounds with flowers and greenery springing-forth! Watch this space.

Let Them Eat [More] Cake

9/3/2025

We recently enjoyed five days staying with friends in Konigstein, near Frankfurt. It seems to have become a regular place to visit at the really-fed-up end of the winter – also known as February! It is great for us because the travel itself is easy and – shock horror – this time even getting through security at Birmingham airport was quick. Also, when ensconced in Konigstein there is no pressure to ‘do’ anything – just let each day unfold. Naturally that ends up having a good catch-up (including whinging and moaning about the world in general) and having a giggle, as well as mainly eating and drinking! Depending on the weather we might venture out for a restorative walk, returning via the incredibly fantastic Café Kreiner. It is an archetypal German café with beautifully presented pastries, cakes and torte – defined as a rich, usually multi-layered, cake that is filled with whipped cream, buttercreams, mousses, jams, or fruit. It is also the place where the great-and-good of the town meet for afternoon tea – with their handbag pooches clutched underarm or dressed in gaudy ‘coats’ looking bewildered and embarrassed by such frivolous and ridiculous embellishment. So… if that is the local canine population – can you imagine the get-up of their (usually more mature) owners?! Konigstein is known to be a fairy wealthy town and I would surmise that the Botox and facelift providers, and beauty spas have a brisk trade!

Anyway, I digress – check out the sweet treats on this website: Konditorei Kreiner | Königstein im Taunus

We did manage a short touristy excursion to a small town called Bad Camberg which is located in the eastern Taunus in the Goldener Grund (“Golden Ground”) some about 44 km northwest of Frankfurt. It seems to have a fixation with goats as there were sculptures and artworks of these animals all over the town – however, I don’t know why! As a spa town its mineral spring waters, fed from the outlying centre of Oberselters, are well known as Selterswasser, translated as “seltzer” in English.
The old town is attractive and steeped in history – with quite a number of elaborately decorated timber-frame houses mainly built between the 15th and 18th centuries…. good for a photo opportunity in between stopping for more refreshments!

February

17/2/2025

Well, February. ‘Nuff said. Especially in the UK, that's for sure. It has been a pretty full-on and not necessarily a positive couple of weeks - and that doesn't even include the weather!

I won't go into everything as I don’t want to bore you to tears, but it included my car breaking down [at work] and the logistics of getting it to a garage to be fixed (at a cost of £260). I was without the car for over a week - very irritating. Then, two days later Paul’s car started making weird noises so that is booked into the garage later this week too. Ruddy typical!

I also had a complete nightmare within my second job-role; a Sports Hall 'customer' was being particularly difficult, and, in the end, I referred the issue to the Committee as I refused to be "harangued" anymore. It completely ruined the whole weekend because, you know what I am like, I worried and worried about it! That was eventually sorted out and I feel somewhat vindicated however, why is there is always one person who can upset the apple-cart?

Also I have been really struggling with the on-going vision issue in my left-eye. At the beginning of the month I had an appointment with Professor McNaught at Cheltenham General Hospital's Ophthalmology department....

He removed three loose stitches from my eye and prescribed antibiotic drops. Hopefully it will be more comfortable now; the other stitches can remain in the eye for years and years - they are nylon apparently.
I asked about having a 'blind' contact lens to block out all blurred vison from the left eye because is irritating, disconcerting and ultimately very depressing, however he does not recommend it because it might impact on the operation / surgery.
Instead, he has suggested a pair of glasses with a 'defused' left lens for back-up because that might help with headaches and, generally, my frustration.
He says it might take up to another year for the optic nerve to settle down - if it ever does...
He literally said my situation is "tragic" ....
And he qualified this by saying that in the 25 years he had been at Cheltenham he has only seen "two or three" other patients who have experienced this deterioration because of the high pressure in the eye, and they have no idea why it changed so much in such a short period of time [a couple of months].

As you can imagine, this made [makes] me very depressed.

Ariel Perspective

15/2/2025

Red outlines No.6's property lines. The Land Registry records are more complicated when it comes to the bank and path leading to the gate... let's not get embroiled here!

A neighbour has recently put their house on the market and the estate agent uploaded drone photography of the area. So, this photo has been copied and edited (badly, by me) to give a bird's eye view of No.6 and hopefully will illustrate and give some clarity to the weird set-up of the cottage gardens in our little terrace. The majority of properties still have the long, narrow gardens but our's and the immediate neighbour's were divided widthways about 20 years ago (before we bought it). This is why I reference walking up the garden path quite a lot!

Looking Forward

15/1/2025

I think we are all agreed that it is good to have something to look forward to? So with that in mind, at the weekend Paul and I booked and paid for two trips -

Frankfurt - to see friends at the beginning of March
Florence - 20th wedding anniversary in June.

Originally we were meant to go in 2020 and it was all booked-up but obviously had to cancel because of the international Covid lock-down. So, because I'd already identified a decent hotel, it's been just a case of matching up some flights and pressing the appropriate booking and payment buttons.

Having said that, there are limited direct flights to Florence (can you credit it?) and instead there are more to Pisa which then involves trains, buses or taxis for transfers. Now, being of an age where we can't be bovvered with certain things (people, attitudes, faff) we've opted for an additional night's stay, travel with a reputable airline, reasonable flight times and despite an hour's stop each way (at Frankfurt airport funnily enough), we are landing at Florence airport. In the grand scheme of things the difference in price is negligible and it also affords us more time in the city itself. Win-win!

YIPPEE!

No Need to Hurry...

5/1/2025

“No need to hurry, no need to sparkle, no need to be anybody but oneself”.

I think that these words by Virginia Woolf should resonate with all of us particularly at this time of the year!

