Digging in the Dirt

Above:  A squash or possibly a pumpkin!
These cucurbit seem to morph into each other. Cucurbits include courgettes, melons and cucumbers.  I've never grown these before, nor cooked any but welcomed the seedling originally proffered by a neighbour.

It has been a horrible three weeks.  I have been incredibly stressed and generally wound-up and unhappy.  This is predominantly because of my main job.  I shan’t write any details because it would not be professional or diplomatic, but needless to say, and with an eye on keeping my sanity as much as my general health in the mid-term, I have even approached people about citing them as referees if I should come across any vacancies that I feel might be sufferable…(!).  BUT, that’s the thing, I don’t seem to be particularly enamoured with anything! Or is it a case of I really can’t be bothered?  Perhaps this is the problem? It is somewhat a vicious circle (grrr…) feeling unhappy and disillusioned creates an apathy, which in turn creates dissatisfaction and lack of enthusiasm, which in turn…. Ad finitum.

It makes me smile when I hear people say that they would be bored if they had to retire; I have PLENTY to keep me occupied and cannot wait to finish work so I can get on to do the things that  enjoy. Whilst my job is certainly not dull or very demanding, working absolutely gets in the way of those things that are preferable!

Actually, I haven’t heard many people say they don’t want to retire, it’s more that to afford to do so would be unviable and then one couldn’t do a number of those things we dream about anyway. Hey ho.  So, it’s down to balancing it all out, isn’t it?
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On a practical and logistic note, there have also been a catalogue of irritations – and mainly expensive ones recently too.  First off there has been the cracked-tooth-looks-like-a-witch scenario- which is now fixed (as of Thursday) at the cost of just under £1000 . Gulp! On top of that, both of our cars had MOTs… and the extra ‘bits’ like windscreen-wipers, tyre treads, balancing-whatchamacallits and a standard service (on my car) costing an additional £500 or thereabouts.  And on top of that, last weekend whilst at the supermarket, a car backed into mine…. and then drove off!!  Initially it seemed to be a small bump but on getting home  and opening the boot it transpired that the latch has been damaged and subsequently doesn’t do its job (i.e. latch).  Because the car is quite old the garage cannot source a new lock mechanism and that means we will have to see if there is anything available via ebay or second-hand websites.  It’s not a difficult job – says Paul because he will do it, not me! (ha! can you imagine!?) – but it is an irritation.  Also, it’s so disappointing that the person just drove off and couldn’t ‘own up’.  This is half of the problem with work to be honest, in the past year or so I just don’t want to deal much with ‘other people’…. and that’s not really a very good outlook on life, is it?

Oh – and on top of that, I had a puncture yesterday too…. in a different car-park!  You couldn’t make it up could you?

It's a good thing, therefore, after an expensive few weeks that this little household doesn’t particularly focus on having ‘stuff’ (there’s nowhere to put it anyway!) and as we usually lurch from one month to another, we are not overly panicked. It’ll all come out in the wash, as they say.

Who are ‘they’ though?

Also, where have all these references to “back in the day” come from?  It appears to be “phrase du jour”  - repeated on the radio, TV, social media, general conversations…
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Maybe people always said these phrases  - or is it that I am only hearing them now that I’m officially middle-aged?  It’s all very disconcerting.

So having waffled on far too much already, you’ll be pleased to hear that as often as possible, it has been a case of “When the going gets tough, the tough go to the garden”[anon] and it is there that I have sought therapeutic solace!

It’s been a weird month or so though, hasn’t it?  Three weeks ago it was 30+ degrees, followed by torrential rain and wind and then, over the past few days, autumn is bedding in.  I’m generally confused, and so are my plants!

I continue to have success with produce from the veg patch and in greenhouse No2, but some plants just couldn’t cope with the cold snap in the Spring and then the very hot period in June. Blossom was devastated on the apple trees, for example, as we have had hardly any fruit this year.  The peas were disappointing (and I love fresh peas from the pod) and even some of the herbs (parsley, coriander, basil) have either bolted or have been somewhat ‘reticent’.  Whilst I also sowed carrots and various green-leaf vegetables, the weird up-and-down weather wasn’t helpful and very few seedlings survived. 
However, let’s focus on the abundance that has been harvested…. Here goes:
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• Tomatoes: fabulous – two varieties and akin to picking sweets off a vine,
• Cucumbers: two or three varieties, with some cucumbers so well hidden behind their wide, rough and scratchy leaves, that they grew to be rather large as well as prolific – but good for gazpacho and smoothies),
• French beans: these were incredibly prolific and very crunchy, perfect in stir-fries or raw in salads, but done and dusted by mid-July,
• Beetroot: pretty good roasted, pickled, souped…. Lots about!
• Runner beans:  still growing, still tender and still particularly tasty,
• Sweetcorn: as above.  Even better when picked and cooked within half-an-hour because (apparently) the sugars have not yet had chance to turn into starch,
• Peppers: as above, and for the first time ever, there are plenty on each plant and some of them are even ripening to red!  

Remember: 
"You can bury a lot of troubles digging in the dirt.” (Anon)