*Virginia Woolf also wrote in her diary on the 2nd January 1931:

Here are my resolutions for the next 3 months; the next lap of the year.
To have none. Not to be tied.
To be free & kindly with myself, not goading it to parties: to sit rather privately reading in the studio.
To stop irritation by the assurance that nothing is worth irritation
Sometimes to read, sometimes not to read.
To go out yes – but stay at home in spite of being asked.
As for clothes, to buy good ones.

So, with this sage advice in mind…

I’m always itching to start sowing seeds, but I am trying to be patient! However, all the professionals intone the benefit of waiting until there is more energy available from the sun in terms of both light and heat. Without these optimum conditions seeds and seedlings will struggle to germinate and get going. Actually – that advice could be applied to this particular human-being too!

So, instead, brew a decent cuppa, grab the seed box and do an inventory of the miracle giving paper-pockets already in your grubby hands…
It’s worth creating a simple crop plan to see what might be for the visionary season ahead, working out rough numbers for each bed to help work out how much trawling of the garden-centre or on-line shop might be required.

Are there a stack of unopened packets having become a tad over-optimistic about available time and space, last year?!
Are there those that are so out-of-date they should be tossed into the compost bin? Or into the hedge as usually happens at No.6.
Perhaps you can pass on any varieties which didn’t do well in your soil/growing conditions, or half-finished packets that might not be enough for the whole season, but a neighbour could use.

However, it’s always good to have some back-up seeds, like radish or turnips, as they are good ‘fillers’. Having said that, I have never successfully grown either of these vegetables! As you know my modus operandi generally involves planting out what I think are particular seedlings and then they seem to morph into something else… case in point for summer 2024, my enthusiasm for and nurturing of the difficult-to-grow Florence Fennel - which I was showing off about to everyone – which turned out to be run-of-the-mill normal fennel, but at least it wasn’t dill which looks pretty much the same and would be even more embarrassing!

Oh well. So, on this dull, grey and cold day I’m donning multiple layers and the posh Barbour wellies and trudging off to the greenhouse for take stock! With a cuppa - obvs.

*taken from a piece by Alice Vincent in 2021, for the Penguin books website.

Happy New Year!

31/12/2024

Christmas at Cross House

27/12/2024

Life According to C&H

22/12/2024

A Cat At Christmas

21/12/2024

Not So Bah Humbug

21/12/2024

The Dormy House Hotel

For someone who has been quietly grumbling about too much Christmas commercialism, I have enjoyed a few events in the past week. I hasten to add that it hasn't been overboard though, so I don't think I am a hypocrite?! After all, on a personal note, we don't have any decorations up yet, nor have we actually bought specific foodstuffs or alcohol!

However, my new employer has been very generous and we were treated to a fabulous Christmas evening meal at The Dormy House Hotel (near Broadway) - which is a pretty swanky place. Have a look at dormyhouse.co.uk .

And that wasn't all - every employee received a Christmas hamper with lots of goodies - mulled wine, prosecco, pudding, cheese biscuits, chutneys, mince-pies and so on. How civilised.

Eclectic enjoyment, part 1.

15/12/2024

I keep a lot of pictures or photographs or excerpts from books and magazines, or posts on the internet and file them in various folders entitled "To Use" or "Funny" or whatever. And they then sit there collecting virtual dust .. until now!

Eclectic enjoyment, part 1.

Bah Humbug (1)

15/12/2024

What to tell you? Naturally I have been trying to ignore all the hysteria around Christmas. Bah Humbug. I mean, really? Trees and decorations do not need to go up in November, the food equivalent of the European butter mountain does not need to be purchased and stock-piled in the larder or kitchen cupboards and neither does an ice-berg of peas, parsnips and pigs-in-blankets need to be stuffed into the freezer. I just thank heavens that I’m in the UK - and goodness knows that's currently got its issues - but at least we are not necessarily battling to live a normal life (or to survive) in Israel, Gaza, Ukraine, South Korea, Syria… maybe the marketing gurus should take a step back, adopt some humility (and humanity) and reflect what Christmas is actually about and what it should signify?

We will obviously enjoy the festivities – but let’s keep it timely and in perspective.

Marjariasana

11/12/2024

We have been most definitely adopted by CtC (Colin the Cat) who makes regularly timed visits for food and arrives for a cosy and warm bed the hour before 9.30pm. He is a topic of conversation throughout the day (and with the immediate neighbourhood) and is in danger of running our lives! Both Paul and I find ourselves talking to him all the time... I like to think that this is not necessarily a sign of madness (or sadness) but is therapeutic. To that end, CtC just gave me a look of derision and a flick of his tail as I explained about some of the yoga poses I have been learning in my weekly sessions, with particular emphasis and demonstration of Marjariasana, aka Cat Pose.

So, that aside, Marjariasana (Cat Pose) gets its name from the Sanskrit words marjari, meaning cat, and asana, meaning pose. It is an easy forward-kneeling pose, that is used as a warm-up pose to prepare the body for higher level and intense Yoga practices.

In cat pose, a gentle stretch begins from the neck to the lower back that makes our core muscles work together; coming down to the floor on hands and knees and then arching the back up (cow pose), then round it down. It mainly tones the core & spinal muscles and increases their flexibility.

Like all elements of yoga, it can help improve mobility and strengthens mental health and is cat-egorically a good basis for more advanced techniques and flows.

“I have lived with several Zen masters - all of them cats.” Eckhart Tolle (b Feb 1948), a German-born spiritual teacher and self-help author.

“I have studied many philosophers and many cats. The wisdom of cats is infinitely superior.” – Hippolyte Taine (1828 –1893), French historian, critic and philosopher.

From "In Otter News"

25/11/2024

Check out "In Otter News" on FB. There is also an etsy site - In Otter News - ETSY

So funny!